The priests and elders are sticklers. They want to convict Jesus and put Him to death. That’s the goal of the trial. But they also know that they have to operate according to the rules of justice given in their Torah. They know they need testimony, and they know that they need at least two people to agree against Jesus. Matthew says, “the whole Sanhedrin was seeking false testimony against Jesus . . . and they did not find any” (26:59-60). When they can’t find such testimony, they are stymied, albeit briefly. Convicting an innocent man is perfectly fine by them, provided the conviction follows the rules of evidence.
Matthew makes clear that procedural justice is a cover for injustice. Woe to the sticklers.
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