But the mob shouted louder and louder, demanding that Jesus be crucified, and their voices prevailed.
I am surrounded by fierce lions who greedily devour human prey— whose teeth pierce like spears and arrows, and whose tongues cut like swords.
I got rid of their three evil shepherds in a single month. But I became impatient with these sheep, and they hated me, too.
“No!” Peter declared emphatically. “Even if I have to die with you, I will never deny you!” And all the others vowed the same.
For the third time he demanded, “Why? What crime has he committed? I have found no reason to sentence him to death. So I will have him flogged, and then I will release him.”
So Pilate sentenced Jesus to die as they demanded.
Then they became insistent. “But he is causing riots by his teaching wherever he goes—all over Judea, from Galilee to Jerusalem!”