Again the high priest asked him, “Are you the Messiah, the Son of the Blessed One?” “I am,” said Jesus. “And you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven.” The high priest tore his clothes. “Why do we need any more witnesses?” he asked. “You have heard the blasphemy. What do you think?” They all condemned him as worthy of death. Then some began to spit at him; they blindfolded him, struck him with their fists, and said, “Prophesy!” And the guards took him and beat him.

--Parallel verses:
‭‭Leviticus‬ ‭24‬:‭13‬-‭16‬
Then the Lord said to Moses: “Take the blasphemer outside the camp. All those who heard him are to lay their hands on his head, and the entire assembly is to stone him. Say to the Israelites: ‘Anyone who curses their God will be held responsible; anyone who blasphemes the name of the Lord is to be put to death. The entire assembly must stone them. Whether foreigner or native-born, when they blaspheme the Name they are to be put to death.”‭‭

Exodus‬ ‭22‬:‭28‬ ‭AMP‬‬
“You shall not curse[blaspheme] God, nor curse [blaspheme] the ruler of your people [since he administers God’s law].

What stands out to me here is the way the high priest and Jewish leaders respond — their behavior feels almost theatrical. It reminds me of how professional basketball players sometimes exaggerate contact to draw a foul. They take Jesus’ clear statement that He is the Son of God and react as if: (1) it’s a shocking new revelation, (2) it’s an evil assertion, and (3) it’s outright blasphemy.

First of all, Jesus demonstrated his divine nature by his teaching without formal education and his miracles, signs, and wonders. He also stated his divine nature multiple times by his I AM statements, recorded throughout the gospel of John. This equated him to God, because God said, I AM that I AM when speaking to Moses at the burning bush.

Second, they would not give him any credit or acknowledgement for his signs, wonders, casting out demons, and raising the dead. Why? Because it threatened them. Anything that threatened their authority they labeled evil.

Finally, they called his admission blasphemy, but this was a false claim, based on Old Testament legal precedent. The two cross references show this. The word “blaspheme” can also be interpreted as “curse”. And it was clear that cursing God was an offense worthy of death in the Old Testament. But Jesus does not curse God. Instead, he just claimed he was God.

This is like the wordsmithing that happened in our country when those in power called a weaponless rally at the US Capital an insurrection, so they could hold those arrested without a trial, as domestic terrorists. In similar fashion, these Jews knew Jesus wasn’t blaspheming God, but they made the crime fit the words. So Jesus was rung up on trumped-up charges. And this was the excuse they gave to beat him up, spit on him, and call him nasty names.

Clearly, their evil desires had fully matured into a murderous intent.

Lord, you had to endure so much for my sake and the sake of the sinful souls of this world. You peacefully submitted to The Father’s will even as your rights were trampled and your body was beaten. INCREDIBLE! Your love truly knows no bounds! Thank you over and over and over again!