John 18:19-21

‘The High Priest then asked Jesus about his disciples and about his teaching. Jesus answered him, “I have spoken openly to the world. I always taught in synagogues and in the Temple where all the Judaisers come together, and I spoke nothing in secret. Why are you questioning me? Ask those who have heard me what I said to them. Behold, these know the things that I said.”

There is no hint here of a court scene. It was merely a preliminary investigation. The haughty Annas had had Him brought in in order to subject Him to questioning. ‘About his disciples' may suggest that he was looking for information about the possibility of an insurrection, or he may simply have been trying to imply the fact. But Annas was not really seeking truth. He was trying to build up a case against Jesus by careful questioning.

Aware of this Jesus replied indirectly, in a way that threw the accusations back at Annas. He had hidden nothing, He pointed out, and He had always taught openly because He had nothing to hide. There were no secret meetings or instructions. Everything was open and above board. Annas had only to ask these people themselves, and he would learn what had been said. There was no need to question Him. There were plenty of witnesses. So the unblemished Lamb opened Himself up for examination.