What was Pontius Pilate Really Like?
Pontius Pilate was appointed governor or procurator of Judea by the Roman emperor Tiberius Caesar in 26 A.D. Although his official residence was in Caesarea Maritima, the Roman capital of Judea, it is plausible he would have spent the Passover season in Jerusalem to maintain order. According to his historical contemporaries, Pilate was a harsh and violent ruler. The Jewish philosopher Philo and the Jewish historian Josephus both describe Pilate as a strong ruler whose determination to impose Roman rule and customs brought him into frequent conflict with the Jewish community. In at least two of these cases , appeals to the Emperor – or the threat of such appeals – forced Pilate to reverse himself. Philo describes Pilate this way: “he was a man of a very inflexible disposition, and very merciless as well as very obstinate.” According to Philo, Pilate feared his Jewish subjects might ultimately appeal to the Roman emperor because of “his habit of insulting people, and his cruelty, and his
