Thayer Thursday (on Friday!) – Herod, Herod and Pilate
Who was Pontius Pilate?
Why did he have power to crucify Jesus?
Why does Pilate say that Jesus is under Herod’s jurisdiction because He is a Galilean in Luke 23:6-7?
These are great questions, questions that come to the fore as we read through the Gospels and the Apostles’ Creed.
The difficulty we have in understanding these questions is understandable. We didn’t live 2000 years ago. The political climate is largely unknown to us without studying it. However, to the readers and hearers of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John this information was common knowledge. Therefore, the authors didn’t need to include much of this material in their letters. Fortunately for us, great scholars have given us the context of the time period when Jesus was crucified which helps explain who Pontius Pilate was.
When Jesus was born, Herod the Great was king of Judea and its surrounding territories. He was king from 37 BC – 4 BC. However, at his death in 4 BC, his sons fought over who was supposed to be the successor to the throne. They brought their argument to Rome, and Rome divided Herod the Great’s territory into three areas. Judea, where Jerusalem and the temple were was given to one of his sons named Archelaus. A second son called Herod Antipas was given a portion of territory – notably Galilee & Perea where Jesus & John the Baptist did much of their ministry. Finally, a third son, Phillip the Tetrarch, was given another portion of his father’s territory.
The first thing to notice is that there are two “Herods” who are referred to in the Gospels. The first, Herod the Great, is the father – the one that was alive during the birth of Jesus. The second, Herod Antipas, is one of Herod the Great’s three sons who received territory. This is the Herod that kills John the Baptist and whom Pilate sends Jesus to in Luke 23 (because Jesus was a Galilean, and therefore under the jurisdiction of Herod Antipas).
However, Herod Antipas was not ruler over Jerusalem – where Jesus went during his last days. That was not part of his territory. This is where it gets even more confusing.
Archelaus Herod the Great’s son who was supposed to be ruler over Judea (and therefore Jerusalem) didn’t remain in power for very long. Because he couldn’t keep control of the people, in 6 AD Rome took his territory away from him and installed their own Prefects to control the people. Pontius Pilate was the 5th in this line of Prefects who were installed by Rome. His job was to keep the peace.
Pilate, however, had done several things during his reign as Prefect which caused revolt amongst the people. Since his job was to keep the peace, and his continued employment depended on it, it’s natural to assume that Pilate’s propensity would be to allow the angry mob who wanted Jesus crucified to have their way. After trying to pawn the situation off onto Herod Antipas failed, Pilate succumbs to the pressure of the crowd and has Jesus crucified.
Chris Thayer
Sermon Title: “Suffered Under Pontius Pilate, Was Crucified, Dead, and Buried” – http://www.gsumc.org/Media_Resources.ihtml?id=686621
Categories: Biblical Scholarship, Biblical Theology, Blog, New Testament