Biblical Profile: Pontius Pilate

Pontius Pilate

Pontius Pilate was the Roman governor of Judea from AD 26 to 36, including the time of Jesus’ death in AD 30 or 33. Pilate gave the official order for Jesus to be crucified.

As the governor of Judea, Pilate was in control of all the Roman occupation forces as well as the Temple and its funds. He was the only one who had the authority to execute criminals (see John 18:31), so the Jewish authorities were compelled to bring charges before Pilate in order to have Jesus executed (Mark 15:1-4).

Pilate was sometimes abusive as governor. He appropriated Temple funds to construct a thirty-five-mile aqueduct for Jerusalem, provoking a major protest. In response, Pilate had soldiers infiltrate the crowds in disguise and beat the offenders to death with clubs (Josephus, War 2.9.4; Antiquities 18.3.2). Another time, Pilate murdered some Galileans “as they were offering sacrifices at the Temple” (Luke 13:1); this incident might have estranged him from the Galilean ruler Herod Antipas. Pilate also tried to bring images of Caesar into Jerusalem for worship. Later (AD 36), Pilate slaughtered pilgrims who followed a Samaritan false prophet, an event that led to his dismissal by the emperor Tiberius in the same year.