Judas’ Death

Matthew tells us that Judas “hanged himself,”1 while Luke records that he “falling headlong, he burst asunder in the middle, and all of his bowels gushed out.”2  How can these two descriptions be reconciled?

First, remember that Luke is writing some thirty years later, and describes what happened to Judas’ body.  Even if, as some believe, this is a quotation from Peter just 40-50 days after the event, it would still be a description of what happened, looking back at the event.  So, it is quite possible that Judas went out and hanged himself from a tree, and over the next few days (or even weeks) the branch broke from the strain, and Judas’ bloated body exploded in the middle as it hit the ground.

Second, it is possible that by “hanging,” we shouldn’t imagine a noose.  Some have suggested that Judas took a long wooden post, sharpened on one end, and dove on it, impaling himself, causing his bowels to gush out as his body fell forward to the ground.3

Regardless of exactly how it took place, the death of Judas was a well-known event to the Jews in Jerusalem, for the place where it happened received the name “field of blood.”4

Why Did Judas Do It?

As stated earlier, some have taught that Judas was specially chosen to do a great work for the Lord in fulfilling prophecy, and that instead of being seen as a wicked traitor, he should be viewed as a hero.5

Others, trying to give Judas the best possible motives, argue that the traitor was actually only trying to force Jesus’ hand, to make Him show Himself as the Messiah so that the Kingdom of Heaven could be inaugurated.6

Others, not willing to give Judas any good will, say that he was only interested in the money.  The problem with that is that thirty pieces of silver wasn’t really all that much money, especially if Judas had already been skimming money out of Jesus’ treasury bag.  That doesn’t mean this isn’t the proper understanding, but it does present a difficulty to accepting it.

It seems that the best way of understanding what Judas did is that he came to Jesus with Jewish expectations of the Messiah.  He expected a powerful earthly kingdom that was going to throw off the shackles of Rome and return Israel to its former glory.  He saw the miracles of Jesus as divine confirmation that he was right in his assumptions.  And when Judas himself was endowed with miraculous gifts during the “limited commission,” he must have felt excitement over the imminent arrival of that kingdom which he was preaching.  But Jesus started doing things that made Judas unsure.  He saw a group of Jews who were ready to crown Jesus as the king, but when Jesus saw what was happening, He left and went to a mountain alone.7  He wasn’t ready to abandon Jesus, but it was after that event that the Lord said to the twelve, “one of you is a devil.”8

Then, as Jesus’ ministry went on, He kept saying things about dying, and being murdered.  Judas, with his preconceived ideas about the Messiah, must certainly have been questioning whether or not Jesus was really the One.  No doubt he had heard the opposition that the Pharisees and chief priests had presented against Jesus, and perhaps it continued to encourage his doubts.  Then, leaning more and more towards the conclusion that Jesus wasn’t really the Messiah, Judas saw no problem with stealing money from Him.  And when Jesus said that He was being anointed for His burial, that cinched it for Judas, who went to the chief priests and elders and offered to betray Jesus to them.

Even in the middle of all that mental struggle and doubt, Judas apparently didn’t realize just how much the Jewish leaders hated Jesus.  When he realized that Jesus was going to be put to death, Judas freaked out and tried to hurriedly undo it all.  He did have a conscience after all.  Judas apparently thought that they would simply arrest Jesus and throw Him in prison.

Ultimately, Judas’ biggest problem was that he allowed his own preconceived notions to overrule the evidence.  Jesus did miracles—Judas did miracles—which should have confirmed for him that everything Jesus said and did was exactly what God wanted.  It’s easier sometimes to believe what you’ve always believed than it is to accept what the Bible actually says.

Judas’ name has gone down in history as the ultimate traitor.  His name is not on the foundation of the holy city.  He is known as “the son of perdition” who “by transgression, fell, so that he might go to his own place.”  Such a sad state of affairs when one who had so much potential falls to the lowest depths.

Perhaps the saddest part of the entire history of Judas is that, had he not killed himself, he might have been able to see the resurrection of Jesus Christ.  Had he waited, and heard about the empty tomb, he might have come back to Jesus, begging forgiveness.  And Jesus would have forgiven him, and welcomed him back.

-Bradley S. Cobb

1 Matthew 27:5.

2 Acts 1:18.

3 This possibility was presented to the author several years ago during a discussion of the topic.

4 Acts 1:19.

5 This is the view presented in the so-called Gospel of Judas, a Gnostic document from the second century.

6 Lockyer, in All the Apostles of the Bible, presents this possibility, attributing it to de Quincey.

7 John 6:14-15.

8 John 6:70-71.

Judas the Betrayer

Jesus had told the apostles on more than one occasion that He was going to be murdered, but “they understood none of these things; and the saying was hid from them, nor did they understand the things which were spoken [by Jesus].”1  After arriving in Jerusalem, Jesus boldly condemned the scribes and Pharisees, pronounced judgment on the Jewish nation, and foretold the destruction of the temple.2  As a result, the Jewish leaders gathered together and plotted how to secretly capture Jesus and kill Him.  Meanwhile, Jesus told His disciples that He would be betrayed in two days’ time.3

As a Jew, Judas had certain expectations of the Messiah—one of them being that He was going to reign as a King over Israel and overthrow the oppressive Roman oversight.  But while Jesus claimed to be the Christ, and was indeed a worker of miracles, He seemed to be rather willing to die—something that would make it hard (at least in the eyes of Judas) for Him to reign as a king.  Matthew’s account seems to give the final straw in 26:6-16:

Now when Jesus was in Bethany, in the house of Simon the leper, a woman came to Him there, having an alabaster box of very precious ointment, and poured it on His head while He sat eating.  But when the disciples saw it, they had indignation, saying, “Why is this being wasted?  For this ointment might have been sold for a lot, and given to the poor.”

When Jesus heard, He said to them, “Why are you troubling the woman?  For she has done a good work on me.  For you always have the poor with you; but you don’t always have Me.  For in that she’s poured this ointment on my body, she did it for my burial.  Truly I say to you, wherever this gospel will be preached in the whole world, will also be this, which this woman has done, told as a memorial of her.”

Then one of the twelve, called Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests, and said, “What will you give me, and I’ll deliver Him to you?”  And they weighed out thirty pieces of silver for him.  And from that time, he sought opportunity to betray Him.

John records a very similar event (possibly the same one)4 which singles out Judas as the main complainer about the “waste” of ointment that could have been used to aid the poor.  But he wasn’t concerned about the poor at all; he was interested in lining his own pockets.  It is possible that as talk about Jesus’ impending death increased, Judas started setting aside money for himself out of the bag, possibly with the rationalization, “Well, Jesus sure isn’t going to need it if He’s dead.”  Regardless, he was already falling into Satan’s temptations before he made the conscious decision to go to the Jewish leaders with an offer of betrayal.

Then one of His disciples, Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, who would betray Him, said, “Why wasn’t this ointment sold for three hundred pence and given to the poor?”  This he said, not because he cared for the poor, but because he was a thief, and had the bag, and took what was put in it.5

In the Old Testament, thirty pieces of silver was the amount a man had to pay if his ox accidentally killed another man’s slave.6  This amount was prophesied by God through His prophet in Zechariah 11:10-13.

I took my staff, even Beauty, and cut it asunder, that I might break my covenant which I had made with all the people.  And it was broken in that day: and so the poor of the flock that waited on me knew it was the word of Jehovah.  And I said to them, “If you think good, give me my price, and if not, forbear.”  So they weighed for my price thirty pieces of silver.  And Jehovah said to me, “Cast it to the potter: a goodly price that I was valued by them.  And I took the thirty pieces of silver and cast them to the potter in the house of Jehovah.

While Judas was fulfilling prophecy, he still had a choice in the matter.  No one was forcing him to betray Jesus.  So, while some wish to make excuses for him, as though he was fulfilling an important service for Jesus Christ,7 we must remember that the Bible calls what he did “transgression,” that is, sin.8

But even after Judas made this decision, he kept up the ruse of being a faithful disciple (though Jesus wasn’t fooled).9 He was with Jesus and the rest of the twelve in the upper room for the Passover10 when Jesus stood up and prepared a basin of water to wash their feet.  Judas sat like nothing was wrong as Jesus came to him and washed his feet.  Then Jesus stood up, put his outer garment back on, and sat down at the table and began to foretell that He wasn’t just going to die, but He was going to be betrayed by someone in that room.

Truly, truly I say to you, the servant is not greater than his lord, neither is the apostle greater than the one who sent him.  If you know these things, you are happy if you do them.  I do not speak of you all.  I know whom I have chosen: but that the Scripture might be fulfilled, “He that eats bread with me has lifted up his heel against me.”  Now, I tell you [this] before it comes, so that when it comes to pass, you might believe that I AM.  …

When Jesus had said this, He was very troubled in spirit, and testified, and said, “Truly, truly I say to you, that one of you will betray me.”11

The act that Judas was putting on had convinced the other apostles, for they all said, “Is it me?”12 They didn’t say, “Is it Judas?”  Even after Jesus gave a specific answer to them, “It is he to whom I shall give a sop, when I have dipped it,” and then handed it to Judas, the disciples didn’t realize that Jesus was identifying him.  Even when Jesus said to Judas, “That which you are doing, do quickly,” and Judas got up and left, the apostles assumed that Jesus had sent him on a special mission to buy something for their feast or to give money to the poor.13

So Judas went out into the night, descended the stairs, and ran to meet up with the chief priests and Pharisees.

It has been argued by some that Judas wasn’t intending to betray his Lord, but that he was trying to force Jesus to act and reveal Himself as the Messiah.14  While this sounds plausible on the surface, it is very hard to accept, since Judas accepted money for his part, and since Judas was already a thief.  It is also difficult to accept when one considers that the biblical writers said that “Satan entered into him.”15  Did Satan really want Jesus to display His power and prove to the Jewish leaders that He was the mighty Messiah?  The entire Passion scene is a last-ditch, all-out attack on Jesus in an effort to get Him to sin, just once.16  So it wouldn’t make sense for Judas’ motivation to be a noble one, trying to get Jesus to reveal Himself as the Messiah.  The fact that Jesus refers to Judas as “the son of perdition”17 between the time he left the supper and the time he returned with soldiers shows that Judas had given himself completely over to willful sin.18

Still dark, Judas returned with a band (approximately 600 men)19 of soldiers and officers from the chief priests, carrying lanterns and torches and weapons.20  The soldiers, not knowing who Jesus was, had to rely on Judas to identify Him.  He walked up to Jesus, and we see no trace of fear, no trace of concern, no struggle within Judas over what he was doing.  As he drew near, the Lord said, “Judas, are you betraying the Son of man with a kiss?”21  But Judas just said said, “Hail [or Greetings!], Rabbi,” and kissed Him.22

Jesus’ reply was unexpected.  He said, “Friend, why have you come?”23 But Judas stepped back with the soldiers, showing his true loyalty did not lie with the Lord.24 Jesus addressed the soldiers, with whom Judas was standing, and said, “Who are you seeking?”  When the soldiers said “Jesus of Nazareth,” the Lord replied, “I am.”  Then they all (Judas included) fell backwards to the ground.25 Peter, realizing what was happening, drew his sword, and Judas almost certainly heard the disciples utter the words, “Lord, shall we attack with the sword?”26  He probably saw Peter swing the sword, removing the ear of Malchus, the servant of the high priest.27

As the day dawned, the Sanhedrin had condemned Jesus to death, and bound Him and sent Him to Pilate to begin the proceedings for crucifixion.  When Judas saw what was going to happen—that an innocent man was going to be put to death because of him—he felt remorse, and tried to undo what he had done.

He brought back the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders, saying, “I have sinned, in that I have betrayed innocent blood.”  They said to him, “What is that to us?  You will see to it.”28

And he threw down the pieces of silver in the temple, and left, and went and hanged himself.29

1 Luke 18:33-34.

2 See Matthew 23-24.

3 Matthew 26:1-5.

4 There is debate as to whether this is the same event or a different one.  Matthew and Mark seem to date this at two days before the Passover (see Matthew 26:2, 6-13; Mark 14:1-9), while the event recorded by John takes place “six days before the Passover” (John 12:1-8).  The similarities are incredible, and it is almost unthinkable that any of the disciples would make the same exact (word for word) condemnation of a woman in front of Jesus just four days apart, even down to the “this could have been sold for 300 pence and given to the poor” (compare Mark 14:5 with John 12:5).

5 John 12:4-6.

6 Exodus 21:32.  This was true whether it was a male or a female slave.

7 See The Gospel of Judas.

8 Acts 1:25.

9 Jesus had already foretold the betrayal in John 6:70-71.

10 Matthew 26:20-25.

11 John 13:16-19, 21.

12 Mark 14:19.

13 John 13:26-30.

14 Lockyer, All the Apostles of the Bible, page 104 mentions this argument and attributes it to Thomas de Quincey, but gives no specific reference.

15 John 12:27.

16 The beatings He endured, the betrayal, the abandonment, the miscarriages of justice, the rejection by the people, even down to His being offered alcohol, could all be viewed as attacks by Satan in an effort to get Him to sin.

17 John 17:12.

18 Hebrews 10:26-31.

19 The word “band” means “approximately 600 men” according to Thayer, though it can also be used for groups of 500 or 1,000.

20 John 18:3.

21 Luke 22:47-48.  There is some difficulty in where to place the statements of Jesus, since each one is recorded in a different gospel account.  Some might place this statement after Judas kissed Jesus.

22 Matthew 26:49.  Vincent’s Word Studies, quoting Meyer, says that the word translated “kissed” means “embraced and kissed,” and is emphatic, thus making this scene even more despicable.

23 Matthew 26:50.

24 John 18:5 shows that Judas was back with the soldiers.

25 John 18:4-6.

26 Luke 22:49.

27 John 18:10.

28 Basically, they are saying to Judas, “that’s your problem, you’ll have to deal with it, not us.”

29 Matthew 27:3-5.

Judas the Faithful Apostle

Judas, some time after being selected to be an apostle, was called (with the rest of the twelve) by Jesus.  They were all probably surprised at what Jesus did: He gave them miraculous power like He had.  They had power over evil spirits (demons) and power to heal every kind of sickness and disease.  Then Judas listened as Jesus gave him instructions.

Don’t go into the road of the Gentiles; and don’t enter into a city of the Samaritans.  But instead, go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.  And as you go, preach, saying “The kingdom of heaven is at hand.”  Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons.  You have received this freely, give it freely.  Don’t you get gold, or silver, or brass in your belt-bag; nor a bag for your journey, nor two coats, nor shoes, nor staffs; because the workman is worthy of his food.

And into whatever city or town you enter, ask who in it is worthy, and stay there until you leave.  And as you come into a house, greet it.  And if the house is worthy, let your peace come upon it; but if it isn’t worthy, let your peace return to you.  And whoever won’t receive you, nor hear your words, when you depart out of that house or city, shake off the dust of your feet.  Truly I say to you, it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that city.

Behold, I am sending you out like sheep in the midst of wolves.  Therefore, you be wise as serpents, and harmless as doves.1

Judas was given miraculous power, and told to go use it.  He was told to proclaim that the hope of Israel—God’s new kingdom—was close to being realized.  He was told not to tell the Samaritans or the Gentiles—at that point, this was something for the Jews only.  He was told that whoever rejected him and his message would be eternally condemned before God.

If Judas was a nationalistically-minded Jew,2 then these words of Jesus would have excited him greatly, because he was being given a place of power in bringing in the new kingdom—which to most Jews meant the overthrow of the Roman oppressors and the establishment of a new physical Israelite kingdom that would never be overthrown again.  Judas must have been incredibly excited by this prospect.

Simon the Zealot, a Jewish patriot who despised the Romans, was Judas’ preaching partner in the “limited commission.”3  You can imagine the discussions these two men had.  They went into different Jewish cities, and Judas proclaimed the gospel.  Judas had sick people and diseased people brought to him, and he healed them.  Judas saw some people who were possessed by demons, and he rescued them from their torment, casting the demons out.4

When their mission was finished, Judas and Simon (along with the other apostles) returned to Galilee where Jesus was, and told Him all the things that they had done.5  Then they accompanied Him to an uninhabited place around Bethsaida.  But the crowd heard about it, and Judas was no longer in a small group with Jesus, but was now surrounded by thousands of people, all wanting to get in close to the Lord.  Judas heard Jesus welcome them, preach the kingdom to them, and saw Him heal the ones who needed it.6  But as the day stretched onward, Judas came to Jesus and tried to convince Him to send the crowds away to find lodging and food.7  Instead, Jesus told Judas and the other eleven to divide the crowd up in groups of fifty and tell them to sit down.  Then He miraculously made five loaves and two fishes turn into enough food to feed five thousand man.8

Sometime after this event, Jesus was alone with the twelve, and He asked the twelve “Who do people say that I am?”  They all answered with different answers: Elijah, John the Baptist, one of the old prophets risen from the dead.9 But when they were asked “Who do you say that I am?” only Peter spoke up, and said “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”10  Nathanael (Bartholomew) had already made this declaration to Jesus before being chosen as an apostle,11 but here it was said in front of the whole group of apostles.  Some of them certainly had wondered whether Jesus was the Christ, but when Jesus told them to keep it quiet, the suspicions were confirmed.12

If Judas is like most Jews, this news would have been absolutely exhilarating.  The Messiah, the one that the Jews had been waiting on for hundreds of years, was standing right in front of him.  And the kingdom, which all the Jews longed for, was almost there!  But a bit of confusion and doubt must have entered Judas’ mind when the next thing Jesus said was:

The Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be murdered, and be raised the third day.  If any man desires to come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.  For whoever desires to save his life will lose it; but whoever desires to lose his life for my sake, the same will save it.  For what is a man benefitted, if he gains the entire world, and loses himself or is cast away?  For whoever will be ashamed of me and of my words, the Son of man will be ashamed of him, when He shall come in His own glory, and His Father’s and of holy angels.  But I tell you truly, there are some standing here, who will not taste of death until they see the kingdom of God.13

When Jesus said to the disciples14 that some standing there wouldn’t taste death, the implication is that at least one of them would die before the kingdom came.  Judas almost certainly didn’t think it could be him.

Getting closer to the time of Jesus’ resurrection, Judas was with Jesus when Peter told the Lord, “Behold, we’ve forsaken everything and followed you.  Therefore, wheat will we receive?”  The Lord’s response was incredible to the ears of the twelve:

Truly, I say to you, that you who have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man will sit in the throne of His glory, you also will sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.  And every one that has forsaken houses, or brothers, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands for my name’s sake will receive a hundred-fold, and will inherit eternal life.15

Judas heard a promise of power and authority.  He was a man who struggled with covetousness and selfishness (as seen in the fact that he stole from the money bag), and so the promise of this place of prominence must have really appealed to him.  So, it’s no surprise when he got very upset with James and John when their mother requested the two best places in Jesus’ kingdom for them.16

But then came the final trip of Jesus from Galilee to Jerusalem…

-Bradley S. Cobb

1 Matthew 10:5-16.

2 This author believes that this is part of Judas’ character.  Reasons for that will be given later in this chapter.

3 Compare Mark’s statement that the apostles were sent out “two by two” (Mark 6:7) with Matthew’s list of the apostles during this time, dividing them up into groups of two (Matthew 10:1-4).

4 This is proven by the powers that Jesus gave them (Matthew 10:1) and the command He gave them (10:8); along with the express statement “they cast out many demons, and anointed with oil many that were sick, and healed them” (Mark 6:13).

5 Luke 9:10.  It is perhaps significant that the apostles reported all the things they had done, as though it was about them.  Certainly they were excited, and wanted to share their new miraculous experiences with Jesus, but their focus, it seems, was more on their actions than on the response of the people to the message.

6 Luke 9:11.  If, as was conjectured in the previous footnote, Judas thought things would be more about him, this would have been a blow to his ego, as everyone wanted to see Jesus, not the twelve apostles.

7 Luke 9:12.  Judas wasn’t the only one, but he was one of the “twelve” who said it.

8 Luke 9:13-17.

9 Luke 9:18-19.  Compare also Matthew 16:13-14.

10 Matthew 16:15-16.

11 See chapter on Bartholomew for specific details surrounding this event.

12 See Luke 9:20-21.

13 Luke 9:22-27.

14 While Luke says that Jesus said this to “all” (Luke 9:23), it means all the disciples (see Matthew 16:24-28).

15 Matthew 19:27-29.

16 Matthew 20:20-24, but especially verse 24.