The Pulpit Commentary — Luke — Volume 2 — Section 242

Ver. 16.-Guilty compromise. Twice (are ver. 22) Pihte m~de thie offer to the Jews. He would chastise Jesus nnd release him; be would thus vatify them by put tin" the Object of their hntred to pain and humiliation, and he would satisfy Iiis own con: science by saving an innocent man from the last extremity. It was a poor a.nd a guilty compromise he proposed as a solution. If Jesus were as guilty a.1 they claimed that he was, he deserved to die, and Pilate was in duty bound to condemn him to death ; if he were innocent, he certainly ought not to have been subjected to the expo~ure and agony of scourging. It was a cowardly nnd ignoble endeavour to eave himself at the expense either of public or of individual justice. Compromises are of very different character. 'l'here are compromises which are- I. JUST, AND THEREFORE HONOURABL1':. 'l'wo men in business have claims one against the other, and one cannot convince the other by argument; the proposal is made to adjust their respective claims by a. compromise, each man consenting to forego some- thing, the concession of the one being taken a.s a fair equivalent to that of the other: this is honourable to both. It very probably results in ea.eh man getting what is bis due, and it saves both from the misery and expen~e of litigation, and preserves good will and even friendship. II. Wxsr., AND THEREFORE COMMENDABLE. A society-it may be of a distinctly religious character-is divided by its members holding opposite opinions. Some a.dvo- cate one course, the others urge a. different one. '£he idea is suggested that a third course be adopted, which includes some fentures of the two; there is no serious principle involved, it is only a matter of procedure, a question of expediency. 'l'hen it will prob- ably be found to be the wisdom of that society to accept the proposed compromise. Every one present has the double advantage of securing something which he approve.•, ond ( what is really better, if it could but be realized) that of yielding something to the wishes or the convictions of other people. III. GUILTY, AND THEREFORE CONDEMNABLE, Such was tbat of tbe text. Such have been innumerable others since then. All are guilty that are effected: 1. .At the expense of fruth. The teacher of Divine truth mny bring his doctrine down to the level of his hearers' understanding; he may make known the great verities of the faith •• in many portions" ( 1roJ1.11µ,prJs); but he may not, in order to "please men," distort or withhold the living truth of God. If he does that he shows himself unworthy of his omce, and he exposes himself to the severe condemnation of his Divine Master. 2. At the expense of ;'ustice. However anxious we may be to preserve outward harmony, we may not, for the salte of peace, do any one man a wrong; mny not a.sparse his character, injure his prospects, wound his spirit. Rather than do that, we must face the storm, and guide our bark as bost we can. 3. At the expense of self-respect. If Pil:.ite had been less hardened than he probably was, less accustomed to the infliction of human pain and shame, he would have gone back to the interior of his house ashamed of him- self, as he thought of the lacerating scene that immediately followed that mockery of a tri:d. If we cannot yield without inflicting on our own soul a real spiritual injury, without. doing (or leaving undone) an action the remembrance of which will not only shame but weaken us, then we must not compromise the matter in dispute. ,ve must toll our tale, whatever it may be; we must make our motion, whomsoever it mny offend; we must walk straight on in the road of rectitude, in the path of hum:.inity.-0. Ver. 24.-The cliaracter of Pilate. It is true that Pilate'e opinion concerning Jesus of Nazareth was very different indeed from that of his accusers; but he h~tle imagined that it would be to that poor suffering Prisoner that he would owe such immortality ae he ie to enjoy. Yet eo it is; it is only because we nre <iisciples of Jesus Christ thnt we care to ask who and what was Pilnte. He is nothing but the gold upon tho altar. In considering the elements of his nharacter, we note- L '!'HAT Hl!l WAS POSSESSED 01' ENl':ROY AND ENTERPRISE. Ile would hardly have rrnched the station he occupied, or hol,I it ns long ns he diol, if he had uot had these two qualities in his charnctcr.  THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO ST. LUKE. [en. x.xm. 1-56.