Luke 23:8-16 (ESV)

When Herod saw Jesus, he was very glad, for he had long desired to see him, because he had heard about him, and he was hoping to see some sign done by him. So he questioned him at some length, but he made no answer. The chief priests and the scribes stood by, vehemently accusing him. And Herod with his soldiers treated him with contempt and mocked him. Then, arraying him in splendid clothing, he sent him back to Pilate. And Herod and Pilate became friends with each other that very day, for before this they had been at enmity with each other.

Pilate then called together the chief priests and the rulers and the people, and said to them, “You brought me this man as one who was misleading the people. And after examining him before you, behold, I did not find this man guilty of any of your charges against him. Neither did Herod, for he sent him back to us. Look, nothing deserving death has been done by him. I will therefore punish and release him.”

Jesus puts on even less of a defense for Herod than He did for Pilate. Yet Herod, like Pilate, acquits Jesus. They agree, and this appears to turn enmity into friendship.

What?!? How can this be and how can it be important enough to include in scripture? Is this agreement really all that significant?

Obviously, their little tiff must have been job related; if it was personal, a righteous judicial decision wouldn’t mend that fence. Little is known about their enmity – it’s only mentioned in Luke – but the way it ended indicates it was a matter of respect.

Pilate was very senior to Herod. He was a full blown prefect, while Herod (Herod Antipas) was a mere tetrarch who inherited only a portion of his father’s (Herod the great’s) kingdom.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pontius_Pilate

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herod_Antipas

We don’t know the whole back-story to this enmity but we do know that Pilate’s reaction to Herod’s acquittal of Jesus was to end it. That speaks volumes about the legal case against Jesus. Not only was He twice acquitted, but the junior judge’s decision to acquit caused a sea change in the senior judge’s opinion of him. That adds weight to the ruling.

They knew that Jesus was innocent.

What a simple point – Jesus was innocent. Here’s another simple point – we’re not. The innocent suffered for our guilt. “And can it be, that I should gain, an interest in the savior’s blood?”

We don’t appreciate this enough, even if we recite the right words all the time. We need to pray to be taught to love God more. It’s ridiculous that we need to ask for help in this – but it’s true.

Ask God to soften and open your heart so that you can appreciate Him more.

The weekly study guides, which include discussion questions, are available for download here:

https://www.ailbe.org/resources/itemlist/category/91-deep-studies