Luke 23:11-12

23:11 Even Herod with his soldiers treated him with contempt and mocked him. Then, dressing him in elegant clothes, Herod sent him back to Pilate. 23:12 That very day Herod and Pilate became friends with each other, for prior to this they had been enemies.

Luke 23:15

23:15 Neither did Herod, for he sent him back to us. Look, he has done nothing deserving death.

tn This is a continuation of the previous Greek sentence, but because of its length and complexity, a new sentence was started here in the translation by supplying “then” to indicate the sequence of events.

sn This mockery involved putting elegant royal clothes on Jesus, either white or purple (the colors of royalty). This was no doubt a mockery of Jesus’ claim to be a king.

tn Grk “he”; the referent (Herod) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

sn Herod and Pilate became friends with each other. It may be that Pilate’s change of heart was related to the death of his superior, Sejanus, who had a reputation for being anti-Jewish. To please his superior, Pilate may have ruled the Jews with insensitivity. Concerning Sejanus, see Philo, Embassy 24 (160-61) and Flaccus 1 (1).

tn Grk “at enmity with each other.”

sn With the statement “he has done nothing,” Pilate makes another claim that Jesus is innocent of any crime worthy of death.

tn Grk “nothing deserving death has been done by him.” The passive construction has been translated as an active one in keeping with contemporary English style.