Who was Barabbas
It’s Passover week. The Roman governor, Pontius Pilate, is standing before a chaotic crowd in Jerusalem. In a desperate bid to keep the peace and avoid executing Jesus of Nazareth, Pilate invokes a customary holiday pardon. He offers the crowd a choice between two prisoners: Jesus, or a man named Barabbas. The crowd shouts for Barabbas. He is unchained, he walks away into the crowded streets of Jerusalem, and he completely vanishes from the historical record. Who exactly was this man? Did he ever realize the magnitude of what happened that day? And has archaeology turned up a single shred of evidence about his life? Let's separate the hard facts from the legends. The Surprising Truth About His Name To understand the profound irony of this story, you have to look at the man’s name. "Barabbas" isn't actually a first name; it’s an Aramaic patronymic (a name derived from a father). Bar means "son of," and Abba means "father". Literally tran...