Charles Ellicott Commentary Matthew 26:3

"Then were gathered together the chief priests, and the elders of the people, unto the court of the high priest, who was called Caiaphas;" — Matthew 26:3 (ASV)

Then assembled together — We learn from John 11:49-50 that the plan, as far as Caiaphas was concerned, had been formed before, immediately after the raising of Lazarus. What had happened since—the kingly entry, the expulsion of the money-changers, and the way in which our Lord had baffled their attempt to entrap Him in His speech—would all serve as motives for immediate action. The meeting now assembled may have been either a formal session of the Sanhedrin or an informal conference of its chief members before the regular meeting. The former seems, on the whole, the more probable. The “chief priests” were the heads of the twenty-four courses; the elders of the people were the representatives—how elected or selected we do not know—of the citizens of Jerusalem. St. Mark and St. Luke name “scribes” instead of “elders.” These two bodies may have been identical, but it is more probable that the scribes of the Council represented the whole class of interpreters of the Law, who bore that name in its wider sense.

The high priest, who was called Caiaphas — The name was a distinctive one added to his proper name of Joseph. Of his previous history, we know that he had married the daughter of Annas, who had held the office of high priest before him (John 18:13). Annas still occupied an influential position in the Council, possibly as Nasi or President, and retained his titular pre-eminence (see the note on Luke 3:2). He had been high priest from the beginning of our Lord’s ministry and had, therefore, watched His work in Jerusalem with a jealous fear. We can probably trace his influence in the mission of the scribes from Jerusalem, whom we have seen as opponents of that ministry in Galilee (Mark 3:22; Luke 5:17). The meeting in his house implied a coalition of parties that were normally opposed, for Caiaphas and his personal adherents were Sadducees (Acts 5:17) and, as such, courted the favor of their Roman rulers (John 11:48), while the scribes were, for the most part, Pharisees and advocates for national independence.