”Is that your own idea,” Jesus asked, ”or did others talk to you about me?”
”Am I a Jew?” Pilate replied. ”Your own people and chief priests handed you over to me. What is it you have done?”
Yesterday in “Threat” we posed the question: Where did Pilate hear that Jesus claimed to be king of the Jews? Today Jesus responds in a rather uncharacteristic way. Jesus asks Pilate where he got the idea about him being king of the Jews. If we assume that Jesus already knows the answer to his question, then his question seems intended to get Pilate (and us) to think.
Instead of answering Jesus, Pilate comes back at Jesus with another question. His response is, in effect, an affirmation of the differences between him and Jesus. Finally, he gets down to a practical question, but one that he should not have had to ask.
”What is it you have done?”
It is like both of them are caught in a kind of nightmare. Jesus, arrested for simply being who he is. Pilate is the judge and jury in a trial where no one will tell him what the person on trial has done wrong.
Somehow, in this whirling cauldron of political intrigue, Jesus is the bad guy. Pilate has been led to believe that the Jews are accusing Jesus of political insurrection. The problem is that Jesus doesn’t look the part. He has done nothing to threaten the Romans even though the Jewish leaders feel threatened.
What is it, Jesus, that you have done?
Is Pilate is expecting Jesus to explain what all the fuss is about? Even under Roman law, it was the responsibility of the accuser to explain their accusations. The Jews have not even done that.
Application: In this passage, we see the dramatic difference between the world’s approach to a problem and God’s approach. Jesus offers Pilate a chance to reconsider his implied accusation. Pilate offers Jesus the affirmation that he is hated by his own people. Then Pilate offers Jesus a chance to provide evidence against himself. When the world rejects you, think of Jesus’ calm assurance in his relationship with God.
Food for Thought: If Pilate had answered Jesus’ question what would have changed in this story?
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I think it would have been interesting if Pilate had answered. It would certainly give us more information. However, I don’t think it would have changed anything, at least regarding the outcome of the cross. Jesus had to go to the cross to die in our place for our salvation. That was God’s will (Isaiah 53: 10). Answering the question may have helped Pilate through his own internal struggle.