Final thoughts on Mark 15:15
So Pilate, wanting to gratify the crowd, released Barabbas to them; and he delivered Jesus, after he had scourged Him, to be crucified. NKJV
Pontius Pilate knows Jesus is innocent, yet he gives in totally to appease the wishes of the mob. First he has Jesus scourged (flogged with a whip whose tails are imbedded with bits of metal and rock) and then turns Jesus over to be crucified. Why does he do it? He has to keep Rome happy by maintaining order. To maintain order, he has to keep the crowd happy. So even though Pilate has already pronounced Jesus “not guilty” of any crime and has the final say, he gives in to the pressure put on him by the people who want Jesus crucified.
In Pilate’s mind, his word is law. In the eyes of the crowd, Pilate’s word is law. Jesus, however, knows that Pilate has no power to act, rule, or enforce his verdict apart from God’s granting him that power. Pilate is unable to recognize that the truth that he acts in concert with the mob’s will, Rome’s desire, and God’s eternal plan. Jesus is allowed to be crucified—both by Pilate, to appease the crowd which is being manipulated by the Jewish religious leaders, and also by God, who is using this horrifying event to save lost sinners such as you and me.
If God can bring such a great redemption out of such an unfair injustice, imagine what he can do with our suffering for his sake. Phil Ware
Bethel Bible Church Hawaii 