The fear of man brings many into this snare, that they will do an unjust thing, against their consciences, rather than get into trouble. Pilate declares Jesus innocent, and has a mind to release him; yet, to please the people, he would punish him as an evil-doer. If no fault be found in him, why chastise him? Pilate yielded at length; he had not courage to go against so strong a stream. He delivered Jesus to their will, to be crucified. Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Micah 6:8 8 He has shown you, O man, what is good; And what does the Lord require of you But to do justly, To love mercy, And to walk humbly with your God?
It us up to us to stand against the unfair treatment of others. We are the hands and feet of our Almighty God and we will be held accountable for the injustices that we allow. The gift of God in Jesus is that it is never too late to repent and change. His compassion for us is infinite and He wants us to willingly return the love He gives to us and all who trust in Him for salvation.
Luke 23:13–25
13 Then Pilate, when he had called together the chief priests, the rulers, and the people, 14 said to them, “You have brought this Man to me, as one who misleads the people. And indeed, having examined Him in your presence, I have found no fault in this Man concerning those things of which you accuse Him; 15 no, neither did Herod, for I sent you back to him; and indeed nothing deserving of death has been done by Him. 16 I will therefore chastise Him and release Him” 17 (for it was necessary for him to release one to them at the feast). 18 And they all cried out at once, saying, “Away with this Man, and release to us Barabbas”—19 who had been thrown into prison for a certain rebellion made in the city, and for murder. 20 Pilate, therefore, wishing to release Jesus, again called out to them. 21 But they shouted, saying, “Crucify Him, crucify Him!” 22 Then he said to them the third time, “Why, what evil has He done? I have found no reason for death in Him. I will therefore chastise Him and let Him go.” 23 But they were insistent, demanding with loud voices that He be crucified. And the voices of these men and of the chief priests prevailed. 24 So Pilate gave sentence that it should be as they requested. 25 And he released to them the one they requested, who for rebellion and murder had been thrown into prison; but he delivered Jesus to their will. The New King James Version
Exodus 3:7 And the Lord said: “I have surely seen the oppression of My people who are in Egypt, and have heard their cry because of their taskmasters, for I know their sorrows.
Exodus 3:13-15 Then Moses said to God, “Indeed, when I come to the children of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they say to me, ‘What is His name?’ what shall I say to them?”
And God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” And He said, “Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.’ ” Moreover God said to Moses, “Thus you shall say to the children of Israel: ‘The Lord God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you. This is My name forever, and this is My memorial to all generations.’
Moses ask for His name and He said I AM who I am.
John 8:524-58 Jesus answered, “If I honor Myself, My honor is nothing. It is My Father who honors Me, of whom you say that He is your God. Yet you have not known Him, but I know Him. And if I say, ‘I do not know Him,’ I shall be a liar like you; but I do know Him and keep His word. Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad.”
Then the Jews said to Him, “You are not yet fifty years old, and have You seen Abraham?”
Jesus said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM.”
God sent His Son to deliver Israel and He was rejected. He knew that the forefathers rejoiced to see His coming because before Abraham He was I AM.
Isaiah 9:6-7
For unto us a Child is born,
Unto us a Son is given;
And the government will be upon His shoulder.
And His name will be called
Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Jesus came to the children of Israel and to them a child was born and a Son was given. The government would be upon His shoulders and His name would be called Wonderful, Counselor, the mighty God, the everlasting Father, the Prince of peace…and they rejected their Messiah King.
The people now join the religious leaders in the dispute with Pilate over Jesus’ fate. After Pilate announces his intention to punish Jesus and then set Him free, the religious leaders and the people demand that Barabbas be released instead. An insurrectionist and murderer Barabbas was truly guilty of inciting people against Rome—the very thing that Jesus was falsely accused of doing. Crucifixion was the main form of execution used by the Romans and an extremely painful way to die. Luke goes out of his way to emphasize that Pilate would have released Jesus had it not been for the uproar among the Jews. Four times, Pilate states that he finds no valid reason to execute Jesus, twice Pilate resolves to set Him free. Ultimately, Pilate’s own will succumbs to the will of the mob. Faithlife Study Bible
Pilate hoped that a public whipping might satisfy the crowd and tame Jesus, avoiding the need to resort to the death. It was necessary to release a prisoner to them and Pilate wanted to take advantage of this custom and let Jesus go. The entire crowd is portrayed as wanting Jesus to die. Luke makes it clear that Jesus’ death was not only instigated by Jewish officials but approved by the Jewish people. The people preferred that a seditious murderer be freed instead of Jesus. The idea of Jesus’ substitution for this noted murderer foreshadows the substitutionary death of Jesus for sinful people. Luke mentions the chief priests separately from the crowd since they were the instigators of the plot against Jesus. Because Pilate feared the will of the people, he entered into the conspiracy and shared its guilt, agreeing to put to death someone he knew to be innocent. The NKJV Study Bible
Matthew 27:15–26 Now at the feast the governor was accustomed to releasing to the multitude one prisoner whom they wished. And at that time they had a notorious prisoner called Barabbas…
Mark 15:6–15 Now at the feast he was accustomed to releasing one prisoner to them, whomever they requested. And there was one named Barabbas, who was chained with his fellow rebels; they had committed murder in the rebellion…
John 18:38–19:16 Pilate said to Him, “What is truth?” And when he had said this, he went out again to the Jews, and said to them, “I find no fault in Him at all.”“But you have a custom that I should release someone to you at the Passover. Do you therefore want me to release to you the King of the Jews?”…
Luke 23:4–5 So Pilate said to the chief priests and the crowd, “I find no fault in this Man.”But they were the more fierce, saying, “He stirs up the people, teaching throughout all Judea, beginning from Galilee to this place.”
Acts 3:13–15 The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of our fathers, glorified His Servant Jesus, whom you delivered up and denied in the presence of Pilate, when he was determined to let Him go. But you denied the Holy One and the Just, and asked for a murderer to be granted to you…
Even when our choices bring destruction, the Lord has a plan to preserve and restore us. As we turn to Him, He shows us His compassion.
God positions His people purposefully. When our situation feels like there is no way out, God promises He is already making a way home to Him.
God wants intimacy with His people. He wants us to know Him. The Hebrew word yada that is translated as "know" in Exodus 6:7 (and many similar scriptures) is a picture of the union between husband and wife, a union with nothing between the two parties. Complete oneness.
God wants us to truly understand His love for us and His desire to be close to us. And sometimes He chooses to sweep us out of the familiar to embrace us with His incredible love. Ultimately, He promised Israel, "I know the plans I have for you … plans for your well-being, not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope" (Jeremiah 29:11, CSB). And He has good plans for us today. First 5
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“God spoke today in flowers, and I, who was waiting on words, almost missed the conversation.” (Ingrid Goff-Maidoff) |
Don’t be pulled so far backwards or forwards that you forget to live here.
Don’t be kept so paralysed by fear of the future and pieces of the past that you avoid the now.
So even if it’s only for a short while,
even if it’s only for a moment.
Put it down.
Put it all down.”
(Becky Hemsley 2024)
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