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BASED on the gospels of the Greek Scriptures (popularly called the “New Testament”), literalist Pauline Christians assert that “Jesus” (Yahoshua the Nazarene) was arrested, tried and executed by a Hebrew religious court, the Sanhedrin, all on the same day.
Although the details about Yahoshua’s arrest are variedly narrated in the gospels, all the details do not make historical sense.
They contradict one another and they need to be treated with caution. It is the purpose of this column to deconstruct scriptures to discover the historical and human Yahoshua.
Today we deal with the question: “Who arrested Yahoshua?”
According to the differing narratives of the four gospels, Yahoshua was arrested by the “chief priests and the elders of the people” (Matthew 26:47), “chief priests, the officers of the temple guard, and the elders” (Luke 22:52,54), “chief priests, the teachers of the law, and the elders” (Mark 14:43), or “a detachment of soldiers and some officials from the chief priests and the Pharisee” (John 18:3,12).
The term “detachment of soldiers” (NIV) or “band of men” (KJV) used by the Gospel of John is “speira” in Greek, which is a military technical term referring to a “cohort” (the tenth part of a Roman legion which normally had 600 Roman men).
Why would both the Hebrew religious leadership and the Roman soldiers arrest him when the two authorities could arrest anyone without the consent or involvement of the other?
Alleged offences were only a concern for the Romans under their penal code when the wrong-doer was considered to have violated Roman law or posed a threat to the empire.
Subject people conducted their own affairs under their own systems, procedures and processes with little interference and involvement of the Roman Empire except that the Judean monarchy was not allowed to be restored from 538 BCE by the Persian Cyrus the Great.
Why would a subject people who had their own culture, language, legal and religious systems be aided in their way of life by the Roman Empire? Romans would only be involved in the arrest of Yahoshua if he had specifically committed a crime under the Roman penal code.
The Hebrews were a subject people and the Romans would not have been bothered by the concerns of the Hebrew leadership unless these threatened the Roman Empire.
Was Yahoshua arrested by the Romans to deal with an agitative nationalist who could cause trouble or at the request of the Roman-appointed Hebrew priestly class for undermining their religious authority?
“Sedition was a Roman crime; whatever trial there might be would be a Roman trial, and the punishment (crucifixion) a Roman punishment … It’s fair to say that the Romans were interested in arresting (Yahoshua) for crimes against Rome (sedition), and that the (Hebrews) who co-operated with Rome in this matter were motivated primarily by a desire to co-operate with Rome…
“Who arrested (Yahoshua)? Our best answer, based on the available sources: (Yahoshua) was arrested by a combined force of (Hebrews) and Roman soldiers. But as (Yahoshua) was accused of a Roman crime, and the better armed of these two groups were the Romans … the best view is that (Yahoshua’s) arrest was by Rome, with (Hebrew) collaborationist assistance…
“Not only was the arresting force (probably) made up of (Hebrew) Temple police and Roman soldiers, but it also appears that the arrest itself was ordered by (Hebrew) leadership (probably the High Priest Caiaphas) together with Roman leadership (probably the Roman prefect, Pontius Pilate).
“We’re not sure yet whether the arrest was sought by the Romans (and the Hebrews cooperated) or by the Hebrews (and the Romans cooperated).” (Larry Behrendt, “Who Arrested Jesus?”, July 2014.)
According to “The Death of the Messiah” by Raymond Brown, “If Roman troops assisted in (Yahoshua’s) arrest, it can only be because they were ‘ordered to do so by the Roman prefect,’ Pontius Pilate.
Roman troops would not do anything under the direction of Jewish authorities, and (the Gospel of) John makes this clear enough when he tells us that these troops were led by a …’chief captain’ who would have command over 1 000 soldiers.” (Quoted by Larry Behrendt.)
Yahoshua the Nazarene Rabbi was arrested by the local Roman power, Pontius Pilate, to avert political trouble on nationalist grounds.
This was done with the collaboration of Roman-appointed Hebrew religious authorities who felt threatened by Yahoshua’s popularity.
According to John 18:3,12, the arresting force constituted Roman soldiers accompanied by the Hebraic temple guard or police.
It was not an operation led by the Hebrew priestly class because the Hebrew were a subject people and therefore their “authorities did not have the power to command Roman troops”. To be a “literalist” or “believer” is to accept anything without questioning, examination or reasoning!
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