The Sanhedrin Series

The Sanhedrin

The Sanhedrin (Hebrew:'sitting together,' hence 'assembly' or 'council') was an assembly of either twenty-three or seventy-one elders (known as "rabbis" after the destruction of the Second Temple), appointed to sit as a tribunal in every city in the ancient Land of Israel.

There were two classes of Rabbinite (consisting of men called Rabis), Jewish courts named Sanhedrin, the Great Sanhedrin, and the Lesser Sanhedrin. In general usage, the Sanhedrin without a qualifier usually refers to the Great Sanhedrin, which was presided over by the Nasi, who functioned as its head or representing president, and was a member of the court; the Av Beit Din or the chief of the court, who was second to the nasi; and sixty-nine general members. A lesser Sanhedrin of 23 judges was appointed to sit as a tribunal in each city. However, there was only supposed to be one Great Sanhedrin of 71 judges, which among other roles, acted as the Supreme Court, taking appeals from cases that lesser courts decided.

In the Second Temple period, the Great Sanhedrin met in the Temple in Jerusalem, in a building called the Hall of Hewn Stones. The Great Sanhedrin convened every day except festivals and the sabbath day (Shabbat).

After the destruction of the Second Temple and the failure of the Bar Kokhba revolt, the Great Sanhedrin moved to Galilee, which became part of the Roman province of Syria Palaestina. In this period, the Sanhedrin was sometimes referred to as the Galilean Patriarchate or Patriarchate of Palaestina, the governing legal body of Galilean Jewry. In the late 200s CE, to avoid persecution, the name Sanhedrin was dropped, and its decisions were issued under the name of Beit HaMidrash (house of learning). The last universally binding decision of the Great Sanhedrin appeared in 358 CE when the Hebrew calendar was established. The Great Sanhedrin was finally disbanded in 425 CE after continued persecution by the Eastern Roman Empire.

Over the centuries, attempts have been made to revive the organization, such as the Grand Sanhedrin convened by Napoleon Bonaparte and modern attempts in Israel.

Hebrew Bible

In the Hebrew Bible (Exodus 18:21–22, Numbers 11:16–17, 11:24–25; Deuteronomy 1:15–18, 17:9–12), Moses and the Israelites were commanded by God to establish courts of judges who were given full authority over the people of Israel, whom God commanded through Moses to obey the judgments made by the courts and every Torah-abiding law they established. Judges in ancient Israel were the religious leaders and teachers of the nation of Israel. The Mishnah[1] (Sanhedrin 1:6) arrives at the number twenty-three based on an exegetical derivation: it must be possible for a "community" to vote for both conviction and exoneration (Numbers 35:24–5). The minimum size of a "community" is 10 men; thus, 10 vs. 10. One more is required to achieve a majority (11 vs. 10). However, a simple majority cannot convict (Exodus 23:2), and so an additional judge is required (12 vs. 10). Finally, a court should not have an even number of judges to prevent deadlocks; thus, 23 (12 vs. 10 and 1). This court dealt with only religious matters. The Sanhedrin of 70 Elders helped Moses; years before in Egypt, these men had been Hebrew officials under Egyptian taskmasters; they were beaten when they refused to beat fellow Jews to finish building projects. As a reward, they became the Sanhedrin of 70 Elders.

History

Early Sanhedrin

The Hasmonean court in Judea, presided over by Alexander Jannaeus until 76 BCE, followed by his wife, Queen Salome Alexandra, was called Synhedrion or Sanhedrin. The exact nature of this early Sanhedrin is not clear. It may have been a body of sages, priests, or a political, legislative, and judicial institution. The first historical record of the body was during the administration of Aulus Gabinius. They, according to Josephus, organized five synedra in 57 BCE as the Roman administration was not concerned with religious affairs unless sedition was suspected. Only after the destruction of the Second Temple was the Sanhedrin made up only of sages.

Herodian and early Roman rule

The first historical mention of a Synhedrion occurs in the Psalms of Solomon (XVII:49), a Jewish religious book written in Greek.

The Mishnah tractate Sanhedrin (IV:2) states that the Sanhedrin was to be recruited from the following sources: Priests (Kohanim), Levites (Levi'im), and ordinary Jews who were members of those families having a pure lineage such that their daughters were allowed to marry priests.

In the Second Temple period, the Great Sanhedrin met in the Hall of Hewn Stones in the Temple in Jerusalem. The court convened every day except festivals and the sabbath day (Shabbat).

The trial of Jesus, and early Christianity

A Synhedrion is mentioned 22 times in the Greek New Testament, including in the Gospels concerning the trial of Jesus and in the Acts of the Apostles, which mentions a "Great Synhedrion" in chapter 5 where rabbi Gamaliel appeared, and also in chapter 7 about the stoning death of Saint Stephen.