Pontius Pilate ordered the Roman soldiers to torture Jesus, but Jesus had done nothing wrong.
Who was Pontius Pilate?
Marcus Pontius Pilate was the fifth Roman governor of Judaea under the Emperor Tiberius Julius Caesar Augustus, ruling during Jesus’ adulthood. During Passover Jesus was arrested and taken to be tried before the Sanhedrin, the Jewish judicial body. The Jewish leaders found Jesus guilty of many crimes including Blasphemy. At the conclusion of their trial Jesus was taken to Pontius Pilate to be judged. The Sanhedrin claimed Jesus said he was to be King of the Jews, making himself king, which would be considered treasonous for being a direct challenge to the Roman authorities. In the end Pontius Pilate was the one to order the crucifixion of Jesus.
But first let’s back up a bit and do a little review of Israel to get an idea of how we got here with Pontius Pilate.
If you remember the story of the Nativity and how the Magi encountered a King Herod in Jerusalem on their search for Jesus “Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we have seen his star in the East, and have come to worship him.” (Matthew 2:2) Causing much distress to King Herod so much so that the Magi after visiting the Holy Family “And being warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed to their own country by another way.” (Matthew 2:12) were to delay the wrath of cruel King Herod who ordered the killing of the innocents in his desperation to eliminate any royal competition.
“Then Herod, when he saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, was in a furious rage, and he sent and killed all the male children in Bethlehem and in all that region who were two years old or under, according to the time which he had ascertained from the wise men.”
Matthew 2:16
Herod the Great was King ruling Israel until a little after Jesus’ birth. (Dates are being contested on this but consensus is that Herod the Great was very much alive at Jesus’ birth.) He was known for being exceedingly cruel and was not afraid to murder anyone who he felt was a threat. His cruelty had no bounds as he had his first wife and some of his sons murdered because he was unwilling to lose his power of the throne. Upon his death Israel was divided among his three sons. Judea and Samaria was ruled by Herod Archelaus the ethnarch (governor). Galilee and Perea went to his son Herod Antipas the tetrarch, and the small territories to the north went to his son Philip the tetrarch.
Note this map of Israel Palestine Under Roman Rule showing the divided Israel among Herod’s sons.
All three of Herod’s living sons went to Rome to claim their title to the region left by their father. There were some serious conflicts as each of them wanted to be given the title King to the entire region just as their Father. Rome was unwilling to acquiesce to their requests. Rome honored the will of Herod the Great and the region was divided between the sons as written in the will. I will note here that Herod II (aka Herod Philip) was the oldest living son and would have had by custom more title to the region as a King. He was written out of the will and given no title because of his mother’s treasonous involvement with his older half-brothers. Herod II and his wife Herodias left the area to live in Rome away from this treacherous family. Herod Archelaus was disposed in AD 6 and the Romans took over control. (See: Israel and Empire: From the Maccabees to the War against Rome) Until Herod the Great’s death Rome was preoccupied with threats closer to their borders. Rome was focused on conquering Europe especially Britain, Germany, and France leaving the lands of the Middle East in the hands of local Kings. When Judea became a Roman province Rome began to be more serious in its control of the region. Its past experience of conquering meant Rome maintained tight control on new provinces and with it came censuses and taxation.
But when Herod died, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, saying “Rise, take the child and his mother, and go to the land of Israel, for those who sought the child’s life are dead.” And he rose and took the child and his mother, and went to the land of Israel. But when he heard that Archelaus reigned over Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there, and being warned in a dream he withdrew to the district of Galilee.
Matthew 2:19-22
Herod Antipas is the King Herod that Jesus knew. Officially he was not a king like his father Herod the Great. Herod Antipas was a tetrarch ruling in Galilee during most of Jesus’ lifetime. There is not much to tell about Herod Antipas in way of his governing his district. He was not a tyrant like his father and he had ineffective ambition in the construction of great buildings, little remains of his reign. What we do know is that it was his personal life that was memorable. Herod Antipas divorced his first wife Phasa’el, princess of Nabatea, daughter of King Aretas IV and married Herodias. You may remember that Herodias was previously married to his older half-brother Herod II. It was this divorce and marriage that John the Baptist was condemning as contrary to Jewish law. Specifically, John the Baptist objected to this family and its spousal relationships. To begin Herod Antipas was Herodias’ uncle and it is believed that Herod II was still living at the time the divorce and marriage. Ultimately these public condemnations led to John the Baptist’s arrest and subsequent death. It was Salome, Herodias’ daughter with Herod II who asked for John’s head during Herod Antipas’ birthday party.
Back to the present situation of Jesus ending up in the hands of Pontius Pilate.
In the Gospel of Luke Jesus was first brought before Pontius Pilate for trial after the Sanhedrain found him guilty. Pilate realized that Jesus was a Galilean and had been most active in Herod’s territory therefore Jesus should be tried under Herod Antipas’ jurisdiction. It was normal legal procedure to have criminals tried by authorities of the province where the alleged crimes occurred. This was Pontius Pilate’s way of avoiding the Jewish authorities by not getting involved with local crimes. Herod Antipas was pleased to see Jesus thinking that Jesus might perform one of the many miracles Herod had heard about Him doing. Again, Jesus remained silent during the questioning leaving Herod Antipas bored and frustrated so he sent Jesus back to Pilate.
Trial ———> Passion
The Jewish leaders looked to Pilate to punish Jesus. Pontius Pilate still could not find guilt in Jesus and was reluctant to severely punish Him. With whispers of an uprising brewing Pilate fears revolts and descended into cowardice proceeding with the mob requests and sending Jesus to the crucifix. Pilate played his part of the path Jesus needed to walk and will forever be remembered for sending Jesus to His Passion for us.
**** Read Lesson 8: The Redemption in the St. Joseph Baltimore Catechism Book #2 *****
Assignment:
Read Exodus 11-12 about the Passover and Matthew 26-27 about the Passion.
Watch: The Prince of Egypt by Dreamworks
Learn about Saint Martin de Porres. We have written a short post about this saint that we recommend reading: St. Martin de Porres
Rabbit Hole:
Have you heard of the Pilate Stone? The Pilate Stone is a limestone block fragment found in 1961 at an archeological dig in Caesarea Maritima with an inscription mentioning Pontius Pilate. Caesarea Maritima replaced Jerusalem as the administrative capital in AD 6. Author Ann Wroe who wrote the book Pilate: the Biography of an Invented Man wrote in an article from April 3, 1999 about this stone. Historical Notes: Pontius Pilate: a name set in stone
Adults special assignment: Listen to the Daily Stoic Podcast with Ryan Holiday: Ann Wroe On The Real Story Of Pontius Pilate, And His Connection To Stoicism
Read the December 29, 2021 article by Lewis Regenstein from The Jerusalem Post Who Killed Jesus: The Romans or the Jews?
Resources:
Bryan, Christopher, ‘Israel and Empire: From the Maccabees to the War against Rome’, Render to Caesar: Jesus, the Early Church, and the Roman Superpower (New York, 2005; online edn, Oxford Academic, 14 July 2005)
The Land of Israel Under Roman Rule Judea becomes a Roman Tributary by: Lawrence H. Schiffman
Jensen, Morten Hørning. “Antipas—The Herod Jesus Knew,” Biblical Archaeology Review 38.5 (2012): 42–46.
**** FFF October 24, 2023 group session ****
The Small Pencil Catechist 