Paid In Full: An In-depth Look at the Defining Moments of Christ's Passion (19 page)

Notice that the chief priests and scribes followed Jesus from Pilate’s palace to Herod’s residence. When Jesus performed no miracle for Herod, the scribes and elders, most of whom belonged to the sect of the Sadducees who didn’t believe in the supernatural, seized the moment to start screaming and yelling uncontrollably. The word “vehemently” is the Greek word
eutonus,
meaning
at full pitch, at full volume, strenuously
, or
vigorously
. In other words, these religious leaders weren’t just slightly raising their voices; they were what we might call “screaming their heads off”! Most likely they were screaming accusations right in Jesus’ face, saying things like
, “Some miracle worker You are! You have no power! You’re a fraud! If You can work miracles, why don’t You work one right now! You’re nothing but a charlatan!”

Jesus took the full brunt of this wicked ruler’s wrath. Yet in the midst of all the abuse Jesus suffered, He remained quiet and held Himself calm
.

That day Herod was left with the impression that Jesus was nothing more than a spiritual fraud. Because Jesus didn’t perform on demand as Herod wished, this governor’s expectations were dashed, causing him to unleash his rage against Jesus.

In the short time that followed, Jesus took the full brunt of this wicked ruler’s wrath. Yet in the midst of all the abuse Jesus suffered, He remained quiet and held Himself calm.

I’m sure you’ve been in situations when you’ve been railed at because you failed to meet someone’s demands. Can you think of a time when something like this happened to you? How did you respond? Did you yell and scream back at that person when he vented his anger at you, or were you able to remain quiet and controlled as Jesus did that day before Herod Antipas and the chief priests and elders?

Life will occasionally take you through difficult places — such as those times when you discover that people are disappointed with your performance. If you find yourself in this kind of predicament, remember that Jesus failed to meet the expectations of Herod Antipas (although that was probably the
only
person whose expectations Jesus ever failed to meet!). When you find yourself in such a situation, go hide yourself away for a few minutes and call out to the Lord. He has been there; He understands; and He will help you know how you must respond.

There are people in and around your life who have been longing to meet Jesus. When they encounter Him through you, will they be disappointed? Jesus told His disciples that when they saw Him, they saw the Father (John 14:7). When people see you, do they accurately see Jesus?

Herod vented his wrath when he couldn’t make Jesus perform on demand. He accused Jesus of being powerless, when Jesus actually demonstrated tremendous strength by holding Himself calm and remaining silent and still. In all things, Jesus followed the Father’s direction and never responded to man’s attempted manipulation or threats.

In what ways would it benefit you to exercise more restraint and control over your words and responses in times of difficulty or attack?

Life brings hard places. Some you’ll escape, and some you won’t. At times you’ll be disappointed, and other times, you’ll disappoint others.

Jesus refused to meet an evil ruler’s expectations and then faced the repercussions with dignity and grace. Have you developed a practice of drawing near to God, leaning deep into His arms so He can shield you in the hard places? That’s a life skill you can’t do without. Consider what you can do each day to cultivate that habit.

Chapter 20:
A Human Ruler Mocks
the King of Kings
and Lord of Lords

On that day when Jesus refused to meet Herod’s expectations, Luke 23:10 tells us the chief priests and scribes were so infuriated that they stood up and “…vehemently accused him.” That word “vehemently” means
at full pitch, at full volume, strenuously,
or
vigorously.
That means those men must have been screaming like crazy, out-of-control maniacs as they angrily accused Jesus of being a fraud!

Once the screaming stopped and the volume of the men’s voices had lowered enough for Herod’s voice to be heard, Herod gave the official order for him and his men of war to deliberately humiliate, mock, make fun of, and heckle Jesus. Suddenly the people in that room in Herod’s residence turned into a booing, hissing, mocking, laughing mob, with all their venom directed toward Jesus. Luke 23:11 tells us about this event, saying, “And Herod with his men of war set him at nought, and mocked him, and arrayed him in a gorgeous robe, and sent him again to Pilate.”

Notice that Herod was gathered there that day with “his men of war.” Who were these men of war, and why were they at Herod’s side when Jesus stood before him? The word for “men of war” in Greek is
strateuma
. This Greek word could signify
a small detachment of Roman soldiers
, but most likely it suggests that these men were Herod’s personal bodyguards, selected from a larger group of soldiers because they were exceptionally trained and prepared to fight and defend if called upon — thus, the reason the
King James Version
refers to them as “men of war.”

The Bible informs us that Herod, with the assistance of his bodyguards, took Jesus and “set him at nought.” This phrase is developed from the Greek word
exoutheneo
, a compound of the words
ek
and
outhen
. The word
ek
means
out
, and the word
outhen
is a later form of the word
ouden
, which means
nothing
. Taken together, the new word means
to make one out to be nothing.
It can be translated
to make light of, to belittle, to disdain, to disregard, to despise,
or
to treat with maliciousness and contempt.

Jesus had already endured the insane yelling and screaming that the chief priests and elders unleashed on Him. But now Herod and his bodyguards entered center stage to start their own brand of humiliating Jesus. Luke uses the word
exoutheneo
to let us know that they were
malicious
and
vindictive
and that their behavior was
nasty
and
ugly.
Then Luke tells us that Herod and his men “mocked him.” This gives us an idea of how low they sank in their ridiculing of Jesus.

The word “mocked” is the Greek word
empaidzo
, the same word used to portray the mocking behavior of the soldiers who guarded Jesus before He was taken into Caiaphas’ high court (
see
Chapter 16). The word
empaidzo
meant
to play a game
. It was often used for
playing a game with children
or
to amuse a crowd by impersonating someone in a silly and exaggerated way.
It might be used in
a game of charades
when someone intends
to comically portray or even make fun of someone.

Herod Antipas was a Roman governor — supposedly an educated, cultured, and refined man. He was surrounded by finely trained Roman soldiers who were supposed to be professional in their conduct and appearance. But these men of war, along with their ruler, descended deep into depravity as they began to put on quite a show, impersonating Jesus and the people He ministered to. They probably hammed it up, acting as if they were healing the sick; lying on the floor and quivering as if they were being liberated from devils; groping around as if they were blind and then pretending to suddenly be able to see. It was all a game of charades intended to mimic and make fun of Jesus.

Then Luke tells us, “…They arrayed him in a gorgeous robe….” The word “arrayed” is the Greek word
periballo
, which means
to throw about
or
to drape about
, as to drape around one’s shoulders. The words “gorgeous robe” are the words
esthes
and
lampros
. The word
esthes
describes
a robe or garment,
while the word
lampros
depicts
something that is resplendent, glistening, or magnificent
. It was frequently used to depict
a garment made of sumptuous, brightly colored materials
.

It is doubtful that this was the garment of a soldier, for even a bodyguard of Herod would not be arrayed in such resplendent garments. In all likelihood, this was a garment worn by a politician, for when candidates were running for public office, they wore beautiful and brightly colored clothes. More specifically, however, this was almost certainly one of Herod’s own sumptuous garments that he permitted to be draped around Jesus’ shoulders so they could pretend to adore Him as king as part of their mockery of Him.

Although Herod apparently enjoyed this maltreatment and abuse of Jesus, Luke 23:14,15 says he could find no crime in Jesus worthy of death. Therefore, after the conclusion of these events, Herod “…sent him again to Pilate” (Luke 23:11).

When Herod sent Jesus back to Pilate, he sent Him clothed in this regal robe. One scholar notes that since this garment was one usually worn by a candidate running for office, Herod’s decision to send Jesus to Pilate in this robe was the equivalent of saying, “This is no king! It’s only another candidate, a pretender, who thinks he’s running for some kind of office!”

Jesus committed no sin and no crime, nor was any guile ever found in His mouth; yet He was judged more severely than the worst of criminals
.