Was Jesus Christ bragging about the twelve legions of angels? Was it wrong on the part of Jesus not to speak?

Those sentences which are colored in orange are from Maharishi Dayananda Saraswati book Satyarth Prakash (The Light of Truth) and those which are colored in black are Jerry Thomas’s response.

"Thinkest thou that I cannot now pray to my father, and he shall presently give me more than twelve legions of angels?" (26:53.)

C. He boasts and brags of the greatness of his father and himself and yet cannot do anything. When the high priest said to him, "Answerest thou nothing which is it which these witness against thee?" But Jesus held his peace. It was not right on his part to do so, he ought to have spoken out the truth. It was not good of him, to have boasted of this greatness nor was it right on the part of those who put him to death on a false charge. What they accused him of was not his offence but they too were savages, what could they know of justice? It would have been good for both parties had not Christ pretended to be the Son of God and they (the Jews) so ill-treated him, but where from could they get the requisite sense, righteousness and justice to know these things and feel and act the truth?

Answer: One cannot but be dismayed at the abysmal level of selective and partial reading of the Holy Scripture that Maharishi indulges in.

For the answer for Matthew 26:37-39, I have already shown that LORD Jesus Christ had the perfect foreknowledge of the events that would take place which is a pointer to His omniscience. Here in this very passage too if one were to read the entire passage rather than indulging in selective reading, and check the parallel passages, one can see the power of God being displayed at this very hour.

Matthew 26: 51-56 And suddenly, one of those who were with Jesus stretched out his hand and drew his sword, struck the servant of the high priest, and cut off his ear.  But Jesus said to him, "Put your sword in its place, for all who take the sword will perish by the sword. Or do you think that I cannot now pray to My Father, and He will provide Me with more than twelve legions of angels? How then could the Scriptures be fulfilled, that it must happen thus?"  In that hour Jesus said to the multitudes, "Have you come out, as against a robber, with swords and clubs to take Me? I sat daily with you, teaching in the temple, and you did not seize Me. But all this was done that the Scriptures of the prophets might be fulfilled." Then all the disciples forsook Him and fled. 

(a) Scripture is being fulfilled here. Maharishi conveniently overlooks the fact that all these were prophesized centuries before the crucifixion. This might be probably because the events that unfolded at the time of crucifixion absolutely proved that the Word of God is accurate which Maharishi set outs to challenge. If Maharishi had honestly accepted the scriptural fulfillment of the Holy Bible at the time of crucifixion, he would have not only accepted the veracity of the Holy Bible but also would have conceded that Vedas are no way comparable to the Holy Bible.

(b) The context of LORD Jesus Christ saying “Or do you think that I cannot now pray to My Father, and He will provide Me with more than twelve legions of angels? How then could the Scriptures be fulfilled, that it must happen thus?” was disciples attempt to defend LORD Jesus Christ. In other words, LORD Jesus Christ dissuaded the disciples from defending Him.

LORD Jesus Christ not only dissuaded the disciples from defending Him, but also restored the ear of the enemies thus displaying that He has the power to heal. 

Let us read the parallel passage:

Luke 22:49-53 When those around Him saw what was going to happen; they said to Him, "Lord, shall we strike with the sword?"  And one of them struck the servant of the high priest and cut off his right ear.  But Jesus answered and said, "Permit even this." And He touched his ear and healed him.  Then Jesus said to the chief priests, captains of the temple, and the elders who had come to Him, "Have you come out, as against a robber, with swords and clubs?  When I was with you daily in the temple, you did not try to seize Me. But this is your hour, and the power of darkness." 

(b) At this very hour LORD Jesus Christ displayed His power to heal attesting to the fact He could have saved Himself had He wanted to.

Further, the resurrection from the death clearly demonstrated that LORD Jesus Christ is God Himself.

Therefore, the accurate fulfillment of the scriptural prophecies, the power of healing and the victory over death clearly proves what LORD Jesus Christ said about the power of God the Father and Himself is correct. He allowed these events to happen as the Scriptures ought to be fulfilled.

Maharishi who reads very selectively with a bigoted mind overlooks all these to falsely accuse LORD Jesus Christ.

Further, Maharishi accusation against LORD Jesus Christ remaining silent is yet clear demonstration of Maharishi’s pathetic ignorance of the Holy Scripture though he pretended as a scholar.

LORD Jesus Christ had said “How then could the Scriptures be fulfilled, that it must happen thus?” Let us see if there were scriptures which clearly indicated that LORD Jesus Christ would remain silent in the face of false accusation. If yes, then LORD Jesus Christ was absolutely correct and Maharishi was erroneous as usual in making this accusation.

Almost 600 years before the crucifixion, Prophet Isaiah through the Holy Spirit prophesied:

Isaiah 53:7 “He was oppressed and He was afflicted, Yet He opened not His mouth; He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, So He opened not His mouth.”   

In fact, in remaining silent, LORD Jesus Christ irrefutably demonstrated that He was the one who was prophesied by the prophets.

Maharishi’s suggestion that LORD Jesus Christ should have spoken arises out of his pathetic ignorance of the Holy Bible. But how can followers of Vedas ever think of such accurate prophecies. The omniscient knowledge of God is totally absent in the Vedas.

Further, from a legal point of view, the charges that His accusers brought against Him could not stand the test in the face of law.

Pontius Pilate Himself gave the verdict that there was no fault in LORD Jesus Christ:

Luke 23: 4 So Pilate said to the chief priests and the crowd, "I find no fault in this Man." 

Luke 23:14-16 said to them, "You have brought this Man to me, as one who misleads the people. And indeed, having examined Him in your presence, I have found no fault in this Man concerning those things of which you accuse Him; no, neither did Herod, for I sent you back to him; and i

ndeed nothing deserving of death has been done by Him. I will therefore chastise Him and release Him."

Thus when He remained:

(a) He was clearly fulfilling the Old Testament prophecies demonstrating that He is the Messiah.

(b) From a legal point of view, there was no need of defense as the accusers were clearly proven false even to the judges who examined Him.