See Pilate Pontius.
Digital Bible Dictionary, Grupo C Service & Design Ltda., Colombia, 2003
Source: Digital Bible Dictionary
See “Pilate.”
Christian Bible Dictionary
Dr. J. Dominguez
http://bible.com/dictionary/
Source: Christian Bible Dictionary
Roman procurator for the province of Judea (AD 26-36) whose name is mentioned fifty-three times in the NT. The religious Jews took him to the Lord Jesus to judge him, because only he could apply the death penalty. P. knew that Jesus was innocent and “that out of envy the chief priests had handed him over.” He wanted to save him from death by exercising his custom of making fun of a condemned man, but the people asked him to release Barrabás. He washed his hands to express that he did not agree with their opinion, but he put him in their hands “to be crucified” after flogging him (Mat 27:1-26; Mar 15:1-15; Luc 23: 1-25; Joh 18:28-40).
Luke mentions a terrible event in which some Galileans who were making sacrifices were killed by orders of P. (Luke 13:1-5). From extrabiblical sources, especially †¢Josephus and Philo, it is known that P. was a corrupt, cruel and bloodthirsty man. Philo says that his rule was characterized by † œvenality, violence, robberies, frequent executions of prisoners without trial, endless and savage ferocity †. At the end of his rule he had big problems with the Jews, because he brought Roman troops to Jerusalem with banners that had the imperial image, which was considered an offense. A riot broke out in Caesarea protesting this, forcing him to return the troops to that city. Later, however, he appropriated part of the temple tax to build an aqueduct, which led to more protests that ended bloody. Finally, he ordered the death of some Samaritans who were making their sacrifices on Mount Gerizim. As a consequence of the protest on this occasion Pilate had to return to Rome. There are several legends about his death, one says that he died as a Christian, others that he committed suicide or that he was executed. The Ethiopian church, on the other hand, considers him a saint. In 1961 Italian archaeologists found in Caesarea a memorial stone, probably part of a theater, with an inscription mentioning P.
Source: Christian Bible Dictionary
After the deposition of Herod’s eldest son Archelaus (who had succeeded his father as Ethnarch), Judea was placed under the command of a Roman procurator. Pilate, who was the fifth to succeed Valerius Gratus in AD 26, had greater authority than most procurators under the empire, since in addition to the ordinary duties of financial administration, he held supreme judicial power. His unusually long term of office (AD 26-36) covers the entire ministerial activity of both John the Baptist and Jesus Christ. To be appointed procurator Pilate was necessarily of equestrian rank, but beyond this we know very little of his family of origin. Some have thought that he was only a free man, and that his name was derived from pileus (the cap of freed slaves), but there seems to be no adequate evidence to support this, and it is quite unlikely that a freedman could obtain such an important position. . The Pontius were an Osco clan. Pilate owed his appointment to the influence of Sejanus. The official residence of the procurators was Herod’s palace at Caesarea, where there was a military force of about 3,000 soldiers. These soldiers went to Jerusalem at the time of the festivals, when the city was full of foreigners, and there was the greatest danger of riots, which is why Pilate went to Jerusalem at the time of the Crucifixion. His name will forever be shrouded in infamy because of his involvement in the deed, though at the time it seemed of little importance to him.
Pilate is a type of worldly man, knowing the law and eager to fulfill it insofar as it could be done without personal sacrifice of any kind, but easily yielding to pressure from those whose interest it was that he act differently. He would gladly have acquitted Christ, and even made serious efforts in that direction, but he immediately yielded to pressure when his own position was threatened. The other events of his mandate are not of very great importance. Philo (Ad Gaium, 38) refers to him as unyielding, heartless, and stubborn. The Jews hated him and his administration, because he was not only very harsh, but also showed little regard for his susceptibilities. Some banners bearing the image of Tiberius, which had been erected by him in Jerusalem, caused an uprising that would have ended in a massacre had Pilate not relented. At a later date, Tiberius ordered him to remove certain golden shields, which he had erected in Jerusalem despite the rejection of the people. The incident mentioned in St. Luke, xiii, 1, of the Galileans whose blood Pilate mixed with the sacrifices, is nowhere else referred to, but is quite in keeping with other authentic events of his command. He was therefore concerned that no more reports concerning him be sent to the emperor. The tendency, already discernible in the Canonical Gospels, to place emphasis on Pilate’s efforts to absolve Christ, and therefore judge his crime as leniently as possible, goes even further in the Apocryphal Gospels and led in later years to the claim that he had actually become a Christian. The Abyssinian Church regards him as a saint and assigns June 25 to him and Claudia Procula, his wife. The belief that he became a Christian dates back to the second century, and can be found in Origen (Hom., In Matt., xxxv). The Greek Church assigns his feast day on October 27. Both Tertullian and Justin Martyr speak of a report on the Crucifixion (not extant) sent by Pilate to Tiberius, the idea from which a great deal of apocryphal literature originates. Some of this is of Christian origin, (Gospel of Nicodemus), some is of pagan origin, but all of these have perished.
His term was brought to an end through the trouble that appeared in Samaria. An impostor had declared that he had the power to discover the sacred vessels which he claimed had been hidden by Moses on Mount Gerizim, where armed Samaritans came in great numbers. Pilate seems to have thought the whole thing was a smoke screen, to cover some other more important design, so he rushed the troops to attack them, and many were killed. They appealed to Vitellius, who was at that time legate in Syria, alleging that nothing political had been attempted against us, and complained to the entire Pilate administration. He was summoned to Rome to answer charges against him, but before he could reach the city the Emperor Tiberius was dead. This is the last we know of Pilate from authentic sources, but legend has been busy naming him. Eusebius (HE, ii, 7), says of him, referring to the authority of earlier writers, whom he does not name, that he fell into great misfortune under Caligula, and that he eventually committed suicide. Other details come from less reputable sources. His body, says the “Mors Pilati”, was thrown into the Tiber, but its waters were so disturbed by evil spirits that his body was taken to Vienna and sunk in the Rhone, where a monument called Pilate’s tomb can still be seen. . As the same thing happened there, he was again extracted and sunk in the lake of Lausanne. His final location was in a deep, lonely, little mountain lake, which, according to later tradition, is on a mountain, still called Pilate, near Lucerne. The real origin of his name must, however, be sought in the blanket of clouds that often covers the mountain, and serves as a barometer for the inhabitants of Lucerne. There are many other legends about Pilate in the folklore of Germany, but none of them has the slightest authority.
ARTHUR S. BARNES
Transcribed by Lawrence Progel
Translated by Luis Alberto Alvarez Bianchi.
Source: Catholic Encyclopedia