{Held his peace} (esi(9370)a). Kept silent, imperfect tense.
Jesus refused to answer the bluster of Caiaphas. {I adjure thee
by the living God} (exorkiz(9320)se kata tou theou tou z(936e)tos). So
Caiaphas put Jesus on oath in order to make him incriminate
himself, a thing unlawful in Jewish jurisprudence. He had failed
to secure any accusation against Jesus that would stand at all.
But Jesus did not refuse to answer under solemn oath, clearly
showing that he was not thinking of oaths in courts of justice
when he prohibited profanity. The charge that Caiaphas makes is
that Jesus claims to be the Messiah, the Son of God. To refuse to
answer would be tantamount to a denial. So Jesus answered knowing
full well the use that would be made of his confession and claim.