Mark 15:12-15 12And Pilate again answering said to them, “Then what do you want that I should do with the one you call the King of the Jews?” 13And they shouted out again, “Crucify him.” 14But Pilate said to them, “For what wrong has he done?” But they shouted even louder, “Crucify him.” 15So Pilate, wanting to satisfy the crowd, released for them Barabbas, and handed over Jesus for scourging in order to be crucified.
Pilate offers the choice to them, referring to the chief priests and the incited crowd. They finally had the power to get rid of Jesus. Pilate’s question in verse 12 is full of sarcasm and irony. He is taunting the Jews. Pilate asks them three questions in this passage that gives them the opportunity to change their minds about Jesus (verses 9, 12, 14). Each time, they respond in a negative way toward Jesus and want him executed. Each response also gets more intense, louder, and reveals their deep hatred towards Jesus. By asking three times, Pilate seems hesitant in carrying out this execution because he perceives that Jesus is innocent. The question in verse 14 is Pilate’s last offer and the last chance for the Jews to accept Jesus as their Messiah and King, but their hearts were hardened.
The gathered group continued to insist on Jesus’ demise and shouted out with the most cruel form of punishment of that time. Crucifixion was the way Romans dealt with rebels and the worst of criminals. The accusation against Jesus of being the King of the Jews would warrant such form of execution in the eyes of the Romans. The Jews knew this, and so they basically agree with the claim about Jesus’ kingship. The verdict is another confirmation of Jesus’ identity except the Jewish leaders did not accept his authority.
The puppet Pilate gives in to the crowd and issues the command, likely hoping that this would settle the matter and he can get on with life. He did not know that his simple words would have ripple effects throughout time and eternity. Jesus’ crucifixion was unjust because he was innocent of any wrong, but Pilate carried through with it. He saw it as the lesser of two outcomes: riot and bad relationships with the chief priests and Sanhedrin, or execution of some peasant preacher people claimed to be a king. Pilate was not completely innocent in Jesus’ execution, for he knew Jesus was innocent of any crime. The same word used for the betraying of Judas and the Jewish leaders is used for Pilate in verse 15 (paredōken). Pilate betrayed Jesus when he betrayed his conscience.
The Jews received their hero, Barabbas, and Jesus was sent off to be crucified in the normal manner of being scourged first. Scourging involved whipping with cords that often had pieces of bone or metal in the cords. It was enough to kill a person. The severe beating would have greatly weakened Jesus and brought him to the brink of death. Crucifixion itself was only the culmination of a cruelty that began earlier. The saddest moments for Jesus and all who call him Lord come in the following hours.
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