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 from Thee;  and  that  the  sinful  pleasures  by  which  he  allures  me  are dearer to  me  than  Thy  friendship  and  promises.”  Thus  the  sinner insults his  Lord  and  God  in  exactly  the  same  way  as  did  the  Jews, when they  cried  out:  “Not  this  Man,  but  Barabbas!”  Nay,  more;  the Christian who  commits  a mortal  sin  offers  a much  greater  insult  to  our Lord than  did  the  Jews  when  they  preferred  Barabbas  to  Him;  for 1. he  sins  against  greater  knowledge,  and  therefore  with  greater  malice. He believes  and  knows  that  Jesus  Christ  is  His  God  and  Saviour,  and has, moreover,  pledged  both  faith  and  obedience  to  Him. Nevertheless he despises  His  Commandments,  and  prefers  the  service  of  His  enemy, Satan. 2. The  Jews  despised  our  Lord  at  the  time  of  His  abasement, but the  Christian  sinner  despises  Him  now  that  He  is  sitting  at  the right hand  of  the  Father. 3. Barabbas,  whom  the  Jews  preferred  to our  Lord,  was,  at  least,  a man,  made  to  the  image  of  God;  but  the Christian who  sins  prefers  to  the  Author  of  all  good  the  most  despicable things, the  works  of  darkness,  base  lusts  and  passions. Mortal sin  on the  part  of  a Christian  is,  therefore,  a horrible  offence,  an  undervaluing of God,  and  a shameful  want  of  gratitude  towards  Him.

Resistance to  grace.  The  divine  warning  by  means  of  Procla’s  dream was a grace  which  Pilate,  indeed,  wasted; but  by  corresponding  with it his  noble  wife  obtained  the  gift  of  faith  in  our  Lord. Jesus, and  as most  ancient  fathers  tell  us,  the  grace  to  die  a happy  death. Pilate, on the  other  hand,  was  degraded  by  the  emperor,  and  was  banished  to Vienne,  where  he  ended  his  guilty  life  by  suicide.

Ingratitude and  fickleness  of  the  people.  They  one  and  all  voted  in favour  of  Barabbas:  not  one  raised  his  voice  for  Jesus. Ingratitude is the  world’s  recompense  for  benefits!

“ Behold the  Man!"  These  words  were  spoken  to  us  as  well  as  to the  Jews,  and  demand  that  we  should  contemplate  the  sufferings  of  our Divine  Lord,  admire  His  gentleness  and  patience,  and  take  to  heart the  infinite  love  which  made  Him  suffer  so  much  for  us.  The  contemplation of  the  sufferings  of  Jesus  Christ  is  one  of  the  chief  devotions we  can  practise,  and  is  calculated  to  fill  us  with  a hatred  of  sin  and  love of  Jesus,  and  to  comfort  and  strengthen  us  in  all  our  sufferings  and  trials.

The Innocence  of  Jesus.  Pilate  said  repeatedly: “I  find  no  fault  in Him”,  and  spoke  of  Him  as  “this  just  Man”. When he  could  find  no more  words  to  express  his  belief  in  the  innocence  of  Jesus,  he  affirmed it anew  by  the  solemn  action  of  washing  his  hands,  by  which  he  meant to say: “He  whom  I am  condemning  against  my  will  is  guiltless  of  any fault.” In  other  cases  where  a man,  though  innocent,  has  been  condemned, the  judge  has  always  based  his  sentence  on,  at  least,  some appearance of  guilt;  but  in  this  case  the  judge  solemnly  and  publicly declared that  He  who  was  accused  was  innocent  on  every  charge. Jesus was condemned  to  a disgraceful  death,  avowedly,  in  spite  of  His  innocence: no  breath  tarnished  the  fair  fame  of  His  holiness. No act