In brief
Barabbas is a prisoner in Jerusalem at the time of the Passover before the death of Jesus, around AD 30. The Gospels call him notorious. Mark and Luke specify that he was jailed for insurrection and murder, and John calls him a robber. Pilate offers the crowd the choice of releasing either Barabbas or Jesus. The crowd asks for Barabbas, and Jesus is handed over to be crucified. The Gospels say nothing about the rest of his life. This man released in place of Jesus is a reminder that Christ took the place of the guilty.
What does the name Barabbas mean?
Barabbas comes from the Aramaic Bar-Abba, generally understood as son of the father or son of Abba. The Gospels do not explain his name. Matthew 27:16 simply presents him as a notorious prisoner, with no further detail about his origin.
The world of Barabbas
The story of Barabbas takes place in Jerusalem, on the morning of the day when Jesus is handed over to Pilate, during the feast of Passover. By the usual reckoning, this is around the year 30 of our era. Pilate is the governor, and the Gospels present him as the one who sits on the judgment seat. The chief priests and the elders took counsel against Jesus when morning had come and delivered him up to Pontius Pilate (Matthew 27:1-2). John specifies that they did not enter the Praetorium, so as not to be defiled and to be able to eat the Passover (John 18:28). Matthew, Mark and Luke report that at each feast the governor released one prisoner, whom the crowd desired (Matthew 27:15; Mark 15:6; Luke 23:17). It is in this setting that Barabbas appears. He is one name among others in the Passion narrative, but his name opens a scene that all four Gospels have kept: the choice between a known guilty man and Jesus, whom Pilate judges innocent.
The story of Barabbas
A notable prisoner, known for insurrection and murder
Matthew 27:16; Mark 15:7; Luke 23:19; John 18:40Matthew presents him as a notable prisoner. Mark writes that he was bound with his fellow insurgents, men who in the insurrection had committed murder. Luke says likewise that he had been thrown into prison for a certain revolt in the city and for murder. John sums him up in one sentence: “Now Barabbas was a robber.” The Gospels thus give three converging indications about him: violence, revolt and prison. They give neither his origin nor the rest of his life.
Jesus before Pilate
John 18:28-38The leaders bring Jesus to the Praetorium and stay outside. Pilate goes out, then goes in again to question him: “Are you the King of the Jews?” Jesus answers that his Kingdom is not of this world and that he came into the world to testify to the truth. Pilate goes out again to the Jews and declares, “I find no basis for a charge against him.” This sentence opens the Barabbas scene. Before offering a choice, the governor has himself found that the man being accused has done nothing deserving death.
The custom of the feast
Matthew 27:15-19; Mark 15:6-10Pilate recalls the custom: he releases someone at the feast, whom the crowd asks for. He offers the choice between Barabbas and Jesus, who is called Christ. Matthew and Mark specify that he knew it was because of envy that the chief priests had delivered Jesus up. While he is sitting on the judgment seat, his wife sends him word: “Have nothing to do with that righteous man.” She has suffered many things in a dream because of him. The governor is therefore warned from several sides that he has an innocent man before him.
The crowd persuaded
Matthew 27:20-23; Mark 15:11-14The chief priests and the elders persuade the crowds to ask for Barabbas and destroy Jesus. When Pilate asks which of the two he should release, the answer is, “Barabbas!” When he asks what he should do with Jesus, they all say, “Let him be crucified!” Pilate asks what evil he has done, and they cry out all the more. Mark adds that the chief priests stirred up the crowd. The text therefore attributes the choice to the pressure of those who wanted Jesus dead, rather than to a simple spontaneous impulse.
Pilate gives in
Luke 23:13-25; Matthew 27:24-26Pilate calls together the chief priests, the rulers and the people, and tells them he found no basis for a charge against Jesus, and neither did Herod. The crowd shouts, “Away with this man! Release to us Barabbas!” Pilate speaks a third time to release Jesus, but their voices prevail. According to Matthew, he washes his hands before the crowd and says he is innocent of the blood of this righteous person. Then he releases Barabbas, has Jesus flogged and delivers him to be crucified.
Jesus takes the road to the cross
Mark 15:15-27Mark writes that Pilate, wishing to please the crowd, released Barabbas and handed Jesus over to be crucified. The soldiers lead him away into the court, clothe him in purple, put a crown of thorns on his head and salute him as King of the Jews. They then lead him out to crucify him, and Simon of Cyrene bears his cross. Two robbers are crucified with him, one on his right hand and one on his left. Barabbas no longer appears: the account now follows Jesus to Golgotha, and the Gospels say nothing of what became of the released prisoner.
What Barabbas teaches us
- Barabbas free and Jesus condemned illustrate the exchange of the cross: the innocent takes the place of the guilty.
- The crowd's choice reminds us that we can prefer what resembles us to the one who saves us, and that each person is invited to ask whom he chooses.
- Even a man guilty of insurrection and murder was set free through the sacrifice of Jesus: grace does not depend on what one has done.
- Pilate acknowledges Jesus' innocence several times, yet gives in to the crowd: knowing what is right is not enough, one must also act.
- The Gospels say nothing about Barabbas' life after his release: we should not fill this silence with guesses.
Key verses
Pilate asks the crowd which of the two he should release, and the answer is Barabbas. When he asks what he should do with Jesus, they all answer that he should be crucified. This is the heart of the exchange.
Pilate releases the man who had been thrown into prison for insurrection and murder, whom they were asking for, and hands Jesus over to their will. The verse expresses the substitution: a guilty man free, an innocent man handed over.
Pilate says he finds no guilt in Jesus, but the crowd shouts for Barabbas instead. John adds that Barabbas was a robber, which underlines the injustice of the choice.
Sermons about Barabbas
- Barabbas or Jesus: The King Who Took Your PlaceGuy de Bourbon-Parme points out that Barabbas comes from the Aramaic Bar-Abbas, son of the father: a man with that name is released in place of the true Son of the Father, Jesus.
- Barabbas Crowned King, Jesus Condemned InnocentJason Procopio reads Mark 15:1-20 as a coronation: Jesus, king of the universe, comes to his throne with a crown of thorns and a cross for his throne.
Frequently asked questions
Who was Barabbas in the Bible?
Barabbas was a notorious prisoner in Jerusalem. Mark and Luke say he was jailed for insurrection and murder, and John calls him a robber. At the Passover, the crowd asked Pilate to release him rather than Jesus, who was handed over to be crucified.
What does the name Barabbas mean?
Barabbas comes from the Aramaic Bar-Abba, generally understood as son of the father. The Gospels do not explain this name. Some manuscripts of Matthew 27:16-17 carry the full name Jesus Barabbas, but this reading is debated and does not appear in most English translations.
Where can I find the story of Barabbas in the Bible?
It is found in all four Gospels: Matthew 27:15-26, Mark 15:6-15, Luke 23:13-25 and John 18:38-40. Each Gospel writer tells of the crowd's choice before Pilate. Mark and Luke specify the insurrection and the murder, and John calls him a robber.
Why did the crowd choose Barabbas over Jesus?
The Gospels give a clear reason: the chief priests and the elders persuaded the crowds to ask for Barabbas and destroy Jesus (Matthew 27:20). Mark says likewise that the chief priests stirred up the crowd (Mark 15:11). Pilate knew that Jesus had been delivered up because of envy (Matthew 27:18). The crowd's choice is therefore not presented as an independent decision, but as a choice steered by the religious leaders. The Gospels give no other explanation, and they do not say that the crowd knew Jesus less well than Barabbas.
Did Barabbas convert after his release?
The Bible does not say. The four Gospels mention Barabbas in the account of the trial, and never again. Mark writes only that Pilate released Barabbas to them (Mark 15:15), and Luke says he released the one who had been thrown into prison for insurrection and murder, for whom they asked (Luke 23:25). The books of the New Testament tell of neither his repentance, nor his flight, nor any sequel. The stories that circulate about him come from somewhere other than the Bible, and it is wiser to acknowledge this silence than to invent one.
Was Pilate responsible for the death of Jesus?
The Gospels show Pilate declaring several times that Jesus is innocent: “I find no basis for a charge against him” (John 18:38), “I have found no capital crime in him” (Luke 23:22). He washes his hands and says he is innocent of the blood of this righteous person (Matthew 27:24). Yet it is he who pronounces the sentence: Mark writes that he wished to please the crowd (Mark 15:15), and Luke that their voices prevailed (Luke 23:23). The text therefore presents a shared responsibility: that of the leaders who deliver Jesus up, that of the crowd who cry out, and that of the governor who gives in.
Was there really a custom of releasing a prisoner at Passover?
The Gospels say so. Matthew writes that at the feast the governor was accustomed to release to the multitude one prisoner, whom they desired (Matthew 27:15). Mark says the same (Mark 15:6), and John has Pilate say, “you have a custom, that I should release someone to you at the Passover” (John 18:39). This custom is therefore attested by the biblical accounts themselves. They do not specify its origin, and this page keeps to what they say. What matters for the story is that it allows a choice before the crowd.
Was Barabbas a zealot or a revolutionary?
The Gospels do not give him that title. Mark and Luke say he had been put in prison for an insurrection and for murder, and John calls him a robber (Mark 15:7; Luke 23:19; John 18:40). The word insurrection suggests a revolt, but the text does not specify his movement, his motives, or any accomplices beyond those Mark mentions without naming. It is better to keep to the words used. What the text establishes is that he was guilty in everyone's eyes, and that Jesus was not.
What does the story of Barabbas say about the cross?
The account sets a guilty man and an innocent one side by side. Barabbas, imprisoned for insurrection and murder, is released, while Jesus, declared innocent by Pilate, is delivered up to be crucified (Luke 23:25). The New Testament says elsewhere that Christ died for sinners. The story of Barabbas gives a concrete picture of this: one man is free because another takes the road to the cross. The Gospels do not develop this reading in this passage, and they do not put it in Barabbas's mouth. It is read in the light of the rest of Scripture.