Matthew 26:47-65: “Jesus Is Arrested And Led To Appear Before
Caiaphas And The High Priests”
by
Jim Bomkamp
1.
INTRO
1.1.
In our last study, we continued to look at the events
that led directly up to Jesus being crucified upon the cross of Calvary
1.1.1.
We saw how that Jesus had told His disciples that they
would all fall away from Him that night, and Peter and then all of the rest
assured them that though all fell away from Him that they would not fall away
1.1.1.1.We looked at
the folly of boasting in our flesh
1.1.1.2.We saw how
that the Lord was preparing His disciples for their times of failure, for they
would need to come to Him so that He could restore them
1.1.1.3.We saw how
that nothing surprises the Lord about our lives
1.1.2.
We then concentrated upon the events that occurred
during the Garden of Gethsemane
1.1.2.1.Jesus became
very troubled to the point of actually becoming near death
1.1.2.2.Jesus’
anguish was so great that the capillaries under His skin were bursting and He
was bleeding out through the pores of His skin
1.1.2.3.Jesus wanted
His disciples Peter, James, and John to just sit and be with Him during this
hour of ordeal as He was preparing Himself to face the horrors of the cross,
however they could not stay awake being heavy with depression at the
apprehension of the evil that would befall Jesus and their movement
1.1.2.4.We saw that
Jesus asked His disciples to pray for themselves that they enter not into
temptation, and yet they just kept on sleeping
1.1.2.4.1.We looked at
the importance of praying before and after times of temptation
1.2.
In our study today, we are continuing to look at the
events that led directly up to Jesus’ crucifixion
1.2.1.
We will look at all of the gospel accounts of how that
Judas betrayed Jesus, bringing with him a cohort of soldiers, the chief
priests, and the elders of the people
1.2.2.
Then we will look at the illegal trial of Jesus that
was a mockery of justice and which resulted in His being sentenced to death
2.
VS 26:47-54 -
“47 And while He was still speaking, behold, Judas, one of the twelve, came
up, accompanied by a great multitude with swords and clubs, from the chief
priests and elders of the people. 48 Now he who was betraying Him gave them a
sign, saying, “Whomever I shall kiss, He is the one; seize Him.” 49 And
immediately he went to Jesus and said, “Hail, Rabbi!” and kissed Him. 50 And
Jesus said to him, “Friend, do what you have come for.” Then they came and laid
hands on Jesus and seized Him. 51 And
behold, one of those who were with Jesus reached and drew out his sword, and
struck the slave of the high priest, and cut off his ear. 52 Then Jesus *said
to him, “Put your sword back into its place; for all those who take up the
sword shall perish by the sword. 53 “Or do you think that I cannot appeal to My
Father, and He will at once put at My disposal more than twelve legions of
angels? 54 “How then shall the Scriptures be fulfilled, that it must happen
this way?”” - Judas came to the
2.1.
When you think about it this sin of Judas was surely the worst sin that
anyone has ever committed. Judas sinned
against so much light that He had received in his life. He had seen Jesus perform any kind of miracle
multiple times, and He had heard Jesus teach using the authority and words
which were unlike any man ever taught.
Plus, He had had Jesus personally love and minister to him for perhaps
up to 3 ½ years at this point. Yet, in
spite of all that he had seen and experienced, he chose to betray Jesus to
those who planned to kill Him.
2.2.
Judas had arranged it such with the chief priests and elders of
2.2.1.
In Luke’s account of this event, Luke 22:8, Luke tells us what Jesus
said to Judas when he betrayed Jesus, “48 But Jesus said to him, “Judas,
are you betraying the Son of Man with a kiss?””
2.2.2.
A kiss was the ultimate expression of love amongst friends and family,
and in his callousness and hardness of heart toward the Lord, Judas decides to
betray the Lord with a kiss.
2.2.2.1.This shows the bitterness of
heart that Judas had towards Jesus.
2.2.2.2.Judas wanted his betrayal of
Jesus to be specially hurtful to Jesus.
Though Judas had seen Jesus perform every kind of miracle many times, he
never really believed in Him, and never was really committed in heart to
following Him. Judas had never been
interested in anything but personal gain.
Judas knew Jesus knew where his heart was really at. Therefore, Judas is actually making a
statement to Jesus through this betrayal with a kiss.
2.2.2.3.Some have tried to claim
that Judas was trying to force Jesus’ hand and cause Him to have to declare
Himself the Messiah, and thus what he did was really good, however this is
totally wrong for it is inconsistent with scripture. Jesus called Judas ‘the son of perdition
(hell)’, and said of him that it would have been better for him if he had never
been born, therefore Judas’ sin must have been of the worst kind.
2.2.2.4.We have already seen that
Judas had become disillusioned with Jesus for Jesus had not tried to rally
support around Him to go and become the leader of the nation, their Messiah,
and attempt to conquer the oppressing arm of
2.3.
In John 18:3-9, we learn more about what happened when the soldiers, chief priests, and
elders came for Jesus, “3 Judas then, having received the Roman cohort,
and officers from the chief priests and the Pharisees, *came there with
lanterns and torches and weapons. 4 Jesus therefore, knowing all the things
that were coming upon Him, went forth, and *said to them, “Whom do you seek?” 5
They answered Him, “Jesus the Nazarene.” He *said to them, “I am He.” And Judas
also who was betraying Him, was standing with them. 6 When therefore He said to
them, “I am He,” they drew back, and fell to the ground. 7 Again therefore He
asked them, “Whom do you seek?” And they said, “Jesus the Nazarene.” 8 Jesus
answered, “I told you that I am He; if therefore you seek Me, let these go
their way,” 9 that the word might be fulfilled which He spoke, “Of those whom
Thou hast given Me I lost not one.””
2.3.1.
We can only imagine the majesty, power, and authority of the voice of
Christ in answering this group saying, ‘I am he’, and in so doing causing all
of them to draw back and fall to the ground.
2.3.2.
The same mouth that has such power that it was used to speak the world
into existence will also be used to judge the nations gathered together to
battle the Lord on the day of the Lord.
In Revelation chapter 19 we read that when Jesus returns to earth at the
end of the 7 year Tribulation of the book of Revelation that He comes to the
battle of Armageddon and that with His mouth He will slay His enemies and the
birds of the heavens will eat their flesh.
2.3.3.
In His mercy, Jesus spares His disciples from being persecuted by the
multitude by pursuading them to let His disciples go their way.
2.4.
In John 18:10-11 we learn several more details about this incident, “10 Simon
Peter therefore having a sword, drew it, and struck the high priest’s slave,
and cut off his right ear; and the slave’s name was Malchus. 11 Jesus therefore
said to Peter, “Put the sword into the sheath; the cup which the Father has
given Me, shall I not drink it?””
2.4.1.
The man who drew the sword and cut off the man’s ear was Peter
2.4.2.
The man who’s ear was cut off was the high priest’s slave, Malchus.
2.5.
In Luke 22:50-51, we learn some additional details concerning this incident, “50 And a
certain one of them struck the slave of the high priest and cut off his right
ear. 51 But Jesus answered and said, “Stop! No more of this.” And He touched
his ear and healed him.”
2.5.1.
Jesus touched the slave’s ear and healed it after Peter had cut it off.
2.5.1.1.I’d like to make a couple of
observations about this:
2.5.1.1.1.We see here impetuous Peter,
who though he showed his bravery in swinging his sword at Jesus’ enemies, he
also in character for himself was acting so much on impulse that he misses the
seam of the armor on the top of the slaves head (which ran from front to back)
which he was aiming at and cut off his ear instead.
2.5.1.1.2.It is a sad thing, but I’m
afraid that for many Christians the Lord is often going behind them and fixing
their messes and healing those in their path who have been hurt by them, as He
fixed Peter’s mess here by healing an ear.
2.5.2.
We see here that Jesus restrained His disciples from trying to fight the
soldiers and mob who came to arrest Him.
2.6.
Here in these verses in Matthew, Jesus tells His disciples that they who
live by the sword will die by the sword.
This saying has a dual meaning I believe.
2.6.1.
If you commit murder you should and will suffer the death penalty for the
crime.
2.6.2.
Those who start wars will themselves suffer the repercussions of their
actions and one day die by the retaliation and aggression of those they have
attacked.
2.7.
Jesus asks His disciples if they believe that if He desired to do so at that
very moment that He could summon twelve legions of angels at His disposal?
2.7.1.
Jesus is trying to tell them something here by this. Jesus was not crucified because men
overpowered Him, or evil somehow gained the upper hand over Him. Jesus allowed Himself willingly to be
crucified only because this was God’s plan for His life. If He died upon the cross of
2.8.
In verse 54, Jesus again reminds His disciples that what was happening to
Him at this point in time was happening in accordance with what the scriptures
had foretold. God was in control even at
this point in time when the most evil atrocities were being carried out by men,
the brutal beating and crucifixion of the only unique Son of God who was holy and
righteous in every way.
3.
VS 26:55-56 -
“55 At that time Jesus said to the multitudes, “Have you come out with
swords and clubs to arrest Me as against a robber? Every day I used to sit in
the temple teaching and you did not seize
3.1.
We see Jesus expose the people’s fickleness in verse 55. Not even a week earlier the multitudes had
come and put the palm branches in the road way and hailed Jesus as the Messiah
saying, “Hosana in the highest!”, and yet here they are coming with clubs and
swords to arrest Him so that they can torture and murder Him.
3.1.1.
In essence, Jesus asks the multitude why they hadn’t seized Him earlier
if they were doing so now? What
changed? It wasn’t Him.
3.2.
Having already told Peter and the disciples after Peter had tried to cut
off the high priest’s slave’s ear, Jesus now declares to the multitude that all
these things, even their own coming to arrest Him, was prophesied in the
scriptures. Everything was happening
just as was prophesied by God to occur.
3.3.
We see here that it was at this time that all of Jesus’ disciples found
an opportune time to high-tail it out of there.
They knew that since Peter had tried to kill the high priest’s slave
that surely they would be slaughtered now if they hung around.
3.3.1.
Thus, we see that the Old Testament prophecy was fulfilled that the
shepherd would be struck and the sheep would be scattered (Zech. 13:7).
4.
VS 26:57-58 -
“57 And those who had seized Jesus led Him away to Caiaphas, the high
priest, where the scribes and the elders were gathered together. 58 But Peter
also was following Him at a distance as far as the courtyard of the high
priest, and entered in, and sat down with the officers to see the outcome.”
- Jesus was led away to Caiaphas, while
Peter followed along but at a distance
4.1.
In Deuteronomy 16:18-20, we read about the proper jurisprudence in
administering justice that was to be carried out in all civil matters, “18 “You
shall appoint for yourself judges and officers in all your towns which the Lord
your God is giving you, according to your tribes, and they shall judge the
people with righteous judgment. 19 “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. 20 “Justice, and only
justice, you shall pursue, that you may live and possess the land which the
Lord your God is giving you.”
4.2.
There was nothing that was legal or just that happened to Jesus upon this
day. According to the Jewish law an
accused person was considered innocent until proven guilty. He was to have formal charges first placed
against him during the daytime in the temple.
Then, he would have the chance to defend himself in a formal courtroom
before the public at which time he would have the opportunity to face his
accusers (two or more eye-witnesses were required). He could also take quite a bit of latitude in
how he presented his case. Then, if he
was convicted and received a death sentence, the law stated that the sentence
could not be carried out for three days.
During that time, the judges were to fast and pray. It was hoped that if the sentence had been
too strict, or the trial unfair, that at the end of the three days that the
judges have had a change of mind and the death sentence would not be carried
out. This was how that the law of Moses
was to protect people from a justice system that could go awry.
4.2.1.
Jesus’ trial on the other hand was carried out in the night, not in the
temple, and no formal charges were every made against Him. Further, He didn’t get a chance to formally
defend Himself against His peers, there was no trial, and there was no time
period to fast and pray for the judges who had condemned Him. All of these events happened in the early
morning hours that Thursday, and Jesus was hurriedly placed on the cross in the
morning.
4.3.
We see here Peter following Jesus from a distance, and the observation
has been made that there are times when we disciples of Jesus do not follow Him
closely, but rather at a distance. It is
always a dangerous thing to follow the Lord at a distance as did Peter on this
day. Peter ended up taking a horrible
fall in his faith and against his conscience as a result, for he ended up
denying the Lord three times on this evening.
4.3.1.
We need to be people who follow the Lord closely.
5.
VS 26:59-61 -
“59 Now the chief priests and the whole Council kept trying to obtain false
testimony against Jesus, in order that they might put Him to death; 60 and they
did not find any, even though many false witnesses came forward. But later on
two came forward, 61 and said, “This man stated, ‘I am able to destroy the
5.1.
It is so incredible to me that the people who were the very leaders of
the people, the ones whom God had called to lead His people, were now stooping
to such a low place as to try to find false accusers of Jesus so that they
could find an excuse to put Him to death.
5.1.1.
In doing this, these men had to have so hardened their hearts and
consciences against the Lord that they did not even feel a twinge of guilt for
the heinous act that they were committing in seeking to find any excuse to
place an innocent man to death. He was a
man who was so much more than just innocent.
Literally and to the fullest extent he was a man who was ‘God in the
flesh’.
5.2.
According to the law, if a person falsely accused someone of a crime, and
their false accusations had been discovered, the person was to then suffer the
very penalty that was deserved for the charges which the had falsely accused
the person.
5.2.1.
Here the high priest was trying to find someone who would falsely accuse
Jesus since Jesus was innocent of any charges.
5.3.
Finally, we see that they found someone who testified by misconstruing
one of the teachings of Jesus when He said that Jesus said He was able to
destroy the temple of God and rebuild it in three days. When Jesus had said this about the
5.3.1.
The teaching that the man was referring to was probably what Jesus said
in John
2:19, “19 Jesus
answered and said to them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise
it up.” 20 The Jews therefore said, “It
took forty-six years to build this temple, and will You raise it up in three
days?” 21 But He was speaking of the temple of His body.”
6.
VS 26:62-65 -
“62 And the high priest stood up and said to Him, “Do You make no answer?
What is it that these men are testifying against You?” 63 But Jesus kept
silent. And the high priest said to Him, “I adjure You by the living God, that
You tell us whether You are the Christ, the Son of God.” 64 Jesus *said to him,
“You have said it yourself; nevertheless I tell you, hereafter you shall see
the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of Power, and coming on the clouds of
heaven.” 65 Then the high priest tore
his robes, saying, “He has blasphemed! What further need do we have of
witnesses? Behold, you have now heard the blasphemy.” - The high priest finally gets what he wants,
Jesus tells him the truth about Himself being the Messiah, and the high priest now
knows that Jesus can be condemned for blasphemy
6.1.
We see here that the high priest has begun to get frustrated because he
hasn’t been able to get anyone who is willing to make false accusations against
Jesus sufficient for sentencing Him to death.
At his wits end, and a bit flabbergasted that Jesus has said nothing in
His own defense against the trumped-up charges, the high priest presses Jesus
to say something in defense of Himself.
Of course, the high priest was doing so hoping that Jesus would somehow
incriminate Himself, which He did.
6.1.1.
The high priest forces Jesus to take an oath about Himself before ‘the
living God’ concerning whether or not he was the Messiah. To such a question put in such a way by the
high priest himself, Jesus had to tell the truth. Jesus tells the high priest that he is right
in what he is asking by saying, ‘You have said it yourself’.
6.1.2.
Jesus next prophesies to the high priest telling him that after that
point in time that he would one day ‘see the Son of Man sitting at the right
hand of Power, and coming on the clouds of heaven’.
6.1.2.1.After Jesus ascended up to
heaven, He is thereafter referred to as being at the ‘right hand’ of God. The ‘right hand’ was the hand of honor and
privilege, and thus Jesus who is worthy of all honor and privilege is seated at
the ‘right hand of God’.
6.1.2.2.Jesus also tells the high
priest that he will see Him ‘coming upon the clouds of heaven’.
6.1.2.2.1.We know from Acts 1:9-11 that after Jesus was taken
up to heaven upon a cloud that some angels testified that He would return in
the same way, “9 And after He had said these things, He was
lifted up while they were looking on, and a cloud received Him out of their
sight. 10 And as they were gazing intently into the sky while He was departing,
behold, two men in white clothing stood beside them; 11 and they also said,
“Men of
6.1.2.2.2.Also, we are told in 1 Thess.
4:15-17
that when Christ comes for the church that He will meet us in the air, “15 For
this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive, and remain
until the coming of the Lord, shall not precede those who have fallen asleep.
16 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice
of the archangel, and with the trumpet of God; and the dead in Christ shall
rise first. 17 Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together
with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and thus we shall always
be with the Lord.”
6.2.
The high priest had finally gotten what he had wanted. Jesus had admitted that He was the Messiah,
and this alone was sufficient grounds in the high priest’s mind to have Jesus
put to death, for to him it was blasphemy.
6.2.1.
It is sad to see the blindness in this man who has been placed in such a
high position of authority.
6.2.1.1.He was blind because he did
not know what the scriptures taught about the Messiah.
6.2.1.2.He was blind because he did
not take the time to consider for a moment how Jesus could do the many miracles
that He had done and not be the Messiah.
6.2.1.3.He was blind because he did
not consider how holy, pure, and undefiled the One before him truly was. He truly was the lamb without spot or blemish.
6.2.1.4.He was blind because he
chose to be blind, because he did not want to see the truth, because he refused
to consider whether Jesus might really be the Messiah.
6.2.1.5.He was blind because he was
driven by his jealousy to kill Jesus.
6.2.1.5.1.Jesus threatened the power
base that the religious authorities in
6.2.1.5.2.Jesus had not come up
through the ranks of the Pharisees, the ones that this high priest considered
to be the holiest ones in the land, those who took righteousness
seriously. Not only did Jesus not come
up through the ranks of the Pharisees, Jesus did not even recognize the
Pharisees as having the spiritual authority, of being called by God. In fact, Jesus called them vipers and snakes,
white-washed tombs that were filled with dead men’s bones, etc.
6.3.
In the next study we will see how that Jesus is beaten, mocked, spit
upon, and then crucified.