Continuing a Bible study of the Gospels:
(John 18:1) When Jesus had spoken these words, He went forth with His disciples over the Brook Kidron where was a garden which He and His disciples entered.
In the last chapter, Jesus had prayed a beautiful and sublime prayer. After that, He and His disciples crossed over the Brook Kidron which was a small stream that flowed to the east of Jerusalem and divided the city from the Mount of Olives. They went into a garden which was called Gethsemane according to Matthew 26:36.
(2) And Judas also, who betrayed Him, knew the place, for Jesus often met there with His disciples.
Judas Iscariot who betrayed Jesus also knew about the garden as Jesus often met with His disciples there. Jesus was not trying to hide from His fate. He went straight into the lion's den, so to speak, knowing that Judas would come there.
(3) Judas then, having received a band of men and officers from the chief priests and Pharisees, came there with lanterns and torches and weapons.
Indeed, Judas came there with a band of men and officers that had been given to him by the chief priests and Pharisees. The men came carrying lanterns, torches, and weapons. The lanterns and torches were probably to search Jesus out as if He would be hiding in the place He knew that Judas knew. And as if they would need an army and weapons to take Jesus!
(4) Jesus therefore, knowing all things that would come upon Him, went forth and said to them, "Whom are you seeking?"
Jesus, knowing everything that was about to happen to Him, went straight to His captors and asked whom they were seeking.
(5) They answered Him, "Jesus of Nazareth." Jesus said to them, "I AM." And Judas also, who betrayed Him, stood with them. (6) As soon then as He had said to them, "I AM," they went backward and fell to the ground.
They answered that they were looking for Jesus of Nazareth and Judas stood with them. Practically all of the Bible translations read that Jesus said, "I am He," but they indicate that they added "He" for better understanding. Jesus did not say, "I am He." He simply said, "I AM," and that is what made the men fall backward to the ground. The power of that name and Jesus's very own infinite power knocked His captors down, proving that they could not take Him by their power, but that Jesus willingly let them take Him. It's amazing that after being knocked down by sheer words, that some of the band didn't retreat.
(7) Then He asked them again, "Whom do you seek?" And they said, "Jesus of Nazareth." (8) Jesus answered, "I have told you I AM. Therefore if you seek Me, let these go their way."
Jesus asked them again whom they were seeking. When they said again, "Jesus of Nazareth," Jesus answered that He had told them already that was Him, so if they were seeking Him, He asked that they let His disciples go. There were probably only Peter, James, and John with Him according to Matthew 26:37.
(9) That the saying might be fulfilled which He spoke, "Of them whom You gave Me, I have lost none."
Jesus asked that His disciples go free which fulfilled what He had said in His prayer in chapter 17, that He had lost none of the ones His Father had given Him. He protected them to His very end.
(10) Then Simon Peter, having a sword, drew it and struck the high priest's servant and cut off his right ear. The servant's name was Malchus.
At this point, Peter drew his sword and struck the high priest's servant, Malchus, and cut off his right ear.
(11) Then Jesus said to Peter, "Put your sword into the sheath; the cup which My Father has given Me, shall I not drink it?"
Jesus told Peter to put his sword back into its sheath, and He asked him if He shouldn't do what His Father had willed be done. Luke 22:51 told us that Jesus then healed the man's ear.
(12) Then the band and the captain and officers of the Jews took Jesus and bound Him, (13) And led Him away to Annas first, for he was father-in-law to Caiaphas who was the high priest that same year.
The band of soldiers and their captain and officers then took Jesus and bound Him and led Him away to Annas, who according to Luke 3:2 was himself a high priest, but at this point is mentioned as Caiaphas's father-in-law, Caiaphas being the high priest that year.
(14) Now Caiaphas was he who gave counsel to the Jews that it was expedient that one man should die for the people.
Caiaphas was the one in John 11:50 who gave counsel to the chief priests and Pharisees that it was expedient that one man should die for the people that the whole nation not perish. He had spoken more Godly truth than he realized, as it was indeed expedient for Christ alone to die for the salvation of the world.
(15) And Simon Peter followed Jesus and another disciple; that disciple was known to the high priest and went in with Jesus into the palace of the high priest.
Peter followed Jesus and another disciple who was also following Jesus. Many commentators have assumed that the other disciple was the gospel author himself, John, as John often spoke of himself in the third person, only he most often referred to himself as the disciple whom Jesus loved. Nonnus, a 5th century Greek poet who wrote a paraphrase of the Gospel of John, said that John was known to the high priest because he carried fish to his house and sold it to him. However, others say it is not likely that the seller of fish would have any sort of close relationship with the high priest. They assume it was another disciple, apart from the twelve, who was better known by the high priest than any of the twelve. That disciple went in with Jesus into the palace of the high priest. The high priest that year was Caiaphas, so although the soldiers had taken Jesus to Annas first, he had evidently sent Him immediately to Caiaphas. Both disciples continued to follow Jesus there.
(16) But Peter stood at the door outside. Then that other disciple who was known to the high priest, went out and spoke to her who kept the door and brought in Peter.
Peter did not enter the palace when Jesus and the other disciple did; he stood outside the door. However, the other disciple went and spoke to the doorkeeper who let the disciple bring Peter inside.
(17) Then said the damsel who kept the door to Peter, "Are you not also one of this man's disciples?" He said, "I am not."
The girl who was the doorkeeper asked Peter if he was one of Jesus's disciples. He denied it. By this, it seems unlikely that the other disciple was John, as she would have surely also recognized him as one of Jesus's disciples, too.
(18) And the servants and officers stood there, who had made a fire of coals for it was cold, and they warmed themselves, and Peter stood with them and warmed himself.
The servants and the officers stood in that area of the palace. They made a fire because it was cold, and they stood by the fire warming themselves. Peter stood with them, also warming himself.
(19) The high priest then asked Jesus about His disciples and His doctrine.
The high priest Caiaphas asked Jesus about His disciples and His doctrine. The council wanted to prove sedition or rebellion against Caesar, so I'm sure they wanted to show that He had many disciples forming a dangerous faction. He wanted to know about Jesus's teaching, as well.
(20) Jesus answered him, "I spoke openly to the world; I always taught in the synagogue and in the temple where the Jews always meet, and in secret, I have said nothing."
Jesus told Caiaphas that He had always spoken openly to the world. He was constantly in the synagogues and in the temple at Jerusalem speaking openly to the Jews that always met there. He had no secret agenda; what Caiaphas and his council had heard of what Jesus said, was all there was. If He had been guilty of sedition, He would have preferred meeting in secret, planning an overthrow of the government, so as He most often spoke publicly with great crowds, they could see and hear that He was not planning a secret takeover.
(21) "Why do you ask Me? Ask them who heard Me what I have said to them; behold, they know what I said."
Jesus asked Caiaphas why he asked Him. He would not have believed what Jesus said anyway. He should ask the people who had heard Him, which were certainly at least some of them who stood there with Him. Jesus had nothing to hide; He urged Caiaphas to ask them what He had said.
(22) And when He had thus spoken, one of the officers who stood by struck Jesus with the palm of his hand, saying, "Do You answer the high priest so?"
After Jesus had asked why Caiaphas asked Him, one of the officers who stood by them, slapped Jesus with the palm of his hand and rebuked Him for speaking to the high priest in that manner.
(23) Jesus answered him, "If I have spoken evil, bear witness of the evil, but if well, why do you strike Me?"
Jesus answered that if He had spoken anything evil or falsely, the officer should point that out and let Him receive fair punishment, but if He had said nothing untoward, then he had no reason to strike Him.
(24) Now Annas had sent Him bound to Caiaphas the high priest.
This is where John explains that Annas had sent Jesus on to Caiaphas, and that was why He was now before him.
(25) And Simon Peter stood and warmed himself. They said therefore to him, "Aren't you also one of His disciples?" He denied it, and said, "I am not."
So there in the palace of the high priest Caiaphas, Peter stood and warmed himself by the fire among the servants and the officers. They suspected that he was one of Jesus's disciples, but Peter denied it a second time.
(26) One of the servants of the high priest, being his kinsman whose ear Peter cut off, said, "Did I not see you in the garden with Him?"
However, one of the high priest's servants, who had apparently been with the band of soldiers who came and took Jesus from the garden and had seen him cut the ear off the soldier who was a kinsman of his, asked if it was true that he had seen him in the garden with Jesus.
(27) Peter then denied again, and immediately the cock crowed.
Peter again denied that he had been with Jesus. The account in Matthew said that he even cursed and swore. Immediately after he said it, the rooster crowed. It was just as Jesus had said, that Peter would deny Him three times before the rooster crowed in the morning. That account in Matthew said that Peter then remembered the words of Jesus and went out and wept bitterly.
(28) Then they led Jesus from Caiaphas to the hall of judgment, and it was early; and they themselves did not go into the judgment hall, lest they should be defiled, but that they might eat the Passover.
The council of Jews and the soldiers then led Jesus away from Caiaphas to the hall of judgment, or the Praetorium, as it was called, where the Roman governor heard and tried cases. It was very early in the morning. The Jews would not enter the house of a Gentile or they would be considered unclean and unable to eat of the Passover, so they did not go in, only the Roman soldiers.
(29) Pilate then went out to them, and said, "What accusation do you bring against this Man?"
Pontius Pilate, who was the Roman governor at that time, therefore went out to talk to the Jews and asked them what it was that they had accused Jesus of doing.
(30) They answered and said to him, "If He were not a malefactor, we would not have delivered Him up to you."
The Jews told Pilate if Jesus had not been a criminal, they would not have brought Him to him. I believe their point was that they had no need for Pilate to try Jesus as they had already found Him guilty. They brought Jesus to the Roman governor because he was the only one who could order Jesus executed.
(31) Then Pilate said to them, "Take Him and judge Him according to your law." The Jews therefore said to him, "It is not lawful for us to put any man to death."
If they hadn't brought Jesus to him to be tried, then Pilate told them to take Jesus back and judge Him according to their law as they saw fit. However, they told him that it was not legal for them to put anyone to death, which was what they desired for Jesus.
(32) That the saying of Jesus might be fulfilled, which He spoke, signifying what death He should die.
They had to have Jesus condemned to death by the Roman governor. That would fulfill Jesus's prophetic words that He would be crucified (Matthew 20:19), as only the Roman government crucified men.
(33) Then Pilate entered into the judgment hall again and called Jesus, and said to Him, "Are You the king of the Jews?"
So Pilate went back into the judgment hall where Jesus was being held, and he asked Him if He was indeed king of the Jews. According to the account in Luke, the Jews had accused Jesus to Pilate of being a rebel and forbidding the people to pay tribute to Caesar, which was of course, a lie. They told him that Jesus had said He was the king of the Jews.
(34) Jesus answered him, "Do you say this thing of yourself or did others tell you this of Me?"
Jesus replied, asking Pilate if that was a question he wanted an answer to himself, or had he asked it only because others had said that about Jesus. I believe His point was, had Pilate seen anything in Jesus to make him suspicious that the things the Jews had said about Him were true with respect to Him being a seditious rebel trying to overthrow the Roman government.
(35) Pilate asked, "Am I a Jew? Your own nation and the chief priests have delivered You to me. What have You done?"
Pilate asked Jesus if Pilate himself was a Jew, meaning to ask why he would have cause to suggest that Jesus was king of the Jews. He told Him that His own Jewish nation and the chief priests had been the ones to deliver Jesus to him, so he wondered what Jesus had done to make them do that.
(36) Jesus answered, "My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, then My servants would fight that I should not be delivered to the Jews, but now My kingdom is not from here."
Jesus did not deny that He was the king of the Jews, but told Pilate that His kingdom was not a worldly one. If His kingdom was of the world, then His servants would have risen up to save Him from being delivered to the Jews. Actually, Jesus Himself could have prevented His being delivered to them. However, His kingdom was not of the world. It was a spiritual one, and He was choosing to be delivered up in order to save His people from the world.
(37) Pilate therefore said to Him, "Are You a king then?" Jesus answered, "You say that I am a king. To this end I was born and for this cause I came into the world, that I should bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice."
Since Jesus had said He had a kingdom, Pilate surmised He must be a king then. Jesus answered that he had said rightly that He was indeed a king. His purpose for being born into this world was to bear witness to the truth of God. He added that everyone who was of the truth could hear and receive Him and His words.
(38) Pilate said to Him, "What is truth?" And when he had said this, he went out again to the Jews and said to them, "I find in Him no fault."
Pilate asked Jesus what he must have considered a rhetorical question, as he didn't wait for an answer, "What is truth?" I believe he must have felt that it was not worth giving His life for, and he went out to the Jews and told them he had found no fault in Him. He found Jesus to be an innocent man.
(39) "But you have a custom that I should release to you one at the Passover. Do you therefore want me to release to you the king of the Jews?"
Pilate had found no fault in Jesus, and besides, the Jews had a custom that Pilate should release one prisoner at Passover, so he assumed they would want him to release Jesus.
(40) Then they all cried again, saying, "Not this Man, but Barabbas!" Now Barabbas was a robber.
The fact that the people cried out again must mean that this was not the first time he had asked the people what they would have him do with Jesus. The account in Mark does include more back and forth dialogue between Pilate and the people. John, as was his custom, greatly abbreviated the events that had already been covered by the other Gospel authors. The people cried out for Barabbas to be released to them, a robber and also a murderer according to the other Gospel accounts. This part of the story always gets to me. How could people who had such a short time ago lauded Jesus with praise and honor as He came into Jerusalem on the donkey, now be so anxious to have Him crucified? The account in Mark said that the chief priests had incited the people to call for His crucifixion.
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