John 18:35 kjv
Pilate answered, Am I a Jew? Thine own nation and the chief priests have delivered thee unto me: what hast thou done?
John 18:35 nkjv
Pilate answered, "Am I a Jew? Your own nation and the chief priests have delivered You to me. What have You done?"
John 18:35 niv
"Am I a Jew?" Pilate replied. "Your own people and chief priests handed you over to me. What is it you have done?"
John 18:35 esv
Pilate answered, "Am I a Jew? Your own nation and the chief priests have delivered you over to me. What have you done?"
John 18:35 nlt
"Am I a Jew?" Pilate retorted. "Your own people and their leading priests brought you to me for trial. Why? What have you done?"
John 18 35 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Jn 1:11 | He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. | Jewish rejection of their Messiah. |
| Matt 27:18 | For he knew that it was out of envy that they had delivered him up. | Chief priests' corrupt motivation. |
| Acts 3:13 | The God of Abraham... glorified His Servant Jesus, whom you delivered over... | Peter's accusation to Jewish people. |
| Acts 7:52 | Which of the prophets did your fathers not persecute?... betrays and murderers of the Just One. | Stephen's strong rebuke of Jewish leaders. |
| 1 Thes 2:15 | who killed the Lord Jesus and the prophets and drove us out... | Early Christian view of Jewish leadership's role. |
| Matt 26:3-4 | ...the chief priests and the elders of the people gathered in the palace... and plotted to arrest Jesus... and kill him. | Jewish leaders' active plotting against Jesus. |
| Mark 10:33 | "See, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests..." | Jesus's prophecy of being delivered to Jewish leaders. |
| Luke 24:20 | and how our chief priests and rulers delivered him up to be condemned to death, and crucified him. | The disciples' confirmation of the leaders' actions. |
| Is 53:6 | ...and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all. | Prophecy of divine "delivery" for atonement. |
| Is 53:12 | Therefore I will allot Him a portion with the great, and He will divide the spoil with the strong... | Foreshadows Jesus delivered as an offering. |
| Rom 8:32 | He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? | God's ultimate plan of "giving up" His Son. |
| 1 Cor 11:23 | For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was delivered over took bread... | The phrase "delivered over" in Eucharist context. |
| Acts 2:23 | this Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God... | God's sovereignty over human agency in the crucifixion. |
| Jn 19:6, 12, 15 | When the chief priests... saw him, they cried out, "Crucify him, crucify him!" Pilate said to them, "Take him yourselves..." | Pilate's attempts to evade the responsibility. |
| Matt 27:24-25 | So when Pilate saw that he was gaining nothing... he took water and washed his hands... | Pilate's symbolic rejection of responsibility. |
| Acts 4:27-28 | for truly in this city there were gathered together against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, along with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, to do whatever your hand and your plan had predestined to take place. | All parties, knowingly or unknowingly, fulfilling God's plan. |
| Jn 3:19-20 | And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their deeds were evil. | The world's focus on actions stemming from evil nature. |
| 1 Cor 2:14 | The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him... | Inability of worldly thinking to grasp spiritual truths. |
| Gal 3:28 | There is neither Jew nor Gentile, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. | In Christ, ethnic identities become secondary to spiritual. |
| Rom 2:28-29 | For no one is a Jew who is merely one outwardly, nor is circumcision outward and physical. But a Jew is one inwardly... | True spiritual identity transcends physical lineage. |
| 1 Pet 2:9 | But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God's own possession... | The new spiritual "nation" in contrast to "your nation." |
John 18 verses
John 18 35 Meaning
Pilate, as the Roman governor, explicitly disavows any identification or stake in Jewish ethnicity, religion, or internal affairs. He rhetorically questions his own Jewish identity, emphasizing his detachment and positioning himself as an impartial Roman authority. By stating "Your own nation and the chief priests have delivered you to me," Pilate deftly shifts the responsibility for Jesus's predicament squarely onto the Jewish people and their religious leaders, asserting that the accusation originates from them, not from Roman concern. He then demands to know "What have you done?", indicating his focus on identifying a tangible, actionable crime against Roman law rather than delving into the theological or messianic claims presented by the Jewish authorities.
John 18 35 Context
John 18:35 is situated within the solemn account of Jesus's trial before Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor of Judea. This trial followed Jesus's arrest, an interrogation by Annas, and an initial judgment by Caiaphas and the Jewish Sanhedrin, where He was condemned for blasphemy (Matt 26:65-66). Since the Jewish authorities lacked the power of capital punishment under Roman rule (Jn 18:31), they brought Jesus to Pilate, presenting a politically charged accusation: that Jesus claimed to be "King of the Jews" (Jn 18:33), an act of sedition against Caesar. Pilate's prior question to Jesus ("Are you the King of the Jews?", v.33) prompted Jesus to inquire if Pilate asked this out of personal conviction or from information received from others (v.34), subtly hinting at the Jewish leaders' manipulation. Pilate's response in verse 35 immediately clarifies his stance, refusing to be drawn into Jewish religious or ethnic disputes and redirecting the source of the accusation to where he believed it belonged: the Jewish nation and its leadership. This pivotal exchange sets the stage for Jesus's profound declaration of His kingdom as "not of this world." Historically, Pilate, like other Roman governors, was primarily concerned with maintaining order and upholding Roman law, not adjudicating Jewish religious doctrines, unless they posed a direct threat to Roman authority.
John 18 35 Word analysis
- Pilate answered: (Apekrithe autō ho Pilatos) Pilate's reply here is not a straightforward factual answer but a defensive, almost disdainful, deflection. It marks his disengagement from the reason for Jesus's being before him, pointing instead to the source of the accusation.
- 'Am I a Jew?': (Mēti egō Ioudaios eimi?) This is a strong rhetorical question in Greek, demanding a negative response, emphasizing Pilate's non-Jewish identity and his contempt for their internal squabbles. It highlights his Roman cultural, political, and religious distance from the very concept of Jewish messianic kingship. He expresses profound disconnect from their understanding of truth and justice.
- Your own nation: (to ethnos to son) "Nation" (ethnos) here refers to the ethnic, political, and cultural group of the Jews. Pilate deliberately uses this term, rather than a more respectful or spiritual designation like "the people of God," to reinforce his external, indifferent, and possibly condescending view of them. It is a clear attempt to disclaim Roman initiative and blame shifting the responsibility.
- and the chief priests: (kai hoi archiereis) This specifies the leading religious and political figures within the Jewish hierarchy. Their explicit mention signifies their official and leading role in Jesus's apprehension and accusation. They are named as the primary instigators, demonstrating a deliberate move to shift responsibility.
- have delivered you to me: (paredōkan se emoi) The verb paradidomi is profound, meaning "to hand over, betray, deliver." Here, it points to the concrete, intentional act of the Jewish authorities presenting Jesus to the Roman state for judgment. The emphasis on "to me" highlights Pilate as the unwilling recipient of a problem that he believes is not his own. This "delivering over" will be repeated throughout the Passion narrative, holding layers of human betrayal and divine plan.
- What have you done?': (ti epoiēsas?) This question pivots from the accusers to the accused. Pilate's interest is in concrete actions (epoiesas), not spiritual or theological claims. As a Roman governor, he needs a criminal act under Roman law to proceed, betraying his inability to grasp the spiritual nature of Jesus's alleged "kingship." He operates strictly within a legalistic framework, unconcerned with underlying truth.
John 18 35 Bonus section
Pilate's disengagement here highlights the Roman Empire's general stance towards diverse religions within its vast territory: largely tolerant as long as they didn't threaten public order or imperial cult. The Jewish leadership's accusation against Jesus as "King of the Jews" was precisely engineered to breach this tolerance and force Roman intervention, turning a religious dispute into a capital offense in Roman eyes. This moment also implicitly underscores the ultimate sovereignty of God, as the actions of human authorities, motivated by indifference or malice, ultimately fulfill the divine purpose of Christ's sacrifice. Pilate, in his very attempt to externalize and divest himself of the issue, inadvertently serves a higher divine plan that required Jesus to be "delivered over" by both His own people and the Gentile powers for the redemption of humanity.
John 18 35 Commentary
John 18:35 offers a crucial glimpse into the dramatic conflict between the kingdom of this world and the kingdom of God. Pilate, the embodiment of Roman authority and pragmatic power, immediately distances himself from any entanglement in what he perceives as a Jewish internal matter. His rhetorical "Am I a Jew?" underlines a fundamental cultural and spiritual chasm, revealing a secular mind’s inability to grasp the profound claims of a Messiah or spiritual kingship. He sees a political problem originating from "Your own nation and the chief priests," firmly shifting the burden of the accusation and, by implication, its solution, back to those who presented Jesus. The term "delivered you" (paredōkan) is pregnant with significance, resonating with prophecies of divine giving-over for atonement, even as it denotes the human act of betrayal and handing over to earthly authorities. Pilate’s blunt "What have you done?" further emphasizes his preoccupation with actionable, worldly offenses rather than a deeper inquiry into the spiritual truth of Jesus's identity or kingdom, revealing the spiritual blindness of earthly power confronted with divine reality. This entire exchange sets the stage for Jesus's redefinition of kingship and the true nature of His authority.