Today's Daily Bread

JESUS REMAINED SILENT

Date : Thursday, April 02, 2026
Passage : Mark 15:1~15
Keyverse : 5  
1
Very early in the morning, the chief priests, with the elders, the teachers of the law and the whole Sanhedrin, made their plans. So they bound Jesus, led him away and handed him over to Pilate.
2
"Are you the king of the Jews?" asked Pilate. "You have said so," Jesus replied.
3
The chief priests accused him of many things.
4
So again Pilate asked him, "Aren’t you going to answer? See how many things they are accusing you of."
5
But Jesus still made no reply, and Pilate was amazed.
6
Now it was the custom at the festival to release a prisoner whom the people requested.
7
A man called Barabbas was in prison with the insurrectionists who had committed murder in the uprising.
8
The crowd came up and asked Pilate to do for them what he usually did.
9
"Do you want me to release to you the king of the Jews?" asked Pilate,
10
knowing it was out of self-interest that the chief priests had handed Jesus over to him.
11
But the chief priests stirred up the crowd to have Pilate release Barabbas instead.
12
"What shall I do, then, with the one you call the king of the Jews?" Pilate asked them.
13
"Crucify him!" they shouted.
14
"Why? What crime has he committed?" asked Pilate. But they shouted all the louder, "Crucify him!"
15
Wanting to satisfy the crowd, Pilate released Barabbas to them. He had Jesus flogged, and handed him over to be crucified.
The chief priests, who had condemned Jesus as worthy of death, accused Him of many things before Pilate. But he was amazed Jesus made no reply. Jesus’ silence fulfills Isaiah’s prophecy concerning the Suffering Servant (Isaiah 53:7a).

The religious leaders thought they had been successful in maneuvering to have Jesus arrested and charged to be executed. They had no idea that Jesus laid it down of His own accord in obedience to God’s will and purpose (John 10:17a), which was to make His life an offering for sin (Isaiah 53:10b).

Pilate did not have the whole picture of what was happening but at least had grasped that Jesus was innocent and that the chief priests handed Him over out of self-interest (v.10a). But he was a typical politician who did not hold on to justice but resorted to expediency to please people and prevent a riot, which would risk his political career. He tried to release Jesus using a custom of the Passover festival. But the crowd, stirred by the religious leaders, demanded a notorious criminal, Barabbas, be released and have Jesus crucified.

Prayer: Father, thank you for Jesus’ obedience to your will and purpose to make his life an offering for sin. All humanity, including myself, owe our salvation to His obedience. Help me also take up my cross and follow Him. Amen.
One Word: Jesus remained silent and resolved to drink the cup God gave Him