John 18:29–38

²⁹So Pilate came outside to them and said, “What accusation do you bring against this man?” ³⁰They answered and said to him, “If this man were not doing evil, we would not have handed him over to you!” ³¹So Pilate said to them, “You take him and judge him according to your law!” The Jews said to him, “It is not permitted for us to kill anyone,” ³²in order that the word of Jesus would be fulfilled that he had spoken, indicating by what sort of death he was going to die.

Pilate Questions Jesus

³³Then Pilate entered again into the governor’s residence and summoned Jesus and said to him, “Are you the king of the Jews?” ³⁴Jesus replied, “Do you say this from yourself, or have others said this^* to you about me?” ³⁵Pilate replied, “I am not a Jew, am I?^* Your people and the chief priests handed you over to me! What have you done?” ³⁶Jesus replied, “My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would be fighting so that I would not be handed over to the Jews. But now my kingdom is not from here.” ³⁷Then Pilate said to him, “So then you are a king!” Jesus replied, “You say that I am a king. For this reason I was born, and for this reason I have come into the world: in order that I can testify to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears my voice.” ³⁸Pilate said to him, “What is truth?”

And when he^* had said this, he went out again to the Jews and said to them, “I find no basis for an accusation against him.