These events take place on the Wednesday before the Passover, at a moment when the religious leaders have made up their minds. For several months already, they had been brooding over this plan in secret, looking for a way to be rid of Jesus of Nazareth, whose growing influence threatened their authority. Now death appears to them as the only possible solution. They know that Judas Iscariot has approached them to offer his betrayal, but caution remains necessary: they must act without provoking a riot among the people, who are still devoted to Jesus.
The high priest Caiaphas takes the initiative and draws up the list of members of the likely to support a swift and unappealable condemnation. Everything is calculated. The false witnesses are chosen in advance to ensure the soundness of the trial, even if it means twisting the Messiah’s words to turn them into blasphemies. Caiaphas oversees every detail, aware that the slightest mistake could jeopardize the operation.
Pilate, the governor, is discreetly warned. The matter is presented to him from a political angle: the Messiah Jesus is said to be an agitator, a potential threat to the peace and to the authority of Rome. This version is meant to induce him to cooperate by providing an armed detachment to support the arrest. The maneuver aims to turn a religious conflict into a matter of state, which will facilitate a Roman intervention and give more weight to the verdict.
Meanwhile, Judas is under pressure from the high priest. He still hesitates, but greed and the fear of missing the opportunity drive him to act. He is offered a paltry reward, thirty pieces of silver, yet he accepts. His heart, already hardened, now opens itself to evil. As night draws near, the moment is favorable: the city is full of pilgrims, the alleys are dark, and the Messiah Jesus, as is his custom, is to withdraw with his disciples to the .
Everything is ready. In the heavy silence of this eve of Passover, the plot comes to its end. The religious leaders want to strike quickly, before the feast begins, before the light exposes their schemes. The arrest is planned for the night from Thursday to Friday, the night when the Son of Man will be betrayed, delivered up, and led toward the cross.