“Then what should I do with Jesus who is called the Messiah?” Pilate asked. They all answered, “Crucify him!”
“My friends, here’s what I want you to know. I announce to you that your sins can be forgiven because of what Jesus has done.
The chief priests and the whole Sanhedrin (the council of elders) were looking for evidence against Jesus so they could put him to death. But they didn’t find anything they could use.
So when the crowd gathered, Pilate asked them, “Which one do you want me to set free? Jesus Barabbas, or Jesus who’s called the Messiah?”
Jacob was the father of Joseph. Joseph was the husband of Mary, who was the mother of Jesus, who is called the Messiah.
“Which of the two do you want me to set free?” asked the governor. “Barabbas,” they answered.
“Why? What wrong has he done?” asked Pilate. But they shouted even more loudly, “Crucify him!”
The woman said, “I know that the Messiah is coming, the one called the Christ. When he comes, he’ll explain everything to us.”
The people and their rulers had no reason at all for sentencing Jesus to death. Still, they asked Pilate to have him killed.