“And while he yet spoke, behold a multitude, and he that was called Judas, one of the twelve, went before them, and drew near unto Jesus to kiss him,” (Luke 22:47).
The aftermath of Judas’ betrayal of Christ in the Garden of Gethsemane may be the saddest series of events ever recorded in Scripture. The narrative unfolds in Matthew 27:1-5: When the morning was come, all the chief priests and elders of the people took counsel against Jesus to put him to death. And when they had bound him, they led him away, and delivered him to Pontius Pilate the governor. Then Judas, which had betrayed him, when he saw that he was condemned, repented himself, and brought again the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders saying, “I have sinned in that I have betrayed innocent blood.” And they said, “What is that to us?” And he cast down the pieces of silver in the temple, and departed, and went and hanged himself.
We are told in Luke 22:3 that this whole plan to betray the Master began when Satan entered Judas. But once he gets what he wants from him, how quickly the devil casts him off for nothing. And as soon as Satan’s mission was accomplished and Judas was struck with the reality of what he had done, it was more than he could bear. The devil leaves him, and Judas goes to hang himself, which in turn leads him to his own place, (Acts 1:2).
In general the term, “betray,” in Scripture, means to deliver one up to the authorities. But Judas’ betrayal of Christ was much more than a simple delivering him over to the religious and governmental authorities of that day. It was a treacherous, treasonous act of one who used his intimate relationship with Jesus (chosen as one of the twelve apostles by the Lord himself) for his selfish gain. Further, he knew the Master was innocent. And finally, he did what he did under the cover of darkness and the pretense of affection and friendship (a friendly greeting accompanied by a kiss).
Judas’ life is the perfect demonstration of what the prophet is describing in Jeremiah 17:9 about the condition of each and every one of us: The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it? Judas lived and walked and listened to and watched the Master daily for three years. His best friends were the likes of John, Peter, Matthew, Thomas, Luke, and James. Besides, Jesus wasn’t the only one performing miracles, or casting out devils, for Christ empowered his own to do likewise. So, of course, Judas was among them.
We may find ourselves asking, “How then, after all this, could Judas possibly find it in his heart to betray the Master?” What betrayal! Judas’ heart was deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked. And our hearts are no different; without the transformational power of the Gospel of God and the Holy Spirit working in us for salvation, we are all capable of doing what Judas did. Our betrayal of Christ would take place in a different context, a more sophisticated social climate, and may not appear at first glance to be as blatant. But God sees it as the same. And the cost of betrayal is also the same – a bitter end and an eternity of torment, forever separated from God and everything good.
What will be the sense of all his loss? It is sad to consider. Judas will see his fellow apostles on their seats, judging the twelve Tribes of Israel at the end, (Matt. 19:28), and himself among his now fellow devils, (John 6:70). He will tremble at the judgment seat when he hears his Master, who once so kindly gave him bread to dip in his own bowl, (John 13:26), and washed his feet, now giving him his sentence to be bound hands and feet, (Matthew 10), and cast into utter darkness. He will there see those devils, which before he had power to cast out, now to have power to cast him into endless torments.
Judas may have eaten the bread that Jesus broke and shared with his apostles at the Last Supper. But he never tasted the Bread of Life or drank the Living Water, though it was available to him on a daily basis. His Christianity, his apostleship, was in word only, and not in truth. He successfully fooled others as to his nature and purposes, even the other apostles (Matt. 26:19-22). He may have even fooled himself into thinking he would have options to repent after the fact (Matt. 27:3). But he certainly never fooled the Lord. Jesus himself said, “Have not I chosen you twelve, and one of you is a devil?” (John 6:70).
The cost of betrayal is too high to take lightly. This is why we must guard our hearts with all diligence (Prov. 4:23), and work to ensure that we maintain a personal, thriving relationship with the Lord so we never have to pay that price.
Contemplations:
- Alas, Lord, I pray, please show me where and how I may be betraying you in my day-in-day-out life.
- As you are love (1 John 4:8), my unloving desires betray you. As you are truth (John 14:6), my hypocrisy betrays you. When I make earthly gain my pursuit and the measuring stick of my goodness (1 Tim. 6:6), I must confess, Lord, I betray you. And when I attempt to exploit my Christianity for my own gain and worldly advantage, in truth, I am also betraying you.
- When I sold myself under sin (Rom. 7), you mercifully redeemed me by your blood and merit. So grant Lord, that whenever I betray you for sin, I may as often regain you by my faith and sorrowful repentance (Prov. 28:13). And help me see that I always keep the desires of my heart tuned heavenward, ever seeking your face.
Further References for Luke 22:47:
Matt. 26:47; Mark 14:10, 43; John 18:3, Luke 22:3; Luke 22:48
