City Life Starter

Written by Scott Fiddler

The Word

16 At that time they were holding a notorious prisoner, called Barabbas. 

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25 And all the people said, “His blood shall be on us and on our children!”

26 Then he released Barabbas for them; but after having Jesus scourged, he handed Him over to be crucified.

Matthew 27:16,25-26

Exegesis

Barabbas was a bad dude. He was a thief. John 18:40. He was a murderer. Luke 23:19. He was an insurrectionist. Mark 15:7.  In other words he was one who sought to steal, kill, and destroy. Sound familiar? It should. Jesus said Satan came to steal, kill, and destroy. See John 10:10. 

Barabbas, it appears, was the human embodiment of Satan, a demonic incarnation or sorts. Barabbas is mentioned in all four gospels with each gospel writer noting a different aspect of his multi-faceted wickedness. See Matthew 27:16 (“a notorious prisoner, called Barabbas”); Mark15:7 (“imprisoned with the insurrectionists who had committed murder and insurrection”); Luke 23:19 (“thrown into prison for an insurrection made in the city, and for murder”); John 18:40 (“a robber”). Matthew calls Barabbas “notorious,” meaning Barabbas was not only bad, but he was famous for being bad. 

Significant in its absence is any mention by the early church fathers that Barabbas repented after his release by Pilate. There is no mention by Eusebius, Origen, Tertullian or apparently even in the gnostic gospels, at least none that I can find. By contrast, there is a legend that Pilate repented after Jesus’ death and became a believer. We can rest assured that if Barabbas had repented and become a Christian someone would have heard of it, someone would have recorded it, and Christians would have repeated it throughout history as a victory for the power of love and grace over wickedness. Yet there was nothing. Nada. I think it is a fair assumption then that Barabbas never did repent.

So, here we have Jesus being substituted for and put to death in the place of a man who is the very embodiment of evil, a man famous for being bad, who was so bad he would not even repent following his release as a result of one of the most extraordinary acts of grace in history. And maybe that is the point: Jesus died for even the worst of mankind, those who were so wicked they would not repent in the face of the most sacrificial acts of grace. And if that is the case, then no person is beyond redeemable.

But now I fear I have wondered into a dangerous territory where Calvinists and Arminians do battle and, as a non-theologian, armed only with the Bible, and a story about a notorious prisoner, I am ill-equipped to defend myself. So, lest I draw the ire of either camp here I will stop.

Application

If Jesus could die for a wicked man like Barabbas, there is no person so bad His atoning blood could not also cover.