John Calvin Commentary Matthew 26:5

"But they said, Not during the feast, lest a tumult arise among people." — Matthew 26:5 (ASV)

But they said, Not during the festival. They did not think it a suitable time, until the festival was past and the crowd had dispersed.

From this, we infer that although those hungry dogs eagerly opened their mouths to devour Christ, or rather, rushed furiously upon him, God still withheld them by a secret restraint from doing anything by their own deliberation or at their pleasure. To the extent of their power, they seek to delay until another time; but, contrary to their desire, God hastens the hour.

And it is very important for us to maintain that Christ was not unexpectedly dragged to death by the violence of his enemies, but was led to it by the providence of God. For our confidence in the propitiation is founded on the conviction that He was offered to God as that sacrifice which God had appointed from the beginning.

Therefore, He determined that His Son should be sacrificed on the very day of the passover, so that the ancient figure might give way to the only sacrifice of eternal redemption. Those who had no other intention than to ruin Christ thought that another time would be more appropriate. But God, who had appointed Him to be a sacrifice for the expiation of sins, selected a suitable day for contrasting the substance with its shadow by placing them together. From this, we also obtain a brighter display of the fruit of Christ’s suffering.