Paragraph 14:60–62

In the previous paragraph, many witnesses had accused Jesus of disobeying the law (14:56–59). But the Jewish leaders could not condemn him because no two of the witnesses said the same thing. Now the high priest started to question Jesus.

14:60a

So: In Greek this verse begins with the common conjunction that is often translated as “and.” Here it introduces what happened next in the story. The high priest himself now began to question Jesus. Introduce this event in a natural way in your language.

the high priest stood up before them: The Sanhedrin normally sat in a raised area in a semi-circle. The high priest sat at the highest spot between the two halves of the semi-circle. (This material is taken from a suggested footnote in TRT.) The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as before them is literally “into the middle.” This probably means that the high priest stepped down into the area between the two halves of the semi-circle. That is where Jesus was standing. The chief priest did this so that everyone would be able to see and hear him clearly.

This meaning may be expressed in various ways. Here are some other ways to translate stood up before them:

stood up in the center (God’s Word)
-or-
stood up in front of them all (Good News Bible)
-or-
stood up where everyone could see him

and questioned Jesus: The Greek words that the Berean Standard Bible translates as and questioned Jesus are literally “and questioned him saying.” Use a natural way in your language to introduce the high priest’s words that follow in 14:60b–c.

14:60b–c

The Berean Standard Bible, along with the majority of English versions, translates 14:60b–c as two questions. A few English versions write 14:60b–c as a single question. See the General Comment on 14:60a–c for further discussion.

14:60b

Have You no answer?: The Greek question that the Berean Standard Bible translates as Have You no answer? implies a rebuke. The high priest implied that Jesus should have responded to what the people had accused him of doing. The high priest also expected Jesus to answer this question by defending himself. Be sure that both of these implications are clear in your language.

Here are some other ways to translate this:

Are you not going to answer to defend yourself?
-or-
Do you have a reply to what these men are/were saying against you?

In some languages it may be more natural to indicate the implied information as a rebuke or a command. For example:

Let us hear whether you have an answer to all this evidence.

14:60c

What are these men testifying against You?: This question implies, “What do you have to say about what these men are saying against you?” The men had finished giving their testimony when the high priest asked this question. In English it is natural for the high priest to refer to their testimony with a present tense verb. In some languages it may be more natural to use different verb forms. For example:

What do you have to say about what these men were saying against you? Is what they said true?
-or-
What do you say about the evidence that these men have given against you?

Use natural verb forms in your language for this context.

testifying: The word testifying refers to the action of giving evidence. See how you translated the word “testified” in 14:57b.

against You: The phrase against You could also be translated as “saying against you.”

General Comment on 14:60a–c

In some languages it may be more natural to translate the questions in this verse with a different number of questions. You could also use a combination of questions, statements, or commands. For example:

Then the high priest stood in the midst of the council to question Jesus. He said, “Why do you not respond to the things that people are/were saying against you? Are these things true? Do you have any answers? Let us hear it.”

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