In the middle of the night, with time runninig out, Caiaphas is finally handed by Jesus the confession that he desired. The High Priest was not interested in finding out more about Jesus, so he could come to worship Him also. Instead, Caiaphas was willing to disturb both Jewish leaders and the Roman overlords in the middle of the night if it meant that Jesus could be removed from the political and religious world.
Did Jesus give Caiaphas exactly what he wanted. Yes, but the motive was only to fulfill all righteousness. Jesus could have lied to this representative of Satan, but instead knew that this was the means by which redemption would be achieved. Like the opening words of John's gospel, "He came unto His own, and His own recieved Him not."
To tear one's clothes in the Old Testament was an expression of grief as we see in 2 Kings 19:1 and Job 1:20. Jewish law forbade the High Priest from tearing his garment (Leviticus 10:6; 21:10). I doubt if Caiaphas was wearing the elaborate costume that we find set forth for the High Priest in the book of Leviticus.
Jewish tradition found in the Talmud made one exception for the High Priest to tear his garment--witnessing an act of blasphemy.
Caiaphas was well aware of that, and in his desire to bring the assembled Sanhedrin to a fever pitch of excitement, he utilizes the opportunity to tear his robe at this supposed act of blasphemy. The only anguish that Caiaphas is experiencing at this moment is that he is not moving fast enough to get Jesus dispatched before the end of the Passover.
Imagine how Jesus must have felt in the presence of a High Priest whose motive for rejecting Christ is a mixture of politics and greed. The situation is not too different today, which is sad in a nation that began with the slogan: "No King but Jesus."
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