Pontius Pilate was of a group of imperial administrators called procurators or prefects who were usually responsible for the administration of smaller areas outside of Rome (Jeffers 2009, 113).  These areas were considered potentially contentious and as a result the prefects held quasi-military authority (Jeffers 2009, 113).  Usually, the force under their control came from a regular legion but consisted only of the auxiliary troops that were not Roman in citizenship and often consisted of local recruits (Jeffers 2009, 114).  Probably not the case in Judea as the Jews were exempt from military service.  To be a prefect you had to be a male from the equestrian class which was below the senatorial class (Jeffers 2009, 113).  The prefect of Judea was supervised by the legate of Syria, a senator, and any troops delegated to the procurator would come from the legions assigned to the supervising legate (Jeffers 2009, 128).

Tiberius appointed Pontius Pilate as the fifth prefect served from 26-36 A.D. (Comfort and Elwell 2004, 495).  He was one of only three of the fourteen prefects mentioned in the New Testament and “none of these fourteen governors excelled in tact and sensitivity toward Jewish sensibilities (Jeffers 2009, 129).”  They could be bound by a charter that outlined any arrangements or exemptions regarding taxation and provincials could make complaints to the senate or even the emperor if they thought the procurator unjust in his rule (Jeffers 2009, 114).  Some of the agreements that applied to Judea included the allowance of the annual temple tax, exemption from emperor worship, and the requirement to offer sacrifice on behalf of the emperor (Jeffers 2009, 128).  “In all other provinces the worship of the emperor was zealously insisted upon, and was claimed as a matter of course by the emperor as proof of respect (Schürer 1890, 76).”

Generally, the authority of the prefect was absolute.  In the case of Judea, the prefect kept control of the high priestly garments and only released them for four annual festivals (Jeffers 2009, 128).  James Jeffers commenting on that fact noted that, “we know of no other local religious cult over which the Romans exercised this degree of official control (Jeffers 2009, 128).”  The prefects were also authorized to enter into treaties and agreements with local leaders and heard cases in which capital sentences were pronounced (Jeffers 2009, 130).

Pontius Pilate made some errors in his administration of Judea early on.  He introduced military standards into Jerusalem that depicted an image of the emperor violating the Jewish prohibitions against idol worship (Jeffers 2009, 130).  This was his very first act as prefect (Schürer 1890, 83).  When he dispatched soldiers, with drawn swords, to put down those who complained the Jews said they would rather die than breach the Law and bared their necks to the troops (Schürer 1890, 83).  Pilate backed down.

Pilate also tried to place golden shields with the emperor Tiberius’ name at Herod’s palace in Jerusalem (Jeffers 2009, 130).  The Jews complained to Tiberius who ordered Pilate to remove the shields (Jeffers 2009, 130).  The Roman deference to Jewish misgivings of images in idol worship would later cause Vitellius, on his mission to help Agrippa against the Arabian king Aretas, to plan his route so that his troops, who were carrying images of the emperor, would never actually enter Jewish territory (Schürer 1890, 79).

Another clash occurred when Pilate ordered an aqueduct built to bring water to Jerusalem.  Jews in Jerusalem discovered that some of the money used for the project came from the temple treasury (Jeffers 2009, 130).  When they demonstrated against the project Pilate ended the demonstrations with troops at the cost of some Jewish lives (Jeffers 2009, 130).  “The opposition to the useful undertaking was thus indeed crushed; but also the popular hatred against Pilate was stirred up afresh (Schürer 1890, 84).”

One final example of Pilates ruthlessness in administration of Judea occurred when he sent soldiers to put down a group of Samaritans who had followed their prophet to Mount Gerazim in Samaria (Jeffers 2009, 131). See last weeks blog, Essential and Non-Essential, for a discussion of the Samaritans and Mount Gerazim.  Several of the group were killed and when Samaritan leaders complained to the legate in Syria Pilate was forced to explain himself to the Emperor Tiberius at Rome (Jeffers 2009, 131).

Pilate’s strength is apparent in not only his willingness to act in each of the events described above but in the extreme of his actions.  Agrippa described Pilate to emperor Caligula as, “naturally inflexible, a blend of self-will and relentlessness (Jeffers 2009, 131).”  The real debate about Pilate should not revolve around his strength or weakness but rather his wisdom or foolishness in the matter in which he proceeded in regard to the local population.  His early mistakes may have caused him some apprehension later on but don’t let this apprehension mislead you into thinking Pilate weak.

Thanks for reading and don’t forget to subscribe to my e-mail below.  I am working on some great things and I would hate for you to miss out.  One of the projects I am working on is a ‘social media’ community built around a daily reading of Scripture.  It won’t be Facebook based and it will be open only to believers who desire to mature as disciples of Jesus. You won’t want to miss out on the launch.

Photo by K. Mitch Hodge on Unsplash.

Comfort, Philip, and Walter A. Elwell. Who’s Who in the Bible. Wheaton: Tyndale House Publishers, 2004.

Jeffers, James S. The Greco-Roman World Of The New Testament Era: Exploring The Background Of Early Christianity. Downers Grove: IVP Academic, 2009.

Schürer, Emil. A History of the Jewish People in the Time of Jesus Christ, First Division. Vol. 2. Edinburgh: T&T Clark, 1890.