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14 Then one of the twelve, called Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests 15 and said, "What are you willing to give me if I deliver Him to you?" And they counted out to him thirty pieces of silver. 16 So from that time he sought opportunity to betray Him. ~ Matthew 26:14-16
Today, we continue our study of Matthew 26 where we have just observed the worship of Mary of Bethany, the sister of Lazarus and Martha. Of course, it was six days before that Mary worshipped Him in that way. True worship is defined by that which defines us most. The type of worship that Mary displayed at Simon's house was the result of a heart transformed by entering into a personal relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ.
God is sovereign and everything happens within His divine framework. Everything in life is controlled by our Father who is in heaven. Everything the Lord Jesus did was what God wanted Him to do. The Apostle Paul tells us that in the fullness of time, the Lord Jesus Christ came into this world to be the propitiation or the satisfying sacrifice for all of mankind. And, His death was planned by God before the foundation of the world. It was the divine plan of God that He would die for the sin of the world.
In v.14-15 of today's passage we read, "14 Then one of the twelve, called Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests 15 and said, 'What are you willing to give me if I deliver Him to you?' And they counted out to him thirty pieces of silver."
In just one verse the scene makes a dramatic shift from an incredible display of adoration and worship back to the ugly realities of living in this fallen world. It was the Passover and the Lord Jesus would be handed over to the Jews to be crucified as the Lamb of God. This was prophesied in Psalm 22 and Isaiah 53 among other Old Testament passages, and it was during the Passover that He was slain in Jerusalem. We are told in Revelation 13:8 that it was from the foundation of the world that it was determined that the Lord Jesus would pay the penalty for man's sin. God is omniscient which means He knows everything. That does not mean He makes all things happen as they do. He allowed man to sin. Could He have prevented it? Absolutely, but if He had, we would all be robots with no will of our own. And, without a will, there is no choice. And, without choice, there is no love.
The Passover goes all the way back to Egypt when the enslaved Jews experienced the forgiveness of God as the death angel passed over their homes which had the blood stains of the sacrificed lamb over the door frame. God had long planned for the Lord Jesus to be THE Passover Lamb. It was the will of God for the Lord Jesus to be crucified on that particular Friday. God had to do something to remedy man's sin problem. So, He prepared a plan of salvation, a way for us to be reconciled back to Him through someone in His inner circle. While Mary used her money to honor the Lord Jesus, Judas used the Lord Jesus to get money. Mary anointed the Lord Jesus for His burial while the religious leaders and Judas arranged for His burial. The Lord Jesus recognized Mary for favoring Him over the poor while Judas seemed to favor the poor over the anointing of the Lord Jesus.
Interestingly, the name "Judas" is a form of the name "Judah" which means "thank you." Judas didn't live up to His name. In fact, his family name was Iscariot which reveals he was from the village of Kerioth, 23 miles south of Jerusalem. I find it striking that Judas was the only non-Galilean among the twelve disciples. Judas Iscariot is always mentioned last whenever there's a listing of the twelve disciples in the New Testament. When Judas bargained with the leaders of Israel for the betrayal of the Lord Jesus, they considered the cost of the death of the Lord Jesus to be that of a slave. According to Exodus 21:32 the purchase price of a slave was 30 pieces of silver. It was the Lord Jesus who humbled Himself and offered Himself up as a slave to be betrayed for 30 pieces of silver. He was the only perfect one who could pay the worthy price for our forgiveness in the eyes of God.
In v.16 of today's passage we read, "So from that time he sought opportunity to betray Him."
In Psalm 41:9 we read, "Even my own familiar friend in whom I trusted, who ate my bread, has lifted up his heel against me." Only a friend could have betrayed the Lord Jesus. According to John 13:18, some 900 years after the writing of Psalm 41:9, it was confirmed that one within the inner circle of the Lord Jesus would betray Him. In fact, Judas shared bread with the Lord Jesus the evening he betrayed Him. This all happened in fulfillment of Psalm 41:9.
