Beth-El Baptist Church

05/23/2010

Greg Tomlinson


What happened to Judas Iscariot?


It is not uncommon for people to ask about the eternal state of Judas Iscariot. Will he spend eternity in the lake of fire (condemned to hell) or did he repent and truly believe?


  1. What did Judas do?

Matthew 26:14-16; Mark 14:10-11 Luke 22:2-6; John 13:21-30

Matthew 26:47-50; Mark 14:43-46; Luke 22:47-48; John 18:1-5


First, Judas went to the Priests and Jewish leaders and received money as payment to arrest and deliver Jesus to them without the presence of the crowds. On the evening of Jesus' betrayal and arrest, the scriptures indicate that “Satan entered Judas” which indicates that the fulfilling of the betrayal of Jesus by Judas is ultimately an act of Satan. That same evening, Judas brought the guards, commissioned by the Jewish leaders, to the garden where Jesus was praying and betrayed Him with a kiss. Note, that even at the time of His betrayal, Jesus still called Judas “friend”.


Matthew 12:43-45; Luke 11:23-26 John 14:17; Romans 8:9-11; 1 Corinthians 3:16

1 John 4:4


Regarding the entrance of Satan into Judas: Jesus indicates that if a demon is removed from an individual and no one else takes up residency, then his continued condition worsens when the demon returns. Every person will be inhabited either by God with the Holy Spirit of God or with a satanic entity, whether an actual demon possession or simply a spirit that is contrary to Christ. Either way, the implication is that Judas was not of Christ since Satan was able to take possession or set up residence within.


  1. How did Judas die?

Matthew 27:3-5 Acts 1:15-20 (Psalm 109:1-15)


After seeing that Jesus was condemned, Judas went back to the Jewish leaders and returned their money. This seems to imply that Judas, in delivering Jesus to the Jewish leaders, anticipated a different outcome than His condemnation. Perhaps Judas expected Jesus to clearly and distinctly proclaim His messiahship and take over. After Judas returned the money and confessed his guilt, he went out and hung himself (Matthew 27). In Acts, the scriptures state that he fell headlong and burst open. There are simple ways to reconcile these statements but that is for a later time.


  1. How is Judas described?

Matthew 10:1-5; 26:21-25; Mark 3:14-19; Luke 6:13-16; John 18:2

John 12:3-6 John 13:1-3

Acts 1:25 John 17:11-12

John 6:70-71


Judas is called a betrayer and a thief, one who fell by transgression. Thus, he went to his own place. He is also called the son of perdition and 'diabolos' or devil. The 'son of perdition' also carries with it the idea of the son of the lost one, the son of the perishing one, the son of destruction or the son of waste. Either way, it is a very strong word of judgment. Judas is also referred to as 'diabolos' or 'a devil' without a definite article.


  1. Are any of these special descriptions used of anyone else?

2 Thessalonians 2:1-4 (See 1 John 3:8; Isaiah 14:12-15)

Proverbs 1:20-33; 15:11; 27:20 Revelation 17:8-11; 19:19-20

Exodus 12:21-23 1 Corinthians 10:6-11


The titles for Judas are directly or indirectly used to describe the work of the ultimate destroyer. 'The man of sin' is a very apt description of Lucifer or Satan in the book of Isaiah. The word translated 'perdition' is used to indicate the final place of 'the beast' and 'Satan' or the Lake of fire. It is also translated as 'destroyer' in Exodus 12 who is implicated as being Satanic in origin according to 1 Corinthians 10.


From a historical perspective, it is Satan who is the ultimate betrayer because it is Satan who betrayed mankind by bringing them into the presence of sin, enticing man and who bears much of the responsibility of bring sin as a constant enemy of life.


The most interesting study is the Greek word 'diabolos'.


Satan – 1 Chronicles 21:1; Psalm 109:6

The Satan – Job 1:6-12; 2:1-7; Zechariah 3:1-2

The Enemy – Esther 7:4; 8:1

The Devil – Matthew 4:1-11; 13:39; 25:41; Luke 4:2-13; 8:12; John 8:44; 13:2; Acts 10:38; Ephesians 4:27; 6:11; 1 Timothy 3:6-7; 2 Timothy 2:26; Hebrews 2:14; James 4:7; 1 John 3:8-10; Jude 1:9; Revelation 2:10; 12:12; 20:10

[The (implied)] devil – Acts 13:10; 1 Peter 5:8; Revelation 12:9; 20:2

Slanderer – 1 Timothy 3:11

False accuser – 2 Timothy 3:2-4; Titus 2:3


'Diabolos' (from John 6:70) is used in 53 verses in the Old and New Testaments. In the Old Testament, 'diabolos' is generally translated as 'Satan', usually with the definite article. It is translated as 'the enemy' only twice. In the New Testament, the normal translation is 'the devil' and the Greek has the article. In most other verses in which the article is not present, the use clearly implies the presence of the article. The remaining New Testament uses also imply a specific person rather than a general identification. From this, it can be understood that when Jesus states that one of you is 'diabolos', it is to be understood that He is referring to the one specific person known as 'diabolos' or Satan.


  1. What about Judas' repentance?

Matthew 27:1-7; 7:13-14 Philippians 1:27-28

Hebrews 10:38-39 2 Peter 3:5-7


Although Judas does in a sense seem to repent by returning the money and indicating that he has betrayed innocent blood, there is no indication that he has actually repented from his betrayal by seeking forgiveness of God and seeking to be covered by the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. Instead, he took his sense of grief to the grave with him. The Apostles in the Gospels and in Acts clearly indicate that Judas fell with no recovery.