The Pulpit Commentary — John — Volume 2 — Section 408

Ver. J0.-Therefore I n.ith Pilate to him; Ver. 11.-Thou would1t not have 1 11utho- nettlt"d by this ei lonoe, and with the arro• rity aga.in1t me of any ldnd, either j11dici1tl gance of a Roman proonrator, Bpeake■t or aotul\l, or both combined : thou wou\Jst thou not to me 1 " I do not wonder at hold no judicial position which I or othe111 vour silence before that malignant crowd, oonld reooguize, nor wouldst thou havo the but to me your refU11al to spee.k ie in- faintest power to proooed agt1inst me unless, ei-plicable." He did not appear to desire eto. Here our Lord points to the great genuine information, nor WR.B hie con- doctrine whioh Paul afterwards expressed BOienoe touched by reflecting upon the (Rom. xiii. 1) about the powers tho.t be, and hateful mistake be had made. " The lµol hints that every eiroumsttmoe and event bears the emphasis of mortified power, which whioh led to Pilate's oooupancy of that atwmpta even then to terrify and entice " judgment-aeat, or which in recent times ho.d (Meyer). Archdeacon Watkins says well, delivered up the people of the Lord to the "Pilnte is true to the vacillating chare.ct.er authority of Rome, and prepo.red for the which now, as man, trembles before One who oocupe.noy of the Prrotorium by Pontius may be a being from the other world, and Pilato himself, was altogether beyond the now as Roman governor expeot.s that Being rouge of his judge's spontaneity o.nd compe- to tremble before him." Xnowest thou tency. Unless it were given thee from above not that I have authority ( l(o111Tl11.v) to re- (/1v,.,6ev). He docs not so.y, "from my leue thee ; • and that I have authority to Father," or "from God "-phmsee which c111oify thee t Pilate sooffingly assumf's would have been incomprehensible to a supreme authority of life and death. lie sceptical heathen ; but "from above," from virtually says, "I am the judge; you are that Di vine providential source of all power the accused criminal. I am your master, which rules all. The Lord thus implies and the mast.er of the Jews; you a.re abso- the Di vine legitimation of the judicial rank lutciy in my powe~." Tliis, then, was another of Pilnte; and the faot that bis continuous moment of critioa.l and intense interest, and occupancy of it was a talent revocable in a of tl'emendons temptation from the prince moment by the hand that ga'l"e it, and that of this world. The destiny of the Church, of all the exercise of hie so-called i!o111Tl11. was Christianity, and of the world might seem dependent on hie supreme will. For this to be trembling in the be.lance. A single oause he that delivered• me up to thee, glance, a single word of admission or plead- Though Jude.a is continually described as ing, o gesture of deforenoe, or merely huma.n 6 ,r11.pa.606s (oh. xviii. 2; xiii. 2; xi. 21 ; con.fi.denoe, or gentle fui.tt.ery, to say nothing xii. 4; vi. 64-71), yet we have o.lrce.dy of the exercise of the very power by which seen that the act of Judas had bce!l en- the Lord bad erewhile spell-bound his cap- dorsed by the people, o.nd by tho Sanhe- tors, or pe.ralyzed the arms which meant to drin, who now by their highest official stone him, and the whole history of the representative ho.d " delivered " him up to world Gudged from human and historical Pilat.e (oh. xviii. 35, note), betrayed him ste.udpoint.s) would have been utterly dif- with murderous intention to the power ferent. But the same Christ who would not which could not merely excommunicate, but e.coept the help of dremons, nor IM!Oend conld kill by judicial process. Our Lord may from the mountain of Tra.n~"1U8.tion to either refer to Oe.iapho.e (Bengel, Meyer, his native and primeval home, nor at any Lutho.rdt) or to the Sanhedrin and people time work a mimcle for the supply of hls as a whole (Godet). Hath greater sin. merely personal need, uttered the memorable "Because the initiative has been to.ken by words- him, and irrespective of thee; bec11use thy power, such as it is over me, is a Divine 1 The ol'iv is found in T. R., Laoh- e.rre.ngement, made irrespective of thy will: mann, Tregelles, R.T., Westcott and Hort, and the whole of this proceeding hos been and Meyer, on the authority of K, B, C, forced upon thee against thy better judg- DSU.r, nnd thirteen other Ulloials, Vnlgate 1 Etxu, the reading of Tischendorf (6th and other versions; but it is omitted by Tischendorf (8th edit.), and bracketed by edit.), 'f.B. 11nd B.T., Westcott and Hort, on .Alford, with K*, A, and 110me minnsoules. the authority of B, r, A, and other uncials, There seems, apriori, fe.r more likelihood of is disputed by Tisohendorf (8th edit.), who an omission than of an addition on the pa.rt reads lxus. The imperfect indicative without of the copyists. Ii, expresses the strong e.seeveration (Kilhner, • 'l'ischendorf (8th edit.), R.T., Westcott Stallbaum, and Meyer). and Hort, on the authority of K, A. B, E, • Ilc&p..Bo6s, K, B, E, A, A. eto., is preferred u againBt D, E*, L, aud,other authorities, by Tisehendorf (8th edit.), Westcott and suggest the most natural order of the two Hort,and R.T. tDthe ,r11.p..it,lio6s of T.R., Tre, words, appe&ling .tint to hope and then tD gelles (margin), and Alford, which rests on Ce.u. A and twelve other unoill.le. Olt, xn:, 1-42,] TIIFl GOSPEi, ACCORDING TO ST. ,JOHN.