John 18:38 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Pilate said to him, “What is truth?” After he had said this, he went back outside to the Jews and told them, “I find no guilt in him.

NIV: What is truth?' retorted Pilate. With this he went out again to the Jews gathered there and said, 'I find no basis for a charge against him.

NASB: Pilate *said to Him, 'What is truth?' And after saying this, he came out again to the Jews and *said to them, 'I find no grounds at all for charges in His case.

CSB: "What is truth? " said Pilate. After he had said this, he went out to the Jews again and told them, "I find no grounds for charging him.

NLT: What is truth?' Pilate asked. Then he went out again to the people and told them, 'He is not guilty of any crime.

KJV: Pilate saith unto him, What is truth? And when he had said this, he went out again unto the Jews, and saith unto them, I find in him no fault at all.

NKJV: Pilate said to Him, “What is truth?” And when he had said this, he went out again to the Jews, and said to them, “I find no fault in Him at all.

Pilate is only speaking with Jesus because of accusations of sedition (John 18:28–32). As part of explaining His status as a "king," Jesus has made it clear He is not attempting to overthrow Rome or establish an immediate earthly kingdom (John 18:33–36). When pressed on the idea, Jesus referred to truth (John 18:37) and His role in proclaiming it. In earlier passages, Jesus explicitly claimed to be teaching truths from God (John 8:28; Luke 5:32). Even further, Jesus claimed to be "the way, and the truth, and the life" (John 14:6).

There's room to interpret the nuances of Pilate's comment in different ways. However, he's likely being rhetorical, and dismissive. He is certainly not seeking further information from Jesus. Instead, Pilate is brushing off the concept of "truth" as relative, unsure, and ultimately unimportant. One can imagine him shrugging his shoulders and holding up his hands in a gesture of uncertainty. Or, shaking his head and waving as if to say, "who cares?"

Rather than engaging, he's ignoring. Jesus is not speaking of politics or war, so the subject is of no interest to the Roman governor. The irony of the moment is painful: this might be the most important question a human being can ask, and Pilate is standing in front of the ultimate answer, yet he walks away without really considering his own words.

Pilate knows Jesus' enemies are trying to manipulate Roman law (Matthew 27:18; Mark 15:10). He's heard enough to be sure that Jesus is not guilty according to any secular or civic law. It will be the presence of a mob, and the threat of civil unrest (John 19:12–15; Matthew 27:24), which eventually coerces Pilate into executing someone he knows is innocent (John 19:16).

John's gospel skips many details given in the other accounts, to focus on his own perspective. Among the incidents he omits is Pilate's attempt to have Herod weigh in on the situation (Luke 23:6–12).

John 18:28–40 describes Jerusalem's religious leaders taking Jesus to the local Roman governor. While Jewish authorities are allowed punish blasphemers, Roman law will not let them administer the death penalty. Jesus is too well-liked to be assassinated, so His enemies will attempt to paint Him as a rebel against Rome. In a private interview with Pilate, Jesus claims His role as King, but also notes that His purpose is not yet to rule an earthly kingdom. Pilate attempts to appease the crowd, trying to spare a clearly innocent man, but a mob has formed to demand Jesus' death. John continues his habit of skipping details offered in other Gospels. He does not repeat the account of Jesus before the Sanhedrin (Mark 14:55–65), nor the part of Pilate's investigation where Jesus is sent briefly to Herod (Luke 23:6–12).

Jesus is secretly, quietly arrested in the garden of Gethsemane and taken to a series of sham trials before Jewish leadership. This leads to His encounter with the local Roman governor. Jesus accepts being described as "King" but denies that His current purpose is earthly rule. A mob assembled by Jesus' enemies reject Pilate's attempt to free Jesus. In the meantime, Peter fulfills Christ's prophecy about a three-fold denial.

John's Gospel was written well after the other three, so he frequently chooses to present different details. Chapter 17 detailed Jesus' High Priestly Prayer, just before He entered the garden of Gethsemane. This chapter describes Jesus' arrest, sham trials before Jewish leadership, and the beginning of His trial before the Roman governor. In the following chapter, Jesus will be unfairly condemned, executed, and buried.

The gospel of John was written by the disciple John, decades later than the gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke. The author assumes that a reader is already familiar with the content of these other works. So, John presents a different perspective, with a greater emphasis on meaning. John uses seven miracles—which he calls “signs”—in order to prove that Jesus is, in fact, God incarnate. Some of the most well-known verses in all of the Bible are found here. None is more famous than the one-sentence summary of the gospel found in John 3:16.