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18:40 - At this, they shouted out again, "No, not this man, but Barabbas!" Barabbas was a bandit.
CHAPTER 19
Pilate's vain efforts to save Jesus
19:1-3 - Then Pilate took Jesus and had him flogged, and the soldiers twisted thorn-twigs into a crown and put it on his head, threw a purple robe around him and kept coming into his presence, saying, "Hail, king of the Jews!" And then they slapped him with their open hands.
19:4 - Then Pilate went outside again and said to them, "Look, I bring him out before you here, to show that I find nothing criminal about him at
all."
19:5 - And at this Jesus came outside too, wearing the thorn crown and the purple robe. "Look," said Pilate, Where's the man!"
19:6 - The sight of him made the chief priests and Jewish officials shout at the top of their voices, "Crucify! Crucify!" "You take him and crucify him," retorted Pilate. "He's no criminal as far as I can see!"
19:7 - The Jews answered him, "We have a Law, and according to that Law, he must die, for he made himself out to be Son of God!"
19:8-9 - When Pilate heard them say this, he became much more uneasy, and returned to the palace again and spoke to Jesus, "Where do you come from?"
19:10 - But Jesus gave him no reply. So Pilate said to him, "Won't you speak to me? Don't you realise that I have the power to set you free, and I have the power to have you crucified?"
19:11 - "You have no power at all against me," replied Jesus, "except what was given to you from above. And for that reason the one who handed me over to you is even more guilty than you are."
19:12 - From that moment, Pilate tried hard to set him free but the Jews were shouting, "If you set this man free, you are no friend of Caesar! Anyone who makes himself out to be a king is anti-Caesar!"
19:13-14 - When Pilate heard this, he led Jesus outside and sat down upon the Judgment-seat in the place called the Pavement in Hebrew, Gabbatha). It was preparation day of the Passover and it was now getting on towards midday. Pilate said to the Jews, "Look, here's your
king!"
19:15 - At which they yelled, "Take him away, take him away, crucify him!"
"Am I to crucify your king?" Pilate asked them. "Caesar is our king and no one else," replied the chief priests.
