The revenge which the priests had thought would be so sweet was already bitterness to them. They knew that they were meeting the severe censure of the people; they knew that the very ones whom they had influenced against Jesus were now horrified by their own shameful work. These priests had tried to believe Jesus a deceiver; but it was in vain. Some of them had stood by the grave of Lazarus, and had seen the dead brought back to life. They trembled for fear that Christ would Himself rise from the dead, and again appear before them. They had heard Him declare that He had power to lay down His life and to take it again. They remembered that He had said, "Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up." John 2:19. Judas had told them the words spoken by Jesus to the disciples while on the last journey to Jerusalem: "Behold, we go up to Jerusalem; and the Son of man shall be betrayed unto the chief priests and unto the scribes, and they shall condemn Him to death, and shall deliver Him to the Gentiles to mock, and to scourge, and to crucify Him: and the third day He shall rise again." Matt. 20:18, 19. When they heard these words, they had mocked and ridiculed. But now they remembered that Christ's predictions had so far been fulfilled. He had said that He would rise again the third day, and who could say that this also would not come to pass? They longed to shut out these thoughts, but they could not. Like their father, the devil, they believed and trembled.

Aldrig havde Kristus i den grad tiltrukket sig mængdens opmærksomhed som nu, hvor han var lagt i graven. Folk bragte, som de havde været vant til, deres syge og lidende til tempelgårdene og spurgte: Hvem kan fortælle os noget om Jesus fra Nazaret?" Mange var kommet langvejsfra for at træffe ham, der havde helbredt de syge og oprejst de døde. Alle vegne fra hørte man råbet: Hvor er Kristus, den store læge Ved denne lejlighed blev de, som man mente viste tegn til spedalskhed, undersøgt af præsterne. Mange var nødsaget til at høre, at deres mænd, hustruer eller børn blev erklæret for spedalske og fordømt til at forlade trygheden i deres hjem og deres venners omsorg for at advare fremmede med dette klageråb: "Uren uren!" Jesus fra Nazarets barmhjertige hænder, der aldrig holdt sig tilbage fra en helbredende berøring med den frastødende spedalske, lå foldede over hans bryst. De læber, der havde besvaret hans bøn med de trøstende ord: "Jeg vil; bliv ren!" (Matt. 8,3), var nu tavse. Mange henvendte sig til ypperstepræsterne og rådsherrerne for at finde medfølelse og hjælp, men forgæves. Folk var øjensynlig fast besluttede på atter at ville have den levende Kristus iblandt sig. Indtrængende og vedholdende spurgte de efter ham. De ville ikke lade sig afvise. Men de blev jaget bort fra tempelgårdene, og der blev stillet soldater på vagt ved portene for at holde de mange mennesker tilbage, der kom med deres syge og døende og forlangte at komme ind.