Mark 15:10 - Printer Friendly

ESV: For he perceived that it was out of envy that the chief priests had delivered him up.

NIV: knowing it was out of self-interest that the chief priests had handed Jesus over to him.

NASB: For he was aware that the chief priests had handed Him over because of envy.

CSB: For he knew it was because of envy that the chief priests had handed him over.

NLT: (For he realized by now that the leading priests had arrested Jesus out of envy.)

KJV: For he knew that the chief priests had delivered him for envy.

NKJV: For he knew that the chief priests had handed Him over because of envy.

The Jewish ruling council, called the Sanhedrin, is composed of several different groups. The chief priests are high-ranking priests with a great deal of influence. Elders are influential businessmen from Jerusalem. Scribes are lawyers: experts in the Mosaic law. A scribe can be from any Jewish religious sect, but most in the Sanhedrin are from the Sadducees who take a conservative view of the Mosaic law and welcome the peace and prosperity the Roman occupation brings. A minority of the scribes are Pharisees: those who rely more heavily on the extra-biblical oral law. The Pharisees have had run-ins with Jesus since the beginning of His ministry (Mark 2:6–7; 3:6).

Jesus has come up against all these groups during His three-year ministry. In fact, He's clashed with them all in the last week (Mark 11:15—12:40). Shortly after He entered Jerusalem, Jesus tore down the tables of the money-changers and pigeon merchants clogging the courtyard where Gentiles were allowed to worship God. Some scholars think these markets were owned by the elders spoken of here. When the chief priests challenged Jesus' authority, He showed their hypocrisy by trying to get them to publicly declare if John the Baptist was a prophet or not. If they admitted he was, they would have to admit Jesus is the Messiah, but if they said he wasn't, they risked the crowd's wrath, so they declined to answer. When the Sadducees, who supposedly followed the Mosaic Law faithfully, asked Jesus to prove the resurrection, He did so by quoting God, Himself, Who is God of the living and not the dead.

Jesus saved His greatest condemnation for the Pharisees (Matthew 23:1–36). Throughout His ministry He has condemned their love of manmade traditions over the law of God, most notably in Mark 7:1–23. In the temple courtyard, He spoke against their legalism, their hypocrisy, and their misguided priorities. Their traditions and arrogance are not only of the same evil that killed God's prophets in the past, they lead their followers to hell.

All the members of the Sanhedrin have reason to envy Jesus. Especially aggravating is the number of Jews that consider Him a great teacher. The chief priests may have more reason than any others. Their ceremonies and positions are so polluted by politics, fear of losing power, and pride that few remember how to honestly worship and serve God. Jesus, an unemployed, homeless traveler not only has authority the priests could never attain, He has God's love and approval. Although the religious leaders have all the background information they need, they refuse to accept He is the Messiah.

Mark 15:6–15 describes history's greatest miscarriage of justice. The Sanhedrin has convicted Jesus with blasphemy, a crime in the Mosaic law (Mark 14:61–64). Such a charge won't convince the Roman authorities to execute Jesus, so they present Him to Pilate as an imminent insurrectionist (Luke 23:2, 5). Pilate interrogates Jesus and finds Him harmless (John 18:33–38). Pilate then sends Jesus to Herod Antipas, who also finds the Sanhedrin's charges baseless (Luke 23:6–15). Herod sends Jesus back to Pilate who must decide: risk rebellion by the Jewish leadership or kill an innocent man? Pilate's decision is also found in Matthew 27:15–26, Luke 23:13–25, and John 18:38—19:16.

After sham trials, Jesus is taken to the local Roman governor, Pilate. This is the only person in Jerusalem with the legal authority to have Jesus executed. Pilate is not fooled, and he attempts to arrange for Jesus' release. But the ruler's ploys fail, in part because Jesus will not defend Himself, and partly because the mob is intent on His death. Pilate offers a prisoner exchange in Barabbas, and even has Jesus brutally beaten in order to pacify the crowd. Eventually, he caves in and Jesus is crucified. Thanks to His prior abuse, Jesus survives only a few hours on the cross before dying. Jesus is then buried in a tomb belonging to a secret follower among the Jerusalem council.

After being unfairly judged, Jesus will now be unfairly sentenced and cruelly murdered. It's reasonable to say this chapter provides context for everything else contained in the Bible. From Adam and Eve until the last baby born in the millennial kingdom, every person other than Christ is stained with sin. Conscience, law, Jesus' direct leadership, even the indwelling of the Holy Spirit cannot keep us from sinning. Sinless Jesus had to die on the cross, sacrificing Himself in our place, so our sins could be forgiven and we could be reconciled to God. Beneath the violence, darkness, dishonor, and death is the love of God for all mankind (John 3:16). Jesus' crucifixion is also found in Matthew 27, Luke 23, and John 19. The next chapter describes the miracle of His resurrection.

The Gospel of Mark emphasizes both Jesus' servanthood and His role as the promised Messiah: the Son of God. This is done through a concise, action-packed style. Mark provides relatively few details, instead focusing on actions and simple statements. This relates to the Gospel's authorship, which is believed to be based on the memories of the apostle Peter. These include many of Jesus' miracles, in contrast to other Gospels which include many more of Jesus' teachings and parables. Mark also makes frequent mention of Jesus' ministry being misunderstood by others.