Jesus was Silent to Accusations (Is. 53:7; ref. Mark 15:4-5)

After those false witnesses had testified against the teachings of the Lord Jesus before the members of the council, Jesus remained silent. Jesus saw no reason to defend His situation for He knew that He had done nothing wrong concerning His teachings and works. In fact members of the council had heard the teachings of Jesus Christ because He was teaching in open places and the temple. Jesus knew that the council was just trying to find ways of putting Him to death.

After having heard all the testimonies of those witnesses, Pilate and the high priest expected to hear Jesus’ defense, but He was silent concerning all the accusations. On the other hand, the Jews knew that they needed to make definite charges against the Lord Jesus Christ, so the high priest asked Jesus for His response concerning those accusations (Mark 14:60). And again Pilate asked the same thing in Mark 15:4-5, but Jesus remained silent. Lockyer commented, “When falsely accused, He did not try to defend Himself, but endured the contradictions of sinners.” The only question that Christ answered during His trial was the question whether He was the Christ, the Son of the Blessed. Then Jesus answered that He is (Mark 14:62).

The false accusations against Jesus Christ are recorded in the gospels in order to reveal the sufferings that He bore to save sinners. In other words both the Old and New Testament people were able to see the sufferings of Jesus Christ on the cross. As prophet Isaiah said, “He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth” (Is. 53:7). Jesus was silent during all the trials that He underwent as fulfillment of the prophecy given in the Old Testament.

Jesus was Accused by False Witnesses (Ps. 35:11; ref. Mark 14:57-58)

The ministry of the Messiah was well planned by God the Father even before He sent His Son to this world. Everything that would happen to Christ had been pre-ordained by the Lord. Thus when Jesus Christ came to this world, He was obliged to do what His father had commanded Him. His mission was to please His Father in the things He had planned for the redemption of the wretched man.

The life and death of Jesus had been programmed by God. Everything Jesus did must be acceptable and according to the Father’s wish and nothing could happen to His Son without the foreknowledge of God the Father. In fact when the New Testament books record the life of Jesus Christ, they give strong support to the fact that even the false witnesses against the ministry and works of Jesus was recorded. Mark 14:57-58 said, “And there arose certain, and bare false witness against him, saying, We heard him say, I will destroy this temple that is made with hands, and with three days I will build another made without hands.”

The content of this verse is not contrary to what Jesus proclaimed during His preaching and teaching sessions. It is true that Jesus did say, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up” (John 2:19). Nevertheless, what Jesus said here refers to His body and not to the temple building or the sanctuary. Jesus never said that He would destroy the Sanctuary. But the unbelieving Jews were blind and could not understand what Jesus had said. To them what Jesus meant was that Jesus would truly destroy the sanctuary and in three days He would rebuild it. However, Mark emphasized in his gospel that what these people had claimed were actually false witnesses against the Messiah.

Although Jesus Christ did nothing wrong, the chief priest and all the members of the council looked for witnesses against Jesus to put him to death (Mark 14:54). After all, they could not find any fault in Him; in fact those false witnesses did not agree with each other (Mark 14:55). The Psalmist said in Ps. 35:11, “False witnesses did rise up; they laid to my charge things that I knew not.” Everything that had been predicted concerning the Messiah, the Lord Jesus Christ, must be fulfilled as seen in this passage.

Jesus was Betrayed for Thirty Pieces of Silver (Zech. 11:12; ref. Matt. 26:14-15)

For the second time, the scripture records how the Messiah would be betrayed in His first coming. In Psalm 41:9, He was betrayed by His close friend or disciple, while the prophet Zechariah gave details of how His disciple would betray Him. Both the Psalmist and Zechariah were referring to the same person. And these passages were given to the Old Testament believers that they might anticipate and know what would happen to the Messiah in His first coming.

What did the prophet Zechariah prophesy concerning the betrayal of the Messiah? He said, “And I said unto them, if ye think good, give me my price; and if not, forbear. So they weighed for my price thirty pieces of silver” (Zech. 11:12). This verse is talking about the value of the Messiah sold by his disciple to those who had been appointed by the Lord to fulfill what was recorded in the scriptures. The prophet Zechariah was chosen by God to be one of prophets to reveal the truth to the Old Testament believers concerning both the first and second coming of the Messiah.

The first coming of the Messiah was not to set up His kingdom but rather He was appointed to be a servant, who would bear the sufferings, and the sins of the world and redeem man by His death at the cross. His forth-coming crucifixion was very clearly proclaimed in His preachings before the multitudes and in particular among His disciples. In fact Jesus Christ said that one of the disciples would betray Him. This implied that the Lord Jesus Christ prepared the hearts of His disciples to accept what would happen to Him as recorded in the scriptures.

The crucifixion of the Lord Jesus Christ would not be fulfilled except being preceded by the betrayal of His own disciples. Matthew recorded the account of how Judas Iscariot betrayed Jesus Christ. “Then one of the twelve, called Judas Iscariot, went unto the chief priests, And said unto them, What will ye give, and I will deliver him unto you? And they covenanted with him for thirty pieces of silver” (Matt. 26:14, 15). Judas Iscariot went to the chief priest, the main enemies of Jesus, asking how much they would give him for betraying his own Master. What Judas Iscariot had done here is proof of his avarice, even selling His own Master for thirty pieces of silver. Lockyer said, “What an illustration of false values we have in this bargain Judas struck with those who wanted to murder his Master! What a measly sum to pay for Him Who declared that all the silver and the gold belonged to Him, and whose price is above rubies!”

Whatever reason Judas had for betraying his own Master, the scripture recorded that it was prophesied in the Old Testament that everything that had been written must be fulfilled for the glory of the Lord.

Jesus was Betrayed by a Close Friend (Ps. 41:9; ref. Luke 22:47-48)

The prophecies in the Old Testament concerning the first coming of the Messiah not only related the lineage, birth, life and ministry of the Messiah, but also provided clear descriptions of the death and crucifixion of Christ. This implies that the life which Christ led in this world was not accidental but was well planned by God the Father. Even the Old Testament believers were able to see what Christ would do and undergo when He came to this world.

Psalm 41:9 is one of the passages in the Old Testament that gives an account of who would betray the Messiah. The Psalmist wrote, “Yea, mine own familiar friend, in whom I trusted which did eat of my bread, hath lifted up his heel against me.” In other words, it was not only those who were in His own household who would reject Him but also the person who was with him, having meal and drink with Him at His table who would betray Him. And the Psalmist emphasized the idea in this verse that the person who would lift up his heel against Him would be the one whom he called His close friend and who lived with Him.

Although David was speaking of himself in this Psalm, nonetheless, he presented the person of Christ. What was begun in David would be fully accomplished in Christ. The prophecy given to those chosen of God in the Old Testament would be fully fulfilled in the appointed time of the Lord.

Who was the betrayer mentioned in Psalm 41:9? The Old Testament believers absolutely did not know the name of the person, but it was known that he was one of the Messiah’s close friends. The New Testament books record that the person who was prophesied to betray the Lord Jesus Christ was Judas Iscariot. He was truly a very close friend of Jesus for he was His own disciple, one who heard all the teachings and saw all the miracles of Christ. He was chosen to play the role of the betrayer as a fulfillment of scripture. John the apostle recorded in his gospel, “I know whom I have chosen; but that the scripture may be fulfilled, He that eateth bread with me, hath lift up his heel against me” (John 13:18).

Although Judas Iscariot was one of the twelve Disciples of Christ and was always with Him and even served together with other apostles, he never believed in the Lord Jesus Christ. His heart was hardened and he was used as an instrument of the Devil to betray the Lord Jesus Christ. Lockyer rightly said, “Although chosen as an apostle, Judas could never have had a deep love in his heart for Jesus; otherwise he would never have heartlessly betrayed Him as he did. No wonder that, after he realized the enormity of his foul deed, he committed suicide.” With the help of Judas Iscariot, the Jews nailed the Lord Jesus Christ on the cross. But Jesus Christ knew all these things happened to fulfill what was recorded in the Scripture.

Jesus was Adored by the Children (Ps. 8:2; ref. Matt. 21:15-16)

Every detail of the first coming of the Messiah is well recorded in the Old Testament books. The prophecy given by the Psalmist concerning the ministry of the Messiah in Psalm 8:2 is indeed for the praise of the Lord Jesus Christ. When the Psalmist wrote “Out of the mouth of the babes and sucklings has thou ordained strength because of thine enemies, that thou mightest still the enemy and the avenger,” shows that the Lord can do anything in order to glorify His Son, Jesus Christ. The Lord can open the mouth of babes and the suckling to proclaim the truth and speak against the unbelieving leaders of the Jews.

There is no doubt that what the Psalmist prophesied here has been truly fulfilled during the ministry of Jesus Christ. Matthew wrote, “And when the chief priests and scribes saw the wonderful things that he did, and the children crying in the temple, and saying, Hosanna to the Son of David; they were sore displeased, and said unto him, Hearest thou these say? And Jesus saith unto them, Yea; have ye never heard, out of the mouth of babes and sucklings thou has perfected praise” (Matt. 21:15-16). When the chief priests and scribes heard the shouting of the children, they considered it as blasphemy against God, for in the temple they called Jesus the Son of David. They tried to stop the children but the Lord Jesus allowed them to continue by quoting what the Psalmist had written concerning this event.

The shouting of the children, “Hosanna to the Son of David” was apparently an echo of the crowds who shouted “Hosannas” when Christ entered Jerusalem. Nevertheless, in all probability the Hosannas of the children were far more pure in Spirit than those of the older people. Thus it is absolutely right to say that God is also using the shouting of the children for His own glory.