Luke 23:4-7

23:4 Then ¹  Pilate said to the chief priests and the crowds, “I find no basis for an accusation ²  against this man.” 23:5 But they persisted ³  in saying, “He incites ⁴  the people by teaching throughout all Judea. It started in Galilee and ended up here!” ⁵ 

Jesus Brought Before Herod

23:6 Now when Pilate heard this, he asked whether the man was a Galilean. 23:7 When ⁶  he learned that he was from Herod’s jurisdiction, ⁷  he sent him over to Herod, ⁸  who also happened to be in Jerusalem ⁹  at that time.

[23:4]  ¹ tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

[23:4]  ² tn Grk “find no cause.”

[23:5]  ³ tn Or “were adamant.” For “persisted in saying,” see L&N 68.71.

[23:5]  ⁴ sn He incites the people. The Jewish leadership claimed that Jesus was a political threat and had to be stopped. By reiterating this charge of stirring up rebellion, they pressured Pilate to act, or be accused of overlooking political threats to Rome.

[23:5]  ⁵ tn Grk “beginning from Galilee until here.”

[23:7]  ⁶ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[23:7]  ⁷ sn Learning that Jesus was from Galilee and therefore part of Herod’s jurisdiction, Pilate decided to rid himself of the problem by sending him to Herod.

[23:7]  ⁸ sn Herod was Herod Antipas, son of Herod the Great. See the note on Herod in 3:1.

[23:7]  ⁹ sn Herod would probably have come to Jerusalem for the feast, although his father was only half Jewish (Josephus, Ant. 14.15.2 [14.403]). Josephus does mention Herod’s presence in Jerusalem during a feast (Ant. 18.5.3 [18.122]).