Paper 186 Overview: Just Before the Crucifixion

As Jesus was transferred between trials preceding his crucifixion, he instructed John Zebedee to bring his mother to him before his death. John hastened to Bethany, where Jesus' family had assembled at the home of Martha and Mary, whereupon Mary and John departed immediately to see her son. Jesus' sister Ruth refused to remain behind, and her brother Jude accompanied her while the remainder of the Master's family stayed in Bethany under James' direction, receiving updates from David Zebedee's messengers concerning the tragic proceedings against Jesus of Nazareth. Throughout this ordeal, Jesus' actions reflected the prophetic culmination of his mission, as he deliberately faced death with profound composure and dignity.

The narrative illuminates the stark contrast between the opportunistic betrayal of Judas, the unwavering composure of Jesus during his trials, and the faithful preparation by David Zebedee for the Master's prophesied resurrection. Jesus maintained remarkable equanimity throughout his ordeal, refusing to speak except when it might benefit others' understanding of truth, exemplifying his own teachings about not casting pearls before swine. Most significantly, the text clarifies that Jesus' death held no sacrificial relationship to Jewish ritual practices; it was entirely orchestrated by human motives rather than divine mandate. Jesus had already fulfilled his required bestowal experience before his death, and his crucifixion represented not an atonement for human sin but rather his voluntary continuation of loving service to humanity and the universe.

As Jesus and his accusers departed to face Herod, the Master turned to the Apostle John with instructions to find his mother and bring her to witness his final moments. Though reluctant to leave Jesus alone among his enemies, John hastened to Bethany, where the entire family of Jesus had assembled at the home of Martha and Mary, sisters of Lazarus, whom Jesus had previously raised from the dead. Throughout the morning, messengers had been providing updates to Martha and Mary regarding Jesus' trial, but his family had only just arrived in Bethany shortly before John appeared with Jesus' request to see his mother before his execution.

Upon hearing John's account of the midnight arrest and subsequent events, Mary immediately departed with John to see her eldest son before his death. Jesus' sister Ruth adamantly refused to remain behind and accompanied her mother, with her brother Jude joining her. The remaining family members stayed at Bethany under James' direction, receiving regular reports from David Zebedee's messengers about the progress of the terrible proceedings against Jesus. By the time Mary and John reached Jerusalem, Jesus had already arrived at Golgotha accompanied by the Roman soldiers who would crucify him, setting the stage for the culmination of his earthly bestowal mission in the supreme demonstration of unconditional love under the most extreme circumstances.

At approximately half past eight on Friday morning, Pilate's hearing of Jesus concluded with the Master being placed in the custody of Roman soldiers for crucifixion. Simultaneously, the captain of the Jewish guards led his men back to their temple headquarters, followed closely by the chief priest and his Sanhedrist associates who proceeded to their usual meeting place in the hall of hewn stone. There they found numerous other Sanhedrin members waiting to learn Jesus' fate, and it was at this moment that Judas appeared to claim his reward for his role in the Master's arrest and condemnation. The Jewish authorities viewed Judas with utter contempt, yet he anticipated praise and liberal compensation, having convinced himself that his actions constituted a valuable service to his nation.

Judas experienced profound disillusionment when, rather than public recognition, a servant of the high priest merely handed him thirty pieces of silver—the standard price for a healthy slave—and dismissed him. Stunned and humiliated, Judas attempted to appeal to the Sanhedrin but was barred entry, gradually comprehending the magnitude of his betrayal. In a trance-like state, he wandered the city until witnessing Jesus being raised on the cross, whereupon he rushed back to the temple, forced his way past the doorkeeper, and in the presence of the Sanhedrin, declared his sin in betraying innocent blood while attempting to return the money. When coldly dismissed by one of the rulers who told him, "See you to that—and begone!" Judas experienced the crushing realization of sin's true nature stripped of all glamor and fascination.

Removed from the intoxicating moments of wrongdoing, Judas now stood alone facing the judgment of his disillusioned soul. He departed the temple, removing the thirty pieces of silver from his bag and casting them across the temple floor in a final gesture of repudiation. Described as "an ambassador of the kingdom of heaven," Judas now walked forsaken through Jerusalem's streets and beyond its walls to the valley of Hinnom. There in desperate solitude, he climbed steep rocks and, using his cloak's girdle, fastened one end to a small tree and the other around his neck before casting himself over the precipice. Before his life ended, the knot gave way, and his body was dashed upon the jagged rocks below—a tragic end emblematic of sin's ultimate emptiness and self-destruction.

When Jesus was arrested, he possessed full awareness that his incarnate work was complete. He comprehended precisely the nature of his impending death and demonstrated minimal concern for the procedural details of his trials. Before the Sanhedrist court, Jesus declined to respond to perjured testimony, answering only the direct question concerning his divine nature and mission, whether he was the Son of God, to which he consistently affirmed the truth. He maintained resolute silence before the curious and wicked Herod, and engaged with Pilate only when he perceived that his words might illuminate truth for Pilate or others capable of benefiting from such understanding. Jesus exemplified his own teaching about not casting pearls before swine, demonstrating the patient submission characteristic of his human nature while maintaining the majestic silence and solemn dignity of his divine nature.

Jesus deliberately refrained from exercising his persuasive eloquence or even his purely human powers to influence the outcome of these proceedings. He recognized that submitting to the natural course of human events was the Father's will for him, just as it is for all mortal creatures. Throughout the ordeal, the celestial hosts observing these events were compelled to broadcast to the universe the ironic spectacle of "Pilate on trial before Jesus." When questioned by Caiaphas, Jesus did not hesitate to provide testimony about his identity, though he knew it would be used as grounds for convicting him of blasphemy. He showed no interest in Pilate's halfhearted efforts to secure his release, instead pitying the Roman governor and attempting to enlighten his darkened mind about spiritual realities.

Throughout his trials, Jesus spoke little but said enough to demonstrate to all mortals and to the universe the kind of human character achievable through partnership with God. His love for ignorant mortals was fully revealed through his patience and self-possession when facing jeers, blows, and mockery. When Pilate presented the scourged Jesus to the crowd with the words "Behold the man," he unwittingly proclaimed a profound cosmic truth. At that moment, the universe stood at attention, witnessing not merely a tortured human but their beloved Sovereign subjected to humiliation by his own creatures. Throughout Nebadon and beyond, celestial beings recognized in this suffering figure both God revealed to humanity and humanity revealed to God, an unprecedented demonstration of divine love that would forever transform understanding throughout the universe.

Shortly after Jesus was turned over to Roman soldiers following Pilate's hearing, temple guards hastened to Gethsemane to disperse or arrest the Master's followers. Anticipating this action, David Zebedee had already relocated several tents up a nearby ravine where Jesus frequently retired for prayer and worship. He established this location as both a hiding place and coordination center for his messenger service. Finding the camp deserted, the temple guards merely burned it before returning to the temple, satisfied that Jesus' followers were sufficiently frightened and subdued to prevent any uprising or rescue attempt. This assessment allowed the Sanhedrin to adjourn, with members departing to prepare for the Passover.

Immediately upon learning that Pilate had surrendered Jesus for crucifixion, David dispatched messengers to spread the news throughout a wide geographic area including Bethsaida, Pella, Philadelphia, Sidon, and numerous other cities. Throughout this tragic day, David maintained a communication network, sending messengers approximately every half hour with updates to the apostles, the Greeks, and Jesus' family gathered at Lazarus's home in Bethany. After Jesus was buried, David dismissed his corps of local runners for the Passover celebration and Sabbath rest, instructing them to report to Nicodemus's home on Sunday morning. While Jesus' disciples remained secluded in fear, David demonstrated remarkable practical faith by planning for the Master's return.

David Zebedee uniquely took a literal and matter-of-fact view of Jesus' assertion that he would die and "rise again on the third day." He intended to assemble his messengers early Sunday morning at Nicodemus's home to be prepared should Jesus resurrect as promised. David quickly discovered that none of Jesus' other followers anticipated such an imminent resurrection, so he spoke little about his belief and preparations. He mentioned nothing about mobilizing his messenger force on Sunday morning except to the runners dispatched on Friday forenoon to distant cities and believer centers. This practical-minded follower thus demonstrated remarkable faith through his meticulous preparation for what others considered impossible, establishing a communication infrastructure that would later prove essential in spreading the news of the resurrection throughout the region.

After Pilate symbolically washed his hands before the multitude to evade responsibility for condemning an innocent man, he ordered Jesus turned over to Roman soldiers with instructions for immediate crucifixion. The soldiers escorted Jesus back to the praetorium courtyard, removed the robe Herod had placed upon him, and returned his own garments. Although they mocked and derided him, they inflicted no additional physical punishment. Jesus stood utterly alone at this juncture—his friends in hiding, his enemies departed, and even John Zebedee no longer by his side—yet this solitude emphasized the voluntary nature of his sacrifice and the personal courage required to face death without human support.

Pilate relinquished Jesus to the soldiers shortly after eight o'clock, and they initiated the journey to Golgotha just before nine. During this half-hour interval, Jesus maintained complete silence while the administrative functions of a vast universe virtually ceased operations. Gabriel and the chief rulers of Nebadon were either physically present on Urantia or intensely monitoring the archangels' reports concerning the Son of Man's experience. As the soldiers prepared to depart, they observed with growing admiration Jesus' extraordinary composure and dignified bearing amid such adversity. This silent dignity made a profound impression even on these hardened Roman soldiers who were accustomed to witnessing suffering.

The delay in commencing the procession arose from the captain's last-minute decision to include two condemned thieves in the crucifixion. He reasoned that since Jesus was to be executed that morning, these criminals might as well die with him rather than waiting until after the Passover festivities. When brought into the courtyard, one thief beheld Jesus for the first time, while the other had previously heard him speak both in the temple and months earlier at the Pella camp. This circumstance would prove significant in the coming hours as these individuals faced death alongside the Master, creating an opportunity for a final transformative encounter between Jesus and one who would recognize his true nature even in the midst of suffering. The inclusion of these criminals also fulfilled ancient prophecies about the Messiah being "numbered with transgressors," though this was entirely unintentional on the part of the Roman authorities.

The temporal coincidence of Jesus' death with the Jewish Passover holds no theological significance despite subsequent religious interpretations. Although Jesus died during the preparation for Passover around the time of the temple sacrifice of Passover lambs, this timing was entirely coincidental. As both a Jew by birth and the universal Son of Man, Jesus' crucifixion resulted entirely from natural human circumstances rather than divine orchestration. The narrative explicitly states that his death was planned and executed by human beings, not by God, emphasizing that the Father neither decreed, demanded, nor required the death of his Son as it transpired on earth.

Jesus had already completed the essential requirements of his incarnate bestowal at the time of his baptism, fulfilling the experiential prerequisites for his seventh and final universe bestowal. Everything he lived and taught thereafter, including his death, constituted a voluntary extension of his personal ministry for humanity's welfare and spiritual elevation. The gospel of human sonship with God through faith is not dependent on Jesus' death, though his life and death profoundly illuminated this truth. The text explicitly states that "all that the Son of Man said or did on earth greatly embellished the doctrines of sonship with God and the brotherhood of men," but these essential relationships were inherent in the universe facts of God's love and existed from eternity.

The narrative emphatically rejects sacrificial interpretations of Jesus' death, directly stating that he was not dying "as a sacrifice for sin" or to "atone for the inborn moral guilt of the human race." Mankind has no collective racial guilt before God; guilt exists only as a consequence of personal and knowing rebellion against the divine will. The text clarifies that God's salvation for mortals would have been "just as effective and unerringly certain" even if Jesus had not been killed but had departed Urantia by voluntarily relinquishing his life in the flesh. The Father's love for humankind was unchanged by Jesus' life and death; rather, these events enriched understanding throughout the universe of universes about both divine and human nature. The text concludes this section by affirming that humans are sons of God, and the only requirement to make this truth part of personal experience is "spirit-born faith," the foundational reality that transcends all religious interpretations of Jesus' death.