Luke 23:20 - Then Pilate spoke to them again, wanting to release Jesus,

Generated Verse: Luke 23:20

What does "Luke 23:20" mean?


Luke 23:20, "Then Pilate spoke to them again, wanting to release Jesus," means that Pilate, the Roman governor, was trying to free Jesus despite the demands of the crowd to crucify him. Here's a breakdown:

"Then Pilate spoke to them again...": This indicates that Pilate had already been interacting with the crowd and trying to find a way to avoid condemning Jesus. He was engaging in a back-and-forth exchange.

"...wanting to release Jesus...": This is the key point. Pilate, based on his own examination of Jesus and possibly prompted by his wife's dream (Matthew 27:19), was convinced that Jesus was innocent of the charges brought against him by the Jewish leaders. He didn't believe Jesus posed a genuine threat to Roman authority or the peace. He was seeking a way to let him go.

In essence, the verse highlights Pilate's internal conflict:

He recognized Jesus's innocence.
He feared the reaction of the crowd and the potential for unrest if he went against their wishes (and especially if they threatened to accuse him of disloyalty to Caesar).

This verse sets the stage for the events that follow, where Pilate tries various strategies (like offering to release a prisoner, the scourging, and asking them if he should crucify their king) to avoid crucifying Jesus, but ultimately succumbs to the pressure from the crowd. It underscores the political pressures and moral dilemmas that Pilate faced.

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