Lesson #20 The Judas

(Matthew 26: 1 25)

In Lesson #19 Jesus takes us to the bleeding edge of the apocalyptic vision in the Olivet Discourse, warning of a time of great tribulation, such as has not been seen since the beginning of the world until now, nor ever will be (24: 21). We saw that Jesus vision of the end has its origins in a linear world view, a view that envisions a beginning, middle and end of history, with a great crescendo of catastrophe preceding the return of Christ, the redemption of humanity and the ushering in of the Kingdom of Heaven. We also saw the vast body of apocalyptic literature that emerges from and mirrors such a world view, with its masterpiece being the Book of Revelation.

As we enter Lesson #20 Passover nears, the religious leaders know that if Jesus returns to the Temple complex in the morning and escalates once again, the city will erupt in an all-out riot and thousands will die. They need a plan, and Judas provides one. Judas is a far more complex character than one might think. Judas was one of the original twelve disciples, part of Jesus inner circle; Judas witnessed the entire three years of Jesus public ministry, watching and listening to his teaching, preaching and healing; Judas was present at Caesarea Philippi, agreeing with Peters confession of faith; and Judas was told of the extraordinary events on the Mt. of Transfiguration, when God the Father validated Peters confession of faith in the presence of Moses and Elijah. Why would such a man betray Christ?

In Lesson #20 we explore Judas and his motivations.

Anonymous. Kiss of Judas Iscariot (painting), 12th century. Uffizi Gallery, Florence, Italy.

Judas Iscariots name: Judas (Hebrew = Judah, Jacobs 4th son); Iscariot (probably from the Hebrew -Qryth, man of Kerioth, a village about 10 miles south of Hebron). If that is the case, Judas is the only one of Jesus 12 disciples not from Galilee.
Judas is the son of Simon Iscariot (John 6:71; 13:26).

Judas is always listed last in the list of Jesus twelve disciples.

His motives for betraying Jesus are unclear in the Gospel accounts, opening the door to considerable speculation. John tells us that Judas held the money bag and used to steal the contributions (John 12: 6). Satan enters Judas, prompting him to act (Luke 22: 3, John 13: 27). Judas went to the chief priests: What are you willing to give me if I hand him over to you? (Matthew 26: 15); and he is paid 30 pieces of silver (Matthew 26: 14-16). When Jesus is condemned and sentenced to death, Judas returns to the chief priests in remorse, saying: I have sinned in betraying innocent blood and he flings the money back at them (Matthew 27: 4-5). Judas then went off and hanged himself (Matthew 27: 5).

The Greek word in Matthew 26: 15 is arguria, sliver coins, not specifying what type of coins they were. The best guess is Tyrian tetradrachms, commonly called Tyrian shekels. A drachma is about a days wages for a skilled laborer, so 30 tetradrachms would equal about four months wages, a lot, but not an exorbitant sum. The above Tyrian shekles were minted in Tyre between 18 B.C. and A.D. 68.

Mattia Preti. Tribute Money (oil on canvas), c. 1640. Brera Art Gallery, Milan, Italy.

Throughout Scripture Judas is called the betrayer: Matthew 10: 4, 26: 21-25, 26: 46 . . .
The Apostle John clearly does not like Judas: he calls him a hypocrite, a thief (John 12: 4-6) and a betrayer (John 18: 5).

Judas has been viewed throughout Church history as an avaricious and dishonest man whos sole motive for betraying Jesus was greed and the furthering of his own ends.
In his Divine Comedy Dante clearly sees Judas as the archetypical traitor, placing him in the very pit of Hell in the jaws of Satan, where he is chewed upon and clawed by Satan for all of eternity, along with Cassius and Brutus, the assassins of Julius Caesar. OthersThomas de Quincey, for example, in his 1852 essay Judas Iscariotsees Judas sole motive as compelling Jesus to reveal himself as Messiah and get on with the business of liberating the Jews from Roman rule and establishing a new kingdom, one under God.

During the Middle Agesin the manner of rabbinic midrashlegend developed to fill in Judas meager biography. Jacobus de Voragine (1228-1298) tells the tale in his Golden Legend, one of the most popular works of Medieval literature. Heres a summary of the legend:
Judas was of the tribe of Ruben (first son of Jacob, who betrayed his father by having sex with his fathers concubine, BilhahGenesis 35: 22). Before he was born, Judas mother, Cyborea, had an Oedipusian dream that he was destined to kill his father, commit incest with his mother, and sell out his God. As a result of the dream, at his birth Cyborea put Judas into a chest and cast it into the sea; he drifted ashore in a foreign land and was brought up at the royal court; in a moment of passion as a young man he committed murder and fled; he arrived in Judea where he entered the service of Pontius Pilate as a page, where he unknowingly murdered his father and had sex with his mother; his heinous acts revealed, he sought out Jesus the Prophet, who people said could forgive sins; Judas was put into a position of trust by Jesus as keeper of the money bag; avarice then grew within him like a cancer, and Judas fulfilled his destiny by betraying God, thus fulfilling his mothers dream.

This portrayal of Judas as the archetypical villain has shaped our image of him, both in theological circles and in music, art and literature.

Carravagio. The Taking of Christ (oil on canvas), c. 1598. National Gallery of Ireland, Dublin.

Another account of Judas came to light in the 1970s with the discovery of a late 2nd-century Coptic papyrus near Beni Masah in Egypt, the The Gospel of Judas. This gospel portrays Judasthe only one of Jesus disciples who truly understood himas acting on Jesus instructions.

Among contemporary views of Judas, two are especially insightful in the way they probe Judas motives and actions:
Stephen Adly Guirgis. The Last Days of Judas Iscariot, 2005. Directed by
Phillip Seymour Hoffman and first performed at The Public Theater (formerly The Shakespeare Workshop) in New York, March 2, 2005.
The play presents a courtroom scene in Purgatory to decide Judas Iscariots ultimate fate. Using flashbacks into Judas life, witnesses include Satan (who famously says, I dont believe in Good and Bad. What I believe in is Truth.), Caiaphas (whos encouraged by the impatient defense attorney to take his time: This is Purgatory, Caiaphas, I got all day.), Pontius Pilate, Mary Magdalene, Mother Theresa and Sigmund Freud, among others.

Jorge Luis Borges. Tres Versiones de Judas (English, Three Versions of Jesus) in Ficciones, 1944.
The story is written in the form of a scholarly article, a critical analysis of a fictional writer, Nils Runeberg. In the story Runeberg writes three books: 1) Christ and Judas, 2) Christ and Judas, revised edition; and 3) The Secret Savior. Borges analyzes the heretical views in all three of the fictional works, presenting three versions of Judas as he does so.

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What significance, if any, do you find in Judas being the only disciple who is not from Galilee? What significance, if any, do you find in Judas scolding Mary of Bethany for anointing Jesus with a very expensive perfume: Why was this oil not sold for three hundred days wages and given to the poor? (John 12: 5)? What significance, if any, do you find in Jesus saying to Judas at the Last Supper: What you are going to do, do quickly (John 13: 37)? What significance, if any, do you find in Gods Shepherd breaking his covenant with all people, demanding his wages of 30 pieces of silver, and then throwing it back into the treasury (Zechariah 11: 10-14)? Is there any other character in Scripture who hangs himself? If so, what is the significance?

Copyright 2014 by William C. Creasy

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