Killing Jesus: A History

stand before Caiaphas and the Pharisees, unable to explain their failure to do so. Standing among these chief priests is Nicodemus, the Pharisee from Galilee who questioned Jesus about being born again. “Why didn’t you bring him in?” the high priests demand to know.
    “No one ever spoke the way this man does,” a guard explains.
    “You mean he has deceived you also?” demand the Pharisees. Their rage is so profound that they forget their place, for only the high priests are allowed to ask questions within the Temple.
    Nicodemus steps forward. “Does our law condemn anyone without first hearing him to find out what he is doing?”
    The other religious leaders quickly turn on Nicodemus, insulting him even though he is one of their own.
    “You are from Galilee?” they say with scorn. “A prophet does not come out of Galilee.”
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    Jesus continues to teach in the Temple courts for the rest of the festival. “I am the light of the world,” he tells the crowds. “Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life.”
    “I am going away,” he adds. “Where I go you cannot come.” And soon after, he disappears. As pilgrims travel back to their homes—whether they be in Egypt, Syria, Galilee, Greece, Gaul, or Rome—they talk about Jesus. Many now believe that Jesus is indeed the Christ. Others are not sure, but they heard his pronouncements that he was sent by God and desperately want to put their faith in the Nazarene.
    Whether or not they believe Jesus is the Christ, Jews everywhere long for the coming of a messiah. When that moment arrives, Rome will be defeated and their lives will be free of taxation and want. No longer will soldiers loyal to Rome be allowed to corral Jews like cattle, then stab and beat them until the gutters of their Holy City are choked with Jewish blood, as Pilate so infamously arranged. For these people, this hope is like a lifeline, giving them courage in the face of Rome’s unrelenting cruelty.
    Only the Christ can lead them. The prophets have promised that such a man will come. And to be sure, Jesus has made several allusions to being the Jewish Messiah. He talks about his father and that he came from above. But he hasn’t come out and publicly said the words “I am the Christ.”
    Jesus has appeared in the Temple courts many times, defying the priests and Pharisees whenever given the chance. He is powerful and confident, as a leader should be. If Jesus is the Messiah who will come to save the Jewish people, then let him reveal himself. Some are growing impatient.
    The less literate among the pilgrims are waiting for a verbal pronouncement from Jesus. The more enlightened don’t need to hear the words; they are simply waiting for the moment when Jesus rides into Jerusalem on a donkey. Then and only then will they be sure that he is the one true Christ.
    “See your king comes to you, righteous and having salvation,” the prophet Zechariah predicted five hundred years ago, “gentle and riding on a donkey.”
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    Each and every member of the Sanhedrin knows the words of Zechariah. Months have passed since the end of the Feast of Tabernacles, and they gather now, seventy-one religious authorities strong, in a special meeting chamber known as the Hall of Hewn Stones. Opulent and regal, the place of legal judgment rests near the north wall of the Temple Mount. Half of it is inside the sanctuary and half outside. Doors lead into the room from either direction. As its name suggests, iron implements were used in its construction, making the hall unsuitable for ritual worship. 7
    The Sanhedrin is the ultimate Jewish religious court, a body of men even more powerful than the tetrarch Antipas. And within this chamber, Caiaphas holds the ultimate authority.
    Pontius Pilate is now safely back at his seaside palace in Caesarea, 8 destined not to return to Jerusalem until April and the Passover celebration. Jesus is reported to have left Galilee, destined for parts unknown. Witnesses say he is performing miracles once again. In one startling account out of the town of Bethany, a man named Lazarus came back from the dead. And Lazarus was not recently deceased. He was four days dead and already laid in the tomb when Jesus is said to have healed him before a great crowd.
    Lazarus’s body already reeked of decomposition when Jesus ordered that the stone covering the tomb entrance be rolled away. This was not just an act of