Matthew 26:59

Matthew 26:59 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Now the chief priests, and elders, and all the council, sought false witness against Jesus, to put him to death;
• New International Version (NIV)The chief priests and the whole Sanhedrin were looking for false evidence against Jesus so that they could put him to death.
• English Standard Version (ESV)Now the chief priests and the whole council were seeking false testimony against Jesus that they might put him to death,
• New King James Version (NKJV)Now the chief priests, the elders, and all the council sought false testimony against Jesus to put Him to death,

Context of Matthew 26:59

57Those who had arrested Jesus led Him away to Caiaphas, the high priest, where the scribes and the elders were gathered together. 58But Peter was following Him at a distance, as far as the courtyard of the high priest, and he came inside and sat down with the officers to see the outcome. Now the chief priests and the entire Council kept trying to obtain false testimony against Jesus, so that they might put Him to death. 60They did not find any, even though many false witnesses came forward. But later on two came forward, 61and said, “This man stated, ‘I am able to destroy the temple of God and to rebuild it in three days.’”

Matthew 26:59 word by word

Οἱ δὲ ἀρχιερεῖς καὶ τὸ συνέδριον ὅλον ἐζήτουν ψευδομαρτυρίαν κατὰ τοῦ Ἰησοῦ ὅπως αὐτὸν θανατώσωσιν,Read the interlinear

• Nowδέde · thenG1161
• the chiefἀρχιερεύςarchiereus · high-priestG749
• and the entireὅλοςholos · allG3650
• Councilσυνέδριονsunedrion · councilG4892
• kept tryingζητέωzēteō · to seekG2212
• againstκατάkata · according toG2596
• JesusἸησοῦςIēsous · JesusG2424
• soὅπωςhopōs · thatG3704
• they might putθανατόωthanatoō · to killG2289

Cross-references for Matthew 26:59

• Deuteronomy 19:16If a malicious witness rises up against a person to testify against him of wrongdoing,
• 1 Kings 21:8So she wrote letters in Ahab’s name and sealed them with his seal, and sent the letters to the elders and to the nobles who were living with Naboth in his city.
• Psalms 27:12Do not turn me over to the desire of my enemies, For false witnesses have risen against me, And the violent witness.
• Psalms 35:11Malicious witnesses rise up; They ask me things that I do not know.
• Psalms 94:20Can a throne of destruction be allied with You, One which devises mischief by decree?
• Proverbs 25:18Like a club, a sword, and a sharp arrow Is a person who gives false testimony against his neighbor.
• Mark 14:55Now the chief priests and the entire Council were trying to obtain testimony against Jesus to put Him to death, and they were not finding any.
• Acts 6:11Then they secretly induced men to say, “We have heard him speak blasphemous words against Moses and God.”
• Acts 24:1Now after five days the high priest Ananias came down with some elders and an attorney named Tertullus, and they brought charges against Paul to the governor.

Commentaries on Matthew 26:59

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 59All the council sought false witness - What a prostitution of justice! - they first resolve to ruin him, and then seek the proper means of effecting it: they declare him criminal, and after that do all they can to fix some crime upon him, that they may appear to have some shadow of justice on their side when they put him to death. It seems to have been a common custom of this vile court to employ false witness, on any occasion, to answer their own ends…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 59False witness - That is, they sought for witnesses who would accuse him of crime of violation of the laws of the land or of God. We are not to suppose that “they wished” them to be “false” witnesses. They were indifferent, probably, whether they were true or false, if they could succeed in condemning him. “The evangelist” calls it false testimony. Before these witnesses were sought, we learn from John John 18:19-23 that the high priest asked Jesus of his…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 57-68Verses 57-68 Jesus was hurried into Jerusalem. It looks ill, and bodes worse, when those who are willing to be Christ's disciples, are not willing to be known to be so. Here began Peter's denying him: for to follow Christ afar off, is to begin to go back from him. It is more our concern to prepare for the end, whatever it may be, than curiously to ask what the end will be. The event is God's, but the duty is ours. Now the Scriptures were fulfilled, which…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 59were seeking false testimony: The verb tense suggests a long and possibly desperate attempt to find any testimony to support a formal accusation (see Mark 14:55–56).Read the comment

Topics related to Matthew 26:59

• Accusation, False
• Church
• Court
• False Teachers
• Government
• Jesus, the Christ
• Judge
• Perjury
• Persecution
• Prayer
• Priest
• Prisoners
• Rulers

In the dictionaries

• Jesus
• Adjure
• Annas
• Blood
• Covenant
• Cup
• Curse
• Elder
• Friend
• Guilty

Commentaries on Matthew 26

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Catena Aurea
• Illustrated New Testament
• Burkitt’s Expository Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Family Bible Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• John Lightfoot Commentary
• Luther’s Commentary on Selected Bible Passages
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• The People’s New Testament
• Robertson’s Word Pictures
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• The Fourfold Gospel and Commentary on Acts
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings