John 19:1-20 ▼

1 Then Pilate had Jesus taken away and whipped.

2 The soldiers twisted some thorny branches into a crown, placed it on his head, and put a purple cape on him.

3 They went up to him, said, |Long live the king of the Jews!| and slapped his face.

4 Pilate went outside again and told the Jews, |I'm bringing him out to you to let you know that I don't find this man guilty of anything.|

5 Jesus went outside. He was wearing the crown of thorns and the purple cape. Pilate said to the Jews, |Look, here's the man!|

6 When the chief priests and the guards saw Jesus, they shouted, |Crucify him! Crucify him!| Pilate told them, |You take him and crucify him. I don't find this man guilty of anything.|

7 The Jews answered Pilate, |We have a law, and by that law he must die because he claimed to be the Son of God.|

8 When Pilate heard them say that, he became more afraid than ever.

9 He went into the palace again and asked Jesus, |Where are you from?| But Jesus didn't answer him.

10 So Pilate said to Jesus, |Aren't you going to answer me? Don't you know that I have the authority to free you or to crucify you?|

11 Jesus answered Pilate, |You wouldn't have any authority over me if it hadn't been given to you from above. That's why the man who handed me over to you is guilty of a greater sin.|

12 When Pilate heard what Jesus said, he wanted to free him. But the Jews shouted, |If you free this man, you're not a friend of the emperor. Anyone who claims to be a king is defying the emperor.|

13 When Pilate heard what they said, he took Jesus outside and sat on the judge's seat in a place called Stone Pavement. (In Hebrew it is called [Gabbatha].)

14 The time was about six o'clock in the morning on the Friday of the Passover festival. Pilate said to the Jews, |Look, here's your king!|

15 Then the Jews shouted, |Kill him! Kill him! Crucify him!| Pilate asked them, |Should I crucify your king?| The chief priests responded, |The emperor is the only king we have!|

16 Then Pilate handed Jesus over to them to be crucified. So the soldiers took Jesus.

17 He carried his own cross and went out [of the city] to a location called The Skull. (In Hebrew this place is called [Golgotha].)

18 The soldiers crucified Jesus and two other men there. Jesus was in the middle.

19 Pilate wrote a notice and put it on the cross. The notice read, |Jesus from Nazareth, the king of the Jews.|

20 Many Jews read this notice, because the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city. The notice was written in Hebrew, Latin, and Greek.