And as they did eat, he said, Verily I say unto you, that one of you shall betray me.
The words were spoken while eating the Passover supper with the disciples on the night of the betrayal. He spoke while still greatly troubled and depressed, with a cloud of premonition of some dreadful calamity whose character was not understood settling over all, and the meal eaten in silence. Its meaning is that one of the twelve disciples eating with Him, one of the favored twelve privileged above all others to hear His teachings and experience His marvelous love and brought into close communion with their divine Teacher, would betray Him.
The announcement grieved, amazed, stunned and filled the disciples with amazement, fear and consternation, because they could not imagine or comprehend how any one of them could act treacherously toward their beloved Teacher, for what cause and to whom and from whose heart such a design could come. It led each disciple to examine his own heart for any shadow of evil thought against his Master and to ask one after another whether he himself was the one and whether they were guilty. None of them thought it was Judas, while Judas knew he was the one meant. Judas alone remained silent, which drew the eyes of all to him, and when he then asked, Master, is it I, the solemn answer was, Thou hast said.
The verse shows that Jesus knew Judas's hidden purpose, thoughts and plan. The warning and disclosure gave Judas a final chance and opportunity to repent, and it gave the faithful disciples evidence of Jesus' divine foreknowledge, divinity and Messiahship to strengthen their faith when His betrayal and humiliation came, serving as convincing proof of His divinity. Judas was alarmed but did not repent; he became more settled in his plan, pressed close beside Christ at that supper in order to disguise his designs, and went out to carry it through.
Though Judas was the betrayer, Christ bore long with him to the last, washing his feet and sharing the sacramental supper with him, giving him every opportunity to receive Him, repent and be cleansed from sin. His patient kindness toward a known sinner teaches that faults are a reason to serve, not to carelessly separate from someone believed to be in error and leave that person exposed to temptation or drive them toward evil; all but one were brought to repentance. The verse exposes a class bearing the name Christian who are no more worthy of the name than Judas was, who instead of reforming under evidence gradually grew less and less in harmony with truth and with Christ while excusing their own course.
The meal stood at the transition from the Passover and its system of types, which pointed to Christ's death, to the Lord's Supper, which Christ established as a memorial of His sacrifice to be observed by His followers in every land and age. After that supper He went with them to the garden of Gethsemane, where He often went to pray. Judas was the disciple whose heart Satan had prepared for betrayal: although he had witnessed Jesus' mighty works and the evidence that Jesus was the Messiah, he remained carnal and covetous. His anger over Mary's costly gift exposed his selfishness, which he disguised as concern for the poor.
The words were spoken while eating the Passover supper with the disciples on the night of the betrayal. He spoke while still greatly troubled and depressed, with a cloud of premonition of some dreadful calamity whose character was not understood settling over all, and the meal eaten in silence. Its meaning is that one of the twelve disciples eating with Him, one of the favored twelve privileged above all others to hear His teachings and experience His marvelous love and brought into close communion with their divine Teacher, would betray Him.
The announcement grieved, amazed, stunned and filled the disciples with amazement, fear and consternation, because they could not imagine or comprehend how any one of them could act treacherously toward their beloved Teacher, for what cause and to whom and from whose heart such a design could come. It led each disciple to examine his own heart for any shadow of evil thought against his Master and to ask one after another whether he himself was the one and whether they were guilty. None of them thought it was Judas, while Judas knew he was the one meant. Judas alone remained silent, which drew the eyes of all to him, and when he then asked, Master, is it I, the solemn answer was, Thou hast said.
The verse shows that Jesus knew Judas's hidden purpose, thoughts and plan. The warning and disclosure gave Judas a final chance and opportunity to repent, and it gave the faithful disciples evidence of Jesus' divine foreknowledge, divinity and Messiahship to strengthen their faith when His betrayal and humiliation came, serving as convincing proof of His divinity. Judas was alarmed but did not repent; he became more settled in his plan, pressed close beside Christ at that supper in order to disguise his designs, and went out to carry it through.
Though Judas was the betrayer, Christ bore long with him to the last, washing his feet and sharing the sacramental supper with him, giving him every opportunity to receive Him, repent and be cleansed from sin. His patient kindness toward a known sinner teaches that faults are a reason to serve, not to carelessly separate from someone believed to be in error and leave that person exposed to temptation or drive them toward evil; all but one were brought to repentance. The verse exposes a class bearing the name Christian who are no more worthy of the name than Judas was, who instead of reforming under evidence gradually grew less and less in harmony with truth and with Christ while excusing their own course.
The meal stood at the transition from the Passover and its system of types, which pointed to Christ's death, to the Lord's Supper, which Christ established as a memorial of His sacrifice to be observed by His followers in every land and age. After that supper He went with them to the garden of Gethsemane, where He often went to pray. Judas was the disciple whose heart Satan had prepared for betrayal: although he had witnessed Jesus' mighty works and the evidence that Jesus was the Messiah, he remained carnal and covetous. His anger over Mary's costly gift exposed his selfishness, which he disguised as concern for the poor.