Jesus Son of Abba

For context please read Matthew 27:15-25. I’ll be referring to this passage soon.

The name Barabbas was a proper name transliterated from the Aramaic word bar which means “son” and abba which meant “father”. Most people who are familiar with the New Testament are also familiar with the word Abba. In Romans 8:15 the apostle Paul explains that believers in Jesus the Christ are no longer orphans but are now sons that can cry out “Abba, Father”. A common mistake people make about the word Abba is that they don’t understand the tone of the word and how it is culturally used. Usually people end up saying things like “Father God in heaven” or “Our Father in heaven” which is fine…Jesus did say “pray like this…our Father in heaven” (Matthew 6:9). But to forget what the word Abba implies when referring to God is to forget what you mean to Him. Or in other words, you forget who you are.

As hinted at earlier, Abba means so much more than father. In the Romans passage, the Greek word patḗr is translated as “father” in English and it refers to the progenitor of a particular lineage. Abba refers to so much more than the progenitor of a particular lineage. I have often heard it said that any man can be a father but not every man can be a dad. Oftentimes men who simply see themselves as “father” demand respect based on what they did rather than who they are. For example, they would say things like “I brought you into this world” as justification for a certain level of respect and desired behavior. Fathers who think this way usually say things like “because I said so” or “I pay the bills in this house” to justify getting their way despite what someone else might want or even need. This style of parenting often results in a child feeling invalidated which results in shame, anger, and bitterness.

I have met a lot of angry children and they all have this one thing a common: a feeling that their personhood is worth very little to nothing in the eyes of their parents. In fact, when I was volunteering for Youth for Christ by ministering to juvenile offenders, I would often get rejected whenever I would talk about God as their father. So many of those young men hated their fathers and just saying the word father in association with God caused them to shut down and reject the message of the cross. When I realized what was happening I started to use the word “daddy” instead of father and I began to get a different response. Most of those young men remembered when their father was their daddy or they might have had another man in their life who took on the role of daddy. I personally referred to my father as daddy and I must say that despite the man he was and some of the evil things he did, the word daddy softens my heart when thinking about him. I believe that the main reason why the word “daddy” softened the hearts of those young men was because it would remind them of the safer, more endearing times in childhood. Those times when you were still unaware of dad’s darker side and you felt safe on his lap. He hadn’t abandoned you yet nor had he made you feel like you weren’t worth much. That happens later in life when we grow a little older and daddy turns into father and he can be a miserable human being to be around. He judges you and condemns you and ultimately He abandons you. 

Now come with me to the scene where Jesus is being exchanged for Barabbas in Matthew 27:15-25. You have the following characters: God, Jesus, Barabbas, Pilate, the religious leaders, and the crowd. In the past I’ve heard many well-intentioned followers of Jesus who look at that scene and identify themselves with the crowd. In other words, they say things like “if I was there I would have been shouting for Barabbas”. I understand the sentiment of that statement. People who say and believe that to be true, honestly believe that because they are a sinful human being, they would be going along with what the other sinful human beings were doing at that time. But I beg to differ. I believe that Pilate, the crowd, Barabbas, and Jesus all represent something specific. I understand this to be a personal application (understanding the nuances and rules of Hermeneutics) of the passage but nonetheless I believe this application to be theologically sound. 

I’ll start with the religious leaders. The religious leaders in Jesus’ day and Pilate had one thing in common: they wanted to desperately hold onto their power. Both John the Baptist and Jesus of Nazareth had gained the favor of the crowds and both had also turned down all attempts by the religious leaders of the day to join their ranks. Both were then arrested by the Roman oppressors at the direction of the religious leaders (I know John was arrested for telling Herod he was wrong for being with Herodias but it is also true that the religious leaders brought John to Herod’s attention because they didn’t like it when he called them a brood of vipers and said the Kingdom of God belonged to the poor) and both were then executed by the Roman government. I find that religious leaders wield the same kind of power today. They lay in bed with oppressive and human authorities while lording over the people they are supposed to care for with the burdens of financing their comfort and power. It’s no surprise to see them very publicly in bed with men and women who are morally compromised because the abuse of power creates such partners in crime.

I believe that Pilate represents the authority of this world. Jesus clearly lets him know that he wouldn’t be in his position of authority if it were not previously ordained by God (John 19:11). Paul teaches this same concept in Romans 13. But even though authority is given from above to rulers by God, authority doesn’t always rule in accordance with God’s will. This truth is why ultimately God will destroy all of human authority as depicted in Nebuchadnezzar’s dream and interpreted by Daniel (Daniel 2). It’s also why Paul opposed the same government he wrote about in Romans 13 and even why Jesus called Herod a “fox” in Luke 13 because ultimately human authority is always going to be limited in righteousness because there is still a battle not against flesh and blood that is waged in the heavens that is very real yet not often spoken of (Daniel 10, Ephesians 6).

So in order to keep his own power, Pilate succumbs to the will of the people and the religious leaders who whisper in their ears, because of the fear he had that the people would riot if he didn’t give them what they wanted. There is no honor in Pilate and I believe there is no honor in government. I admit that I struggle to care about politics but what I do is pray for my leaders no matter who they are. Don’t believe me? Ask anyone who really knows me if I’m telling the truth. I have also resolved to leave them alone and focus on the Bride whose garments should not be stained with those of the enemy’s.

I see the crowd as the people of this world who reject God. How can you put yourself in with that crowd if you are someone who believes in Jesus? That doesn’t make sense. The people in this world who reject Jesus and His message are the ones in that crowd. They do it even now. Don’t put yourself in there with them. You don’t belong there.

Now here’s where things get really interesting. According to Bruce Metzger, the account of this scene recorded in Matthew included an extra name for Barabbas that was removed by the “early church fathers”⁠. That name was Yeshua which is translated to Jesus. So when Pilate presented to the crowd their choice, he was asking, who do you want me to set free: Jesus the King of the Jews or Jesus the Murderer and Insurrectionist (their names being the same, their charges being the only difference)? Metzger explains that an early church father named Origin is on record as having the position that a sinner like that should not be associated with the name of Jesus; especially at this crucial point in Scripture⁠.  But if the original author, the disciple known as Matthew who was also called Levi, purposely left that detail in his Gospel, then who is Origen or any other “early church father” to decide what belongs in the text and what doesn’t? It’s my position that the name Jesus Barabbas is a significant one and here’s why. 

Remember, above all else, that God was the one making the choice about who was going to the Cross and so God was the one interpreting the events and what God saw were the following two options: Jesus my Only Begotten Son, the One “I am Well-Pleased With”, the One Who has been with Me since before the foundations of the world or Jesus Who is also the Son of the Father. 

In this story, the believer is represented by Barabbas. The cross Jesus died on was his. It was also mine. It was also yours. Remember that the crowd didn’t choose you over Him. God chooses Him over you. Why? Because you are Yeshua Bar-abbas…Jesus Son of Abba. Imagine that God has only two children in all of existence. Jesus and you. You were going to die. His other child volunteered to die for you instead. Do not underestimate how much you mean to Him. In fact the price tag God was willing to pay for you was the life of His Beloved Son; the One whom He was well pleased with. As Yeshua Bar-abbas, you should realize that you have been set free and now your life is hidden in the life of the Anointed One (Colossians 3:3). It’s no coincidence that the only person in the story believers can identify with shares a first name with the One who gave His life for Him. God tells the most perfect stories. 

In summary, Jesus represents (as He always has) God’s exact nature (Hebrews 1:3). In obedience to the Father’s will, He demonstrates the Father’s love by taking on Himself our sinful selves (1 John 4:9-10). It makes a very “human” kind of common-sense to place your sinful self in with the crowd. But the miracle God accomplished at the cross was putting your sinful self on His Son and letting you, His other Beloved Child, go free. You are Jesus Son of Abba. I am too.