In this case, silence would have been by itself an admission of guilt. The climax of the trial had been
reached. Another fact is if Y‘shua did not speak here, he would have broken a law; which then in turn would
have made him a sinner.
―Again the high priest asked him, and said unto him, Art thou the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?‖ (Mark
14:61), asked Caiaphas. As Y‘shua replied, he knew that he was signing his own death warrant.
―Jesus said, I am: and ye shall see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the
clouds of heaven.‖ (Mark 14:62)
Y‘shua gave Caiaphas all that he wished for and more. In reply to the question, ―Art thou the Christ?‖ Y‘shua
said emphatically ―I am.‖
Yes He was the Messiah, the Son of YHWH. But He added to this: He was the one who was going to sit at
the right hand of YHWH. He was the one who would come on the clouds of heaven. At this stage, the judges
could scarcely believe their ears. The accused man, they reckoned, had convicted himself out of his own
mouth. No need of further witnesses: this was plain blasphemy, and they have heard it for themselves.
In later codifications of the Jewish law, blasphemy was limited to the pronouncement of the ̳unutterable
name‘ of YHWH of Israel. The name spelt with four consonants YHWH, from which ̳YaHoWaH‘ was derived
from many years later.
There is no suggestion that Y‘shua pronounced this name; but his language, to those who grasped its
support, implied that he was the assessor and peer of the Most High. If this did not amount to constructive
blasphemy, it is difficult to imagine what did count as such. If Y‘shua had contended himself with claiming to
be the Messiah, the pharisaic members of the court might have deplored his claim. They would not have
regarded it as grounds for a severe sentence and they would probably not have been happy about handing
him over to the Romans. But his additional words altered the situation.
It was not safe for the city or the nation to let such a ̳blasphemer‘ go free, and YHWH would not hold them
guiltless if they took no steps to restrain him. When Y‘shua made the claim that he was the Son of YHWH,
Caiaphas the High Priest tore his clothes. This was a sign of great grief or shock. The High Priest was
forbidden to tear his garments even when mourning for the dead, according to the Law of Moses.
―And he that is the high priest among his brethren, upon whose head the anointing oil was poured, and that
is consecrated to put on the garments, shall not uncover his head, nor rend his clothes.‖ (Lev 21:10)
The rest of the Sanhedrin knew the law and realised that Caiaphas had broken the law with this act; but even
worse is the fact that the High Priest had to personally oversee the Passover sacrifices later during the day in
his priestly gear. But Y‘shua (according to the Jews) had now incriminated himself, and all the attention was
focused on him.
―Ye have heard the blasphemy‖, said Caiaphas; and then he asked, ―what think ye?‖ There was only one
answer: the verdict was unanimous.
―And they all condemned him to be guilty of death.‖ (Mark 14:64)
Once Y‘shua was condemned, the Sanhedrin showed its contempt of its apparently monstrous behaviour.
Some began to spit at Him, they blindfolded Him, struck Him with their fists and said, ―Prophesy‖; and the
guards took and beat Him.
―And some began to spit on him, and to cover his face, and to buffet him.‖ The reference to blindfolding
would agree with an ancient prophecy that when the Messiah comes he would be able to judge by smell
without the need of sight. In other words, the members of the Sanhedrin were saying, ―and to say unto him,
Prophesy: and the servants did strike him with the palms of their hands.‖ (Mark 14:65) So, by bending the
rules of law in every conceivable direction, Caiaphas had got his own way: Y‘shua had been condemned to
death.
The trial by night was over. But because under Jewish law no case involving the death sentence could be
tried at night, it was now necessary to re-assemble the whole Sanhedrin early in the morning to ratify what
had already taken place. There was no time to lose. Caiaphas had to make sure that no conscientious
member of the Sanhedrin raised an objection about the previous night‘s proceedings. Also, it was necessary