Expositor's Bible Commentary Commentary John 18:37

"Pilate therefore said unto him, Art thou a king then? Jesus answered, Thou sayest that I am a king. To this end have I been born, and to this end am I come into the world, that I should bear witness unto the truth. Every one that is of the truth heareth my voice." — John 18:37 (ASV)

Jesus’ answer bewildered Pilate. Without attempting to argue about an abstraction that must have seemed irrational to him, Pilate came back to the central question: “So you are a king, then, aren’t you?” (my translation). Jesus assented by confirming Pilate’s conclusion. Then he declared that his purpose was to bear testimony to truth, and he intimated that anyone who was devoted to truth would listen to him. The obvious inference from his words was that he came into the world from another realm, that whoever did not listen to him would not be characterized by truth, and that if Pilate really wanted to know what truth was, he would give Jesus his earnest attention. As in Jesus’ other interviews in this gospel, his focus was not on himself but on reaching the heart of the person he addressed. He appealed to Pilate, not for acquittal or mercy, but for recognition of truth. The combined statement, “For this reason I was born, and for this I came into the world,” can be linked with ch. 1 and reinforces Jesus’ statement elsewhere in this gospel that he was fully aware of both his origin and destiny (cf. 8:14).