John Gill Commentary Matthew 26

And it came to pass, when Jesus had finished all these
sayings
Meaning either all that are recorded by this evangelist, all the sermons and discourses of Christ, delivered both to the people of the Jews, and to his disciples; his conversation with the former, and his divine instructions and prudent advice to the latter, together with all his excellent parables, which are largely related in this book.

Or else what is said in the two preceding chapters, concerning the destruction of Jerusalem, and the end of the world, the state of the church, and conduct of his servants to the end of time, expressed in the parables of the virgins and talents, and concerning the last judgment and final state of all men:

he said unto his disciples ;
who now were alone with him: having finished his prophetic, and being about to enter on his priestly office, he gives his disciples some intimations of its near approach.

You know that after two days is [the feast of] the passover ,
&c.] Which was kept in commemoration of the deliverance of the Israelites from Egypt; and was typical of Christ the passover, who was now to be sacrificed for his people. This was said on Tuesday, and on the Thursday following, the passover began. Christ speaks of this as a thing well known to the disciples, as it must be, since it always began on a certain day, the fourteenth of the month Nisan; which month answered to part of our March, and part of our April; and though there was very frequently an intercalation of a whole month in a year, made by the sanhedrim, to keep their festivals regularly in the proper season of the year; yet previous public notice was always given of this, either by fixing a paper upon the door of the sanhedrim ^F18 , signifying such an intercalation made, which served for the inhabitants of Jerusalem; or by sending messengers with letters into all distant places ^F19 , acquainting them with it. So that the times of these festivals were always well known, even to the common people:

and the son of man is betrayed to be crucified ;
it must not be thought that this was equally known by the disciples, as the former; for though they might know, or at least remember, that Christ has told them that he should suffer many things of the priests, Scribes, and elders, who would deliver him to the Gentiles, to be crucified; yet might not understand that this passover was to be the time, when this should be done: by "the son of man", Christ means himself, who was truly and really man, the seed of the woman, the son of Abraham and of David; a character by which the Messiah is described in the Old Testament, (Psalms 80:17) (Daniel 7:13) , and which expresses the truth of his human nature, and also the weaknesses and infirmities he bore in it; and is very properly used here, when he is speaking of his being to be betrayed and crucified.

What he says of himself is, that he is "betrayed"; that is, will be betrayed, meaning at the passover, which was to be in two days time. Christ speaks of his being betrayed, as if it was already done; not only because it was so near being done, as there were but two days before it would be done; but because it was a sure and certain thing, being determined in the purpose of God, and foretold in prophecy. And this respects not only the act of Judas in betraying him into the hands of the chief priests, but also the delivery, as the word here used signifies, of him by them, to the Roman governors; for they, as Stephen says, were also his betrayers and murderers; yea, it may include the delivery of him by Pilate, to the Jews and Roman soldiers; and the rather, because it follows, "to be crucified"; which was a Roman, and not a Jewish punishment. This was typified by the lifting up the brazen serpent on a pole, and foretold by the prophets of the Old Testament, (Psalms 22:16) (Zechariah 12:10) , and predicted by Christ self, sometimes more covertly, (John 12:32John 12:33) , and sometimes in express words, (Matthew 20:19) , and was a very painful and shameful death, and which showed him to be made a curse for his people.

It appears from this that the crucifixion and death of Christ were not casual and contingent events, but were determined by the counsel of God, with all circumstances attending. The betraying and delivery of him were by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God. Not only his death, but the manner of it by crucifixion, was pointed out in prophecy and was a certain thing. The very time of his death was also fixed, which shows the early concern of God for the salvation of his people, and his wonderful grace and mercy to them. And it is clear from this that Christ had perfect knowledge of all this. He knew not only that he should be betrayed, but he knew from the beginning who would betray him. He not only knew that he should die, but he knew what kind of death he should die, even the death of the cross. And he knew the exact time when he should die, that it would be at the following passover, which was just at hand. He had suggested this to his disciples, and therefore he speaks of it as a thing known to them; at least what they might have known and concluded from what he had said to them (Matthew 20:18Matthew 20:19). The whole is a considerable proof of his being God omniscient. And he thought fit to remind his disciples of it, because the time drew nigh; that their memories being refreshed with it, they might be prepared for it, and not be surprised, shocked, and offended at it, when it came to pass; which shows the tender concern our Lord had for them.

FOOTNOTES:

• F18: Targum in Cant. vii. 4.
• F19: Maimon Hilch. Kiddush Hachodesh, c. 4. sect. 17.

Then assembled together the chief priests
About the same time, two days before the passover, that Jesus said these things to his disciples, as is plain from (Mark 14:1). By "the chief priests" are meant, either such who had been high priests, or such as were the heads of the twenty four courses of the priests; or rather, the principal men of the priesthood, who were chosen out of the rest, to be members of the great sanhedrim:

and the Scribes ;
the doctors, of the law, who wrote out copies of the law for the people, and interpreted it to them in a literal way: this clause is left out in the Vulgate Latin, and in Munster's Hebrew Gospel, and in the Arabic and Ethiopic versions, and in the Alexandrian copy, and some others, but is retained in, the Syriac version; and no doubt, these men had a place in this grand council:

and the elders of the people ;
These were the civil magistrates; so that this assembly consisted both of ecclesiastics and laymen, as the sanhedrim did, of priests, Levites, and Israelites ^F20. These came unto the palace of the high priest, who was called Caiaphas; his name was Joseph, but his surname Caiaphas; a word not of the same original with Cephas, as Camero thought; for these two words begin with different letters, nor are the rest the same. Now, though a king of Israel might not sit in the sanhedrim, yet an high priest might, provided he was sufficiently qualified with wisdom ^F21.

The president of this grand council at this time, should be Rabban Gamaliel, Paul's master; unless it was Caiaphas, at whose house they were: how they came to meet at the high priest's palace, deserves inquiry; since their proper and usual place of meeting, was a chamber in the temple, called Gazith ^F23, or the paved chamber. Now let it be observed, that according to the accounts the Jews themselves give, the sanhedrim removed from this chamber, forty years before the destruction of the temple ^F24; and which, as Dr. Lightfoot conjectures, was about a year and a half before the death of Christ; and as others say ^F25, four years; at least three years and a half before that time. But then, though the sanhedrim removed from the paved chamber, they met at Chanoth, "the sheds", which was a place within the bounds of the temple, in the mountain of the house; and the question still returns, how came it to pass they did not meet there?

To me the reason seems to be, that they chose not to meet there, but at the high priest's palace, because of privacy, that it might not be known they were together, and about any affair of moment; and particularly this: The high priest's house was always in Jerusalem, and he never removed from thence; nor did he go from the temple thither only in the night, or an hour or two in the day; for he had an apartment in the temple, which was called the chamber of the high priest, where he was the whole day ^F26.

FOOTNOTES:

• F20: Maimon. Hilch. Sanhedrin, c. 2. sect. 1.
• F21: lb. sect. 4.
• F23: Misn. Middot c. 5. sect. 3.
• F24: T. Bab. Sabbat, fol. 15. 1. Avoda Zara, fol. 8. 2. Sanhedrin, fol. 41. 1. Maimon. Hilch. Sanhedrin, c. 14. sect. 13. Juchasin, fol. 21. 1.
• F25: Edzard. not. in Avoda Zara, c. 1. p. 236.
• F26: Maimon. Cele Hamikdash, c. 5. sect. 7.

And consulted that they might take Jesus by subtlety
The Jews had often attempted his life, but he escaped out of their hands; they had sent officers to apprehend him, but to no purpose; they therefore meet and consult together, to form some scheme, and make use of some stratagem, that they might lay hold on him, and keep him; they were for doing this in the most private manner they could:

and kill him ;
not with their own hands, nor privately; but their scheme was to apprehend him privately, by some secret artifice, and then deliver him to the Roman governor; to put him to death according to law, publicly, for crimes they had to charge him with; hereby (Psalms 2:2) , had its accomplishment, at least in part.

And they said, not on the feast day
Upon mature deliberation, it was an agreed point with them, at least it was carried by a majority, that nothing of this kind should be attempted to be done on the feast day, on any of the days of the feast of passover, which was now at hand; though this was contrary to their common rules and usages: for, a person that sinned presumptuously, and such an one they accounted Jesus to be, they say ^F1 , they do not put him to death by the order of the sanhedrim of his own city, nor by the sanhedrim of Jabneh; but they bring him up to the great sanhedrim at Jerusalem, and keep him "until the feast", and put him to death, (lgrb) , "on a feast day"; as it is said, (Deuteronomy 17:13) , "and all the people shall hear and fear". But what influenced them at this time to take another course, is the reason following;

lest there be an uproar among the people :
they had no fear of God before their eyes, or in their hearts, only the fear of the people; many of whom believed in Christ, and others that did not, yet had a great veneration for him, having seen his miracles, and received favours from him; themselves, or their friends and relations, being cured by him of various diseases:

Besides, at the feast, people from all parts came up to Jerusalem; and they knew that large numbers from Galilee, where he had the greatest interest, would be present; and they feared, should they attempt anything of this nature at this time, the people would rise, and rescue him out of their hands.

But God had determined otherwise, and his counsel shall stand; it was his pleasure, that he should be put to death at this feast, that the truth might answer the type of the passover lamb; and that all Israel, whose males now met together, might be witnesses of it:

and so it was, that though these men had concluded otherwise in their council; yet an opportunity offering by Judas, to get him into their hands, they embrace it; and risk the danger of the people's uprising, who they found compliant enough to their wishes.

FOOTNOTES:

• F1: Misn. Sanhedrin, c. 10. sect. 4. Maimon. Hilch. Memarim, c. 3. sect 8.