Caving In to the Crowd: Luke 23:13-25
Focus Passage: Luke 23:13-25 (NIrV)
In Jesus’ trial before Pilate, each of the gospel writers focuses on the event in a slightly different way. In Luke’s gospel, we see Pilate trying to give a judgment that tries to balance his belief in Jesus’ innocence and the crowd’s demands for death.
Luke tells us that Pilate called everyone together and said to them, “You brought me this man. You said he was turning the people against the authorities. I have questioned him in front of you. I have found no basis for your charges against him. Herod hasn’t either. So he sent Jesus back to us. As you can see, Jesus has done nothing that is worthy of death. So I will just have him whipped and let him go.” (v. 14-17)
Luke tells us that Pilate kept trying to convince the crowd, but he was ultimately unsuccessful. “But with loud shouts they kept calling for Jesus to be crucified. The people’s shouts won out. So Pilate decided to give them what they wanted.” (v. 23-24)
Pilate really wanted to release Jesus, but keeping peace in the region, especially with this irrational and angry crowd, was more important than the life of an innocent Man. Pilate bends to the pressure of the people and gives them what they wanted.
I wonder if Pilate ever looked back on this decision with regret. We may never know, but in our own lives, each of us faces the pressure to do what we know isn’t right. Pilate clearly stated that Jesus was innocent of the charges, but even though Pilate tries to distance himself from the crowd’s demands by washing his hands (which Matthew includes in his event), Pilate cannot avoid responsibility for Jesus’ death.
The crowd’s demands won out because Pilate decided to give them what they wanted. In this action, Jesus’ death was not only at the hands of the Jewish leaders and the Jewish people, but also at the hands of the Roman leaders. When Pilate caved in, he symbolically brought Rome (representing all non-Jews) into the group of those responsible for Jesus’ death.
In Pilate’s decision during Jesus’ trial, we can learn a valuable lesson: The only way to truly live a life free from regrets is to always do what we know to be right in the time – regardless of the consequences. Pilate failed to do so in this trial, and this event likely clouded the remainder of his rule in Judea. We don’t have to make the same mistake he did. In our own lives, even when it is difficult, we should choose the option that we know in our hearts is right.
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