The people made him more afraid than ever in the past, And he was bound to lose his ground before the verbal blast. The heart of Pilate trembled as he wondered what to do. He couldn’t honor Caesar great and honor Jesus too. He brought the Master forward to the Roman judgment seat; “Behold your King,” said he, to make the irony complete. “Away with Him, away with Him, let Him be crucified!” This cry prevailed as Pilate failed to stem the rising tide. Then, “Shall I crucify your King?” he said despite his fears. “We have no king but Caesar,” came the answer to his ears. He finally consented to accomplish their demands, And stood before the multitude to wash his guilty hands. He did concede in word and deed; he set Barabbas free, And Jesus bore the lash before the crowd in agony. They put on Him a purple robe; He wore the thorny crown, While soldiers coldly tried to drag the name of Jesus down. The men saluted Jesus with a loud sarcastic “Hail!” And tortured Him inhumanly, but all to no avail. They bowed the knee in mockery; a spitting crowd were they; They smote His head and later led the King of Kings away. The purple robe had been removed; His raiment was His own. The people sought to make Him bear His heavy cross alone. The steps of Jesus faltered on the old Golgotha road, So they compelled another man to bear the heavy load. His tortured soul was near its goal; the Man of Sorrows came To Calvary, the place where He must bear His greatest shame. But women of Jerusalem had followed 14
Epic of Easter (continued) The Lord was sent to Herod with a similar result, Though charged to be the leader of a detrimental cult. This Herod mean had never seen the Son of God before, Nor had he heard the Living Word, or seen His deeds of yore, The petty ruler brought Him forth, some miracle to see, But only went unheeded by the Man of Galilee. The men of Herod mocked Him, and the accusations rose, And Jesus seemed completely at the mercy of His foes; For Herod sought to set at nought this Man of pure report; The Lord was spumed and then re turned to Pilate and the court. The governor prepared to set this Man at liberty, For neither he nor Herod could con demn Him lawfully. Now Pilate sought to free Him by traditional release, But sentiment was moved against the mighty Prince of Peace. This shiftless 'herd of men preferred a murderer instead, And hoped to make the Master take his place among the dead. “Release Barabbas unto us,” they cried with one accord, So Pilate asked whdt he should do with Jesus Christ the Lord. A crown of thorns was fashioned for the Galilean King; While old Praetorium itself acquired a deathly ring. The swelling cry was “Crucify”; it rose without a pause, But Pilate still forbade to kill a man without a cause. “I find no fault in Him,” he said, “What evil hath He done?” The Jews replied that He had made Himself as God the Son. The governor was threatened by the leaders of the mob, And feared to think of losing his posi tion and his job.
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