Giovanni Antonio da Brescia

Christ before Pilate, 1500–05, Engraving on paper, 291 x 314 mm, The Art Institute of Chicago; Bequest of Mrs. Potter Palmer, Jr., 1956.984, The Art Institute of Chicago / Art Resource, NY

Before Governors and Kings

Commentary by Donato Loia

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More than just a forecast of hardship, this passage also reveals the inherent conflict between earthly authority and divine power. ‘On my account you will be brought before governors and kings’ (Matthew 10:18), He says, underscoring the disciples’ role as witnesses to a higher authority.

Giovanni Antonio da Brescia’s engraving Christ Before Pilate recalls this tension between temporal power and spiritual authority.

The engraving depicts the trial of Christ. Pilate, seated on a curule chair and making a gesture of judgment, embodies earthly power, while Christ’s serene, composed stance suggests submission to divine authority. Pilate’s depiction evokes Roman imperial imagery, recalling monuments like the Arch of Constantine (Sheehan 1973: 242). The inscription on the pedestal—‘Behold, nothing deserving death has been done by him; I will therefore chastise him and release him’ (Luke 23:15–16)—underscores Pilate’s ambivalence: his recognition of Christ’s innocence juxtaposed with his inability to defy the will of the crowd. Pilate’s acknowledgment of Christ’s innocence, paired with his failure to act on it, exemplifies the limits of earthly power.

A strong reading of this passage and its artistic representation is that state and religion, nation and God, are fundamentally irreconcilable. ‘Give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and to God what belongs to God’ (Matthew 22:21; Mark 12:17; Luke 20:25) is often interpreted as a call to respect separate authorities. However, a more radical interpretation suggests no possible interaction or reconciliation between state and religion. The Matthean Christ offers not only a prophetic view of the disciples’ immediate persecution but also a stark imperative: one cannot serve two masters.

The Matthean message declares a confrontation between all human-constructed forces—nations, empires, and the like—and God’s action revealed in Jesus Christ. It issues a call to obey a higher authority than any earthly power—a form of ‘freedom’ from the powers and principalities of this world.

The quiet dignity of Christ in Giovanni Antonio da Brescia’s engraving visually enacts the Matthean call to unwavering faith in the face of persecution. In the stillness of Christ’s figure—poised, silent, and unyielding—we see the embodiment of spiritual freedom: a refusal to submit to the logic of empire. In this sense, the image functions both as a theological statement and as a visual meditation on the (maybe?) irreconcilable tension between the kingdom of God and the kingdoms of this world.

See full exhibition for Matthew 10:16–36; Luke 12:2–12, 49–53

Matthew 10:16–36; Luke 12:2–12, 49–53

Revised Standard Version

Matthew 10

16 “Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves; so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves. 17Beware of men; for they will deliver you up to councils, and flog you in their synagogues, 18and you will be dragged before governors and kings for my sake, to bear testimony before them and the Gentiles. 19When they deliver you up, do not be anxious how you are to speak or what you are to say; for what you are to say will be given to you in that hour; 20for it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you. 21Brother will deliver up brother to death, and the father his child, and children will rise against parents and have them put to death; 22and you will be hated by all for my name’s sake. But he who endures to the end will be saved. 23When they persecute you in one town, flee to the next; for truly, I say to you, you will not have gone through all the towns of Israel, before the Son of man comes.

24 “A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master; 25it is enough for the disciple to be like his teacher, and the servant like his master. If they have called the master of the house Be-elʹzebul, how much more will they malign those of his household.

26 “So have no fear of them; for nothing is covered that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known. 27What I tell you in the dark, utter in the light; and what you hear whispered, proclaim upon the housetops. 28And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell. 29Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground without your Father’s will. 30But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. 31Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows. 32So every one who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven; 33but whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven.

34 “Do not think that I have come to bring peace on earth; I have not come to bring peace, but a sword. 35For I have come to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; 36and a man’s foes will be those of his own household.

Luke 12

2Nothing is covered up that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known. 3Therefore whatever you have said in the dark shall be heard in the light, and what you have whispered in private rooms shall be proclaimed upon the housetops.

4 “I tell you, my friends, do not fear those who kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do. 5But I will warn you whom to fear: fear him who, after he has killed, has power to cast into hell; yes, I tell you, fear him! 6Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? And not one of them is forgotten before God. 7Why, even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not; you are of more value than many sparrows.

8 “And I tell you, every one who acknowledges me before men, the Son of man also will acknowledge before the angels of God; 9but he who denies me before men will be denied before the angels of God. 10And every one who speaks a word against the Son of man will be forgiven; but he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven. 11And when they bring you before the synagogues and the rulers and the authorities, do not be anxious how or what you are to answer or what you are to say; 12for the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say.”

49 “I came to cast fire upon the earth; and would that it were already kindled! 50I have a baptism to be baptized with; and how I am constrained until it is accomplished! 51Do you think that I have come to give peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division; 52for henceforth in one house there will be five divided, three against two and two against three; 53they will be divided, father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against her mother, mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.”

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