Coffman Commentaries on the Bible - Mark 14:65
And some began to spit on him, and to cover his face, and to buffet him, and to say unto him, Prophesy: and the officers received him with blows of their hands.Such mockery was unworthy even of a pagan court; and such malicious treatment of any prisoner, even a guilty one, was a shameful blot upon the history of Israel. Mockery by the pagan soldiers of Herod was in keeping with the sadistic nature of the times; but mockery in the confines of the palace of God's high priest was particularly... read more
Coffman Commentaries on the Bible - Mark 14:64
Ye have heard the blasphemy, and what think ye? And they all condemned him to be worthy of death.Through his illegal and violent behavior in rending his garments, the sacred garments of the high priest, he had already announced the court's decision; and what he called for here was an assent to his self-proposed verdict. The conduct of Caiaphas in this scene dramatizes the claim of Christ as being equal to God. Skeptics who deny that Christ made such a claim are left without any explanation at... read more