Lazarus part 7 - John 11:49-57

Apparently there is some debate among the chief priests as to what should be done because Caiaphas, “being the high priest that same year, said unto them, Ye know nothing at all.” Let’s get a little background on Caiaphas. That the time of Christ there were two main sects of Judaism, Pharisees and Sadducees. The Pharisees we’ve heard about a lot, and they were the strictly observant, ritualistic pious sect. The Sadducees, however, luxuriated in wealth and abundance because, from what I understand, they believed that the here and now is all that mattered because there was no resurrection. Caiaphas was a Sadducee, so he had a “take all you can get, when you can get it” type of attitude. While doing some research about the man, I came across an article entitled “Joseph Caiaphas” from the newadvent.org. We are given the background of his appointment to the position of “High Priest” saying, “According to Josephus, Caiaphas was appointed High-Priest of the Jews by the Roman procurator Valerius Gratus, the predecessor of Pontius Pilate, about A.D. 18, and removed from that office by the procurator Vitellius, shortly after he took charge of affairs in Palestine, A.D. 36.”

If the High Priest was an office dictated by the Romans, then it would make sense that the positions of chief priests would be filled by those whom Caiaphas, beholden to the Romans, thought would help balance the relationship between Romans and Jews. It makes sense that the Romans created this group of “chief priests” in order to keep the people in line through religious persuasion, after all, if your own religious leadership is telling you to chill out and let the Romans do their thing, it’s much more persuasive than a bunch of soldiers coming to your house and kicking all your stuff over. It makes sense as a colonizing strategy. Now the statement about the Romans destroying the Jewish nation makes so much more sense. It would be a very difficult position to be in, the rewards for doing well would be astronomical, but the punishment for displeasing the Roman officials would be as equally horrific. It’s kind of like drug dealers, it always amazes me, like in movies, when someone gets into the drug game or trafficking game and their first order is to kill someone. I always think, “what do you think is going to happen to you when you’re on the outs? They are going to get some young buck to come kill you.” If they’ll do it with you, they’ll do it to you.

Looking at the chief priests as advocates for Rome changes the whole perspective on their loyalties. Their loyalty wasn’t to the people they were supposed to protect, they weren’t trying to get rid of Jesus because they didn’t recognize him as a weak Messiah. They were loyal to Rome because of what that partnership had given them, and also because of what would happen to them if they weren’t. The article further points out that the chief priests “show a disdain for others, and a determination to get rid of this man who was displeasing to him, without any consideration of the justice of his cause.” Again, demonstrating that their loyalty was to Rome and not to the Jewish people or even to justice or truth.

With his statement “ye know nothing at all,” JTC infers that he was “most likely addressed to the Pharisees of the Sanhedrin; Caiaphas was a Sadducee.” But what is most interesting is what he says next, which John tells us is a prophecy: “nor consider that it is expedient for us, that one man should die for the people, and that the whole nation perish not.” John finishes, “he prophesied that Jesus should die for that nation; And not for that nation only, but that also he should gather together in one the children of God that were scattered abroad.” How can Caiaphas, a wicked man, have the spirit of prophecy?

The IM answers saying, “Rather than exercising righteous leadership, (the chief priests) employed priestcraft, fulfilling the prophet of Jacob uttered centuries earlier: ‘because of priestcrafts and iniquities, they at Jerusalem will stiffen their necks against him (Jesus Christ), that he be crucified.’ Elder Bruce R. McConkie explained how, at this meeting, Heavenly Father was able to use Caiaphas, an unrighteous leader serving as the high priest, to declare His Son’s redeeming mission: ‘Caiaphas began to speak apparently intending to advocate the death of Jesus as a means of avoiding the supposed ruin that would come upon their nation through his teachings. The high priest’s reasoning seemingly was, ‘it is better that one man should perish’ than that the Jewish nation with all its philosophies and beliefs should be restricted further by Rome through further tumultuous conditions. But Deity decreed that Caiaphas affirm his Son’s divinity. Departing from his almost invarying practice of using only righteous persons to give his word to men, God sent the spirit of prophecy to Caiaphas, who was thereby led to say: ‘Ye are ignorant of the divine will where this man is concerned. He has come to work out the infinite and eternal atonement, to be sacrificed for the sins of the world. He shall die for us and for all the people of our nation, and not only for us and our nation, but for all men everywhere. Because of his death and by the preaching of his gospel, he shall gather together into one fold all the obedient among the children of God in all nations, for salvation is by and in and of and through him.’”