The merchants wept at first because no one was buying their cargo anymore1. They are now weeping because they are afraid they will be dragged down in Babylon’s pains. As soon as something goes wrong somewhere, lots of people who were involved up to the hilt, who were part of it, claim suddenly that they were not at all involved and watch from a distance to see how everything turns out. We are not responsible, they say.
It is sometimes said that success has many fathers and mothers, but failure is a lonely orphan. The mentality is “Wash your hands in innocence, keep far away, you will perhaps have a lucky escape.” No one escapes God’s justice however.
You are inescapably involved, and will be held personally responsible for your share in the state of affairs on planet earth under the leadership of the beasts and the whore, and for your personal behaviour. You could have said: no, but you said: yes, and went along as everybody else. Now you will be held responsible.
Pontius Pilate washed his hands in innocence. When he saw Jesus standing before him, he declared: “I find no basis for a charge against him.”2 He tried all kinds of things to avoid getting involved. First he told the Jews that as this was a religious conflict, they should judge for themselves. However, because the Jews insisted on the death penalty, Pilate had to give a verdict, because the Jews were not the masters in their own country and they were not allowed to carry out death sentences.3 It was the sole prerogative of the occupying forces, the Roman government to mete out a death penalty. Hence, Pilatus was obliged to decide, whether he wanted to or not. Pilate considered the accusation to be nonsense that Jesus apparently claimed to be a king, and therefore that this man was a threat to the Emperor’s authority. No reason to condemn this peaceful man as a revolutionary. He understood that it was somehow about questions on truth, and so he mused cynically and philosophically: “What is truth?”4 He then had Jesus flogged and made a mockery of him as a ‘king’. Perhaps, he thought: “They will now take pity on this bleeding, wretched figure. This is sufficient punishment.5 “Look at that man!” “Behold the Man”, John 19:5 NASB. But they shouted, “He claims to be God’s Son, and that is blasphemy, so He must die!” Pilate then tried to release Jesus, fearing the mystery surrounding Jesus. Even his wife warned him: “Don’t have anything to do with that innocent man, for I have suffered a great deal today in a dream because of him”.6 Then Pilate gave them the choice to free either Barabbas – a real murderer – or Jesus.7 But they shouted, “Crucify, crucify!” He asks once again, mockingly, hoping for a change of heart among the crowd of people: “Is that your King? Do I have to crucify Him?”
The people replied that they had no king except the Roman Emperor. Pilate then washed his hands, declaring his innocence,8 and delivered Jesus to be crucified,9 after first having attempted to pass the buck to Herod but to no avail.10 But if you are the one who has to sign the order for the execution, and if your Roman soldiers are the ones as true professionals to carry out this verdict, then you are responsible – no matter how many times you wash your hands in water. The Early Church knew who was responsible for the death of Jesus. Besides the names of Jesus and Mary there is only one other name mentioned in the ancient Apostolic Creed. Hence, the words “suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died and was buried” are stated in the Apostolic Creed. Not the Jews crucified Jesus, but the Romans did–the non-Jews did. Pilate did not want to, but he became involved nevertheless, and he was and is responsible for this decision. He gave the order to his Roman soldiers to crucify Jesus. He signed the order for the execution. He could have done the right thing. But he did not. He chose for himself, fearful for his own career, intimidated maybe by a small crowd of yelling people. Although Pontius Pilate was not a person to be easily intimidated. On another occasion he simply send in the troops to create a bloodbath to quench an early uprising in the Galilee against the Roman occupation. Luke 13:1 “Now on the same occasion there were some present who reported to Him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mixed with their sacrifices [or: shed along with] …”
The merchants keep at a distance, but they are jointly responsible and will suffer the consequences of God’s judgement as well.
• Many Germans said: ‘Wir haben es nicht gewußt’ meaning: ‘We did not know’! If that were true, Hitler alone was guilty, for ‘Befehl ist Befehl’, meaning: ‘we just followed orders’ and Hitler gave the orders. And not even Hitler can be held responsible for he was possessed by the devil. In which case only the devil remains as the guilty party, and he is an angel created by God, so that, in the end, it is all God’s fault. This is definitely one of the blasphemous trains of thought of people in the end time.11
• The Apostle John, who stood at the cross and watched the Roman soldiers pierce Jesus’ hands and feet with nails, and finally pierce his side with the spear, said, “These things happened so that the Scripture would be fulfilled, ‘They will look on the One they have pierced.’” Who did the piercing? The Romans did. Who did the looking? The Jews did.
• If one wishes to talk about who is guilty for the death of Jesus, the answer is that we are all guilty. It is as if we, each one personally, spoke the death sentence and handled the hammer, the nails and the spear. Isaiah 53:5 records that “He was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed.” He was and is the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. Jesus said, “No one takes My life from Me, but I lay it down of My own free will.” John 10:17-18.
• We are all guilty. Jews, Romans and non-Jews. The whole human race. Because He died for our sins. In a sense the whole world is responsible for His death. If we were no sinners there was no reason for Him to die. But He did. In order to save us all. Read Isaiah 53.
Bible References:
1.Revelation 18:11 2.John 18:38 3.John 18:31 4.John 18:38 5.John 19:1-5 6.Matthew 27:19 7.Matthew 27:17; John 18:39-40 8.Matthew 27:24 9.John 19:16 10.Luke 23:6-12 11.Revelation 16:9, 11, 21
