Then one of the Twelve, who was called Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests 15 and said, “What are you willing to give me if I hand him over to you?” They paid him thirty pieces of silver, 16 and from that time on he looked for an opportunity to hand him over.
In Matthew 26:14–16, Judas Iscariot goes to the chief priests and offers to betray Jesus for “thirty pieces of silver.” From that moment, he seeks an opportunity to hand Him over. brief yet pivotal scene marks the transition from mounting tension to the final unfolding of Christ’s Passion. The sum Judas receives recalls Zechariah 11:12–13, where the rejected shepherd is paid thirty shekels—the price of a slave (cf. Ex. 21:32). In that prophetic context, the money is thrown into the temple, an eerie foreshadowing of Judas’ later remorse and the priests' refusal to return the “blood money” to the treasury (Matt. 27:5–7).
Judas’ betrayal does not derail God’s plan but mysteriously serves it. As Jesus affirms elsewhere, “The Son of Man indeed goes, as it is written of him” (Matt. 26:24; cf. Ps. 41:10 [LXX 40:10]; John 13:18). His betrayal fulfills Scripture and sets in motion the events by which redemption is accomplished. Far from being a tragic accident, this moment is part of the divine design whereby Christ, the true Paschal Lamb, is handed over to be sacrificed for the sins of the world (1 Cor. 5:7; Rom. 5:8). It underscores the truth that God's salvific plan triumphs even through human sin and treachery (Acts 2:23).
Lord Jesus, betrayed by a friend and sold for silver, You entered freely into suffering for our salvation. Help us never to trade truth for comfort, nor Your love for fleeting gain. Strengthen our hearts to follow You faithfully, even when the path is dark. Amen!
Sources
- McSorley, Joseph. An Outline History of the Church by Centuries (From St. Peter to Pius XII). 2nd ed., B. Herder Book Co., 1944.
- Orchard, Bernard, et al. A Catholic Commentary on Holy Scripture. Feb. 1953.
- Chiu, José Enrique Aguilar, et al. The Paulist Biblical Commentary. Paulist Press, 2018.
- Faculty of the University of Navarre. The Navarre Bible: New Testament Expanded Edition. Four Courts / Scepter, 2008.
- Faculty of the University of Navarre. The Navarre Bible: The Pentateuch. Four Courts Press, 2017
- Brown, Raymond Edward, et al. The New Jerome Biblical Commentary. Prentice Hall, 1990.
- Charpentier, Etienne. How to Read the Old Testament. Translated by John Bowden, 1981.
- Komonchak, Joseph, et al., editors. The New Dictionary of Theology.
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