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And then Pilate came out again and *said to them, “See, I am bringing Him out to you so that you will know that I find no grounds at all for charges in His case.”
John 19:4 · New American Standard Bible
Parallel translations
  • WEB Then Pilate went out again, and said to them, “Behold, I bring him out to you, that you may know that I find no basis for a charge against him.”
  • KJV Pilate therefore went forth again, and saith unto them, Behold, I bring him forth to you, that ye may know that I find no fault in him.
  • BSB Once again Pilate came out and said to the Jews, “Look, I am bringing Him out to you to let you know that I find no basis for a charge against Him.”
  • NKJV Pilate then went out again, and said to them, “Behold, I am bringing Him out to you, that you may know that I find no fault in Him.”
  • NLT Pilate went outside again and said to the people, “I am going to bring him out to you now, but understand clearly that I find him not guilty.”

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 again publicly declares Jesus innocent, finding no basis for any charge. His repeated verdict highlights that Jesus is condemned unjustly.

Overview

This is the second of Pilate's threefold declaration of Jesus' innocence (18:38; 19:4,6). By bringing Jesus out, Pilate tries to satisfy the crowd's bloodlust with a beaten but living prisoner. The repeated 'no basis for a charge' establishes for all readers that Jesus dies not for any guilt of his own but, ultimately, for the sins of others.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 15

  • John 19:6When therefore the chief priests and the officers saw him, they shouted, saying, “Crucify! Crucify!” Pilate said to them, “Take him yourselves, and crucify him, for I find no basis for a charge against him.”
  • John 18:38Pilate said to him, “What is truth?” When he had said this, he went out again to the Jews, and said to them, “I find no basis for a charge against him.
  • Luke 23:4Pilate said to the chief priests and the multitudes, “I find no basis for a charge against this man.”
  • Luke 23:47When the centurion saw what was done, he glorified God, saying, “Certainly this was a righteous man.”
  • 1 Pet 2:22who did not sin, “neither was deceit found in his mouth.”
  • Matt 27:4saying, “I have sinned in that I betrayed innocent blood.” But they said, “What is that to us? You see to it.”
  • 1 Pet 1:19but with precious blood, as of a lamb without blemish or spot, the blood of Christ;
  • Matt 27:54Now the centurion, and those who were with him watching Jesus, when they saw the earthquake, and the things that were done, feared exceedingly, saying, “Truly this was the Son of God.”
  • Matt 27:24So when Pilate saw that nothing was being gained, but rather that a disturbance was starting, he took water, and washed his hands before the multitude, saying, “I am innocent of the blood of this righteous person. You see to it.”
  • Matt 27:19While he was sitting on the judgment seat, his wife sent to him, saying, “Have nothing to do with that righteous man, for I have suffered many things today in a dream because of him.”
  • 1 Pet 3:18Because Christ also suffered for sins once, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring you to God; being put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit;
  • 1 Jn 3:5You know that he was revealed to take away our sins, and in him is no sin.
  • 2 Cor 5:21For him who knew no sin he made to be sin on our behalf; so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
  • Luke 23:41And we indeed justly, for we receive the due reward for our deeds, but this man has done nothing wrong.”
  • Heb 7:26For such a high priest was fitting for us: holy, guiltless, undefiled, separated from sinners, and made higher than the heavens;

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (3)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — John videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on John 19:4YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on JohnMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.

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 19:4 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.