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Now Jesus stood before the governor; and the governor asked him, "Are you the King of the Jews?" Jesus said, "You say so." But when he was accused by the chief priests and elders, he did not answer. Then Pilate said to him, "Do you not hear how many accusations they make against you?" But he gave him no answer, not even to a single charge, so that the governor was greatly amazed. (vv. 11--14)


The Grimm Brothers told the folktale of a king and a queen who had twelve sons. The king desperately wanted a daughter. His obsession was maddening. When the queen became pregnant, the king told her, "If this child is a girl, I will kill all our boys and let her inherit our kingdom and all our riches all by herself."

The queen was terrified at her husband's plans, but she was also terribly afraid of her husband. Eventually, the queen gave birth to a daughter. Fortunately, their youngest son, Benjamin, had learned about his father's dastardly plan, and the twelve brothers escaped the castle before the king could execute them. They hid deep in the forest where they scarcely saw other people. The twelve brothers were so angry that they vowed to kill the first girl they met.

Ten years passed, and the baby grew into a little girl. One day, the girl discovered twelve shirts in the castle. She asked about them and learned of her twelve brothers. She was shocked at the insanity of the truth, and she renounced her inheritance. She set out to search for her brothers, taking the shirts with her.

A few days later, she found the cottage where they lived. Benjamin was home alone as the rest of the brothers were out hunting. She told him the story and showed him the shirts. He knew undoubtedly this was his sister. Remembering the horrible promise his brothers had made to kill the first girl they saw, Benjamin hid his sister under a big tub.

When his older brothers returned to eat dinner, Benjamin told them he had great news. They asked him to share his news. Benjamin agreed to tell them only if the other brothers would agree to end the promise to kill the first girl they met. Once they agreed, he shouted, "Our sister is here!" as he lifted the tub covering her. They all embraced her and begged her to stay with them. Having renounced her inheritance, she agreed.

One day the girl was picking flowers near the cottage. She unknowingly picked twelve cursed flowers. As she picked each one, each of her twelve brothers was turned into a raven and flew away. The girl sought out a wise woman who told the girl that the only way to break the magic spell was for her to remain silent for seven years. If she spoke during that time, her brothers would die. The girl vowed to keep silent all those years.

Nearly seven years passed, when a young king rode through the woods, met the girl, and fell in love with her. He asked her to be his queen and marry him. She replied by nodding her head yes, but said not a word.

The king's mother did not like her son's wife. She was a forest girl who didn't talk. The mother falsely accused the girl of having done all sorts of evil things. The seven years were almost passed, but not quite. The girl would not say a word in her defense. The mother's word was believed, and the girl was condemned to death.

She was taken to the courtyard and tied to a stake. Wood was piled around her and set on fire, and yet she still did not say a word. The flames began to creep toward her. Suddenly, twelve ravens came flying into the courtyard. As each touched the ground, it turned into one of her brothers. They all raced to her, kicking away the wood and untying her.

Now their sister could explain that she had a reason for not speaking - to save her brothers. She had done none of the things of which she was accused. Her husband, the king, rejoiced, and they all lived happily ever after.