Pontius pilate cause of death

All four of the Gospels describe him as weakly succumbing to the Jewish authorities' pressure on him to execute Jesus. The Gospels indicate Pontius Pilate's indecision, citing that he conceded to letting Jesus go at one stage of the trial, but later rescinded the offer. Since according to the rules of the Roman Empire, calling oneself king was grounds for treason, Pontius Pilate ordered that the initials INRI be inscribed on Jesus' tomb after the crucifixion.

Some believe the title was meant derisively, to mock Jesus for his lofty claim. According to some traditions, the Roman emperor Caligula ordered Pontius Pilate to death by execution or suicide. By other accounts, Pontius Pilate was sent into exile and committed suicide of his own accord. Some traditions assert that after he committed suicide, his body was thrown into the Tiber River.

Pontius Pilate is in fact considered a saint by the Ethiopian Orthodox Church. Regardless of what truly became of Pontius Pilate, one thing has been made certain — that Pontius Pilate actually existed. During a dig in Caesarea Maritima, Italian archeologist Dr. In another incident—with a bloodier ending—Josephus recounted that Pilate used funds from the Temple treasury to build an aqueduct to Jerusalem.

This time when protesters amassed, Pilate dispatched plain-clothed soldiers to infiltrate the crowd. On his signal, they removed clubs hidden in their garments and beat many of the protesters to death. According to the Gospels, the Sanhedrin, an elite council of priestly and lay elders, arrested Jesus during the Jewish festival of Passoverdeeply threatened by his teachings.

They dragged him before Pilate to be tried for blasphemy—for claiming, they said, to be King of the Jews. And they pressured Pilate, the only one with power to impose a death sentence, to call for his crucifixion. Contrary to the depiction of Pilate as a merciless ruler by Philo and Josephus, all four Gospels portray him as a vacillating judge.

According to the Gospel of Mark, Pilate came to the defense of Jesus before yielding to the desire of the crowd. But Mark had an ulterior agenda, notes Patterson, since he wrote the Gospel in the midst of the failed Jewish Revolt against Roman rule between 66 and 70 A. Retrieved 21 March Archived from the original on 3 May Understanding the Bible.

Mayfield,Palo Alto. New Testament People. Gospels : Jesus Christ. Roman Officials. Hidden categories: CS1 maint: multiple names: editors list Articles containing Ancient Greek to -language text Articles containing Greek-language text Webarchive template wayback links. Toggle the table of contents. And they, seeing that they were troubled by the aforesaid visitations, removed him from themselves, and sunk him in a certain pit surrounded by mountains, where to this day, according to the account of some, certain diabolical machinations are said to bubble up.

Translated by Alexander Walker. From Ante-Nicene FathersVol. Cleveland Coxe. Revised and edited for New Advent by Kevin Knight. Contact information. The editor of New Advent is Kevin Knight. My email address is feedback at newadvent.

Pontius pilate cause of death

To help fight spam, this address might change occasionally. Regrettably, I can't reply to every letter, but I greatly appreciate your feedback — especially notifications about typographical errors and inappropriate ads. About this page Source.