John 18:31

John 18:31 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Then said Pilate unto them, Take ye him, and judge him according to your law. The Jews therefore said unto him, It is not lawful for us to put any man to death:
• New International Version (NIV)Pilate said, “Take him yourselves and judge him by your own law.” “But we have no right to execute anyone,” they objected.
• English Standard Version (ESV)Pilate said to them, "Take him yourselves and judge him by your own law." The Jews said to him, "It is not lawful for us to put anyone to death."
• New King James Version (NKJV)Then Pilate said to them, “You take Him and judge Him according to your law.” Therefore the Jews said to him, “It is not lawful for us to put anyone to death,”

Context of John 18:31

29So Pilate came out to them and asked, “What accusation are you making against this man?” 30The Jews answered Pilate, “If he weren’t a criminal, we wouldn’t have handed him over to you.” Pilate told the Jews, “Take him, and try him by your law.” The Jews answered him, “We’re not allowed to execute anyone.” 32In this way what Jesus had predicted about how he would die came true. 33Pilate went back into the palace, called for Jesus, and asked him, “Are you the king of the Jews?”

John 18:31 word by word

εἶπεν οὖν αὐτοῖς ὁ Πιλᾶτος· λάβετε αὐτὸν ὑμεῖς καὶ κατὰ τὸν νόμον ὑμῶν κρίνατε αὐτόν. εἶπον αὐτῷ οἱ Ἰουδαῖοι· ἡμῖν οὐκ ἔξεστιν ἀποκτεῖναι οὐδένα·Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• ·ὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• Thenοὖνoun · therefore/thenG3767
• saidλέγωlegō · to sayG3004
• PilateΠιλᾶτοςPilatos · PilateG4091
• unto themαὐτόςautos · it/s/heG846
• Takeλαμβάνωlambanō · to takeG2983
• yeσύsu · youG4771
• andκαίkai · andG2532
• judgeκρίνωkrinō · to judgeG2919
• according toκατάkata · according toG2596
• lawνόμοςnomos · lawG3551
• The JewsἸουδαῖοςIoudaios · JewG2453
• It isἔξεστι, ἐξόνexesti · be permittedG1832
• notοὐou · noG3756
• for usἐγώegō · I/weG1473
• to putἀποκτείνωapokteinō · to killG615
• any manοὐδείςoudeis · noneG3762

Cross-references for John 18:31

• John 19:6When the chief priests and the guards saw Jesus, they shouted, “Crucify him! Crucify him!” Pilate told them, “You take him and crucify him. I don’t find this man guilty of anything.”
• Acts 25:18When his accusers stood up, they didn’t accuse him of the crimes I was expecting.
• John 19:15Then the Jews shouted, “Kill him! Kill him! Crucify him!” Pilate asked them, “Should I crucify your king?” The chief priests responded, “The emperor is the only king we have!”
• Genesis 49:10A scepter will never depart from Judah nor a ruler’s staff from between his feet until Shiloh comes and the people obey him.
• Ezekiel 21:26This is what the Almighty Lord says: Take off your turban, and get rid of your crown. Things are going to change. Those who are unimportant will become important, and those who are important will become unimportant.
• Hosea 3:4In the same way, the Israelites will wait a long time without kings or officials, without sacrifices or sacred stones, and without ephods or family idols.

Commentaries on John 18:31

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 31It is not lawful for us to put any man to death - They might have judged Jesus according to their law, as Pilate bade them do; but they could only excommunicate or scourge him. They might have voted him worthy of death; but they could not put him to death, if any thing of a secular nature were charged against him. The power of life and death was in all probability taken from the Jews when Archelaus, king of Judea, was banished to Vienna, and Judea was…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 31Judge him … - The Jews had not directly informed him that they had judged him and pronounced him worthy of death. Pilate therefore tells them to inquire into the ease; to ascertain the proof of his guilt, and to decide on what the law of Moses pronounced. It has been doubted whether this gave them the power of putting him to death, or whether it was not rather a direction to them to inquire into the case, and inflict on him, if they judged him guilty, the…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 28-32Verses 28-32 It was unjust to put one to death who had done so much good, therefore the Jews were willing to save themselves from reproach. Many fear the scandal of an ill thing, more than the sin of it. Christ had said he should be delivered to the Gentiles, and they should put him to death; hereby that saying was fulfilled. He had said that he should be crucified, lifted up. If the Jews had judged him by their law, he had been stoned; crucifying never…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 31-32Pilate did not consider the charges convincing. So he told the Sanhedrin to judge Jesus by their own law. Pilate saw this as a Jewish argument, which he refused to investigate. However, the Jewish leaders insisted that execution was necessary. This fulfilled the prediction Jesus made about how he would die (see 12:32–33). The Jews would have used stoning, but the Romans used crucifixion. If Pilate sentenced Jesus, the Romans would hang Jesus on a cross to…Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 29-3229-32. Pilate went out to them, and said, What accusation bring ye against this man?--State your charge.Read the comment

Topics related to John 18:31

• Jesus, the Christ
• Pilate, Pontius
• Priest
• Prisoners

In the dictionaries

• Pilate; Pontius
• Pilate
• Judge
• Resort
• Cohort
• Courts, Judicial
• Jesus Christ
• Jesus Christ, the Arrest and Trial of
• John, Gospel of
• Sanhedrin

Commentaries on John 18

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Catena Aurea
• Illustrated New Testament
• Burkitt’s Expository Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Family Bible Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• John Lightfoot Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• The People’s New Testament
• Robertson’s Word Pictures
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• The Fourfold Gospel and Commentary on Acts
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings