Section 15:16–20

The Roman soldiers mocked Jesus

The events of this section occurred immediately after the soldiers whipped Jesus in 15:15. One crime that the Jewish leaders accused Jesus of was that he claimed to be the king of the Jews (see Luke 23:2 and John 19:12). The soldiers did not believe Jesus was a king, so they mocked him by pretending that he was a king. They gave him a robe like a king’s robe and a crown of thorns in place of a king’s crown. They greeted him like a king, and they bowed before him in false honor. At the same time they treated him cruelly and shamefully by striking him on the head and spitting on him.

It is good to translate this section before you decide on a heading for it.

Here are some other possible headings for this section:

Jesus was mocked by Roman soldiers
-or-
The soldiers mistreated/mocked Jesus

There are parallel passages for this section in Matthew 27:27–31 and John 19:2–3.

Paragraph 15:16–20

The place where Pilate met with Jesus and the Jewish leaders (15:1–15) was probably in the public square in front of the palace. The events in this paragraph happened inside the palace. The Roman governor, Pontius Pilate, lived in the palace when he was in Jerusalem. He also used this palace as his headquarters when he was there.

15:16a

The part of the story that is in 15:16–20 began immediately after the part of the story in 15:1–15.

Then: In some languages, it is natural to begin a new part of a story with a time word or phrase. For example:

But before they crucified Jesus

In other languages, a time word or phrase may not be necessary. Introduce this story in a natural way in your language.

the soldiers: The phrase the soldiers probably refers to the soldiers in 15:15d. Pilate had given Jesus to these soldiers to be crucified (though they were not specifically mentioned there). If you have not mentioned soldiers in 15:15, you may want to introduce them here in a general way. For example:

Some soldiers
-or-
His/Pilate’s soldiers

led Jesus away: The Greek verb that the Berean Standard Bible translates as led…away here means to lead someone from one place to another. This was done as part of the legal process (The person was led to trial, to punishment/prison, or to execution). If possible, use a word that can describe leading a prisoner or captive by force or leading him toward punishment.

into the palace: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as palace can refer to the palace building itself. Or it can refer to a courtyard inside the palace compound. This scene probably took place in the large inner courtyard of the palace compound.

You can translate this either as:

the palace (New International Version)
-or-
the courtyard of the palace (God’s Word)

palace: A palace is a large, beautiful house that a king or other high official lives in.

Here are some other ways to translate this word:

governor’s/king’s house
-or-
royal house

15:16b

(that is, the Praetorium): The phrase that is, the Praetorium identifies which palace was meant in 15:16a. The Berean Standard Bible puts this phrase in parentheses to show that it is background information.

Praetorium: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible transliterates as Praetorium is a borrowed Latin word. It refers to the residence and headquarters of a Roman governor. The Praetorium also had barracks where the governor’s soldiers stayed.

Here are some other ways to translate this:

where the governor stayed/lived
-or-
in which the governor, Pilate, stayed
-or-
of the governor/leader
-or-
That place/building was the government headquarters.

15:16c

and called the whole company together: The Greek verb that the Berean Standard Bible translates as called…together here means that the soldiers asked or told other soldiers to come and gather together.

the whole company: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as the whole company refers to a group/troop of about six hundred soldiers. Here it probably refers to all the soldiers of the company who were on duty and were there at that moment. It probably does not indicate that all six hundred soldiers were called. Translate this with a word in your language that refers to a large group of soldiers.

Some soldiers of the company did the calling. So it may be more natural in some languages to say that they called together the other soldiers. For example:

the rest of the company (Good News Bible)
-or-
the other soldiers in their troop/group

General Comment on 15:16c

In some languages it may be natural to express this with direct speech. For example:

…and said to other soldiers in their troop/group, “Come here.”

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All Scripture quotations in this publication, unless otherwise indicated, are from The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible.
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