LAW
"The robe of the unfairly elected judge is to be respected not more than the blanket of the ass."—Mendelsohn, "Hebrew Maxims and Rules," p. 182.
"As Moses sat in judgment without the expectation of material reward, so also must every judge act from a sense of duty only."—Mendelsohn, "Hebrew Maxims and Rules," p. 177.
"Nor must there be on the judicial bench either a relation, or a particular friend, or an enemy of either the accused or of the accuser."—Mendelsohn, "Criminal Jurisprudence of the Ancient Hebrews," p. 108.
"He (the Hebrew judge) was, in the first instance, to be modest, of good repute among his neighbors, and generally liked."—Benny, "Criminal Code of the Jews," p. 38.
"Nor under any circumstances, was a man known to be at enmity with the accused person permitted to occupy a position among his judges."—Benny, "Criminal Code of the Jews," p. 37.
FACT AND ARGUMENT
The Gospel records disclose the fact that the members of the Great Sanhedrin were legally disqualified to try Jesus. This disqualification was of two kinds: (1) A general disqualification, under Hebrew law, to act as judges in any case; (2) a special disqualification to sit in judgment upon the life of Jesus.
Among all the great systems of jurisprudence of the world the ancient Hebrew system was the most exacting in the matter of judicial fitness. In the palmiest days of the Hebrew Commonwealth the members of the Great Sanhedrin represented the most perfect mental, moral, and physical development of the Hebrew people. A man could not be a member of this court who had any serious mental, moral, or physical defect. He must have been "learned in the law," both written and unwritten. He must have had judicial experience; that is, he must have filled three offices of gradually increasing dignity, beginning with one of the local courts and passing successively through two magistracies at Jerusalem. He must have been an accomplished linguist; that is, he must have been thoroughly familiar with the languages of the surrounding nations. He must have been modest, popular, of good appearance, and free from haughtiness. He must have been pious, strong, and courageous. And above all, he must have been friendly in his attitude toward the accused.[306]
These were the qualifications of Israel's judges before Roman politics had corrupted them. But at the time of Christ they had grown to be time-serving, degenerate, and corrupt. Judea was then passing through a period of religious and political revolution. At such a time in any state, as all history teaches us, the worst elements of society generally get the upper hand and control the political currents of the day. Many members of the Sanhedrin had themselves been guilty of criminal acts in both public and private life. Many of them held office by purchase—they had bought their seats. They were thus unfitted to be judges in any case; especially in one involving the great question of life and death.