Judas Iscariot what Andreev did. "Judas Iscariot" is an amazing existential drama that awakens a pure heart. History of writing. Motives. Publication
Leonid Andreev
Judas Iscariot
Jesus Christ was warned many times that Judas of Carioth was a very notorious man and should be guarded against. Some of the disciples who were in Judea knew him well themselves, others heard a lot about him from people, and there was no one who could say a good word about him. And if the good ones condemned him, saying that Judas was greedy, cunning, inclined towards pretense and lies, then the bad ones, who were asked about Judas, reviled him with the most cruel words. “He quarrels us all the time,” they said, spitting, “he thinks something of his own and climbs into the house quietly, like a scorpion, and leaves it with noise. And thieves have friends, and robbers have comrades, and liars have wives to whom they tell the truth, and Judas laughs at thieves, as well as honest ones, although he steals skillfully, and his appearance is uglier than all the inhabitants of Judea. No, he is not ours, this red-haired Judas from Carioth,” the bad people said, surprising the good people, for whom there was not much difference between him and all the other vicious people of Judea.
It was further said that Judas left his wife long ago, and she lives unhappy and hungry, unsuccessfully trying from those three stones that make up Judas' estate to squeeze bread for herself. For many years he himself staggers senselessly among the people and even reaches one sea and another sea, which is even further away, and everywhere he lies, grimaces, vigilantly looks out for something with his thief's eye, and suddenly leaves suddenly, leaving trouble behind him and quarrel - curious, crafty and evil, like a one-eyed demon. He had no children, and this once again said that Judas - bad man and God does not want offspring from Judas.
None of the disciples noticed when this red-haired and ugly Jew first appeared near Christ, but for a long time he relentlessly followed their path, intervened in conversations, rendered small services, bowed, smiled and fawned. And then it became completely habitual, deceiving tired eyesight, then it suddenly caught my eye and ears, irritating them, like something unprecedented, ugly, deceitful and disgusting. Then they drove him away with harsh words, and a short time he disappeared somewhere by the road, and then imperceptibly reappeared, helpful, flattering and cunning, like a one-eyed demon. And there was no doubt for some of the disciples that some secret intention was hidden in his desire to get closer to Jesus, there was an evil and insidious calculation.
But Jesus did not listen to their advice, their prophetic voice did not touch his ears. With that spirit of bright contradiction, which irresistibly attracted him to the outcast and unloved, he resolutely accepted Judas and included him in the circle of the elect. The disciples were agitated and murmured with restraint, while he sat quietly, facing the setting sun, and listened thoughtfully, perhaps to them, and perhaps to something else. For ten days there had been no wind, and still the same remained, without moving and without changing, the transparent air, attentive and sensitive. And it seemed as if he preserved in his transparent depth all that was shouted and sung these days by people, animals and birds - tears, weeping and a merry song. prayer and curses, and these glassy, frozen voices made him so heavy, anxious, densely saturated with invisible life. And the sun went down again. It rolled down in a heavily flaming ball, igniting the sky, and everything on earth that was turned towards it: the swarthy face of Jesus, the walls of houses and the leaves of trees - everything dutifully reflected that distant and terribly thoughtful light. The white wall was no longer white now, and the red city on the red mountain did not remain white.
And then came Judas.
He came, bowing low, arching his back, cautiously and timidly stretching forward his ugly bumpy head - just the way those who knew him imagined. He was thin, of good height, almost the same as Jesus, who stooped slightly from the habit of thinking while walking and seemed shorter because of this, and he was apparently strong enough in strength, but for some reason he pretended to be frail and sickly and had a voice changeable: sometimes courageous and strong, sometimes loud, like an old woman scolding her husband, annoyingly thin and unpleasant to hear, and often one wanted to pull the words of Judas out of one's ears like rotten, rough splinters. Short red hair did not hide the strange and unusual shape of his skull: as if cut from the back of the head with a double blow of the sword and recomposed, it was clearly divided into four parts and inspired distrust, even anxiety: behind such a skull there can be no silence and harmony, behind such a skull there is always the noise of bloody and merciless battles is heard. The face of Judas also doubled: one side of it, with a black, keenly looking out eye, was lively, mobile, willingly gathering into numerous crooked wrinkles. On the other, there were no wrinkles, and it was deathly smooth, flat and frozen, and although it was equal in size to the first, it seemed huge from the wide-open blind eye. Covered with a whitish haze, not closing either at night or during the day, he met both light and darkness in the same way, but whether it was because there was a living and cunning comrade next to him, he could not believe in his complete blindness. When, in a fit of timidity or excitement, Judas closed his living eye and shook his head, this one shook along with the movements of his head and silently watched. Even people who were completely devoid of insight, clearly understood, looking at Iscariot, that such a person could not bring good, and Jesus brought him closer and even next to him - next to him planted Judas.
John, the beloved disciple, moved away in disgust, and all the rest, loving their teacher, looked down in disapproval. And Judas sat down - and, moving his head to the right and left, in a thin voice began to complain about illnesses, that his chest ached at night, that, ascending the mountains, he was suffocating, and standing at the edge of the abyss, he felt dizzy and could hardly resist from a foolish desire to throw himself down. And many other things he thought up godlessly, as if he did not understand that illnesses do not come to a person by chance, but are born from a discrepancy between his actions and the covenants of the eternal. Rubbing his chest with a broad hand and even coughing feignedly, this Judas from Kariot, in the general silence and downcast eyes.
John, without looking at the teacher, quietly asked Peter Simonov, his friend:
Are you tired of this lie? I can't take it any longer and I'm out of here.
Peter looked at Jesus, met his gaze, and quickly stood up.
- Wait! he said to a friend. Once again he looked at Jesus, quickly, like a stone torn from a mountain, moved towards Judas Iscariot and loudly said to him with wide and clear affability:
“Here you are with us, Judas.
He affectionately patted his hand on his bent back and, not looking at the teacher, but feeling his gaze on himself, added resolutely in his loud voice, which displaced all objections, as water displaces air:
- It's okay that you have such a nasty face: our nets also come across not so ugly, but when eating, they are the most delicious. And it is not for us, the fishermen of our Lord, to throw away the catch just because the fish is prickly and one-eyed. I once saw an octopus in Tyre, caught by the fishermen there, and I was so frightened that I wanted to run. And they laughed at me, a fisherman from Tiberias, and gave it to me to eat, and I asked for more, because it was very tasty. Remember, teacher, I told you about it, and you laughed too. And you, Judas, look like an octopus - only one half.
And he laughed out loud, pleased with his joke. When Peter spoke, his words sounded so firm, as if he were nailing them. When Peter moved or did something, he made a far audible noise and evoked a response from the most deaf things: the stone floor hummed under his feet, the doors trembled and slammed, and the very air trembled and rustled fearfully. In the gorges of the mountains, his voice woke up an angry echo, and in the mornings on the lake, when they were fishing, he rolled round in a sleepy and shiny water and made the first timid sunbeams smile. And, probably, they loved Peter for this: the night shadow still lay on all the other faces, and his large head, and wide bare chest, and freely thrown arms were already burning in the glow of sunrise.
Peter's words, apparently approved by the teacher, dispelled the painful state of the audience. But
The story “Judas Iscariot” by Leonid Andreev was first published under the title “Judas Iscariot and Others” in the almanac “Collection of the Knowledge Association for 1907”, book 16. The main theme of the work was “the psychology of betrayal”. Andreev used in the book the gospel story about the betrayal of Judas by his teacher - Jesus Christ, but he interprets the motives of Judas Iscariot in his own way. The author tries to justify the actions of Judas, to understand his internal contradictions and psychology, he tries to prove that in Judas's betrayal there was more love for Christ than all the rest of his disciples.
Main characters
Judas of Carioth- a red-haired, ugly, vile man, hated by all the disciples of Christ. A thief, a liar and a schemer.
Jesus Christ (Nazarite)- a wandering philosopher-preacher, followed by disciple-apostles. God's Son.
Apostles- among the apostles Andreev mentions Peter, John, Thomas, endowing them with very human qualities: they get angry, disdain, condemn, hate, offend.
Other characters
Anna- the high priest, to whom Judas goes with a proposal to condemn Christ.
Caiaphas- high priest, son-in-law of Anna, member of the Sanhedrin.
Chapter I
Jesus Christ was warned many times that Judas of Carioth was a man of ill repute and therefore he should beware.
"He quarrels us all the time!" , - the disciples complained to Jesus, wondering why he was disgusted by the society of Judas.
Neither Peter, nor Thomas, nor John can remember how and when Judas appeared next to them, how he joined the companions of Christ, how one of his disciples began to be called.
Chapter II
Gradually they got used to Judas. Jesus entrusted him with the money box and, at the same time, all the other household chores fell on the shoulders of Judas. Judas bought the necessary clothes and provisions, distributed money to the poor.
The notoriety of Judas follows him. Because people saw Judas with Christ, the villagers accused Jesus and his apostles of stealing the goat. In another village, people even gathered to stone the preachers, but Judas stood up for Christ and his comrades, running forward to the crowd and shouting that Jesus was not possessed by a demon, as people might think, listening to his speeches, but an ordinary swindler, like himself Jude that Christ preaches for the sake of money. And the crowd retreated, deciding that these aliens were not worthy to die at the hands of an honest man.
Yes, but neither Jesus nor his disciples appreciated the act of Judas. The teacher left the village in anger, and his disciples, who followed Christ at a respectful distance, cursed Iscariot. Well, aren't they fools not to appreciate Judas' efforts, not to thank him for saving their lives?
Chapter III
One day, the students decided to have fun and began to measure their strength. They picked up stones and threw them down from the cliff, competing to see who could lift the stones heavier. Judas lifted the largest and heaviest boulder. He triumphed. now everyone will see and appreciate his strength, now everyone will understand for sure that he is the best of all students. However, Peter did not want Judas to win, so he decided to offer up a prayer: “Lord, I do not want Judas to be the strongest! help me defeat him!" Hearing such a prayer, Jesus answered sadly: “And who will help Iscariot?”
Chapter IV
More than once Christ defended Judas. One day, Judas hid some coins from everyone, being the keeper of the money box, and his deed was revealed. The apostles were outraged! They brought the thief to Jesus, rebuking him. Christ, having listened to the accusations of his disciples, answered them that no one dares to count how much money Judas appropriated to himself, because he is the same brother to you as everyone else, and such actions offend him! After that, Judas visibly cheered up. He was pleased not so much with reconciliation with the apostles, but with the fact that Jesus distinguished him from the crowd.
Chapter V
The Easter holiday is approaching, which means that the mournful last days the life of Christ. Judas goes to the high priest Anna, offering him to condemn Jesus of Nazareth. Anna, being aware of Judas' reputation, drives him away. This is repeated for several days in a row, but Judas persists and then Anna contemptuously offers the traitor money for the life of Jesus - thirty pieces of silver. Iscariot was very outraged by such a low price! "Thirty pieces of silver! After all, this one obol does not go for a drop of blood! Half of the obol does not go beyond a tear! Anna replies that, in this case, Judas will not receive anything at all, and Iscariot agrees to the price, thinking that among the disciples or residents of Jerusalem there will surely be someone who will appreciate the life of Christ even less.
Chapter VI
In the last hours, Judas surrounds Jesus with caress and attention. He is helpful in relation to the apostles, for no one dares interfere with his plan, no one should suspect Judas of betrayal. Now the name of Judas will forever be associated with the name of Christ, now people will never forget Judas and his name will remain forever.
Chapter VII
In disbelief, Judas goes after Jesus when he is captured by the Roman soldiers. He sees how they beat Christ, how they condemn him, how they lead him to the place of execution - to Golgotha.
Chapter VIII
Judas does not notice either the coming night or the rising sun. His dream comes true, but at the same time - his nightmare. None of the students defend the teacher with weapons, although Judas stole two swords from the Roman soldiers and brought them to the apostles, none of them shouted "Hosanna" to the teacher. Only Judas remained with Jesus until the very end. Even Peter denied Christ three times, saying that he did not know Jesus. Only Judas remained faithful to Christ. He is the only one!
Chapter IX
After the death of Jesus, Judas goes to the Sanhedrin and throws an accusation in the face of the high priests: “I deceived you. He was innocent and pure!” . He tells Anna and the rest of the Sanhedrin that they killed the sinless one, that Judas, in fact, did not betray Jesus, but them, the high priests, from now on they are doomed to eternal shame. On this day, Judas himself becomes a prophet. He says things that the rest of the students don't dare to say. “Today I saw a pale sun. It looked with horror at the ground and said: where is the man?
Judas goes up the mountain alone and tightens the noose around his neck. He alone will follow Christ to the end as his most devoted disciple.
And in the world, meanwhile, the news of the traitor Judas is spreading.
Conclusion
The story of Leonid Andreev "Judas Iscariot" has little in common with the biblical story of Judas. Criticism called the author a realist, a neorealist, a fantastic realist, an avant-garde artist, and a decadent, but time put everything in its place: so Andreev's work had a huge impact on Russian symbolism and ornamental prose, and was also the forerunner of German expressionism.
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This biblical character became famous for being a traitor to his teacher, Jesus Christ.
Recently, many people are interested in the question of who Judas is in the Bible. Domestic and foreign researchers are trying to rationally explain the reasons for the treacherous act of the disciple of the Savior. They want to know why a person with high spiritual qualities (at first glance) sold his mentor for 30 pieces of silver.
Image of Judas in the Bible
The image of Judas Iscariot is shrouded in great mystery, despite the well-known role in the drama that took place on Great Wednesday. Evangelists are extremely stingy in describing the life of a traitor to Christ. John writes about the motives for spiritual sedition, and the Apostle Matthew writes about repentance and suicide.
Judas Iscariot
On a note! The name Judas was widespread in the territory Ancient Judea. This state got its name thanks to the "first" mentioned Judah, the forefather of the Israelite people. In all books of the Bible, there are 14 characters with this name. The nickname Iscariot is interpreted ambiguously: there are several different versions of the origin.
He was one of the twelve apostles. The difference between his characteristics is that he was not born in Galilee (northern Palestine), but in Judea. The father of Judas Iscariot was Simon, about whom there is no information at all in the Gospel, which is surprising, because the Bible tells about important people in detail.
Prayers to the Holy Apostles:
- When listing the disciples of Christ in Holy Scriptures this apostle is always mentioned at the very end of the list. Emphasis is placed extremely expressively on the very fact of spiritual betrayal.
- Judas Iscariot was chosen by the Lord Himself to preach the apostolic doctrine. He pledged to inspire faith in the future Kingdom of Heaven, where the Savior would be the head. The traitor had the strength that was observed in other disciples: Judas brought the good news, healed the sick from serious illnesses, resurrected the dead and drove evil spirits out of the bodies.
- Iscariot was distinguished by his ability to conduct economic affairs. He was the treasurer of the community around Jesus. This apostle carried with him a small ark and kept there the finances donated by faithful Christians.
- The traitor of Christ was born on the first of April. In some beliefs, this date is considered unfavorable. The Tale of Jerome tells about the young years of his life. It says here that Judah's parents threw the lonely baby into the sea because they saw signs of disaster coming from their son. A few decades later, Iscariot stays on his native island, kills his father and enters into a relationship with his mother.
- Jesus accepted him into his own community when Judas repented of his crime, performing ascetic acts for a long time.
- Often, some scholars present the traitor as a necessary tool in the hands of the Almighty. Jesus calls Iscariot the most unfortunate person, because salvation is possible without betrayal.
- It is impossible to specify exactly whether Judas ate the body and blood of the Son of God and whether he was established in the Sacrament of the Eucharist (union with God). The orthodox point of view insists that the traitor did not enter the kingdom of the Lord, but made a false appearance and condemned the Messiah.
Various versions of the motivation for betrayal
The most authoritative apostles (Matthew, Mark and Luke) do not report anything at all from the life of a traitor. Only Saint John draws attention to the fact that Iscariot suffered from the love of money. The main question of betrayal is interpreted in different ways.
Luke. Kiss of Judas
- Among the writers, there are some who want to justify this act. From a religious point of view, such a position looks blasphemous. It is as follows: Judas knew about the true nature of the Messiah and committed his crime because he felt hope for the miraculous salvation of Christ and his resurrection.
- Another justification is that Judas sincerely desired to see the speedy ascension of the Son of God in his own glory, so he deceived the one who trusted.
- Closer to the truth is the view that regards Iscariot as a religious fanatic who became disillusioned with the truth of the reign of the Messiah. Jude regarded Christ as a false protector of the nation and the moral foundations of the Holy Land. Finding no confirmation of his desires, Iscariot did not recognize Jesus as the real Messiah and decided to impose a "legitimate" punishment at the hands of the state and people's structures.
- Evangelists accurately point out that the motivation for spiritual sedition was the boundless love of money. No other interpretation has such authority. Iscariot ran the treasury of the Christ community, and the amount offered to him tempted him to carry out a disgusting plan. With this money you could buy a piece of land.
- Covetousness covers the image of a traitor with a gloomy veil. The love of money made Judas a rough materialist, unlike the other apostles, who loved the Savior and Church of Christ. The traitor turned out to be completely deaf to the religious instructions of the teacher. It symbolized the rejection of Christianity by the entire people of Judea. The demon of false messianism lurked in the soul of Iscariot, which does not allow a pure heart to look at the deeds of the Son of God. His materialistic mind gave rise to greed, which destroyed spiritual sensitivity.
Secular scholars assume that the Messiah did not know this for sure, but the evangelists argue that God's plan proceeded according to a predetermined plan. Five months later, at the Last Supper, Jesus revealed the name of the traitor to Saint John.
About other apostles of Christ:
The fate of the unfortunate apostle
This issue is also difficult and controversial. Matthew states: Iscariot repented of his deed and threw away the cursed pieces of silver in the temple when he could not return them to the high priests.
However, regret about his own crime arose in Judas not from sincere faith in the Savior, but from ordinary remorse. Matthew concludes that after repentance, the traitor left and strangled himself.
After all the events, the disciples of Christ intended to choose a new apostle instead of Iscariot. This person had to be present in the community at all times when God's Son preached knowledge, from Baptism to death on the cross. The lot was cast between two names, Joseph and Matthias. The latter became a new apostle and undertook to carry the Christian teaching in the district.
On a note! The name of Judas has become a household name and denotes betrayal, and his kiss is a symbolic designation of the highest deceit. Despite the fact that this spiritual seditious cast out demons, healed the sick and performed signs, he forever lost the Kingdom of Heaven, since in his soul he was and remained a robber and an insidious thief striving for profit.
Images in painting
The biblical story of the betrayal of the Messiah has always aroused great interest and controversy.
Creative people inspired by this drama have created many individual works.
- In European art, Judas is presented as the spiritual and physical antagonist of Christ. On the frescoes of Giotto and Angelico, he is depicted with a black halo.
- In Byzantine and Russian iconography, it is customary to turn the image in profile so that the viewer does not meet the eyes of the insidious devil.
- IN Christian painting Iscariot is a dark-haired young man, with swarthy skin, without a beard. Often presented as a negative counterpart of John the Theologian. A striking example of this position is the scene of the Last Supper.
- On the icon called " Last Judgment”, Judas is depicted sitting on Satan’s lap.
- In the art of the Middle Ages, there are paintings where a demon manipulating consciousness is located on the shoulder of an insidious traitor.
- Suicide has been a common motif since the Renaissance. The traitor is often depicted hanging, with his intestinal entrails spilled out.
Among researchers bible stories there are disputes about the motives of his criminal act and further fate. It is not possible to achieve a unified point of view, but the one described by the evangelists is always considered the most authoritative.
Archpriest Andrey Tkachev about Judas Iscariot
Frame from the film "Judas" (2013)
Among the disciples of Christ, so open, understandable at first glance, Judas from Carioth stands out not only for his notoriety, but also for his dual appearance: his face seems to be sewn from two halves. One side of the face is constantly moving, dotted with wrinkles, with a black sharp eye, the other is deadly smooth and seems disproportionately large from a wide-open, blind, thorn-covered eye.
When he appeared, none of the apostles noticed. What made Jesus draw him closer to himself and what attracts this Judas to the Teacher are also unanswered questions. Peter, John, Thomas look - and are unable to comprehend this closeness of beauty and ugliness, meekness and vice - the closeness of Christ and Judas sitting next to the table.
Many times the apostles asked Judas about what compels him to do bad deeds, he answers with a grin: every person has sinned at least once. The words of Jude are almost similar to what Christ tells them: no one has the right to condemn anyone. And the apostles faithful to the Teacher humble their anger at Judas: “It's nothing that you are so ugly. Not so ugly come across in our fishing nets!
“Tell me, Judas, was your father a good man? “And who was my father? The one who whipped me with a rod? Or the devil, goat, rooster? How can Judas know everyone with whom his mother shared a bed?
Jude's answer shakes the apostles: whoever glorifies his parents is doomed to perdition! "Tell me, we good people? - "Ah, they tempt poor Judas, offend Judas!" - the red-haired man from Karyota grimaces.
In one village they are accused of stealing a kid, knowing that Judas is walking with them. In another village, after the preaching of Christ, they wanted to stone Him and the disciples; Judas rushed to the crowd, shouting that the Teacher was not possessed by a demon at all, that He was just a deceiver who loves money, just like him, Judas, - and the crowd humbled himself: “These strangers are not worthy to die at the hands of an honest one!”
Jesus leaves the village in anger, moving away from it with long steps; the disciples follow him at a respectful distance, cursing Judas. “Now I believe that your father is the devil,” Foma throws in his face. Fools! He saved their lives, but once again they did not appreciate him ...
Somehow, at a halt, the apostles decided to have fun: measuring their strength, they pick up stones from the ground - who is bigger? - and thrown into the abyss. Judas lifts the heaviest piece of rock. His face shines with triumph: now it is clear to everyone that he, Judas, is the strongest, most beautiful, best of the twelve. “Lord,” Peter prays to Christ, “I do not want Judas to be the strongest. Help me defeat him!" - "And who will help Iscariot?" Jesus replies sadly.
Judas, appointed by Christ to keep all their savings, hides a few coins - this is revealed. The students are outraged. Judas is brought to Christ - and He again stands up for him: “No one should count how much money our brother embezzled. Such reproaches offend him." In the evening at dinner, Judas is cheerful, but he is pleased not so much by reconciliation with the apostles, but by the fact that the Teacher again singled him out from the general row: “How can you not be cheerful person, who was kissed so much today for stealing? If I had not stolen, would John have known what love for one's neighbor is? Isn't it fun to be a hook, on which one hangs damp virtue to dry, and the other - the mind wasted by moths?
The mournful last days of Christ are approaching. Peter and John are arguing over which of them is more worthy to sit at the right hand of the Teacher in the Kingdom of Heaven - the cunning Judas points out to everyone his primacy. And then, when asked how he still thinks in good conscience, he proudly answers: “Of course I do!” The next morning, he goes to the high priest Anna, offering to bring the Nazarene to justice. Anna is well aware of the reputation of Judas and drives him away for several days in a row; but, fearing a rebellion and the intervention of the Roman authorities, with contempt offers Judas thirty pieces of silver for the life of the Teacher. Judas is indignant: “You don’t understand what they are selling you! He is kind, he heals the sick, he is loved by the poor! This price - it turns out that for a drop of blood you give only half an obol, for a drop of sweat - a quarter of an obol ... And His screams? And the moans? What about the heart, mouth, eyes? You want to rob me!" "Then you won't get anything." Hearing such an unexpected refusal, Judas is transformed: he must not cede the right to the life of Christ to anyone, and in fact there will surely be a villain who is ready to betray Him for an obol or two ...
Judas surrounds the One whom he betrayed with caress in the last hours. Affectionate and helpful he is with the apostles: nothing should interfere with the plan, thanks to which the name of Judas will forever be called in the memory of people along with the name of Jesus! IN Garden of Gethsemane he kisses Christ with such painful tenderness and longing that if Jesus were a flower, not a drop of dew would fall from His petals, he would not sway on a thin stalk from the kiss of Judas. Step by step, Judas follows in the footsteps of Christ, not believing his eyes when He is beaten, condemned, led to Golgotha. The night is thickening... What is the night? The sun is rising... What is the sun? Nobody shouts "Hosanna!" No one defended Christ with weapons, although he, Judas, stole two swords from Roman soldiers and brought them to these "faithful disciples"! He is alone - to the end, to the last breath - with Jesus! His horror and dream come true. Iscariot rises from his knees at the foot of the Calvary cross. Who will wrest victory from his hands? Let all nations, all future generations flow here at this moment - they will find only a pillory and a dead body.
Judas looks at the ground. How small she suddenly became under his feet! Time no longer passes by itself, neither in front nor behind, but, obediently, it moves with all its immensity only together with Judas, with his steps on this small earth.
He goes to the Sanhedrin and throws them in the face like a sovereign: “I deceived you! He was innocent and pure! You killed the sinless! Judas did not betray him, but betrayed you to eternal disgrace!”
On this day, Judas speaks like a prophet, which the cowardly apostles do not dare: “I saw the sun today - it looked at the earth with horror, asking:“ Where are the people here? ”Scorpions, animals, stones - everyone echoed this question. If you tell the sea and the mountains how much people valued Jesus, they will come down from their seats and fall on your heads! ..”
“Which of you,” Iscariot addresses the apostles, “will go with me to Jesus? You are scared! Are you saying it was His will? Do you explain your cowardice by the fact that He ordered you to carry His word on the earth? But who will believe His word in your cowardly and unfaithful lips?”
Judas “climbs the mountain and tightens the noose around his neck in front of the whole world, completing his plan. The news of Judas the traitor is spreading all over the world. Not faster and not quieter, but along with time this message continues to fly ... "
retold
Judas bore this strange nickname Iscariot to distinguish him from another Judas, the son of Jacob, nicknamed Thaddeus. The meaning of the nickname is still the subject of controversy. The most common explanation is ish-keryyot, that is, "a man from Keriyot" (the name of some village or town in Judea), or simply even "a man from the suburbs." Sometimes, however, they say that this is a distorted word sicarium(as the fighters for independence were called, and on modern language terrorists who used daggers in Latin sika, to kill the Romans and the Jews who collaborated with them). There are other explanations associated with consonant Aramaic words: either “dyer” (profession), or “deceitful person” (characteristic of behavior). The latest version is doubtful: it is unlikely that he had such an offensive nickname from the very beginning.
The Evangelist John also calls him Simonov - apparently, his father or older brother's name was Simon. If the older brother, then could it be one of the apostles? Simon-Peter, Andrew's brother - hardly, too much is said about him to miss such a detail. But another Simon, nicknamed the Zealot or Kananit, in principle could. Perhaps both of them even at one time belonged to the "armed underground", as Simon's nickname suggests - and then Judas really was a "sicar", and not just a "suburban man".
In any case, almost nothing is said about him in the Gospels, with the exception of that very betrayal. And one more small episode: John tells how one woman anointed Jesus with precious aromatic oil. And then Judas was indignant: “Why not sell this world for three hundred denarii and give it to the poor?” And then John comments: “He said this not because he cared for the poor, but because there was a thief. He had a cash box with him and wore what was put into it. It turns out that he was the most common thief: he just carried little by little money that people donated to Jesus and His disciples.
Interestingly, in Mark's version, "some" were outraged, that is, not only Judas, and certainly not because they all hoped to receive part of this money for themselves personally. But this is so easy to understand: the apostles wandered all over Judea, they did not always have enough food, and even a comfortable overnight stay seemed like a luxury at all ... and suddenly some woman recklessly spends in an instant the amount that a day laborer earns in a year! They did not know that their wanderings were coming to an end and that Jesus would soon be subjected to the most painful and shameful execution, and even the Teacher would have to be buried hastily, in someone else's tomb. The woman did not know this either, but brought everything she could as a token of her love and gratitude.
Jude's words about money serve as a kind of prologue to the story of betrayal. But is it only about money? Is it not also that the apostles connected some hopes and expectations with Jesus, and Judas, perhaps, especially lamented about his lost illusions? And only a woman with precious oil at that moment simply gave everything away, asking for nothing, not counting on anything.
Judas Iscariot became famous as a traitor. But what, exactly, was his betrayal? It is understandable when someone betrays the location of the partisan detachment, leads the enemies along a secret path, or lures the commander into a trap. And here? Jesus preached in the Temple openly, he could be arrested at any moment. Strictly speaking, the priests and their supporters were in no hurry to arrest, in order to avoid what frightened them most: popular unrest, which would be brutally suppressed by Rome and could cost them their positions, and even their heads. This means that Jesus had to disappear quietly and imperceptibly, it is especially convenient to do this the day before Easter holiday: people are busy with preparations, they have no time to be indignant. And in general, at first it will be possible to kill Him, and then celebrate with a pure heart. And behind the joyful celebration, this whole ugly story will somehow be forgotten.
Judas, in fact, promised the priests to point out such an opportune moment. He chose the time after the Last Supper, when Jesus prayed at night in the Garden of Gethsemane, there were only a few disciples with him, and even they were dozing from fatigue. And Judas also indicated to the guards exactly whom to arrest by kissing the Teacher. Otherwise, they didn’t know Him well by sight, and it was dark - they could have grabbed another by mistake, and everything would have gone wrong from the very beginning.
A small service, and a small fee for it - thirty pieces of silver, the average price of a slave at that time. How else to evaluate human life? Of course, even without Judas they would have managed somehow, they would have chosen a different moment. But his betrayal also had a special meaning: in the very inner circle there was someone who wished Jesus to die. What then to talk about at all, one can consider the whole work of His life as a failure ... Or, at least, it seemed so then.
Or did Judas not really want Him dead? The end of this story suggests that things didn't go the way Judas had hoped. Matthew says that when Jesus was sentenced, even before the very execution, that is, literally the next morning, Judas returned the payment received with the words: “I have sinned by betraying innocent blood.” The priests answered: “What is it to us?” And in fact, they achieved their goal, and the moral torments of Judas are his personal problems. Judas threw money in the Temple, went away and committed suicide: according to Matthew, he strangled himself, and Luke in the book of Acts reports that he “fell down”, that is, he fell or threw himself from a height, but it could also be that he first hanged himself, and then the rope broke and he fell to the ground.
Evangelists Matthew and Mark emphasize that Judas was not averse to earning these very thirty coins. But if it all came down to this, he would not have parted with them so easily the next morning and would not have committed suicide. There was something else... Luke and John note that Satan entered into Judas. This is the simplest explanation: he was an insane tool of an unclean spirit, and he, having done what he wanted, simply got rid of him, threw him aside, like a broken jug.
But this is too simple an explanation. Jesus often met with people who were possessed by demons, and from such people He cast out demons. Wouldn't he have done something similar to his disciple? On the contrary, the evangelists emphasize more than once that Jesus knew everything about Judas' intentions in advance and left him free choice. Even at the Last Supper, he left him the opportunity to change his decision, saying in front of everyone: “One of you will betray Me,” but without revealing who exactly. In this way, only the free will of a person can be respected, and not demonic possession at all.
A person is complex, and usually his actions have more than one motive. Yes, Judas undoubtedly acted on the prompting of Satan, but he was clearly not possessed and retained control over his actions. He probably didn't mind earning some extra money, but it hardly boiled down to that (after all, if they continued to wander with the Master, more than thirty coins could have been pulled out of the money box). There could be another reason...
There is no shortage of versions and never has been, the most varied explanations have been offered. For example, that Judas was instructed to play this role... Jesus Himself, they say, without Judas, the Calvary sacrifice would not have taken place. The glorification of betrayal has always taken place.
But there is also a completely reasonable version. But what if Judas really was a fighter for independence, a "sicarium", or, at least, ardently desired the liberation of his homeland from the Roman yoke? Jesus looked like a good candidate for the leaders of the uprising and even for kings: crowds gathered around Him, He performed miracles, the inhabitants of Jerusalem solemnly greeted Him as the Messiah ... It seemed that now He must openly oppose Rome, raise an uprising, drive out the invaders and all their accomplices! And He is slow. How to make Him act? Probably, it is necessary to put him before a choice: either He will finally come out for an open struggle, or he will be killed, executed by the most painful and shameful death!
“Do you think that I cannot now implore My Father, and He will present Me more than twelve legions of angels?” - Jesus said to Peter at the moment of arrest ... and did not raise a rebellion. Everything was lost, the angelic regiments did not come out on the side of the patriots, and, moreover, Judas realized that he had betrayed the Teacher to execution with his own hands.
Of course, this is just a reconstruction, one of the possible ones. The gospels do not describe Judas' motives in detail, and this the right decision. Evil has its own logic, it does not need to be followed, it is not even necessary to understand it. It is important to make the right choice so that later you do not have to throw the winnings to the ground, so that suicide does not seem like the only right decision.
