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In Memoriam: Martin Hengel, Professor Extraordinaire

July 2009

You may have missed it in the news of late. With the deaths of Ed McMahon, Farrah Fawcett, Billy Mays, and especially Michael Jackson, the media were preoccupied with others’ obituaries. Even if no other towering figure had died the first week of July, it is doubtful that the U.S. media would have done much, if any, coverage on the death of Martin Hengel. Why? Because he was a New Testament scholar, a German living in Germany, not well known outside of scholarly circles, and a theological conservative. Any one of these would relegate notice of his passing to the back pages of Section C, but the combination put the kibosh on any notice. However unnoticed, his passing marks the end of an era, unlike the deaths of the other four mentioned above.

Martin Hengel was 82 years old when he died (b. December 14, 1926; d. July 2, 2009). He was Emeritus Professor of New Testament and Early Judaism at Tübingen University, Germany. Tübingen is often viewed as the school from which the roots of modern theological liberalism sprang, largely because of F. C. Baur and David Strauss. These 19th-century scholars, especially Baur, applied Hegelian dialectic to New Testament studies (i.e., thesis vs. antithesis, struggling with each other end up resulting in a synthesis of both). Baur had been one of Hegel’s students; he applied this dialectic to the authorship of the NT writings, resulting in seeing only four authentic letters by Paul and seeing John as written sometime after 160 CE. Strauss deconstructed the miracles in the Gospels, explaining them all on naturalistic assumptions.

To be sure, there were some conservatives who were associated with Tübingen University over the years. There was Adolf Schlatter, who was born just eight years before Baur’s death (1852, 1860). And long before either of them was Philipp Melanchthon, Martin Luther’s right-hand man. Melanchthon earned his bachelor’s at the age of 14 at Heidelberg and his master’s at either 17 or 19 at Tübingen. But in general, since the days of Baur the school was noted for its radically liberal stance.

Martin Hengel was a shining exception to this. He did not hide the fact of his Christian faith. Nor did he shrink from the historian’s task of investigating the primary sources. Indeed, Hengel was considered by many as the master of the primary materials in their original languages. His many volumes on early Christianity and Second Temple Judaism are testimony to this fact.

He was a myth-buster who out-liberaled the liberals. In his Studies in Early Christology, he makes a statement about the parallel dangers from “an uncritical, sterile apologetic fundamentalism” and “from no less sterile ‘critical ignorance’” of radical liberalism. At bottom, the approaches are the same; the only differences are the presuppositions. A true liberal is one who considers all of the data, rather than being prejudiced and selective. Hengel, in this respect, was a liberal’s liberal. Yet he came to conservative conclusions.

In the past two years, we have witnessed the deaths of Bruce Metzger, C. F. D. Moule, and now, Martin Hengel. In my view, they were the greatest living NT scholars of their respective countries (America, England, Germany). Metzger and Hengel were generally conservative; Moule was moderate. All were brilliant.

The above points can be found all over the Internet. For the remainder, I wanted to mention a personal anecdote.

Six years ago, in April 2003, I had the privilege of dining with Professor Hengel at his home. I was in Tübingen on sabbatical and I had written to Hengel, asking him if he could use his influence to open doors for me to photograph the two Greek New Testament manuscripts housed at the university (one of which is still not catalogued). I sent out the letter one late afternoon; he received it the next morning (I love German efficiency!). He didn’t know me, but he just so happened to be having lunch that day with Dr. Bruce Longenecker, a friend of mine whom I got to know on my previous sabbatical in Cambridge. Bruce was a Humboldt scholar, spending his semester in Tübingen. I did not know that Bruce was in town, nor did he know that I was in town. At lunch, Hengel read my letter to Bruce and asked if he knew me. Bruce said yes, and assured Hengel that I was not a crackpot. That was good enough for Hengel. Later that day, Professor Hengel called me on the phone, telling me that he had gotten permission for me to shoot the manuscripts. He asked if there was anything else he could do for me. So I asked if I could take him out to a meal. Instead, he invited me to his home for dinner.

Europeans tend to eat later than Americans. I had been invited to come for dinner at 8 pm, which suited me fine. Germans tend to reserve their biggest meal of the day for lunchtime. This was something that I had forgotten.

I arrived exactly on time (after knocking on the wrong door one or two times before getting the right place!). The Hengels lived in a duplex high above the city. The first thing that struck me about the home was that it was essentially a library with a kitchen, bathroom, and bedroom. Very neat and tidy, but the library was extensive. Wall-to-wall books and row upon row of shelves in the middle of the room. And a great number of the books, if not the majority, were primary sources, most in their original languages. At the end of the room was a large picture window that looked out over the city.

Mrs. Hengel served tea. Professor Hengel prayed. Then, large, piping hot pretzels were brought out of the oven, one for each of us. Served with mustard. I thought, “That’s a nice appetizer.” I then presented Professor Hengel with a NET Bible. He was impressed with the notes especially. He spent several minutes looking over various passages and notes, commenting with approbation. He had not touched his pretzel. Mrs. Hengel, slightly exasperated, said, “Martin, eat!” “I am,” he declared. “I’m feasting on the Word.” Reminiscent of the pericope about the woman at the well, I thought.

Hengel and I talked about New Testament studies. He was most interested in what Dallas Seminary was doing with patristics. I mentioned the few courses we had in this area, which disappointed him. He noted that the New Testament was a rather small fraction of the size of the great body of patristic literature. “But Martin,” said his wife, “Isn’t the New Testament infinitely more important?” “Yes, of course, Dear,” said the good professor.

We discussed the authorship of various New Testament books, the value of higher criticism, and where German scholarship is today. An hour passed. Mrs. Hengel asked if I wanted another pretzel. I thought that it was a bit strange that she had not brought out dinner yet, but since I was getting quite hungry and not knowing when the main course would be served, I said yes.

I turned to more personal subjects. I told Hengel that I had heard that he was fascinated with American Indians. “As a child, yes, but that was a long time ago.” Oops. Boy, were my sources wrong! An awkward moment. Not knowing to quit when I was behind, I then asked him what it was like growing up under Hitler and the Nazis.

He sighed, and took a long pause. He then revealed that he had been drafted as a teenager, very late in the war. But he wanted nothing to do with it, so he went AWOL, hiding out until the war was over. This took some time adjusting to. As an American evangelical who was also politically conservative, I had come to see desertion of one’s military duties as a high crime and great sin. But I didn’t see things through the grid of Nazism. What would it be like to be drafted into Hitler’s army? In one sense, this is what the Nuremberg trials were about: the ethics of (dis)obedience to a human authority when it was diametrically opposed to a higher authority. Since America was on the right side of the war, these were issues that I had not worked through nearly as much as many Germans had. I hadn’t even been born yet when WWII ended, but I’ve been fascinated by it and have spent some time reading about the principal characters. I have since tried to put myself in the Germans’ shoes and think through how I would view my own national heritage. Especially after visiting Dachau just a few weeks ago, I began to understand better the national identity of Germans today. Whatever else Dachau teaches us, it certainly underscores the unspeakable depravity of the human heart that resides in us all. Dachau and Auschwitz and the rest of the concentration camps were not the result of a uniquely German Weltanschauung; they represent what all of us are capable of. If it weren’t for the work of God’s Spirit today restraining people from acting out the atrocities of their fertile, yet wicked minds, the whole world would be a Dachua or an Auschwitz. Or, as Paul told the Romans, “Therefore you are without excuse, whoever you are, when you judge someone else. For on whatever grounds you judge another, you condemn yourself, because you who judge practice the same things” (Rom 2.1, NET).

We came back to New Testament studies. We spoke about Christology, William Wrede, textual criticism, Marcion, and other topics. Then, all of a sudden, without warning, Professor Hengel rose to his feet and thanked me for the evening. It was time to leave. The dinner was two pretzels, a bit of mustard, and hot tea. As I walked out, I looked at my watch. It was precisely 10 pm. There had been no clock that Hengel would have seen, as I recalled. He just knew it was 10 o’clock. Two hours for dinner and a conversation. I left the home of this very German couple, grateful for the privilege of finally having met the great Professor Hengel. I drove down the hill, stopped at a little fast food Chinese restaurant, and got the main course of my evening’s dinner. In retrospect, I was fed far better at the Hengels’ home than I was at the Chinese restaurant. It was an evening I shall not forget.

this is a test article not published हिन्दी with no english version

this is a test article  in the process of translating to हिन्दी  with no english version
to see how brian handles the issue if we have articles with no english equilivant..
at first glance it appears he doesnt find this article???
so http://bible.org/node/17582  is the hindi translation of http://bible.org/node/17578
from page http://bible.org/article/test-article

 
this is a test article for a new language to see if brian can recognize it
Hindi
हिन्दी
this page will be published in english and we will make another page in Hindi and not publish it so we can test the
http://bible.org/list_of_translations_table for a new language and an article in the process of being translated
da

성경교의 개요: 그리스도

I. 그리스도의 신성

A. 그리스도는 말로 전달할 수 없는 속성을 갖고 있다.

1. 자존성 ( 히브리서 7:3; 요한복음 5:26)

2. 불변성 ( 히브리서 1:10; 13:8)

3. 무한성: 영원성 (히브리서 7:3); 편재성 (마태복음 28:20)

B. 그리스도는 신성의 역할을 담당하신다.

1. 그리스도는 세상을 창조하셨다.(요한복음 1:3)

2. 그리스도는 세상을 유지해 나가신다. (골로세서 1:15-17)

3. 그리스도는 죄를 사하여 주신다 (마태복음 9:1,2)

4. 그리스도는 마지막 심판을 하신다. (요한복음 5:22, 계시록 19:16)

C. 그리스도는 찬양을 받으신다.

1. 천사의 (히브리서 1:6; 계시록 5:12,13)

2. 사람들의 ( 요한복음 9:38; 20:28; 마태복음 28:9)

D. 그리스도는 신성의 칭호를 갖고 계십니다.

1. 여호와 (누가복음 2:11; 5:8)

2. 하나님의 아들 (누가복음 1:35; 요한복음 5:18)

E. 예수님은 하나님이심을 말씀하셨다. (요한복음 5:18; 8:24; 28, 58; 10:30-33)

F. 다른 사람들이 이 주장들을 설명하고 있다.(요한복음 1:1; 로마서 9:5; 요한일서 5:20).

역시 예수님=하나님이라는 것을 증명하는 문법적 형태를 가진4군데 본문이 있습니다. (데살로니가후서 1:12; 디모데전서 5:21; 디도서 2:13; 베드로후서1:1 각각 ? 그렌빌 샵? 문법적 형식에 둘의 칭호가 같은 사람임을 증명하여준다.

II. 그리스도의 인성

A. 그리스도는 인간의 지성을 갖고 계셨다. 그의 지혜는 인간의 방법과 같이 ?증진?되었다. (누가복음 2:40; 52)

B. 그리스도는 인간의 감성을 갖고 계셨다.

1. 사랑 (마태복음 9:36; 요한복음 11:36)

2. 슬픔 (요한복음 11:35; 마태복음 26:38)

C. 그리스도는 인간의 의지를 갖고 계셨다

1. 그리스도는 고통을 당하기 원하지 않으셨다. (마태복음 26:39)

2. 그리스도는 순종적으로 고통을 당하러 예루살렘에 가기로 결심하셨다. (누가복음 9:51)

D. 그리스도는 인간의 육신을 갖고 계셨다.

1. 그는 육신으로 태어나셨다 (마태복음 1:18; 누가복음 2:7)

2. 그는 인간처럼 성장해 나가셨다.( 누가복음 2:40; 52)

3. 그는 인간의 욕구를 갖고 계셨다.

a. 음식 (마태복음 4:2)

b. 마실 것 (요한복음 19:28)

c. 수면 (요한복음 4:6)

E. 그는 인자라고 불리웠다.

1. 스스로 (누가복음 19:10)

2. 다른 사람에 의해 (디모데전서 2:5)

III. 그리스도의 성육신

A. 정의: 성육신은 영생의 신이신 그리스도가 인성을 입으신 것을 의미한다..

B. 성육신의 목적

1. 인간에게 하나님을 나타내기 위하여 (요한 복음 1:18)

2. 죄를 사하여 주시기 위하여 (히브리서 10:5-13)

3. 하나님 앞에서 우리의 대제사장으로 섬기기 위해 (히브리서 4:14-16)

4. 하나님에게 순종하는 모범으로서 섬기기 위해 (베드로전서 2:21)

5. 다윗 언약을 성취하기 위해- 다윗의 자손 중에 이땅에 영원의 왕을 주신다는 약속 (누가복음 1:31-33)

C. 그리스도 성육신의 주요 증거들

1. 동정녀탄생

a. 그리스도는 인간적인 방법으로 잉태되지 않으셨다.- 마리아는 동정녀였다.

(마태복음 1:18; 누가복음 1:27, 34)

b. 그리스도는 성령에 의해 잉태되었다.

1) 잉태는 절대적으로 하나님의 일이셨다.(누가복음 1:35)

2) 결과적으로 예수님은 독특한 ?거룩한 자손?이셨다- 하나님의 아들 (누가복

음 1:35)

3) 성육신은 기적적인 탄생이었다. (누가복음 1:37)

2. 그리스도 자기비하의 성구 ( 빌립보서 2:5-11)

a. 예수님은 참 하나님이셨다 (?하나님의 형태?로 존재하셨다- 2:6) 그러나 그는 참 인성을 취하셨다. (?종의 형태?-2:7)

b. 예수님은 일시적으로 그의 신의 속성을 사용을 포기하셨다. (자기비하- ?자신을 비웠다?- 2:7)

1) 예수님께서 그것을 선택하셨다 (?스스로?- 2:7)

2) 예수님께서 인간의 속죄를 위해 순종적으로 자기비하를 하셨다.(2:8)

3) 예수님께서 여전히 신성을 사용하실 수 있으셨다. 전지하심( 요한복음 2:24); 전능하심 ( 기적)

c. 예수님의 영속적으로 인성을 취하셨다.

1) 예수님의 인성은 참이시다. ?종의 형체?, ?사람과 같은 모습?, ?사람과 같은 모습? (2:7, 8)

2) 그의 인성은 영원히 남아있다. (사도행전 1:3, 9-11)

3. 요한복음 1:14- ?말씀 (영원한 하나님의 아들- 요한복음1:1)이 육신 (인간)이 되어 우리

가운데 거하셨고??

IV. 그리스도의 삶

A. 그리스도의 지상에서 삶의 연대기

1. 준비기간- 탄생에서 세례 (누가복음 1-3) 나이 32세 동안 (기원전 5/4 ? 기원후 29, 누가복음 3:1, 2, 23)

2. 사역기간 ? 나이 32-35/36 (기원후 29-33)

a. 초기 유다와 사마리아사역 (요한복음 2:13-4:42)

b. 갈릴리 사역 (마태복음 4:12-18:35; 마가복음 1:14-9:50)

c. 페리안 사역 (누가복음 10:1-19:28)

3. 고난주간 (부활후 모습을 포함해서- 마태복음 21:1-28:20; 마가복음 10:1-16:20; 누가복음 19:29-24:53; 요한복음 11:55-21:25) 나이 35/36 (기원후 33년 3월-4월) 노트: 시기는 하롤드 훼너박사의 연대기 그리스도 삶의 연대적 양상 죤더반 출판사.1977 을 따른 것이다.

B. 그리스도의 지상 삶의 직무: 그리스도가 지상에 있을 때 선지자, 제사장, 왕의 직무을 성취하셨

다.

1. 그리스도은 하나님의 선지자셨다. (마태복음 13:57; 누가복음 13:33). 그리스도는 모세에의 해 예견된 것같이 선지자 직무의 궁극적 성취였다. ( 신명기 18:15; 사도행전 3:22-26) 그리스도는 하나님의 메시지를 계속적인 가르침과 선포로 사람에게 전달하였다 (마태복음 7:29; 11:1 등)

2. 그리스도는 사람의 대제사장이었다. (히브리서 4:14-16; 6;20-7:3; 7:26-28; 9:11-14; 10; 11-14)

우리 인간 대제사장처럼 그리스도는 우리의 약점과 시험을 경험하실 수 있으셨다.(히브리서 4:14-18) 죄없는 하나님의 아들로서 그리스도는 우리의 죄를 위해 단번에 희생제물로서 자신을 바친 유일한 대제사장이었다. (히브리서 7:26-28; 10:11-14)

3. 그리스도는 왕으로 오셨다.( 마태복음 27:11) 선지자들과 천사 가브리엘은 예수님이 이스라엘의 왕으로 올 것을 예견하였다. (이사야 9:6,7; 누가복음 1:31-33) 그는 왕으로 오셨다 (마태복음 2:2; 3:2) 그리스도는 다윗의 왕국을 이스라엘에게 주려고 왔었으나 그들은 그것을 거절하였다. (마태복음 22:1-14) 그래서 왕국의 시대는 연기 되었다 ( 인간적인 말로) 언젠가 구약의 많은 왕국의 약속들은 예수그리스도가 이땅을 심판하러 다시 오신 후 천년왕국안에서 이루어질 것이다. ( 시편 110; 마태복음 25:31; 계시록 19:15. 16; 20:4,6)

V. 그리스도의 부활

A. 그리스도 부활의 증거들

1. 무덤이 비었었다. (마태복음 18:1-4 등) 만일 로마인들에 의해 도난 당했다면 그들이 부활을 인정하지 않기 위해 그 것을 드러냈을 것이다. (마태복음 28:11-15) 만일 제자들이 시신을

훔쳤다면 그들이 그런 거짓말을 위해 기꺼이 순교하는 일은 불가능한 것이다. (사도행전 4:1-22; 5:17-42; 7:54-60; 12:1, 2)

2. 그리스도는 여러 번 나타나셨다.( 요한복음 20:11-18; 마태복음28:8-10; 고린도전서.15:5; 누가복음 24:13-32; 36-43; 요한복음 20:26-29; 21:1-14; 고린도전서15:6,7; 누가복음 24:44-49; 사도행전 1:9-12) 증거들은 2개월 후 베드로의 예수그리스도의 부활의 증언이 모순되지 않는 지를 설명한다.( 사도행전 2:14-42)

B. 그리스도부활의 성질.- 이것은 물리적 육체의 부활이었다. (누가복음 24:39-43; 요한복음 20:27)

그리스도부활의 육체는 단순히 영적이거나 비 물질적 몸이 아니었다. 그것은 그의 물리적 육체가

문자 그대로 부활한 것이고 영광스럽게 변화된 것이다 (요한복음 20:19)

C. 그리스도 부활의 중요성

1. 그리스도의 부활은 그리스도의 말씀 (마태복음 28:6)과 성경의 진실(고린도 전서 15:4; 시편16:8)을 증명한다.

2. 그리스도의 부활은 구원을 위해 그리스도의 죽음을 믿는 것의 정당성을 증명한다. (?복음? 고린도전서 15:1-5, 14, 17)

VI. 그리스도의 현재의 사역

그리스도의 부활 후 그는 하늘로 승천하셨고 다시 한번 찬양을 받으셨다. (에베소서 1:20-23; 히브리서 1:3) 그리스도는 지금 믿는 자들에 관한 많은 역할을 담당하신다.

A. 그리스도는 그의 교회를 세우신다 (마태복음 16:18)

B. 그리스도는 그의 몸인 교회를 이끄신다 (에베소서 1:22, 23; 골로세서 1:18)

C. 그리스도는 믿는 자들을 위해 기도하신다.-

1. 그는 사탄과 죄로부터 우리를 보호하기 위해 기도하신다 (요한복음 17:15).

2. 그는 우리의 하나됨을 위해 기도하신다 (요한복음 17:20-23)

3. 그리스도는 우리의 어려운 때에 도움을 위하여 기도하신다 (히브리서 4:16)

4. 그리스도는 죄로부터 우리의 회복을 위해 기도하시고 협력을 지속하신다 (요한일서 2:1)

D. 그리스도는 우리의 기도의 응답에 관여하신다 (요한복음 14:13, 14)

E. 그리스도는 어려운 상황 속에 우리에게 힘을 주신다 (빌립보서 4:13)

G. 그리스도는 하늘에 우리를 위해 자리를 준비하고 계시다. (요한복음 14:3)

Related Topics: Christology

성경교의 개요: 하나님

I. 우리는 하나님에 대해 어떻게 알고 있습니까?

A. 일반 계시를 통해서

1. 자연계는 하나님을 나타내고 있습니다. ( 사도행전 14:15-17: 로마서 1:19-23)

2. 인간의 양심은 하나님을 나타내고 있습니다. (로마서:2:14-16)

B. 특별 계시를 통해서

1. 기적들은 하나님을 나타내고있습니다.

a. 하나님이 자연의 법들을 전개하실 때 (여호수아 10:12-14- 태양아 머물러라)

b. 하나님이 자연법칙에 예외를 만드실 때 (열왕기하 6:5-6- 도끼자루를 물위에 떠오름)

2. 성취된 예언이 하나님을 나타냅니다.

a. 구약 ( 이사야 43:28; 45:1; 에스라 1:1-4- 고레스왕이 예언됨)

b. 신약 ( 미가 5:2; 마태복음 2:1- 예수님의 탄생지)

3. 예수그리스도 자신이 하나님을 나타냅니다.(히브리서1:1; 요한복음1:18)

4. 전체적으로 성경은 하나님을 나타냅니다.

II. 우리는 하나님의 존재를 증명할 수 있습니까?

A. 성경은 일반적으로 이것을 증명하기보다는 나타내고 있습니다. (창세기 1:1)

B. 성경은 자연세계는 하나님의 존재를 필요로 한다 것을 확실히 말하고 있습니다. ( 시편19; 이사야 40:26; 사도행전 14:17; 로마서1:19)

C. 의심을 갖는 사람들에게 때때로 도움이 되는 하나님에 대한 여러 가지 철학적 증명들이 있습니다. 이것들은 성경에서 역시 발견 될 수 있는 논리적 결론들입니다.

1. 우주론적 증명- 스스로 존재하신 하나님이 안계셨다면 어떻게 어떤 것이 존재할 수 있겠습니까 (로마서1:20)?

2. 목적론적 증명- 설계자가 없었다면 이 세상이 어떻게 구성될 수 있겠습니까 (하나님- 시편 19:1-6)?

3. 도덕적 증명- 도덕의 법을 만든 자가 없었더라면 사람들이 옳고 그름을 어떻게 인식하겠습니까? ( 하나님- 로마서2:14,15; 야고보서 4:12)

4. 존재론적 증명- 하나님께서 직접 주시지 않았다면 완전한 존재(하나님)에 대한 생각을 사람들이 어디서 알수 있겠습니까? (사도행전 17:27; 로마서 1:19)

III. 우리는 하나님을 어떻게 설명 할 수 있습니까?

하나님은 많은 완전성들을 갖고 계시다 (속성들)

A. 하나님은 말로 전달 할 수 없는 속성들을 갖고 계시다. (속성들은 오직 하나님에게만 속한 것이다.)

1. 자존성 ( 요한복음5:26)

2. 불변성 (시편 102:25-7; 출애굽 3:14; 야고보서 1:17)- 하나님은 그의 본질이나 계획을 바꾸시지 않으신다.

3. 무한성

a. 영원성- 시간에 무한성 ( 시편 90:2)

b. 편재성- 장소에 무한성 ( 시편 139:7-11)

4. 거룩성- 전혀 악이 없으시고 완전히 순수한 분이십니다.(레위기 11:44; 요한복음17:11; 요한일서1:5- ?빛? )

B. 하나님은 말로 전달할 수 있는 속성을 갖고 계십니다.( 이 속성은 인간에서 제한된 범위 내에서 찾을 수 있습니다.)

1. 지적 속성

a. 전지성- 하나님은 실제적이고 잠재적인 것 모든 것을 알고 계십니다.( 시편139:16; 마태복음 11:21)

b. 항상 현명하심- 하나님은 가장 최선의 것을 행하는 지성에 따라 행하십니다. (로마서11:33-36)

2. 감성의 속성

a. 하나님은 사랑이십니다- 하나님은 우리의 선을 위해 무한히 행하십니다. (요한1 서 4:8)

b. 은혜- 공 없이 얻은 사랑 (에베소서 2:8)

c. 자비- 관심, 궁휼 (야고보 5:11)

d. 오래 참으심- 화나셨을 때 참으십니다. (베드로후서 3:9,15)

e. 하나님은 의로우심- 하나님은 완전히 의로우시고 인간과의 관계에도 정확하십니다. (시편 19:9)

3. 의지의 속성

a. 전능 (욥기 42:2) 하나님은 당시의 뜻 어떤 것도 하실 수 있으십니다. 하나님은 당신의 본성에 반대(죄)되는 어떤 것도 또한 논리적으로 당신과 대치되는 것 어떤 것도 하지 않으실 것입니다.

b. 주권 (역대하 29:11,12) 하나님은 최종 주권자이십니다- 우주의 모든 일들을 관장하십니다. 하나님은 당신이 정하신 자연의 법에 따라 일들이 생기도록 하셨습니다.

IV. 하나님의 이름들은 어떤 것이 있습니까?

하나님의 이름은 하나님이 누구이시고 무엇을 하시는 가를 강조하고 있습니다.

A. 엘로힘- 이 단어는 하나님의 힘, 통치력, 권위를 나타내고있습니다 (창세기 1:1; 이사야54:5)

B. 엘 쉐다이- ?산 위에 하나님? 힘과 통치 그리고 위안을 나타냅니다.(창세기 17:3; 시편91:1,2)

C. 아도나이- 이 이름은 하나님은 우리의 주, 주인이라는 의미입니다.(여호수아 5:14)

D. 여호와- ?나 이다?- 이 단어는 하나님의 변함없는 당신 스스로 존재하심을 뜻합니다.

(출애굽기 3:12)

1. 여호와 이레- ? 주님은 준비하신다? (창세기 22:14)

2. 여호와 라파- ? 주님은 치료하시는 분이시다?

3. 여호와 니시- ? 주님은 깃발.? (출애굽기 17:15)

4. 여호와 샬롬- ? 주님은 평강.?(사사기 6:24)

5. 여호와 라아- ? 주님은 나의 목자?(시편 23:1)

6. 여호와 시케누- ?주님은 의의시다?(에레미아 23:6)

7. 여호와 샴마- ? 주님이 계신다? (에스겔 48:35)

8. 여호와 쯔바오쓰- ? 만군의 주? 이스라엘 군의 사령관(사무엘 상17:45)

V. 어떤 형태로 하나님은 존재하시나?

A. 하나님은 인격적인 존재이십니다. 하나님은 사람은 아니시나 사람과 같은 지, 정, 의를갖고 계시는 인격체이십니다. (전달의 속성을 참조) 이는 ?우리가 하나님의 형상대로 만들어졌다? 는 의미합니다?(창세기 1:26,27; 9:6). 하나님은 우리 사람의 불완전성을 갖지는 않으셨으나 우리 인간의 인성을 갖고 계십니다. 하나님은 물리적 ?힘?의 상태가 아닌 인격체이십니다.

B. 하나님은 영적 존재이십니다. 하나님은 물질적 존재가 아니십니다. ?하나님은 영이시다?

(요한 복음 4:24) 하나님은 육체를 갖고 계시지 않습니다.

C. 하나님은 삼위일체이십니다. 삼위일체라는 말은 하나님의 세인성을 말하고 있습니다.

그러나 이는 부분적 묘사입니다. 하나님은 ?한분?이십니다- 하나님은 통일체이십니다.

그래서 좋은 묘사는 삼위일체입니다. 삼위일체는 가장 잘 사용되는 용어이지만 우리는 성경적 삼위일체는 참된 삼위통일체입니다.

D. 정의: 하나님은 한 분이시나 하나님의 통일체는 똑같으신 영원의 인성 세분이시고 한

존재이시나 각각 구분되신다( 비,비,와필드에게서 인용)

1. 오류들 (삼위일체의 부정들)

a. 세 본성과 역할 또는 성질을 갖은 한 하나님은 없다.

b. 세 다른 하나님은 없다.

c. 아들 그리고 성령은 하나님이거나 하나님의 창조물이다..

2. 하나님의 단일성

a. 하나님은 한 분이십니다.( 신명기6:4; 이사야45:14; 야고보서2:19 등)

오직 한 완전한 분만이 계실 수 있습니다. 만일 두 분이 계신다면 전혀 다른 분일 수 없고 같은 분이 실 것입니다.

b. 한 분이신 하나님은 분리될 수 없습니다.-하나님은 원래 영이시고 구성상 물질이 아니시기 때문이며 삼등분 되어 셋으로 나누어 질 수 없습니다. 하나님 아버지, 하나님 아들, 하나님 성령이시며 본질상 완전한 하나님 한 분으로 만 생각되어질 수 있습니다.

3. 하나님의 세 인성. 세 인성은 각각 오직 하나님이 같고 계신 것을 갖고 있고 각각 완전한하나님이십니다.

a. 아버지는 하나님이십니다.

로마서 1:7- ?하나님(그는) 우리의 아버지?

요한복음 6:27- ?아버지(곧) 하나님?

b. 아들은 하나님이십니다.

1) 그는 말로 전달 할 수 없는 속성을 갖고 계십니다.

a) 자존 (히브리서7:3; 요한복음5:26)

b) 불변성 (히브리서1:10; 13:8)

c) 무한성

d) 영원성 (히브리서7:3)

e) 전지성 (마태복음28:20)

2) 그는 신성의 역할을 담당하고 있습니다.

a) 그는 세상을 창조하셨습니다. (요한복음1:13)

b) 그는 세상을 유지해 나갑니다. (골로세서 1:15-17)

c) 그는 죄를 사하여 주십니다. (마태복음 9:1,2)

d) 그는 최후 심판을 하십니다. (요한복음 5:22; 계시록 19:16)

3) 그는 찬양을 받으십니다.

a) 천사들의 (히브리서1:6; 계시록5:12,13)

b) 사람들의 (요한복음9:38; 20;28; 마태복음 28:9)

4) 그는 신성의 칭호들을 갖고 계십니다.

a) 여호와 (누가복음2:11; 5:8)

b) 하나님의 아들 (누가복음 1:35; 요한복음 5:18)

5) 예수님은 하나님이심을 말씀하셨습니다.(요한복음 5:18; 8:24;,28,58; 10:30-33)

6) 다른 명백한 주장들.(요한복음 1:1; 로마서 9:5; 요한일서 5:20)

역시 예수님=하나님이라는 것을 증명하는 문법적 형태를 가진4군데 본문이 있습니다. (데살로니가후서 1:12; 디모데전서 5:21; 디도서 2:13; 베드로후서1:1)

c. 성령은 하나님이십니다.

1) 명백한 주장 (고린도후서 3:17,18)

2) 이름들과 신성의 칭호들

a) 야훼 ( 이사야 6:1-13에 야훼는 사도행전 28:25에 성령으로 불리운다.)

b) 하나님의 영 (로마서 8:9,14; 고린도전서 2:11; 12:13; 에베소서 4:30)

3) 그는 말로 전달할 수 없는 속성들을 지니고 계십니다.

a) 자존성 (로마서 8:2)

b) 편재성 (시편 139:7 이하)

4) 그는 말로 전달할 수 없는 일들을 행하십니다 (오직 하나님만이 이 일 들을 하실 수 있으십니다.)

a) 창조 (창세기 1:2)

b) 부활 (로마서 8:11)

5) 함축적 주장들

a) 사도행전 5:3,4- 성령을 속이는 일은 하나님을 속이는 것과 같다.

b) 고린도후서 3:7- ? 주님은 영이시다?

4. 하나님의 삼위일체

a. 구약의 증거

1) 하나님은 스스로를 복수로 말씀하셨습니다. ( ?우리? 창세기 1:26; 3:22; 11:7; 이사야 6:8) 그리고 복수의 동사 (창세기 1:26; 11:7)

2) ? 하나님의 천사?는 때때로 명백하게 ?하나님?이시고 그는 하나님 ?아버지?와 구별됩니다. 그러므로 그는 성육신 이전 인간형태의 그리스도임에 틀림없습니다. (창세기 16:7-13; 18:1-21; 19:1-28: 말라기 3:1)

3) 다른 성경 구절들이 명백히 하나님 (아버지/ 주/ 성령-이사야 48:12,16; 여호와/주- 시편 110:1)의 인성들을 구분하고있습니다.

b. 신약의 증거

1) 하나님은 ?하나?이시니 (에베소서 4:6; 야고보서 2:19)

2) 하나님은 ?세? 인성이시다. (마태복음 3:16; 고린도전서12:4-6; 베드로전서1:2)

3) 하나님은 ?한분 안에 세 인성?이시다. (마태복음28:19- ? 아버지와 아들과 성령의 이름(단수)로? 하였습니다.)

5. 요약: 삼위일체의 교의는 ?알 수 있고? ?믿을 수 있지만? 결코 사람의 사고나 언어로 완벽

하게 ?설명할 수? 있지않습니다. 어떻게 삼위가 일체해서 존재하고 역할하는가 하는 기능은 우리에게 어떻게 성육신 (그리스도은 하나님이시고 인간이시다)과 같이 우리에게는 신비한 비밀로 남아있습니다. 우리는 하나님이 한 분이시라는 것을 압니다. 우리는 하나님이 세 인성이시라는 것을 압니다. 그러므로 우리는 삼위일체가 진실이라는 것을 압니다.

실제적으로 기독교인들인 우리는 하나님의 삼위일체의 본성이 필연적이라는 것을

압니다.

a. 오직 신이신 아들의 완벽한 희생만이 우리의 죄를 갚을 수 있습니다. (요한복음 3:16)

b. 오직 보혜사 성령만이 우리 모두 안에 거하실 수 있습니다.(요한복음 14:16,17)

c. 하나님 아버지 자신은 이러한 계획을 실행하기위해 구별되어지셔야만 하셨습니다.

Related Topics: Theology Proper (God)

Judas

Introduction

Don Richardson wrote a book that I encourage everyone to read. The title is Peace Child1 and is the story of his missionary labors among a tribe in Papua New Guinea.

When Richardson had finally learned their language, there came a day when he had opportunity to tell them the Gospel. He started with Christ’s miraculous birth, His life and ministry, and then proceeded to the end of Jesus’ time on earth.

He set the stage talking about how Jesus made His final journey to Jerusalem, the incredible reception of the people on Palm Sunday, then the treachery of Judas who worked behind the scenes to betray Jesus to death. To his amazement, when he finished telling them about the traitor, the people showed complete delight in Judas. Richardson was appalled at their reaction.

He discovered that the highest virtue in their culture was deceit—and Judas was the greatest example of deceit about which they had heard. Here was a man who successfully betrayed to the death a great and good man, thus Judas became their instant hero. It was obvious to Richardson that he had his work cut out for him to evangelize this tribe. You need to read the book to discover the beginning and end of this incredible and true missionary story.

The Men named “Judas”

Judas was a common first century name. In fact, there are eight mentioned in the New Testament:

(1) Judas Iscariot, the betrayer of Jesus and one of the twelve apostles (Matthew 10:4);

(2) Judas the son of James, and one of the twelve apostles (Luke 6:16);

(3) Judas, a brother of Jesus (Matthew 13:55);

(4) Judas, Paul’s host in Damascus (Acts 9:11);

(5) Judas, called Barsabbas, a leading Christian in Jerusalem and a companion of Paul (Acts 15:22);

(6) Judas, a revolutionary leader (Acts 5:37);

(7) Judah, an otherwise unknown person in the genealogy of Jesus (Luke 3:30);

(8) And Judah, a son of Jacob in the genealogy of Jesus and an ancestor of an Israelite tribe (Matthew 1:2; Revelation 7:5)—’Judas’ or ‘Judah.’2

Observe a verse in Luke 6 regarding the first Judas, who is the subject of this study: “Judas Iscariot who also became a traitor” (Luke 6:16b). In what follows we will provide a panorama of the career of the Bible’s most notorious man. However, do not turn the page to another article yet. There is, what I will call, considerable “backdoor encouragement” from the story of Judas.

Judas’ Background

The New Testament does not reveal much about Judas’ family and the environment in which he grew up. His surname was “Iscariot” ( jIskariwvq = t/w”riq] yai = man of Karioth). Most scholars understand it to refer to the place of his origin, from Kerioth, in southern Judaea (Matthew 10:4; 26:14; John 6:71; 12:4; 13:2,26; 14:22).2 The best estimation today would be to identify Kerioth with Kerioth-hezron (Joshua 15:25), which is about 15 miles south of Hebron. Judas was, then, the only apostle from Judea; the rest were from Galilee. All we know of his family is that his father’s name was Simon (John 6:71).

Judas’ Infamous Titles

Traitor

Luke 6:16 says Judas “became a traitor,” denoting a double-crosser, or betrayer. The New Testament uses the term “traitor” of Judas and of evil people in the End Times (2 Timothy 3:4). The term “to betray” (prodivdwmi) literally means “to give over,” and the New Testament uses it several ways including “to deliver over treacherously by way of betrayal” (Matthew 17:22; 26:16; John 6:64). The noun form, prodovth”, deriving from prodivdwmi, “to betray,” does not occur in the New Testament, and speaks of one who delivers a person without justification into the control of another.

Son of Perdition (John 17:12)

As terrible as “traitor” is, that title pales into insignificance compared to this one. To be the “son of perdition” denotes that Judas is a man identified with eternal destruction, or whose destiny is the Lake of Fire. “Son of perdition” is a predictive designation.

Furthermore, Acts 1:25 says that Judas went “to his own place,” the thought being the place of his own choosing. Accordingly, it is not that Judas was foreordained from eternity past to go to hell, without opportunity to be saved. Instead, he chose to reject Jesus Christ and will suffer the consequences of any person who rejects the Savior.

Judas’ Inclusion in the “12”

[Jesus] called His disciples to Him; and from them He chose twelve whom He also named apostles . . . and Judas Iscariot, who also became a traitor (Luke 6:16).

According to Mark 3:19, after Jesus selected the 12 “they went into a house.” This is probably the same house mentioned in Mark 2:1 in Capernaum, quite possibly Peter’s home. As Mark 3:20 continues, we see that such a large multitude gathered together in the house, “they could not so much as eat bread.” Being involved in an exploding ministry, Jesus and His disciples found frequently that it was a challenge to find time to eat (cp. 6:31b).

When you commit yourself to ministry, giving your time, energy, and best efforts to the Lord’s work, others may view you with raised eyebrows. In fact, Jesus’ family thought He was out of His mind and tried to seize Him (Mark 3:21).

When his relatives beard that His ceaseless ministry worked against what they considered proper care of Himself, they came (no doubt from Nazareth) “to lay hold of Him,” a term used for making an arrest (Mark 6:17; 12:12; 14:1, 44, 46, 51).

Why apprehend the Lord? “For” (yap) they thought that he was out of His mind (Mark 3:21b), that is “a mentally unbalanced religious fanatic (cf. Acts 26:24; 2 Corinthians 5:13).”3

So, what did Judas experience as soon as Jesus selected him? (1) Selection into the unique circle of the “12,” becoming an apostle; (2) he observed great crowds flocking to Jesus; and (3) he saw Christ’s own family thinking Him crazy. Nevertheless, Judas was no fool. He observed that Jesus had extraordinary charisma and attracted large crowds, which meant potential political power, influence, and wealth. Judas wanted in on the action. Linking with Jesus seemed to be a fast track to success.

Judas’ Place Among the “12”

We might have supposed that Matthew would handle the money needed to sustain the Lord’s ministry because he had been a tax collector and well acquainted with money matters. Judas, however, was the treasurer of the Lord’s group of apostles indicating that he was no imbecile (John 12:5-6; 13:29). He knew the ins-and-outs of collecting, managing, and spending money better than the others did, including Matthew. We will see what kind of treasurer he was next.

Judas’ Character

In the village of Bethany six days before the Lord’s final Passover, where Lazarus had been raised from the dead (John 12:1), Martha served supper with Lazarus at the table (12:2), but Mary anointed Christ’s feet with expensive “oil of spikenard,” “wiping His feet with her hair” (12:3). It was a wonderful display of love, gratitude, and worship.

Then Judas asked

Why was this fragrant oil not sold for 300 denarii and given to the poor? This he said, not that he cared for the poor, but because he was a thief and had the money box; and he used to take what was put in it (John 12:4-6).

  • Character trait #1: He did not care about the poor. He was a hard-hearted man, too concerned with feathering his own nest while others, less fortunate, suffered around him.
  • Character trait #2: He was a thief, pilfering funds from the Lord’s money box, which exposes that Judas was full of avarice, or greed.

Accordingly, Judas was not in tune with Jesus, rejecting the Lord’s message. To the poor, Jesus preached the gospel (Luke 7:22). And for the needy, Jesus taught that we should go out of our way to help them so far as we are able (parable of the Good Samaritan, Luke 10:29-37). Judas did not welcome that message, nor did he want to help the needy. The man was not regenerated for in a believer God works to will and to do of His good pleasure, which includes ministering to those with pressing needs (cp. Philippians 2:13 with Titus 3:14). Of course, carnality can quench this work of the Spirit in believers also.

Observe the opposite attitude of Paul, a man who was in tune with the Lord (Galatians 2:10; cp. 6:10).

One commentary says this about Judas:

The comment of the Evangelist [that Judas was a thief] is intended to stress the avarice of Judas, who saw in the price of the ointment nothing of the beautiful deed which Jesus praised (Mark 14:6) but only a means by which the apostolic fund would be increased, and thereby his own pocket lined. And even this motive was cloaked under a specious plea that the money could be given away to relieve the poor. Thus to covetousness there is added the trait of deceit.4

Commentators have suggested many possibilities to explain Judas’ character:

Love of money; jealousy of the other disciples; fear of the inevitable outcome of the Master’s ministry which made him turn state’s evidence in order to save his own skin; an enthusiastic intention to force Christ’s hand and make him declare himself as Messiah a bitter, revengeful spirit which arose when his worldly hopes were crushed and this disappointment turned to spite and spite became hate-all these motives have been suggested.5

What is clear is that Judas was a self-serving thief. who followed Jesus not because his inner man had converted to Him, but because he hoped for personal gain by the relationship.

Jesus did not permit Judas’ criticism of Mary’s generous worship to go unchallenged. He said “Let her alone; she has kept this for the day of My burial” (John 12:7). In other words, mind your own business and let her worship Me as she wants; it is a straightforward rebuke.

Jesus Predicts His Betrayal

King David was the first to predict that someone would betray the Messiah:

Even My own familiar friend in whom I trusted, Who ate My bread, Has lifted up his heel against Me (Psalm 41:9).

Jesus quoted this verse of Himself at the Last Passover (John 13:18). Shortly after the Transfiguration, while they were in Galilee, Christ predicted:

The Son of Man is about to be betrayed into the hand of men and they will kill him, and on the third day He will be raised up And they were exceedingly sorrowful (Matthew 17:22 23).

On His way to Jerusalem, the Lord repeats his prediction:

Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be betrayed to the chief priests and to the scribes; and they will condemn Him to death, and deliver Him to the Gentiles to mock and to scourge and to crucify. And the third day He will rise again (Matthew 20:18-19).

Thus those who had eyes to see, and ears to hear, should not have been shocked that one of His inner circle (“familiar friend”) would betray Him to the religious leaders.

Judas Betrays the Lord Jesus

    The trigger event

What finally motivated Judas to betray the Lord? The setting is the anointing of Jesus in Bethany. The trigger was the rebuke that Jesus gave Judas. Therefore, being stung by the Lord’s rebuke, and becoming increasingly disenchanted because Jesus’ messianic prospects seemed to be dimming, Judas decided to cut his losses.

Judas contacts the religious leaders to make a deal

Then one of the twelve, called Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests 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. So from that time he sought opportunity to betray Him (Matthew 26:14-16).

“Then” denotes after Mary anointed Jesus in Bethany with costly fragrant oil. Moreover, the disciples (plural) were indignant, saying it was a waste and should have been given to the poor, and Jesus rebuked them (26:6-13).

Though all of the disciples were indignant and complained, it was particularly Judas who asked, “Why was this fragrant oil not sold for 300 denarii and given to the poor” (John 12:4)?

The role of the devil

Jesus knew that ultimately His battle was with the evil one. On an occasion well before His final trip to Jerusalem, He implied that the devil would be involved.

Then Jesus said to the twelve, “Do you also Simon Peter answered Him, “Lord to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. Also we have come to believe and know that You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” Jesus answered them, “Did I not choose you, the twelve, and one of you is a devil (ei|” diavbolo” ejstin)?” He spoke of Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon, for it was he who would betray Him, being one of the twelve (John 6:67-71).

When Jesus says, “one of you is a devil,” it reveals His omniscience (cp. 1:47; 2:24-25; 6:15, 61). He knew that the devil would possess Judas and use the traitor as a puppet to accomplish satanic objectives.

And sure enough, on Tuesday night following a dinner party at Mary, Martha and Lazarus’ home in Bethany-where Jesus rebuked his disciples and particularly Judas-the traitor rejected the Lord one time too many. The devil then possessed him the first of two times this final week of Jesus’ life.

Then Satan entered Judas, surnamed Iscariot, who was numbered among the twelve. So he went his way and conferred with the chief priests and captains, how he might betray Him to them. And they were glad, and agreed to give him money. So he promised and sought opportunity to betray Him to them in the absence of the multitude (Luke 22:3-6).

The Night Judas Betrayed the Lord

The gospels do not state why Judas betrayed Jesus. Yet, we may infer at least two reasons:

  • Judas did it after becoming convinced that Jesus was going to die and not reign as King (Mark 14:3-11). This dashed Judas’ hopes for political power and influence.
  • Judas did it for money (Matthew 26:14-16). Thus, his expectation of financial wealth no longer existed, so he bargained for what he could receive from the religious leaders (30 pieces of silver).

Judas thought, “What’s the use of continuing to follow Jesus when the whole world is turning against Him and the governmental authorities may swallow me up with Him?”

Now the night of Christ’s betrayal began with the Passover feast and Judas apparently was still smarting from Jesus’ rebuke. Judas sat at the table seething and frustrated about how things looked to be coming down. At the same time, the religious leaders were meeting to discuss how they could arrest Jesus and put Him to death, but the multitudes intimidated them. Thus, they needed and discussed a private way to apprehend the Lord (Mark 14:1-2).

Count on it, Satan’s demons attended that meeting also. Once they knew of the religious leaders’ desire, they beat a path to Satan with the news. The devil had stepped out of Judas’ life for a short time. Satan then hatched a plan and imparted it to Judas’ soul while he sat at the Passover table with Jesus.

And supper being ended, the devil having already put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, to betray Him (John 13:2).

This Satan apparently did without possessing Judas because it is not until after Jesus gives bread to him that Satan re-enters Judas.

As the Last Supper continues, Jesus proceeds to train His apostles, giving them a huge lesson in humility, servanthood, and forgiveness, which He illustrates by washing their feet (John 13:3-20).

When Jesus had said these things, He was troubled in spirit, and testified and said, “Most assuredly, I say to you, one of you will betray Me” (John 13:21).

In John 13:22-25, the Lord’s announcement of betrayal, during the solemn Passover occasion, bewilders the apostles. Thus, Peter gets John to ask Jesus who the traitor is.

Jesus answered, It is he to whom I shall give a piece of bread when I have dipped it. And having dipped the bread, He gave it to Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon. Now after the piece of bread, Satan entered him. Then Jesus said to him, What you do, do quickly (John 13:26-27).

This is the second time during the final week that Satan possesses Judas. Consequently, in John 13:31, Judas departs the Upper Room where the Lord and apostles were eating the Last Supper.

Now as we compare the other Gospel accounts, we see the devil next motivate Judas to tell the religious leaders that he will find a way to betray Jesus. His plan would avoid confrontation with the crowds gathered in Jerusalem for the Passover (Luke 22:6). The religious leaders promptly paid Judas for his treacherous scheme (Mark 14:10-11).

Judas figured that the Garden of Gethsemane would be an ideal place to arrest Jesus because it was outside the city’s eastern wall and away from the crowds. Satan, who anticipated the Lord’s movements, had put this plan into Judas’ head.

The traitor notified the religious leaders that he would identify Jesus with a “kiss.” Why a kiss? Because it would be nighttime and not immediately apparent to the soldiers who Christ was among his disciples!

Once the religious leaders called together the Roman soldiers (a military unit, or cohort, of 600), they tagged along themselves, and Judas led them to the place in the Garden where Jesus prayed. For this “leadership,” Judas became known as “a guide to those who arrested Jesus” (Acts 1:16).

In the Garden of Gethsemane

And Judas, who betrayed Him, also knew the place; for Jesus often met there with His disciples. Then Judas, hawing received a detachment of troops and officers from the chief priests and Pharisees, Came there with lanterns, torches, and weapons. Jesus therefore. knowing all things that would come upon Him, went forward rind said to them, Whom are you seeking? They answered Him, Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus said to them, l am ‘He.’ And Judas, who betrayed Him, also stood with them (John 18:5-6).

This treacherous act by Judas became embedded in the minds of the apostles, so much so that Paul, when explaining the communion service says:

I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you: that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which He was betrayed took bread (1 Corinthians 11:23).

Judas’ Death

The morning of the day of Christ’s crucifixion

Seeing that Christ was condemned to death, Judas was remorseful, admitted he betrayed innocent blood, threw the 30 pieces of silver (about $220.00) the leaders paid him into the temple, then hanged himself (Matthew 27:3-5).

The religious leaders, ever scrupulous of keeping the Law (at least the parts they liked!), did not take back the blood money, but instead purchased from a local pottery maker a field in which to bury strangers. It was renamed “the field of Blood” (Matthew 27:6-8), which fulfilled an Old Testament prophecy (Zechariah 11:13).

Judas’ suicide: A mystery explained

Matthew says that Judas hanged himself (Matthew 27:5). “This establishes the fact that Judas fastened a noose around his neck and jumped from the branch to which the other end of the rope was attached.”6

In addition, Acts 1:18 reveals that “falling headlong, [Judas] burst open in the middle and all his entrails gushed out”—a considerably more dramatic picture than Matthew gives. It is terrible enough to commit suicide, but to take a fall, have your body burst open, and your inner parts gush out, is horrendous to say the least.

The question is: Do we have a contradiction in the Bible, or is it possible to harmonize Matthew and Luke? It is possible to harmonize:7

  • The limb from which Judas hung was over a precipice, that is, the valley of Hinnom. In fact, to this day there are many dry trees on the brink of this canyon near the traditional site of Judas’ suicide. Thus, it could be that the weight of his body on a dry and dead limb broke the limb causing his body to plummet into the canyon and burst open.
  • Or, perhaps the rock shattering earthquake that ripped through Jerusalem at the moment Jesus “yielded up His spirit” caused the limb to break and plunged the swollen, three day old corpse into the canyon splitting it open (cp. Matthew 27:51).
  • Or, even a strong gust of wind, funneled through the canyon, could have caused the limb to break.

Whatever, there is no contradiction in God’s Word; a contradiction here is only in the minds of those who want a discrepancy. The ultimate tragic end of the “son of perdition”—an end immeasurably more dreadful than his burst open body—is that he went to Hades, to await the second resurrection and judgment at the Great White Throne, then an eternity in Hell.

Jesus had said at the Last Supper:

Woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been good for that man if he had not been born (Matthew 27:24).

Two Lessons

Lesson #1: The life of Judas Iscariot is an enormous tragedy. It shows what happens when one exposes himself to the truth day-after-day, but does not embrace it, use it, obey it! By application, we cannot go to church Sunday after Sunday, and even attend Bible classes during the week, thinking that our mere presence there will keep God pleased with us.

Nearly every day for three plus years Judas listened to the best Bible teacher who ever walked this planet. He heard the truth not only preached, but also saw it perfectly lived-out in the Person of Jesus Christ.

Yet, the more Judas heard, the more he possessed to reject, and the more he rejected the more his heart became hardened. His conscience became seared so that he no longer felt the critiquing ministry of the written Word and the convicting ministry of the Holy Spirit. His inner man gradually hardened to the point that it became a convenient habitation for the devil himself, leading to betrayal and finally suicide.

We must not let be lost on ourselves what happened to Judas. The corrective is diligently to put into practice what we learn from God’s Word. Do not permit your intake of the Bible to be merely an academic head-trip.

  • If you learn that you may confess your sin: Keep confessing.
  • If you learn that you should pray: Keep praying.
  • If you learn that you are to witness to Christ: Keep witnessing.
  • If you learn that you should not forsake the assembling of yourselves together: Keep assembling.
  • If you learn that God gave you a spiritual gift for the common good: Use your gift to serve your fellow believers in love

As Christians, we must become vigorous doers of the Word, not mere hearers only, lest the hardening process overtakes us and we lose opportunity for eternal reward to the glory of God.

Lesson #2: For those who are servants in various leadership positions as pastors, teachers, evangelists, elders, deacons, Sunday school teachers, and so on, there is encouragement from the tragic life of Judas—back door encouragement!

Every leader eventually experiences the disappointment and grief of someone close to him turning traitor. It may not be as dramatic as what Judas did to our Lord, but betrayal it is.

Judas violated Jesus, deceiving Him with the world’s greatest hypocritical kiss, resulting in Christ’s execution. However, in three days God turned the tables on Jesus’ enemies and raised Him from the dead. And the same God who raised the Lord Jesus out of seemingly utter, devastating treachery and defeat is still in the business of supporting and protecting us, even reversing our losses.

The devil thought he had won. The demons threw their biggest celebration party ever. The religious leaders danced home after the crucifixion and toasted their success. However, God raised Jesus from the dead!

There are other examples of the Father delivering His people from treachery and defeat. The Lord raised David from sure defeat to victory in the civil war with his treacherous son, Absalom. Why? Because David confessed his sin, repented, and his heart was still inclined to serve the Lord.

The Lord brought Jonah back from the depths of the Mediterranean Sea to minister to Nineveh. Why? Because in the belly of the great fish, Jonah repented! Although he still needed an attitude adjustment about the Assyrians, God worked through Jonah the greatest evangelistic crusade recorded in the Old Testament.

So, where are we? Though there may be a “Judas” in our church, or school, or fellowship group, God will never desert or abandon those who fear the Lord and take refuge in Him.

Therefore, let us take heart! “Let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart” (Galatians 6:9). God will take care of the Judases of life; our business is to be faithful so long as He gives us breath and energy to serve.

Article from CTS Journal, volume 3, number 1 (Summer 1997), a publication of Chafer Theological Seminary, Orange, CA.

1 Don Richardson, Peace Child (Ventura, California: Regal Books, 1974): you may call Regal @ 1-800-4-GOSPEL.

2 Vine, W. E., Vine’s Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words, [Logos Library System 2.1, CD-ROM] (Grand Rapids, MI: Fleming H. Revell), 1981.

3 Walvoord, John and Zuck, Roy, Bible Knowledge Commentary [Logos Library System 2.1, CD-ROM] (Wheaton: Scripture Press Publications, 1983), 985.

4 The New Bible Dictionary (NBD) [Logos Library System 2.1, CD-ROM] (Wheaton: TyndaIe House Publishers), 1962.

5 NBD.

6 Gleason Archer, Encyclopedia of Bible Difficulties (Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1982), 344.

7 See Archer, 344.

Related Topics: Satanology, Confession

Pray for the Ministry that the site will stay up and we will continue to be able to defend against attack

Every now and again bible.org gets attacked with a Denial of Service attack. This past weekend we experienced what looked like another attack.

Thanks to Mitch and Brian for the skills to defend against the attack and return the site back to service. If you were on the site at the time you may have experienced unusually slow response and you may have got a data base busy error. Continue to pray that God protect us, our families and all our users. We can usually tell by the increased spiritual attacks when God is about to do something significant. Pray for the ministry as we work with you to reach the lost for Christ and to Disciple one another.

Communicate with anyone, anywhere in up to 45 languages.

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Why does the Protestant Bible have 66 books and the Catholic Bible have 73?

The extra books in the Roman Catholic Bible are from the Apocrypha. The apocryphal books were not considered to be inspired and thus were not recognized by the church as part of the Bible. At the Council of Trent (A.D. 1546) the Roman Catholic Church included them in their Bible.

For more information on this, you can read the study on Bibliology: The Doctrine of the Written Word on our web site.

Related Topics: Canon

Was Matthias or Paul the apostle who replaced Judas?

I’m sure you know that there are different opinions concerning the disciples’ selection of Matthias. The disciples were told to “wait” until the Spirit was sent, and yet they quickly went ahead and chose a replacement for Judas. They did so out of a sense of urgency, since they thought the kingdom may come at any time. Matthias is selected, and yet we really don’t hear of him again, but later on Paul is raised up, and we don’t cease hearing of him, or from him. This certainly raises the question as to whether or not Paul was God’s replacement for Judas, while Matthias was the disciples’ choice.

This issue is dealt with in greater detail in Bob Deffinbaugh’s series entitled, Acts: Christ at Work Through His Church.

Related Topics: Discipleship, History

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