Matthew 27:23-27

27:23 He asked, “Why? What wrong has he done?” But they shouted more insistently, “Crucify him!”

Jesus is Condemned and Mocked

27:24 When ¹  Pilate saw that he could do nothing, but that instead a riot was starting, he took some water, washed his hands before the crowd and said, “I am innocent of this man’s blood. You take care of it yourselves!” ²  27:25 In ³  reply all the people said, “Let his blood be on us and on our children!” 27:26 Then he released Barabbas for them. But after he had Jesus flogged, ⁴  he handed him over ⁵  to be crucified. ⁶  27:27 Then the governor’s soldiers took Jesus into the governor’s residence ⁷  and gathered the whole cohort ⁸  around him.

[27:24]  ¹ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[27:24]  ² sn You take care of it yourselves! Compare the response of the chief priests and elders to Judas in 27:4. The expression is identical except that in 27:4 it is singular and here it is plural.

[27:25]  ¹ tn Grk “answering, all the people said.” This construction is somewhat redundant in English and has been simplified in the translation.

[27:26]  ¹ tn The Greek term φραγελλόω (fragellow) refers to flogging. BDAG 1064 s.v. states, “flog, scourge, a punishment inflicted on slaves and provincials after a sentence of death had been pronounced on them. So in the case of Jesus before the crucifixion…Mt 27:26; Mk 15:15.”

[27:26]  ² tn Or “delivered him up.”

[27:26]  ³ sn See the note on crucified in 20:19.

[27:27]  ¹ tn Or “into their headquarters”; Grk “into the praetorium.”

[27:27]  ² sn A Roman cohort was a tenth of a legion, about 500-600 soldiers.