3 Then when Judas, who had betrayed Him, saw that He [Jesus] had been condemned, he felt remorse and returned the thirty [ a ]pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders, 4 saying, “I have sinned by betraying innocent blood.” But they said, “What is that to us? You shall see to it yourself!” 5 And he threw the pieces of silver into the temple sanctuary and left; and he went away and hanged himself. 6 The chief priests took the pieces of silver and said, “It is not lawful to put them in the temple treasury, since it is money paid for blood.”

7 And they conferred together and [ b ]with the money bought the Potter’s Field as a burial place for strangers. 8 For this reason that field has been called the Field of Blood to this day. 9 Then that which was spoken through Jeremiah the prophet was fulfilled: “And [ c ]they took the thirty pieces of silver, the price of the One whose price had been set by the sons of Israel; 10 and [ d ]they gave them for the Potter’s Field, just as the Lord directed me.”

Matthew 27:3-10 (NASB) 中文

What about Judas?

The Jewish leaders are deciding to kill Jesus and use Pilate, the Roman governor to do it. When Judas Iscariot, who earlier betrayed Jesus to these leaders, got news of their decision to kill Jesus, Judas showed remorse. Only Matthew records this account. Acts 1:15-20 (written by Luke) refers to it – though with different details.

Judas’ remorse

Matthew records Judas’ emotions in response to hearing Jesus would be killed. How could he know? We can’t be certain, but surely we know God directed his writing (2 Peter 1:20-21; 2 Timothy 3:16-17). Matthew also became aware of Judas’ actions in response to this remorse – although it was probably kept, “hush, hush” by the chief priests and elders.

Was Judas saved?

The big question many ask is, “Was Judas saved?” One might conclude “yes” since he was among the disciples. But is that sufficient? Does going to church every Sunday save a soul? No. How about the fact that he confessed his sin – at least to the religious leaders? But did he confess to the Father? We don’t know. Probably not.Ans, Is confession of sin even enough for salvation? Does only agreeing with God that we are sinners bring forgiveness and salvation? No.

Well, some say, Judas also showed signs of repentance for he gave the money back. True, restoration is an outcome of salvation – trying to make amends in good faith. It can happen as a result of receiving the precious gift of forgiveness. A thief, for example, may attempt to pay back what he stole – as far as it is possible. But does that save him? No. Salvation requires confessing sin to the Father and to Him also to repent. The final step is to believe that Christ alone, through faith alone, by grace alone a soul is saved.  For Judas, we have no record of this. How about for you?

Yet another prophecy fulfilled

God prophesied in advance not just about Judas’ betrayal of the Messiah, but his remorse and suicide by hanging. Are you becoming more convinced of the authority of the Bible as God’s Word? Who, but God, can predict with 100% accuracy so many future events – even to include such details as this event with Judas? This one is from Zechariah 11:12-13. [Note: “Some think that Matthew refers to the scroll of Jeremiah, which included the book of Zechariah.” (Enduringword.com)]

RЯeflection

• Of course this begs the question, “Are you saved?” Have you not only confessed and repented but believed Christ alone can forgive sins? To learn more about salvation click here.
• Are you in despair simlar to Judas? Go beyond him. Confess your sin, yes. Repent, yes. But repent to God. And believe Christ died for you, a sinner.