Matthew 26-27

Matthew 26:1-5 Jesus foretells His death for the fourth time (21:45-46). The priests and elders scheme to do so. Why? Did they sincerely believe that Jesus was misleading the people and that since their arguments for the status quo religion were not prevailing, the greater good was served by killing Jesus? Or was it just a simple power game - politics continued at a deeper level?

Matthew 26:6-13 Jesus is anointed for His burial. The disciples concern for the poor (26:8-9) may have been based on Deuteronomy 15:11, or perhaps Jesus’ own words (25:34-46). Jesus explains that ministering to the poor is important, but total devotion to Him is more important (26:10-13). As a general principle, obedience to God’s commands is important, but the overarching consideration must be devotion to God, and putting all other directives in context to our worship of Him with our lives. That is why this woman’s act of devotion will also be told wherever the gospel is preached - she poured out her life savings to anoint Jesus for His burial. Symbolically, she was the only person ever to honor Jesus death in the flesh appropriately. (Those that buried Him in the tomb could not anoint Him at that time and He rose before anyone could.) 

Matthew 26:14-16 Judas agrees to betray Jesus, as prophesied in Zechariah 11:12. Thirty denarii, about 135 grams of silver, worth about $200 at today’s market prices. If the silver coins were shekels, that raises it to 400 grams of silver, worth about $600.  What a bargain for the priests and elders! How many people sell their soul that cheaply these days?

Matthew 26:17-30 The Last Supper. Jesus follows the commands given to Moses in Exodus 12, but Passover was fulfilled at the Last Supper. The bread and wine were done as commanded, but the Passover lamb without defect was Jesus Himself. The blood, instead of being on the sides and tops of the doorframe, was on the cross, which became the door to eternal life for those who believe. Whether communion involves remembrance and commitment, or a sacramental transformation, we are to partake. God thus brings judgment on those spiritual forces of evil  - the Egypt of sin - that enslave us. In this case (Exodus 12:15), abstaining from leaven symbolizes abstinence from sin, not voluntarily re-opening the connection to those things that God has judged and delivered us from. Sing a hymn instead. (26:30)  In 26:24, Jesus alludes to Job bewailing the day of his birth (Job 3:1), and Judas Iscariot would have been better off not having been born.

Matthew 26:31-35 Jesus predicts Peter’s denial, and quotes Zechariah 13:7. 26:34 was fulfilled in 26:69-74. How often do we make a promise to God when we experience His presence, only to not keep it when we have left church and are in the world?

Matthew 26:36-46 Praying in Gethsemane. In 26:39, 42, and 44 Jesus was seeking to reconcile His earthly will to the Father’s will, not pleading with the Father to change His mind. (John 8:29) Jesus’ holiness wasn’t just abstaining from sin, it was active obedience. It was just hard, even for Him. What He was going to do was very, very hard.

Matthew 26:47-56 Jesus is arrested; He  cites Scriptures and the prophets being fulfilled.(26:54&55) Possibly He was citing Daniel 9:26, although there are many other potential verses as well. Peter’s last act of courage was to draw a sword and cut off a servant’s ear (John 18:10), and Jesus rebuked him. When Jesus willingly surrendered to arrest, the disciples were understandably afraid, and left abruptly, lest they be charged as co-conspirators. In healing the servant’s ear, Jesus protected Peter from being so charged (at least there wasn’t any evidence).

Matthew 26:57-67 Jesus’ trial before the Sanhedrin; lots of false witnesses - are things any different today? Finally, two unnamed witnesses repeated what Jesus said in John 2:19-21.(26:61) They missed the whole point of that discourse a few years prior. They saw only the literal meaning of the words, and did not, perhaps could not grasp the symbolic, underlying spiritual reality.

Finally the high priest got fed up, and asked Jesus under oath to state whether or not He is the Messiah, the Son of YHWH. Jesus says “You have said so” and quotes Psalm 110:1 & Daniel 7:13.(26:64) Perhaps the best way to understand Jesus’ first response is something like ‘you said it!’ Meaning ‘right on!’. The high priest was clearly angry. The verdict was delivered.

Matthew 26:68-75 Peter denies Jesus three times.  The rooster crowing reminded him of Jesus’ prophecy and his confidence then (26:34), and now completely demoralized, wept bitterly. Do we deeply lament our failures before God?

Matthew 27:1-2 Jesus is bound for trial. Since the Jewish priests and elders couldn’t legally execute someone, they figured out how to have the Romans do their dirty work.

Matthew 27:3-10 Judas commits suicide. It seems odd that Judas would now recognize that he had betrayed innocent blood. Was his focus the previous day solely on getting the money that he ignored this, or did the Holy Spirit now convict Him, or was the devil now leading him to suicide? It is unclear where the prohibition on blood money is found. (27:6) I cannot find this explicitly or implicitly in the Pentateuch, so it must have been inferred from other rules in the law about how blood is to be treated. The quote from Jeremiah that Matthew cites (27:9-10) includes a reference to both Jeremiah 32:6-9 and Zechariah 11:12-13. What is the significance of the potter’s field? It was likely a field where potters got clay to make their wares, leaving it depleted of soil and unsuitable for farming.  

Matthew 27:11-26 Jesus is tried by Pilate. Pilate knew Jesus was innocent but was afraid of the crowds (27:18&23) The crowd wanted Jesus dead rather than in spiritual authority. (27:22-23) Pilate seemed to not care about spiritual matters, but did attempt to cleanse his conscience. (27:24) Did washing his hands work for that purpose? 

A curious intersection of three groups (priests, Pilate, crowd), but not mentioned in the trial is the spiritual battlefield. Satan wanted Jesus dead to eliminate his judgment, but God allowed it to happen to enable the removal of judgment on those people who accept Him but still have sinned. Satan was rebellious beyond redemption, but God was creating a spiritual fabric in which humans could ask for and receive it, albeit at a very steep price. Pilate was Satan’s unwitting tool, but God allowed it. Did Satan not realize that God in the flesh might be killed, but God transcends mere fleshly existence. As Aslan explains the deep magic at the stone table  in the Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, death cannot hold the sinless one who is killed, but all eternity begins to experience a reversal and turns towards life and light.

Matthew 27:27-31 The Roman soldiers mock Jesus. This is love - Jesus knew what was coming and did it anyway. (27:27-50) It was not just physical pain, as bad as that was (27:29-30), but the spiritual pain of knowing that these soldiers were mocking the Truth, by calling Him king of the Jews in jest, when He was truth(John 14:6), to their own eternal judgment.

Matthew 27:32-44 Jesus is crucified. Evidently Jesus’ words in John 2:19-21 were widely known, since the passers-by mocked Him with them. (27:40) The priests, elders, and legal professors all mocked Him just as the Roman soldiers had, not physically but in their words.

Matthew 27:45-56 the death of Jesus. Jesus quoted Psalm 22:1 while on the cross. (27:46) Perhaps He quoted the entire Psalm since it describes this event in detail. The reference to Elijah coming to save Him once again refers to what must have been a common belief among the Jews that since Elijah had been carried into heaven while still alive, he would return, and they thought Jesus was calling on that promise, unaware of the events recorded earlier. (17:1-5) 

When Jesus died, the veil in the temple that separated man from God’s presence was torn in two from top to bottom (27:51). Whether this was to allow man to enter God’s presence, or to symbolically release the Holy Spirit into the world is unclear. It definitely signifies the direct contact of God with mankind.  Ultimately (in the truest sense of ultimate), Jesus’ death was the defeat of death, His resurrection led the victory parade. (27:52-53)

Matthew 27:57-61 The burial of Jesus. Joseph of Arimathea is an enigmatic figure, appearing here, in fulfillment of Isaiah 53:9. What an honor, to be entrusted with Jesus’ body!

Matthew 27:62-65 A Roman guard is posted at the tomb. The Pharisees and the chief priests were afraid enough of Jesus’ widely known prophecy of His resurrection that they asked for the Roman guard at the tomb.  (27:63 —> 16:21) It didn’t help them deny the presence of the living Christ to those that encountered Him.