The Trial Before Pilate: Part of the Gospel that Always Confused Me

[nfinke]

So the chief priests needed Judas to betray Jesus because Jesus was spending His nights somewhere on the mount of Olives, where they didn’t know, and whenever He was in Jerusalem He was teaching in the temple among His followers. The chief priests were concerned that if they arrested Jesus in public, his followers would riot since they saw Him as a prophet.

So if the chief priests were concerned, there had to 1. Be a decent number of these daily followers, and 2. They had to be decently loyal (to be willing to riot against the authority of the chief priests).

What had always confused me was, where were these people when Pilate said “should I release Jesus to you?” I understand the chief priests were in the crowd at that time riling the crowd, but it seems like a stretch that that alone would be enough to push someone previously willing to riot at Jesus’ arrest to totally reverse and start yelling “Crucify Him!”

And if his followers were really that easily influenced, the chief priests could have sown this dissent in the crowd while Jesus was teaching, and have the crowd turn on Him and just arrest Him in public like they originally wanted to. Would have saved them some sheckles.

Why did Christ’s loyal followers seem to disappear?

 

[Hodos]

The term kangaroo court would adequately describe the trial of Christ. Essentially the chief priests selected who was going to be present at the trial by limiting the initial questioning to after nightfall, and then conducted the trial in the palace of Pilate, not a place where the uninvited mob would likely be welcome. Also, keep in mind that while many people would likely have supported Jesus because they had a certain nationalist fervor that the idea of a Son of David would stoke, that didn’t necessarily mean they were disciples. If the chief priests exerted their influence over the crowd, saying that Jesus was a danger to the temple, this would probably go a long way to influencing the crowds.

 

[phil19034]

What had always confused me was, where were these people when Pilate said “should I release Jesus to you?” I understand the chief priests were in the crowd at that time riling the crowd, but it seems like a stretch that that alone would be enough to push someone previously willing to riot at Jesus’ arrest to totally reverse and start yelling “Crucify Him!”

The people yelling “Crucify Him” were most likely paid plants.

Jesus’s true followers were afraid. They would have been most likely taking their cues from the Apostles - who were afraid.

 

[EndTimes]

What had always confused me was, where were these people when Pilate said “should I release Jesus to you?” I understand the chief priests were in the crowd at that time riling the crowd, but it seems like a stretch that that alone would be enough to push someone previously willing to riot at Jesus’ arrest to totally reverse and start yelling “Crucify Him!”

It confuses you because you have that part of the Gospel backwards…
It wasn’t Jesus’ followers who demanded Crucifixion - it was the Jewish Leadership

Let us review:

1. Once more Pilate came out and said to the Jews gathered there, “Look, I am bringing him out to you to let you know that I find no basis for a charge against him.”
2. As soon as the chief priests and their officials saw him, they shouted, “Crucify! Crucify!”
3. Pilate answered, “You take him and crucify him. As for me, I find no basis for a charge against him.”
4. The Jewish leaders insisted, “We have a law, and according to that law he must die, because he claimed to be the Son of God.”
5. From then on, Pilate tried to set Jesus free, but the Jewish leaders kept shouting, “If you let this man go, you are no friend of Caesar. Anyone who claims to be a king opposes Caesar.”
6. When Pilate heard this, he brought Jesus out and sat down on the judge’s seat at a place known as the Stone Pavement
7. “Here is your king,” Pilate said to the Jews.
8. But they shouted, “Take him away! Take him away! Crucify him!”
9. “Shall I crucify your king?” Pilate asked.
10. “We have no king but Caesar,” the chief priests answered.
11. Finally Pilate handed him over to them to be crucified.

 

[Stephen_says]

OOOH, this is interesting!

In many depictions of the Passion, it’s like the whole city is out watching the questioning and scourging before Pilate, but it might have been a much smaller band of Jews.

The Gospels of Mark, Matthew and John are a little more vague on the Crowd, but Luke does seem to indicate it was a larger group…but since it was the Passover, there might have been hundreds of people there who knew nothing of Jesus

 

[EndTimes]

The Gospels of Mark, Matthew and John are a little more vague on the Crowd, but Luke does seem to indicate it was a larger group…but since it was the Passover, there might have been hundreds of people there who knew nothing of Jesus

And… Any who came to witness an execution - most likely actually DID knew something of JESUS.

And immediately After the Crucifixion it’s been shown that Everyone in Jerusalem know about it.

So what we talking? 50,000 people? 100,000? More?

Anything else?

_

 

[JGD]

but since it was the Passover, there might have been hundreds of people there who knew nothing of Jesus

I agree. And also there were no doubt hundreds of believers who had no idea He’d been arrested and sentenced. All of this - Jesus’ arrest, trial, and crucifixion - took place within a very short period of time, less than 24 hours!. He was arrested very late on Thursday night while most were probably asleep, and He was crucified the next day. No telephones, telegraphs, or internet back then.

 

[EndTimes]

All of Judea / Syria was aware of Jesus – before His Crucifixion

Why? Because 1000’s upon 1000’s had already recognized Him as Messiah…

In the words He spoke - In the Miracles He performed…

And all along - From their Priests, Pharisees, Lawyers, Sadducees, Scribes…

Jesus Told Peter - Head Apostle - to put down his sword when Jesus was arrested by Temple Guards

Virturally all in Jerusalem knew of His Crucifixion

which occurred in the presense of Pilate - and the Jewish Leadershiop - with Roman Soldiers around

Any of His followers were dumbstruck - afraid - and hid - even Lied - including Peter…

News? Traveled extremely fast vis word of mouth back when…

Anything else?
_

 

[Wesrock]

Keep in mind that Jewish pilgrims from all over were in Jerusalem. The general inference I’ve seen is that Jesus was very popular with the Galilean crowd but was less known by the people of Jerusalem. That’s not to say there was no overlap. The Galileans were largely excluded from that decision.

Or it may just have been that many people were two-faced.

 

[Dan_Defender]

If all the Apostles except John plus the disciples who followed him for 3 years went into hiding after the arrest, what do you expect of regular folks? this was indeed our Lord’s darkest hour… however everything changed at Pentecost.

 

[EndTimes]

Why would any try to minimize the numbers of Jews in Jerusalem who Knew about a Man who was performing Miracles and touted by some to be The Messiah and hated by the Jewish Leadership?

=

10 When Jesus entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred and asked, “Who is this?”

11 The crowds answered, “This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee.”

Jesus at the Temple​

12 Jesus entered the temple courts and drove out all who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves. 13 “It is written,” he said to them, “‘My house will be called a house of prayer but you are making it ‘a den of robbers.’

14 The blind and the lame came to him at the temple, and he healed them. 15 But when the chief priests and the teachers of the law saw the wonderful things he did and the children shouting in the temple courts, “Hosanna to the Son of David,” they were indignant.