Creator, Father, King #228

He was oppressed and treated harshly, yet he never said a word.

THE SPITEFUL SPIT OF wicked men dribbled down the innocent man’s face. His cheeks turned red from the insulting slaps. His jaw, smarting from furious punches, began to bruise and swell.

The trials of Jesus had begun.

From his arrest in Gethsemane until Pontius Pilate sentenced him to death, Jesus endured a series of bogus legal hearings that were hastily thrown together to give the pretense of fairness to the murderous agenda of scheming, “lawless men” (Acts 2:23, ESV).

Sometime between the late hours of Thursday night and Friday morning of Passion Week, Jesus experienced the following:

• a brief hearing before Annas, the father-in-law of Caiaphas, the high priest (John 18:12-14, 19-24)
• a trial before Caiaphas and the Jewish Sanhedrin, where false witnesses made counterfeit claims against him (Matthew 26:57-67; 27:1-2)
• an initial trial before Pilate, the Roman governor of Judea (Matthew 27:11-14; Luke 23:1-5)
• a hearing before Herod Antipas, a provincial ruler, where Jesus was falsely accused and mocked (Luke 23:6-12)
• a second trial before Pilate, where Jesus was ultimately and unjustly condemned to die (Luke 23:13-25)

Throughout these judicial proceedings—if you can even call them that—Jesus was mocked, spat upon, slapped, and punched in the face. Soldiers stripped off his clothing, forced him to wear a scarlet robe, and jeeringly paraded him around as a captured king. A crown of sharp thorns was pressed into his scalp. Worse yet, he was scourged, a cruel form of Roman punishment that went beyond traditional whipping (see tomorrow’s devotion for more details).

Then the sinless Son of God was led off to die.

What’s It Mean?

The whole, horrible sequence was bitterly ironic. The Lord of Justice received none. The Prince of Peace was attacked. The Holy One endured complete mockery. The Righteous Savior suffered indignity at the hands of wicked men.

Jesus could have defended himself. He could have called innumerable legions of angels to overwhelm the legions of Rome (Matthew 26:50-53). Instead, he chose to remain silent. The Savior who will strike down the nations with only a word from his mouth (Revelation 19:15) held his tongue (see today’s verse).

The Son suffered unspeakable injustice because it was the Father’s will (Isaiah 53:10). He did this because it was the only way human sins could be atoned for. He did this for you.

Now What?

Read about all of Jesus’ trials (in the Bible passages listed above) to see what he endured for your sake.

Did You Know?

One day, Jesus will return as a fearsome warrior to judge the wicked. He is no longer silent! See Revelation 19:11-21.