The Gospel According to Judas by Benjamin Iscariot

by Jeffrey Archer

  15. Jesus smiled and aware that he was a devout man, agreed that he could become a disciple.

  16. The young man was overwhelmed, and assured Judas that he was willing to give up everything to follow the Master.

  17. Jesus, on hearing these words, said: Go and sell all that you have, and give it to the poor. Once you have done that, you will have treasure enough in heaven, and come take up the cross and follow me.

  see

  Mark 10:21;

  Matt 19:21;

  Luke 18:22

  18. Judas became distressed, aware that if Jesus hoped to establish himself as the expected Son of David, the Messiah and King of Israel, he could not hope to do so as a wandering prophet who rejected such a generous offer. Worse, he had commanded the rich young man to sell everything he possessed and distribute his wealth among the poor, which was not in keeping with the best traditions of Israel.

  19. Throughout Israel’s history, God’s glory had always been measured by the wealth and success of the nation.

  20. When David was King, the Jews occupied many lands, produced abundant crops and their flocks were ever bountiful. This was only true while the city was ruled over by a powerful king, who was respected and feared by those who lived in the surrounding countries.

  21. Judas had been taught to believe that during that time Israel was in true communion with God. He hoped and expected Jesus would restore that enviable position.

  22. Had not Solomon sung in tribute to a great king:

  Long may he live!

  May gold of Sheba be given to him.

  May prayer be made for him continually,

  and blessings invoked for him all day long.

  May there be an abundance of grain in the land;

  may it wave on the tops of the mountains;

  may its fruits be like Lebanon;

  and may people flourish in the cities

  like the grass in the field.

  May his name endure forever,

  his fame continue as long as the sun.

  May all nations be blessed in him;

  And the whole earth be filled with his glory.

  Psalm 72:15–17

  for Solomon

  23. Judas was in despair as the rich young man walked away.

  24. The rich young man’s only response: You have chosen to follow a dangerous man, who will lead to the fall of many in Israel.

  see

  Luke 2:34

  Chapter 14

  You are people of little faith

  1. As Jesus’ bedraggled band of followers drifted south towards Jericho, Judas warned Peter that the coffers were running low and that the Master should be informed.

  2. Peter refused to pass on such bad news and told Judas to carry out the Master’s bidding without question.

  3. Although Judas was in despair his spirits were raised once again when Jesus was approached by a generous and devout Scribe, skilled in the interpretation of the laws of Israel. He said to Jesus: Master, I will follow you wherever you go.

  4. But Jesus said: Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.

  see

  Matt 8:19–20;

  Luke 9:57–58

  5. The Scribe was not able to comprehend what Jesus meant by this reference to the ‘Son of Man’, and departed that place.

  6. Another came to Jesus and said: I wish to follow you, but first I must return to Galilee and bury my father.

  7. Judas was astonished when the Master said: Follow me, and leave the dead to bury their dead.

  see

  Matt 8:21–22

  8. Everyone who heard these words knew that it was a sacred duty for any son of Israel to bury his father, as the family is the centre of Jewish life and the father its head.

  9. The man left Jesus and departed for Galilee.

  10. Judas demanded of Peter: ‘Did not Moses include among the Ten Commandments passed down by God at Sinai: Honour your father and your mother so that you may live long in the land that YHWH your God is giving you?’

  Exo 20:12

  11. But Peter ignored him, and continued to remind his fellow disciples of the true meaning of Jesus’ warning, Get behind me, Satan, which only made Judas more fearful.

  12. Jesus, aware of what was passing through their minds, gathered the disciples together and said: Why are you afraid? You are people of little faith.

  see

  Matt 8:26;

  see

  Mark 4:40–41;

  Luke 8:25

  13. Judas could not understand why Jesus was challenging them in this manner; had they not proved their commitment a thousand-fold? Had they ever questioned his authority?

  14. By the evening of the third day, Jesus and his followers had reached the slopes of Mount Tabor, and were preparing to rest before nightfall.

  [xxiv]

  15. Judas was distributing food and blankets in preparation for the cold night ahead, when he saw Jesus take Peter, James and John to one side.

  see

  Matt 17:1

  16. Without explanation, the four of them began to ascend the long, steep slope up the mountain.

  17. Judas and the other disciples fell asleep, and did not wake again until dawn, when they found Jesus walking among them. He said: Let us rest a little longer, before we set out on the next part of our journey.

  see

  Mark 6:31

  18. Judas observed that Peter, James and John were whispering among themselves.

  19. He approached Peter and said: ‘What took place when you were with Jesus on the mountain?’

  20. Peter was unable to hide his joy, and although the Master had instructed them not to reveal what had happened on the mountain, he hesitated only for a moment:

  I saw a powerful light, and before me appeared figures from Israel’s past, and they spoke to Jesus, and the skies opened and a voice said, ‘This is my beloved Son, listen to his words.’

  21. Peter went on to tell Judas: ‘I understand what awaits us when we travel to Jerusalem, and I now accept that Jesus will rise from the dead.’

  see

  Mark 9:9–13;

  Matt 17:9–13

  22. Judas left him for he was inconsolable. If Jesus was the expected Davidic Messiah, the King of Israel, why would he enter Jerusalem only to be slain, and then to rise again from the dead three days later? There was nothing written or spoken in Jewish tradition that suggested such a happening would take place.

  23. But it was clear to Judas that the thought of Jesus’ death no longer alarmed Peter, James or John, who had clearly been overwhelmed by what they had seen on the mountain during the night.

  24. For the first time, Judas began to doubt that Jesus, in whom he had placed so much faith and commitment, was the Messiah Israel had been waiting for.

  25. Judas withdrew from his fellow disciples and kept his own counsel.

  26. When the sun reached its zenith, Jesus stopped to rest and gathered around him all his followers. He addressed them with these words: The Son of Man will be given into the hands of men, and they will kill him. But God will not abandon him. He will live again with you on the other side of death.

  see

  Mark 9:31;

  Matt 17:22–23;

  Luke 9:44

  [xxv]

  27. Judas loved the Master above all men, and after John the Baptist had commanded: There goes a man of God, follow him, he had become wholly committed to Jesus’ ministry.

  see

  John 1:34–36

  28. But Judas was also a devout son of Israel, who looked to Jesus to fulfil the prophecies of Israel’s sages, and now feared that this Son of Man had no intention of entering Jerusalem with authority to reclaim the Davidic throne of Israel for the Jewish people.

  29. Judas felt a deep pain in his heart while he pondered these matters, aware that if Jesus were to continue on this course, then all would be lost. Once again the Romans must triumph and the very
survival of Israel might be threatened.

  Chapter 15

  You have chosen to follow a dangerous man

  1. Jesus and his disciples were approaching the end of their journey to Jerusalem.

  2. They planned to spend nightfall in Jericho before ascending the slopes of Judea and finally entering the Holy City.

  3. They passed through the gates of Jericho during the early evening, to find the vendors in the market place closing their booths, while the labourers who had been toiling in the fields were wending their way home.

  4. As Jesus walked through the streets, the local people gathered around him, curious to set eyes on the stranger from Galilee.

  [xxvi]

  5. Rumours of a new prophet, possibly even the Messiah, had reached Jericho some time before Jesus appeared. Like so many devout Jews, the citizens of Jericho lived in hope that someone had finally come to rescue them from the tyranny of Rome.

  6. As Jesus progressed through the streets, some simply stopped to gaze at the man from Nazareth, while others greeted him with cries of Master, Rabbi, even Messiah, but Jesus continued on his way without responding to the exhortations of the noisy crowd.

  7. Judas left his Master to go in search of lodgings where Jesus and the other disciples might lay their heads for the night. He searched in vain, as there were no longer enough coins left in the common purse to cover such an expense, if he were also to purchase sufficient food so that they might eat.

  8. Judas returned empty-handed, to find Jesus surrounded by many new followers, as he continued his slow progress through the streets of Jericho.

  9. Suddenly, without warning, Jesus stopped. He looked up into a sycamore tree and saw, perched in its branches, Zacchaeus, the city’s chief tax collector.

  10. Zacchaeus, a corrupt man in the pay of the Romans, was despised by his fellow Jews, not only for being a sinner, but also because of his tiny stature.

  11. The startled man peered down at Jesus. A hush fell upon the crowd as they waited for Jesus to mock him. After all, the tax collector had made his fortune as a Roman lackey and was now surrounded by a hostile crowd, allowing him no visible means of escape.

  12. The crowd began to jeer, and only fell silent again when Jesus raised his hands in greeting and said: Zacchaeus, make haste and come down, for I must abide in your home tonight.

  13. Zacchaeus scrambled down from the branches of the tree and joined Jesus as he stood among the crowd.

  14. Judas looked on in disbelief as Jesus embraced a man who had been shunned by his fellow Jews, and worse, he now intended to spend the night under the man’s roof.

  15. Zacchaeus was so overcome by Jesus’ compassion that he declared to a startled crowd: Behold, Lord, the half of my possessions I give to the poor; and if I have defrauded any man, I will return it to him, fourfold.

  16. The local people greeted this offer with loud acclamation. They then allowed Zacchaeus to run on ahead to his house so that he could warn his servants that Jesus and his disciples would be guests in his home that night.

  17. Judas could not understand why his Master had commanded the rich young man to part with all his goods and distribute his wealth among the poor, while allowing Zacchaeus to retain half of his wealth.

  18. Peter could offer no explanation, and was also puzzled as to why Jesus was willing to rest his head in the home of a man who had been banned from the Synagogue for his public sins.

  19. The crowd that engulfed Jesus was equally bemused. The majority looked on in silence, while some burst out laughing and others turned their backs on him.

  20. Jesus left them to make his way to the home of Zacchaeus, while Judas and the other disciples followed reluctantly in his wake.

  21. When Jesus first entered the tax collector’s home, he addressed the startled servants with the words: Today salvation has come to this house, since he is also a son of Abraham.

  Luke 19:2–9

  22. Judas was outraged that his Master could mention Abraham and Zacchaeus in the same breath. Was not one the father of the nation, while the other remained a despised sinner?

  23. After they had broken bread, Jesus spoke to his disciples. He warned them yet again that his time was nigh, for he was about to return to his Father, but after three days he would rise again from the dead and once more come among them.

  see Matt 26:1;

  John 13:1

  24. Judas was disheartened by Jesus’ speaking of his own death, but did not at that time press the Master for an explanation.

  25. Judas was unable to sleep that night while he remained under the roof of an impure man who owed his wealth and position to a race of disbelievers.

  26. While others slept, Judas wrestled with the multitude of problems Jesus had revisited.

  27. Since they had descended from Mount Tabor, the Master’s actions had not been those of a messianic leader intent on entering Jerusalem in triumph to claim the Davidic throne of Israel.

  28. Without an army to support him, Judas was fearful of what might happen to the Master when he finally entered the Holy City.

  29. So many of Jesus’ enemies, among them the Elders and Pharisees, would be looking for the slightest excuse to discredit him, even destroy him.

  30. Judas recalled the exhilaration he had felt when he had first joined Jesus’ band of followers. He had been overwhelmed by the authority of the Master’s teaching and proud to be numbered among the chosen twelve.

  31. But would he now have to accept that Jesus was no more than a prophet, and that the rich young man might turn out to be right when he had warned: You have chosen to follow a dangerous man, who will lead to the fall of many in Israel?

  see

  Luke 2:34

  [xxvii]

  Chapter 16

  Go your way and do likewise

  1. They could hear him long before they could see him.

  2. Blind Bartimaeus sat begging on the same street corner every day, from the moment the sun rose until it fell.

  3. As Jesus left Jericho that morning Bartimaeus’ cry differed from the one he had always uttered in the past, and Judas assumed that the Master would reject him: Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me.

  4. Peter ran ahead of Jesus, aware that the Master had instructed the disciples not to allow anyone to call him: Son of David.

  5. He ordered the beggar to hold his tongue.

  6. But Bartimaeus, aware that Jesus must therefore be close at hand, cried even louder: Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me.

  7. When Jesus heard these words, he said: Call him.

  8. Andrew came to Bartimaeus’ side, helped him up and led the blind man to Jesus. Bartimaeus fell on his knees.

  9. Jesus looked down at the blind man and said with compassion, What do you expect of me?

  10. Bartimaeus raised his head and said: Lord, let me have my sight.

  11. Jesus touched his tongue and then rubbed the spittle on Bartimaeus’ eyes, saying: Go your way, your faith has healed you.

  see

  Mark 20:30–32;

  Mark 10:47–52;

  Luke 18:38–42

  12. Judas’ heart was filled with renewed expectation. A blind beggar had called Jesus Son of David and the Master had not denied his words.

  [xxviii]

  13. Was this at last the sign that Jesus now accepted, a short time before they would enter the Holy City, that he was the Messiah and would make YHWH absolute ruler and King?

  14. A devout Scribe from Jerusalem left the Holy City to seek out Jesus, for he had heard some say that the son of a carpenter from Nazareth was the expected one, the Messiah.

  15. The Scribe travelled for a day and a night before he came across a large group of people who were following a man as he continued on his way from Jericho to Jerusalem.

  16. The Scribe approached Jesus and said: Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?

  17. Jesus smiled at the Scribe and said: What does the letter of the law demand?

  18
. The lawyer said: You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and your neighbour as yourself.

  19. Jesus said: Then do so, and you shall live.

  20. But who is my neighbour? said the lawyer, thinking he might trap him.

  21. Jesus sat down on the side of the dusty road and in answer to the Scribe said: A merchant, who was travelling on this road, was set upon by a gang of thieves, who robbed him and left him for dead.

  22. A Pharisee, seeing the man lying in the road, passed by, because he assumed the man was dead, and were he to touch him, he would himself become impure and therefore could never hope to enter the kingdom of heaven.

  23. Moments later a priest passed by. He also refused to go to the aid of the stricken man, as he feared that if the man was still alive and he touched the flowing blood, he too would become impure and therefore not be able to enter the kingdom of heaven.

  24. Some time later, a Samaritan passed by and, seeing the body lying in the road, immediately went to the merchant’s aid. He cleansed and bound the man’s wounds, and then lifted him up, placed him on his donkey and accompanied him to the nearest inn. He left the innkeeper with two pence to ensure that the man would be taken care of until he was fully recovered. And before the Samaritan left to continue on his journey, he said, ‘And whatever you need to spend, I will repay you when I next pass this way.’

  25. Jesus looked up at the Scribe and said: Which of these men would you say was his neighbour?

  26. The Scribe was annoyed, because it was Jesus who had ended up trapping him into having to admit that it was a Samaritan who turned out to be the man’s neighbour.

  see

  Luke 10:25–37

  27. Jesus rose and said: Then go your way and do likewise.

  28. Jesus continued on his way to Jerusalem, and his disciples followed him.

  29. Judas sought out the Scribe, as he could not understand why the Master would tell a parable depicting a Samaritan – the sworn enemies of the Jews – as more likely to show compassion for someone in distress than a Pharisee or a priest.

  30. Judas found the lawyer standing at the back of the crowd, seething with anger at his public humiliation in front of such simple people.