Scripture

First they led Him to Annas, since he was the father-in-law of Caiaphas, who was high priest that year.

~John 18:13, CSB

Quote

Annas is the most notorious figure in Jewish history.

~John W. Lawrence

I agree with John Lawrence whole heartedly. I am fully convinced that Annas was one of the most evil men who has ever walked the earth. I don’t think Hitler and Stalin were any worse. Annas was the crime boss of Jerusalem. Nothing happened in the city without his approval. When Jesus cleansed the temple for a second time, that tripped his plow. Annas was not the acting High Priest, his son-in-law Caiaphas held the position officially. The Romans retired Annas because they feared his power, but nothing changed. He outsmarted the Romans. He controlled the High Priest because they were all family. He had five sons who filled the position, along with one son-in-law and one grandson. Make no mistake, it was Annas pulling the strings.

Why was Jesus taken to Annas first? Because Caiaphas and the Sanhedrin would not dare act without his consent. Annas was hated by the Jewish people, but greatly feared due to his ruthlessness. He was not a native of the Jerusalem. Herod the Great brought him to Jerusalem from Alexandria in Egypt. Just as crime bosses make money peddling drugs today, Annas profited from the Temple which became known as Annas’ Bazaars. He had turned it into a Wal-mart, only worse. They made money from the exchange of coins to the sale of sacrifical animals. It was a racket, a money making scheme that defrauded those who came to worship and many of them were poor. If you have the idea that rich Jews care about poor Jews, erase that from your mind–they don’t.

Annas was sneaky, underhanded, vile and had no qualms about employing violence. These were is good points. He had Jesus slapped in the face at a so called preliminary hearing. What judge instructs a member to the court to strike a defendant! Annas was the mastermind of the whole ordeal: the arrest, mock trials, abuse of Jesus, and crucifixion. I don’t like to think about hell, and I shudder at the thought of a person being cast into the lake of fire, but I do believe in hell. I believe that is the final destination for Annas and those like him.

Extra

PTL, we have a lovely trip to Ethridge, Tennessee yesterday and I couldn’t get over the low prices. June’s lye soap was a quarter a cake and we got a bag of tomatoes for $4. I saw more horses working in the fields than I ever seen but I could get close to any on them. It was a good day for such a trip.

They took all the rain out of the forecast and move it to next week. We know what that means: next week they will move it to the next week. Eventually, they will get it.

I hope you have a good Friday and a great weekend. Thanks for reading the blog.