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Jesus convicted by Sanhedrin in absentia 40 days before crucifixion
Talmud, b Sanh 43a
At the very end of the first episode of Jesus Conspiracies that aired 4-19-2012 on the Discovery Channel, a clip appeared of me saying something to the effect that Jesus was convicted by the Sanhedrin forty days before his crucifixion in Jerusalem. The show did not give context nor explain the source for that comment. An explanation is required; however, as I did not stumble upon this material until early January of 2012, the topic is only mentioned in passing in Herodian Messiah (although I plan to update the book soon).
The primary source is Talmud, b Sanh 43a translated in Dr. Peter Schafer's book Jesus in the Talmud. Preliminaries out of the way, let us precede to the money quote from the Talmud.
On Sabbath eve and the eve of Passover Jesus the Nazarene was hanged. And a herald went forth before him 40 days heralding: Jesus the Nazarene is going forth to be stoned because he practiced sorcery and instigated and seduced Israel to Idolatry. * * * [Why do you supposed no defense could be made for him?] With Jesus the Nazarene it was different, for he was close to the government.
Schafer at pages 64-65. Dr. Schafer, in explaining the passage, states: "Since Jesus had friends in high places, the Jews took extra precautions before executing him: they went beyond the letter of the law so none of his powerful friends could accuse them of executing an innocent man." ibid at page 65.
This quote from the Talmud is extremely important on several levels. First, it helps to explain the incredibly fast time frame in which Jesus was tried and convicted in the Sanhedrin. The Babylonian Talmud contains a ruling to the effect that there must be a time interval of at least one day between conviction and carrying out the sentence upon the accused in capital cases before the Sanhedrin to give extra time for exculpatory evidence to come to light. In the NT narrative, this does not happen. There is a preliminary examination of Jesus in the home of the high priest during the night of the arrest then the Sanhedrin convenes and quickly convicts Jesus at first light. He is crucified shortly thereafter the same day. The information from the Talmud informs us that Sanhedrin criminal procedure was in fact followed in that Jesus was tried in absentia allowing for public notice of the conviction prior to his execution. Why is that important? The closer the facts of the arrest and conviction of Jesus, as they have come down to us from ancient sources, conform to what we know was standard procedure of the Jewish judicial systems the greater assurance we have that the story is historically accurate.
The next two points are of greater import in my view. First is the allegation from the Talmud that Jesus practiced sorcery and tried to "seduce" Israel. Those same allegations are found in Josephus relative to an enigmatic figure identified only as the Egyptian. Thus, this passage from the Talmud greatly helps us unmask "the Egyptian" in Josephus as Jesus the Nazarene. Second, it show Jesus to have been "connected to the government" and, thus, a high status individual. Who was the government of Israel in the 30's CE? Answer: the Romans and their Herodian collaborators. How does a Jewish citizen get close to the Jewish government? I suggest there are only two methods: (a) being a member of Herodian family or (b) collaboration with the Romans. Jesus was crucified for insurrection. Thus, he was a Roman collaborator. In my view, this passage from the Talmud is an important piece circumstantial evidence that Jesus was a Herodian.
JJR
5-2-2012
Note: I am indebted to author Steefen for suggesting I check out Dr. Schafer's book.
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