John 18:28-32 Then led they Jesus from Caiaphas to the hall of judgment: and it was early; and they themselves went not into the judgment hall… I. THE SITUATION. 1. The place — the praetorium or palace of Pilate. 2. The time — Friday morning, after day-break. 3. The prisoner — Jesus sentenced and bound. 4. The prosecutors. (1) Their personal dignity — the Jews, members of the Sanhedrim, through their servants and the soldiers. (2) Their religious scruples. (3) Their murderous zeal — hurrying before the governor with their victim at the first approach of dawn (Proverbs 1:16). 5. The judge — Pilate. (1) His office — procurator or governor of Judaea. (2) His character — unjust, tyrannical and cruel. II. THE PROCEDURE. 1. An indictment demanded (ver. 29). Pilate's motive may have been — (1) Contempt of the Jews. (2) Pity for Jesus, or — (3) Respect for Roman law (cf. Acts 25:16). 2. An evasion attempted (ver. 30). A formal indict ment was — (1) Not convenient for the Jewish leaders. To have asserted that they had condemned Jesus as a blasphemer for calling Himself God's Son, to a heathen like Pilate, familiar with the notion of God's appearing on the earth, would probably have led to Jesus' liberation as a harmless fanatic, as well as to their expulsion from the judgment seat (Acts 18:16). Hence they urged that it was — (2) Not necessary for the governor. The circumstance that they had come to him was proof enough that Christ was no mere every-day offender. 3. A concession offered (ver. 31). Pilate was unwilling to accede to their illegality and to stoop before their insolence. If he was to be executioner he must also be the judge; if they were to be the judges they could be their own headsmen, and withdraw the case from Roman jurisdiction altogether, and finish it up at their own tribunals. Pilate saw that the Jewish hierarchs intended murder, for which he was not inclined, and with exquisite irony, knowing their impotence to inflict death, tells them to go as far as their law will allow. 4. An admission made (ver. 31). Brought to bay, the human sleuth hounds were obliged to divulge their secret, viz., that they intended to take the life of their victim, but could not do so without his assistance. III. THE ISSUE. 1. The purpose of Pilate fixed. He would not stir without an accusation. 2. The design of the Jews frustrated. They had purposed to cut their prisoner off without troubling the world with any explanation of His offences. 3. The counsel of God fulfilled (ver. 32).Lessons: 1. The debasement of conscience seen in the Jewish hierarchs. 2. The instincts of justice, operating even in a bad man — exemplified in Pilate. 3. The impossibility of defeating God's counsel — observed in the actions of both. (T. Whitelaw, D. D.) Parallel Verses KJV: Then led they Jesus from Caiaphas unto the hall of judgment: and it was early; and they themselves went not into the judgment hall, lest they should be defiled; but that they might eat the passover. |
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