Barabbas

[2] According to all four canonical gospels, there was a prevailing Passover custom in Jerusalem that allowed Pontius Pilate, the praefectus or governor of Judea, to commute one prisoner's death sentence by popular acclaim.

In one such instance, the "crowd" (ὄχλος : óchlos), "the Jews" and "the multitude" in some sources, are offered the choice to have either Barabbas or Jesus released from Roman custody.

According to the Synoptic Gospels of Matthew,[3] Mark,[4] and Luke,[5] and the account in John,[6] the crowd chooses Barabbas to be released and Jesus of Nazareth to be crucified.

[9] Mark and Luke further refer to Barabbas as one involved in a στάσις (stásis, a riot), probably "one of the numerous insurrections against the Roman power"[10] who had committed murder.

[24] Dimont argues against the believability of the Barabbas story by noting that the alleged custom of privilegium Paschale, "the privilege of Passover", where a criminal is set free, is only found in the Gospels.

[1][22][24] A minority of scholars, including Benjamin Urrutia, Stevan Davies, Hyam Maccoby and Horace Abram Rigg, have contended that Barabbas and Jesus were the same person.

[32][33] Pope Benedict XVI, in his 2011 book Jesus of Nazareth, dismisses this reading, since the Greek word ὄχλος (óchlos) in Mark 15:6–15 means "crowd", rather than "Jewish people".