18 JESUS’ JEWISH LATE NIGHT TRIAL-Jesus was hated for no purposeful reason. To experience such disfavour for no cause hurts emotionally, and Jesus did suffer emotional and mental misery because of unprovoked merciless attacks and by false rumours spread about Him amongst the Officials. The Religious Leaders’ hatred of Jesus was causeless except jealousy of the attention from the crowds as well as He had openly accused them of treachery to God and the people.

Three charges that were bought against Jesus. 1) He threatened to destroy The Temple, 2) He claimed to be the Son of God, 3) He stirred up the Jewish people against Caesar of Rome. Some members of the Sanhedrin had worked frantically to locate and train lying witnesses against Jesus. The carefully prepared witnesses could not agree in their testimony. The false testimonies of the first and third charge against Jesus were not successful, therefore according to Legislation the matter should have been dropped, also according to the Jewish Law, the false witnesses who had failed in their accusations because of contradictions, should have been put to death themselves.

The accusers were unjustly seeking Jesus' death, God's anointed Son. Witnesses who do not tell the truth are not only shameful to themselves but to all who know them, and they invited God's Judgment upon them. The Chief Priest and his Officials had spat in Jesus' face, struck Him, slapped Him while Jesus remained silent before His accusers, except answering the claim to be The Son of God.

Criminals were disrespected by beating and the pulling out of their beards, as well as being spat upon and mocked, Jesus suffered the same humiliation. Contempt and loathing He submitted Himself to it all. No one realized he was suffering for the sins of others and not for His own.

Jesus did not try to justify Himself before his enemies. He was a servant, willing to die for sinners, it marked his integrity, dignity, virtue, honour and supremacy.

Throughout the night Peter while warming himself around an open fire that was lit in the court yard denied Christ, his Lord, three times just as Jesus had told him he would earlier. All of His disciples were afraid of being arrested for keeping company with the accused, so they scattered and deserted Him, fulfilling the prophecies of Psalm 41:9. 35:11, Zechariah 13:7.

The Jewish trial was held at night hoping that Jesus' supporters would be unable to protest His arrest. Most of the people in Jerusalem and those who had travelled to the city for the Passover and to see Jesus had been asleep and were unaware of what the jealous Jewish Teachers were doing, except for a few local supporters who were loyal to the hypocritical priests. All these incidents that happened to Jesus were fulfilled as prophesied by Isaiah 50:6, 53:7, Zechariah 11:13, Jeremiah 18:1-4,19:1-4, Psalm 35:11.

The men who were guarding Jesus continued to mock and beat him. They blindfolded him and they said many insulting things to him. The Council of the Elders of the people, both the Chief Priests and Teachers of the Law, all met together, and Jesus was led before them and under oath admitted to them that soon He would be sitting at The Right Hand of The Father and affirmed that He was God's Son, knowing that this would lead to death. The Sanhedrin condemned Him for that statement, this constituted blasphemy, a capital offence under Jewish law but they did not pronounce a sentence. After the condemnation the group broke up into wild disorder.

Roman leaders allowed conquered people such as the Jews to follow their own legal system so long as they did not abuse their privileges. The Romans did not give the Jews the right of capital punishment for the accusation of blasphemy. The Jews had to convince a Roman judge that their demand for capital punishment was justified.

The Jewish Leaders were determined to seek Jesus' death when they held Him for examination.

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