INTERROGATION AND DENIAL
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Opening Prayer
Lord Jesus, you came to earth, served, suffered, and died for my sake. Thank you for all you did for my redemption and a life to be lived with you forever.
Read JOHN 18:15—27
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John
John 18
Peter’s First Denial
15 Simon Peter and another disciple were following Jesus. Because this disciple was known to the high priest, he went with Jesus into the high priest’s courtyard, 16 but Peter had to wait outside at the door. The other disciple, who was known to the high priest, came back, spoke to the servant girl on duty there and brought Peter in.
17 “You aren’t one of this man’s disciples too, are you?” she asked Peter.
He replied, “I am not.”
18 It was cold, and the servants and officials stood around a fire they had made to keep warm. Peter also was standing with them, warming himself.
The High Priest Questions Jesus
19 Meanwhile, the high priest questioned Jesus about his disciples and his teaching.
20 “I have spoken openly to the world,” Jesus replied. “I always taught in synagogues or at the temple, where all the Jews come together. I said nothing in secret. 21 Why question me? Ask those who heard me. Surely they know what I said.”
22 When Jesus said this, one of the officials nearby slapped him in the face. “Is this the way you answer the high priest?” he demanded.
23 “If I said something wrong,” Jesus replied, “testify as to what is wrong. But if I spoke the truth, why did you strike me?” 24 Then Annas sent him bound to Caiaphas the high priest.
Peter’s Second and Third Denials
25 Meanwhile, Simon Peter was still standing there warming himself. So they asked him, “You aren’t one of his disciples too, are you?”
He denied it, saying, “I am not.”
26 One of the high priest’s servants, a relative of the man whose ear Peter had cut off, challenged him, “Didn’t I see you with him in the garden?” 27 Again Peter denied it, and at that moment a rooster began to crow.
Reflect
‘Lo! the hosts of evil round us / scorn thy Christ, assail his ways … Grant us wisdom, grant us courage / for the living of these days.’1
Only Peter and ‘another disciple’ (v. 15) dare follow Jesus and the arresting party. Given John’s wide use of ‘disciple,’ it makes sense that the other disciple was a Jerusalem believer. Unlike Peter, from Galilee, this other disciple is recognized and allowed in. He is later identified as the ‘beloved’ disciple2 and, as a Jerusalem believer whom Jesus loved, Lazarus again comes to mind. Inside, he gains permission for Peter to enter and returns to get him, but as Peter enters, his Galilean traits, including his accent,3 betray him, and he lies. Annas, the previous high priest and patriarch of the powerful Bet Hanan family, had retained his title and power, even after his role passed to his son-in-law, Joseph Caiaphas. Perhaps he thinks Jesus will show fear and succumb to his interrogation, but instead, he meets calm defiance. Jesus speaks as the one in control. His teachings are well known; anybody who attends temple or synagogue could testify to that. Jesus dominates the interrogation. Neither the high priest’s questions nor the police officer’s blow changes that. Frustrated, Annas sends Jesus to Caiaphas.
Meanwhile, a lesser drama is unfolding in the courtyard. People around the fire are curious about this stranger with the rural Galilean brogue. They accuse Peter of being with Jesus. Again, he denies it, but he had made himself obvious at Jesus’ arrest, and someone recognizes him. Yet again, Peter lies to save himself. As a young boy, an avid reader of spy thrillers, I thought such subterfuge a brave necessity and that Peter did not deserve reproach—but I was young and had not grasped the significance of Peter’s rash boast that he would never do this.4 After his third denial, Peter hears the rooster crow. Among the people in the courtyard, only Peter knows what it means.
Apply
In what situations might you be tempted to ‘lay low’ as a Christian?
Closing prayer
Jesus, Lord of my future, when I face trials, help me overcome my fears. Give me courage to face whatever lies before me, trusting only in your power.
1 ‘God of Grace and God of Glory’, Harry Emerson Fosdick, 1930 2 See John 20:2 3 Luke 22:59 4 Mark 14:20—31.
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