A criminal who was released instead of Jesus. All four gospel writers took note of that event (Matthew 27:15–26; Mark 15:6–15; Luke 23:18–25; John 18:39–40). The apostle Peter also mentioned it in his temple sermon (Acts 3:14).
Barabbas was known as a bandit or revolutionary (John 18:40) and had been imprisoned for murder during a rebellion (Mark 15:7; Luke 23:19). The word translated “robber” in John 18:40 can refer to either a bandit or revolutionary. He was a well-known prisoner (Matthew 27:16). His crime could have been a violent robbery or a political revolt against the Roman authorities in Jerusalem. Many scholars think Barabbas might have been a member of the Zealots, a Jewish group that sought to overthrow Roman rule through violence.
Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor, found Jesus innocent and wanted to release Him. However, Pilate also needed to keep the Jewish leaders happy to protect his own position. To resolve this, he offered to release one prisoner to the crowd during the Passover festival (John 18:39). Pilate assumed the crowd would choose to free Jesus, but he misjudged their mood or the influence of the Jewish leaders, or both. Instead, the crowd demanded Barabbas be released and Jesus be crucified (Matthew 27:21–22). As a result, Jesus was crucified, and Barabbas, after being freed, disappeared from both the Bible and historical records.