pare everything for taking
him to Pilate's court directly he should have pronounced sentence. The
emissaries of the Council hurried off to the prison, and with their
usual brutality untied the hands of Jesus, dragged off the old mantle
which they had thrown over his shoulders, made him put on his own
soiled garment, and having fastened ropes round his waist, dragged him
out of the prison. The appearance of Jesus, when he passed through the
midst of the crowd who were already assembled in the front of the
house, was that of a victim led to be sacrificed; his countenance was
totally changed and disfigured from ill-usage, and his garments stained
and torn; but the sight of his sufferings, far from exciting a feeling
of compassion in the hard hearted Jews, simply filled them with
disgust, and increased their rage. Pity was, indeed, a feeling unknown
in their cruel breasts.

Caiphas, who did not make the slightest effort to conceal his
hatred, addressed our Lord haughtily in these words: 'If thou be Christ ,
tell us plainly.' Then Jesus raised his head, and answered with great
dignity and calmness, 'If I shall tell you, you will not believe me; and
if I shall also ask you, you will not answer me, or let me go. But
hereafter the Son of Man shall be sitting on the right hand of the
power of God.' The High Priests looked at one another, and said to Jesus,
with a disdainful laugh, 'Art thou, then, the Son of God?' And Jesus
answered, with the voice of eternal truth, 'You say that I am.' At these
words they all exclaimed, 'What need we any further testimony? For we
ourselves have heard it from his own mouth.'

They all arose instantly and vied with each other as to who should
heap the most abusive epithets upon Jesus, whom they termed a low-born
miscreant, who aspired to being their Messiah, and pretended to be
entitled to sit at the right hand of God. They ordered the archers to
tie his hands again, and to fasten a chain round his neck (this was
usually done to criminals condemned to death), and they then prepared
to conduct him to Pilate's hall, where a messenger had already been
dispatched to beg him to have all in readiness for trying a criminal,
as it was necessary to make no delay on account of the festival day.

The Jewish Priests murmured among themselves at being obliged to
apply to the Roman governor for the confirmation of their sentence, but
it was necessary, as they had not the right of condemning criminals
excep