Luke 23:13-25
New King James Version
Taking the Place of Barabbas(A)
13 (B)Then Pilate, when he had called together the chief priests, the rulers, and the people, 14 said to them, (C)“You have brought this Man to me, as one who misleads the people. And indeed, (D)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 [a]I sent you back to him; and indeed nothing deserving of death has been done by Him. 16 (E)I will therefore chastise Him and release Him” 17 (F)(for[b] it was necessary for him to release one to them at the feast).
18 And (G)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 [c]and of the chief priests prevailed. 24 So (H)Pilate gave sentence that it should be as they requested. 25 (I)And he released [d]to them the one they requested, who for rebellion and murder had been thrown into prison; but he delivered Jesus to their will.
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- Luke 23:15 NU he sent Him back to us
- Luke 23:17 NU omits v. 17.
- Luke 23:23 NU omits and of the chief priests
- Luke 23:25 NU, M omit to them
Luke 23:13-25
New English Translation
Jesus Brought Before the Crowd
13 Then[a] Pilate called together the chief priests, the[b] leaders, and the people, 14 and said to them, “You brought me this man as one who was misleading[c] the people. When I examined him before you, I[d] did not find this man guilty[e] of anything you accused him of doing. 15 Neither did Herod, for he sent him back to us. Look, he has done nothing[f] deserving death.[g] 16 I will therefore have him flogged[h] and release him.”[i]
18 But they all shouted out together,[j] “Take this man[k] away! Release Barabbas for us!” 19 (This[l] was a man who had been thrown into prison for an insurrection[m] started in the city, and for murder.)[n] 20 Pilate addressed them once again because he wanted[o] to release Jesus. 21 But they kept on shouting,[p] “Crucify, crucify[q] him!” 22 A third time he said to them, “Why? What wrong has he done? I have found him guilty[r] of no crime deserving death.[s] I will therefore flog[t] him and release him.” 23 But they were insistent,[u] demanding with loud shouts that he be crucified. And their shouts prevailed. 24 So[v] Pilate[w] decided[x] that their demand should be granted. 25 He released the man they asked for, who had been thrown in prison for insurrection and murder. But he handed Jesus over[y] to their will.[z]
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- Luke 23:13 tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.
- Luke 23:13 tn Grk “and the,” but καί (kai) has not been translated since English normally uses a coordinating conjunction only between the last two elements in a series of three or more.
- Luke 23:14 tn This term also appears in v. 2.
- Luke 23:14 tn Grk “behold, I” A transitional use of ἰδού (idou) has not been translated here.
- Luke 23:14 tn Grk “nothing did I find in this man by way of cause.” The reference to “nothing” is emphatic.
- Luke 23:15 sn With the statement “he has done nothing,” Pilate makes another claim that Jesus is innocent of any crime worthy of death.
- Luke 23:15 tn Grk “nothing deserving death has been done by him.” The passive construction has been translated as an active one in keeping with contemporary English style.
- Luke 23:16 tn Or “scourged” (BDAG 749 s.v. παιδεύω 2.b.γ). This refers to a whipping Pilate ordered in an attempt to convince Jesus not to disturb the peace. It has been translated “flogged” to distinguish it from the more severe verberatio.
- Luke 23:16 tc Many of the best mss, as well as some others (P75 A B K L T 070 1241 sa), lack 23:17 “(Now he was obligated to release one individual for them at the feast.)” This verse appears to be a parenthetical note explaining the custom of releasing someone on amnesty at the feast. It appears in two different locations with variations in wording, which makes it look like a scribal addition. It is included in א (D following v. 19) W Θ Ψ ƒ1,13 M lat. The verse appears to be an explanatory gloss taken from Matt 27:15 and Mark 15:6, not original in Luke. The present translation follows NA28 in omitting the verse number, a procedure also followed by a number of other modern translations.
- Luke 23:18 tn Grk “together, saying.” The participle λέγοντες (legontes) is redundant and has not been translated here.
- Luke 23:18 tn Grk “this one.” The reference to Jesus as “this man” is pejorative in this context.
- Luke 23:19 tn Grk “who” (a continuation of the previous sentence).
- Luke 23:19 sn Ironically, what Jesus was alleged to have done, started an insurrection, this man really did.
- Luke 23:19 sn This is a parenthetical note by the author.
- Luke 23:20 sn The account pictures a battle of wills—the people versus Pilate. Pilate is consistently portrayed in Luke’s account as wanting to release Jesus because he believed him to be innocent.
- Luke 23:21 tn Grk “shouting, saying.” The participle λέγοντες (legontes) is redundant and has not been translated here.
- Luke 23:21 tn This double present imperative is emphatic.sn Crucifixion was the cruelest form of punishment practiced by the Romans. Roman citizens could not normally undergo it. It was reserved for the worst crimes, like treason and evasion of due process in a capital case. The Roman historian Cicero called it “a cruel and disgusting penalty” (Against Verres 2.5.63-66 §§163-70); Josephus (J. W. 7.6.4 [7.203]) called it the worst of deaths.
- Luke 23:22 tn Grk “no cause of death I found in him.”
- Luke 23:22 sn The refrain of innocence comes once again. Pilate tried to bring some sense of justice, believing Jesus had committed no crime deserving death.
- Luke 23:22 tn Or “scourge” (BDAG 749 s.v. παιδεύω 2.b.γ). See the note on “flogged” in v. 16.
- Luke 23:23 tn Though a different Greek term is used here (BDAG 373 s.v. ἐπίκειμαι), this remark is like 23:5.
- Luke 23:24 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of the crowd’s cries prevailing.
- Luke 23:24 sn Finally Pilate gave in. He decided crucifying one Galilean teacher was better than facing a riot. Justice lost out in the process, because he did not follow his own verdict.
- Luke 23:24 tn Although some translations render ἐπέκρινεν (epekrinen) here as “passed sentence” or “gave his verdict,” the point in context is not that Pilate sentenced Jesus to death here, but that finally, although convinced of Jesus’ innocence, he gave in to the crowd’s incessant demand to crucify an innocent man.
- Luke 23:25 tn Or “delivered up.”
- Luke 23:25 sn He handed Jesus over to their will. Here is where Luke places the major blame for Jesus’ death. It lies with the Jewish nation, especially the leadership, though in Acts 4:24-27 he will bring in the opposition of Herod, Pilate, and all people.
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