1. The First Trial
After Jesus was arrested in the Garden of Gethsemane, the Temple Police took Him straight to Jerusalem, to the Palace of Annas.
Annas was no longer the High Priest. He’d been removed from that post and by this time, his son-in-law Caiaphas held that post. With that said, for all intents and purposes, Annas was still running the show. That’s evidenced by the fact that Jesus was led first to his home after being betrayed by Judas Iscariot.

Jesus arrived at Anna Palace late that evening and a little after midnight, Annas strolls in, in full regalia, and approaches Jesus.

John 18:19-21 “The high priest then asked Jesus about His disciples and His doctrine. Jesus answered him, “I spoke openly to the world. I always taught in synagogues and in the temple, where the Jews always meet, and in secret I have said nothing. Why do you ask Me? Ask those who have heard Me what I said to them. Indeed they know what I said.”

While Jesus’s answer may seem sarcastic at the surface – what He does here is point out that Annas had just broken at least 6 Jewish laws with this little sham of a trial.
This “trial” is taking place at night, during Passover, in secret, away from the Temple, no witnesses present to testify on Jesus behalf and Annas wasn’t even the actual High Priest. All of these are violations of Jewish law.
Though factually correct, Jesus’ remarks weren’t well received by the Temple Police who surrounded Him.

John 18:22-23 “And when He had said these things, one of the officers who stood by struck Jesus with the palm of his hand, saying, “Do You answer the high priest like that?” Jesus answered him, “If I have spoken evil, bear witness of the evil; but if well, why do you strike Me?”

Obviously, the object of this trial wasn’t to seek and find truth and certainly wasn’t to render a just verdict – they’d already decided what the outcome would be.
But with Jesus pointing out that this corrupt trial wasn’t legally binding no matter what they decided, and it wouldn’t fly among the Jews because is made a mockery of their law and customs, there was no need to proceed any further. Annas had no need to keep flexing His muscles.

John 18:24…Without another word, “Then Annas sent Him bound to Caiaphas the high priest”

2. The Second Trial
The trial at Annas Palace lasted only minutes. The gates suddenly & surprisingly opened and a the guards led Jesus through the courtyard and to the home of Caiaphas, who’d assembled most of the Sanhedrin
The Sanhedrin were the Supreme Court of Judaism – a 70 member tribunal made up of elder statesmen, and experts in Mosaic Law. The were the ruling authority among the Jewish people.

Other than being responsible for the day-to-day operation of the Temple, they ruled on pressing civic matters, cases where religious misconduct were charged and on rare occasion, they’d hear capital cases although, no matter their ruling, only the Roman government could carry out a death sentence.
In the first trial, aside from the Temple Guard that brought Jesus to Annas home, Annas was the sole questioner.
Here at this trial, most, if not all of the Sanhedrin were present to question Jesus. That being said, let’s not mistake this trial for one that was legit – it’s still being held in secret, at night, at Caiaphas Palace, and with no advocate for the accused present. All violations of Jewish law.

And not unlike the 1st trial – The outcome was predetermined.

Inside Caiaphas’ Palace, the Sanhedrin pressed their case against Jesus:
Mark 14:55-59 “Now the chief priests and all the council sought testimony against Jesus to put Him to death but found none. For many bore false witness against Him, but their testimonies did not agree. Then some rose up and bore false witness against Him, saying, “We heard Him say, ‘I will destroy this temple made with hands, and within three days I will build another made without hands.’ ” But not even then did their testimony agree”

The witnesses brought in by the Sanhedrin to testify against Jesus were referencing words that Jesus spoke in reply to Sadducees who had questioned the authority by which He spoke and acted on
They are referencing Jesus response to the Sadducees when they questioned him after He’d exposed Annas corrupt racketeering.

Jesus answered their objections in John 2:19-21 “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” Then the Jews said, “It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and will You raise it up in three days?” But He was speaking of the temple of His body”
Jesus was talking about His own future resurrection, of course but they actually added a phrase to His reply that would implicate Him as a blasphemer. The words of Jesus were clear, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up”.
However, in their sworn testimony, the false witnesses included the phrase “made with hands”.
This phrase was a Jewish saying that spoke of “anything built for the purpose of idolatry”. These words made it look as though Jesus was saying that the revered Temple was constructed for the purpose of idolatry. This sent the Sanhedrin into a rage.

The High Priest, Caiaphas, pressed further Mark 16:61-64
“The high priest asked Him, saying to Him, “Are You the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?” Jesus said, “I am. And you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the power, and coming with the clouds of heaven.” Then the high priest tore his clothes and said, “What further need do we have of witnesses? You have heard the blasphemy! What do you think?”. And they all condemned Him to be deserving of death.”

When Jesus responded to the High Priest question of “Are you the Christ” by saying, “ I am”, and then quoting from the Psalms and Daniel to re-enforce His Messianic claim, Caiaphas tore his robe and charged Him with blasphemy. The Sanhedrin agreed.

This hearing now concluded, by their own rules, they were supposed to withhold judgment, dismiss in pairs and discuss the case privately to prepare for the official ruling to take place on the next day
Instead, they took time to pour their fury out on Jesus, hit him with their fist and spit in His face.

3. The Third Trial
By the time the Sanhedrin had adjourned, the sun was rising on the next day. They’d found their charge: one that would appease the Jews and also bring the wrath of Rome down upon Jesus. He’d not only blasphemed God and His Temple but He claimed to be the Messiah – a King – A DIRECT THREAT TO CAESAR

Caiaphas assembled the council in the Temple – although they still offered to advocate for the accused and were holding court during Passover, for the first time since this fiasco started, they were at least observing some their own law: this trial was not being held in secret (public was invited), it’s in the light of day, and is being conducted at the Temple.

Luke 22:66-71 “As soon as it was day, the elders of the people, both chief priests and scribes, came together and led Him into their council, saying, “If You are the Christ, tell us.” But He said to them, “If I tell you, you will by no means believe. And if I also ask you, you will by no means answer Me or let Me go. Hereafter the Son of Man will sit on the right hand of the power of God.” Then they all said, “Are You then the Son of God?” So He said to them, “You rightly say that I am.” And they said, “What further testimony do we need? For we have heard it ourselves from His own mouth.”

Court adjourned with the religious leaders convinced that they now had enough of a case to satisfy both the Jewish crowd AND the Roman government. To Caesarea they go. It’s time to convince the Romans to carry out capital punishment and bring an end to Jesus.

4. The Fourth Trial
In AD 26, the Roman Emperor Tiberius made a surprising move. He left Rome to live permanently on a resort Island called Capri. He left his most trusted advisor in Rome, to be an ambassador of sorts, carrying out the edicts and agenda that he would send him from his vacation home on the beach.
Sejanus was his name – He’d worked hard to earn the trust of the Emperor
He’d taken a small regiment of soldiers called the imperial guard and transforming them into what had become one of the most powerful and influential branches of the Roman Government, the Praetorium guard. As a hungry, up and coming Roman politician, this was an impressive thing to have on your resume.
During his meteoric rise to political power, he’d quickly and decidedly eliminated anyone who might stand in his way…including the Emperors own son, Drusus (unbeknownst to Tiberius, of course)
Of the many responsibilities that he was entrusted with was appointed rulers over the various regions that Roma controlled, the most coveted being Procurator of Judea.
There was lots of risk for anyone who assumed this role as the Jews and their customs were a massive thorn in the flesh of the Romans. Yet, the political rewards for anyone who could bring stability to this region were considered worth the risk.
Sejanus had just the man to appoint to this job. One of his first official acts as the figurehead leader in Rome was to appoint one of his few friends as the Ruler over Judea. His name was Pontius Pilate.
Pilate is described by a historian of that day named Philo of Alexandria, “A man of inflexible disposition, as merciless as he is obstinate.”
While that may sound like a character flaw to us, to Sejanus, those qualities perfectly fit the bill for being tasked with governing the Jews. It didn’t take Pilate long to flex his muscles and seek to intimidate the Jews in Jerusalem, but they didn’t bite. In fact, his early posturing almost brought a swift end to his rule as word of his failure and the subsequent tension in Jerusalem because of his missteps spread throughout the empire.
Soon after, he faced another major obstacle. The emperor Tiberius had learned that Sejanus had been the one to assassinate his son and he promptly responded by having him executed and dragged through the streets of Rome. Pilates only ally, the very person who’d appointed his ruler over Judea, was gone.
With Jerusalem swelled with upwards of three million Jews who had gathered for the Passover festival, Pilates tensions were high. He was on red alert, to say the least. He couldn’t afford to have another issue in the region.
Those tensions must have turned to outright terror when 70 fully robed and completely agitated members of the Sanhedrin knocked on the door of the Praetorium and demanded an audience with him.
Pilate has to meet them outside, in a courtyard because they believed entering into a Pagan courthouse would make them impure. They’re standing in a semi-circle around a chained prisoner, his face swollen and caked with dried blood.
John 18:29-31 “Pilate then went out to them and said, “What accusation do you bring against this Man?” They answered and said to him, “If He were not an evildoer, we would not have delivered Him up to you.” Then Pilate said to them, “You take Him and judge Him according to your law.”. Therefore, the Jews said to him, “It is not lawful for us to put anyone to death,”
The original charge of blasphemy was a religious matter and Rome didn’t delve into cases like that.
Surprisingly, Rome was actually flexible when it came to religion. They themselves worshipped hundreds of gods so they generally offered freedom to worship, so long as it didn’t lead to local squabbles and threaten stability in the region.
The Sanhedrin were well aware that Rome wouldn’t rule on a religious case so they’d have to present Pilate with charges that portrayed Jesus as an enemy to the state.
Luke 23:2 “And they began to accuse Him, saying, “We found this fellow perverting the nation, and forbidding to pay taxes to Caesar, saying that He Himself is Christ, a King.”
That was enough of a charge to arrest Pilates attention.

John 18:33-38 “Then Pilate entered the Praetorium again, called Jesus, and said to Him, “Are You the King of the Jews?” Jesus answered him, “Are you speaking for yourself about this, or did others tell you this concerning Me?” Pilate answered, “Am I a Jew? Your own nation and the chief priests have delivered You to me. What have You done?” Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, My servants would fight, so that I should not be delivered to the Jews; but now My kingdom is not from here.” Pilate therefore said to Him, “Are You a king then?” Jesus answered, “You say rightly that I am a king. For this cause I was born, and for this cause I have come into the world, that I should bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice.” Pilate said to Him, “What is truth?” And when he had said this, he went out again to the Jews, and said to them, “I find no fault in Him at all.”

What a quandary. Standing before Pilate was a man that was obviously innocent of any crimes against the state AND a group of the most revered leaders in Judaism demanding that He be executed.
Again, there’s no wiggle room for Pilate. He simply cannot have another issue rise in the region without facing severe repercussions. How would he handle this?
If only there were a way that he could pawn this problem off on someone else and get the heat off of himself!

5. The Fifth Trial
Herod Antipas, the son of Herod the Great, was the Roman Ruler of Galilee. Jesus had spent time there so overseeing a trial involving the Nazarene was within his jurisdiction.
This was the perfect plan. Sending Jesus and this case against Him to Herod would not only would get the heat off of Pilate, but it may win him a brand new, much needed ally.
Pilate knew that Herod had actually wanted to see Jesus for a long time because he’d heard that he performed miracles and wanted to see one of these magic tricks for himself and Pilate was more than willing to grant this request.

Yet when Jesus arrived in Galilee and stood before Herod he didn’t get the show that he wanted:
Luke 23:9-11 “He questioned Him with many words, but He answered him nothing. And the chief priests and scribes stood and vehemently accused Him. Then Herod, with his men of war, treated Him with contempt and mocked Him, arrayed Him in a gorgeous robe, and sent Him back to Pilate.”

6. The Final Trial
When Jesus, the Sanhedrin, and those who were standing guard over the prisoner arrived back at the Praetorium of Pilate, he remained unconvinced that Jesus was guilty of a crime against the state.
Yet, he also knew that doing nothing was not an option if he desired to keep a riot from taking place.

In an effort to appease the Jews and still not execute an innocent man, he leaned on a ceremonial action that his predecessors had employed. In honor of the Passover festival, in order to win favor with the Jews, they’d released a prisoner each year.

Housed in a prison not far from Pilate was a notorious killer named Barabbas.
Barabbas wasn’t his given name but an alias. It actually means “Son of a father”, an ancient equivalent of “John Doe.”
It’s probable that he had taken the name to protect his own family when he had become the leader of a notorious group of thugs and killers
The execution of evil men like Barabbas gave the Roman and Jewish leaders rare common ground because men like this not only caused headaches for the Romans but were equally frustrating for the Sadducee’s, who were cooperating with Rome.

In Pilates mind, there’s no way that given the option of releasing a murderer like Barabbas or a man like Jesus, that they’d desire Barabbas to be freed.
No doubt, proud of himself, Pilate paraded the two men before the people and asked which of the two they’d like to see released.
Imagine his shock when the crowd cried out in John 18:40 “Not this man, but Barabbas!”

There was another option: He could satisfy the bloodthirst of this mob by having Jesus beaten.

According to Jewish law, there was a limit of 39 lashes that could be inflicted upon a prisoner and those blows were limited to the back and shoulders only.
Rome had no such rules. The beating could continue indefinitely and could be administered to the back, shoulders, legs, chest, face and abdomen. For a solid hour, this is what Jesus endured. Adding insult to injury, before sending Him back to the Praetorium, a crown of thorns was pressed upon his brow, a soldier's cape was placed over his mangled shoulders and a measuring rod was forced into His hand to make it look as though He was holding a kingly scepter.
Surely this would quench the thirst of the mob. As they returned and stood before the violent mob, Pilate proudly yelled, “Behold the man!”. Yet they still responded CRUCIFY!

John 19:6-7 “You take Him and crucify Him, for I find no fault in Him.” The Jews answered him, “We have a law, and according to our law He ought to die, because He made Himself the Son of God.”

Pilate brought Jesus inside John 19:9-11 “Pilate said to Jesus, “Where are You from?” But Jesus gave him no answer. Then Pilate said to Him, “Are You not speaking to me? Do You not know that I have [c]power to crucify You, and power to release You?” Jesus answered, “You could have no power at all against Me unless it had been given you from above. Therefore the one who delivered Me to you has the greater sin.”

Pilate was convinced Jesus was innocent and on top of that his wife had warned him not to harm him because of a dream she’d had. In a last ditch effort, he tried to release Him one more time but the religious leaders pulled their trump card:
John 19:12 “If you let this Man go, you are not Caesar’s friend. Whoever makes himself a king speaks against Caesar.”

You’re no friend of Caesar if you release this man.

That was it. The crowd had heard these words and Caesar would too if he didn’t go through with the execution. Nothing further needed to be said.

John 19:13-16 “When Pilate therefore heard that saying, he brought Jesus out and sat down in the judgment seat in a place that is called The Pavement, but in Hebrew, Gabbatha. Now it was the Preparation Day of the Passover, and about the sixth hour. And he said to the Jews, “Behold your King!” But they cried out, “Away with Him, away with Him! Crucify Him!” Pilate said to them, “Shall I crucify your King?” The chief priests answered, “We have no king but Caesar!” Then he delivered Him to them to be crucified. Then they took Jesus and led Him away.”

The trials of Jesus are now over but the truth is: every man, woman, boy and girl since that time has a seat of the jury. Like Pilate, Herod, the Sanhedrin and the angry crowd, we must all reach a verdict within our own hearts.

Jesus has presented His case with clarity and conviction. He has spoken and said, “I am the Christ”. He has said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life”

Some, like Herod, have heard the truth of Jesus and rejected it because they didn’t want the King as much as they wanted His benefits.
Some, like Pontius Pilate, have heard the truth of Jesus, and even acknowledged Him but refused to yield to Him because it would require forsaking their own plans.
Others, like the Sanhedrin or the violent mob, have heard the truth of Jesus and rejected Him because He wasn’t the kind of Messiah that they were looking for.
A precious few have heard the truth of Jesus and fully embraced Him at His word, believing upon Him for eternal life and submitting to Him as Lord.
Jesus said in John 18:37 “I have come into the world to testify of truth. Everyone who is of truth hears my voice”

You’ve heard the truth. What verdict have you reached in your heart? How will you respond?