FourFifteen

Trial Before Herod Pilate must've breathed a sight of relief as he watched the crowd lead Jesus out of his courtyard. He probably thought he dodged a bullet by deferring this trial to Herod's judgement. Up to this point, Herod and Pilate didn't really like each other...and so it didn't really bother Pilate to pass this difficult situation off on him. Herod, on the other hand, was excited to see Jesus. He had heard all about this great Teacher and all the miracles that He did. In fact, Herod had been convinced for a long time that Jesus was actually a resurrected John the Baptist. The fact that this Man was on His way to Herod's palace meant that he could witness Jesus' power first-hand. Unlike the trial before the Jewish leaders ( which was concerned with violations of Jewish law ) and the trial before Pilate ( which was concerned with threats to Roman authority ), there wasn't really any legal issues discussed by King Herod. Sure, the Jewish leaders ...

The Official Jewish Verdict After consulting together all night, the council of elders brought Jesus back into the courtyard to stand before them. Once again, they asked Him: " If You are really the Messiah, tell us! " In response, Jesus declared that He knew what they were planning to do: " If I tell you, you wouldn't let Me go. And if I asked you the same question about Myself, you wouldn't answer Me...and still wouldn't let Me go. But I will go to sit down at the right hand of the Power on high. " " Then you are  the Son of God ?" they asked. " You're correct in saying that I am. " This was the statement that they were determined to use in their case against Him. Blasphemy was considered to be a capital offense to the Jews...and the council condemned Him to death. Handed Over to Pilate As soon as daylight came, the council led Jesus to the Roman fort in Jerusalem, called the Praetorium. The Jews were not a...

Trial Before Annas After Jesus was arrested in the garden, the Temple Guards brought Him to the home of a man named Annas - probably located next door to the Temple. John calls this man the High Priest, even though we can clearly see that title legally belonged to Caiaphas . (At this point in history, the High Priesthood was an extremely political office. Roman rulers often appointed and deposed High Priests at will, even without the consent of the people. Annas was a former  High Priest that had been removed and replaced with his son-in-law Caiaphas. Many of the Jewish people must've resented his replacement, and still considered Annas to be the rightful High Priest. This is why Jesus was taken to him first.) When the mob brought Jesus into Annas' home, His disciple John followed Him right in. Apparently, Annas' family was acquainted with John somehow, and he was allowed inside without any questions. Peter also arrived at the house, and was allowed inside when J...