The Jewish Sanhedrin, also referred to as the Council, was the highest ruling body among the Jews in New Testament times.
This group probably evolved from the council of advisors to the high priest during the years when the Jewish people lived
under the domination of the Persians and the Greeks from about 500 to 150 B.C.
The Council originally was composed of leading priests and distinguished aristocrats among the Jewish
people, but later scribes and Pharisees and Sudducees were added to the group.
With an assembly of 71 members, the council was headed by the high priest. The body was granted limited
authority over certain religious, civil, and criminal matters by the Romans during their years of dominance in Palestine.
Most of the day-to-day business was left to the Sanhedrin, which was permitted to have its own police force. However, the
Council was denied the right to exercise the death penalty (John 18:31). In spite of these restrictions,
the Sanhedrin exercised considerable influence in religious matters.
The council played a prominent role in the arrest and trial of Jesus, although it is not clear whether
He was formally tried by the Council or given preliminary hearings. Christ was arrested by the temple police in the Garden
of Gethsemane (Mark 14:43) and subjected to false accusations before the high priest (Matt.
26:59). Several of the apostles, including Peter, John, and Paul, were charged before the Sanhedrin
(Acts 4:1-23; 5: 17-41; 22-24) in later years.
Prominent members of the Sanhedrin mentioned in a favorable light in the New Testament were Joseph
of Arimathea (Mark 15:43); Gamaliel (Acts 5:34); and Nicodemus (John 3:1; 7:50).
During most of its history, the council met at Jerusalem. But after A.D. 150, it converned at Tiberias,
a Roman city on the shores of the Sea of Galilee.
