Church Fathers Commentary John 19:6-8

"When therefore the chief priests and the officers saw him, they cried out, saying, Crucify [him], crucify [him]! Pilate saith unto them, Take him yourselves, and crucify him: for I find no crime in him. The Jews answered him, We have a law, and by that law he ought to die, because he made himself the Son of God. When Pilate therefore heard this saying, he was the more afraid;" — John 19:6-8 (ASV)

St. Augustine of Hippo: The envy of the Jews did not subside at Christ’s disgrace; instead, it grew. When the chief priests and officers saw Him, they cried out, saying, Crucify Him, crucify Him.

St. John Chrysostom: Pilate then saw that it was all in vain and said to them, Take Him yourselves and crucify Him. This is the speech of a man who abhors the deed, urging others to do something that he himself abhors.

They had indeed brought our Lord to him so that He might be put to death by his sentence, but the very opposite was the result; the governor acquitted Him, saying, For I find no fault in Him. He immediately cleared Him of all charges, which shows that he had only permitted the previous outrages to humor the madness of the Jews.

But nothing could shame the Jewish hounds. The Jews answered him, We have a law, and by our law He ought to die, because He made Himself the Son of God.

St. Augustine of Hippo: Behold, another, greater outbreak of envy. The previous charge was less severe, meant only to punish Him for aspiring to usurp royal power.

Yet Jesus did not make either claim falsely; both were true. He was both the Only-begotten Son of God and the King appointed by God on the holy hill of Zion. And He would have demonstrated His right to both now, had He not been as patient as He was powerful.

St. John Chrysostom: While they disputed with each other, He was silent, fulfilling the prophecy: He does not open His mouth; He was taken from prison and from judgment.

St. Augustine of Hippo: This agrees with Luke’s account—We found this fellow perverting the nation—but with the addition of the charge that He made Himself the Son of God.

St. John Chrysostom: Then Pilate began to fear that what had been said might be true and that he might appear to be administering justice improperly. When Pilate therefore heard that saying, he was the more afraid.

The Venerable Bede: It was not the law he was afraid of, since he was a foreigner, but he was more afraid that he might slay the Son of God.

St. John Chrysostom: They were not afraid to say this—that He made Himself the Son of God—but they killed Him for the very reasons for which they ought to have worshiped Him.