The Pulpit Commentary — John — Volume 2 — Section 405

hod beon pnt npon J csus by Ilerocl hnd Vers.1-7.-(e) [Without the Prrotorium.1 been probobly token from him before he Frtrlher prote,t,1tiom 1,y Pi/ate of Chri,t'4 was brought tho second time into the Prm- innocence bri-niJ m1t the hitlierlo-crmcenfo,l torium, nncl neoess11rily before his scourging. Jewish verdict that he harl claimed to be the Now,' though it is c11llerl n "purple robe" Son of God. by John, ond wns probnbly e. onst-off togn of Ver. 4.-And Pilate, with grim in,rn,dance, the Herodion oourt, in 1111 likelihood it wns allows the mockery t.o to.ke pince, anrl then, the snmo g11rment whioh was thrown again with his poor derided sham-king nt his Bide, nround his fettered limbs, his bowed and ho went forth again 1 from the Prmtorium bleeding form. And the soldiers plaited a to the public seat, where ho kept up the crown of thonis; in imit11tion of the victor's conflict with the accusers o.nd the ever- wreath at o "triumph," ro.ther tho.n tho gathering crowd, e.nd se.ith to them, with coronet or diadem of o. ldng. The materio.l more of passion than before, imagining thnt Is believed by Winer, Hug, Lutho.rdt, and this pitiable co.ricaturo of 11, kin_g- woul,I Godot to be the Lycium spinoeum, often reduce the cry of" Crucify him ! " into some found o.t Jerusalem, not the acanthus, whose more moderate and less preposterous demand. lco.ves decorate our Corinthian columns. It Behold, I lead him forth to you, crowned, is of flexible stom, o.nd would be soon but bleeding, robed as a king, but humiliated woven into ll wreath, the spikes of which, to a condition worse tban a slave, that ye when it was placed around that mo.jestio may know that I find no crime 2 in him ; head, would be driven into the fiesh, and literally, no charge; i.e. no" crime." Pilato produce grne.t agony. thus renews and varies his testimony to the Ver. 3.-They kept on I oollllllg to him, and character of the Holy One! He makes se.ying to him, in sportive mockery of his e.aother frnitless appeal to the humanity supposed Kingship, and utter scorn of the e.nd justice of the maddened mob. But no.lion whose Messie.nic hope they derided, what a revelation of Pilate's own weakness Hail, King of the J'ewe ! They did a she.m e.nd shame ! He can find no fault, but has obeisonce to him, he.ving elected him, as connived at, nay, ordered, the worst part of Boman gue.rds often did, an "imperator" this atrocious punishment. Keim wonlrl on the :field of be.ttle. The offerings which have us think that Pilate's e.nxiety to save they presented to him were not the kiss of a Jew is e. mere invention made by the homo.ge, but ~a.,,.(<T/la:ra.. They kept on offer- second-century fabricator. There is. how- ing him blows on the face, strokes with the ever, notbing incompatible with o Roman hand or with rods ( cf. eh. xviii. 22, note). official's anxiety not to commit e. judicial Hengstenberg, recalling here (Matt. xxvii. murder, for his own sake, and perhaps for 29) that they put a reed in his hand, symbol the honour of his order. The hypothesis of a sceptre, supposes that he refused to is irrational th111t the entire representation hold it, in consequence of which they took of Pila.te's desire to screen or save Jesus it from him, and smote him with it. The from the malice of the Jews was a device awful indignity was a wondroUB prophecy, of the author, due to his Gentile nationality Nay,from that very hour he began to reign. and proclivities, anxious to put even the That crown of thorns has been more lasting Roman officials in the best possible light. than any royal dio.dem. Those cruel insults Surely Christio.ns had no temptation to have been the titla-deeds of hie imperial mitigate their judgments upon Rome at the sway, by whioh he has mastered the nations. time of the persecution under l.\Iaroue A.nto- He was wounded, bruised, for the iniquities ninus. Thoma, like Strauss, .6.nd.i the basis of us all. The representatives of the outside of the represeatation in the prophetic types world thns share expressly in the shame of Isa. !iii. aud Pe. xx:ii. o.nd ban by which the Hebrew theocracy is Ver. 5.-Jesus then came forth, at Pile.te's orushed, and the prince of this world is order, into some prollllllent position, wear- judged. "They know not what they do:" ing ( </Jopl.,, not <P•P"' ), as a regular costume, but Jew and Roman are guilty before God. the thorny orown, and the purple robe, and he (Pilate, from his judgwent-seat) saith to xxiii. 11), 1«l1t1tlvos (Matt. xxvii. 28), .,,.op- them, us this he.teful e.nd tragic melodrama <f,vpovv (eh. xix. 2), are not inconsistent. was being enacted, Behold the Man ! Eccl!I The Aa,,.,,.p&s does not mean "white," but 1 ~. D, and r read lhA9ev, with Tischen- glittering or gorgeous: and " scarlet " and " purple" are ooutinually interchanged or dorf (8th edit.); Griesbach and T.R. read, mixed (Rev. xvii. 4: xviii. 16). with E, G, H, etc., {(71Mev o~v; Lachmann, 1 Kal ~pxono ,rpbs almlv. Thie addition R.T., and Westcott and Hort, with A, B, K, to T.R. is made by Tregellos, Tieohendorf etc., read 1<al t(11A6•v. 1 Tischondorf (8th edit.), Alford, and (8th edit.), Alford, R.T., ancl Weateott and Hort, on the anthority of ~. B, L, U, X, 33, Westcott ancl Hort ~:for as to the order ol 69, the Byriao and other versions. the \fords. JOliN.-IL 2&  THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO S'l'. JOHN. [cH. xtx. 1-42.