The Illegal, Unjust Trial of Christ Matthew 26: 57 – 68 Those who had arrested Jesus took him to Caiaphas, the high priest, where the teachers of the law and the elders had assembled. But Peter followed him at a distance, right up to the courtyard of the high priest. He entered and sat down with the guards to see the outcome. (26:57-58)

Introduction The Jewish System of Courts and Trials Deut. 16: “You shall appoint for yourself judges and officers in all your towns the Lord your God is giving you, according to your tribes, and they shall judge the people with righteous judgment. You shall not distort justice; you shall not be partial, and you shall not take a bribe, for a bribe blinds the eyes of the wise and perverts the words of the righteous. Justice, and only justice, you shall pursue, that you may live and possess the land the Lord your God is giving you.”

The Jewish System of Courts and Trials Every town formed a local council – Sanhedrin (sitting together) Local Sanhedrin – up to 23 members Great Sanhedrin in Jerusalem – 70 chief priests, elders, and scribes – Plus, high priest – Total of 71 members Odd number of members ensured no tie vote

General Requirements of Trials Right to a public trial Right to a defense counsel Conviction only on the testimony of at least two reliable witnesses Sentence of death could not be carried out until the third day after it was rendered The Council could not initiate charges against a person but could only consider charges brought to it by an outside party

Jesus’ Trial Violated Every Principle Jewish Requirement Right to a public trial Right to a defense counsel Conviction only on the testimony of at least two reliable witnesses Sentence of death could not be carried out until the third day after it was rendered The Council could not initiate charges against a person but could only consider charges brought to it by an outside party Jesus’ Trial Tried at night at in private No defense counsel was permitted Witnesses had been bribed to falsify their testimony Executed the same day He was sentenced Tried without first having been charged with a crime

Aspects of Illegal, Unjust Trial of Jesus Aspect of the TrialVerses Convening of the Sanhedrinvv. 57 – 58 Conspiracy to Convict Jesusvv. 59 – 61 Confrontation to Induce Self-Incriminationvv. 62 – 64 Condemnation of Jesusvv. 65 – 66 Conduct of the Courtvv. 67 – 68

Convening of the Sanhedrin (vv ) First went to Annas, former high priest and father-in-law of Caiaphas, the high priest (John 18:13) – Violated two procedural requirements – Jesus was arraigned before an indictment was brought against Him – Tried to induce Jesus to incriminate Himself Then taken to Caiaphas, where the Sanhedrin had illegally assembled – Violated requirements – Still no charge had been brought against Jesus – Sanhedrin must hold a trial involving capital punishment only in the temple and only in public Those who had arrested Jesus took him to Caiaphas, the high priest, where the teachers of the law and the elders had assembled. But Peter followed him at a distance, right up to the courtyard of the high priest. He entered and sat down with the guards to see the outcome. (Matt. 26:57-58)

Conspiracy to Convict Jesus (vv ) Sanhedrin empowered to act only as judge and jury; they could not instigate charges No formal charge against Jesus, so they were forced to act illegally also as prosecutor They looked for, but could not find, false evidence against Jesus Finally two witnesses came forward with a charge that seemed usable – “I am able to destroy the temple of God and rebuild it in three days.” – Jesus’ actual words were, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” (John 2:19) The chief priests and the whole Sanhedrin were looking for false evidence against Jesus so that they could put him to death. But they did not find any, though many false witnesses came forward. Finally, two came forward and declared, “This fellow said, ‘I am able to destroy the temple of God and rebuild it in three days.’” (Matt. 26: 59-61)

Confrontation to Induce Self- Incrimination (vv ) Trying to steer Jesus into self-incrimination, the high priest said to him, “Are you not going to answer? What is this testimony that these men are bringing against you?” Jesus remained silent Goaded by that silence, the high priest continued to badger Jesus, “I charge you under oath by the living God: Tell us if you are the Christ, the Son of God.” Jesus finally gave the confirmation the Sanhedrin had been waiting to hear, “Yes, it is as you say” Jesus added a reference to Psalms 110:1 and Daniel 7:13, essentially saying, “Not only am I the Messiah and the Son of God, but one day you will see Me glorified with My Father in heaven and returning to earth as your Judge.” Then the high priest stood up and said to Jesus, “Are you not going to answer? What is this testimony that these men are bringing against you?” But, Jesus remained silent. The high priest said to him, “I charge you under oath by the living God: Tell us if you are the Christ, the Son of God.” “Yes, it is as you say,” Jesus replied. “But I say to all of you: In the future you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven.” (Matt. 26:62-64)

Condemnation of Jesus (vv ) The high priest declared Jesus had spoken blasphemy and asked for an immediate verdict – “Look, now you have heard the blasphemy. What do you think?” Did not bother to have the members polled individually and the results tabulated by the scribes as judicial protocol required “He is worthy of death,” they answered The verdict of guilty and the sentence of death were not based on careful consideration of full and impartial evidence and testimony. It was a senseless mob reaction. Then the high priest tore his clothes and said, “He has spoken blasphemy! Why do we need any more witnesses? Look, now you have heard the blasphemy. What do you think?” “He is worthy of death,” they answered. (Matt. 26:65-66)

Conduct of the Court (vv ) The supreme court of Israel degenerated into a crude mindless rabble – They spit in his face – They struck him with their fists – They slapped him – They verbally abused him Then they spit in his face and struck him with their fists. Others slapped him and said, “Prophesy to us, Christ. Who hit you?” (Matt. 26:67-68)

Conclusion The true blasphemers were the accusers, not the accused – Sanhedrin blasphemed repeated as they condemned, humiliated, and abused the sinless Son of God Our Lord’s grace shined undiminished in the midst of the cruel injustice against Him – “While being reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously” (1 Pet. 2:23) This was His divinely-appointed time He would not turn from suffering and death, because only in that way could He – Bear “our sins in His body on the cross, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness.” (1 Peter 2:24)