23 Then the whole assembly rose and led him off to Pilate.^{(A) 2} And they began to accuse him, saying, “We have found this man subverting our nation.^(B) He opposes payment of taxes to Caesar^(C) and claims to be Messiah, a king.”^(D)

³ So Pilate asked Jesus, “Are you the king of the Jews?”

“You have said so,” Jesus replied.

⁴ Then Pilate announced to the chief priests and the crowd, “I find no basis for a charge against this man.”^(E)

⁵ But they insisted, “He stirs up the people all over Judea by his teaching. He started in Galilee^(F) and has come all the way here.”

⁶ On hearing this, Pilate asked if the man was a Galilean.^{(G) 7} When he learned that Jesus was under Herod’s jurisdiction, he sent him to Herod,^(H) who was also in Jerusalem at that time.

⁸ When Herod saw Jesus, he was greatly pleased, because for a long time he had been wanting to see him.^(I) From what he had heard about him, he hoped to see him perform a sign of some sort. ⁹ He plied him with many questions, but Jesus gave him no answer.^{(J) 10} The chief priests and the teachers of the law were standing there, vehemently accusing him. ¹¹ Then Herod and his soldiers ridiculed and mocked him. Dressing him in an elegant robe,^(K) they sent him back to Pilate. ¹² That day Herod and Pilate became friends^(L)—before this they had been enemies.

¹³ Pilate called together the chief priests, the rulers and the people, ¹⁴ and said to them, “You brought me this man as one who was inciting the people to rebellion. I have examined him in your presence and have found no basis for your charges against him.^{(M) 15} Neither has Herod, for he sent him back to us; as you can see, he has done nothing to deserve death. ¹⁶ Therefore, I will punish him^(N) and then release him.” ^[17] [a]

¹⁸ But the whole crowd shouted, “Away with this man! Release Barabbas to us!”^{(O) 19} (Barabbas had been thrown into prison for an insurrection in the city, and for murder.)

²⁰ Wanting to release Jesus, Pilate appealed to them again. ²¹ But they kept shouting, “Crucify him! Crucify him!”

²² For the third time he spoke to them: “Why? What crime has this man committed? I have found in him no grounds for the death penalty. Therefore I will have him punished and then release him.”^(P)

²³ But with loud shouts they insistently demanded that he be crucified, and their shouts prevailed. ²⁴ So Pilate decided to grant their demand. ²⁵ He released the man who had been thrown into prison for insurrection and murder, the one they asked for, and surrendered Jesus to their will.

The Crucifixion of Jesus^(Q)

²⁶ As the soldiers led him away, they seized Simon from Cyrene,^(R) who was on his way in from the country, and put the cross on him and made him carry it behind Jesus.^{(S) 27} A large number of people followed him, including women who mourned and wailed^(T) for him. ²⁸ Jesus turned and said to them, “Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for me; weep for yourselves and for your children.^{(U) 29} For the time will come when you will say, ‘Blessed are the childless women, the wombs that never bore and the breasts that never nursed!’^{(V) 30} Then

³¹ For if people do these things when the tree is green, what will happen when it is dry?”^(X)