Home/History of Christianity/People/Pontius Pilate
Pontius Pilate
The Roman prefect who ordered the execution of Jesus — attested by the Gospels, Josephus, Philo, and an inscribed stone found at Caesarea in 1961.
Pontius Pilate was the Roman prefect of the province of Judea from roughly AD 26 to 36. He governed from Caesarea Maritima, not Jerusalem, and commanded a small garrison of auxiliary troops. His primary responsibilities we're to maintain order and collect taxes on behalf of Rome.
The Trial of Jesus
All four Gospels place Pilate at the center of Jesus’ Roman trial. He is portrayed as a conflicted figure — convinced of Jesus’ innocence but unwilling to defy the crowd. He offers to release Jesus, but the crowd demands Barabbas. He washes his hands in a gesture of disavowal (Matt. 27:24), and then hands Jesus over to be crucified.
The Roman historian Tacitus, in the same passage that mentions the Christians, records that “ Christus... suffered the extreme penalty during the reign of Tiberius at the hands of one of our procurators, Pontius Pilate” (Annals 15.44). The execution of Jesus under Pilate is one of the most securely attested facts of ancient history.
Other Sources
Josephus and Philo both describe Pilate as a harsh and occasionally brutal governor. Josephus records several incidents: the introduction of Roman standards into Jerusalem, the use of temple funds for an aqueduct, and a violent suppression of a Samaritan gathering that led to his recall to Rome in AD 36.
The Pilate Stone
In 1961, an Italian archaeologist named Antonio Frova excavated a theater at Caesarea Maritima and found a limestone block bearing a fragmentary inscription. The text, in Latin, reads: [...Po]ntius Pilatus, [praef]ectus Iuda[ea]e — “ Pontius Pilate, prefect of Judea.” The stone is now in the Israel Museum. It is the only known physical artifact from the lifetime of Pilate that bears his name and title.
“ When Pilate saw that he was getting nowhere, but that instead an uproar was starting, he took water and washed his hands in front of the crowd. ‘ I am innocent of this man’ s blood,’ he said. ‘ It is your responsibility!’”
Matthew 27:24Sources
- Matt. 27; Mark 15; Luke 23; John 18–19.
- Tacitus, Annals 15.44.
- Josephus, Antiquities 18.3–4; Jewish War 2.9.
- Philo, On the Embassy to Gaius 38.
- Helen K. Bond, Pontius Pilate in History and Interpretation (Cambridge University Press, 1998).