As with so many other signs of Jesus (e.g., 7:40–44), the onlookers immediately divide into two camps. Here at Bethany, too, the events compel some to believe, while others file a report with members of the Sanhedrin, who determine Jesus’s fate (11:45–57). The deliberations of the Sanhedrin, now called to a formal meeting about Jesus, typify the drift of the Jewish leadership’s reaction to Christ since chapter 9: Jesus’s signs seem compelling, but the practical implications of this are more than they can bear. What if the masses start to follow him? Would it not upset the fragile political equilibrium with Rome (11:48)? Would Caesar tolerate a m…