But they all cried out together, saying, “Away with this man! Release to us Barabbas!” —
Parallel translations
- KJV And they cried out all at once, saying, Away with this man, and release unto us Barabbas:
- BSB But they all cried out in unison: “Away with this man! Release Barabbas to us!”
- NKJV And they all cried out at once, saying, “Away with this Man, and release to us Barabbas”—
- NASB But they cried out all together, saying, “Away with this Man, and release to us Barabbas!”
- NLT Then a mighty roar rose from the crowd, and with one voice they shouted, “Kill him, and release Barabbas to us!”
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
The crowd cried out to release Barabbas instead of Jesus. They demanded a murderer be freed while the sinless Savior was condemned.
Overview
In a striking exchange, the people choose a violent insurrectionist over the Prince of Peace. This reversal vividly portrays the gospel: the guilty go free while the innocent bears their penalty. Barabbas stands as a picture of every sinner who is released because Christ takes his place under judgment.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 7
- Acts 22:22They listened to him until he said that; then they lifted up their voice, and said, “Rid the earth of this fellow, for he isn’t fit to live!”
- Acts 3:14But you denied the Holy and Righteous One, and asked for a murderer to be granted to you,
- Acts 21:36for the multitude of the people followed after, crying out, “Away with him!”
- Mark 15:6–15Now at the feast he used to release to them one prisoner, whom they asked of him.
- John 19:15–16They cried out, “Away with him! Away with him! Crucify him!” Pilate said to them, “Shall I crucify your King?” The chief priests answered, “We have no king but Caesar!”
- John 18:39–40But you have a custom, that I should release someone to you at the Passover. Therefore do you want me to release to you the King of the Jews?”
- Matt 27:15–26Now at the feast the governor was accustomed to release to the multitude one prisoner, whom they desired.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Luke shows Jesus the Savior for all — outsiders, the poor, the nations — the one who, on the Emmaus road, opened all the Scriptures to show they were about himself.
How Luke 23:18 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.