Was He Really Jesus Barabbas?

GodWords Newsletter #52

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A GodWords reader wants to know: Was Barabbas' real name Jesus Barabbas?

You may be familiar with the situation. Jesus had been on trial, but Pontius Pilate found no reason to punish Him. This is from the NIV translation of Matthew 27:

Now it was the governor’s custom at the festival to release a prisoner chosen by the crowd. At that time they had a well-known prisoner whose name was Jesus Barabbas. So when the crowd had gathered, Pilate asked them, “Which one do you want me to release to you: Jesus Barabbas, or Jesus who is called the Messiah?”

Not every translation says “Jesus Barabbas.” Some just say “Barabbas.” Which is right?

It’s an interesting question. There isn't any solid textual proof either way, but there is some evidence. Instead of starting at the beginning, we'll work our way backward in time.

1800s

A Syriac manuscript, discovered in the late nineteenth century, was found to be a palimpsest... a previously-used parchment that had been scraped off and reused. Put a pin in this, as it shows up again later.

900s

A gospel manuscript from the tenth century contains this marginal note: "But in very old copies I encountered, I found also Barabbas called Jesus. So therefore the question of Pilate is there, 'Whom do you wish from the two that I release to you? Jesus Barabbas or Jesus who is called Christ?' For it seems that the patronym of the robber was Barabbas, which is interpreted as 'son of the teacher.'"

500s

What's even more interesting? This is the same note found in another, much older manuscript. The older one was written by Petrus of Laodicea, probably in the sixth century... and it seems that HIS note is a summary of someone else's words. That means there were, in the 500s, some “very old" manuscripts of Matthew with the double Jesus.

400s

Remember that Syriac palimpsest from the 1800s? When the underlying, older text was analyzed, scholars found Jesus Barabbas there and concluded it may have been written as early as the fifth century.

200s

Origen was a third-century theologian and scholar who wrote some commentaries... including an expanded discussion about the name of Barabbas, but with a surprising twist. Rather than assuming that Jesus Barabbas was the variant, he seems to suggest that Jesus Barabbas is from the original text, and Barabbas by itself is the variant.

To make a long story short, Jesus Barabbas seems to go back as far as the third century, and it may be that the originals really did use that name. This explains why some modern Bibles include the "Jesus" part with Barabbas, including the NIV, CEV, Good News, NAB, NET, and NRSV.

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Conclusion

We don't really know whether his name was Jesus Barabbas. It's possible, of course. I think it's likely. Do you think it’s more likely that someone ADDED the Jesus part, or that someone REMOVED the Jesus part? It seems unreasonable to conclude that anyone of faith would add Jesus to Barabbas. It's more likely to have been removed, as it may have been considered improper to refer to a criminal like Barabbas with the same name as our Savior. This is one reason English Bibles use "Jesus" instead of "Joshua," which is really the translation of His name… to avoid any suggestion that the Son of God isn’t different and special.

One More Thing

The New Testament is full of disambiguation. This is to avoid confusion. Certain names were very common in Israel. For example, we have Simon (who is called Peter) and Simon the Zealot and Simon the Leper and Simon of Cyrene and Simon Iscariot and Simon the Sorcerer and Simon the tanner. Adding descriptions after their names helps us tell them apart.

Because Moses' right-hand man was a pretty big deal, lots of boys were named Joshua... including Mary’s Little Lamb. Translators use “Jesus” to distinguish Him from other Joshuas in Scripture, as an honor. Along those lines, listen to this and see if you hear disambiguation in it:

Do you choose Jesus Barabbas, or Jesus who is called the Christ?

Fascinating, huh? We don't know it with certainty, but it seems reasonable to conclude that the two men shared the same name. I wonder how often Barabbas thought about Jesus, and whether he ever came to faith.

I love you all.
❤️

🔖 Helpful Resources

• Busting 7 Big Myths About Jesus - While this is a post for premium subscribers, you can read the first 3 myths without subscribing at all. It’s worth reading for just those three.

• The Revolution of The Way - There’s a really, really big difference between calling yourself a Christian and becoming one. This is a good reminder that following Jesus is about becoming like Jesus.

• This Pastor Doesn’t Get How Bible Translations Work - Even a little bit of homework helps us avoid dumb things like this.

• 4 Spiritual Laws for Christian Online Engagement - We all know that bad news sells, and a lot of ‘viral’ content is really just a negative rant. We can do better.

• But God, I Don’t Have What it Takes - When God calls us to do something, self-doubt can cast a shadow over our hearts. A mini-devotional from Kate.

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How Should Christians View Gematria?

Gematria is a process that uses a combination of letters and numbers to communicate. If we assign number values to letters, then combine letters into words, those words can have a total mathematical value. For example: if we assign 1-2-3 values to A-B-C (and so on, through the whole English alphabet), the word HOME has a value of 8+15+13+5, or 41.

Read It Now →

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🎶 Isn’t It Love

Andrew is one of my favorite songwriters. I recommend pretty much everything he’s written.

Isn't it love to look down from the sky
And see Your only Son on the cross asking why
And somehow let Him die that way
And not call the whole thing off?

All for this man stuck in Kalamazoo
Who loses his bags and his way sometimes too?
But that was something that You already knew
And still You died for me

- Andrew Peterson

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🚀 Quotable

Now then, my children, listen to me; blessed are those who keep my ways. Listen to my instruction and be wise; do not disregard it. Blessed are those who listen to me, watching daily at my doors, waiting at my doorway. For those who find me find life and receive favor from the Lord. But those who fail to find me harm themselves; all who hate me love death.

- Solomon, writing as “Wisdom,” from Proverbs 8.

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