Sanhedrin And the interrogation of Jesus

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If cases come before your courts that are too difficult for you to judge—whether bloodshed, lawsuits or assaults—take them to the place the LORD your God will choose. 9Go to the Levitical priests and to the judge who is in office at that time. Inquire of them and they will give you the verdict.

Such a higher court is not documented in the Old Testament, but in the time of the Second Temple Period (5th century BCE-70 CE), when Judaism was highly influenced by the Hellenism, we have good record of a higher Jewish court called "Sanhedrin". 

The term is Greek, and it literally means "sitting together". 

According to ancient Jewish sources the "Sanhedrin" had a lower court, with 23 members, and a higher court, having 71 members. The head of the higher court was a "Nassi", which sometimes was the high priest, and at times was also the king. The higher court could only assemble in the "Hall of hewn stones" which was in the temple, and could not convene on holidays and Shabbath.

At the arrest of Jesus all the Gospels record him being taken to the home of the high priest. Excluding John, all the gospels then record him being than interrogated by the Sanhedrin; and Matthew and Mark record the interrogation to take place specifically in the home of the high priest. 

That seems problematic. If the head of the interrogation was the high priest it most likely means this was an assembly of the higher court of the Sanhedrin. Yet the higher court of the Sanhedrin could only convene in the "Hall of hewn stones" at the temples' vicinity, and definitely not on a holy day. Yet all the synoptic Gospels document that the interrogation took place during the holy day of Pesach.

Several scholars reviewing this subject reached differing conclusions. I wish to search for any archaeological evidence for the Sanhedrin. 

If the interrogation did indeed take place in the house of Caiaphas, then one has to search for his home. This subject was reviewed in my previous report. 

But are there any archaeological evidence for the very institution of the Sanhedrin? To this day the evidence is rather scarce and obscure. 

As we said, the Sanhedrin convened at the "House of hewn stones". Contemporary historian Josephus Flavius adds it was in the "Xistos". Location of both sites is not clear to this day, but they must have been near the temple and the Temple mount. 

In the 1970's Professor Benjamin Mazar of the Hebrew University conducted a large scale excavations project against the southern wall of the Temple Mount. Among the many finds he recorded a building found next to the public steps leading in to the temple mount. In its vicinity he also found a fragment of an official inscription engraved on stone which included the word "[El]ders". He suggested the inscription was perhaps referring to the Sanhedrin and perhaps it convened in the central building found next to the main southern entrance. Even of true, the building is rather small and could fit only the "lower Sanherdin" consisting of 23 members.

SANHEDRIN: Caption: This building was originally well built and located next to the main southern entrance to the Temple Mount. Some suggest this building may have being used by the Sanhedrin.

Another building that could possibly be linked to the Sanhedrin was found in the 1930's in the small town in the Galilee named "Beth-Shearim". We know from the Misnah that the Sanhedrin resided in the Beth-Shearim for some period of time after the Temple was destroyed by the Romans (70CE).

Beth Shearim was discovered by chance in 1928, and was excavated in the 1930's. One of its finds was a big Basilica shaped building located next to the city's western wall. There is no doubt that the building had a public function. It is possible that it was also used for assemblies of the Sanhedrin, but this cannot be proven.

BETHSHEARIM SYNAGOGUE caption: After the destruction of the Temple and Jerusalem by the Romans in 70 CE, the Sanhedrin assembled in different location, mostly in the Galilee, until it was dissolved by the Byzantine authorities in the 5th century CE.

This Basilica shaped public building, found in Beth-Shearim in the 1930's, may have been used also for assemblies of the Sanhedrin when it resided in that city.

© Biblewalks – Holy Land Sites Review.

Another form of evidence, yet without its problems, are bronze coins minted in large number by the Hasmonean Jewish kings who ruled from 164 to 40 BCE. 

Almost all the coins were minted with the same inscriptinon, stating in Hebrew that the coin was minted by the authority of the "[king], [the] High priest, and HEVER of the Jews". The obscure term "Hever" does not appear anywhere in any ancient sources. It literally means "assembly of members". Some suggest it refers to the Sanhedrin.

HYRCANUS2_B Caption: A photo and a drawing of a small Jewish Bronze coin from the Second Century BCE minted by the Maccabean King John Hyrcanus I (134-104 BCE). On its reverese it shows a laural wreath framing the text "Yohanan high priest, and the HEVER of the Jews". The obscure term "Hever", literally meaning "assembly of members" may refer to the contemporary Sanhedrin.

Paul in front of the Sanhedrin – Acts 23

James before Sanhedrin – Antiq 20.9.1 (200-3)