Mark 14:56

For many bare false witness against him, but their witness agreed not together. FOR MANY BARE FALSE WITNESS AGAINST HIM. From their debasing themselves to "seek" them, we are led to infer that they were bribed to bear false witness; though there are never wanting sycophants enough, ready to sell themselves for nought, if they may but get a smile from these above them: see a similar scene in Acts 6:11. How is one reminded here of that complaint, "False witnesses did rise up: they laid to my charge things that I knew not!" (). BUT THEIR WITNESS AGREED NOT TOGETHER. If even two of them had been agreed, it would have been greedily enough laid hold of, as all that the law insisted upon even in capital cases ...

53-65 We have here Christ's condemnation before the great council of the Jews. Peter followed; but the high priest's fire-side was no proper place, nor his servants proper company, for Peter: it was an entrance into temptation. Great diligence was used to procure false witnesses against Jesus, yet their testimony was not equal to the charge of a capital crime, by the utmost stretch of their law. He was asked, Art thou the Son of the Blessed? that is, the Son of God. For the proof of his being the Son of God, he refers to his second coming. In these outrages we have proofs of man's enmity to God, and of God's free and unspeakable love to man....

See this fully explained in the notes at Matthew 26:57....

EXPOSITION MARK 14:1 NOW AFTER TWO DAYS WAS THE FEAST OF THE PASSOVER AND THE UNLEAVENED BREAD; literally, _the passover and the unleavened _τό πάσχα καὶ τὰ ἄζυμα. It was one and the same festival. The killing of the Paschal lamb took place on the first of the seven days during which the festival lasted, and during the whole of which they used unleavened bread. Josephus describes it as "the festival of the unleavened, called _Phaska _by the Jews." THE CHIEF PRIESTS AND THE SCRIBES. St. Matthew (Matthew 26:3) says, "The chief priests and the elders of the people." The two classes in the Sanhedrim who actually combined to put our Lord to death were those here mentioned by St. Mark. They sought how th

FOR MANY BARE FALSE WITNESS AGAINST HIM,.... The word "false", is not expressed in the Syriac, Persic, and Ethiopic versions: which only signify, that they bore witness against him, accused him of, and laid many things to his charge: BUT THEIR WITNESS AGREED NOT TOGETHER; which showed it to be false, and so not to be admitted; for witnesses were to be as one in their testimony, or not to be received: the, rules concerning them with the Jews, are these l; "the tradition is, for ever let not their testimony be joined together, unless they both see, כאחד, "as one": says R. Joshua ben Korcha, even one after another; and their testimony is not ratified in the council, until they both witness "as one".'' Though this is not much the sense of the passage here; it was not the falsehood of their testimony, which this council was unconcerned about, or the contradiction that was in it, which does...

Mark 14:27. _And Jesus saith unto them, All ye shall be offended because of me this night: for it is written, I will smite the shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered. But after that I am risen, I will go before you into Galilee. But Peter said unto him, Although all shall be offended, yet will not I._ There was love in that utterance, and so far it was commendable; but there was also much self-trust in it, but there was great presumption, for Peter dared even to contradict his Master to his face; and, at the same time, he contradicted the inspired Scripture, for Jesus had told the disciples that it was written that the sheep should be scattered. Yet Peter boldly denied both what God had written and what Christ had said. Alas! there is nothing of evil which proud self-confidence will not make us do. God save us from such a spirit as that!...

PART IV. GIVING HIS LIFE A RANSOM FOR -- CHAPTER S 14-15. Chapter 14 _ 1. Seeking by Craft to put Him to Death. (Mark 14:1 .Matthew 26:2; Luke 22:1 .)_ 2. The Anointing. (Mark 14:3. Matthew 26:6; John 12:1) 3. Judas offers to betray Him. (Mark 14:10 .Matthew 26:14;...

THE TRIAL BEFORE THE SANHEDRIN. This trial is irregular in many ways. It was unlawful to hold such a trial at night. It is not, therefore, unhistorical (Montefiore, i. 345f.). Mk. speaks of the whole Sanhedrin meeting and of all condemning Jesus (Mark 14:55; Mark 14:64). This is his customary popular exaggeration, prompted here by desire to throw the guilt on all the religious leaders of Judaism (_cf. Mark 15:1_). The trial is really a preliminary investigation a search for a charge on which Jesus may be condemned and handed over to Pilate. It is not certain that the Sanhedrin had lost the power of capital punishment, but under the circumstances, the leaders desired to thrust the responsibility for the death-sentence on to Pilate. W

THE LAST ACT BEGINS (Mark 14:1-2)...

BARE. were bearing. WITNESS. testimonies. AGREED NOT. were not alike.. Divine supplement, here....