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Luke 23:38
ESV There was also an inscription over him, "This is the King of the Jews."
NIV There was a written notice above him, which read: THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS.
NASB Now there was also an inscription above Him, 'THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS.'
CSB An inscription was above him: THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS.
NLT A sign was fastened above him with these words: 'This is the King of the Jews.'
KJV And a superscription also was written over him in letters of Greek, and Latin, and Hebrew, THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS.
NKJV And an inscription also was written over Him in letters of Greek, Latin, and Hebrew: THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS.

What does Luke 23:38 mean?

Above Jesus' head, while He hangs on the cross, sits a sign. The full text seems to be, "Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews" (John 19:19). Pilate chooses this charge because after all the interrogations, this is the only accusation of substance the Jewish religious leaders can produce. They first told Pilate, "We found this man misleading our nation and forbidding us to give tribute to Caesar, and saying that he himself is Christ, a king" (Luke 23:2). The first charge is vague; the second is verifiably false (Luke 20:19–26). Neither Pilate nor Herod Antipas—a self-styled king—find Jesus guilty of any of the charges (Luke 23:6–16).

From God's perspective, the charge isn't against Jesus; it's against the Jewish leaders and the people who follow them. Jesus is the Christ and, therefore, the king in the line of David (1 Chronicles 17:11–14). The people tell Pilate that to not kill Jesus is to defy the Roman emperor (John 19:12). When Pilate gives them another chance to claim their king, the chief priests, in direct violation of Deuteronomy 17:14–15, say, "We have no king but Caesar" (John 19:15).

The fact that Jesus is king has a couple of different applications. In the millennium kingdom, Jesus will bring the kingdom of God to earth. Finally, it will be done "on earth as it is in heaven" (Matthew 6:10). He will literally rule over Israel from His throne in Jerusalem (Revelation 19:16). Every nation will worship Him as the King of kings and Lord of lords (1 Timothy 6:14–16; Romans 14:11; Philippians 2:10; Revelation 5:9).

But Jesus is king now, as well. He is the authority over His followers' lives. We acknowledge He is king when we obey His law and spread His kingdom by sharing the gospel and showing the world what it looks like to follow Him.

The other Gospels include this information earlier. They also have slightly different wording. Matthew 27:37 excludes the "of Nazareth." Mark focuses on a specific charge: "The King of the Jews" (Mark 15:26). Instead of giving Jesus' name, Luke uses the Greek for "this one"—a dismissive, derogatory pronoun he uses to show the contempt of people for Jesus (Luke 23:4, 14, 18).
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