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Bethesda and the Sanhedrin
121
People Gathering to Jesus
One of the earliest prophecies of Christ says,
“The scepter shall not depart from Judah,
Nor a lawgiver from between his feet,
Until Shiloh comes;
And to Him shall be the obedience of the people.”
Genesis 49:10
The people were gathering to Christ. If the priests and rabbis
had not gotten in the way, His teaching would have brought about
such a reformation as this world has never witnessed. But these
leaders determined to break down Jesus’ influence. It would help
if they could arraign Jesus before the Sanhedrin and have Him
openly condemned. Whoever dared to speak against the rabbinical
requirements was regarded as guilty of treason. On this ground
the rabbis hoped to create suspicion of Christ as someone who was
trying to overthrow established customs, in this way causing division
among the people and preparing the way for the Romans to trample
them down completely.
After Satan had failed to overcome Christ in the wilderness, he
combined his forces to oppose Christ and hinder His work. He
matured his plans to blind the minds of the Jewish people so that
they would not recognize their Redeemer, filling their leaders with
his own hatred against the Champion of truth. He would lead them
to reject Christ and to make His life as bitter as possible, hoping to
discourage Him in His mission.
Jesus had come to “magnify the law and make it honorable.”
Isa-
iah 42:21
. He had come to free the Sabbath from those burdensome
requirements that had made it a curse instead of a blessing. For this
reason, He had chosen the Sabbath for the healing at Bethesda. He
could have healed the sick man on any other day or simply have
cured him without telling him to carry away his bed. But He selected
the worst case and told the man to carry his bed through the city to
call attention to the great work done for him. This would open the
way for Him to denounce the Jews’ restrictions regarding the Lord’s
Day and to declare their traditions not valid.
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