Was it a miracle of God that the Jews incriminated themselves and their children in the blood of Jesus?

Upvote:0

Israel, corporately as a nation, was held responsible for the actions and words of those spoken by the High Priest (as those present were in agreement with him), and was anxious to be rid of Jesus. Jesus declared that they knew who He was (John 7:28 "ye both know me and ye know whence I am, and I am not come of myself, but he that sent me is true, who ye know not) and in John 11:49 Caiaphas, the High Priest said ..."it is expedient for us, that one man should die for the people and that the whole nation perish not". After Christ's resurrection, they began to persecute the Apostles, and did not want them to declare openly that they were responsible for his death. But, I do believe that when Christ returns, all of Israel will be saved.

Upvote:1

After the crowd had finally exhausted Pilate's attempts to free Christ, Pilate tries to separate himself from the guilt of what was about to occur in killing this innocent man. To ensure Pilate did not go back on his decision, a kind of agreed negotiation over the guilt occurred. The Jewish leaders and the people under their influence gladly accepted the potential guilt. They did not do so in sincerity, but in high confidence that there was no guilt to worry about. Therefore, they are so bold not only to call upon themselves a curse but even all their children.

That they would confess this guilt, while not believing they were guilty, does not seem so much as a miracle per se. Possibly more along the lines of God providential ordering an unwilling witness against themselves prior to the predicted destruction of their nation. For the curse they put upon themselves was later brought to pass in the actual destruction of their nation which occurred in 70 A.D. Their homeless position on the earth did not end until 1948 making the punishment so very great. Although there is what might be called poetic justice in the words, I would not call it a miracle. It simply expressed how confident they were in assuming potential guilt of the decision and how fearless of God they had truly become.

Upvote:4

This is not seen as a miracle - but rather an acceptance of the choice they were asked to make. The Torah specifically disallows children to be punished for the sins of the father - Dt 24:16, so this is nothing but bravado. In responding "his blood be upon us," they are, in actuality just saying, "there will be no consequence."

When he is being martyred (in Acts 7), however, Stephen picks up on the theme. He says:

You stiff-necked people! Your hearts and ears are still uncircumcised. You are just like your ancestors: You always resist the Holy Spirit!

In other words, even if the vocalizations were not "His blood be upon our children," the sentiment is still the same - Everybody calling for Jesus' execution is acting the same from generation to generation. They didn't believe the prophets, they didn't believe Jesus. This is true in every generation, and the sentiment is that in calling for Jesus' death, they expected no different.

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