A Kangaroo Court? 30/03/2023

Mark 14: 53-65

[53] And they led Jesus to the high priest. And all the chief priests and the elders and the scribes came together. [54] And Peter had followed him at a distance, right into the courtyard of the high priest. And he was sitting with the guards and warming himself at the fire. [55] Now the chief priests and the whole council were seeking testimony against Jesus to put him to death, but they found none. [56] For many bore false witness against him, but their testimony did not agree. [57] And some stood up and bore false witness against him, saying, [58] “We heard him say, ‘I will destroy this temple that is made with hands, and in three days I will build another, not made with hands.’” [59] Yet even about this their testimony did not agree. [60] And the high priest stood up in the midst and asked Jesus, “Have you no answer to make? What is it that these men testify against you?” [61] But he remained silent and made no answer. Again the high priest asked him, “Are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?” [62] And Jesus said, “I am, and you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of Power, and coming with the clouds of heaven.” [63] And the high priest tore his garments and said, “What further witnesses do we need? [64] You have heard his blasphemy. What is your decision?” And they all condemned him as deserving death. [65] And some began to spit on him and to cover his face and to strike him, saying to him, “Prophesy!” And the guards received him with blows.

When Mark speaks about the ‘whole council’, he is referring to the Sanhedrin, the ruling Jewish council in Jerusalem which was the highest ruling court of the Jews. It was modelled on Moses and his seventy elders. (Numbers 11:24) It had the strictest rules to guard against any miscarriage of justice. It had wide powers, although during the Roman occupation of Palestine the Sanhedrin could not carry out a death sentence. In normal circumstances, the Council (or Sanhedrin) gave the benefit of the doubt to the accused. But this was not what happened when Jesus was facing this ruling Council. There is a verse which is very instructive:

Now the chief priests and the whole council were seeking testimony against Jesus to put him to death, but they found none. [Mark 14:55]

In other words, there is no element of checks and balances and no judge who is supposed to be impartial. To use the terms with which we are familiar in 21st century Scotland, there is one group of men who are deciding what to do with Jesus and they are the judge and jury, the prosecution and the defence. This is the sort of trials which Henry VIII set up when he wanted to have someone (for example, his wife) executed. Our legal system is flawed and there have been serious miscarriages of justice, but a trial like this would never be allowed in Scotland in 2023.

The religious leaders were sending out messengers to scour the streets to get witnesses for the prosecution. But they were failing miserably – they did not find it easy to get witnesses to stand up and testify that Jesus had done anything wrong. If they had been really in earnest they could have found plenty of witnesses to speak up on behalf of Jesus – people who had been healed or had witnessed lives completely changed. They could have asked his disciples to come forward to testify how he had changed their lives for good. They could have found plenty of witnesses to testify about the teaching that he had given or his miracles. But they did not want that. They were wanting to end his life and they were seeking to find something to legitimise their evil purpose.

The few witnesses they managed to find did not agree with each other. Their testimony was conflicting. If they had been seeking justice, they should have ordered these witnesses out of the courtroom and disregarded their testimony.

On the evidence of two witnesses or of three witnesses the one who is to die shall be put to death; a person shall not be put to death on the evidence of one witness. [Deuteronomy 17:6 ESV]

So in Jewish law, Jesus should not have been sentenced to death because they could not get two witnesses to agree on their testimony. Jesus is being tried by unrighteous men who hated him and wanted him condemned to death and were prepared to go to any length to achieve their goal.

What was he being accused of? There was one witness who testified of a statement which Jesus had made and it was reported out of context. “I will destroy this temple that is made with hands, and in three days I will build another not made with hands.” This is a false accusation as Jesus had never said he would destroy the temple in Jerusalem. He was speaking about his death and resurrection. They have subtly added the words ‘made with hands’ but if we read his actual words in John 2:18-22 we read the actual words which he spoke and how it was misconstrued by the Jews who were present.

Jesus is being tried unfairly not in keeping with Jewish law and they are making false accusations. How did he react in this courtroom? If this had been me, I would have been protesting my innocence and pointing out that the witness had got it all wrong. But Jesus is silent. The chief priest challenges him to defend himself. “Have you no answer to make?” What is it that these men testify against you? But he remained silent. In Isaiah 53 we read these words:

He was oppressed and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he opened not his mouth.” [Isaiah 53:7 ESV]

Jesus is described as the faithful and true witness (Revelation 1:5). He did not seek to defend himself when a gross injustice was being carried out. We read that Peter was somewhere in the area of the courtroom and he denied ever knowing Jesus but he never forgot what he witnessed that day. When he came to write his letter, Peter referred to this incident and the character of Jesus while he was on trial.

When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges righteously. [1 Peter 2:23 ESV]

What lessons are there in this incident described by Mark in these verses?

1. Jesus is still on trial in our world today and we are his witnesses. “…. You will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth. “[Acts 1:8 ESV] We are witnesses in his defence. The word 'witness' is the Greek word martus from which we get the word martyr. It is one of the key words in the Book of Revelation so you will see it being mentioned in future blogs as we start to study the last book of the Bible .[God Willing].

2. We should not expect justice in this world. This is not to write off the justice system in Scotland or elsewhere. However, because we humans are prone to lie and distort the truth, there is always the potential for a miscarriage of justice. We should anticipate being misunderstood and falsely accused. We should follow the example of Jesus when we are mistreated by the world.

3. Jesus is the picture of humiliation at his trial. He appears to be defeated. The reality is that his death and resurrection was a great victory over sin and Satan. Satan was defeated at the cross. In the passage, there was one statement which Jesus made which is highly significant. The high priest asked him directly, “Are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?” Jesus’ reply was unequivocal. And Jesus said, “I am, and you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of Power, and coming with the clouds of heaven.” [Mark 14:62 ESV]. He is declaring that he is the Messiah. He is referring to Daniel 7:13-14 where Jesus is shown to be the judge of all the earth. He is the ruler of the kings of the earth. He is far above all powers and all authorities. His rule is greater than the Roman Empire and the Jewish religious leaders.

4. Is he your Lord? Are you trusting in the politicians of this world who will come and go and whose power is limited? Are you looking to scientists or celebrities on this earth as your heroes or heroines? Are you depending on anything other than the power of Jesus, the Son of God. Have you trusted Him as your Saviour? His death was not an accident. It was part of God’s plan for the world so that we could have sins forgiven and be part of God’s family. The Son of God had to suffer in order to set up his kingdom on earth. Are you part of His kingdom? You must be prepared to acknowledge Him as King and as Lord over your life. You must be prepared to live your lives according to His will.

Photo by David Clode on Unsplash.