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John MacArthur · Citado em PreceptAustin
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MacArthur explains that "In this context, "find" represented a judicial verdict. Pilate acquitted Jesus of any civil or criminal wrongdoing. In modern parlance, He threw the case out of court for lack of evidence. He exercised "summary judgment." (Ibid) GOSPEL OF MATTHEW Note 7 - Mt 27:12-14 (parallel with Mk 15:3-5, Lk 23:5) - Although Matthew and Mark do not record Pilate's first not guilty verdict against Jesus, they do record a barrage of repeated accusations against Jesus in an attempt to force Pilate to reverse his verdict. In stark contrast to the angry lying accusations of the Jews, Jesus is majestically silent! And Pilate's reaction was that he was amazed (thaumazo)! Pilate is marveling that the Jews are falsely accusing Him of crimes that would warrant the death penalty and yet He offered no self-defense! In truth, He did not have to because Pilate had already declared Him not guilty (Lk 23:4, Jn 18:38). In His silence Jesus fulfilled OT prophecies Isaiah 42:1-2 “Behold, My Servant, whom I uphold; My chosen one in whom My soul delights. I have put My Spirit upon Him; He will bring forth justice to the nations. 2 “He will not cry out or raise His voice, Nor make His voice heard in the street. Isaiah 53:7+ He was oppressed and He was afflicted, Yet He did not open His mouth; Like a lamb that is led to slaughter, And like a sheep that is silent before its shearers, So He did not open His mouth. Comment: In Acts 8:32+ Luke records the last part of Isaiah's passage “HE WAS LED AS A SHEEP TO SLAUGHTER; AND AS A LAMB BEFORE ITS SHEARER IS SILENT, SO HE DOES NOT OPEN HIS MOUTH." This was a portion of the passages of Scripture the Ethiopian Eunuch was reading which led to his salvation as Phillip preached Jesus to him beginning with Isaiah's prophecy (Acts 8:34, 35+) John 18:31 So Pilate said to them, “Take Him yourselves, and judge Him according to your law.” The Jews said to him, “We are not permitted to put anyone to death,” Take: John 19:6,7 Ac 25:18-20 It: John 19:15 Ge 49:10 Eze 21:26,27 Ho 3:4,5 TAKE HIM YOURSELVES! So Pilate said to them “Take (aorist imperative) Him yourselves, and judge (krino in aorist imperative) Him according to your law - Pilate does not accept their failure to give him a specific charge and quickly attempts to wash his hands of what he perceives as the Jewish miscarriage of justice. The problem of course is that the Jews wanted to kill Jesus, which was out of their purview, so they could not take Him and judge Him and kill Him as a blasphemer. Marvin Vincent on Take Him yourselves - Pilate’s words display great practical shrewdness in forcing the Jews to commit themselves to the admission that they desired Christ’s death. “Take him yourselves, and judge him according to your law.” “By our law,” reply the Jews, “he ought to die.” But this penalty they could not inflict. “It is not lawful,” etc. J R Miller - As Pagan as Pilate was, and heartless—the presence of Jesus before him as prisoner, filled his heart with dread. There was something about this prisoner which awed him. Ordinarily he cared nothing for justice—but now he sought to evade the responsibility of sentencing this man. Instead of refusing to have anything to do with the sentencing of an innocent man, Pilate sought all that morning by evasion, simply to get clear of the case. Each time, however, Jesus came back and stood before him, waiting for His decision. Life Application Study Bible has an interesting summation - Pilate made four attempts to deal with Jesus: (1) He tried to put the responsibility on someone else (Jn 18:31); (2) he tried to find a way of escape so he could release Jesus (Jn 18:39); (3) he tried to compromise by having Jesus flogged rather than handing him over to die (Jn 19:1-3); and (4) he tried a direct appeal to the sympathy of the accusers (Jn 19:15). Everyone has to decide what to do with Jesus. Pilate tried to let everyone else decide for him-and in the end, he lost. (BORROW Life Application Study Bible: Old Testament and New Testament: New Living Translation PAGE 1664) The Jews (Ioudaios) said to him, “We are (absolutely) not permitted (exesti) to put anyone (oudeis) to death (apokteino) - The Jews (clearly Jewish leaders) respond to Pilate with a strong double negative statement. The Jews could condemn a man to death but under the Romans they were not allowed to put the condemned man to death. And death is what they wanted with Jesus! ESV Study Bible - The Sanhedrin clearly desired that Jesus’ execution be done officially in keeping with Roman law. Therefore the Jewish leaders had to get approval from Pilate. But this presented a problem for them, since Pilate would not be interested in condemning someone for a religious crime such as blasphemy or claiming to be God (see Matt. 26:64; Luke 22:69–71; John 8:58–59; 10:33; 19:7). This meant they needed to bring a political charge against Jesus, so they essentially accused him of treason by saying that he claimed to be king in opposition to Caesar (see Jn 18:33, 37; Jn 19:3, 12, 15, 19). (BORROW ESV Study Bible page 2062) In summary, Pilate's response for them to "take Him yourselves..." forces the Jews to offer up the three specific charges recorded only in Lk 23:2+. And they began to accuse Him, saying, “We found (1) this man misleading our nation and (2) forbidding to pay taxes to Caesar, and saying that (3) He Himself is Christ, a King.”
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MacArthur adds that "Jesus could not answer Pilate's question with an unqualified "Yes" or "No" without first defining exactly what His kingship entails. His counter question, "Are you saying this on your own initiative, or did others tell you about Me?" was intended to clarify the issue (I.E., TO CLARIFY PILATE'S QUESTION). If Pilate was saying this on his own initiative, he would be asking if Jesus was a king in the political sense (and hence a threat to Rome). Jesus' answer in that case would be "no," He was not a king in the sense of a military or political leader. He had earlier rejected the crowd's attempt to make Him such a king (Jn 6:15). But neither could the Lord deny that as the Messiah He was Israel's true king. (See John Commentary)
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MacArthur - WHAT IS GOD’S KINGDOM? (See Daily Readings From the Life of Christ Volumes 1-3 - Page 20) Your kingdom come.—MATT. 6:10A What will you miss the least about earthly life when the fullness of His kingdom becomes your forever reality? “Kingdom” is not so much a geographical territory as it is a sovereign dominion. When Christians pray “Your kingdom come,” they are asking God to rule through Christ’s future enthronement, His coming reign over the earth. The Greek for “come” indicates a sudden, instantaneous coming and here refers to the coming millennial kingdom (Rev. 20:4). Jesus is not speaking of some indirect effort by human good works to create a godly society on earth. God’s coming kingdom will be a kingdom on earth but not a kingdom of this present world system. Jesus told Pontius Pilate, “My kingdom is not of this world” (John 18:36). No human kingdom fits with God’s, which is why even the best measures to improve society are mere holding actions that only retard sinful corruption until Christ returns to establish His perfect kingdom. Jesus came to “preach the kingdom of God” (Luke 4:43), and there is no other gospel but the good news of His kingdom. Even during His final days on earth He was faithful to teach the apostles things concerning that kingdom (Acts 1:3). Yes, the kingdom has a past element that encompasses the Old Testament patriarchs (Matt. 8:11). The kingdom was also present during Jesus’ earthly ministry because He, its king, was “in [people’s] midst” (Luke 17:21). In a sense that is true today as believers are members of God’s invisible kingdom. But the particular focus of our prayers regarding the kingdom should be future, as we hope for the visible one to come. ASK YOURSELF - What will you miss the least about earthly life when the fullness of His kingdom becomes your forever reality? Doesn’t that give you something to really look forward to? Let the genuine hope of this occurrence bolster your hope as you live through the coming day Related devotional by Dr MacArthur - GOD’S KINGDOM IS NOT SUPERFICIALLY VISIBLE Rob
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MacArthur says "Jesus’ words were an implied invitation to Pilate to hear and obey the truth about Him. But they were lost on the governor, who abruptly ended his interrogation of Christ with the cynical, pessimistic remark, “What is truth?”
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MacArthur comments on PIlate ritually washing his hands in Mt 27:24 - It was ironic, and doubtlessly intentional, that the governor chose a Jewish ritual to depict his renunciation of responsibility for Jesus' fate. If the ruling elders of a city were not able to determine the identity of a murderer, the Mosaic law provided that they could publicly wash their hands, pray to God, and thereby absolve themselves of any guilt regarding their inability to render justice (Dt 21:6,7). Using a modified form of that Jewish ceremony which he had heard of, Pilate proclaimed he was innocent of this innocent Man's blood.Doubtlessly with a tone of both dismay and disgust, the governor then said, "See to that yourselves." And when he gave them what they wanted, the people gave him what he wanted. If he would permit Jesus' death, they would assume all blame. "His blood be on us and on our children!" they shouted. That declaration did not, of course, absolve Pilate of guilt, but it did proclaim for all time the people's acknowledgment of their own guilt. They soon forgot that assumption of guilt, however, and not many months later the Sanhedrin self-righteously rebuked the apostles for holding them accountable for Christ's blood (Acts 5:28). The multitude of perhaps several thousand Jews who stood outside the Praetorium made their verdict in behalf of all Israel. It was that verdict, acknowledged by all the other unbelieving Jews through their silence, that caused the branch of Israel to be broken off the tree of God's redemptive blessing (Ro 11:17). It is no wonder that since that fearful day, as a nation and as individuals, unredeemed Jews have been under the chastening hand of God. (MacArthur New Testament Commentary – Matthew) GOSPEL OF MARK Mark 15:8 records that the Jews were asking Pilate to release a prisoner as was the custom at the Passover (cf Jn 18:39, Mt 27:15). John MacArthur comments that "Each year, the governor would grant amnesty to one sentenced criminal of the people’s choice as a way to cultivate goodwill and to demonstrate Rome’s mercy. Pilate thought the crowd would select Jesus, thereby solving his dilemma." (As an aside, this "tradition" is not recorded in any extra-Biblical source.) This "tradition" gave Pilate another opportunity to avoid executing an innocent Man and so he asked the Jews if they would like him to release the King of the Jews (Mk 15:9), Jesus Who is called Christ (Messiah) (Mt 27:17). GOSPEL OF JOHN John 18:39 - King of the Jews - Pilate is mocking the Jewish leaders for he knew they had vehemently rejected Jesus as their King. Another consideration (but only speculative) is that Pilate hoped to play off the sympathies of those in the crowd who had proclaimed Him as King in His triumphal entry. John 18:40 calls Barabbas a robber which is the Greek word lestes a word that describes one who steals openly and with violence in contrast to a thief or kleptes who steals primarily by stealth. Judas was a thief (kleptes - John 12:6) but was not violent, while Barabbas was a robber (lestes) who "had committed murder" (Mk 15:7). It is also notable that the word lestes is used to describe the two thieves who were crucified with Jesus (Mt 27:38, 44, Mk 15:27). The irony is that Luke had just used the word lestes when Jesus was arrested in the Garden and had addressed "the chief priests and officers of the temple and elders who had come against Him," asking “Have you come out with swords and clubs as you would against a robber (lestes)?." (Lk 22:52+) In fact it was the Jewish leaders who had made the Temple Court of the Gentiles into a robber's (lestes) den (Lk 19:46+), and who now compounded their sin by asking Pilate to release the real robber Barabbas and crucify the innocent Jesus! Fruchtenbaum summarizes Pilate's attempts to release Jesus - Once again Pilate attempted to release Yeshua. He offered the people a choice between Yeshua and Barabbas. This is recorded in Mark 15:6–10. Pilate attempted to have the Messiah released by offering the crowd a choice between Jesus and Barabbas. The irony of the situation must not be missed! Barabbas was guilty of the very crime of which Jesus was accused: sedition or rebelling against Rome. Furthermore, we know from other contemporary sources that the entire name of the guilty one was Jesus Barabbas. The name Barabbas means “son of the father.” So the prisoner who was going to be released was “Jesus, son of the father.” But the Lord Jesus, the Son of the Father, was being accused of sedition and would die on the other’s behalf. At this point in the proceedings, Pilate received a message from his wife. We find this recorded in Matthew 27:17–19: When therefore they were gathered together, Pilate said unto them, Whom will ye that I release unto you? Barabbas, or Jesus who is called Christ? For he knew that for envy they had delivered him up. And while he was sitting on the judgment-seat, his wife sent unto him, saying, Have you nothing to do with that righteous man; for I have suffered many things this day in a dream because of him. According to tradition, Pilate’s wife’s name was Claudia. She apparently was more sensitive to spiritual things and had received a troubling dream concerning the person of Jesus. In this dream, He was clearly revealed as a righteous man. She also had a sense of impending doom that if Pilate gave in and condemned Jesus to death, dire consequences would result upon the family. Apparently, she had already gone through a night of suffering, realizing that the decision Pilate would make would determine their destiny also. After Pilate received the warning from his wife, he gave the people the choice between Yeshua and Barabbas. This is recorded in Matthew 27:20–22: Now the chief priests and the elders persuaded the multitudes that they should ask for Barabbas, and destroy Jesus. But the governor answered and said unto them, Which of the two will ye that I release unto you? And they said, Barabbas. Pilate said unto them, What then shall I do unto Jesus who is called Christ? They all say, Let him be crucified. The Jewish leaders in the meantime had moved through the crowd, inciting the people to ask for Barabbas’ release and to demand the Crucifixion of Yeshua (Mt 27:20). Pilate’s second attempt to have Yeshua released was foiled. Pilate attempted a third time to release Jesus. We see this in John 19:1–6. Pilate’s third attempt in verse 1 was another compromise, for he had Jesus scourged. Pilate’s apparent hope was that when the people saw Jesus after His scourging, they would be sympathetic toward Him and would call for His release. (Ibid) John 18:40 So they cried out again, saying, “Not this Man, but Barabbas.” Now Barabbas was a robber. Mt 27:16,26 Mk 15:7,15 Lu 23:18-19,25 Ac 3:13,14 Related Passages: Matthew 27:16 At that time they were holding a notorious prisoner, called Barabbas. Mark 15:7 The man named Barabbas had been imprisoned with the insurrectionists who had committed murder in the insurrection. Luke 23:18-19 But they cried out all together, saying, “Away with this man, and release for us Barabbas!” 19 (He was one who had been thrown into prison for an insurrection made in the city, and for murder.) THE JEWS CRY OUT FOR RARABBAS So they cried out (kraugazo) again, saying, “Not this Man, but (a fateful term of contrast) Barabbas.” - Pilate had underestimated the vitriol of the Jewish leaders who strongly rejected the offer of Jesus and instead put forth the name of Barabbas, a Roman prisoner who was well known as a "notorious prisoner" (Mt 27:16) guilty of insurrection and murder (Mk 15:7, Lk 23:19). It is interesting to note that this same verb (kraugazo) was used to describe the crying out of demons. Here we see these demonically influenced Jews (whose father was Satan - Jn 8:44+) crying out for the blood of Jesus. Little did these ignorant Jews know that His precious blood would atone for the sins of the world. Now Barabbas was a robber (lestes) - John adds this parenthetical note. There is a bit of an ironic twist in the Jews shouting for release of Barabbas a robber (lestes - speaks of violence) for Jesus had been betrayed to the Jews by Judas a thief (kleptes - speaks of stealth). Another ironic twist is that Barabbas' name is derived from the Hebrew words bar meaning son and ab meaning father. Thus the Jews were in effect crying out for "son of abba" instead of "Son of God!" Even here we see a foreshadowing of Jesus' life for a sinner who should have died on the Cross instead of Jesus! John 18:40 calls Barabbas a robber which is the Greek word lestes a word that describes one who steals openly and with violence in contrast to a thief or kleptes who steals primarily by stealth. Judas was a thief (kleptes - John 12:6) but was not violent, while Barabbas was a robber (lestes) who "had committed murder" (Mk 15:7). It is also notable that the word lestes is used to describe the two thieves who were crucified with Jesus (Mt 27:38, 44, Mk 15:27). The irony is that Luke had just used the word lestes when Jesus was arrested in the Garden and had addressed "the chief priests and officers of the temple and elders who had come against Him," asking “Have you come out with swords and clubs as you would against a robber (lestes)?." (Lk 22:52+) In fact it was the Jewish leaders who had made the Temple Court of the Gentiles into a robber's (lestes) den (Lk 19:46+), and who now compounded their sin by asking Pilate to release the real robber Barabbas and crucify the innocent Jesus! NET NOTE - The name Barabbas in Aramaic means “son of abba,” that is, “son of the father,” and presumably the man in question had another name (it may also have been Jesus, according to the textual variant in Matt 27:16, although this is uncertain). For the author this name held ironic significance: The crowd was asking for the release of a man called Barabbas, “son of the father,” while Jesus, who was truly the Son of the Father, was condemned to die instead. “Robber.” It is possible that Barabbas was merely a robber or highwayman, but more likely, given the use of the term ληστής (lēstēs) in Josephus and other early sources, that he was a guerrilla warrior or revolutionary leader. See both R. E. Brown (John [AB], 2:857) and K. H. Rengstorf (TDNT 4:258 - see TDNT PAGE 532) for more information. The word λῃστής (lestes) was used a number of times by Josephus (J. W. 2.13.2–3 [2.253–254]) to describe the revolutionaries or guerrilla fighters who, from mixed motives of nationalism and greed, kept the rural districts of Judea in constant turmoil. Steven