Caiaphas

Joseph ben Caiaphas (ˈkaɪ.ə.fəs; c. 14 BC – c. 46 AD), known simply as Caiaphas in the New Testament, was the Jewish high priest during the years of Jesus' ministry, according to Josephus. The Gospels of Matthew, Luke and John indicate he was an organizer of the plot to kill Jesus. He famously presided over the Sanhedrin trial of Jesus. The primary sources for Caiaphas' life are the New Testament, and the writings of Josephus. The latter records he was made high priest by the Roman procurator Valerius Gratus after Simon ben Camithus had been deposed. The Babylonian Talmud (Yevamot 15B) gives the family name as Kuppai, while the Jerusalem Talmud (Yevamot 1:6) mentions Nekifi. The Mishnah, Parah 3:5, refers to the family name as hakKof (perhaps "the Monkey", a play on his name for opposing the Pharisees). The family name Caiaphas קַיָּפָה has a few possible origins: from קוּפָּה 'basket', 'tub', verbalized as קִיֵּף , whence קַיָּף meaning 'basket maker', or a worker utilizing baskets such as to sell spices κεφάλαιος: from κεφαλή (kephalḗ, “head”) + -ιος (-ios, adjective suffix) - meaning: main, chief, principal, primary "as comely" in Aramaic a "dell", or a "depression" in Akkadian. Annas, father-in-law of Caiaphas (John 18:13), had been high-priest from AD 6 to 15, and continued to exercise a significant influence over Jewish affairs. Annas and Caiaphas may have sympathized with the Sadducees, a religious movement in Judaea that found most of its members among the wealthy Jewish elite. The comparatively long eighteen-year tenure of Caiaphas suggests he had a good working relationship with the Roman authorities. In the Gospel of John (John 11), the high priests call a gathering of the Sanhedrin in reaction to the raising of Lazarus. In the parable related in the Gospel of Luke (Luke 16:28–30), the likely reaction of the "five brothers" to the possibility of the return of the beggar Lazarus has given rise to the suggestion by Claude-Joseph Drioux and others that the "rich man" is itself an attack on Caiaphas, his father-in-law, and his five brothers-in-law.