Markus 15:15-16

15:15 Because he wanted to satisfy the crowd, Pilate released Barabbas for them. Then, ¹  after he had Jesus flogged, ²  he handed him over ³  to be crucified.

Jesus is Mocked

15:16 So ⁴  the soldiers led him into the palace (that is, the governor’s residence) ⁵  and called together the whole cohort. ⁶ 

[15:15]  ¹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

[15:15]  ² tn The Greek term φραγελλόω (fragellow) refers to flogging. BDAG 1064 s.v. states, “flog, scourge, a punishment inflicted on slaves and provincials after a sentence of death had been pronounced on them. So in the case of Jesus before the crucifixion…Mt 27:26; Mk 15:15.”

[15:15]  sn A Roman flogging (traditionally, “scourging”) was an excruciating punishment. The victim was stripped of his clothes and bound to a post with his hands fastened above him (or sometimes he was thrown to the ground). Guards standing on either side of the victim would incessantly beat him with a whip (flagellum) made out of leather with pieces of lead and bone inserted into its ends. While the Jews only allowed 39 lashes, the Romans had no such limit; many people who received such a beating died as a result. See C. Schneider, TDNT, 4:515-19.

[15:15]  ³ tn Or “delivered him up.”

[15:16]  ⁴ tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “So” to indicate that the soldiers’ action is in response to Pilate’s condemnation of the prisoner in v. 15.

[15:16]  ⁵ tn Grk “(that is, the praetorium).”

[15:16]  sn The governor’s residence (Grk “praetorium”) was the Roman governor’s official residence. The one in Jerusalem may have been Herod’s palace in the western part of the city, or the fortress Antonia northwest of the temple area.

[15:16]  ⁶ sn A Roman cohort was a tenth of a legion, about 500-600 soldiers.