John 18:13-24

Context
18:13 They¹ brought him first to Annas, for he was the father-in-law of Caiaphas, who was high priest that year.² 18:14 (Now it was Caiaphas who had advised³ the Jewish leaders⁴ that it was to their advantage that one man die for the people.)⁵

Peter’s First Denial

18:15 Simon Peter and another disciple followed them as they brought Jesus to Annas.⁶ (Now the other disciple⁷ was acquainted with the high priest, and he went with Jesus into the high priest’s courtyard.)⁸ 18:16 But Simon Peter was left standing outside by the door. So the other disciple who was acquainted with the high priest came out and spoke to the slave girl who watched the door,⁹ and brought Peter inside. 18:17 The girl¹⁰ who was the doorkeeper said to Peter, “You’re not one of this man’s disciples too, are you?”¹¹ He replied,¹² “I am not.” 18:18 (Now the slaves¹³ and the guards¹⁴ were standing around a charcoal fire they had made, warming themselves because it was cold.¹⁵ Peter also was standing with them, warming himself.)¹⁶

Jesus Questioned by Annas

18:19 While this was happening,¹⁷ the high priest questioned Jesus about his disciples and about his teaching.¹⁸ 18:20 Jesus replied,¹⁹ “I have spoken publicly to the world. I always taught in the synagogues²⁰ and in the temple courts,²¹ where all the Jewish people²² assemble together. I²³ have said nothing in secret. 18:21 Why do you ask me? Ask those who heard what I said.²⁴ They²⁵ know what I said.” 18:22 When Jesus²⁶ had said this, one of the high priest’s officers who stood nearby struck him on the face and said,²⁷ “Is that the way you answer the high priest?” 18:23 Jesus replied,²⁸ “If I have said something wrong,²⁹ confirm³⁰ what is wrong.³¹ But if I spoke correctly, why strike me?” 18:24 Then Annas sent him, still tied up,³² to Caiaphas the high priest.³³

[18:13] ¹tn Grk “up, and brought.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.

[18:13] ²sn Jesus was taken first to Annas. Only the Gospel of John mentions this pretrial hearing before Annas, and that Annas was the father-in-law of Caiaphas, who is said to be high priest in that year. Caiaphas is also mentioned as being high priest in John 11:49. But in 18:15, 16, 19, and 22 Annas is called high priest. Annas is also referred to as high priest by Luke in Acts 4:6. Many scholars have dismissed these references as mistakes on the part of both Luke and John, but as mentioned above, John 11:49 and 18:13 indicate that John knew that Caiaphas was high priest in the year that Jesus was crucified. This has led others to suggest that Annas and Caiaphas shared the high priesthood, but there is no historical evidence to support this view. Annas had been high priest from a.d. 6 to a.d. 15 when he was deposed by the Roman prefect Valerius Gratus (according to Josephus, Ant. 18.2.2 [18.34]). His five sons all eventually became high priests. The family was noted for its greed, wealth, and power. There are a number of ways the references in both Luke and John to Annas being high priest may be explained. Some Jews may have refused to recognize the changes in high priests effected by the Roman authorities, since according to the Torah the high priesthood was a lifetime office (Num 25:13). Another possibility is that it was simply customary to retain the title after a person had left the office as a courtesy, much as retired ambassadors are referred to as “Mr. Ambassador” or ex-presidents as “Mr. President.” Finally, the use of the title by Luke and John may simply be a reflection of the real power behind the high priesthood of the time: Although Annas no longer technically held the office, he may well have managed to control those relatives of his who did hold it from behind the scenes. In fact this seems most probable and would also explain why Jesus was brought to him immediately after his arrest for a sort of “pretrial hearing” before being sent on to the entire Sanhedrin.

[18:14] ³tn Or “counseled.”

[18:14] ⁴tn Grk “the Jews.” Here the phrase refers to the Jewish leaders, specifically members of the Sanhedrin (see John 11:49-50). See also the note on the phrase “Jewish leaders” in v. 12.

[18:14] ⁵sn This is a parenthetical note by the author.

[18:15] ⁶tn The words “them as they brought Jesus to Annas” are not in the Greek text, but are supplied to clarify who Peter and the other disciple were following. Direct objects were often omitted in Greek when clear from the context.

[18:15] ⁷tn Grk “that disciple.”

[18:15] ⁸sn This is a parenthetical note by the author.

[18:16] ⁹tn Grk “spoke to the doorkeeper”; her description as a slave girl is taken from the following verse. The noun θυρωρός (qurwro") may be either masculine or feminine, but the article here indicates that it is feminine.

[18:17] ¹⁰tn Grk “slave girl.” Since the descriptive term “slave girl” was introduced in the translation in the previous verse, it would be redundant to repeat the full expression here.

[18:17] ¹¹tn Questions prefaced with μή (mh) in Greek anticipate a negative answer. This can sometimes be indicated by using a “tag” at the end in English (here the tag is “are you?”).

[18:17] ¹²tn Grk “He said.”

[18:18] ¹³tn See the note on the word “slaves” in 4:51.

[18:18] ¹⁴tn That is, the “guards of the chief priests” as distinguished from the household slaves of Annas.

[18:18] ¹⁵tn Grk “because it was cold, and they were warming themselves.”

[18:18] ¹⁶sn This is a parenthetical note by the author.

[18:19] ¹⁷tn The introductory phrase “While this was happening” is not in the Greek text. It has been supplied in the translation to clarify the alternation of scenes in the narrative for the modern reader.

[18:19] ¹⁸sn The nature of this hearing seems to be more that of a preliminary investigation; certainly normal legal procedure was not followed, for no indication is given that any witnesses were brought forth at this point to testify against Jesus. True to what is known of Annas’ character, he was more interested in Jesus’ disciples than in the precise nature of Jesus’ teaching, since he inquired about the followers first. He really wanted to know just how influential Jesus had become and how large a following he had gathered. This was of more concern to Annas that the truth or falsity of Jesus’ teaching.

[18:20] ¹⁹tn Grk “Jesus answered him.”

[18:20] ²⁰sn See the note on synagogue in 6:59.

[18:20] ²¹tn Grk “in the temple.”

[18:20] ²²tn Grk “the Jews.” Here the phrase refers to the Jewish people generally, for whom the synagogues and the temple courts in Jerusalem were important public gathering places. See also the note on the phrase “Jewish religious leaders” in v. 12.

[18:20] ²³tn Grk “And I.” The conjunction καί (kai, “and”) has not been translated here in keeping with the tendency of contemporary English style to use shorter sentences.

[18:21] ²⁴tn Grk “Ask those who heard what I said to them.” The words “to them” are not translated since they are redundant in English.

[18:21] ²⁵tn Grk “Look, these know what I said.”

[18:22] ²⁶tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[18:22] ²⁷tn Grk “one of the high priest’s servants standing by gave Jesus a strike, saying.” For the translation of ῥάπισμα (rJapisma), see L&N 19.4.

[18:23] ²⁸tn Grk “Jesus answered him.”

[18:23] ²⁹tn Or “something incorrect.”

[18:23] ³⁰tn Grk “testify.”

[18:23] ³¹tn Or “incorrect.”

[18:24] ³²tn Or “still bound.”

[18:24] ³³sn Where was Caiaphas the high priest located? Did he have a separate palace, or was he somewhere else with the Sanhedrin? Since Augustine (4th century) a number of scholars have proposed that Annas and Caiaphas resided in different wings of the same palace, which were bound together by a common courtyard through which Jesus would have been led as he was taken from Annas to Caiaphas. This seems a reasonable explanation, although there is no conclusive evidence.