Reference: Sanhedrin or Sanhedrim
Morish
The Greek word is ?????????, 'a sitting together': it is always translated 'council' in the A.V. There appears to be no Hebrew equivalent to the name. The Jews trace its origin to the seventy elders chosen to assist Moses, Nu 11:16-17; but nothing is said of such a council in the time of the kingdom; and it is probable that it was instituted in the time of the Maccabees. The early writers do not say how it was composed; from the N.T. we find it consisted of the chief priests, or heads of the twenty-four courses, the elders, lawyers, and the scribes. It was the highest court of the Jews, acting 'in all causes, and over all persons, ecclesiastical and civil.' Its decisions were binding on Jews everywhere. Its powers were curtailed by Herod and afterwards by the Romans, who prevented the Jews from putting any one to death legally. Joh 18:31. The Lord, Lu 22:66; Peter and John, Ac 4:1-23; 5:17-41; Stephen, Ac 6:12-15; and Paul, Ac 22:30; 23:1-10; were arraigned before the Sanhedrin.
See Verses Found in Dictionary
And Jehovah said to Moses, Gather unto me seventy men of the elders of Israel, whom thou knowest to be the elders of the people, and their officers; and take them to the tent of meeting, and they shall stand there with thee. And I will come down and talk with thee there; and I will take of the Spirit which is upon thee, and will put it upon them; and they shall bear the burden of the people with thee, and thou shalt not bear it alone.
And when it was day, the elderhood of the people, both the chief priests and scribes, were gathered together, and led him into their council, saying,
Pilate therefore said to them, Take him, ye, and judge him according to your law. The Jews therefore said to him, It is not permitted to us to put any one to death;
And as they were speaking to the people, the priests and captain of the temple and the Sadducees came upon them, being distressed on account of their teaching the people and preaching by Jesus the resurrection from among the dead; read more. and they laid hands on them, and put them in ward till the morrow; for it was already evening. But many of those who had heard the word believed; and the number of the men had become about five thousand. And it came to pass on the morrow that their rulers and elders and scribes were gathered together at Jerusalem, and Annas the high priest, and Caiaphas, and John, and Alexander, and as many as were of the high priestly family; and having placed them in the midst they inquired, In what power or in what name have ye done this? Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, Rulers of the people and elders of Israel, if we this day are called upon to answer as to the good deed done to the infirm man, how he has been healed, be it known to you all, and to all the people of Israel, that in the name of Jesus Christ the Nazaraean, whom ye have crucified, whom God has raised from among the dead, by him this man stands here before you sound in body. He is the stone which has been set at nought by you the builders, which is become the corner stone. And salvation is in none other, for neither is there another name under heaven which is given among men by which we must be saved. But seeing the boldness of Peter and John, and perceiving that they were unlettered and uninstructed men, they wondered; and they recognised them that they were with Jesus. And beholding the man who had been healed standing with them, they had nothing to reply; but having commanded them to go out of the council they conferred with one another, saying, What shall we do to these men? for that indeed an evident sign has come to pass through their means is manifest to all that inhabit Jerusalem, and we cannot deny it. But that it be not further spread among the people, let us threaten them severely no longer to speak to any man in this name. And having called them, they charged them not to speak at all nor teach in the name of Jesus. But Peter and John answering said to them, If it be righteous before God to listen to you rather than to God, judge ye; for as for us we cannot refrain from speaking of the things which we have seen and heard. But they, having further threatened them, let them go, finding no way how they might punish them, on account of the people, because all glorified God for what had taken place; for the man on whom this sign of healing had taken place was above forty years old. And having been let go, they came to their own company, and reported all that the chief priests and elders had said to them.
And the high priest rising up, and all they that were with him, which is the sect of the Sadducees, were filled with wrath, and laid hands on the apostles and put them in the public prison. read more. But an angel of the Lord during the night opened the doors of the prison, and leading them out, said, Go ye and stand and speak in the temple to the people all the words of this life. And when they heard it, they entered very early into the temple and taught. And when the high priest was come, and they that were with him, they called together the council and all the elderhood of the sons of Israel, and sent to the prison to have them brought. And when the officers were come, they did not find them in the prison; and returned and reported saying, We found the prison shut with all security, and the keepers standing at the doors; but when we had opened them, within we found no one. And when they heard these words, both the priest and the captain of the temple and the chief priests were in perplexity as to them, what this would come to. And some one coming reported to them, Lo, the men whom ye put in the prison are in the temple, standing and teaching the people. Then the captain, having gone with the officers, brought them, not with violence, for they feared the people, lest they should be stoned. And they bring them and set them in the council. And the high priest asked them, saying, We strictly enjoined you not to teach in this name: and lo, ye have filled Jerusalem with your doctrine, and purpose to bring upon us the blood of this man. But Peter answering, and the apostles, said, God must be obeyed rather than men. The God of our fathers has raised up Jesus, whom ye have slain, having hanged on a cross. Him has God exalted by his right hand as leader and saviour, to give repentance to Israel and remission of sins. And we are his witnesses of these things, and the Holy Spirit also, which God has given to those that obey him. But they, when they heard these things, were cut to the heart, and took counsel to kill them. But a certain man, a Pharisee, named Gamaliel, a teacher of the law, held in honour of all the people, rose up in the council, and commanded to put the men out for a short while, and said to them, Men of Israel, take heed to yourselves as regards these men what ye are going to do; for before these days Theudas rose up, alleging himself to be somebody, to whom a number of men, about four hundred, were joined; who was slain, and all, as many as obeyed him, were dispersed and came to nothing. After him rose Judas the Galilean in the days of the census, and drew away a number of people after him; and he perished, and all, as many as obeyed him, were scattered abroad. And now I say to you, Withdraw from these men and let them alone, for if this counsel or this work have its origin from men, it will be destroyed; but if it be from God, ye will not be able to put them down, lest ye be found also fighters against God. And they listened to his advice; and having called the apostles, they beat them, and enjoined them not to speak in the name of Jesus, and dismissed them. They therefore went their way from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to be dishonoured for the name.
And they roused the people, and the elders, and the scribes. And coming upon him they seized him and brought him to the council. And they set false witnesses, saying, This man does not cease speaking words against the holy place and the law; read more. for we have heard him saying, This Jesus the Nazaraean shall destroy this place, and change the customs which Moses taught us. And all who sat in the council, looking fixedly on him, saw his face as the face of an angel.
And on the morrow, desirous to know the certainty of the matter why he was accused of the Jews, he loosed him, and commanded the chief priests and all the council to meet, and having brought Paul down set him before them.
And Paul, fixing his eyes on the council, said, Brethren, I have walked in all good conscience with God unto this day. But the high priest Ananias ordered those standing by him to smite his mouth. read more. Then Paul said to him, God will smite thee, whited wall. And thou, dost thou sit judging me according to the law, and breaking the law commandest me to be smitten? And those that stood by said, Dost thou rail against the high priest of God? And Paul said, I was not conscious, brethren, that he was high priest; for it is written, Thou shalt not speak evilly of the ruler of thy people. But Paul, knowing that the one part of them were of the Sadducees and the other of the Pharisees, cried out in the council, Brethren, I am a Pharisee, son of Pharisees: I am judged concerning the hope and resurrection of the dead. And when he had spoken this, there was a tumult of the Pharisees and the Sadducees, and the multitude was divided. For Sadducees say there is no resurrection, nor angel, nor spirit; but Pharisees confess both of them. And there was a great clamour, and the scribes of the Pharisees' part rising up contended, saying, We find nothing evil in this man; and if a spirit has spoken to him, or an angel ... And a great tumult having arisen, the chiliarch, fearing lest Paul should have been torn in pieces by them, commanded the troop to come down and take him by force from the midst of them, and to bring him into the fortress.