The Ignatius Catholic Study Bible New Testament (128 page)

17:24 may be with me:
A prayer for the salvation of believers (14:2-3). 
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18:1 the Kidron valley:
The deep ravine directly east of Jerusalem, separating the city from the Mount of Olives. The garden area on the western slope of the mount is called "Gethsemane" (Mt 26:36). 
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18:3 band of soldiers:
A detachment (cohort) of several hundred Roman troops accompanied by Temple policemen (Acts 5:24-26). The authorities must have anticipated resistance from Jesus and his followers as they came armed in such large numbers. 
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18:6 I am:
Jesus unleashes the power of the divine name, "I am", simply by uttering it (Ex 3:14).
See note on Jn 6:20
. 
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18:10 a sword:
Peter's zeal unsheathes the weapon in defense of Jesus. Here and elsewhere he fails to understand how the betrayal and suffering of Christ are part of the Father's plan (Mt 16:21-23). Luke notes how Jesus rectifies his wrong by healing the slave's ear (Lk 22:51). 
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18:11 the chalice:
The chalice of suffering that Jesus will drink on the Cross (Mk 10:38; CCC 607).
See note on Lk 22:17
. 
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18:13 Annas:
The high priest of Israel from
A.D.
6 to 15. Because the Romans deposed and replaced him with another priest contrary to the regulations of the Torah, many Jews still revered him as the rightful head of Israel even after he was relieved of his duties (18:19; Acts 4:6).
Caiaphas:
The son-in-law of Annas and the officiating high priest from
A.D.
18 to 36. 
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18:14 one man should die:
A reminder of the prophecy in 11:47-53.
See note on Jn 11:51
. 
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18:15 another disciple:
Probably John the evangelist, who never reveals his name in the Gospel but often calls himself the disciple "whom Jesus loved" (13:23; 19:26; 20:2; 21:7). One tradition preserved by Eusebius holds that the Apostle John was born of a Jewish priestly family, which could explain his familiarity with the high priest (18:15), the name of the high priest's slave (18:10), and the family of the slave (18:26). See introduction to John:
Author.
 
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18:24 bound to Caiaphas:
John summarizes Jesus' nighttime trial before the Sanhedrin in this one statement (Mt 26:5768; Mk 14:53-65). He gives greater attention to Jesus' interrogation before Pilate (Jn 18:33-38). 
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18:27 again denied it:
Three times Peter denies his association with Jesus (18:17, 25), just as three times he fell asleep while Jesus prayed in agony (Mk 14:32-42) and three times he will renew his commitment to Jesus after the Resurrection (Jn 21:15-17).
the cock crowed:
Possibly the Roman bugle call that signaled the end of the "cockcrow" at about 3
A.M.
See note on Mk 13:35
. 
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18:28 the praetorium:
The official residence of the Roman governor in Jerusalem. It served as his headquarters during Israel's annual feasts and other occasions that required his presence to maintain civil order in the city.
It was early:
On the morning of Good Friday.
did not enter:
Jews generally declined to enter the home of a Gentile for fear of ritual defilement (Acts 10:28). This was all the more important during Passover, since defilement disqualified a Jew from eating the initial Seder meal (Num 9:6-11), as well as from the paschal peace consumed throughout the week of the festival (Lev 7:19-20). 
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18:29 Pilate:
The Roman governor of Judea from
A.D.
26 to 36.
See note on Mt 27:2
. 
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18:31 It is not lawful:
The Romans denied the authorities of Israel the right to administer capital punishment. Only the Romans themselves could put a condemned criminal to death, either by beheading (Roman citizens) or by crucifixion (non-citizens and insurrectionists). That Jesus was a Jewish peasant charged with sedition made crucifixion inevitable (CCC 596). 
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18:32 what death:
Jesus was alluding to crucifixion when he spoke of being "lifted up" (3:14; 12:32). 
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18:33 King of the Jews?:
The accusation of Jesus' enemies (Lk 23:2). The title functions as a slogan that is meant to resonate with Pilate as a threat to Roman rule (Jn 19:12). 
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18:36 My kingship:
Jesus does not deny his royal mission, but he disassociates it from the political form of government that concerns Pilate. He thus turns the focus toward heaven, where he will be crowned not with gold but with glory and honor (Heb 2:9) and where homage is paid to him not in taxes but in worship (9:38) and allegiance to the truth (8:31-32). The coronation of Jesus begins with his Passion and culminates with his Ascension (Eph 1:20-23), from which time his dominion extends over the earth through the preaching and sacramental ministry of the Church (Mt 28:18-20). 
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18:38 What is truth?:
The cynical response shows Pilate to be politically disinterested in the otherworldly perspective of Jesus. The irony here is that, while Pilate sees "truth" as a harmless abstraction, the acceptance of the gospel throughout the Roman world will eventually lead to the downfall of the Empire and the rise of a Christian civilization in its place (CCC 2471). 
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18:40 a robber:
Or "revolutionary". Elsewhere Barabbas is described as an insurrectionist and a murderer (Mk 15:7). 
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19:1 scourged:
Flogging was a cruel prelude to crucifixion in Roman practice. Tied to the ends of the whip were fragments of bone or metal designed to tear up the skin, causing injuries that were sometimes fatal. Pilate may have ordered this measure to appease the Jews, since he already felt there were no legal grounds to execute Jesus (18:38). 
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19:2-3
The royal tribute of the soldiers is both an act of mockery and an ironic witness to the kingship of Jesus (1:49; 18:36). 
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19:6 Crucify him:
The Jerusalem authorities incite a chanting mob in order to crush remaining sympathies for Jesus and bend the will of Pilate in the direction of their own (CCC 597, 600).
I find no crime:
The third time Pilate acquits Jesus of the charges laid against him (18:38; 19:4). Luke's trial narrative likewise stresses the innocence of Jesus (Lk 23:4, 15, 22, 41, 47). 
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19:7 he ought to die:
A charge of blasphemy, which was a capital crime in Israel (Lev 24:16). Similar accusations are made at Jn 5:18 and 10:33. 
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19:11 no power over me:
Jesus, not Pilate, controls the situation, and so death cannot be forced upon him unwillingly (10:18).
from above:
Ultimately, authority over the temporal affairs of society is granted to civil officials by God, not by governments themselves or by the consent of those they govern (Rom 13:1).
the greater sin:
Implies that Pilate shares the blame for Jesus' death, even though Judas and the Jerusalem leaders are even more culpable (Acts 4:27). 
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19:12 not Caesar's friend:
An attempt to blackmail Pilate, who could face charges of disloyalty to the emperor if he lets a (supposed) royal claimant like Jesus go unpunished. 
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19:13 The Pavement:
A stone slab platform. The Semitic expression
Gabbatha
refers to some sort of elevation. 
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19:14 day of Preparation:
This chronological statement has been read in two different ways. Some, including the RSV, understand it to mean that Jesus was sentenced to die on "the eve" of the Jewish Passover, which would begin at sundown. Others note that the Greek term is one that normally means "Friday", the day before the Jewish Sabbath (as in 19:31 and Mk 15:42). In this case, the point is that Jesus was condemned on the Friday that fell during Passover week.
the sixth hour:
Noon. 
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19:15 no king but Caesar:
A compromise so extreme that the Jerusalem authorities deny even the kingship of Yahweh (1 Sam 8:7). 
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19:17 bearing his own cross:
Refers to the wooden crossbeam to be fixed horizontally to an upright stake at the execution site.
See note on Mk 15:24
. 
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19:18 one on either side:
The four Gospels agree that Jesus was crucified between two criminals (Mt 27:38; Mk 15:27; Lk 23:33). • John's description is similar to that in the Greek version of Ex 17:12, where Moses' arms were suspended in the air by Aaron and Hur as they stood on either side of him. This was to ensure for Israel a military victory over the Amalekites. Jesus' arms are similarly stretched out between two men as he triumphs over the unseen armies of the devil (Col 2:14-15). 
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19:20 this title:
Signs were hung around the necks of crucified victims and then fastened to their crosses. Listed on these placards was a brief inventory of the criminal charges brought against them. The trilingual inscription of Pilate could be read by everyone in the region:
Hebrew
was the religious language of Israel still known by some Palestinian Jews;
Latin
was the official language of the Roman occupiers of Palestine; and
Greek
was the commercial language of the eastern Mediterranean world (CCC 440). 
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19:23 the tunic:
A one-piece garment worn next to the skin. • The seamless tunic of Christ recalls the linen vestment worn by the high priest of Israel (Lev 16:4), which was not to be torn (Lev 21:10) and which, according to the historian Josephus, was seamless. This implies that Christ acts as a high priest when he makes himself a sacrifice on the Cross (Heb 2:17; 9:11-14). •
Allegorically
(St. Cyprian,
The Unity of the Catholic Church
7): the seamless tunic signifies the indivisible kingdom of Christ. Although Solomon's kingdom was rent asunder like a garment and its glory passed away (1 Kings 11:29-32), the Church of Christ is forever glorious and will always remain intact (Jn 19:24). 
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