Who is responsible for Jesus Christ's death?

from the old testament

• The Old Testament foretells that the Messiah would suffer and die by divine design. Isaiah 53 speaks most clearly to this. The Servant is “despised and rejected by men” (Isaiah 53:3a), “pierced for our transgressions” (Isaiah 53:5a), and “crushed for our iniquities” (Isaiah 53:5b). Yet Isaiah also says, “it was the will of the LORD to crush him” (Isaiah 53:10), meaning that His death would ultimately come from the hands of God.
• Psalm 22 vividly portrays a righteous sufferer surrounded by mockers, with his hands and feet pierced. Though written centuries before the crucifixion, it describes with remarkable clarity what Jesus would endure at the cross. David’s words foreshadow the suffering of the Messiah and show that even in the Psalms, the death of the Christ was anticipated.
• Zechariah 12:10 prophesies a time when Israel will “look on me, on him whom they have pierced,” and mourn. This not only predicts the piercing of the Messiah but shows that those responsible will one day recognize their guilt.
• Genesis 22 also offers a pattern of substitutionary death. Abraham is told to sacrifice Isaac, but God provides a ram in his place. This event foreshadows the death of Jesus as the substitute who would take the place of sinners, one given by divine provision.
• Each of these passages shows that the Messiah’s death was not a tragic failure, but part of God’s redemptive purpose from the very beginning.

from the new testament

• The Gospels describe the involvement of multiple guilty people involved in Jesus’ death. The chief priests and elders plotted to arrest Him and hand Him over to death (Matthew 26:3–4). Judas betrayed Him (Matthew 26:14–16), Peter denied Him (Matthew 26:69–75), and the crowds shouted, “Crucify him!” (Matthew 27:22–23). Pilate, though reluctant, ultimately condemned Jesus to die to please the crowd (Mark 15:15).
• Yet Scripture is also clear that Jesus was not a victim and that He died willingly. In John 10:17–18, Jesus said, “No one takes [my life] from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again.”
• In the first sermon after Jesus ascended to heaven, Peter said that Jesus was “delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God,” and that “you crucified and killed him by the hands of lawless men” (Acts 2:23). Notice that he was both clear that Jesus’ death was because God ordained it and that the men standing there had His blood on their hands.
• In early church history after Peter and John were released from prison, they prayed, “truly in this city there were gathered together against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, along with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, to do whatever your hand and your plan had predestined to take place” (Acts 4:27–28). Once again we read that God was the ultimate cause of Jesus’ death, yet specific men and people were implicated in His death.
• However, it wasn’t just those in the first century that were responsible for Jesus’ death. Paul said, “While we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). The ultimate reason Jesus died was not because of Rome or Jerusalem, but because of us. Our sin was why Jesus died.

implications for today

When thinking about who killed Jesus, it’s easy to point the finger. Was it the Romans? The Jews? The crowds? In a sense, all are responsible. But Scripture presses deeper: your sin and mine made His death necessary. He died because we needed a substitute.

Yet Jesus was not killed against God’s wishes. Instead, God was pleased to kill Him to demonstrate His love to the world (John 3:16). In obedience to the Father and also out of love for men and women, Jesus willingly gave His life despite knowing exactly what it would cost Him. Jesus died for the ungodly, for those who didn’t deserve it. That means if you’ve sinned (and you have!) then His death was for you.

But this also means you must respond rightly. If you remain indifferent, you join those who shouted for His crucifixion. If you think you're good enough to get into heaven on your own, then you deny the reason He came and add to your sin when Jesus returns to judge you. But if you repent of your sin and place your trust in Jesus, you receive the very life He came to give.

So, who killed Jesus? Sinners did. You did, and I did. And yet, He went willingly, because He loved you.