Re: The gospel of John an independent witness?
Posted: Wed Jun 13, 2018 7:41 pm
Mark 14: 27 - 31, 53 - 70 (RSV):
[27] And Jesus said to them, "You will all fall away; for it is written, `I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered.'
[28] But after I am raised up, I will go before you to Galilee."
[29] Peter said to him, "Even though they all fall away, I will not."
[30] And Jesus said to him, "Truly, I say to you, this very night, before the cock crows twice, you will deny me three times."
[31] But he said vehemently, "If I must die with you, I will not deny you." And they all said the same.
...
[53] And they led Jesus to the high priest; and all the chief priests and the elders and the scribes were assembled.
[54] And Peter had followed him at a distance, right into the courtyard of the high priest; and he was sitting with the guards, and warming himself at the fire.
[55] Now the chief priests and the whole council sought testimony against Jesus to put him to death; but they found none.
[56] For many bore false witness against him, and their witness did not agree.
[57] And some stood up and bore false witness against him, saying,
[58] "We heard him say, `I will destroy this temple that is made with hands, and in three days I will build another, not made with hands.'"
[59] Yet not even so did their testimony agree.
[60] And the high priest stood up in the midst, and asked Jesus, "Have you no answer to make? What is it that these men testify against you?"
[61] But he was silent and made no answer. Again the high priest asked him, "Are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?"
[62] And Jesus said, "I am; and you will see the Son of man seated at the right hand of Power, and coming with the clouds of heaven."
[63] And the high priest tore his garments, and said, "Why do we still need witnesses?
[64] You have heard his blasphemy. What is your decision?" And they all condemned him as deserving death.
[65] And some began to spit on him, and to cover his face, and to strike him, saying to him, "Prophesy!" And the guards received him with blows.
[66] And as Peter was below in the courtyard, one of the maids of the high priest came;
[67] and seeing Peter warming himself, she looked at him, and said, "You also were with the Nazarene, Jesus."
[68] But he denied it, saying, "I neither know nor understand what you mean." And he went out into the gateway.
[69] And the maid saw him, and began again to say to the bystanders, "This man is one of them."
[70] But again he denied it. And after a little while again the bystanders said to Peter, "Certainly you are one of them; for you are a Galilean."
John 13: 36 - 38, 18: 36 - 38, 71 - 72 (RSV):
[36] Simon Peter said to him, "Lord, where are you going?" Jesus answered, "Where I am going you cannot follow me now; but you shall follow afterward."
[37] Peter said to him, "Lord, why cannot I follow you now? I will lay down my life for you."
[38] Jesus answered, "Will you lay down your life for me? Truly, truly, I say to you, the cock will not crow, till you have denied me three times.
...
[15] Simon Peter followed Jesus, and so did another disciple. As this disciple was known to the high priest, he entered the court of the high priest along with Jesus,
[16] while Peter stood outside at the door. So the other disciple, who was known to the high priest, went out and spoke to the maid who kept the door, and brought Peter in.
[17] The maid who kept the door said to Peter, "Are not you also one of this man's disciples?" He said, "I am not."
[18] Now the servants and officers had made a charcoal fire, because it was cold, and they were standing and warming themselves; Peter also was with them, standing and warming himself.
...
[NOTE: 19 - 23 shows evidence (to me) of tampering. I have moved verse 20 back to the place that appears to give the most sense to the Scene]
[19] The high priest then questioned Jesus about his disciples and his teaching.
[21] Why do you ask me? Ask those who have heard me, what I said to them; they know what I said."
[22] When he had said this, one of the officers standing by struck Jesus with his hand, saying, "Is that how you answer the high priest?"
[23] Jesus answered him, "If I have spoken wrongly, bear witness to the wrong; but if I have spoken rightly, why do you strike me?"
[20] Jesus answered him, "I have spoken openly to the world; I have always taught in synagogues and in the temple, where all Jews come together; I have said nothing secretly.
...
[24] Annas then sent him bound to Ca'iaphas the high priest.
...
[25] Now Simon Peter was standing and warming himself. They said to him, "Are not you also one of his disciples?" He denied it and said, "I am not."
[26] One of the servants of the high priest, a kinsman of the man whose ear Peter had cut off, asked, "Did I not see you in the garden with him?"
[27] Peter again denied it; and at once the cock crowed.
We've already passed the MEGO Length for a Post (My Eyes Glaze Over). Let's strip out Non-Essential material here. Let's also be nice. Add or subtract as you wish, just explain your Logic and Reasoning.
I am having a really big Jay Raskin day. He has a Note from his book, Evolution of Christs and Christianities. Note 214 states:
"We must also note that the cock crowing in John is out of place. As mentioned, in John's Gospel, the phrase "cock crow" just means "sunrise". It is not a literal cock crow. In Mark, it makes sense. Peter starts to weep, so the cock crow brings about a realization on Peter's part that he has betrayed Jesus. Here, there is no reaction to the cock crow. The cock crow here shows no narrative function. The listener already understands that it is night and Peter has betrayed Jesus. The cock crowing is superfluous and adds nothing to our understanding. Whoever added it was just trying to harmonize the two gospels."
Raskin is wrong concerning "narrative function" but even where Jay misses, his point is so important. To understand what Peter's Denial means, we have to see why:
Mark 6: 47 - 49 (Moffatt):
[47] Now when evening came, the boat was in the middle of the sea, and he was on the land alone.
[48] but when he saw them buffeted as they rowed, (for the wind was against them) he went to them about the fourth watch of the night walking on the sea. He meant to pass them,
[49] but when they saw him walking on the sea they thought it was a ghost, and shrieked aloud;
Compare with:
Mark 13: 33 - 37 (RSV):
[33] Take heed, watch; for you do not know when the time will come.
[34] It is like a man going on a journey, when he leaves home and puts his servants in charge, each with his work, and commands the doorkeeper to be on the watch.
[35] Watch therefore -- for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the evening, or at midnight, or at cockcrow, or in the morning --
[36] lest he come suddenly and find you asleep.
[37] And what I say to you I say to all: Watch."
If you would understand what I see, you have to understand that in this Source Story, the descriptions are all describing One Story. Josephus gives the "External Story" on Antiquities..., 17, 9, 3+ and Wars..., 2, 1, 3+. The "Internal Stories" are the Stories of the NT rewritten and Transvalued into the story of a savior/god. Therefore:
Mark 14: 27 - 28 are Post-Dicted. The Story of what happened at the Passover of 4 BCE is already known. It MAY be from the "Second Coming", 12 years later, when an adult Peter comes with the Priest who listened to Jairus and knowingly went to his death.
[54] And Peter had followed [The Priest] at a distance, right into the [courtyard of the high priest] Euphemism for "The Chamber of the Hearth"; and he was sitting with the guards, and warming himself at the fire.
This is in the Chamber of the Hearth. Priests may sit and even sleep here.
[28] But after I am raised up, I will go before you to Galilee."
After the week of Service, each Mishmarot Group rotates back to their assigned Settlement in Galillee. "Immer" is assigned Jabnit, down the street from Meiron. The Priest is from Immer. Peter is a child in this first Story.
[29] Peter said to him, "Even though they all fall away, I will not."
[30] And Jesus said to him, "Truly, I say to you, this very night, before the cock crows twice, you will deny me three times."
[31] But he said vehemently, "If I must die with you, I will not deny you." And they all said the same.
This is a Set-Up. The Priest is leading a Coup. Remember the youth who wore a linen garment until it was pulled off and he ran away naked? This is here. Now. This is rewritten for the New Religion.
[58] "We heard him say, `I will destroy this temple that is made with hands, and in three days I will build another, not made with hands.'"
This is True but not to the point right now. The Passover of 4 BCE occurs during Bilgah's Service and three days later, when Immer begins their Service, the Temple Apparatus will be rededicated. There is HUGE tension in the Stories due to Passover and the High Sabbath that begins the Festival. Later.
[66] And as Peter was below in the courtyard, one of the maids of the high priest came;
[67] and seeing Peter warming himself, she looked at him, and said, "You also were with the Nazarene, Jesus the Priest."
Note the use of "And", linking fragments. Peter is "below" in the Chamber of the Lambs or the Bath and then is warming himself.
http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/artic ... service-of
"...Half of the chamber extended outside the court to the "ḥel," a kind of platform surrounding the courts, which was considered as secular, in contrast to the sacred premises within, where the priests were not allowed to sit down, much less to sleep. A fire was always kept burning in the outer extension, at which the priests might warm their hands and bare feet. Here also they might sit down and rest for a while. At night the elder priests slept here on divans placed on rows of stone steps one above another. The younger priests slept on cushions on the floor, putting their sacred garments under their heads and covering themselves with their secular clothing (Tamid. i. 1)."
On this view Peter has made his way to the Chamber of the Hearth (BTW, apologies for writing "Chamber of the Flames".)
[68] But he denied it, saying, "I neither know nor understand what you mean." And he went out into the gateway.
[69] And the maid saw him, and began again to say to the bystanders, "This man is one of them."
[70] But again he denied it. And after a little while again the bystanders said to Peter, "Certainly you are one of them; for you are a Galilean."
If this is a rewrite - and I believe it is - then there MUST be a reason that Peter denies what is plainly in front of him. Why would he Deny the Priest?
We now move to John. John "completes" what is written in Mark. The Chamber of the Hearth is where you sit, sleep, relax.
[36] Simon Peter said to him, "Lord, where are you going?" Jesus answered, "Where I am going you cannot follow me now; but you shall follow afterward."
[37] Peter said to him, "Lord, why cannot I follow you now? I will lay down my life for you."
Simon Peter cannot follow "NOW". Somewhere in the creation of the NT, "Peter" and "Simon Peter" had to be fused into a single character. SP cannot go into the Chamber of the Flame NOW. Could Peter? The Coup is beginning. Peter will lay down his life for the Priest won't he?
[38] Jesus answered, "Will you lay down your life for me? Truly, truly, I say to you, the cock will not crow, till you have denied me three times.
Post-Diction. Jay is wrong here but is he ever correct. There is an important part of this Time Line.
[15] Simon Peter followed Jesus, and so did another disciple. As this disciple was known to the high priest, he entered the court of the high priest along with Jesus,
Part of the Set-Up. Notice the Play up to the next action:
[16] while Peter stood outside at the door. So the other disciple, who was known to the high priest, went out and spoke to the maid who kept the door, and brought Peter in.
Peter is IN THE CHAMBER OF THE FLAME!
[17] The maid who kept the door said to Peter, "Are not you also one of this man's disciples?" He said, "I am not."
[18] Now the servants and officers had made a charcoal fire, because it was cold, and they were standing and warming themselves; Peter also was with them, standing and warming himself.
Everyone listed is STANDING as you must if you are in the Chamber of the Flame.
[25] Now Simon Peter was standing and warming himself. They said to him, "Are not you also one of his disciples?" He denied it and said, "I am not."
[26] One of the servants of the high priest, a kinsman of the man whose ear Peter had cut off, asked, "Did I not see you in the garden with him?"
[27] Peter again denied it; and at once the cock crowed.
Simon Peter is allowed to stand here. He is not the focus. As examined earlier, the word "Kinsman" is from the Ordering of the Greek Royal Court. I take this as a clue that this is indeed inside the Chamber of the Flame.
Why does Peter deny the Priest? Even in an Un-Transvalued Story, it seems weird. Why?
Peter is about to see a "Ghost":
Josephus, Wars..., 2, 1, 2 - 3 (in Part):
And here it was that a great many of those that desired innovations came in crowds towards the evening, and began then to mourn on their own account, when the public mourning for the king was over. These lamented those that were put to death by Herod, because they had cut down the golden eagle that had been over the gate of the temple. Nor was this mourning of a private nature, but the lamentations were very great, the mourning solemn, and the weeping such as was loudly heard all over the city, as being for those men who had perished for the laws of their country, and for the temple. They cried out that a punishment ought to be inflicted for these men upon those that were honored by Herod; and that, in the first place, the man whom he had made high priest should be deprived; and that it was fit to choose a person of greater piety and purity than he was.
3. At these clamors Archelaus was provoked, but restrained himself from taking vengeance on the authors, on account of the haste he was in of going to Rome, as fearing lest, upon his making war on the multitude, such an action might detain him at home. Accordingly, he made trial to quiet the innovators by persuasion, rather than by force, and sent his general in a private way to them, and by him exhorted them to be quiet.[[NOW look at Luke 19: 39 - 40!]] But the seditious threw stones at him, and drove him away, as he came into the temple, and before he could say any thing to them. The like treatment they showed to others, who came to them after him, many of which were sent by Archelaus, in order to reduce them to sobriety, and these answered still on all occasions after a passionate manner; and it openly appeared that they would not be quiet, if their numbers were but considerable. And indeed, at the feast of unleavened bread, which was now at hand, and is by the Jews called the Passover, and used to he celebrated with a great number of sacrifices, an innumerable multitude of the people came out of the country to worship; some of these stood in the temple bewailing the Rabbins [that had been put to death], and procured their sustenance by begging, in order to support their sedition. At this Archclaus was aftrighted, and privately sent a tribune, with his cohort of soldiers, upon them, before the disease should spread over the whole multitude, and gave orders that they should constrain those that began the tumult, by force, to be quiet. At these the whole multitude were irritated, and threw stones at many of the soldiers, and killed them; but the tribune fled away wounded, and had much ado to escape so. After which they betook themselves to their sacrifices, as if they had done no mischief; nor did it appear to Archelaus that the multitude could be restrained without bloodshed; so he sent his whole army upon them, the footmen in great multitudes, by the way of the city, and the horsemen by the way of the plain, who, falling upon them on the sudden, as they were offering their sacrifices, destroyed about three thousand of them; but the rest of the multitude were dispersed upon the adjoining mountains: these were followed by Archelaus's heralds, who commanded every one to retire to their own homes, whither they all went, and left the festival...
Peter denied the Priest and would have denied anyone else including a Jesus. Jesus would have denied Jesus. The choice is "Stay inside" or "Get hacked to bits". Which would you choose?
Peter, however is not done.
Matthew 14: 29 - 30 (RSV):
[29] He said, "Come." So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus;
[30] but when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, "Lord, save me."
Here is how we know that there was another Source Document. Peter leaves the safety of this area and leaves to save the Priest. The Priest should have been murdered by the soldiers - "They shrieked as if they had seen a ghost". Through a Miracle, this Priest is saved. John the Baptist was not.
That's a Story for another day.
CW
[27] And Jesus said to them, "You will all fall away; for it is written, `I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered.'
[28] But after I am raised up, I will go before you to Galilee."
[29] Peter said to him, "Even though they all fall away, I will not."
[30] And Jesus said to him, "Truly, I say to you, this very night, before the cock crows twice, you will deny me three times."
[31] But he said vehemently, "If I must die with you, I will not deny you." And they all said the same.
...
[53] And they led Jesus to the high priest; and all the chief priests and the elders and the scribes were assembled.
[54] And Peter had followed him at a distance, right into the courtyard of the high priest; and he was sitting with the guards, and warming himself at the fire.
[55] Now the chief priests and the whole council sought testimony against Jesus to put him to death; but they found none.
[56] For many bore false witness against him, and their witness did not agree.
[57] And some stood up and bore false witness against him, saying,
[58] "We heard him say, `I will destroy this temple that is made with hands, and in three days I will build another, not made with hands.'"
[59] Yet not even so did their testimony agree.
[60] And the high priest stood up in the midst, and asked Jesus, "Have you no answer to make? What is it that these men testify against you?"
[61] But he was silent and made no answer. Again the high priest asked him, "Are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?"
[62] And Jesus said, "I am; and you will see the Son of man seated at the right hand of Power, and coming with the clouds of heaven."
[63] And the high priest tore his garments, and said, "Why do we still need witnesses?
[64] You have heard his blasphemy. What is your decision?" And they all condemned him as deserving death.
[65] And some began to spit on him, and to cover his face, and to strike him, saying to him, "Prophesy!" And the guards received him with blows.
[66] And as Peter was below in the courtyard, one of the maids of the high priest came;
[67] and seeing Peter warming himself, she looked at him, and said, "You also were with the Nazarene, Jesus."
[68] But he denied it, saying, "I neither know nor understand what you mean." And he went out into the gateway.
[69] And the maid saw him, and began again to say to the bystanders, "This man is one of them."
[70] But again he denied it. And after a little while again the bystanders said to Peter, "Certainly you are one of them; for you are a Galilean."
John 13: 36 - 38, 18: 36 - 38, 71 - 72 (RSV):
[36] Simon Peter said to him, "Lord, where are you going?" Jesus answered, "Where I am going you cannot follow me now; but you shall follow afterward."
[37] Peter said to him, "Lord, why cannot I follow you now? I will lay down my life for you."
[38] Jesus answered, "Will you lay down your life for me? Truly, truly, I say to you, the cock will not crow, till you have denied me three times.
...
[15] Simon Peter followed Jesus, and so did another disciple. As this disciple was known to the high priest, he entered the court of the high priest along with Jesus,
[16] while Peter stood outside at the door. So the other disciple, who was known to the high priest, went out and spoke to the maid who kept the door, and brought Peter in.
[17] The maid who kept the door said to Peter, "Are not you also one of this man's disciples?" He said, "I am not."
[18] Now the servants and officers had made a charcoal fire, because it was cold, and they were standing and warming themselves; Peter also was with them, standing and warming himself.
...
[NOTE: 19 - 23 shows evidence (to me) of tampering. I have moved verse 20 back to the place that appears to give the most sense to the Scene]
[19] The high priest then questioned Jesus about his disciples and his teaching.
[21] Why do you ask me? Ask those who have heard me, what I said to them; they know what I said."
[22] When he had said this, one of the officers standing by struck Jesus with his hand, saying, "Is that how you answer the high priest?"
[23] Jesus answered him, "If I have spoken wrongly, bear witness to the wrong; but if I have spoken rightly, why do you strike me?"
[20] Jesus answered him, "I have spoken openly to the world; I have always taught in synagogues and in the temple, where all Jews come together; I have said nothing secretly.
...
[24] Annas then sent him bound to Ca'iaphas the high priest.
...
[25] Now Simon Peter was standing and warming himself. They said to him, "Are not you also one of his disciples?" He denied it and said, "I am not."
[26] One of the servants of the high priest, a kinsman of the man whose ear Peter had cut off, asked, "Did I not see you in the garden with him?"
[27] Peter again denied it; and at once the cock crowed.
We've already passed the MEGO Length for a Post (My Eyes Glaze Over). Let's strip out Non-Essential material here. Let's also be nice. Add or subtract as you wish, just explain your Logic and Reasoning.
I am having a really big Jay Raskin day. He has a Note from his book, Evolution of Christs and Christianities. Note 214 states:
"We must also note that the cock crowing in John is out of place. As mentioned, in John's Gospel, the phrase "cock crow" just means "sunrise". It is not a literal cock crow. In Mark, it makes sense. Peter starts to weep, so the cock crow brings about a realization on Peter's part that he has betrayed Jesus. Here, there is no reaction to the cock crow. The cock crow here shows no narrative function. The listener already understands that it is night and Peter has betrayed Jesus. The cock crowing is superfluous and adds nothing to our understanding. Whoever added it was just trying to harmonize the two gospels."
Raskin is wrong concerning "narrative function" but even where Jay misses, his point is so important. To understand what Peter's Denial means, we have to see why:
Mark 6: 47 - 49 (Moffatt):
[47] Now when evening came, the boat was in the middle of the sea, and he was on the land alone.
[48] but when he saw them buffeted as they rowed, (for the wind was against them) he went to them about the fourth watch of the night walking on the sea. He meant to pass them,
[49] but when they saw him walking on the sea they thought it was a ghost, and shrieked aloud;
Compare with:
Mark 13: 33 - 37 (RSV):
[33] Take heed, watch; for you do not know when the time will come.
[34] It is like a man going on a journey, when he leaves home and puts his servants in charge, each with his work, and commands the doorkeeper to be on the watch.
[35] Watch therefore -- for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the evening, or at midnight, or at cockcrow, or in the morning --
[36] lest he come suddenly and find you asleep.
[37] And what I say to you I say to all: Watch."
If you would understand what I see, you have to understand that in this Source Story, the descriptions are all describing One Story. Josephus gives the "External Story" on Antiquities..., 17, 9, 3+ and Wars..., 2, 1, 3+. The "Internal Stories" are the Stories of the NT rewritten and Transvalued into the story of a savior/god. Therefore:
Mark 14: 27 - 28 are Post-Dicted. The Story of what happened at the Passover of 4 BCE is already known. It MAY be from the "Second Coming", 12 years later, when an adult Peter comes with the Priest who listened to Jairus and knowingly went to his death.
[54] And Peter had followed [The Priest] at a distance, right into the [courtyard of the high priest] Euphemism for "The Chamber of the Hearth"; and he was sitting with the guards, and warming himself at the fire.
This is in the Chamber of the Hearth. Priests may sit and even sleep here.
[28] But after I am raised up, I will go before you to Galilee."
After the week of Service, each Mishmarot Group rotates back to their assigned Settlement in Galillee. "Immer" is assigned Jabnit, down the street from Meiron. The Priest is from Immer. Peter is a child in this first Story.
[29] Peter said to him, "Even though they all fall away, I will not."
[30] And Jesus said to him, "Truly, I say to you, this very night, before the cock crows twice, you will deny me three times."
[31] But he said vehemently, "If I must die with you, I will not deny you." And they all said the same.
This is a Set-Up. The Priest is leading a Coup. Remember the youth who wore a linen garment until it was pulled off and he ran away naked? This is here. Now. This is rewritten for the New Religion.
[58] "We heard him say, `I will destroy this temple that is made with hands, and in three days I will build another, not made with hands.'"
This is True but not to the point right now. The Passover of 4 BCE occurs during Bilgah's Service and three days later, when Immer begins their Service, the Temple Apparatus will be rededicated. There is HUGE tension in the Stories due to Passover and the High Sabbath that begins the Festival. Later.
[66] And as Peter was below in the courtyard, one of the maids of the high priest came;
[67] and seeing Peter warming himself, she looked at him, and said, "You also were with the Nazarene, Jesus the Priest."
Note the use of "And", linking fragments. Peter is "below" in the Chamber of the Lambs or the Bath and then is warming himself.
http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/artic ... service-of
"...Half of the chamber extended outside the court to the "ḥel," a kind of platform surrounding the courts, which was considered as secular, in contrast to the sacred premises within, where the priests were not allowed to sit down, much less to sleep. A fire was always kept burning in the outer extension, at which the priests might warm their hands and bare feet. Here also they might sit down and rest for a while. At night the elder priests slept here on divans placed on rows of stone steps one above another. The younger priests slept on cushions on the floor, putting their sacred garments under their heads and covering themselves with their secular clothing (Tamid. i. 1)."
On this view Peter has made his way to the Chamber of the Hearth (BTW, apologies for writing "Chamber of the Flames".)
[68] But he denied it, saying, "I neither know nor understand what you mean." And he went out into the gateway.
[69] And the maid saw him, and began again to say to the bystanders, "This man is one of them."
[70] But again he denied it. And after a little while again the bystanders said to Peter, "Certainly you are one of them; for you are a Galilean."
If this is a rewrite - and I believe it is - then there MUST be a reason that Peter denies what is plainly in front of him. Why would he Deny the Priest?
We now move to John. John "completes" what is written in Mark. The Chamber of the Hearth is where you sit, sleep, relax.
[36] Simon Peter said to him, "Lord, where are you going?" Jesus answered, "Where I am going you cannot follow me now; but you shall follow afterward."
[37] Peter said to him, "Lord, why cannot I follow you now? I will lay down my life for you."
Simon Peter cannot follow "NOW". Somewhere in the creation of the NT, "Peter" and "Simon Peter" had to be fused into a single character. SP cannot go into the Chamber of the Flame NOW. Could Peter? The Coup is beginning. Peter will lay down his life for the Priest won't he?
[38] Jesus answered, "Will you lay down your life for me? Truly, truly, I say to you, the cock will not crow, till you have denied me three times.
Post-Diction. Jay is wrong here but is he ever correct. There is an important part of this Time Line.
[15] Simon Peter followed Jesus, and so did another disciple. As this disciple was known to the high priest, he entered the court of the high priest along with Jesus,
Part of the Set-Up. Notice the Play up to the next action:
[16] while Peter stood outside at the door. So the other disciple, who was known to the high priest, went out and spoke to the maid who kept the door, and brought Peter in.
Peter is IN THE CHAMBER OF THE FLAME!
[17] The maid who kept the door said to Peter, "Are not you also one of this man's disciples?" He said, "I am not."
[18] Now the servants and officers had made a charcoal fire, because it was cold, and they were standing and warming themselves; Peter also was with them, standing and warming himself.
Everyone listed is STANDING as you must if you are in the Chamber of the Flame.
[25] Now Simon Peter was standing and warming himself. They said to him, "Are not you also one of his disciples?" He denied it and said, "I am not."
[26] One of the servants of the high priest, a kinsman of the man whose ear Peter had cut off, asked, "Did I not see you in the garden with him?"
[27] Peter again denied it; and at once the cock crowed.
Simon Peter is allowed to stand here. He is not the focus. As examined earlier, the word "Kinsman" is from the Ordering of the Greek Royal Court. I take this as a clue that this is indeed inside the Chamber of the Flame.
Why does Peter deny the Priest? Even in an Un-Transvalued Story, it seems weird. Why?
Peter is about to see a "Ghost":
Josephus, Wars..., 2, 1, 2 - 3 (in Part):
And here it was that a great many of those that desired innovations came in crowds towards the evening, and began then to mourn on their own account, when the public mourning for the king was over. These lamented those that were put to death by Herod, because they had cut down the golden eagle that had been over the gate of the temple. Nor was this mourning of a private nature, but the lamentations were very great, the mourning solemn, and the weeping such as was loudly heard all over the city, as being for those men who had perished for the laws of their country, and for the temple. They cried out that a punishment ought to be inflicted for these men upon those that were honored by Herod; and that, in the first place, the man whom he had made high priest should be deprived; and that it was fit to choose a person of greater piety and purity than he was.
3. At these clamors Archelaus was provoked, but restrained himself from taking vengeance on the authors, on account of the haste he was in of going to Rome, as fearing lest, upon his making war on the multitude, such an action might detain him at home. Accordingly, he made trial to quiet the innovators by persuasion, rather than by force, and sent his general in a private way to them, and by him exhorted them to be quiet.[[NOW look at Luke 19: 39 - 40!]] But the seditious threw stones at him, and drove him away, as he came into the temple, and before he could say any thing to them. The like treatment they showed to others, who came to them after him, many of which were sent by Archelaus, in order to reduce them to sobriety, and these answered still on all occasions after a passionate manner; and it openly appeared that they would not be quiet, if their numbers were but considerable. And indeed, at the feast of unleavened bread, which was now at hand, and is by the Jews called the Passover, and used to he celebrated with a great number of sacrifices, an innumerable multitude of the people came out of the country to worship; some of these stood in the temple bewailing the Rabbins [that had been put to death], and procured their sustenance by begging, in order to support their sedition. At this Archclaus was aftrighted, and privately sent a tribune, with his cohort of soldiers, upon them, before the disease should spread over the whole multitude, and gave orders that they should constrain those that began the tumult, by force, to be quiet. At these the whole multitude were irritated, and threw stones at many of the soldiers, and killed them; but the tribune fled away wounded, and had much ado to escape so. After which they betook themselves to their sacrifices, as if they had done no mischief; nor did it appear to Archelaus that the multitude could be restrained without bloodshed; so he sent his whole army upon them, the footmen in great multitudes, by the way of the city, and the horsemen by the way of the plain, who, falling upon them on the sudden, as they were offering their sacrifices, destroyed about three thousand of them; but the rest of the multitude were dispersed upon the adjoining mountains: these were followed by Archelaus's heralds, who commanded every one to retire to their own homes, whither they all went, and left the festival...
Peter denied the Priest and would have denied anyone else including a Jesus. Jesus would have denied Jesus. The choice is "Stay inside" or "Get hacked to bits". Which would you choose?
Peter, however is not done.
Matthew 14: 29 - 30 (RSV):
[29] He said, "Come." So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus;
[30] but when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, "Lord, save me."
Here is how we know that there was another Source Document. Peter leaves the safety of this area and leaves to save the Priest. The Priest should have been murdered by the soldiers - "They shrieked as if they had seen a ghost". Through a Miracle, this Priest is saved. John the Baptist was not.
That's a Story for another day.
CW