One event, four witnesses
Jesus Before Pilate
The Jewish leaders bring Jesus to Pilate, who examines Him and, though finding no fault, yields Him to be crucified. All four Gospels record the trial; John gives the longest dialogue, and Luke alone records Jesus being sent to Herod.
“And Jesus stood before the governor: and the governor asked him, saying, Art thou the King of the Jews? And Jesus said unto him, Thou sayest.”Matthew 27:11
“And straightway in the morning the chief priests held a consultation with the elders and scribes and the whole council, and bound Jesus, and carried him away, and delivered him to Pilate.”Mark 15:1
“And the whole multitude of them arose, and led him unto Pilate.”Luke 23:1
“Then led they Jesus from Caiaphas unto the hall of judgment: and it was early; and they themselves went not into the judgment hall, lest they should be defiled; but that they might eat the passover.”John 18:28
The event
The event. In the morning the chief priests and elders bind Jesus and deliver Him to Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor. They accuse Him of perverting the nation, forbidding tribute to Caesar, and claiming to be a king. Pilate asks whether He is the King of the Jews, and Jesus answers, "Thou sayest." In John, a longer exchange unfolds: Jesus explains that His kingdom is not of this world, that He came to bear witness to the truth, and Pilate asks, "What is truth?" Pilate repeatedly declares he finds no fault in Him. Luke records that on learning Jesus is a Galilean, Pilate sends Him to Herod, who questions Him, mocks Him with his soldiers, arrays Him in a gorgeous robe, and sends Him back, and that Pilate and Herod are made friends that day. Pilate seeks to release Jesus, offering the crowd the customary Passover pardon, but they demand Barabbas instead and cry for Jesus to be crucified. Matthew records Pilate washing his hands, declaring himself innocent of this blood, and the crowd taking the responsibility upon themselves; Pilate's wife also warns him because of a dream. At last Pilate, fearing the crowd, releases Barabbas, has Jesus scourged, and delivers Him to be crucified.
Read side by side: what is the same, what differs
Read side by side: what is the same, what differs. All four agree that Jesus was brought before Pilate, questioned as King of the Jews, declared without fault by Pilate, set against Barabbas whom the crowd chose, and finally handed over to be crucified. The fullness varies greatly. John gives by far the longest account, with the private dialogues inside the judgment hall, Jesus' words about His kingdom not being of this world and about truth, Pilate's "What is truth," the presentation of the scourged Jesus with "Behold the man," and the crowd's cry that they have no king but Caesar. Luke alone records the sending of Jesus to Herod Antipas and the reconciliation of the two rulers that day, a scene found in no other Gospel. Matthew alone tells of Pilate's wife and her dream, and of Pilate washing his hands before the crowd. Mark, briefest, gives the essential trial and Pilate's wonder that Jesus answered nothing. These are not competing versions but complementary reports, each preserving what it knew of a long and eventful proceeding; a Roman trial with movement between the governor and Herod easily holds all these elements. The core, Pilate's finding of innocence overridden by the crowd's demand and his cowardly concession, is one in all four.
What it shows of Christ
What it shows of Christ. Before the power of Rome and the fury of the crowd, Jesus stands as the true King whose kingdom is not of this world, silent under false accusation yet clear in confessing the truth. John's Christ tells Pilate that He was born to bear witness to the truth, and that Pilate would have no power over Him except it were given from above, revealing that even the governor's authority is under God and that Jesus lays down His life willingly. Luke shows Him silent and mocked before Herod, fulfilling the picture of the suffering servant who opened not His mouth. Matthew, with Pilate's handwashing and the crowd's cry, presses the tragedy of a guilty world condemning its innocent Judge. Through it all, the repeated verdict, "I find no fault in him," declares His innocence even from the lips of His judge, so that the sinless One is condemned in the place of the guilty Barabbas, a living picture of the exchange at the heart of the gospel: the innocent for the guilty, that the guilty might go free.
Questions people ask
What does Luke uniquely add to the trial before Pilate?
Luke alone records that Pilate, learning Jesus was a Galilean, sent Him to Herod Antipas, who questioned Him, mocked Him with his soldiers, arrayed Him in a gorgeous robe, and sent Him back, and that Pilate and Herod became friends that day. This scene appears in no other Gospel and fills out the fuller course of the proceedings, showing Jesus silent before another ruler.
Why is John's account of the trial so much longer than the others?
John preserves the private dialogues between Jesus and Pilate inside the judgment hall, including Jesus' words about His kingdom not being of this world and His witness to the truth, Pilate's question "What is truth," and the presentation of Jesus to the crowd. The Synoptics give the essential proceeding more briefly. These are complementary reports; a long Roman trial easily contained all that the four Gospels record.