So Whose Will Was It?

This Sunday our pastor will be preaching through Luke 23:18-25. As I read through the passage again, one of the things that strikes me is who appears to bear the responsibility of Jesus' death in verses 24 & 25. "So Pilate decided that their demand should be granted. He released the man who had been thrown into prison for insurrection and murder, for whom they asked, but he delivered Jesus over to their will." Did Pilate, the religious leaders, and the angry mob really determine the end of our Lord? How did Pilate decide, and they demand, and he release, and they ask, and he deliver, and they have this specific will?

Consider Isaiah 53...

• "It was the will of the Lord to crush him; he has put him to grief..."
• "the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all."
• "Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted."

Praise the Lord for His sovereign grace!