¹²While the chief priests and leaders were accusing him, he said nothing. ¹³Then Pilate asked him, “Don’t you hear how many charges they’re bringing against you?”

¹⁴But Jesus said absolutely nothing to him in reply, so the governor was very surprised.

The Crowd Rejects Jesus—Mark 15:6–15; Luke 23:18–25; John 18:39, 40

¹⁵At every Passover festival the governor would free one prisoner whom the crowd wanted. ¹⁶At that time there was a well-known prisoner by the name of Barabbas. ¹⁷So when the people gathered, Pilate asked them, “Which man do you want me to free for you? Do you want me to free Barabbas or Jesus, who is called Christ?” ¹⁸Pilate knew that they had handed Jesus over to him because they were jealous.

¹⁹While Pilate was judging the case, his wife sent him a message. It said, “Leave that innocent man alone. I’ve been very upset today because of a dream I had about him.”

²⁰But the chief priests and leaders persuaded the crowd to ask for the release of Barabbas and the execution of Jesus.

²¹The governor asked them, “Which of the two do you want me to free for you?”

They said, “Barabbas.”

²²Pilate asked them, “Then what should I do with Jesus, who is called Christ?”

“He should be crucified!” they all said.

²³Pilate asked, “Why? What has he done wrong?”

But they began to shout loudly, “He should be crucified!”

²⁴Pilate saw that he was not getting anywhere. Instead, a riot was breaking out. So Pilate took some water and washed his hands in front of the crowd. He said, “I won’t be guilty of killing this man. Do what you want!”

²⁵All the people answered, “The responsibility for killing him will rest on us and our children.”

²⁶Then Pilate freed Barabbas for the people. But he had Jesus whipped and handed over to be crucified.

The Soldiers Make Fun of Jesus—Mark 15:16–19; John 19:1–3

²⁷Then the governor’s soldiers took Jesus into the palace and gathered the whole troop around him. ²⁸They took off his clothes and put a bright red cape on him. ²⁹They twisted some thorns into a crown, placed it on his head, and put a stick in his right hand. They knelt in front of him and made fun of him by saying, “Long live the king of the Jews!” ³⁰After they had spit on him, they took the stick and kept hitting him on the head with it.

The Crucifixion—Mark 15:20–32; Luke 23:33–38; John 19:16b–24

³¹After the soldiers finished making fun of Jesus, they took off the cape and put his own clothes back on him. Then they led him away to crucify him.

³²On the way they found a man named Simon. He was from the city of Cyrene. The soldiers forced him to carry Jesus’ cross.

³³They came to a place called Golgotha (which means “the place of the skull”). ³⁴They gave him a drink of wine mixed with a drug called gall. When he tasted it, he refused to drink it. ³⁵After they had crucified him, they divided his clothes among themselves by throwing dice. ³⁶Then they sat there and kept watch over him. ³⁷They placed a written accusation above his head. It read, “This is Jesus, the king of the Jews.”

³⁸At that time they crucified two criminals with him, one on his right and the other on his left.

³⁹Those who passed by insulted him. They shook their heads ⁴⁰and said, “You were going to tear down God’s temple and build it again in three days. Save yourself! If you’re the Son of God, come down from the cross.” ⁴¹The chief priests together with the experts in Moses’ Teachings and the leaders made fun of him in the same way. They said, ⁴²“He saved others, but he can’t save himself. So he’s Israel’s king! Let him come down from the cross now, and we’ll believe him. ⁴³He trusted God. Let God rescue him now if he wants. After all, this man said, ‘I am the Son of God.’ ” ⁴⁴Even the criminals crucified with him were insulting him the same way.

Jesus Dies on the Cross—Mark 15:33–41; Luke 23:44–49; John 19:28–30

⁴⁵At noon darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon. ⁴⁶About three o’clock Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” which means, “My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?” ⁴⁷When some of the people standing there heard him say that, they said, “He’s calling Elijah.” ⁴⁸One of the men ran at once, took a sponge, and soaked it in some vinegar. Then he put it on a stick and offered Jesus a drink. ⁴⁹The others said, “Leave him alone! Let’s see if Elijah comes to save him.”

⁵⁰Then Jesus loudly cried out once again and gave up his life.

⁵¹Suddenly, the curtain in the temple was split in two from top to bottom. The earth shook, and the rocks were split open. ⁵²The tombs were opened, and the bodies of many holy people who had died came back to life. ⁵³They came out of the tombs after he had come back to life, and they went into the holy city where they appeared to many people.

⁵⁴An army officer and those watching Jesus with him saw the earthquake and the other things happening. They were terrified and said, “Certainly, this was the Son of God!”

Read in Logos

Matthew 27:29: and twisting together a crown of thorns, they put it on his head and put a reed in his right hand. And kneeling before him, they mocked him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!”