Real Bible People: The High Priest Family

Priestly Power in Jerusalem

Annas and his Family

The Family of Ananus son of Seth (Annas)

During the time of Jesus, and stretching almost to the beginning of Israel's war with Rome, the high priest's office in Jerusalem was dominated by the family of one Ananus son of Seth, popularly known as Annas. Annas, his five sons, and his son-in-law Caiaphas each had their turn as the designated high priest during a period of some 57 years. Here are their names and their terms of office:

Ananus son of Seth (Annas)                 AD 6 - AD 15
Eleazar son of Ananus                        AD 16 - AD 17
Joseph son of Caiaphas (Caiaphas)    AD 18 - AD 36
Jonathan son of Ananus                      AD 36 - AD 37, and also AD 44
Theophilus son of Ananus                   AD 37 - AD 41
Matthias son of Ananus                       AD 43
Ananus son of Ananus (Hanan)           AD 63

The Senior High Priest Annas

Ananus (Annas), Senior High Priest

By Jewish law the designated high priest was elected for life. Such a thing was not a reality under Roman rule. Not only did Rome choose the high priest that suited their needs but also fired him when he conflicted with their needs. But obviously, from the list of high priests above, the Romans had to choose from a very select group.

The Romans could fire the high priest from his temple duties, but not from his high esteem among the people. This led to their being a plethora of "high priests" in Jerusalem, unthinkable in the early days of Israel, when the only way to get a new high priest was for the old one to die. As we will see below, the Romans could limit the duties of their selected high priest, but the senior high priest -- the oldest one -- retained duties and powers untouched by the Romans. Annas was deposed by the Roman prefect Gratus, yet he remained for years as one of the nation's most influential people.

High Priest Caiaphas

Joseph son of Caiaphas (Caiaphas)

Joseph was a very common name in Israel, so he became known by the name of his father. Caiaphas married the daughter of Annas, and was elevated to high priest by the roman prefect Valerius Gratus, who preceded Pontius Pilate as governor of Judea. In place of the consultative approach of Annas, Caiaphas had a more decisive style.

When Jesus shook up Jerusalem by raising Lazarus from the dead, it was Caiaphas who proposed the death of Jesus. The fear was that Jesus would challenge the power structure of the priesthood, and bring the Roman authorities down on their heads. Caiaphas justified his proposal by telling the Sanhedrin, "It is to your advantage that one man should die for the people, not that the whole nation should die" (John 11:50).

John the Apostle later characterized Caiaphas' argument as a prophetic statement, brought by the inspiration of his position that year as the designated High Priest. John extended Caiaphas' prophecy to include Jesus' salvation for God's people worldwide. In any case, by the influence of Caiaphas this marked the moment when the Jewish authorities began actively planning for the death of Jesus.

Annas wearing the ephod

Sadducees and the Power of the Priesthood

All the high priests of Israel at that time were Sadducees rather than Pharisees, along with many of the  rest of the priests. Sadducees rejected the authority of prophetic writings, such as the book of Isaiah, which foretell the downfall of priestly power in favor of a coming messianic power. By clinging only to the Five Books of Moses, they were clinging to their priestly power and authority and shutting out any authority proclaimed by a so-called "prophet."

Today we have modern-day Sadducees (known as 'cessationists'), who deny that the gift of prophecy is still bestowed on people today. This belief strengthens their power over the church, protecting it from the attacks of any upstart "prophet."

The supreme symbol of priestly authority was the Ephod, a box worn about the neck by the designated High Priest and bejeweled with the 12 precious stones of the 12 tribes of Israel. In ancient times the box contained the urim and the thummim, devices which were cast like lots to determine the will of God. Although these pieces were long lost, it was still the purview of the High Priest to determine the will of God.

Because of this danger, the Ephod had been confiscated by the Romans and was issued out to the High Priest to be worn only for the highest ceremonies of the temple, probably just three times per year. The concern of the Romans was real, for there were groups (such as the Essenes) that held that the current crop of high priests were entirely the wrong people to be in charge. The theft of the Ephod and a spurious claim by its possessor was a danger.

Another power of the High Priest was presidency over the Sanhedrin--the high council of the Jews--to which we turn next.

Meeting of the Sanhedrin

The Sanhedrin -- The High Council of the Jews

Jerusalem's high council consisted of 72 respected elders, plus the captain of the temple guard, who met as needed in a hall on the temple grounds. In practice these were mostly the rich and powerful, including Nicodemus, reputedly the richest man in Jerusalem. They included a strong contingency of Pharisees, and a smaller group of Sadducees. Affiliation with one of these groups was not a requirement, but there were no Essenes, who would not step foot on the temple grounds as long as the "wrong" group of men were priests.

Romans had no voice here. If the Sanhedrin needed to interact with the Roman governor, they would send a delegation to meet with him on the steps of his palace. (Entering the governor's house would have made them "unclean" and barred them from the temple until a period of cleansing was met.)

By virtue of his office, the High Priest was president of the council, and it was he who would call the Sanhedrin into session. But since the Jews did not recognize Rome's power to depose a High Priest, only the eldest high priest--Annas--had the power to call the Sanhedrin into session.

This sets up a scene just after Jesus' arrest that has been debated by many. Although a strong contingency of Caiaphas' officers and security detail were prime movers in the arrest, they took Jesus first to Annas' house (in the dead of night) before taking him to Caiaphas' house. This was because a session of the Sanhedrin was needed to try Jesus and proclaim their judgment on him, but only Annas could call the Sanhedrin into session.

The family of Annas along with the rest of the Sadducees held great sway over the council, but they still remained a minority, and needed support from some of the Pharisees in order to take action. The Pharisees were divided on the 'Jesus' issue, much as they were on any other issue, and some of them went down silently, still supporting the man.

While Annas was presiding over the council, Caiaphas was questioning Jesus, finally hearing Jesus say, "I am [the blessed one], and you shall see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of Power, and coming with the clouds of heaven." Caiaphas declared him guilty of heresy, called for a vote, and those who voted agreed with Caiaphas.

Of course, by Roman law the Sanhedrin was unable to enact the death penalty, and that set up the delegation sent to the Governor's front steps to ask his help in enacting the punishment. Pilate was more or less cornered politically, and was forced to accede to their request.

Annas Judges Peter and John

Annas and the Sanhedrin (Acts 4)

Annas appears one last time in the biblical record, around AD 32 right after the arrest of Peter and John for preaching Jesus to the people. They had attracted the attention of the Sadducees and the captain of the temple guard by a remarkable healing that stirred the populace. The temple guard tossed them into prison overnight until the Sanhedrin could be convened.

As the high council meets in the morning, Annas is named as the High Priest, while Caiaphas is merely mentioned as being present. Although this definitely takes place during the period (AD 18-36) that Caiaphas holds the office of High Priest according to the Romans, Luke (the writer of Acts) clearly shows that Annas remains as both High Priest and president of the Sanhedrin in Jewish eyes.

While the Sanhedrin refrains from doing anything drastic in fear of the populace, the high priests and Sadducees prevailed in admonishing Peter and John to stop their preaching. They nonetheless released them without so much as a beating. Peter and John returned to their people and rejoiced with them for their victory over the Sanhedrin.

Ananus - Last of the Annas Line of High Priests

Last of the Clan of Annas

Twenty years after the high priesthood of Matthias son of Annas, the winds of war were beginning to swirl through the streets and alleys of Jerusalem, brought on by the increasingly vocal demands of the party of the Zealots. Discord reigned as much as anything, and there was likely a longing for the conciliar days of Annas the senior high priest, now dead some 20 years. (The date of Annas' death is disputed.) 

It may have been a longing for Annas that led to the installation of his youngest son and namesake, Ananus son of Ananus, also known as Hanan. But peace and conciliation were not to be had. Hanan is most famous for his alleged ordering of the death of James the Just, eldest brother of Jesus and writer of the biblical book of James. Details of James' death are confused: he may have been ordered to be stoned, but was instead cast from the pillar of the temple. This makes sense in light of the great respect for James held by the common people.

However, Hanan had no such authority to do this. He was the designated High Priest, but he was not the senior high priest and did not have the authority to call the Sanhedrin meeting that condemned James. In addition, he broke Jewish law by imposing the death penalty without the Roman governor's permission. In fact, Jerusalem was between governors at the time, and the newly appointed governor was on his way to Jerusalem when this took place. The new governor promptly deposed Hanan after less than 3 months of service. (Hanan's replacement was also deposed, before the end of that year.)

But Hanan was not to disappear into the shadows. He remained as an influential leader of the Jews, especially the Sadducees, in their struggle against the rebellious Zealots, who laid siege to the temple. Hanan was assassinated in AD 68 by allies of the Zealots, for the crime of "advocating peace with Rome," ending the Annas dynasty of High Priests.