Pontius Pilate

Pontius Pilate was the Roman governor of Judea who condemned Jesus to death by crucifixion — the ruler named in the Creed, "crucified... under Pontius Pilate."

Overview

  • Pontius Pilate was the Roman prefect (governor) of Judea, roughly AD 26–36, holding the power of life and death and answerable to the emperor.
  • The Gospels show him examining Jesus, finding no guilt, yet yielding to the crowd and handing Him over to crucifixion — famously washing his hands of the decision (Matthew 27.11-26; John 18.28-19.16).
  • He is named in the Nicene Creed ("crucified... under Pontius Pilate"), anchoring the death of Christ in datable history.

Summary

Pontius Pilate governed Judea for Rome during the ministry of Jesus, and it was before him that Jesus was tried and condemned. The Gospels depict him as reluctant — questioning Jesus, declaring he found no basis for a charge, offering to release Him, and finally washing his hands before the crowd — yet ultimately delivering Him to crucifixion to keep the peace and his own position (Matthew 27.11-26; John 18.28-19.16). Outside the New Testament, Jewish writers of the period (Philo and Josephus) remember Pilate as a harsh and provocative administrator, given to cruelty and to needlessly offending his Jewish subjects — a portrait consistent with the Gospels' picture of a governor willing to sacrifice justice to avoid unrest.[^jant] The Church remembers him chiefly through the Creed, which names him precisely to fix the Crucifixion in real, datable history: Christ "was crucified for us under Pontius Pilate." Cross-link The Passion, Maccabean Revolt, Judaism.

Sources

[^1]: Matthew 27.11-26; John 18.28-19.16 (WEB) — Jesus before Pilate; his declaration of innocence and his washing of his hands. [^jant]: The Jewish Annotated New Testament (eds. Amy-Jill Levine & Marc Zvi Brettler, Oxford Univ. Press), annotations on Matthew 27 and Luke 3 — Pilate as Roman governor of Judea remembered by Philo and Josephus for ruthlessness and the provocation of his Jewish subjects, (in-copyright scholarly reference; paraphrased).