John 19:6-11 • The Source of All Authority

The John Project

As Jesus stood on display before them with the blood from his wounds seeping through the purple robe Pilate’s troops had draped over him in mockery, the religious elite pressed Pilate to finish him off by nailing him to a cross. The torture already inflicted had been at the procurator’s command in a failed attempt to appease them, but he resisted their demands for crucifixion stating, for the third time, “I find no fault in him.” Then, the balance of John 19:6-11 records a tug-of-war that followed between the governor and Christ’s accusers over the subject of authority, who possessed it and on what basis. Although the words 𝘱𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘳 and 𝘢𝘶𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘺 are often used synonymously, they’re not the same thing. Power is the capability to do or accomplish something, but authority is the right to control, command, or determine it. For example, a police officer may have a gun on his belt that gives him power, but the badge on his chest is what gives him authority. In the confrontation between the Jews and the governor, there was no question who had the power to crucify Jesus. The argument was over who had the authority. The religious leaders claimed they did and that it was based on the Mosaic law contained in Scripture. They knew that Pilate was under orders from Rome to try and keep the peace among the subjugated people of Israel by respecting their laws as much as possible. So, although misapplying it, they made the case for their authority to have Jesus crucified based on Leviticus 24:16 which says, “Whoever blasphemes the name of the Lord shall surely be put to death.” They insisted that by asserting he was the Son of God, Jesus was guilty of a capital crime. This troubled Pilate. In fact, we’re told it seriously frightened him. After conducting his initial interrogation, he’d dismissed the Jewish leaders’ original accusation that Jesus claimed to be 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘒𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘑𝘦𝘸𝘴. In fact, he’d begun referring to him in derision using that phrase. But it’s clear that as both an employee of Caesar and a polytheist, he now found himself caught between the proverbial rock and a hard place. If his inaction unleashed religious unrest among the people, he would lose his job or worse. And on top of that, as someone who likely believed that offspring of the Roman gods were known to make appearances among men on occasion, he would have been terrified of the possibility he might have just signed off on having one of them whipped and beaten. So, he retreated once again with Jesus into the Praetorium out of public view and asked him to confirm where he’d come from. And he wasn’t referring to his Israeli hometown. He certainly already had that information. He wanted assurance that this enigmatic prisoner was not from among the pantheon. When Jesus refused to answer him, an indignant Pilate claimed to have the power to crucify or release him. But the word translated as 𝘱𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘳 three times in verses 10 and 11 might be better rendered as 𝘢𝘶𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘺. And when the Lord finally responded to Pilate, it was to address that issue. Jesus made it clear he was not intimidated by the governor’s implied threat and set him straight regarding who held the authority in their relationship. Our Lord told the procurator that any authority he held was merely a grant 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘷𝘦, which can also be translated as 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘤𝘦. In other words, Pilate had no authority over Jesus that wasn’t explicitly given to service the will of the one who holds all authority. You and I could benefit from gaining greater clarity about the fact that God’s authority is absolute. Jesus said, “All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth” (Matthew 28:18). So, whenever we find ourselves being spiritually threatened by demonic bullies or in troubling circumstances that tempt us to fear, let’s remember that we belong to the one who loves us more than we can know and has the final say over all things.