“Am I a Jew?” Pilate replied. “Your own people and chief priests handed You over to me. What have You done?”
Parallel translations
- WEB Pilate answered, “I’m not a Jew, am I? Your own nation and the chief priests delivered you to me. What have you done?”
- KJV Pilate answered, Am I a Jew? Thine own nation and the chief priests have delivered thee unto me: what hast thou done?
- NKJV Pilate answered, “Am I a Jew? Your own nation and the chief priests have delivered You to me. What have You done?”
- NASB Pilate answered, “I am not a Jew, am I? Your own nation and the chief priests handed You over to me; what have You done?”
- 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?”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Pilate disclaims any Jewish concern, noting that Jesus' own nation handed him over, and asks what he has done. He seeks the real grounds of the case.
Overview
Pilate distances himself ('Am I a Jew?') and points to the role of the chief priests in delivering Jesus up. His question 'What have you done?' shows he is searching for an actual offense. The exchange continues to expose that no real crime justifies the charge, setting up Jesus' explanation of his kingdom.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 12
- Ezra 4:12Let it be known to the king that the Jews who came from you to us have returned to Jerusalem. And they are rebuilding that rebellious and wicked city, restoring its walls, and repairing its foundations.
- Neh 4:2before his associates and the army of Samaria, saying, “What are these feeble Jews doing? Can they restore the wall by themselves? Will they offer sacrifices? Will they complete it in a day? Can they bring these burnt stones back to life from the mounds of rubble?”
- Acts 25:19–20They only had some contentions with him regarding their own religion and a certain Jesus who had died, but whom Paul affirmed to be alive.
- Acts 3:13The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of our fathers, has glorified His servant Jesus. You handed Him over and rejected Him before Pilate, even though he had decided to release Him.
- Acts 18:14–16But just as Paul was about to speak, Gallio told the Jews, “If this matter involved a wrongdoing or vicious crime, O Jews, it would be reasonable for me to hear your complaint.
- Acts 21:38“Aren’t you the Egyptian who incited a rebellion some time ago and led four thousand members of the ‘Assassins’ into the wilderness?”
- Acts 23:29I found that the accusation involved questions about their own law, but there was no charge worthy of death or imprisonment.
- Acts 22:22–24The crowd listened to Paul until he made this statement. Then they lifted up their voices and shouted, “Rid the earth of him! He is not fit to live!”
- John 18:28Then they led Jesus away from Caiaphas into the Praetorium. By now it was early morning, and the Jews did not enter the Praetorium, to avoid being defiled and unable to eat the Passover.
- John 19:11Jesus answered, “You would have no authority over Me if it were not given to you from above. Therefore the one who handed Me over to you is guilty of greater sin.”
- John 19:6As soon as the chief priests and officers saw Him, they shouted, “Crucify Him! Crucify Him!” “You take Him and crucify Him,” Pilate replied, “for I find no basis for a charge against Him.”
- Rom 3:1–2What, then, is the advantage of being a Jew? Or what is the value of circumcision?
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Christ at the center
John declares him plainly: the eternal Word made flesh, the Lamb of God, the great 'I AM' — bread, light, door, shepherd, way, truth, life, resurrection — that you may believe and have life in his name.
How John 18:35 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.