12 Then the detachment of soldiers with its commander and the Jewish officials arrested Jesus. They bound him 13 and brought him first to Annas, who was the father-in-law of Caiaphas, the high priest that year. 14 Caiaphas was the one who had advised the Jews that it would be good if one man died for the people.
“They bound Him”- Seriously? How do you bind the One who spoke creation into being? How do you bind the great “I AM”? How do you bind the fullness of the Godhead in bodily form? How do you bind achieving power – Omnipotence in the flesh – with mere strings of straw? “They bound Him” simply because Jesus allowed them to bind Him. He submitted Himself to be a passive sufferer allowing His enemies to work their will – subjecting Himself to the spite and hatred of His persecutors. Jesus Christ led by example. He suffered while He served yet kept on serving anyway. To free mankind from bondage, He became bound. We owe our liberty to His bondage. The prophet Isaiah tells us:
3 He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering. Like one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not. 4 Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and afflicted. 5 But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed. Isaiah 53:3-5 (NIV)
7 He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth. 8 By oppression and judgment he was taken away. And who can speak of his descendants? For he was cut off from the land of the living; for the transgression of my people he was stricken. Isaiah 53:7-8 (NIV)
It is amazing, is it not, the degree of hardness and insensibility of conscience to which man may attain – the gross and quick spiraling down from sense to nonsense. The charge fell against all oppressors as they were all equally as guilty of aiding and abetting – there were no accessories only principals. To be sure, it is the same in our day – each person is held accountable for accepting or denying the Lord Jesus – no exceptions.
For we will all stand before God's judgment seat. 11 It is written: "'As surely as I live,' says the Lord, 'every knee will bow before me; every tongue will confess to God.'" 12 So then, each of us will give an account of himself to God. Romans 14:10-12 (NIV)
“We see the Son of God taken prisoner and led away bound like a malefactor, arraigned before wicked and unjust judges, insulted and treated with contempt. And yet this unresisting prisoner had only to will His deliverance, and He would at once have been free. He had only to command the confusion of His enemies, and they would at once have been confounded. Above all He was One who knew full well that Annas and Caiaphas, and all their companions, would one day stand before His judgment seat and receive an eternal sentence. He knew all these things, and yet condescended to be treated as a malefactor without resisting.” John Charles Ryle
Just prior to our Lord being bound, these onlookers who had come to take Jesus prisoner – both Jews and Romans alike - had been privy to witness the exhibition of His divine power. First, when they went backward and fell to the ground and second, when - as Luke states in his gospel - our Lord touched the ear of Malchus and healed him – two miraculous events leaving them untouched, unmoved, cold and insensible – each continuing on with their hateful business. One who thinks miracles can convert a person into a thorough Christian has much to learn. The miraculous points us to the Savior but certainly does not save as evidenced here. Luke’s gospel states:
49 When Jesus' followers saw what was going to happen, they said, "Lord, should we strike with our swords?" 50 And one of them struck the servant of the high priest, cutting off his right ear. 51 But Jesus answered, "No more of this!" And he touched the man's ear and healed him. Luke 22:49-51 (NIV)
Lastly, we discover in our verses for today that though unaware of it himself, prior to this time, Caiaphas was used to unconsciously prophecy regarding the one great sacrifice for the sins of the world. It would be good indeed if one Man died for the people! He had no idea how good! God can speak to us even through donkeys!
"When it comes to hearing from God, I firmly believe the Bible is our source and authority. God's Word is like a megaphone to His people. Throughout Scripture God speaks through kings and queens, princes and prophets, poets and pilgrims. He speaks through weather patterns, barnyard animals and even the stars in the sky. God is not only creative, but He is persistent in getting our attention and communicating with us." Margaret Feinberg
Earlier in John we discover what he now alludes to:
49 Then one of them, named Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, spoke up, "You know nothing at all! 50 You do not realize that it is better for you that one man die for the people than that the whole nation perish." John 11:49-50 (NIV)