⁶³But Jesus kept silent. And the high priest said to Him, “I adjure You by the living God, that You tell us whether You are the Christ, the Son of God.” ⁶⁴Jesus said to him, “You have said it yourself; nevertheless I tell you, hereafter you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of Power, and coming on the clouds of heaven.” ⁶⁵Then the high priest tore his robes and said, “He has blasphemed! What further need do we have of witnesses? Behold, you have now heard the blasphemy; ⁶⁶what do you think?” They answered, “He deserves death!” ⁶⁷Then they spat in His face and beat Him with their fists; and others slapped Him, ⁶⁸and said, “Prophesy to us, You Christ; who is the one who hit You?”

At the mock trial, Jesus kept silent. The accusations, innuendoes, and ridicule flowed. Where most of us could not hold our tongue, His composure was powerful. He brought the entire universe into existence simply by His spoken word, which is powerful and majestic (Gen. 1, Ps. 29:4), but now He stood before His earthly judge and jury in calm stillness. Oh, to have been a fly on the wall, to see our Lord’s demeanor, the expression on His face, and the gaze of His eyes! Did He look at the ground, His accusers, or up to heaven?

Little did the company of the high priest realize that their lives were in His hands, not vice versa. They were spitting on and beating the very One who gave them life and could take it away with a mere whisper. To their benefit, He remained quiet—and it drove them crazy. The angels were held back from striking them dead on the spot. Jesus could have merely spoken a word, and they would have been snuffed out of existence.

It was also to their benefit that Jesus didn’t take steps to defend Himself and put a stop to the nonsense of that kangaroo court. Like earlier in His ministry, when some people tried to throw Him off a high cliff, He simply walked through and away from the people untouched (Luke 4:28-30). This time, when they were about to throw Him on the cross for a public execution, Jesus didn’t resist. And it was good for them, and for us today, that He held His peace. Had He not, there would have been no sacrifice for our sins, their sins, or anyone’s sins. Further to their benefit, and eternally so, He allowed them to carry out their sinful purpose, but through their actions, God had a higher purpose.

His only words were an assertion, sprung from the interrogation. It was not a defense but a proclamation in no uncertain terms. The high priest understood clearly the meaning of His words. Jesus owned the charge implied in the question thrown at Him. He is “the Christ, the Son of God.” He accepted a similar identity from Peter and the apostles, who confessed, “You are the Christ, the son of the living God” (Matt. 16:16). The high priest used this as grounds for blasphemy, and it would be if Jesus were not God. But He was and is God. So, using His favorite reference to Himself, He forewarned them that He, as the Son of Man, would come back, not like a lamb (see Isaiah 53:6), but in power from heaven.

Lord, You calculated every move and every word for our benefit, that the cross would happen according to Your Father’s divine plan. My praise for You seems so inadequate, but I humbly submit in worship to the One who did all that for me. Thank You, Lord Jesus Christ.