What was it that infuriated them so?

Jesus knew from the very beginning that his enemies would kill him because of the things that he would do and teach. But what was it that actually infuriated them so to the point that they tried to trap him and searched for reasons good enough to have him put to death?

Don’t get me wrong I’m not a anti-semite. But at that time the priesthood used the law that was not actually from God and it was very advantageous to them in the sense that it gave them great control over the people. It’s just like in any religion of any age that it’s leadership has always used religion to control and manipulate the people. This isn’t limited to just religion, it’s politics and marketing propaganda too. If they can get people to believe in some falsehood that gives them the advantage over the masses, they do it. And it’s always about wealth and power.

The Jews were no different at that time. Christianity, through the ages, became worse. There are horendous stories of the pursecution and murder of Jews at the hands of the church. But that’s another story. For the purpose of this article the focus is on the Jews mainly and the Romans who were also responsible for the murder of Jesus.

I don’t go for that opinion that some have where they say that we are all guilty of the death of Christ because of our sins. Some claim that God sacrificed his son for our sins and if it hadn’t been for our sins Christ wouldn’t have had to come and die. Well, that may be true in a certain way if you want to symbolize the whole thing, but what this article is all about is reason real reason that lead them to want to have him killed.

Jesus wasn’t guilty of anything

If the scriptures are correct, Pilate didn’t even want to have him put to death since he didn’t see anything that Jesus was guilty for that was worthy of a death sentence, nor did Herod. Pilate wasn’t a Jew so it made no difference to him if he spoke blasphemy. He was accused of being the king of the Jews, but this hardly stuck since he saw no evidence of sedition in Jesus. In fact, Pilate even half jokingly said, “you want me to kill your king?”. If he had been they wouldn’t have thought twice in getting rid of him. Jesus wasn’t setting himself up as a king over the Jews or sturring up the people against the Roman government. Just to satisfy the people he wanted to scurge Jesus and let him go.

But the priests sturred up the people to have the romans crucify him. Obviously the romans didn’t want an uprising and they knew the priests had power over the peoples’ minds. The priests were cooperative with the roman government and that is just what they wanted — control over the people. What ended up happening was the romans in order to placate the priests and the people so that they wouldn’t have an uprising on their hands, they scourged Jesus and had him crucified. To the romans this was no big thing since they were killing people all the time in the name of the roman empire.

So the priests wanted him dead. They trumped up a false charge against him with false witnesses. They stirred up the people to get them to persuade the romans to do the deed and the romans just carried out the desire of the priests and murdered him. But it wasn’t only the romans who were responsible, it was the priests and the scribes that had the greatest responsibility for his murder — they instigated the whole thing.

So what was their motive for  wanting to kill him?

That brings us to the motive. Why did the priests and the scribes want him dead? Was it for blasphemy or sedition? No. These were the trumped up accusations. Since they didn’t have any justifiable reason to condemn him to death, they had to invent one or maybe even several. Plus since they had to have witnesses they raised up false witnesses against him.

Mat 26:59 Now the chief priests, and elders, and all the council, sought false witness against Jesus, to put him to death;

It’s been said that because Jesus said he was the son of God this was the reason they had to accuse him of blasphemy. Do you think they really cared about this? Do you really think this was what made them angry enough to want to have him put to death? Remember they had been following Jesus around for a long time trying to find something that they could use to trap him is his words.

Luk 11:53 And as he said these things unto them, the scribes and the Pharisees began to urge him vehemently, and to provoke him to speak of many things:
Luk 11:54 Laying wait for him, and seeking to catch something out of his mouth, that they might accuse him.
Mat 27:1 When the morning was come, all the chief priests and elders of the people took counsel against Jesus to put him to death:

Was it because he claimed to be God?

Actually there were many things that Jesus did and said that put them against him enough to make them want him dead. But claiming that he was God isn’t one of them. He did call himself the son of God and he was called the son of God by others just as the Angel said. But Adam was also called the son of God:

Luk 3:38 Which was the son of Enos, which was the son of Seth, which was the son of Adam, which was the son of God.

Moses was called the son of God; the angels were called sons of God; the fallen angels were called sons of God. Jesus himself said that the scripture called them gods.

Joh 10:34 Jesus answered them, Is it not written in your law, I said, Ye are gods?
Joh 10:35 If he called them gods, unto whom the word of God came, and the scripture cannot be broken;
Joh 10:36 Say ye of him, whom the Father hath sanctified, and sent into the world, Thou blasphemest; because I said, I am the Son of God?

So this is a false accusation that they invented to have something to pin on him. They really didn’t think that he was blaspheming because he was saying he was God. He wasn’t saying he was God nor even infering it. It’s not blasphemy to say you are a son of God. Anyone who follows God and obeys him is a son of God:

Joh 1:12 But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:

Jesus never, ever claimed that he was God. Even the fact that he was called the son of God didn’t make him God. We are all sons of God and Jesus calling himself this only meant that God was his Father, not that he was God.

Was it because he was the king of the Jews?

What was the other trumped up charge they accused him with? They must have accused him of being a king since the govenor asked Jesus if he was a king.

Joh 18:37 Pilate therefore said unto him, Art thou a king then? Jesus answered, Thou sayest that I am a king. To this end was I born, and for this cause came I into the world, that I should bear witness unto the truth. Every one that is of the truth heareth my voice.

Jesus didn’t deny nor affirm this question. Pilate didn’t believe the accusation anyway, but they needed some kind of reason for killing him and this was the only one that he could be put to death for.

Joh 19:21 Then said the chief priests of the Jews to Pilate, Write not, The King of the Jews; but that he said, I am King of the Jews.
Joh 19:22 Pilate answered, What I have written I have written.

So the murder was not because he claimed to be God, nor that he claimed to be the king of the Jews.

So what WAS the reason they wanted him dead?

One of the main things the scribes and the Parisees people didn’t like was that he criticized their law and exposed it to the people as words that God did not say. Another was that he called the scribes and the Parisees hypocrites and pronounced many woes upon them for their wickedness. What’s more he called them children of the devil. They certainly didn’t like that.

But probaby the thing that infuriated them the most was the fact that he took away what made them rich and powerful and that was their control over the people. Jesus put an end to the daily sacrificing of animals and the oblation. Jesus was very against cruelty to animals and the fact that the people were made to think that they had to confess their sins to the priests and bring a sacrifice offering for their sins to be forgiven.

Jesus showed the people that they no longer needed the priests to confess to, they got their forgiveness directly from God or the person that was offended. It always was mercy and never the sacrifice of animals.

Mat 9:13 But go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice: for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.
Mat 12:7 But if ye had known what this meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice, ye would not have condemned the guiltless.

The sacrificing of animals was never commanded by God, it was a heathen practice that the Jews picked up from false religions. This goes all the way back to the times when the Israelites were in Egypt. Even then God hated it!

Act 7:41 And they made a calf in those days, and offered sacrifice unto the idol, and rejoiced in the works of their own hands.
Act 7:42 Then God turned, and gave them up to worship the host of heaven; as it is written in the book of the prophets, O ye house of Israel, have ye offered to me slain beasts and sacrifices by the space of forty years in the wilderness?
Act 7:43 Yea, ye took up the tabernacle of Moloch, and the star of your god Remphan, figures which ye made to worship them: and I will carry you away beyond Babylon.

Jesus threw out those that made commerce in the temple. The scribes and Parasees made a lot of money off of the sale of animals and Jesus put an end to their lucrative practices. No wonder they wanted him dead! Did you ever wonder why the daily sacrifices ended after Jesus came?

21:8. He also said, I am come to end the sacrifices and feasts of blood, and if ye cease not offering and eating of flesh and blood, the wrath of God shall not cease from you

28:3. Ye believe that Moses indeed commanded such creatures to be slain and offered in sacrifice and eaten, and so do ye in the Temple

28:4 …for the hour cometh when your sacrifices and feasts of blood shall cease...

49:11. And they said, Who art thou that seekest to do away with the sacrifices, and despiseth the seed of Abraham? From the Greeks and the Egyptians hast thou learnt this blasphemy?

49:12. And Jesus said, Before Abraham was, I Am. And they refused to listen and some said, he is inspired by a demon, and others said, he is mad; and they went their way and told these things to the priests and elders. And they were wrath, saying, He hath spoken blasphemy.

86:1. The same day, at the time of sacrifice in the Temple there appeared among the dealers in beasts and in birds, One clothed in white raiment, bright as light, and in his hand a whip of seven cords.

86:2. And at the sight of him, those who sold and bought fled in terror, and some of them fell as dead men, for they remembered how before his death Jesus had driven them away from the Temple enclosure, in like manner.

86:3. And some declared that they had seen a spirit. And others that they had seen him who was crucified and that he had risen from the dead.

86:4. And the sacrifices ceased that day in the Temple, for all were in fear, and none could be had to sell or to buy, but, rather, they let their captives go free.