Matthew 21:46

And when they sought to lay hold on him, they feared the multitudes, because they took him for a prophet.

The die was then cast. Before that week ended, those evil men would by falsehood, suborned and lying witness, political pressure, intimidation, and mob violence, accomplish his crucifixion, under Christ's permissive will, and with themselves and others as the instruments of Satan. They would seek and find a traitor among the Twelve. They would disperse the vast concourse of people who loved Jesus and hailed him as the son of David. They would use their wealth, official prerogatives, social position, and political power to intimidate and frighten into silence all who disagreed with them. They would recruit and surround themselves with whatever scum and riffraff were available from the dark alleys of the vast city, and they would form those into a rabble to stand in for "the people" and cry, "Crucify him!" at the propitious moment. They would even stoop to take the part of loathed and hated Caesar in order to strengthen their presentation before the governor. They would perform like skilled actors upon a stage of far greater dimensions than any of them could have imagined. Their every word and action would appear in full view and understanding of millions of millions for all ages, who, in a sense, would have box seats to see the most classical case of legal lynching ever seen on earth! The dark drama would soon move to its shocking culmination.