while the folk who had welcomed him on the first day of the week, on this the sixth day reviled and despised him because he had refused to lead a rising against the Romans as the other one had done. Then Pilate called out to them and said, "Whom will ye that I release unto you: Jesus who is called Bar Abbas, or Jesus who is called Christ?" And almost all the multitude cried, "Jesus Bar Abbas! Jesus Bar Abbas!" Then Pilate gave command, and the soldiers took back Jesus the Nazarene into the palace again, while others removed the fetters from Jesus Bar Abbas, and he came down the steps and disappeared among the crowd.
After a while, there came forward from the side gate a company of Roman soldiers, who took their stand in front of the steps of the palace, moving the crowd away therefrom. And shortly after, other soldiers brought down from above three men, each carrying two pieces of timber, one fixed across the top of the other, like unto the letter tau. One of these was Jesus the Nazarene, clad once more in his own garments, and without the rose-
