A woman's dream

Matthew 27:15-23

Barabbas or Jesus?

 Now at the festival the governor was accustomed to release a prisoner for the crowd, anyone whom they wanted. At that time they had a notorious prisoner, called Jesus Barabbas. So after they had gathered, Pilate said to them, “Whom do you want me to release for you, Jesus Barabbas or Jesus who is called the Messiah?” For he realised that it was out of jealousy that they had handed him over. While he was sitting on the judgment seat, his wife sent word to him, “Have nothing to do with that innocent man, for today I have suffered a great deal because of a dream about him.” Now the chief priests and the elders persuaded the crowds to ask for Barabbas and to have Jesus killed. The governor again said to them, “Which of the two do you want me to release for you?” And they said, “Barabbas.” Pilate said to them, “Then what should I do with Jesus who is called the Messiah?” All of them said, “Let him be crucified!” Then he asked, “Why, what evil has he done?” But they shouted all the more, “Let him be crucified!”

A disturbing dream

A persistent wife

An indecisive man

A government that wanted to show strength

A fickle crowd that wanted blood

All conspired to a fate sealed

Crucify him!

And so Jesus, called the Messiah

who had haunted the dreams

of Pilate's wife

bought the release of the notorious Barabbas

and signed his own death warrant.

How often are we besieged

by insidious voices

that come to us unbidden

and sway us into decisions

we might not ordinarily have made

if we had been given time

to consider the facts

and not been pressured

by the clamour and the noise

into irreversible action?

"Have nothing to do with that innocent man"

And so Pilate washed his hands

and let the crowd decide.

And a woman's dream 

helped to seal the fate

of our Lord.