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Commentaries
English
John
  
33Pilate entered the Praetorium again and called Jesus, and said to him, "Are you the King of the Jews?"34Jesus answered, "Do you say this of your own accord, or did others say it to you about me?"35Pilate answered, "Am I a Jew? Your own nation and the chief priests have handed you over to me. What have you done?"36Jesus answered, "My kingship is not of this world; if my kingship were of this world, my servants would fight, that I might not be handed over to the Jews; but my kingship is not from this world.


The soldiers placed Jesus inside the barracks. When Pilate had heard the accusations of the Jews, he also wanted to hear Jesus’ defense directly by mouth. Pilate did not trust the utterances of the Jews, but to proceed legally he asked Christ, "Are you the King of the Jews? I have seen other Messiahs armed to the teeth, with black beards and glaring eyes. You are not a fighter or a terrorist. You seem to be a miserable person, meek and humble, how can you aspire to Kingship? A king requires authority, power and ruthlessness."
Jesus felt that Pilate doubted his claim to kingship and asked, "Did your troops tell you that my disciples fought with them by night, or did your informers hear me making political speeches, or is your question based on Jewish lies alone? A governor should not listen to false charges."
Pilate replied angrily, "Am I a Jew?" As if to say, "I will not stoop to the level of those stubborn bigots, arguing about the points of religion night and day."
So Pilate admitted that it was not he who had arrested Jesus, but the Jewish people, their leaders and the nationalist. Then, he asked briefly, "What did you do? I need an answer from you to confront those who accuse you. Speak, or you will be beaten; tell the whole truth."
At this, Jesus confessed the whole truth in a way that he rarely did with his disciples. He said, "God’s Kingdom is his alone, not built on tribute or weapons or jobs to exploit others." Christ’s kingdom shall not pass away as others. Jesus taught his followers not to strike with swords, or fire bullets or throw bombs. His Kingdom differs totally from all the Kingdoms on earth.