Sovereignty Behind the Sanhedrin
Though Annas and Caiaphas wielded authority for self-preservation, their decisions advanced the hidden plan of God.
When Jesus was arrested, He was first brought before Annas (John 18:13), a sign of the old priest’s lingering control. Caiaphas presided over the official trial that followed, culminating in the council’s decision to hand Jesus to Pilate. In their courtroom, the eternal High Priest stood before human priests — the shadow confronting the substance.
Their leadership revealed the corruption of power without piety: the temple system had become transactional, and the priesthood political. Yet, even their injustice became the stage for divine redemption. Through their plotting, the Lamb was slain — “not for the nation only, but also that He might gather into one the children of God” (John 11:52).
Annas and Caiaphas remind us that God’s sovereignty can weave even flawed leadership into His story. The cross was born from their courtroom, yet the resurrection broke their authority.
