Daily Devotions
John
The consternation of the religious hierarchy
Text: John 7 : 40-53
THE CONSTERNATION OF THE RELIGIOUS HIERARCHY
The fourth group of hostile onlookers was indeed sent by The Jews. John recorded how this group of “officers” reported back to their superiors with dismay.
“Then the officers came to the chief priests and Pharisees,
who said to them, ‘Why have you not brought Him?’
The officers answered, ‘No man ever spoke like this Man!'”
John 7:45-46
As the officers were debriefed, they maintained that they just could not arrest Jesus. They couldn’t come up with a charge against Him. Indeed, they had never heard anyone speak as Jesus did! In other words, though they were not totally convinced that Jesus was The Prophet or The Christ, nevertheless, they were impressed by the power in which Jesus spoke the Word of God!
THE ARTICULATION OF THE PHARISEES’ ARROGANT STANCE AGAINST JESUS
As the officers reported to their superiors, they must have stated the opinions of the multitude. John captured this very well.
“Then the Pharisees answered them,
‘Are you also deceived? Have any of the rulers
or the Pharisees believed in Him?
But this crowd that does not know the law is accursed.'”
John 7:47-49
The stance taken by the Pharisees was very clear. Their position may be stated along the following lines:-
1. The problem of “Deception”
As far as the Pharisees were concerned, Jesus deceived the people. Anyone who professed belief in Jesus was “deceived” by Him.
On what basis did they arrive at this conclusion? This was pure bias, if we have been following the clashes that Jesus and the Pharisees had. The latter had come off worse in the skirmishes they had with Jesus, and so they took up this arrogant stance. They would write off anybody who believed in Jesus as people who had been “deceived”.
2. The Problem within
As the ranking Jews heard the reports of their officers, they realized that perhaps some of their inner circle might have been converted. They wanted to check up two groups of people at least. Had any of the rulers professed faith in Jesus? Had any of the Pharisees believed in Him?
Their concern was not whether Jesus could be a prophet sent from God. They had already made up their minds. Jesus wasn’t the prophet promised by God, nor was He the Christ. They were determined that no one in their inner circle of “Rulers and Pharisees” had professed faith in Jesus.
3. The arrogant attitude of the Pharisees concerning the multitude
Why had the Pharisees dismissed the opinions of the multitudes in such a high-handed manner? The officers must have made reference to the opinions of the masses.
As far as the Pharisees were concerned, the masses did not know “the law”. The general opinion of the Pharisees seemed to be that of disregard, if not total disdain. What did the masses know? What did they know about the law? They never went to Rabbinic school! They were not Pharisees! They were “accursed” because they did not know the law. (The Pharisees had little or no regard of Jesus also. They saw Him as belonging to the same category as the multitudes. They were not impressed with Jesus’ ability to teach from the Scriptures).
THE DEFENCE OF NICODEMUS
Nicodemus, a well respected Pharisee and Teacher in Israel offered an opinion. This was his way of offering a mild defence of Jesus. His position was also correct insofar as Sanhedrin Council procedures were concerned. John noted,
“Nicodemus (he who came to Jesus by night,
being one of them) said to them,’Does our law judge a man
before it hears him and knows what he is doing?'”
John 7:50-51
What Nicodemus did was correct procedurally. The Sanhedrin Council was like a religious tribunal that would convene to hold trials of people accused of breaking the religious laws of the land. The usual rule was for the accused to speak for himself. The procedure adopted in the Sanhedrin Counsel afforded opportunity to the accused to defend himself, before judgment and sentence were passed. Jesus had not been given a chance to stand before the Sanhedrin Council yet. The full council had not met to discuss the life and ministry of Jesus. Yet, the Pharisees were already judging and condemning Jesus without a trial! This was wrong procedure!
THE DERIDING OF NICODEMUS
The main bulk of the Pharisees were not fazed by what Nicodemus said. They retorted,
“Are you also from Galilee? Search and look,
for no prophet has arisen out of Galilee.”
John 7:52
The Pharisees from Jerusalem were snobbish indeed. They despised people who came from Galilee, which was very close to the land inhabited by Gentiles (Tyre and Sidon were two famous cities close to Galilee). Their minds were made up concerning Jesus. He ministered much in Galilee, and so that made Him “Galilean”. That derisive word was hurled at Nicodemus as an intended slur on his scholarship!