²⁸Then the Jewish leaders took Jesus from Caiaphas to the palace of the Roman governor.^o By now it was early morning, and to avoid ceremonial uncleanness they did not enter the palace,^p because they wanted to be able to eat the Passover.^q ²⁹So Pilate came out to them and asked, “What charges are you bringing against this man?”

³⁰“If he were not a criminal,” they replied, “we would not have handed him over to you.”

³¹Pilate said, “Take him yourselves and judge him by your own law.”

“But we have no right to execute anyone,” they objected. ³²This took place to fulfill what Jesus had said about the kind of death he was going to die.^r

³³Pilate then went back inside the palace,^s summoned Jesus and asked him, “Are you the king of the Jews?”^t

³⁴“Is that your own idea,” Jesus asked, “or did others talk to you about me?”

³⁵“Am I a Jew?” Pilate replied. “Your own people and chief priests handed you over to me. What is it you have done?”

³⁶Jesus said, “My kingdom^u is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jewish leaders.^v But now my kingdom is from another place.”^w

³⁷“You are a king, then!” said Pilate.

Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. In fact, the reason I was born and came into the world is to testify to the truth.^x Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.”^y

³⁸“What is truth?” retorted Pilate. With this he went out again to the Jews gathered there and said, “I find no basis for a charge against him.^z

Read in Logos

John 18:37: Then Pilate said to him, “So you are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. For this purpose I was born and for this purpose I have come into the world—to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice.”

Cross references

oSee Mt 27:2
pver 33; Jn 19:9
q Jn 11:55
r Mt 20:19; 26:2; Jn 3:14; 8:28; 12:32, 33
sver 28, 29; Jn 19:9
t Lk 23:3; See Mt 2:2
uSee Mt 3:2
v Mt 26:53
w Lk 17:21; Jn 6:15
x Jn 3:32
y Jn 8:47; 1 Jn 4:6
zSee Lk 23:4