← Back to Feed
Author

But WHY Did Judas Betray Jesus? The Gospels give various…

6 years ago • July 26, 2020 • by ourCOG

But WHY Did Judas Betray Jesus?

The Gospels give various answers to the question of “why.” In the (newly discovered) Gospel of Judas, he betrays Jesus because that’s what Jesus wants him to do — Jesus needs to escape from the material trappings of his body, which requires him to die, and Judas both recognizes this and makes it happen. In our earlier accounts from the New Testament there are a range of different reasons given: (a) John portrays Judas as inherently evil, “a devil,” and so naturally he does what he is inclined to do (John 6:71; (b) Luke suggests that “The Devil made him do it” (Luke 22:3-6); (c) Matthew indicates that he does it for the cash (Matt. 26:14-16).

But what was the real motivation behind Judas’s act?

Categories: #ourCOG

Discussion

9 comments

  1. Alan Saffer says:
    June 2, 2020 at 1:24 pm

    Money. The LOVE of money is the root of all evil

    Reply
  2. Aaron B Lister says:
    June 2, 2020 at 1:56 pm

    Gnosticism = Heresy

    Reply
  3. Michael B Reimann says:
    June 2, 2020 at 2:21 pm

    Judas was a zealot and he thought thatif he forced the hand of Christ (he knew Jesus was who He said he was) that Jesus would call down the angels and destroy Rome.

    Reply
  4. Yazan Khawaja says:
    June 2, 2020 at 4:07 pm

    He preferred to serve himself more than God

    The devil entered his heart
    He was tempted by Satan

    Reply
  5. Moises Rodrigues Coimbra says:
    June 2, 2020 at 7:19 pm

    Like Bart Ehrman published on his blog. At the end of the day, I’m afraid we can’t know for certain. It might be that the scenario I’ve suggested above [i.e., earlier in the chapter] is the right one, that Judas simply wanted Jesus removed from public view until after the Festival of Passover had ended and they could return to Galilee to continue their public preaching.

    Reply
  6. Moises Rodrigues Coimbra says:
    June 2, 2020 at 7:29 pm

    What Did Judas Betray?
    In an indirect but very important way, recognizing what Judas actually betrayed is central to understanding the life and death of Jesus. It goes to the heart of his messages and explains why he was crucified. Even so, it is a complicated matter and has not been fully thought out even by many New Testament scholars.

    It is commonly supposed, of course, among lay-folk and scholars alike, that Judas indicated to the authorities where Jesus could be found apart from the crowds. Maybe that’s right, even though I do have some doubts about it. Even if it is right, there may be more to it than that. I think the following data are worth bearing in mind, leading to the resolution of the question that I prefer. (At first these data may not seem relevant: but hang in there for a minute!)

    Jesus almost certainly did not publicly claim that he was the messiah during his lifetime; more specifically, he never publicly announced that he was the King of the Jews. In our earliest accounts — esp. Mark — he does *accept* the title messiah in a public setting when asked about it, but only at the very END of his life, at his trial (Mark 14:61-62). And never is the King of the Jews a term Jesus uses of himself in the Gospels during his public ministry. That is key

    Reply
  7. Kubowaki Julia says:
    June 3, 2020 at 7:57 am

    most of all choose what you read and listen more carefully

    Reply
  8. Francis Jesulobatemi says:
    June 3, 2020 at 8:20 am

    Gospel of Judas is a ‘fake’.
    Judas died b4 Jesus.

    Reply
  9. Kate Marie Wendi says:
    June 4, 2020 at 2:49 am

    Your comments are neither about textual Criticism nor are they Apologetic in nature for anyone but the Devil in his assault against the integrity of Jesus

    Reply

Related Posts

THE GATHERING vs THE RAPTURE Many people claim the “gathering”…

June 9, 2023

It would seem that the Lord’s Breath of life created…

June 20, 2021