Who Killed Jesus?

In my teens I learned a song (Mickey Holiday, 1970, Singspiration, Inc.) where part of the chorus contained the following question.

“Who killed Jesus many years ago?
Who was guilty of a crime so low?”

Some might say it was the Roman soldiers. They were a hardened, callous bunch for the most part. They also despised the Jews. Flogging a person destined for crucifixion sometimes brought on death before crucifixion. They drove in the nails and hoisted the cross.

Are they guilty? They would respond,
“We were only following orders.”

Perhaps Pilate should be blamed. He could have set Jesus free. His investigation revealed no reason for such a sentence. His wife also implored him to have nothing to do with this man’s death due to a dream she had. But the crowd was incited to demand death for Jesus or he would lose Caesar’s support. Pilate relented but also tried to wash his hands of the matter. Hardly innocent but was he the only one?

It must be the Jews who killed him. An illegal, mock trial was held during the night and within hours on the same day Jesus was nailed to the cross. This was against their own Jewish laws. Led by the jealous and hate-filled religious leaders the crowd had been hyped up to demand crucifixion. It worked, so they must be guilty.

The last verse included these words:

When I think of Jesus and the way he died,
How upon him all my sins were laid.
All the other people fade away from view.
It’s for me the sacrifice was made.

Jesus’ own answer to the question of taking his life is recorded in the Gospel of John.
John 10:18 “No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again.”

It was love, not the nails, the soldiers, Pilate or the Jews that kept him on the cross.

 

 

Henry Wiebe