17. [ἀνάγκην δὲ εἶχεν�]. This verse is wanting in ABKL, and the Coptic, Sahidic versions &c. In D, the Aethiopic and the Curetonian Syriac it is placed after Luke 23:19.

17. For the verse in our A.V[405] see the critical note. Godet conjectures that the custom of claiming the release of a prisoner at the Feast (John 18:39) was a memorial of the national Deliverance from Egypt. The verse is of dubious genuineness, and may have come from a marginal gloss. The Gospels are our sole authority for this concession, which is, however, entirely in accordance with Roman policy.

[405] A.V. Authorised Version.

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Old Testament