And he cast down the pieces of silver in the temple, and departed, and went and hanged himself.
Judas declared Jesus wholly innocent of any crime worthy of death, threw down the thirty pieces of silver he now despised in the temple before the priests who had hired him, and departed and hanged himself before Jesus was led from Pilate's hall to Calvary. He had expected Jesus to escape by divine power and reveal Himself, but when he saw Him meekly submit to trial, abuse and condemnation he recognized the full extent of selling Him to shame and death. His anguish was bitter remorse, shame and horror at the outcome, a false confession driven by condemnation and fear of punishment rather than true sorrow for guilt, abhorrence of evil or change of purpose. Though loved, warned and borne with to the end, he remained stubborn, proud and hard, cherishing and justifying his sin until he placed himself beyond repentance, yet if even at the last his heart had broken in true repentance he would have received pardon. His end is set before the churches as a warning against covetousness and persisting in sin, and the horror of it restrained Christ's enemies and stayed the hands of persecutors against the disciples.
Judas's Final Actions
Judas rushed through the multitude confessing that he had sinned in betraying innocent blood, declaring Jesus entirely innocent and that He had done nothing worthy of death, offering to give back the money and pleading and begging for His release. He acknowledged the innocence of the One he had sold and was overcome with remorse for the betrayal. He then cast down the thirty pieces of silver paid for the betrayal, returning the price of his treachery and throwing the money he now despised down in the temple before the high priest and at the feet of those who had hired him. The throwing down before the high priest followed his tormented declaration of innocence and plea for release.
He had not thought Jesus would let the mob he led take Him, but had expected Him to work a miracle and escape His enemies by divine power and reveal that power. When instead he saw Jesus meekly submit to trial and condemnation and accept abuse and face death, with an infuriated multitude in the judgment hall thirsting for His blood while many vehemently accused Him, he was overcome and deeply felt his guilt and recognized the full extent of his crime of selling Jesus to shame and death. The chief priests and elders refused to accept responsibility, answering that it was nothing to them but his own concern, and remained determined to make sure of Jesus now in their power. They were vexed and confused and kept silent for a short time because Judas's loud declaration with haggard guilty appearance exposed before the multitude that hatred had moved them to hire one of Jesus' professed followers and hunt Jesus like a thief and take Him secretly.
Finding his effort to persuade the authorities to spare Jesus had failed and his pleas useless, overwhelmed with anguish and horror at his crime and with guilt and despair, unable to live to see Jesus crucified, he departed and hanged himself in a horrible death. His leaving in despair and hanging himself came after realizing the result of his wicked plan to betray Jesus for money and after throwing the silver into the temple. His hanging occurred before Jesus was led from Pilate's hall to Calvary. The cord broke under his weight, his fall horribly mangled his body, and his remains were found beneath the tree at its foot, with dogs devouring the body. The revolting sight was left mangled at the foot of the tree, and the body was then buried out of sight, at once.
The episode follows the religious leaders' secret plot against Jesus and belongs to the events surrounding His condemnation. Leaders who should have pointed people to Christ instead joined the enemy's work and helped bring about the death of an innocent man. His condemnation and crucifixion became a severe test for His disciples, for which He had prepared His faithful followers.
Remorse Without Repentance
Judas was seized with bitter remorse, shame, guilt and horror when he saw Jesus suffering and understood he had betrayed an innocent man whom he loved, yet whom he loved money more than. His end lays bare covetousness, selfishness, ambition and love of money as great sin. His acknowledgment of sin was false, driven by condemnation and fear of punishment and its consequences rather than deep grief for the deed itself. It held no true sorrow for guilt, no abhorrence of evil and no change of purpose, for his heart remained selfish and darkened, and such a confession does not commend a sinner to God's mercy.
Like Pharaoh he regretted only the outcome, and would have returned to defying Heaven had the judgments been removed. He held to his hatred and purpose to the last, yet even then, if at that last moment his traitor heart had broken, if he had repented and confessed, he would have received pardon. He did not repent because his heart was unchanged, stubborn, proud and hard. He cherished his sin, hid his wrong, justified his course step by step and judged the defects of others, and would not fall upon the Rock and be broken or make confession and surrender.
Though loved by Christ he had been given with the other disciples every privilege of learning in the school of the divine Teacher where he could have been transformed in character. Christ constantly gave lessons, appeals, warnings of coming dangers and perils, longsuffering and kindly reproof to arouse his conscience and soften his heart so He could pardon him. By long resistance he hardened his heart, for satanic resistance increases in proportion to the light given and resisted. Satanic agencies surrounded him, he became blind to consequences and had no power to save himself from the snare, thus placing himself beyond repentance by persisting in sin rather than confessing and turning from it. A man cannot be forgiven unless he repents, and he united himself with Christ voluntarily and ruined himself voluntarily. By betraying Jesus he condemned himself and put himself to death.
Warning and Restraining Effect
Judas threw the silver into the temple and left and hanged himself after realizing the result of his wicked plan to betray Jesus for money, and his end stands before the churches as a warning against covetousness. He held to his hatred and purpose to the last, yet even then if his traitor heart had broken, if he had repented and confessed at that last moment, he would have received pardon. Appeals, warnings of dangers and perils to come, the longsuffering of Christ, and reproof kindly given from divine lips did not change his purpose and did not break his stubborn heart, because his heart was unchanged and he hardened it by long resistance. Satanic resistance increases in proportion to the light given and resisted, and in the face of light and evidence he determined to follow his own course and do his own will, seeing where his footsteps were tending yet surrounded by satanic agencies with no power to save himself from their snare, made blind to all consequences by long-held refusal to yield to the light. His example warns others not to take the first step on the road where, having yielded to satanic impulses, they will be driven on by Satan's temptations to the bitter end, for the same influence is at work today where entreaties, appeals, warnings and reproofs given to hedge up the way to ruin are in vain. A person can thus place himself beyond repentance by persisting in sin rather than confessing and turning from it.
He hanged himself in despair after betraying Jesus, the cord broke under his weight, his fall horribly mangled his body, and dogs were devouring it where it lay beneath the tree at its foot before his remains were buried out of sight. The revolting sight filled beholders with fearful thoughts of retribution for Jesus' death, as retribution for His blood seemed already to be coming upon the guilty. It made the betrayer's fate vivid to the people who had led Jesus to be crucified and who had condemned Him, their mockery lessened, and many showed fear. His death stood as a fearful sign of retribution to those guilty of Jesus' blood.
Christ bore with Judas to the end so that this horrible death would make a deep impression on the enemies of Christ and make men afraid to lay hands on the disciples after His ascension. Together with the crucifixion, the resurrection of Jesus and His ascension to heaven, the horrible death of Judas gave the disciples courage and placed them on vantage ground under Christ's abiding presence. It stayed the hands of persecutors and made them more hesitant to harm Christ's disciples after the resurrection and ascension, helping restrain persecution. Instead of an effort to destroy all the apostles only Stephen was put to death, opening the way for five thousand to be converted in one day. Judas had confessed guilt for betraying innocent blood and cast the thirty pieces of silver down in the temple, throwing the betrayal money at the high priest's feet, before hanging himself in this terrible result.
His confession laments the result of transgression but not its guilt, feeling no true contrition and no abhorrence of evil, acknowledging sin only through fear of punishment and despair. Like such a confession it would return to defiance of Heaven if the judgments were removed. It is the pattern of professed Christians who come unprepared to the last fearful conflict in the time of trouble, with sins still unconfessed and unforgiven after delaying preparation until the case is hopeless. They then confess in words of burning anguish while the wicked exult over their distress.
Judas declared Jesus wholly innocent of any crime worthy of death, threw down the thirty pieces of silver he now despised in the temple before the priests who had hired him, and departed and hanged himself before Jesus was led from Pilate's hall to Calvary. He had expected Jesus to escape by divine power and reveal Himself, but when he saw Him meekly submit to trial, abuse and condemnation he recognized the full extent of selling Him to shame and death. His anguish was bitter remorse, shame and horror at the outcome, a false confession driven by condemnation and fear of punishment rather than true sorrow for guilt, abhorrence of evil or change of purpose. Though loved, warned and borne with to the end, he remained stubborn, proud and hard, cherishing and justifying his sin until he placed himself beyond repentance, yet if even at the last his heart had broken in true repentance he would have received pardon. His end is set before the churches as a warning against covetousness and persisting in sin, and the horror of it restrained Christ's enemies and stayed the hands of persecutors against the disciples.
Judas's Final Actions
Judas rushed through the multitude confessing that he had sinned in betraying innocent blood, declaring Jesus entirely innocent and that He had done nothing worthy of death, offering to give back the money and pleading and begging for His release. He acknowledged the innocence of the One he had sold and was overcome with remorse for the betrayal. He then cast down the thirty pieces of silver paid for the betrayal, returning the price of his treachery and throwing the money he now despised down in the temple before the high priest and at the feet of those who had hired him. The throwing down before the high priest followed his tormented declaration of innocence and plea for release.
He had not thought Jesus would let the mob he led take Him, but had expected Him to work a miracle and escape His enemies by divine power and reveal that power. When instead he saw Jesus meekly submit to trial and condemnation and accept abuse and face death, with an infuriated multitude in the judgment hall thirsting for His blood while many vehemently accused Him, he was overcome and deeply felt his guilt and recognized the full extent of his crime of selling Jesus to shame and death. The chief priests and elders refused to accept responsibility, answering that it was nothing to them but his own concern, and remained determined to make sure of Jesus now in their power. They were vexed and confused and kept silent for a short time because Judas's loud declaration with haggard guilty appearance exposed before the multitude that hatred had moved them to hire one of Jesus' professed followers and hunt Jesus like a thief and take Him secretly.
Finding his effort to persuade the authorities to spare Jesus had failed and his pleas useless, overwhelmed with anguish and horror at his crime and with guilt and despair, unable to live to see Jesus crucified, he departed and hanged himself in a horrible death. His leaving in despair and hanging himself came after realizing the result of his wicked plan to betray Jesus for money and after throwing the silver into the temple. His hanging occurred before Jesus was led from Pilate's hall to Calvary. The cord broke under his weight, his fall horribly mangled his body, and his remains were found beneath the tree at its foot, with dogs devouring the body. The revolting sight was left mangled at the foot of the tree, and the body was then buried out of sight, at once.
The episode follows the religious leaders' secret plot against Jesus and belongs to the events surrounding His condemnation. Leaders who should have pointed people to Christ instead joined the enemy's work and helped bring about the death of an innocent man. His condemnation and crucifixion became a severe test for His disciples, for which He had prepared His faithful followers.
Remorse Without Repentance
Judas was seized with bitter remorse, shame, guilt and horror when he saw Jesus suffering and understood he had betrayed an innocent man whom he loved, yet whom he loved money more than. His end lays bare covetousness, selfishness, ambition and love of money as great sin. His acknowledgment of sin was false, driven by condemnation and fear of punishment and its consequences rather than deep grief for the deed itself. It held no true sorrow for guilt, no abhorrence of evil and no change of purpose, for his heart remained selfish and darkened, and such a confession does not commend a sinner to God's mercy.
Like Pharaoh he regretted only the outcome, and would have returned to defying Heaven had the judgments been removed. He held to his hatred and purpose to the last, yet even then, if at that last moment his traitor heart had broken, if he had repented and confessed, he would have received pardon. He did not repent because his heart was unchanged, stubborn, proud and hard. He cherished his sin, hid his wrong, justified his course step by step and judged the defects of others, and would not fall upon the Rock and be broken or make confession and surrender.
Though loved by Christ he had been given with the other disciples every privilege of learning in the school of the divine Teacher where he could have been transformed in character. Christ constantly gave lessons, appeals, warnings of coming dangers and perils, longsuffering and kindly reproof to arouse his conscience and soften his heart so He could pardon him. By long resistance he hardened his heart, for satanic resistance increases in proportion to the light given and resisted. Satanic agencies surrounded him, he became blind to consequences and had no power to save himself from the snare, thus placing himself beyond repentance by persisting in sin rather than confessing and turning from it. A man cannot be forgiven unless he repents, and he united himself with Christ voluntarily and ruined himself voluntarily. By betraying Jesus he condemned himself and put himself to death.
Warning and Restraining Effect
Judas threw the silver into the temple and left and hanged himself after realizing the result of his wicked plan to betray Jesus for money, and his end stands before the churches as a warning against covetousness. He held to his hatred and purpose to the last, yet even then if his traitor heart had broken, if he had repented and confessed at that last moment, he would have received pardon. Appeals, warnings of dangers and perils to come, the longsuffering of Christ, and reproof kindly given from divine lips did not change his purpose and did not break his stubborn heart, because his heart was unchanged and he hardened it by long resistance. Satanic resistance increases in proportion to the light given and resisted, and in the face of light and evidence he determined to follow his own course and do his own will, seeing where his footsteps were tending yet surrounded by satanic agencies with no power to save himself from their snare, made blind to all consequences by long-held refusal to yield to the light. His example warns others not to take the first step on the road where, having yielded to satanic impulses, they will be driven on by Satan's temptations to the bitter end, for the same influence is at work today where entreaties, appeals, warnings and reproofs given to hedge up the way to ruin are in vain. A person can thus place himself beyond repentance by persisting in sin rather than confessing and turning from it.
He hanged himself in despair after betraying Jesus, the cord broke under his weight, his fall horribly mangled his body, and dogs were devouring it where it lay beneath the tree at its foot before his remains were buried out of sight. The revolting sight filled beholders with fearful thoughts of retribution for Jesus' death, as retribution for His blood seemed already to be coming upon the guilty. It made the betrayer's fate vivid to the people who had led Jesus to be crucified and who had condemned Him, their mockery lessened, and many showed fear. His death stood as a fearful sign of retribution to those guilty of Jesus' blood.
Christ bore with Judas to the end so that this horrible death would make a deep impression on the enemies of Christ and make men afraid to lay hands on the disciples after His ascension. Together with the crucifixion, the resurrection of Jesus and His ascension to heaven, the horrible death of Judas gave the disciples courage and placed them on vantage ground under Christ's abiding presence. It stayed the hands of persecutors and made them more hesitant to harm Christ's disciples after the resurrection and ascension, helping restrain persecution. Instead of an effort to destroy all the apostles only Stephen was put to death, opening the way for five thousand to be converted in one day. Judas had confessed guilt for betraying innocent blood and cast the thirty pieces of silver down in the temple, throwing the betrayal money at the high priest's feet, before hanging himself in this terrible result.
His confession laments the result of transgression but not its guilt, feeling no true contrition and no abhorrence of evil, acknowledging sin only through fear of punishment and despair. Like such a confession it would return to defiance of Heaven if the judgments were removed. It is the pattern of professed Christians who come unprepared to the last fearful conflict in the time of trouble, with sins still unconfessed and unforgiven after delaying preparation until the case is hopeless. They then confess in words of burning anguish while the wicked exult over their distress.