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- ISRAEL
REVEALED WEBSITE Chapter 20
Caiaphas and the Trial of Jesus
Now he that betrayed him gave them a sign, saying, Whomsoever I shall kiss, that same is he: hold him fast. And forthwith he came to Jesus, and said, Hail, master; and kissed him. And Jesus said unto him, Friend, wherefore art thou come? Then came they, and laid hands on Jesus, and took him.... In that same hour said Jesus to the multitudes, Are ye come out as against a thief with swords and staves for to take me? I sat daily with you teaching in the temple, and ye laid no hold on me. But all this was done, that the scriptures of the prophets might be fulfilled. Then all the disciples forsook him, and fled. And they that had laid hold on Jesus led him away to Caiaphas the high priest, where the scribes and the elders were assembled. But Peter followed him afar off unto the high priest’s palace, and went in, and sat with the servants, to see the end. MATTHEW 26:47-58 Caiaphas, the High Priest: Caiaphas was the High Priest over three councils that made up the grand Sanhedrin assembly. However, Caiaphas apparently was only meeting with one of the councils and not the entire Sanhedrin (seventy men). The Sanhedrin would have to judge in such a case (if it were a legal trial). The House of Caiaphas: PHOTO:
CAIAPHAS HOUSE Caiaphas’s house is now a church
built over dungeon rooms, two thousand years old, where prisoners were
held. Holes in the rock walls were used to tie and spread out their
hands and feet for scourging. This basement prison reminds us that
Caiaphas and some powerful elders conspired to trap Jesus by his own words.
Blasphemy: The priestly
wordsmiths, who would not even say “God” or utter his name, had the practice
of substituting words representing God’s name. They would use phrases such
as, “He that comes in the clouds of Heaven.” They would refer to
a Messiah as “He that sits on the right hand of Power,” or “Blessed is
His name.” In anger, the High Priest challenged him, in the name
of God,
...Thou hast said: nevertheless I say unto you, hereafter shall ye see [this] Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven. MATTHEW 26:64 ...He hath spoken blasphemy... What think ye? They answered and
said, He is guilty of death. MATTHEW 26:65-66
And Peter remembered the word of Jesus, which said unto him, Before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice. And he went out, and wept bitterly. MATTHEW 26:74-75 Execution for Temple Violations: Under the Roman political system, the Jewish priests were not to carry out executions except for temple violations. (Their executions would have been by stoning, throwing the victim over a high cliff and then covering him with stones they would throw down.) The priests bound him and led him away to Pontius Pilate, the governor. Pontius Pilate The Judgment Hall: Today,
the site is maintained by a Catholic Order, The Sisters of Zion.
The archaeological ruins recently discovered may have been well preserved
by the traditions dating from Byzantine times. Floor stones and cisterns
reveal ancient Roman markings and usage as a fortress.
A Wife’s Dream: At the Antonia
Fortress, Pontius Pilate at first did not want to be troubled with the
case. He may have been bothered by his wife’s dream to have nothing
to do with Jesus. However, he soon realized a potential political
gain. He had Jesus brought forth, beaten, intimidated, and crowned
with thorns. He repeatedly taunted the priests with Jesus’ release.
He said,
Crucify Him: Maddened
by Pilate’s reluctance to favor them with an execution, they cried out,
The Crucifixion The Place of a Skull:
Jesus, bearing his cross (probably just the cross beam, as the upright
post was most likely already at the crucifixion place), PHOTO:
GOLGOTHA
Simon from Cyrene: On the way, a man named Simon from Cyrene was made to carry the cross beam to the place of execution. (One can imagine that Jesus may have stumbled, although it is not mentioned.) The name Simon is Jewish; the place, Cyrene, is in Africa. The man could have been one of the hundreds of thousands of Jews of various ethnicities gathering in Jerusalem for Passover. He carried the wood for the sacrifice of the Paschal Lamb of God. Outside the City Wall: A site outside the city wall looks like the described place. It was the Roman practice to crucify along the roadways. In this ancient, abandoned quarry, known by Jews as a place of execution, a roadway still passes through. PHOTO: JERUSALEM WALL Daylight had progressed about six hours.
It was close to noon, but,
A Slow Death: Crucifixion was a slow strangling death. Breathing required very painful movements, and speaking was extremely difficult. Yet, during his agonizing physical, mental, and spiritual anguish, he spoke several times. Mostly it was in concern of others. Jesus Speaks from the Cross: The Bible records seven things that Jesus said while on the cross. To those who nailed him:
To those crucified with him:
But the other answering rebuked him, saying, Dost thou not fear God, seeing thou art in the same condemnation? And we indeed justly; for we receive the due reward of our deeds: but this man hath done nothing amiss. And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember
me when thou comest into thy kingdom.
To His Mother:
To John the Beloved:
To the Guards:
To His Father:
And when Jesus had cried with a loud voice, he said, Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit: and having said thus, he gave up the ghost. LUKE 23:46 To the World:
His Legs Not Broken: The
Jewish priests did not want the crucified bodies hanging on the cross on
the Sabbath days (for that evening was the beginning of an extra Sabbath
day, a High Day). So, they besought Pilate that the prisoners’ legs
might be broken. This would hasten their deaths in that they could
not press against the nails in their feet to gasp for breath. Once
dead, their bodies might be taken away. However, when the soldiers
saw that Jesus was dead already
This also fulfilled a messianic prophecy
which says:
A Tomb in a Garden PHOTO:
GARDEN TOMB
With the help of Nicodemus,
Now in the place where he was crucified there was a garden; and in the garden a new sepulchre, wherein was never man yet laid. There laid they Jesus therefore because of the Jews’ preparation day; for the sepulchre was nigh at hand. JOHN 19:40-42 Two Sabbaths in a Row: The
scurrilous events of that day preceded the Passover which was due to begin
any moment. The Passover (a special Sabbath or High Day) that week
probably preceded the regular Saturday Sabbath.
A Sign to the Pharisees: It
is probable that there were two Sabbaths in a row that year (the Passover
Sabbath and the regular seventh day of the week Sabbath). In that
sense, Jesus was crucified on what we call a Thursday. (This fits
in the time reckoning of Palm Sunday being five days before the Passover.)
Then in fulfillment of prophecy, he really was in the tomb three nights;
and on the third day he arose—
...and be raised again the third day. MATTHEW 16:21 (see also MATTHEW 17:23; MARK 9:31) This is also the only “sign” Jesus
gave the Pharisees.
But he answered and said unto them, An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given to it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas: For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale’s belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. MATTHEW 12:38-40 In speaking to the Pharisees, he specifically
connected himself with Jonah, who was in a great fish
Resurrection On Sunday: On the day we now
call Sunday,
Then she runneth, and cometh to Simon Peter, and to the other disciple...and saith unto them, They have taken away the Lord out of the sepulchre,... JOHN 20:1-2 Peter and the other disciple ...ran both together... And he stooping down, and looking in, saw the linen clothes lying... And the napkin, that was about his head, not lying with the linen clothes, but wrapped together in a place by itself. JOHN 20:4-7 The Talith for Burial: For Jews today, the cloth put over the head of the deceased is the talith, the garment or prayer shawl. There is a suggestion that the “napkin that was about his head” could be the Talith. The physical description of “wrapped together” seems to suggest the physical action of folding his clothes before he left the tomb. The Tomb Was Empty: Later, Mary stood outside the sepulcher weeping; she also stooped down and looked into the sepulcher. The fact that several people are mentioned to be stooping means it must have been a small entrance. PHOTO: INSIDE THE TOMB Mary Sees Two Angels and Jesus:
As the weeping Mary looked in, she saw two angels; they spoke to her; she
spoke to them;
...She, supposing him to be the gardener, saith unto him, Sir, if thou have borne him hence, tell me where thou hast laid him, and I will take him away. JOHN 20:14-15 Jesus called her by name, and
He was alive again! She saw him, and
Jesus spoke to her,
Mary Magdalene came and told the disciples that she had seen the Lord, and that he had spoken these things unto her. JOHN 20:17-18 He Lives!: That evening
Jesus appeared to ten Apostles (Thomas was not with them). They had
locked themselves in because of their fear of the Jewish priests.
They were startled. Jesus reassuringly comforted them.
Wounds in His Hands and Feet:
He obviously spoke in their language; however, in English his expressions
are just as comforting,
...when he had thus spoken, he shewed them his hands and his feet... And they gave him a piece of a broiled fish, and of an honeycomb. And he took it and did eat before them. LUKE 24:36-43 Appearances of Jesus: Jesus
appeared later to the eleven Apostles in Jerusalem and to others on the
way to Emmaus. He appeared to, spoke to, and ate with several
of them in Galilee.
Jesus himself drew near, and went with them... But their eyes were holden that they should not know him... And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself. And it came to pass, as he sat at meat with them, he took bread, and blessed it, and brake, and gave to them. And their eyes were opened, and they knew him; and he vanished out of their sight. And they said one to another, Did not our heart burn within us, while he talked with us by the way, and while he opened to us the scriptures? LUKE 24:13-32 After these things Jesus shewed himself again to the disciples at the sea of Tiberias;... There were together Simon Peter, and Thomas called Didymus, and Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, and the sons of Zebedee, and two other of his disciples. Simon Peter saith unto them, I go a fishing. They say unto him, We also go with thee. They went forth, and entered into a ship immediately; and that night they caught nothing. But when the morning was now come, Jesus stood on the shore:... Then Jesus saith unto them, Children, have ye any meat? They answered him, No. And he said unto them, Cast the net on the right side of the ship, and ye shall find. They cast therefore, and now they were not able to draw it for the multitude of fishes. ... Now when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he girt his fisher’s coat unto him... and did cast himself into the sea.... Jesus saith unto them, Come and dine... This is now the third time that Jesus shewed himself to his disciples, after that he was risen from the dead. JOHN 21:1-14
And when he had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight. And while they looked stedfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel; Which also said, Ye men of Galilee,
why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up
from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him
go into heaven. ACTS 1:9-11
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