LESSON TWO
THE EVENTS AS THEY TOOK PLACE IN THEIR ORDER
A REEXAMINATION OF EVERYTHING THAT HAPPENED SO FAR
Welcome back to our examination of the events preceding, and following the death, burial, and resurrection we are undertaking. Our study has taken us, and will take us to the earliest records themselves – the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, and other parts of what forms the corpus of the New Testament in our possession.
Again, we will return to the period when these events took place, to the places where they happened, and from the pages of these accounts, mingle with the participants, and glean from them every bit of evidence, every detail, and every explanation that will aid us in uncovering precisely what occurred those fateful days that Gospel writers recorded for us.
We will leave no stone unturned, no evidence unexamined, no question unasked in our quest, but will examine everything thoroughly and bring together the different elements and pieces of this jigsaw puzzle until we have arrived at a cohesive narrative, brimming with facts and information that everyone who reads this must come face to face themselves.
Now, let us continue our examination of every detail that is available to us about the events surrounding the death, burial, and resurrection of Yeshua, Jesus, Our Savior, Our Resurrection, and Our Life.
Again, we will journey back in time to those fateful days, and continue our investigation, hopefully approaching our investigation with the same tenacity of a forensic pathologist who is examining a “cold case” with hot new evidence that may have been overlooked, but which lay dormant many years after those events took place.
For those who still wonder how these things came to pass, it’s time to stop being perplexed any longer about these events, but to draw near and see for ourselves the empty grave, the testimonies of those who saw it all, held the evidence with their hands, and ate with the risen Lord, and saw Him defeat death and grave, the by-products of sin. Yeshua lives. And because He lives, we live in Him also.
THE EVENTS AS THEY TOOK PLACE IN THEIR PROPER ORDER
A QUICK REVIEW OF WHAT WE HAVE EXAMINED IS IN ORDER
Thus far we’ve seen Jesus and His immediate disciples prepare for the Passover Seder at a friend’s house in part of Jerusalem called the Lower City on the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread.
During this time, Yehudah Ishkrayot goes to the chief priests and obtains a bribe to surrender Jesus to them if they will pay him handsomely for this betrayal. They give him thirty pieces of silver.
At the Passover Seder, early that evening, Jesus reveals to His disciples that one of them would betray Him that night, and that it will be the one to whom He would give the Matzah He’s dipped; one with whom He shared His Matzah and the Maror, and Charozet they dipped their Matzot into during the Seder.
He gives the dipped Matzah to Yehudah Ben Shimon Ishkrayot, telling charging him to be quick with his plans.
After receiving the morsel, he went (Judas) went out immediately, and it was night.
After singing the Hallel Hymn, Jesus and His disciples exit the house and traverse the Kidron Ravine to the Mount of Olives where there is a garden called Gethsemane, which they frequented quite often.
There, He took three of His disciples along with Him, and walking a little further on – about a stone’s toss away, He went into a deep and agonizing prayer, during which time, He sweat blood.
Returning to those He took with Him, He found them asleep, but upon His third return, Yehudah accompanied by a Roman Cohort and a contingency of temple police along with a group of chief priests from Annas and Caiaphas, came upon them as Jesus spoke.
During the scuffle, Peter takes out one of the two swords they brought with them, and with it strikes the ear off of Malchus, the high priest’s slave.
But Jesus stops Peter from further action and heals the servant’s ear with a touch. All of this happen almost at once, at which point, they seize Jesus and arrested Him, while His disciples flee.
JESUS IS TAKEN TO ANNAS FOR INTERROGATION
The first place they take Jesus is to Annas the high priest’s home. Annas is father in law to Joseph Caiaphas, who is High Priest that year.
Annas questions Jesus about His disciples and His teaching, and when he is finished with Him, he hands Jesus in chains over to Caiaphas for further questioning.
Caiaphas attempts to bring forward witnesses to testify against Jesus, but their collective testimonies conflict.
PETER’S THREE DENIALS OF JESUS DURING HIS TRAIL
As the proceedings take place inside palatial confines of Annas and Caiaphas’ house, Peter is outside in the courtyard with the temple police, warming himself by a fire, having been allowed in by a fellow unnamed disciple of Jesus who knows the high priest personally.
While there, Peter is recognized by his accent as being a Galilean, and when he is approached and asked if he is one of Jesus’ disciples, he denies it once, then twice – even with an oath.
Walking away towards the porch, to avoid the crowd, Peter even calls a curse upon himself as he attempts to deflect attention from his curious onlookers and the pesky servant girl, and potentially, danger as well.
It is at this point, when he’s made his third and final denial; that his eyes and Jesus’ meet, and a cock crows in the distance; at which point Peter goes off into the night, weeping bitterly.
ANNAS AND CAIAPHAS CONVENE A HURRIED MORNING CONCIL TO SENTENCE JESUS AND DELIVER HIM TO THE ROMANS
Knowing that they have to convene the Great Sanhedrin to formally sentence Jesus before they can deliver Him over to Pilate for execution, Caiaphas gathers all of the chief priests allied to him and his father in law, and the elders among these, as well as their scribes to gather in the Chamber of Hewn Stones, near the Holy Place, early in the morning.
Having gathered the entire Council of elders and priests, they pronounce sentence on Jesus and deliver Him bound in chains to Pontius Pilate, the Roman Governor.
They were committed to put Jesus to death one way or another. If they couldn’t do it because of some Roman legal technicality which constrained them; they would accomplish it by using Roman law to meet their purposes.
This hearing would be the last official full gathering of the Great Sanhedrin to hear a case and render judgment within the magnificent Chamber of Hewn Stones to a lesser, more austere location near the temple mount – a trading station.
The Talmud says that in the year 30 A.D.:
“Forty years before the destruction of the Temple, the Sanhedrin was BANISHED (from the Chamber of Hewn Stone) and sat in the trading station (on the Temple Mount)”
There is great significance to this, and we will examine it further on, but for now we continue reviewing what has happened thus far. Let us continue.
YEHUDAH – JUDAS FEELS REMORSE, BUT COMMITS SUICIDE
Yehudah feels remorse for betraying the Master, but when he attempts to return the silver, the chief priests disregard him and his change of heart. In a rage against them, he tosses the silver into the Sanctuary itself and commits suicide by hanging himself.
THE EVENTS AS THEY TOOK PLACE IN THEIR PROPER ORDER
THE FIRST ROMAN PHASE OF JESUS’ TRAIL BEFORE PILATE
At first Pilate appears disinterested, questioning Jesus’ accusers why He should try Jesus; suggesting to them that they try Him according to their law, but they remind Pilate that they cannot execute capital punishment on Jesus because Rome had stripped them of this power.
Jesus detractors begin to accuse Him vehemently before Pilate, but Jesus makes no effort to defend Himself against them. Pilate marvels at His non-responsiveness to their accusations.
When Pilate asks Jesus if He is King of the Jews, Jesus responds with His own question, “Are you saying this on your own initiative, or did others tell you about Me?”
Pilate answers, “I am not a Jew, am I? Your own nation and the chief priests delivered You up to me; what have You done?”
Jesus answers, “My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, then My servants would be fighting, that I might not be delivered up to the Judeans; but as it is, My kingdom is not of this realm.”
Pilate therefore said to Him, “So You are a king?” Jesus replies, “It is as you say,” then continues, “You say correctly that I am a king. For this purpose I was born, and for this I have come into the world, to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice.”
Responding to this, Pilate says to Jesus, “What is truth?”
And though Pilate could find no guilt in Jesus with regard to Roman law, they kept on insisting, saying, “He stirs up the people, teaching all over Judea, starting from Galilee, even as far as this place.”
When Pilate hears this, he asks if Jesus was a Galilean, and when he is told that Jesus belongs to Herod Antipas’ jurisdiction, he has Jesus remanded to Herod’s custody, since Herod is visiting Jerusalem at this time.
THE HERODIAN PHASE OF JESUS’ TRIAL
While in Herod’s custody, Herod tries to solicit a miracle from Jesus, but the Master is unresponsive to Herod’s taunts. Changing tactics, Herod begins to question Jesus, while He is being accused viciously by the chief priests present, but again, Jesus makes no effort at defending Himself before His accusers.
Herod begins to treat Jesus with contempt and mockery. Deciding that he’s finished with Him, Herod has his soldiers Jesus dressed in a gorgeous robe, and returns Jesus to Pilate.
SECOND AND FINAL ROMAN PHASE OF JESUS’ TRIAL
The records tell us that Pilate and Herod Antipas had been bitter enemies, but with this exchange, became fast friends thereafter.
It appears that Pilate’s discovery that Antipas had as much hatred of Jews as he himself had, helped win Herod’s favor with him, and vice a versa. Now they the two had something in common; they hated the Jews and their alleged “King.”
And who could ask for more? This group of Judean Jewish leaders and their allies among the crowd forming outside of Pilate’s Praetorium want Pilate to kill this “King of the Jews” for them.
And Pilate summoned the chief priests and the rulers and the people, and said to them, “You brought this man to me as one who incites the people to rebellion, and behold, having examined Him before you, I have found no guilt in this man, regarding the charges which you make against Him.
Nor has Herod, for he sent Him back to us; and behold, nothing deserving of death has been done by Him.
“I will therefore punish Him and release Him.”
“But you have a custom, that I should release someone for you at the Passover; do you wish then that I release for you the King of the Jews?”
“Whom do you want me to release for you? Barabbas or Jesus who is called Christ?”
While Pilate sits in the Judgment seat, as he’s speaking these words; his wife arrives to warn him about a dream she had the night before, exhorting him not to have anything to do with “this Righteous Man.”
But the scheming priests and their crafty legal clerics and allies, ask Pilate to release Bar Abbas, and to crucify Jesus.
The more Pilate puts the question to the crowd, the more agitated they become, demanding Bar Abbas be released, and specifically for Jesus to be crucified.
Sensing that the chief priests, and their allies and families in the crowd are about to riot, and taking into account what his wife has just told him about this Man, Pilate washes his hands, and pronounces his own innocence with regards to Jesus and what he is about to do with Him.
While he releases the notorious criminal and murdering insurrectionist, Bar Abbas from prison, Pilate delivers Jesus to his Praetorian Guard to be scourged in preparation to be crucified.
But the soldiers in whose custody Jesus finds Himself in are sadistic towards Him. They fashion a crown of thorns which they thrust onto Jesus’ head, and then put a reed in His hand, and a scarlet and purple robe around Him, while the entire Praetorian Guard is summoned before Him and feign doing Jesus homage.
They each take turns hitting Jesus in the face and striking Him across and head with the reed they had put in His hand, as others spit at Him, while some kneel before Him and others bow mockingly, shouting in mock acclamation, “Hail, King of the Jews!” as they play act obeisance.
Completing their mocking, the Romans remove the purple and red robe, and put Jesus’ garments back on Him, then take Him to be crucified.
Pilate presents Jesus one last time, arrayed with the crown of thorns on His head, as if to taunt and mock the Judean Jewish leaders and their allies, friends, and families gathered below, and shouts to them, “Behold the Man!”
This makes the crowd even more agitated, and the shouts of the chief priests and their allies can be heard shouting, “Crucify, Crucify!” To which Pilate replies for them to take Him themselves and crucify Him, because he finds no guilt in Him.
But the Judeans reply, “We have a law, and by that law He ought to die because He made Himself out to be the Son of God.”
This statement scares Pilate, and because of it, he tries to release Jesus, but is unsuccessful, because the priests and the crowd allied to them, shouted, “If you release this Man, you are no friend of Caesar; everyone who makes himself a king opposes Caesar. We have no king but Caesar. ”
As much as Pilate hates the Jews and their Jewish King, he is not a fool. He hands Jesus over to be crucified. Jesus is then crucified, between two criminals.
Jesus dies in front of the Romans, His enemies – the chief priests and their allies – His mother and some of His friends, and all of the others who have gathered there for the spectacle.
We have revisited what we’ve study preliminarily thus far, and though it may be for some what seems to be a repetitive venture, the reason we have done this is to reexamine every bit of information available to us, so as to assure ourselves that we have not missed a single shred of evidence in our investigation.
In so doing, we will have scoured every part of the evidence, the testimonies of which are recorded and preserved for us in the writings of the New Testament, in particular the four Gospels and parts of the Acts.
If necessary, our investigation will take us past these to other sources of information, such as the other writings of the New Testament; the letters, and extra-Biblical historical accounts.
We will examine everything to the official records of these events – the Gospels themselves – and bring to light, if the Lord wills – data that others may have missed by conventional means; that is to say, where the study has been elementary.
And now, let us return to the present, having examined what we’ve covered thus far. We are at the hill which resembles a skull just outside of the walls of Jerusalem, at the place of Roman execution, where Jesus is crucified between two criminals.
In front of Him, below watching on are Miriam, His natural mother, Miriam’s sister, John His beloved disciple at her side, Miriam of Magdala, and Miriam, the wife of Cleopas.
THE INCREDIBLE SIGNS WHICH FOLLOWED JESUS’ DEATH
Matthew tells us that when Jesus breathed His last, several incidents occurred which defy conventional explanations, because they were in the realm of the supernatural.
The veil of the temple, that separated the Holiest Place from the Court of the Priests within temple building; was torn supernaturally from top to bottom, an earthquake took place, and the rocks were split, and the tombs were opened.
We are told that three days later, the bodies of those believers, who had passed on, were resurrected, and they entered the holy city, and appeared to many whose testimony of these incidents he exclusively records.
THE REACTION OF THE ROMANS AND BYSTANDERS TO THE SIGNS AROUND THEM AT THE MOMENT WHEN JESUS BREATHED HIS LAST
We return now to our study as we continue our examination of the records available to us.
When the Centurion and his troops who guarded the place of execution where Jesus and the other two were crucified, felt the earthquake, and everything that was happening around them, and the manner in which Jesus died; the dignity, forgiveness, love, and care He displayed on that most undignified place of execution; they became very afraid, and said – “Truly this was the Son of God.”
And there were several women, who had supported Jesus’ work as He travelled from Galilee who were looking on, who witnessed these things as well.
Because it was the day of preparation and the Sabbath approached, so that the bodies would not remain on the cross on Shabbat, Pilate was asked to break the legs of those crucified with Jesus to expedite death, but when they came to Jesus, and saw that He was already dead, they did not break His legs.
But in case that Jesus might be feigning death, or might still be alive, but unconscious, one of the soldiers lanced Jesus on His side deeply with his spear, and John tells us that blood and water came out.
We will discuss the significance of this later on, but at this moment, we mention it as another of the evidences we are gathering in our investigation.
Writing in the John’s narrative in anonymously in the first person, one of the many witnesses there, bears witness that this is precisely what occurred in front of his eyes the day Jesus died.
When it was evening, Joseph of Arimathea, accompanied by Nicodemus, leading a delegation of Pharisees who were at this time secret followers of Jesus, came to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus, which was being guarded by Pilate’s troops at Golgotha.
Mark tells us that they gathered up enough courage to do this, since up until that moment, every follower or alleged follower of Jesus was in hiding, fearing arrest.
Wondering whether Jesus had died by now, Pilate summoned the Centurion who confirmed to Pilate that Jesus had indeed expired on the cross.
Pilate granted this Joseph’s delegation the body of Jesus, and Mark writes:
And Joseph bought a linen cloth, took Him down, wrapped Him in the linen cloth, and laid Him in a tomb which had been hewn out in the rock; and he rolled a stone against the entrance of the tomb.
We are told that Miriam of Magdala and Miriam the mother of someone named Joses were looking on to see where Jesus had been buried.
Luke gives us an additional bit of information about this tomb. He says that it had never been used. He too corroborates Matthew’s account that the tomb itself was cut into solid rock.
We are told by Luke that it was the preparation day, and the Sabbath was about to begin.
We now pause our study, and will pick it up after we have examined the new additional evidence in the next part of our study.
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SOURCES CITED:
Matthew 26:17-19, Mark 14:12-16, Luke 22:7-13.
Judas Iscariot.
Matthew 26:14-16, Mark 14:10-11, Luke , John chapters 13-17.
John 13:25-26.
The bitter herbs. The Maror was first consumed on the first night of the Passover.
A sweet dark pasty dip made of nuts and fruits served during the Passover Seder.
Matthew 26:22-23, Mark 14:17-20. The Seder and everything it contained was shared among those participating, so there was confusion as what Jesus meant when He said it was the one dipping his Matzah as He dipped His own Matzah and gave it to Yehudah Ben Shimon Ishkrayot – Judas, son of Simon Iscariot.
John 13:27.
John 13:30.
Psalms 115-118, and the Great Halel, Psalm 136, sung during the Passover Seder.
Matthew 26:36, Mark 14:32, Luke 22:39, John 18:1.
Mark 14:33.
Luke 22:41.
Luke 22:44.
Matthew 26:40-44, Mark 14:35-42.
John 18:2-3. See also Matthew 26:47.
Matthew 26:47-50, Mark 14:43-46, Luke 22:47-48.
John 18:10.
Matthew 26:51, Mark 14:47, Luke 22:50, John 18:11..
Matthew 26:52-54, Mark 14:47.
Luke 22:51.
Matthew 26:58, Mark 14:50, they see this as a fulfillment of Zechariah 13:7.
John 18:12-13a.
John 18:13b. It was Caiaphas who proposed that one person die rather than the entire nation perish at the hands of the Romans (John 18:14, see John 11:49-51.
John 18:19.
John 18:24.
Matthew 26:57, 59-66, Mark 14:53.
Because of their great wealth, Annas and Caiaphas both lived in the same location – an elaborate and highly ornate palace with courtyards and servants. Annas and Caiaphas’ separate interrogation of Jesus occurred at two separate locations and times within the same palace..
John 18:15-16. See also Matthew 26:58, Mark 14:54, Luke 22:54b-55.
Matthew 26:73, Mark 14:70, Luke 22:59.
Matthew 26:69-72.
Mark 14:68.
Matthew 26:74, Mark 14:71,
Mathew 26:69-75, Mark 14:54, 66-72 , Luke 22:54b-62, John 18:17-18, 25-27.
Mark 15:1.
Matthew 27:1-2, Luke 22:66-71.
Luke 23:1-5, John 18:28.
Talmud, Sanhedrin 15a.
Matthew 27:3-10, , Acts 1:16-20.
John 18:29-31. This is taken as a prophetic confirmation of how Jesus was to be put to death – by piercing; by crucifixion – not by any other means (John 18:32). This would fulfill specific prophecies given in the Hebrew Scriptures pertaining as to Messiah would be “cut off and have nothing.” See Daniel 9:26, Psalm 22:16, Isaiah 53:5. Zechariah 12:10.
Mark 15:3. Luke 23:1-2.
Matthew 27:12-14, Mark 15:4-5.
Matthew 27:11a.
In saying this, Pilate was using a verbal jab; “I’m not a Jew, am I? Jews like Yourself turned You in to me; how would you know whether I know of such things? That’s why I’m putting the question to You – Now are You the King of the Jews? And anyway, what exactly are they accusing You of?”
Matthew 27:11b, Mark 15:2, Luke 23:3,
John 18:33-37.
Luke 23:4, John 18:38.
Luke 23:5.
Luke 23:6-7.
Luke 23:8.
Luke 23:9.
Luke 23:10.
Luke 23:11.
Luke 23:12.
Luke 23:13-16.
John 18:39.
Matthew 27:17.
Matthew 27:19.
John 18:40.
Matthew 27:15-23, Luke 23:17-25.
Matthew 27:24.
Matthew 27:26. Mark 15:15, John 19:1.
Matthew 27:29, Mark 15:17, John 19:2.
Matthew 27:27.
Mark 15:16-17. The description of this robe by the Gospel writers gives the impression that it was a reddish purple robe that shimmered in the sunlight. To those who saw it, it appeared either purple, probably maroon, but when the sun shone on it, it would appear red. This is why it would appear to one bystander as red (Matthew 26:28) while to another as purple (John 19:2).
Mark 15:19.
John 19:2
Mark 15:18.
Matthew 27:31, Mark 15:20.
John 19:5.
John 19:6.
John 19:7. This is alluding to the Law against blasphemy in the Torah, and its consequence; capital punishment by stoning (Leviticus 24:16).
John 19:12, 15b.
Matthew 27:38, Mark 15:27-28, Luke 23:32, John 19:18
Matthew 27:39-50, Mark 15:29-37, 39-41, Luke 23:26-49, John 19:20-37.
John 19:25.
Matthew 27:51a.
Mathew 27:52-53.
Matthew 27:54.
Matthew 27:56-57.
John 19:31-33.
John 19:34.
John 19:35-37.
Matthew 27:57-58.
Mark 15:42-43.
Mark 15:44.
Mark 15:46.
Mark 15:47, Luke 23:55-56..
Luke 23:53.
Luke 23:54.________________________________________
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