Additional Evidence

The atonement did not require Jesus to be tortured or crucified. He could have overcome death several ways including being changed in the twinkling of an eye when he reached the age of man like people will in the millennium. Prophecies always have spiritual fulfillment options and physical fulfillment options. Our decision determines which of the options ends up fulfilling the prophecy.

When the other options had passed, Jesus lamented saying, “how oft I would have gathered you in, but you would not.” 

Is there any evidence that the torture and crucifixion he suffered was not the work of God, but the work of the devil? Yes, of course there is. There is more evidence that says killing Christ was Satan’s plan than there is that says it was God’s plan.

For example, Jesus prophesied his own death at the hand of the wicked saying,

“Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men’s bones, and of all uncleanness.

28 Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity.

29 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye build the tombs of the prophets, and garnish the sepulchres of the righteous,

30 And say, If we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets.

31 Wherefore ye be witnesses unto yourselves, that ye are the children of them which killed the prophets.

32 Fill ye up then the measure of your fathers.

33 Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell?

34 ¶ Wherefore, behold, I send unto you prophets, and wise men, and scribes: and some of them ye shall kill and crucify; and some of them shall ye scourge in your synagogues, and persecute them from city to city:

35 That upon you may come all the righteous blood shed upon the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel unto the blood of Zacharias son of Barachias, whom ye slew between the temple and the altar.” – Matthew 23:27-35

Jesus would become like the other prophets who were killed by the wicked.

All of the people and leaders who wanted to kill Jesus were evil men who had been conspiring to do so for a long time. It was premeditated murder. They knew they wanted to kill him before they had what they pretended was a legitimate excuse to do so. These evil men were inspired by Satan, and not God.

“And the chief priests and scribes sought how they might kill him; for they feared the people.

3 ¶ Then entered Satan into Judas surnamed Iscariot, being of the number of the twelve.

4 And he went his way, and communed with the chief priests and captains, how he might betray him unto them.

5 And they were glad, and covenanted to give him money.” – Luke 22:2-5

While Jesus had power over life and death, and “gave up the ghost”, his death was still considered a murder. Throughout the scriptures we read that the wicked “killed” him. Jesus was killed and the accountability for his death will be on the heads of the wicked and those who assent to his death.

 Even Jesus prophesied that he would be killed by the elders and chief priests. 

“From that time forth began Jesus to shew unto his disciples, how that he must go unto Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised again the third day.” – Matt. 16:21

“And he began to teach them, that the Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected of the elders, and of the chief priests, and scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again.” – Mark 8:31

“But ye denied the Holy One and the Just, and desired a murderer to be granted unto you;

15 And killed the Prince of life, whom God hath raised from the dead; whereof we are witnesses.” – Acts 3:14-15

All the scriptures are in agreement that Jesus was killed and who killed Jesus, the head of them being the High Priest of the Church, Caiaphas.

“Then assembled together the chief priests, and the scribes, and the elders of the people, unto the palace of the high priest, who was called Caiaphas,

4 And consulted that they might take Jesus by subtilty, and kill him.” – Matt. 26

Nephi tells us that these people who killed Christ were not the righteous acting under the direction of God but rather they were very wicked. Satan doesn’t have power over the righteous, he has power over the wicked. They are the ones who killed Christ under Satan’s influence, not God’s.

“Wherefore, as I said unto you, it must needs be expedient that Christ—for in the last night the angel spake unto me that this should be his name—should come among the Jews, among those who are the more wicked part of the world; and they shall crucify him—for thus it behooveth our God, and there is none other nation on earth that would crucify their God.

4 For should the mighty miracles be wrought among other nations they would repent, and know that he be their God.

5 But because of priestcrafts and iniquities, they at Jerusalem will stiffen their necks against him, that he be crucified.” – 2 Nephi 10:3–6

Why does Nephi say “it behooveth our God” that Jesus was crucified? Was it because God supported and agreed to his death working hand in hand with Satan? No. God has allowed many people to die as martyrs, not because God agreed with it, or encouraged it, but for other reasons, like to stand as a witness against the wicked. For example, when Alma and Amulek watched the believers being thrown into a fiery pit and burned to death, Amulek suggested that they use the power of God to stop the wicked and save the lives of the righteous. But Alma was constrained by the spirit not to stop the horrible events.

“And it came to pass that they took Alma and Amulek, and carried them forth to the place of martyrdom, that they might witness the destruction of those who were consumed by fire.

10 And when Amulek saw the pains of the women and children who were consuming in the fire, he also was pained; and he said unto Alma: How can we witness this awful scene? Therefore let us stretch forth our hands, and exercise the power of God which is in us, and save them from the flames.

11 But Alma said unto him: The Spirit constraineth me that I must not stretch forth mine hand; for behold the Lord receiveth them up unto himself, in glory; and he doth suffer that they may do this thing, or that the people may do this thing unto them, according to the hardness of their hearts, that the judgments which he shall exercise upon them in his wrath may be just; and the blood of the innocent shall stand as a witness against them, yea, and cry mightily against them at the last day.” – Alma 14

What we see here is that it behoveth God to allow the righteous be killed by the wicked. This does not mean that God agrees with the wicked in killing the righteous or inspired them to kill the righteous. It does not mean that God wanted it to happen or that God organized and planned it and forced the wicked into being wicked so that they had no choice in doing this. It means that it was evil and wrong but God allowed it to happen, knew it would happen and planned accordingly.

Those who agree with and support his death are found on the side of Satan and the wicked leaders of the church of who Christ said, “Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell?

The righteous mourned his suffering and death and wept for him and the injustice he was experiencing. They did not participate in his death in word or deed. They certainly didn’t want him to die the way he did. They were restrained to allow it. They mourned his death while the wicked celebrated it.