From above bloody crown of thorns placed on wooden cross with Jesus the Nazarene King of the Jews inscription after crucifixion

The King of the Jews

In Bible/Theology, Blogs by Bruce Scott2 Comments

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Some questions I ask may sound dumb,
But I won’t learn as much if I act smart.

These words were written on a plaque above the door of my junior high school industrial arts class. I’ve never forgotten them.

Another plaque that I saw in numerous Christian homes after I became a believer impacted me. The inscription came from a poem by famous British missionary C.T. Studd.

Only one life, ’twill soon be past,
Only what’s done for Christ will last.

One other plaque immeasurably shaped my life. It still does today. Its caption was created not to inspire but to mock and inflame its readers. Although vindictively contrived, its simple declaration ironically has rung true for 2,000 years:

JESUS OF NAZARETH, THE KING OF THE JEWS

Pontius Pilate, the 1st-century Roman governor, wrote these words in response to an uncomfortable conundrum in which he found himself. On one hand, the Jewish leaders, along with Passover pilgrims whom the leaders had whipped up into a mob, were crying for the Nazarene’s crucifixion. On the other hand, after interrogating Jesus, Pilate found no guilt in Him and wanted to release Him (Luke 23:14, 20; Acts 3:13).

Pilate’s Predicament

The Jewish leaders who brought Jesus to Pilate accused Him of claiming to be the Messiah, the Jewish king (Luke 23:1–2). That’s why Pilate’s very first words to Jesus were, “Are you the King of the Jews?” (Matthew 27:11; Mark 15:2; Luke 23:3; John 18:33). Jesus answered affirmatively.

Subsequently, when Pilate addressed the raucous crowd, he frequently referred to Jesus as “King” (cf. John 18:39; 19:14–15), likely to show contempt for his Jewish audience and their allegations. This certainly fit Pilate’s personality, which his contemporary, Herod Agrippa, once described as inflexible, merciless, obstinate, corrupt, insolent, insulting, cruel, murderous, angry, ferocious, and inhumane.

In Jesus’ case, Pilate was pushed over the edge when the Jewish leaders cried out, “If you let this Man go, you are not Caesar’s friend. Whoever makes himself a king speaks against Caesar” (19:12). Pilate’s conundrum, therefore, was whether he should risk his political career by not gratifying the crowd and displeasing Caesar or send an innocent Man to His death. Pilate capitulated and chose the latter (Mark 15:15).

A Spiteful Titulus

Perhaps as one final dig at the Jewish leaders, “Pilate wrote a title and put it on the cross. And the writing was: JESUS OF NAZARETH, THE KING OF THE JEWS” (John 19:19). The word title is translated from the Greek word titlos, taken from the Latin titulus. A Roman titulus was an inscription, label, title, placard, or notice used in a variety of settings, such as on a tablet put above a pagan temple’s doors. Occasionally, as when Jesus was crucified, an inscription was placed upon a punished miscreant, announcing his offense. Jesus’ titulus was probably written on some form of plaque since it was written in three languages—Hebrew (i.e., Aramaic), Latin, and Greek (v. 20)—and it was placed above His head on the cross (Matthew 27:37; Mark 15:26; Luke 23:38). 

The Jewish leaders were repulsed by Jesus’ titulus. They wanted it rephrased to read, “He said, ‘I am the King of the Jews’” (John 19:21). Pilate refused, answering, “What I have written, I have written” (v. 22), thus unwittingly affirming Jesus’ title for generations to come.

Israel’s Rejection of Its True King

Some wonder why the Jewish leaders disowned Israel’s true King (Acts 3:13) and proclaimed, “We have no king but Caesar!” (John 19:15). The Scriptures give several reasons, too many to explain in depth. Here are a few:

1. They acted in ignorance (Acts 3:17).

2. They were envious of Jesus (Matthew 27:18; Mark 15:10).

3. They were fearful—of Jesus (Mark 11:18), of the people (Matthew 21:26, 46), and of losing their Temple and nation (John 11:48).

Those ancient prophecies revealed that the King of the Jews would be “despised and rejected by men” (Isaiah 53:3).

Israel had rejected its king before. During the prophet Samuel’s time, Israel demanded a king so it could be like all the other nations (1 Samuel 8:20). God said to His prophet, “They have not rejected you, but they have rejected Me, that I should not reign over them” (1 Samuel 8:7). What was true in King Jeroboam’s day became true in Jesus’ day: “So Israel has been in rebellion against the house of David to this day” (1 Kings 12:19).

“But those things which God foretold by the mouth of all His prophets, that the Christ would suffer, He has thus fulfilled” (Acts 3:18). Those ancient prophecies revealed that the King of the Jews would be “despised and rejected by men” (Isaiah 53:3).

One day He will return to take His rightful place on the throne of David.

And yet, what men meant for evil, God meant for good (Genesis 50:20). “The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone” (Psalm 118:22).

Jesus is the King of the Jews, although most of our Jewish friends don’t believe this yet. One day He will return to take His rightful place on the throne of David. On that day, when all the world “will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory” (Matthew 24:30), they will also notice a new and illustrious titulus, one written on His robe and thigh (Revelation 19:16), that reads,

KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.

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About the Author
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Bruce Scott

Bruce Scott is the director of Program Ministries at The Friends of Israel Gospel Ministry and is the author of The Feasts of Israel: Seasons of the Messiah.

Comments 2

  1. Amen. Praise the LORD! Excellent article. Great theological and grammar lesson.

    I agree that “Jesus is the King of the Jews, although most of our Jewish friends don’t believe this yet.” My testimony is that during my paralegal days, one Jewish lawyer at work, who was my boss, told me that if Jesus was the Messiah why would he have to come back a second time when he could have accomplished his work the first time. I’ll never forget that comment from Steven M. Goldstein, Esq.

    That might help explain the necessity of Zechariah 13 wherein it is written,

    “And it shall come to pass, that in all the land, saith the Lord, two parts therein shall be cut off and die; but the third shall be left therein. And I will bring the third part through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and will try them as gold is tried: they shall call on my name, and I will hear them: I will say, It is my people: and they shall say, The Lord is my God.”

    Israel is to be purified, according to scripture. And maybe it needs to start with the religious leaders such as the ones of Malachi 3. “But who may abide the day of his coming? and who shall stand when he appeareth? for he is like a refiner’s fire, and like fullers’ soap: And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness.” Many Israelite priests have been killed during Israel’s history, as we see when the chief herdsman Doeg slaughtered them at King Saul’s command to which King David replied with Psalm 52 and again in fulfillment of Jesus’ prophecy as recorded in Matthew 24. In AD 70, the numbers vary, but it has been estimated that up to a thousand priests were slaughtered in the Roman seige against the Temple and Jerusalem. The ones killed at Nob were innocent, though; they simply helped David. They did nothing wrong. The ones slaughtered at the Temple probably had rejected Christ as Messiah and continued Judaism. But they should have known better. Jesus’ death rent the curtain in twain and there are no more animal sacrifices as before.

    “…For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?”

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