Sanhedrin’s Decision to Kill Jesus Christ.

(John 11:47-57).

News of the miracle disturbed the Lord’s enemies so much, that the high priests and Pharisees immediately assembled the high Jewish court of the Sanhedrin. They weren’t afraid to speak quite openly among themselves, and therefore raised the question plainly as to what they had to do, in order to preserve their authority and influence among the people. While acknowledging the Lord’s miracles as genuine, they express their apprehension that this could bring about civil disorder, which the Roman’s would take advantage of so as to eliminate the last vestiges of Jewish independence that they enjoyed.

The deadly lie of such a judgment lay in that, not recognizing the Lord as the Messiah — because He didn’t correspond with their image of the Messiah — the Jews were expressing their fear that He may become the head of a civil riot, which would inflict a disaster upon their nation. “And one of them, Caiaphas, being high priest that year” — this doesn’t mean that the archbishops, or high priests, were elected to that post for one year only, but shows the frequent change of high priests, which were dependent upon the Roman ruler of Judea — “said to them, ‘You know nothing at all, nor do you consider it is expedient for us that one man should die for the people, “ i.e. it is necessary to forestall the possibility of such a dangerous (to the Jews) uprising, headed by Christ against the Romans — by killing Him.

Here, Caiapha puts on a mask of a zealot for the national good and finds a defense for his intended murder, within the considerations of the state-nationalistic politics. Evangelist John, points out the involuntary prophecy in Caiapha’s words that the Lord Jesus Christ was due to “die for the people,” i.e. suffer for the salvation of mankind. The high priests, as foretellers of God’s will, were like middlemen between God and man. In that capacity, they even foretold involuntarily, which is what happened in this instance with such an unworthy high priest as Caiapha. While Caiapha spoke only about the Jewish people, Christ died for the salvation and to gather as one into His Church, even heathens, as “children of God who were scattered abroad.” As a final decree, the decision to kill the Lord was approved and orders issued for His seizure. Having found out about their decree and because the time for His sufferings had not arrived, the Lord left Bethany and went to the town of Ephraim, close to the Jericho desert. As the true Paschal Lamb, He had to die on the day of Passover in a triumphant manner — not secretly, as apparently the Sanhedrin desired, fearing the people (Mat. 26:4).