Jesus In India — Page 31
J e s u s i n I n d i a 31 hearted man; he could not openly show favour to Jesus for fear of Caesar because the Jews condemned Jesus as a rebel. All the same, Pilate was lucky to have beheld Jesus but Caesar was not so fortunate. Pilate not only saw Jesus but also showed him great favour. He did not at all desire that Jesus should suffer crucifixion. It is clear from the Gospels that Pilate resolved several times to let Jesus go, but the Jews threatened that if he did so, he would be disloyal to Caesar because, according to them, Jesus was a rebel who wanted to become king. (John 19:12) Moreover, the dream which Pilate’s wife saw, was also the prime mover to the effect that somehow or the other, Jesus should be saved from crucifixion, and that it would otherwise spell disaster. Since the Jews were a mischievous people, and were quite ready to report him to Caesar, Pilate used a subterfuge to release Jesus. First, he ordered Jesus’ crucifixion in the expiring hours of a Friday, close to the night of Sabbath. Pilate was only too well aware that according to the Jewish law Jesus could only be kept on the cross until that evening, as the Sabbath would then begin and it would be unlawful to keep the bodies on the cross. It is unthinkable that the two thieves should be alive after two hours and Jesus should be dead; this was rather part of the design not to allow Jesus’ bones to be broken. To a person with some common sense, it is indeed a reasonable point to ponder that the two thieves were taken down alive from their crosses. Indeed, it was normal practice that people were taken down alive from the cross and died only when their bones were broken or they breathed their last because of hunger and thirst after staying on the cross for a few days. But Jesus had to suffer none of these travails. Neither