14 Now it was the Preparation Day of the Passover, and about the sixth hour. And he said to the Jews, “Behold your King!” 15 But they cried out, “Away with Him, away with Him! Crucify Him!” Pilate said to them, “Shall I crucify your King?” The chief priests answered, “We have no king but Caesar!” 16 Then he delivered Him to them to be crucified. Then they took Jesus and led Him away.
19:14
Now it was the Preparation Day of the Passover,
There is an apparent difference between the three synoptic gospels and the gospel of John. This is resolved by the different use in calendars. The synoptics use the Galilean calendar that reckoned from sunrise to sunrise, whereas John used the Judean calendar that reckoned from sunset to sunset. Also, Jews used any part of a day as the whole day.
and about the sixth hour [6 A.M.].
The “sixth hour” in Roman time was “about” 6 A.M., reckoned from midnight. John did not say it was precisely 6 A.M. Mark using Hebrew time indicated in Mark 15:42 that Jesus was crucified on the day before the Sabbath (Saturday). Three hours would intervene between the sentencing and the crucifixion (9 A.M.). Mark gave the hour in which Jesus was crucified in Mark 15:25. John spoke of Passover as Friday at sunset.
And he said to the Jews, “Behold your King!”
Pilate called Jesus “king” out of spite for the Jews. The idea of Jesus as the “king” of Israel was an intolerable idea to them. This was a way of ridiculing them.
19:15
But they cried out, “Away with Him, away with Him! Crucify Him!”
The Jewish leaders were immediate with their response, but this was unexpected to Pilate. They cried, “Crucify Him” with mob mentality.
Pilate said to them, “Shall I crucify your King [emphatic]?”
This is another caustic remark to the Jews by Pilate. Little did he know that Jesus was indeed the King of the Jews.
The chief priests answered, “We have no king but Caesar!”
The claim by the chief priests that they had “no king but Caesar” was unadulterated hypocrisy.
19:16
Then he [Pilate] delivered Him to them [soldiers] to be crucified.
John did not relate the verdict or sentence of Jesus in his gospel. The verdict was treason and the sentence was death on the cross.
Then they [the soldiers] took Jesus and led Him away.
Pilate handed Jesus to the soldiers who would execute Him by crucifixion.
PRINCIPLE:
Leadership sometimes wins the battle but loses the war.
APPLICATION:
Leadership at times requires sacrifice. Pilate compromised truth and life for his career. Fear motivated him more than what was right. He feared Caesar Tiberius more than God. He won the battle but lost the war.
Note: For a further study of the conflict between the calendars of the synoptics and John, see this study: https://versebyversecommentary.com/articles/problem-passages/conflict-of-the-synoptics-and-the-gospel-of-john-resurrection-accounts/
