KJV ORIGINAL
Now at that feast the governor was wont to release unto the people a prisoner, whom they would.
Close to the original. Clear modern English.
✦ MADE SIMPLE
Every year during the festival, the governor had this tradition where he'd let the crowd pick one prisoner to go free.
⚡ THE BOTTOM LINE
It was basically crowd-sourced clemency, the people got to choose who walked free.
📚 Historical Context
During the Passover festival in Jerusalem, the Roman governor Pontius Pilate followed a custom of releasing a prisoner to the crowd as a gesture of goodwill toward the Jewish people, which helped maintain order under Roman rule. This practice likely originated from efforts to appease the local population during their major religious feasts. In the biblical narrative, it sets the stage for the crowd's choice between Jesus and Barabbas during His trial.
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