DEATH PLOT
John chapter 11 v.45 to 57
Of the religious leaders who had been actual eyewitnesses of all the details of the raising up of Lazarus from the dead, no longer depending on hearsay, many now believed on the Lord. Many of the people had already done so before (chapter 7:31), and now many more believed in the presence of this tremendous miracle (John 12:11, 17).
Some, however, though no doubt deeply impressed, did not have the courage to break away from the Pharisees without consulting them. It was a crisis for the Sanhedrin, and they held a session combining the chief priests (Sadducees) and the Pharisees. Thereafter the chief priests took the lead in the attacks on the Lord Jesus, loyally supported in this matter by their opponents (the Pharisees).
The great question was raised in the council, literally "What are we doing?" There was no mention of the raising of Lazarus as a fact, but it was evidently included in the "many signs" which so disturbed them. If He was allowed to keep on doing such things, they were alarmed at the thought that not just many, but all the people would believe on him, and the Romans would certainly come to punish the nation, regarding this as an insurrection.
Of course, even if all the people were to believe that He was the Messiah, the Romans would take no notice unless He became a political leader, such as if He agreed to be their King, as they had before wanted to make Him (chapter 6:15). It was a curious muddle, for the rulers knew that Jesus did not claim to be a political Messiah and would not be a rival to Caesar.
Having dogmatically refused to accept the "signs" for what they were - proof that this man Jesus was the Son of God - they used this fear of the consequences of their continuance to stir themselves to frenzy, as they would again with Pilate later. Ultimately they were afraid that the Romans would "take away both our place and our nation": place (job) was put before nation (patriotism). [In the course of time the Romans would indeed come, not because of the leniency of the Sanhedrin toward Jesus, but because of the uprising against Rome led by the Zealots and they would destroy both temple and city and the Sanhedrin would lose their jobs and the nation would be scattered. Future historians would say that this fate came as punishment on the Jews for their conduct toward the Lord Jesus].
Caiaphas was son-in-law of Annas and successor and high priest from 18 to 36 AD, which includes the year 29 or 30 AD when this took place. So he took the lead at this meeting. He began by exposing their ignorance, and in this he was correct (but should have included himself had he known how stupid they were all being): no solution of their problem had been offered. He then declared that it was in their interest (and that was what they cared most), that one man die for (or instead of), the people. In other words, what Caiaphas had in mind was the giving of Jesus to death to keep the nation from perishing at the hands of the Romans, and so "generously" making a sacrifice of the life of somebody else for the well-being of those present.
Caiaphas was certainly unconscious of the full implication of these prophetic words. He meant only what was mean and selfish, and was thinking only of the Jewish nation. But, following the lead of the words of Jesus about the other sheep and the one flock (chapter 10:16), the meaning of children of God who are scattered abroad is not the Diaspora (Jews scattered over the world), but the potential children of God in all lands and all ages that the death of Christ will gather "into one". This glorious idea was far beyond Caiaphas.
The raising of Lazarus brought matters to a head, so to speak. It was now probably not more than a month before the end. The Sanhedrin took the advice of Caiaphas seriously and plotted the death of Jesus. The desire to eliminate Him wasn't new (chapter 5:18; 7:19; 8:44, 59; 10:39; 11:8) but it was now revived with fresh energy due to the raising of Lazarus. The Lord saw clearly that to walk openly at this time in Jerusalem would bring on the end prematurely, for his hour was to be at the Passover, a month ahead.
So He went over to the hill country Northeast of Jerusalem, which was thinly populated, into a town, or village, called Ephraim. Its location is not certainly known now and is not mentioned elsewhere in the New Testament. Up there He was temporarily away from the threat posed by the Sanhedrin, with the company of His disciples, while facing His coming supreme sacrifice at the Passover. His public ministry, begun when John the Baptist marked Him out as the Lamb of God, concluded when He raised Lazarus from the dead.
He made a last journey up through Samaria into Galilee to join the great caravan that crossed over into Perea and came down on the eastern side of the Jordan opposite Jericho and then marched up the mountain road to Bethany and Bethphage just beside Jerusalem (Matthew 19:1-20:34; Mark 10:1-52; Luke 17:11-19:28).
Almost as much time is spent, in this gospel, on the last forty-eight hours before the Lord's death as on the first thirty-two years, eleven months, three weeks, and five days of His life. Indeed, this is the pattern shared by all the Gospels. All emphasis is placed on the last eight days before His crucifixion.
Of the eighty-nine chapters in the four Gospels only six cover the first thirty years of His life, yet twenty-seven, or about one-third of the Gospel records, deal with the last eight days of His life and place the emphasis on the death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. This is not surprising, for that comprises the gospel (1 Corinthians 15:1-4).
People came "from the country", meaning from outside of Jerusalem, virtually from all parts of the world, in order to go through ceremonial purification, before the great feast of the Passover.
The religious authorities had been seeking Jesus six months before, at the feast of tabernacles (John 7:11), but now they really meant to kill him, and there was new excitement due to the recent raising of Lazarus and to the public order for His arrest. They wondered whether He would dare to come to the feast in the present circumstances.
One would think that the crowning miracle of the raising up of Lazarus would have turned these sceptic religious leaders to the Lord Jesus, but it did not. Our Lord had said previously ". . . If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rise from the dead" (Luke 16:31). That is the reason why the Lord does not come down in spectacular display, or go about performing miracles today.
After the church leaves the earth, during the Great Tribulation period, and into the Millennium, there will be a period of great miracles, but even that will not convince people. Today we are asked in a quiet way to put our trust in Him. People complain that the crowd isn't going after Jesus. But it never did! He died, He was buried, He rose again from the dead, and that is the gospel. We don't need a miracle. The problem is not in the lack of evidence. The problem is the unbelief of man.
The chief priests at that time were largely Sadducees who were the "liberals" in that they did not accept miracles or the supernatural, which included resurrection. The Pharisees were the religious conservatives and the political rightists of that day. The two parties were absolutely opposed to each other in every way; yet they joined together in their hatred of Jesus Christ and in their determination to put Him to death.
This might be labelled the first ecumenical movement. Today the majority is joining in an attempt to get rid of Christ as He is revealed in the Word of God.
R David Jones
45 Then many of the Jews who had come to Mary, and had seen the things Jesus did, believed in Him.
46 But some of them went away to the Pharisees and told them the things Jesus did.
47 Then the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered a council and said, "What shall we do? For this Man works many signs.
48 "If we let Him alone like this, everyone will believe in Him, and the Romans will come and take away both our place and nation."
49 And one of them, Caiaphas, being high priest that year, said to them, "You know nothing at all,
50 "nor do you consider that it is expedient for us that one man should die for the people, and not that the whole nation should perish."
51 Now this he did not say on his own authority; but being high priest that year he prophesied that Jesus would die for the nation,
52 and not for that nation only, but also that He would gather together in one the children of God who were scattered abroad.
53 Then, from that day on, they plotted to put Him to death.
54 Therefore Jesus no longer walked openly among the Jews, but went from there into the country near the wilderness, to a city called Ephraim, and there remained with His disciples.
55 And the Passover of the Jews was near, and many went from the country up to Jerusalem before
the Passover, to purify themselves.
56 Then they sought Jesus, and spoke among themselves as they stood in the temple, "What do you think - that He will not come to the feast?"
57 Now both the chief priests and the Pharisees had given a command, that if anyone knew where He was, he should report it, that they might seize Him.