Luke 23:22

‘And he said to them the third time, “Why, what evil has this man done? I have found no cause of death in him. I will therefore flog him and release him.” '

But Pilate again made his plea. He was unwilling to yield Jesus to them. So he asked why they were doing this. What evil had the man done? And he emphasised again that he found no reason why He should be put to death, and again suggested His release after flogging, a flogging which he then carried out (John 19:10) probably hoping by that means to win the people's pity for Jesus. It would tear Jesus' back to shreds, and He would come out of it a pitiful and bloodied mess.

Such overall behaviour was undoubtedly unusual for Pilate, But from the other Gospels we obtain some idea of why this was. Not only had he been impressed by Jesus, Whose words and manner had probably stirred something decent within him, in Whom he probably saw the man that he himself would like to have been, and Whom he recognised to be in every way his superior (compare John 19:8), but his wife had also reinforced this idea by advising him that she had had a dream warning against him having anything to do with the man (Matthew 27:19). In a superstitious age that would not be something taken lightly. So unusually for him Pilate's conscience was stirred, and he was unhappy about what was happening. There are times in the lives of even the most evil of men when such things happen. And it had happened to Pilate. He was filled with a kind of superstitious dread which was disturbing his conscience. This man had awakened him to a sense of his judicial responsibilities. And this is supported by the fact that he took the unusual step for a judge of seeking to remove from himself the blame for what had been done by a public washing of his hands by which he tried to shame his opponents (Matthew 27:24). Psychologically it all fits together. But his capitulation prevented this new sense of decency from taking root. he had his opportunity and failed to take it. And later he would suffer the very fate that he had tried to avoid. (We can compare him with Felix in Acts 24:25 who was brought to a similar situation and failed to take his opportunity).

These words of Pilate are central in the chiasmus. Luke wanted it made clear to all that the verdict of the authority who spoke on behalf of Rome was unequivocal. Jesus was free of all blame and should never have been crucified. And he wanted it known that He was without blemish and without spot.