They came for Jesus in a rush, and it wasn’t quiet. A few years ago the film, “The Passion of the Christ” captured attention with a depiction of the events of Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection. The film began in the garden, as Jesus was arrested. I was struck by how intimate it was…perhaps 20 temple guards finding him in a foggy garden, arresting him as his disciples ran in panic.
It wasn’t like that. Matthew, Mark, and Luke record that a crowd, led by Judas, came to arrest Jesus. John gives more detail and we learn that the crowd was a cohort of Roman soldiers, supported by temple guards. A cohort is 600 men. They arrived with blazing torches, lanterns, and weapons. This was no small, intimate event.
John describes the arrest: “Jesus fully realized all that was going to happen to him, so he stepped forward to meet them. ‘Who are you looking for?’ he asked. ‘Jesus the Nazarene,’ they replied. ‘I AM,’ Jesus said. (Remember that? YHWH. He gave them his real name.) (Judas, who betrayed him, was them, ‘Who are you looking for?’ And again they replied, ‘Jesus the Nazarene.’ ‘I told you that I AM,’ Jesus said. ‘And since I am the one you want, let these others go.’”
Peter tried to put up a fight, but it was useless. They took Jesus, swept him away, and delivered him to Annas, the father-in-law of the Caiaphas, the High Priest. The interrogation there was short, and Jesus was rushed to the house of the High Priest, where the ruling council, the Sanhedrin, had gathered, to try him. Without going into detail, the trial was illegal, violated the laws of that land, and denied Jesus the rights given to the accused. It was summed up in this question, answer, and consequence: “Then the High Priest asked him, ‘Are you the Messiah, the Son of the Blessed One?’ Jesus said, ‘I AM. And you will see the Son of Man seated in the place of power at God’s right hand and coming on the clouds of heaven.’ Then the High Priest tore his clothing to show his horror and said, ‘Why do we need other witnesses? You have all heard his blasphemy. What is your verdict?’ ‘Guilty!’ they all cried. ‘He deserves to die!’ Then some of them began to spit at him, and they blindfolded him and beat him with their fists.”
How Ironic that a night filled with beatings began at the hands of the “religious” leaders of Israel.
The rest of the night was filled with Peter’s denial (three times.), Judas’ remorse for what he had done, and, in the morning, Pilate’s capitulation of leadership, giving consent for Jesus’ death. As a subject nation the Jews were able to exercise primary governance, but they did not have the power of high Justice. Any sentence of death had to be given and carried out by the Romans.
And so it was. “The soldiers took Jesus into the courtyard of the governor’s headquarters (called the Praetorium) and called out the entire regiment. They dressed him in a purple robe, and they wove thorn branches into a crown and put it on his head. Then they saluted him and taunted, ‘Hail, King of the Jews.’ And they struck him on the head with a reed stick, spit on him, and dropped to their knees in mock worship. When they were finally tired of mocking him, they took off the purple robe and put his own clothes on him again. Then they led him away to be crucified.”
And he was.