Caiaphas is mentioned again in 18.13,14,24,28. He was appointed High Priest in A.D. 18 and was deposed in A.D. 36, when Pilate also was put out of office. As John indicates in 18.13, Caiaphas was the son-in-law of Annas. Traditionally the Jewish High Priest held office for life, but in New Testament times the tenure of the High Priest depended on the favour of the Roman government. John’s statement who was High Priest that year is taken by some commentators to indicate that John believed that the office of High Priest was a yearly appointment. However, this assumption is not necessarily correct. More probably John simply meant that Caiaphas was the High Priest in that memorable year in which Jesus was crucified.

The same term in Greek may be rendered either “high priest” or “chief priest” when used in the singular, but it must be rendered “chief priests” when it occurs in the plural. In the singular it may be translated “the leader of the priests” or “the one who is over all the other priests” or, as in some languages, “the first priest of all.”

What fools you are! is literally “you do not know anything,” in which “you” and “anything” are emphatic. This statement may be rendered “You don’t understand what’s happening” or “You don’t realize what’s involved” or “You don’t see the problem.”

Quoted with permission from Newman, Barclay M. and Nida, Eugene A. A Handbook on the Gospel of John. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1980. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .