1. Early in the morning the chief priests immediately came to a decision with the leaders and the experts in Moses’ Teachings. The whole Jewish council decided to tie Jesus up, lead him away, and hand him over to Pilate.
2. Pilate asked him, “Are you the king of the Jews?”“Yes, I am,” Jesus answered him.
3. The chief priests were accusing him of many things.
4. So Pilate asked him again, “Don’t you have any answer? Look how many accusations they’re bringing against you!”
5. But Jesus no longer answered anything, so Pilate was surprised.
6. At every Passover festival, Pilate would free one prisoner whom the people asked for.
7. There was a man named Barabbas in prison. He was with some rebels who had committed murder during a riot.
8. The crowd asked Pilate to do for them what he always did.