UNDAILY Episode 94
Then one of the Twelve — the one called Judas Iscariot—went to the chief priests and asked, “What are you willing to give me if I deliver him over to you?” So, they counted out for him thirty pieces of silver. From then on Judas watched for an opportunity to hand him over. On the first day of the Festival of Unleavened Bread, the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Where do you want us to make preparations for you to eat the Passover?” He replied, “Go into the city to a certain man and tell him, ‘The Teacher says: My appointed time is near. I am going to celebrate the Passover with my disciples at your house.’” So, the disciples did as Jesus had directed them and prepared the Passover. When evening came, Jesus was reclining at the table with the Twelve. And while they were eating, he said, “Truly I tell you, one of you will betray me.” They were very sad and began to say to him one after the other, “Surely you don’t mean me, Lord?” Jesus replied, “The one who has dipped his hand into the bowl with me will betray me. The Son of Man will go just as it is written about him. But woe to that man who betrays the Son of Man! It would be better for him if he had not been born.” Then Judas, the one who would betray him, said, “Surely you don’t mean me, Rabbi?” Jesus answered, “You have said so.”
MATTHEW 26, 14-25 (ESV)
Apostle Judas is often cited as a symbol of betrayal and the consequences of greed. The story of his betrayal, as described in the Gospel according to Saint Matthew, depicts him as a man who decided to hand over his Master for thirty pieces of silver. This amount could buy an average slave, and for us today, it represents about fifteen hundred zlotys or three hundred seventy dollars at the current silver rate. But is Judas's story just a warning against greed and betrayal? Well... there's an additional context. Judas becomes an example of extreme alienation from God, resulting from personal, free choice.
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