Why did Judas really betray Jesus?

[fred_conty]

Why did Judas really betray Jesus?

There are all kinds of theories of why, and maybe you would like to express yours as well.

I’ve thought about this all my life. And it just seemed inceivable that Judas would do that knowing Jesus, and seeing his miracles. He must have had the highest opinion of Jesus just as the other apostles did. He knew what they knew. Did he really think he could get by with it?

And the answer is yes. He thought he could…have his cake and eat it too.

There are two occasions in the gospels where Jesus was in danger from the crowd, where the gospel tells us Jesus slipped thru their midst. He was in danger and yet escaped unharmed with everyone around him. Did he become invisible, or did he change his appearance? It really dosen’t matter, Jesus did something extrodinary to escape.

Judas knew about this and possibly other escapes not mentioned in the bible, for as John says, not every thing was written down that Jesus did. So if Judas saw or heard about these remarkable escapes in the face of danger, then why wouldn’t he have assumed the same thing would happen when Jesus would be in danger again from the Caiphas and the Pharisees? Sure, he thought. I’ll make 30 pieces of silver free, and Jesus will just slip thru their midst like he did before. So why shouldn’t I make some money from these uglies he thought.

You may agree with this or not, but to me it makes the most sense why he would do it when he knew who Jesus was along with the other apostles.

I do not excuse his behaviour of greed, but I can see how he would be drawn in and believe that noone would be the worse for the wear except the Pharisees.

Of course when it did not turn out the way he had expected, he then realised what he had done was not going to be undone or avoided. And that thought led to his bad decision to do himself in.

Otherwise, if he had thought that Jesus would be taken, then it would make not sense for him to regret what he had done when it happened the way he had planned it. So I think he really thought it wouldn’t happen.

Praise be to Jesus Christ.

 

[patrick457]

I won’t presume to know. Sure, there are a lot of theories you see and hear out there (Judas was expecting a warrior Messiah and Jesus didn’t turn out to be what he expected, Judas realized Jesus was wanted and so tried to save his own skin while making some easy money in the process, Judas was really a spy of the temple authorities, ‘Judas’ was just a fictional invention by the early Christians, Judas was simply one of those who betrayed Jesus, etc.), some more plausible than others, but well, we can only imagine. The gospels don’t record the motivations or thoughts involved, only the fact that occurred.

 

[Lily_Bernans]

Because it was part of God’s plan from the very beginning.

 

[Bill_Martin]

Because it was part of God’s plan from the very beginning.

This is a question I have struggled with. Did Judas have the free will to say no to betrayal? If so, what if that’s what he did? Could our redemption be thwarted by the choice of a man to do good? Would that act then be good or bad?

If not, then who *was * he really? A glorified robot with no choice but to commit the most horrible of crimes, just waiting to carry out his instructions at the right time? What would that say about God that He made such a being? Could Judas have gone to Heaven anyway despite his crime if he had repented?

With regards to the last question, I think he could. His act of betrayal led to Jesus’ crucifixion, which led to redemption, which made Judas’ own redemption possible. In that case, maybe even if he did not have the free will to refuse betrayal of Jesus, he was still never destined for Hell, and thus God is still good despite creating a being with no choice but to do a particular act of evil.

 

[steve53]

Judas could have been in on the conspiracy. Jesus had to be arrested at the right time!

That’s if you believe in conspiracies, of course.

 

[AmbroseSJ]

Some visionaries have offered suggestions.

For example, that Judas was in it for the money, literally. Jesus attracted HUGE crowds, and those people were asked for offerings for the poor, and perhaps for the maintenance of the college of Apostles itself. Supposedly, with time, and the crowds increasing daily, Judas wanted more than anything to be in charge of the purse. That way he could siphon off funds for himself. St. John certainly accuses him of this. He was interested in how much he could get from the High Priests in betraying Jesus. He may have just assumed Jesus would shimmer away from them, as he always seemed to do in the past. It seems like a plausible scenario…

 

[fred_conty]

Patrick457,
If Judas thought Jesus was not fit the description of the earthly powerful Messiah that he imagined, and then betrayed him for the silver, why would he commit suicide? Suicide is frustration that it didn’t turn out the way he thought it would. If he fully expected this Messiah to be captured, then why would he care after Jesus was taken? It was what he agreed to and knew would happen. So why suicide? … because he didn’t expect it to happen.

Throwing the silver down at the Pharisees is another indication that he didn’t want this to happen. He wanted to undo what he had done. This again expresses his great great disappointment at what turned out.
If he had expected Jesus to be captured, then his actions afterward would have been indifferent, but they weren’t.

Well others who say Judas was fictional, we know he is quite historical and real as any of the other apostles. He is more real than some of the other apostles.

I know my theory is only a theory, but it does seem to fit the whole story and not just pieces.

Lily Bernans & Bill Martin,
Yes, that is true but then the devil is in the details. Judas was still free to do it or not because he wasn’t a rock. And tho God does move people, he won’t use force. So there must have been some type of situation which led to Judas to think in this way. And just what was he thinking that led him to do this?

Steve53,
Yes it was a conspiracy by the Jews, the leaders, to get rid of Jesus. This is apparant when they offered Judas the money to point Jesus out at a non-public presence. But the question is…why did Judas go along with it? What was he thinking? …easy money with no chance of Jesus being taken…maybe.

Thanks for your replies.

 

[Casilda]

The twelve apostles all had their flaws. Of course Judas had free will, they all did. They were all tempted in their own weaknesses. Judas’ weakness was money. In John 13:26-27 in John’s account during the last supper:

26 Jesus answered, “It is he to whom I shall give this morsel when I have dipped it.” So when he had dipped the morsel, he gave it to Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot. 27 Then after the morsel, Satan entered into him. Jesus said to him, “What you are going to do, do quickly.”

According to St. Augustine, “the morsel Jesus offered him is a sign of friendship, therefore an invitation to him to give up his evil plotting. But Judas rejects the chance he is offered”. St. Augustine says, " what he received is good but he received it to his own perdition…Satan entering into him means that from that moment Judas gave in completely to the devil’s temptation."

He didn’t want Jesus’ friendship, his eyes, his heart, wanted $$$$.

 

[Lily_Bernans]

This is a question I have struggled with. Did Judas have the free will to say no to betrayal? If so, what if that’s what he did? Could our redemption be thwarted by the choice of a man to do good? Would that act then be good or bad?

If not, then who *was * he really? A glorified robot with no choice but to commit the most horrible of crimes, just waiting to carry out his instructions at the right time? What would that say about God that He made such a being? Could Judas have gone to Heaven anyway despite his crime if he had repented?

With regards to the last question, I think he could. His act of betrayal led to Jesus’ crucifixion, which led to redemption, which made Judas’ own redemption possible. In that case, maybe even if he did not have the free will to refuse betrayal of Jesus, he was still never destined for Hell, and thus God is still good despite creating a being with no choice but to do a particular act of evil.

Judas had the free will to say no, to not betray Our Lord. However, if you remember, and I’m sure you do, Jesus knew Judas would betray him, and he announced it (though not Judas’ name) at the Last Supper. God is omniscient, he knows who is going to betray him and who is going to remain faithful to him. This omniscience is not limited to God the Father, but is shared by God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. Three persons, but only one God.

Perhaps Judas was chosen as an apostle because Jesus knew Judas could not remain faithful. Clearly, he was trusted to some extent by Our Lord. Judas is the one who carried the money for the group.

I believe Judas truly loved Our Lord. I believe he was simply afraid that Jesus would start an uprising that would cause all of the apostles (and maybe more followers) to be imprisoned or worse. I don’t think he ever imagined that Jesus would be crucified. Until the Resurrection, the apostles, with perhaps the exception of Peter and John, did not know Christ was God, so maybe Judas thought Jesus would deny being “King of the Jews.”

I think there is ample evidence that Judas repented. He did, after all, hang himself for what he had done. I believe it was possible for him to go to heaven. Of course, I don’t know if he did or not, but I think it was possible since he seems to have truly repented. If his repentance was truly heartfelt, God would not reject it.

 

[Lily_Bernans]

The twelve apostles all had their flaws. Of course Judas had free will, they all did. They were all tempted in their own weaknesses. Judas’ weakness was money. In John 13:26-27 in John’s account during the last supper:

26 Jesus answered, “It is he to whom I shall give this morsel when I have dipped it.” So when he had dipped the morsel, he gave it to Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot. 27 Then after the morsel, Satan entered into him. Jesus said to him, “What you are going to do, do quickly.”

According to St. Augustine, “the morsel Jesus offered him is a sign of friendship, therefore an invitation to him to give up his evil plotting. But Judas rejects the chance he is offered”. St. Augustine says, " what he received is good but he received it to his own perdition…Satan entering into him means that from that moment Judas gave in completely to the devil’s temptation."

He didn’t want Jesus’ friendship, his eyes, his heart, wanted $$$$.

I don’t think it was the money. I think if it had been the money, Judas would have taken all the money (he carried all the money for the group) and fled. He didn’t. He stayed around and eventually hurled the money back and hung himself. I have to believe he did so with a very heavy heart once he realized what was going to happen to Jesus. I believe Judas truly loved Our Lord. I don’t think he expected crucifixion.

In no way am I trying to justify Judas’ actions. There can be no justification for betraying Christ. I’m simply stating things as I understand them. Money hungry thieves who don’t care about their victims don’t hang themselves in shame.

 

[fred_conty]

Casilda,
Well it is true that he was money hungry. But the account where Jesus offers Judas a morsal of food in the spirit of friendship may have been taken by Judas as “it is ok”. Judas may have misunderstood the intentions of Jesus in this act.

“…from that moment Judas gave in completely to the devil’s temptation.” And this fits with the idea that Jesus is saying, in judas’ mind, that it was ok, and that they will not get him. And so then Judas thinks that this is the sign that everything will be allright.

Lily Bernans,
“…afraid that Jesus would start an uprising that would cause all of the apostles (and maybe more followers) to be imprisoned or worse.”

But if this were the case, then why suicide when he wanted to stop an uprising by stopping Jesus. But when he found out that Jesus was truly going to his death, then it was, that he changed his mind. But he wouldn’t have changed his mind if his wish to stop Jesus was coming true.
He was dissappointed and threw the silver at the connivers and wanted to save Jesus and not to stop Jesus.

“… I have to believe he did so with a very heavy heart once he realized what was going to happen to Jesus. I believe Judas truly loved Our Lord. I don’t think he expected crucifixion.”
I agree. He didn’t expect anything to happen.

DaddyGirl,
“So when they did, he obviously felt horrified at what he’d done since he’d played a part in getting his friend tortured and killed.”

I agree, Judas was very disappointed at that outcome. Jesus had been threatened before with death, but he slipped thru the crowd. Jesus even told his apostles that he was going to die several times, but it seems that the apostles still were unconvinced. So Judas probably didn’t believe this either. So he thought he would get bye with it scott free…have his money and nothing happen. That is why he went haywire when it was

 

[Lily_Bernans]

Casilda,
Well it is true that he was money hungry. But the account where Jesus offers Judas a morsal of food in the spirit of friendship may have been taken by Judas as “it is ok”. Judas may have misunderstood the intentions of Jesus in this act.

“…from that moment Judas gave in completely to the devil’s temptation.” And this fits with the idea that Jesus is saying, in judas’ mind, that it was ok, and that they will not get him. And so then Judas thinks that this is the sign that everything will be allright.

Lily Bernans,
“…afraid that Jesus would start an uprising that would cause all of the apostles (and maybe more followers) to be imprisoned or worse.”

But if this were the case, then why suicide when he wanted to stop an uprising by stopping Jesus. But when he found out that Jesus was truly going to his death, then it was, that he changed his mind. But he wouldn’t have changed his mind if his wish to stop Jesus was coming true.
He was dissappointed and threw the silver at the connivers and wanted to save Jesus and not to stop Jesus.

“… I have to believe he did so with a very heavy heart once he realized what was going to happen to Jesus. I believe Judas truly loved Our Lord. I don’t think he expected crucifixion.”
I agree. He didn’t expect anything to happen.

DaddyGirl,
“So when they did, he obviously felt horrified at what he’d done since he’d played a part in getting his friend tortured and killed.”

I agree, Judas was very disappointed at that outcome. Jesus had been threatened before with death, but he slipped thru the crowd. Jesus even told his apostles that he was going to die several times, but it seems that the apostles still were unconvinced. So Judas probably didn’t believe this either. So he thought he would get bye with it scott free…have his money and nothing happen. That is why he went haywire when it was

I don’t think the apostles really understood when Jesus told them he was going to die. They didn’t realize he was God, and Jesus often referred to his death by saying, “When the Son of Man is lifted up…”. Of course, all the apostles knew how the Romans “lifted up” someone.

 

[fred_conty]

I don’t think the apostles really understood when Jesus told them he was going to die. They didn’t realize he was God, and Jesus often referred to his death by saying, “When the Son of Man is lifted up…”. Of course, all the apostles knew how the Romans “lifted up” someone.

I agree that they were very hesitant about all this death business that Jesus had predicted.
But then at the very end when that took Jesus in the Garden, then it was that Judas was askance at this and rushed back to the Jews to set Jesus free.

 

[patrick457]

I should just add:

We really have three versions of how Judas died, two of those are in Scripture, the third is recorded in the writings of Papias. Matthew’s is of course the more familiar version: Judas dies in the exact same way as the OT traitor Ahithophel.

Then when Judas, his betrayer, saw that Jesus was condemned, he changed his mind and brought back the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and the elders, saying, “I have sinned by betraying innocent blood.” They said, “What is that to us? See to it yourself.” And throwing down the pieces of silver into the temple, he departed, and he went and hanged himself. But the chief priests, taking the pieces of silver, said, “It is not lawful to put them into the treasury, since it is blood money.” So they took counsel and bought with them the potter’s field as a burial place for strangers. Therefore that field has been called the Field of Blood to this day. (Matt. 27:3-8)

===

When Ahithophel saw that his counsel was not followed, he saddled his donkey and went off home to his own city. He set his house in order and hanged himself, and he died and was buried in the tomb of his father. (2 Samuel 17:23)

Acts of the Apostles of course has Judas dying by apparently falling. (Many people tend to conflate the two stories using the so-called ‘weak rope’ theory: Judas hanged himself, but the rope broke and he fell down to his death.)

Now this man acquired a field with the reward of his wickedness, and falling headlong he burst open in the middle and all his bowels gushed out. And it became known to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so that the field was called in their own language Akeldama, that is, Field of Blood. (Acts 1:18-19)

I should add that Acts seem to present Judas as dying like a coward. Audiences familiar with the Homeric epics would have found Judas’ manner of death, falling prēnēs “headlong” (i.e, face down), similar to the deaths of cowards in Homer: brave combatants who fought to the death fell on their backs, while cowards who ran away from their enemies were struck from behind and so fell prēnēs ‘face down’.

Both Matthew and Acts connect Judas with the ‘Field of Blood’, but whereas in Matthew, the chief priests buy the field since they don’t want the money anymore, in Acts, it is apparently Judas who buys the field himself. Also, in Acts, the place was called ‘Field of Blood’ because Judas died there, but in Matthew, there’s no indication of exactly where Judas supposedly hanged himself, only that he ‘went away’.

The third story, Papias, has Judas eventually dying of some sort of disease. His quote survives in the writings of a late 4th century bishop, Apollinaris of Laodicea. Apollinaris took Papias’ story to mean that Judas actually survived his suicide attempt.

Judas did not die by hanging, but lived on, having been cut down before choking. And this the Acts of the Apostles makes clear, that falling headlong his middle burst and his bowels poured forth. And Papias the disciple of John records this most clearly, saying thus in the fourth of the Exegeses of the Words of the Lord:

“Judas walked about as an example of godlessness in this world, having been bloated so much in the flesh that he could not go through where a chariot goes easily, indeed not even his swollen head by itself. For the lids of his eyes, they say, were so puffed up that he could not see the light, and his own eyes could not be seen, not even by a physician with optics, such depth had they from the outer apparent surface. And his genitalia appeared more disgusting and greater than all formlessness, and he bore through them from his whole body flowing pus and worms, and to his shame these things alone were forced [out]. And after many tortures and torments, they say, when he had come to his end in his own place, from the place became deserted and uninhabited until now from the stench, but not even to this day can anyone go by that place unless they pinch their nostrils with their hands, so great did the outflow from his body spread out upon the earth.”​

 

[fred_conty]

Patrick457,

Papias makes sense. Judas may have been hanging for sometime before they found him, which would account for his bloated and corrupted body. So when they cut the rope, he hit the ground so hard his body just came apart.

 

[patrick457]

Patrick457,

Papias makes sense. Judas may have been hanging for sometime before they found him, which would account for his bloated and corrupted body. So when they cut the rope, he hit the ground so hard his body just came apart.

I just mentioned that - it’s a variation on the “weak rope” theory.

But you might notice that Papias seems to imply that Judas was afflicted with the maggots and all that before he died: “having been bloated so much in the flesh that he could not go through where a chariot goes easily, indeed not even his swollen head by itself … and after many tortures and torments, they say, he had come to his end in his own place.” In fact, you might notice that Apollinaris tries to harmonize Papias (which he conflates with the version in Acts) with Matthew by saying that Judas really survived his suicide attempt - he died instead due to the disease.

So you have three main, likely independent versions as to how Judas died: by hanging (Matthew), by falling (Acts), by some disease that caused his body to bloat (Papias, who recorded traditions and beliefs he heard from “the elders”). All three sources are likely written in proximity with each other - Papias would have written his work by the end of the 1st century to the beginning of the 2nd, close to the conventional time period assigned to the synoptic gospels (60s-80s).

 

[fred_conty]

Patrick457,

Now this man acquired a field with the reward of his wickedness, and falling headlong he burst open in the middle and all his bowels gushed out. And it became known to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so that the field was called in their own language Akeldama, that is, Field of Blood. (Acts 1:18-19)

This account could agree with the other accounts of hanging, since he could have already died by hanging first and then fell afterwards headlong. Someone may have tried to take his body down by pulling on the lower part of his body to bring it closer to cut the rope. Which would account for his headlong plunge. He must have been hanging over a cliff of some sort for him to burst open at the bottom. So the situation called for just getting him down in any way they could because of the danger of falling over the cliff.

Or maybe it was intentional that they made him fall headlong. In the account of Jesus at Nazereth, the people intended to throw Jesus headlong from the town precipice because Jesus said he was the Messiah. Since this was a common Jewish practice in stoning a person, maybe Judas too was intended to hit headfirst.

May the Lord protect you and bless you.

 

[patmiron]

Scripture Form on CAF MUST REPLY 06312015

Why did Judas really betray Jesus?

There are all kinds of theories of why, and maybe you would like to express yours as well.

I’ve thought about this all my life. And it just seemed inceivable that Judas would do that knowing Jesus, and seeing his miracles. He must have had the highest opinion of Jesus just as the other apostles did. He knew what they knew. Did he really think he could get by with it?

And the answer is yes. He thought he could…have his cake and eat it too.

There are two occasions in the gospels where Jesus was in danger from the crowd, where the gospel tells us Jesus slipped thru their midst. He was in danger and yet escaped unharmed with everyone around him. Did he become invisible, or did he change his appearance? It really dosen’t matter, Jesus did something extrodinary to escape.

Judas knew about this and possibly other escapes not mentioned in the bible, for as John says, not every thing was written down that Jesus did. So if Judas saw or heard about these remarkable escapes in the face of danger, then why wouldn’t he have assumed the same thing would happen when Jesus would be in danger again from the Caiphas and the Pharisees? Sure, he thought. I’ll make 30 pieces of silver free, and Jesus will just slip thru their midst like he did before. So why shouldn’t I make some money from these uglies he thought.

You may agree with this or not, but to me it makes the most sense why he would do it when he knew who Jesus was along with the other apostles.

I do not excuse his behaviour of greed, but I can see how he would be drawn in and believe that noone would be the worse for the wear except the Pharisees.

Of course when it did not turn out the way he had expected, he then realised what he had done was not going to be undone or avoided. And that thought led to his bad decision to do himself in.

Otherwise, if he had thought that Jesus would be taken, then it would make not sense for him to regret what he had done when it happened the way he had planned it. So I think he really thought it wouldn’t happen.

Praise be to Jesus Christ.

Thanks for asking.

Your question may be a bit more profound than expected?

Judas was one of the original 12 chosen by Christ [Mt. 10: 1-4], and Jesus made him the “treasure” of their donations for the support of their Ministry. But Judas choose to steal some of the funds [one presumes on a somewhat regular basis?], and therefore sinned.
The fact that he was privileged to know Jesus, hear His teachings AND witness His Miracles, and then still choose to steal from them is a clear indication that already his soul was being darkened. That is to say “blocked and prohibited” from FULL and right understanding of what he was exposed to.

God’s grace and gift of right understanding is conditional on Grace being offered; and then accepted and rightly applied. No doubt Jesus offered at least sufficient grace to Judas to be enabled to KNOW Jesus as God; and it is also evident that Judas either did not accept the grace or did not apply in fully.

So the reason Judas choose to deny Christ was this avoidance of grace, leading him to buy into the belief that ”the long awaited Messiah” would be like David a physical savior of their physical condition of slavery; and return them [the Jew’s] to a position of freedom from physical oppression; with no thought of an even more difficult and more important freedom; the freedom and grace to merit their salvation, was being offered to them.
It is because Judas lost sight and understanding that Jesus was [and remains] also God, that allowed him to make the poor decisions that he choose. He lost grace, and quite possibly his soul. The choices We make Do matter.

In the times we live we do well in our daily prayers to ASK the Holy Spirit:

Why me?

Why now?

Why here? So that unlike Judas, we can and will accept the graces offered to us to discover the answers to these “WHYS”

God Bless you,
Patrick

 

[fred_conty]

Scripture Form on CAF MUST REPLY 06312015

Thanks for asking.

Your question may be a bit more profound than expected?

Judas was one of the original 12 chosen by Christ [Mt. 10: 1-4], and Jesus made him the “treasure” of their donations for the support of their Ministry. But Judas choose to steal some of the funds [one presumes on a somewhat regular basis?], and therefore sinned.
The fact that he was privileged to know Jesus, hear His teachings AND witness His Miracles, and then still choose to steal from them is a clear indication that already his soul was being darkened. That is to say “blocked and prohibited” from FULL and right understanding of what he was exposed to.

God’s grace and gift of right understanding is conditional on Grace being offered; and then accepted and rightly applied. No doubt Jesus offered at least sufficient grace to Judas to be enabled to KNOW Jesus as God; and it is also evident that Judas either did not accept the grace or did not apply in fully.

So the reason Judas choose to deny Christ was this avoidance of grace, leading him to buy into the belief that ”the long awaited Messiah” would be like David a physical savior of their physical condition of slavery; and return them [the Jew’s] to a position of freedom from physical oppression; with no thought of an even more difficult and more important freedom; the freedom and grace to merit their salvation, was being offered to them.
It is because Judas lost sight and understanding that Jesus was [and remains] also God, that allowed him to make the poor decisions that he choose. He lost grace, and quite possibly his soul. The choices We make Do matter.

In the times we live we do well in our daily prayers to ASK the Holy Spirit:

Why me?

Why now?

Why here? So that unlike Judas, we can and will accept the graces offered to us to discover the answers to these “WHYS”

God Bless you,
Patrick

Patrick,

Judas was one of the original 12 chosen by Christ [Mt. 10: 1-4], and Jesus made him the “treasure” of their donations for the support of their Ministry. But Judas choose to steal some of the funds [one presumes on a somewhat regular basis?], and therefore sinned.
The fact that he was privileged to know Jesus, hear His teachings AND witness His Miracles, and then still choose to steal from them is a clear indication that already his soul was being darkened. That is to say “blocked and prohibited” from FULL and right understanding of what he was exposed to.

Tho I would completely agree with this understanding, it wouldn’t account for Judas’ behaviour after the betrail. Because he should have been happy to have gotten the money. But he wasn’t as it turned out, not after he saw that Jesus had really been captured and the fate that awaited Jesus. Judas suddenly didn’t want the money any longer and flung it at the Pharasiees. He was disappointed when he should have been glad. So why the disappointment? He knew what they had intended to do. Now when it came to be, he wanted to undo it by giving them back their blood money.

My answer is that he didn’t expect it to happen. Judas thought he would take their money, and when he betrayed Jesus, Jesus would not be taken because he would disappear as he had done before, and all would be well. But it didn’t turn out that way, and so Judas realising what would happen, that he was fooled, he tried to undo what he had done. And when he couldn’t because they refused to take back the money, then he did the ultimate choice of unhappiness.

God’s grace and gift of right understanding is conditional on Grace being offered; and then accepted and rightly applied. No doubt Jesus offered at least sufficient grace to Judas to be enabled to KNOW Jesus as God; and it is also evident that Judas either did not accept the grace or did not apply in fully.

I believe he did know the power of Jesus by being there so often seeing Jesus work miracles day after day.
And that is exactly why Judas did what he did, because he was convinced that Jesus would work another one when the guards came to take him. But surprise…Jesus didn’t.

…leading him to buy into the belief that ”the long awaited Messiah”

To me this would lead to the same conclusion…that Jesus is strong and would not be taken.

To me the biggest question is … why the disappointment … because he thought that Jesus, in one way or another would not allow them to take him. Faced with this disasterous outcome, he tried to undo it. Failing that, he did what he did to end his misery of what he did. My contention is, if Jesus had not been captured that night, Judas would have been sitting on the top of his world…as he had planned. Judas would have had his money and the fairy tale ending as well. And Judas may well have thought about doing this again in the future.

May the God of hope fill you with every joy.

.

 

[patrick457]

Patrick457,

This account could agree with the other accounts of hanging, since he could have already died by hanging first and then fell afterwards headlong. Someone may have tried to take his body down by pulling on the lower part of his body to bring it closer to cut the rope. Which would account for his headlong plunge. He must have been hanging over a cliff of some sort for him to burst open at the bottom. So the situation called for just getting him down in any way they could because of the danger of falling over the cliff.

Or maybe it was intentional that they made him fall headlong. In the account of Jesus at Nazereth, the people intended to throw Jesus headlong from the town precipice because Jesus said he was the Messiah. Since this was a common Jewish practice in stoning a person, maybe Judas too was intended to hit headfirst.

May the Lord protect you and bless you.

I’ll admit that this is where I think the ‘weak rope’ theory assumes too much.

(1) Only Acts and Papias mention where Judas died: Acts says he died in the place that would be later called ‘Field of Blood’, and Papias’ version concurs. (Though a variant of Papias has Judas being run over by a chariot first.) Matthew only says that Judas “went away;” it has become common for artists to show Judas hanging himself in a tree on an open field (harmonizing with Acts) but - assuming Judas really did hang himself - it could really be anywhere.

(2) There is no cliff or precipice in Acts: Judas only falls face down (the Greek word prēnēs, found only here in the NT, simply means ‘bent forwards’ - in fact, it is sometimes used to describe the act of prostration), and splat. It’s traditional for English translations to render prēnēs genomenos (literally ‘becoming bent forward/prone’) as ‘falling headlong’, but you might argue that it gives off the image of Judas falling from a precipice, which is not totally there in the original text.

This is just my personal take on the accounts, but I personally don’t take the account in Matthew factually - more symbolically/typologically. The thing is, as mentioned, it’s a very scripturalized (the fact told in the language of the OT) account: Judas is presented as a new Ahithophel who kills himself in shame. (This ties in with Matthew’s linking Jesus and David together throughout his gospel.) Matthew borrows three key phrases from the story of Ahithophel’s death:

Then when Judas, his betrayer, saw that Jesus was condemned, he changed his mind and brought back the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and the elders, saying, “I have sinned by betraying innocent blood.” They said, “What is that to us? See to it yourself.” And throwing down the pieces of silver into the temple, he departed, and he went and hanged himself.

And Achitophel saw that his counsel did not come to pass, and he saddled his donkey and departed to his house into his city. And he commanded his household and hanged himself, and he died and was buried in the tomb of his father.

As if to highlight the fact that Judas is a traitor, Matthew describes his eventual fate in terms of the quintessential OT traitor. AFAIK Ahithophel and Judas are the only ones who are described in the Bible as hanging themselves.

I might take the story in Acts/Papias to be more factual, but then again, I think they’re also kind of symbolic descriptions. Acts seemingly presents Judas’ rather ‘accidental’ death - falling face down, guts bursting - as a sort of divine punishment, plus there’s also the possible depiction of Judas as meeting a Homeric coward’s end - falling flat on his face - I mentioned in the last post here. (There’s also another possible OT parallel here: when Amasa, David’s general was betrayed by his rival Joab, Joab grabs Amasa’s beard - as if to kiss him - and then runs his sword in the latter’s abdomen, “so that [Amasa’s] entrails poured out on the ground.”) Papias’ version - where Judas gets morbidly obese first - has some parallels with the common stock ancient description of the deaths of nasty people (they get sick with a kind of horrid disease and suffer before they finally die), down to the maggots.

Personally (again, just stating my personal opinion here), I think that we may never know what exactly happened to Judas (Did he hang himself? Did he die by a bad stumble? Did he die by some disease? Did he get run over by a chariot? Did he hang himself and then fell down from some sort of precipice? Or did he survive his suicide attempt only to get obese or get involved in a street accident?) All the three accounts agree on is (1) Judas met an unpleasant end, and (2) the ‘Field of Blood’ has some connection with Judas. Maybe the apostles didn’t know either: Judas just disappeared and the next thing they knew, he was dead. So they described his death symbolically/typologically: he died as a traitor, he died as a kind of divine retribution.

But that’s just my idea.