Matthew 26:1 – 5

Leaders of the Jews Plot to Kill Jesus

1 Now it came to pass, when Jesus had finished all these sayings, that He said to His disciples,

2 “You know that after two days is the Passover, and the Son of Man will be delivered up to be crucified.”

3 Then the chief priests, the scribes, and the elders of the people assembled at the palace of the high priest, who was called Caiaphas,

4 and plotted to take Jesus by trickery and kill Him.

5 But they said, “Not during the feast, lest there be an uproar among the people.”

Jesus had finished his speeches he had been making to His disciples since His last visit to the temple.

His work on earth was coming to an end and he needed to turn His attention to the events which were rapidly approaching.

The Passover was a feast which had been instituted in Egypt on the night of the slaying of the firstborn Egyptians (Exodus 12). It was an annual feast of which all of the males of the Jewish nation were required to attend in the city of Jerusalem. It was to commemorate the passing over of the death angel sparing the Jews who had followed God's instructions. (Read those instructions in Exodus) The date was to be Friday the 14th of the first month. Different sects of the Jews had differing opinions about the correct date. Jesus celebrated the Passover two days earlier than the main stream Jews as he agreed with the other sects.

The leaders of the Jews assembled the Sanhedrin council which was the highest court of the Jews in the time of Christ. They handled the more important cases and was presided over by the high-priest. They could pronounce a death sentence, but it could not be carried out unless the Roman procurator or governor confirmed the sentence.

The council could not sentence Jesus to death so they were plotting to take him by using trickery and then murder him.

The only real concern the Jews had was losing their popularity with the people. Most of the common people considered Jesus to be a prophet from God and to have Him murdered would cause an uproar which would backfire on the Jewish leaders.