Lesson #22 In the Shadow of the Cross, Part 2: The Trial

(Matthew 26: 57 27: 26)

In Lesson #21 we joined Jesus and his disciples at the Last Supper; we witnessed the institution of the Eucharist; and we ended the Passover meal by singing the last Hallel psalm with them, Psalm 118.
We then left the upper room, walked past the southern steps of the Temple, paralleled the eastern wall, crossed the Kidron Valley and walked up the Mount of Olives to the Garden of Gethsemane, a mere 320 yards from the Temples Golden Gates. In the Garden Jesus was deeply troubled and desperately afraid, praying fervently that this cup pass from him. It was not to be, however, and Jesus submitted to his Fathers will. Just then, Judas arrived with the Temple guards and Jesus was arrested and taken to the home of Caiaphas the High Priest, where an executive session of the Sanhedrin meets.

In Lesson #22 key members of the Sanhedrin find Jesus guilty of blasphemy and sentence him to death. Although the Jews are free under Roman rule to exercise their own religious laws and customs, they are not free to carry out capital punishment: that is the exclusive purview of the Roman government. The Jewish leaders therefore bring Jesus to Pontius Pilate, the Roman Prefect who has taken up residence in the Antonia Fortress during Passover, along with his troops, keeping a watchful eye on the crowds and maintaining security. As a Roman Prefect, Pilate has four primary responsibilities: 1) governance; 2) collecting taxes; 3) maintaining law and order; and 4) exercising criminal and civil judicial functions.

Wanting a death sentence, the Jewish leaders bring Jesus before Pilate and accuse him not of blasphemy (for blasphemy is not a capital offense under Roman law), but of treason, claiming to be a king: that is a capital offense. Like Judas, Pontius Pilate is a far more complex person than often thought. In this lesson we not only follow the trial itself, but we lay a foundation to explore Pilates motives and actions as a Roman Prefect.

The Gospel according to Matthews overall mirrored chiastic structure

A Narrative: Jesus as Messiah, Son of God (1-4) Minor discourse: John the Baptist identifies the authority of Jesus (3:7-12) B Great Discourse #1: Demands of true discipleship (5-7) C Narrative: The supernatural authority of Jesus (8-9) D Great Discourse #2: Charge and authority of disciples (10) E Narrative: Jews reject Jesus (11-12) F Great Discourse #3: Parables of the Kingdom of Heaven (13) E Narrative: Disciples accept Jesus (14-17) D Great Discourse #4: Charge and authority of church (18) C Narrative: Authority and invitation (19-22) B Great Discourse #5: Judgment on false discipleship (23-25) Narrative: Jesus as Messiah, suffering and vindicated (26-28) Minor discourse: Jesus identifies the authority of the church (28:18-20)

Antonia Fortress

Temple

Robinsons Arch

Southern Steps

Home of Caiaphus

Photography by Ana Maria Vargas

Robinsons Arch

Stones from the burnt Temple lying on the 1st century western wall walkway
Photography by Ana Maria Vargas

Mikveh

Mosaic flooring

Wohl Archaeological Museum, Jerusalem (Jewish Quarter). Remains of the home of a wealthy Jewish family, burnt in A.D. 70.

Wohl Archaeological Museum, Jerusalem (Jewish Quarter). Model of the reconstructed home. The outer courtyard measures 27 x 27.

Matthias Stom. Christ before the High Priest (oil on canvas), c. 1633. Milwaukee Art Museum, Wisconsin.

Caravaggio. The Denial of St. Peter (oil on canvas), c. 1610. Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.

Antonia Fortress

Temple

Southern Steps

Photography by Ana Maria Vargas

Antonio Ciseri. Ecco Homo *Behold the Man+ (oil on canvas), 1871. Gallery of Modern Art, Florence.

Who Is Pontius Pilate?

Giotto. Pontius Pilate, detail from Mocking Christ (fresco), 1305. Scrovegni Chapel (south wall), Padua, Italy.

Pontius Pilate was the 5th Prefect of Judea, serving under the Emperor Tiberias from A.D. 26-36. The inscription on the Pilate Stone discovered at Caesarea Maritima in 1961 validates his historicity. Pilate was an equestrian of the Pontii family and succeeded Valerius Gratus as Prefect. In all four Gospels Pilate defends Jesus, acquiescing to Jesus execution only when a riot is imminent, washing his hands of any responsibility. According to Josephus, Pilate was ordered back to Rome after using excessive force in quelling a Samaritan uprising, arriving in Rome shortly after Tiberius death on 16 March 37. According to the Church historian Eusebius (c. 260-340), Pilate was exiled to Gaul by Caligula (A.D. 37-41) where he committed suicide. In the Divine Comedy, Dante places Pilate in the vestibule of hell, not in hell proper: I saw the shade of the one who must have been/the coward who had made the great refusal (Inferno, III, 59-60).

Pilate Stone discovered in 1961 during excavations of the theater at Caesarea Maritima (Israel Museum, Jerusalem). The inscription reads: To the Divine Augusti [this] Tiberieum . . . Pontius Pilate . . . prefect of Judea . . . has dedicated . . . Photography by Ana Maria Vargas

Inscription
Joseph, son of Caiaphus

Caiaphus Ossuary *bone box+, discovered in a burial cave in southern Jerusalem, 1990. It held the bones of a 60-year old man. Israel Museum, Jerusalem.

And the whole people said in reply, His blood be upon us and upon our children
(Matthew 27: 25). DECLARATION OF THE CHURCH TO NON-CHRISTIAN RELIGIONS NOSTRA AETATE *In Our Age+ October 28, 1965
True, the Jewish authorities and those who followed their lead pressed for the death of Christ; still, what happened in His passion cannot be charged against all the Jews, without distinction, then alive, nor against the Jews of today. Although the Church is the new people of God, the Jews should not be presented as rejected or accursed by God, as if this followed from the Holy Scriptures. [Passed at the 2nd Vatican Council by a vote of the bishops, 2281 to 88.]

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What did Jesus say before the Sanhedrin to ensure its guilty verdict for blasphemy? In the courtyard of the High Priest, Peter denies Jesus three times. Why? Blasphemy is a capital offense under Mosaic Law, but the Jews are not permitted to carry out capital punishment, so they take Jesus to the Roman Prefect, Pontius Pilate, who can put Jesus to death. Of what crime do they accuse Jesus? Although Pontius Pilate knows that Jesus has done nothing deserving of death, Pilate acquiesces to the demands of the crowd. Why? Ultimately, who is responsible for Jesus crucifixion and death?

Copyright 2014 by William C. Creasy

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