Matthew 26:59 kjv
Now the chief priests, and elders, and all the council, sought false witness against Jesus, to put him to death;
Matthew 26:59 nkjv
Now the chief priests, the elders, and all the council sought false testimony against Jesus to put Him to death,
Matthew 26:59 niv
The chief priests and the whole Sanhedrin were looking for false evidence against Jesus so that they could put him to death.
Matthew 26:59 esv
Now the chief priests and the whole council were seeking false testimony against Jesus that they might put him to death,
Matthew 26:59 nlt
Inside, the leading priests and the entire high council were trying to find witnesses who would lie about Jesus, so they could put him to death.
Matthew 26 59 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Ex 20:16 | "You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor." | Ninth Commandment. |
| Deut 19:16-19 | "If a malicious witness rises up against a person to accuse him... the judges shall inquire diligently... and do to him as he had plotted to do to his brother." | Law against false witness. |
| Psa 27:12 | "Do not give me up to the will of my adversaries; for false witnesses have risen against me, and they breathe out violence." | Persecution by false witnesses. |
| Psa 35:11 | "Malicious witnesses rise up; they ask me of things that I do not know." | Unjust accusations against the innocent. |
| Isa 53:7-8 | "He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth... From oppression and judgment he was taken away; and as for his generation, who considered that he was cut off... for the transgression of my people was he stricken?" | Suffering Servant prophecy. |
| Mt 26:60 | "but found none, though many false witnesses came forward. At last two came forward." | Confirmation of search for false testimony. |
| Mt 26:65-66 | "Then the high priest tore his robes and said, 'He has uttered blasphemy! What further witnesses do we need? You have now heard his blasphemy. What is your judgment?' They answered, 'He deserves death.'" | Condemnation based on perceived blasphemy. |
| Mk 14:55 | "Now the chief priests and the whole council were seeking testimony against Jesus to put him to death, but they found none." | Mark's parallel account. |
| Lk 22:66 | "When day came, the assembly of the elders of the people, both chief priests and scribes, gathered together, and they led him to their council, and they said..." | Luke's parallel; council's formal gathering. |
| Jn 11:47-50 | "So the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered the council and said... 'it is better for you that one man should die for the people, not that the whole nation should perish.'" | Sanhedrin's pre-meditated decision to kill Jesus. |
| Acts 6:11-13 | "Then they instigated men who said, 'We have heard him speak blasphemous words against Moses and God'... And they set up false witnesses..." | False accusation pattern against Stephen. |
| Acts 7:57 | "But they cried out with a loud voice and stopped their ears and rushed together at him." | Stephen's condemnation by mob, echoes of Jesus' trial. |
| Ps 109:2 | "For wicked and deceitful mouths are opened against me, speaking against me with lying tongues." | Enemies speaking lies against the psalmist. |
| Prov 19:5 | "A false witness will not go unpunished, and he who breathes out lies will perish." | Divine judgment on false witnesses. |
| Prov 19:9 | "A false witness will not go unpunished, and he who breathes out lies will perish." | Repetition emphasizing the severity of false witness. |
| Amos 5:7 | "O you who turn justice to wormwood and cast righteousness to the ground!" | Condemnation of corrupt justice. |
| Isa 59:4 | "No one enters suit justly; no one goes to court honestly; they rely on empty pleas, they speak lies..." | State of corrupted justice and truth. |
| Jer 11:19 | "But I was like a gentle lamb led to the slaughter... 'Let us destroy the tree with its fruit, let us cut him off from the land of the living, that his name be remembered no more.'" | Plot against the innocent, foreshadowing. |
| Zech 11:12 | "Then I said to them, 'If it seems good to you, give me my wages; but if not, keep them.' And they weighed out as my wages thirty pieces of silver." | Prophecy of betrayal and financial motivation for seeking death. |
| Mt 16:21 | "From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised." | Jesus' prophecy of His suffering and death at the hands of leaders. |
| Jn 18:28-31 | "Then they led Jesus from the house of Caiaphas to the praetorium... But the Jews answered him, 'If this man were not a criminal, we would not have delivered him over to you.'" | Transfer to Pilate, indicating prior Jewish verdict. |
Matthew 26 verses
Matthew 26 59 Meaning
Matthew 26:59 reveals the malevolent intent of the chief priests and the entire Sanhedrin (the highest Jewish religious council) to convict Jesus. Their ultimate aim was not to discover truth or dispense justice according to the Law, but rather to fabricate grounds, specifically through false testimony, to secure a death sentence against Him. This verse underscores the predetermined malice and judicial corruption inherent in Jesus' trial before the Jewish authorities.
Matthew 26 59 Context
Matthew 26:59 occurs during the first phase of Jesus' trial, immediately following His arrest in Gethsemane. After being bound, Jesus is taken to the high priest Caiaphas's house, where the scribes and elders, representing the Jewish Sanhedrin, had already gathered. This meeting, held at night, was highly irregular by Jewish legal standards for capital cases, suggesting a rushed and prejudiced process. The preceding verses (Mt 26:57-58) describe Jesus being led away and Peter following at a distance into the high priest's courtyard, setting the scene for the judicial proceedings. The verse captures the fundamental purpose of this assembly: not to objectively evaluate facts, but to secure a pre-determined guilty verdict, specifically seeking an accusation worthy of death.
Matthew 26 59 Word analysis
- Now: Links the present action to the immediate past (Jesus' arrest and arrival at Caiaphas's house).
- the chief priests (οἱ ἀρχιερεῖς - hoi archiereis): These were the powerful religious aristocrats, predominantly Sadducees, who controlled the Temple economy and administration. They held significant political influence, often collaborating with Roman authorities, and deeply opposed Jesus' challenge to their authority and teaching. Their inclusion here signifies their leading role in the plot.
- and the whole Sanhedrin (καὶ ὅλον τὸ συνέδριον - kai holon to synedrion): The Sanhedrin was the supreme judicial and legislative council of the Jewish people, consisting of 70 (or 71) members, including chief priests, scribes, and elders (representatives of prominent families). "Whole" (ὅλον - holon) emphasizes the comprehensive involvement of the Jewish leadership in condemning Jesus, indicating a collective decision and consensus against Him, thereby lending the weight of the highest religious authority to the unjust trial.
- were seeking (ἐζήτουν - ezētoun): This verb is in the imperfect tense, suggesting an ongoing, active, and diligent search. It implies a persistent effort and premeditated intent. They were not waiting for testimony to naturally arise but were actively looking for (or fabricating) it, confirming their prior intent to condemn Jesus.
- false testimony (ψευδομαρτυρίαν - pseudomartyrian): This crucial term signifies a deliberate and knowing lie given under oath, or in this context, in a legal setting. Bearing false witness was strictly forbidden by the Ninth Commandment (Ex 20:16; Deut 5:20) and carried severe penalties in Mosaic Law, often reciprocal justice (Deut 19:16-19). The leadership, supposedly upholders of God's Law, openly sought to violate it in pursuit of their goal.
- against Jesus: Clearly states the specific target of their malicious search, highlighting Jesus as the innocent victim of a politically and religiously motivated agenda.
- that they might put Him to death (ἵνα θανατώσωσιν αὐτόν - hina thanatōsin auton): The phrase expresses the ultimate purpose and sinister goal of their efforts. This reveals their verdict was decided before any evidence was presented. Their goal was not justice, but elimination, emphasizing the judicial corruption and demonstrating their prior decision to condemn Jesus, needing only a pretext to do so. This also underscores their desire to end Jesus' influence and perceived threat to their status and power.
Matthew 26 59 Bonus section
The Sanhedrin's actions, as depicted in this verse, represent several flagrant violations of their own legal and procedural codes, as understood from later Jewish legal texts and rabbinic tradition:
- Night Trial: Capital cases were typically forbidden from being tried at night, to allow for sober judgment and ample time for witnesses to present their case.
- Verdict Before Trial: The clear intent to secure a death penalty before any legitimate evidence was presented fundamentally corrupted the legal process. True justice requires an objective inquiry, not a pre-meditated conviction.
- Seeking Testimony: The court was meant to hear testimony, not actively seek specific kinds of testimony (especially false ones) to support a desired outcome. This made the court into a prosecuting entity, not a neutral judge.
- Prohibition of False Witness: As the guardians of the Mosaic Law, their pursuit of false witness directly violated the Ninth Commandment, exposing their hypocrisy. This act alone should have invalidated any proceedings, highlighting the illegitimacy of Jesus' condemnation.
Matthew 26 59 Commentary
Matthew 26:59 lays bare the profound injustice at the heart of Jesus' trial before the Sanhedrin. Far from being an impartial court seeking truth, the Jewish high council actively pursued false witness, violating their own divine law. Their deliberate intent to "put Him to death" reveals that the verdict was pre-determined, reducing the trial to a mere formality for a politically and religiously motivated execution. This perversion of justice, orchestrated by the very authorities charged with upholding the Law, sets the stage for Jesus' subsequent suffering and serves as a powerful testament to the spiritual blindness and moral decay of those who rejected God's Messiah. The meticulous detailing of this illicit pursuit of false testimony highlights Jesus' innocence and the profound depths of human sin against divine righteousness, fulfilling prophecies of the suffering servant condemned without cause.