seekeroftruth
Well-Known Member
John 13:18 “I am not referring to all of you; I know those I have chosen. But this is to fulfill this passage of Scripture: ‘He who shared my bread has turned[a] against me.’[b]
19 “I am telling you now before it happens, so that when it does happen you will believe that I am who I am. 20 Very truly I tell you, whoever accepts anyone I send accepts me; and whoever accepts me accepts the one who sent me.”
21 After he had said this, Jesus was troubled in spirit and testified, “Very truly I tell you, one of you is going to betray me.”
22 His disciples stared at one another, at a loss to know which of them he meant. 23 One of them, the disciple whom Jesus loved, was reclining next to him. 24 Simon Peter motioned to this disciple and said, “Ask him which one he means.”
25 Leaning back against Jesus, he asked him, “Lord, who is it?”
26 Jesus answered, “It is the one to whom I will give this piece of bread when I have dipped it in the dish.” Then, dipping the piece of bread, he gave it to Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot. 27 As soon as Judas took the bread, Satan entered into him.
So Jesus told him, “What you are about to do, do quickly.” 28 But no one at the meal understood why Jesus said this to him. 29 Since Judas had charge of the money, some thought Jesus was telling him to buy what was needed for the festival, or to give something to the poor. 30 As soon as Judas had taken the bread, he went out. And it was night.
a. John 13:18 Greek has lifted up his heelb. John 13:18 Psalm 41:9
OK.... the commentaries talk a lot about how the disciples were "seated" for the Passover feast. But the easy English site seems to paint a better picture.
At the Passover, the Jews did not sit at the table for the special meal. They lay on couches (long seats) next to the table. This was a Roman custom. But slaves always sat or stood to eat. So, at the Passover, this custom reminded the Jews that they were not still slaves. God freed their ancestors at the time of Moses. And that was the meaning of the Passover.
This disciple was leaning by Jesus on the couch (long seat). Because of his position close to Jesus, this disciple was able to whisper to him. The other disciples could not hear their conversation.
This reminds me of a bunch of men laying around on sofas and in easy chairs watch the ball game on Super Bowl Sunday... sharing a big bowl of Super Bowl Sunday dip on Bagel Chips..... Peter would have leaned over to John while John was taking a bit of dip and whispered his question... and John would have done the same when it while Jesus was taking a chip and dipping it.... to which Jesus said "the guy I had this chip to".... and Jesus offers Judas a bagel chip loaded with dip. That's what comes to mind when I read this passage and the commentary... a Super Bowl Party with guys laying around.
So.... John is the disciple that "Jesus loved". He was next to Jesus at the table.... Peter was near John apparently. So when Jesus started talking about someone in their number betraying Him.... Peter wanted the inside scoop so he leaned over and spoke to John who spoke to Jesus for him.... they were trying to be discreet.
OK.... Jesus knew it was Judas who would be the one who went to the Pharisees. This was part of the plan. From the very beginning.... Judas was there because he would do that sort of thing.
Let me go back to the beginning again.... while Jesus was still in Heaven watching His Father carve out the disciples... counting the number of hairs to go on their heads..... it was Judas that God pointed out. Judas was a bookkeeper and a thief. Judas handled the coin purse and every now and then he would drop a coin into his own pocket. So Judas was a thief.... Jesus knew that.... that's why He made Judas a disciple... it was all planned in Heaven before He got here. He knew who and when for every step. I have noticed that Jesus is never surprised by anything that is going on.
In the same commentary... I found this note. One of the people on Southern Maryland Online really likes to keep track of the time.... so this is for you.
Nightfall was also important for another reason. Jewish festivals begin at nightfall. So at this moment, the Passover began.
Passover... is the festival the descendants of Jacob [Israel] use to remember the night the Angel of Death went all over Egypt killing the firstborn of anyone who didn't have the blood of one of their lambs painted on the door. All the "first born" died that night..... even the first born of the sheep.... oxen.... and sons.... Pharaoh's son died that night. The reason the Angel of Death had to work that night.... was Pharaoh's attitude about himself. Pharaoh thought he was a god.... and all the people in the world had to listen to what he said. God needed to take him down a notch or two. God had Moses meet with Pharaoh.... they grew up together... Pharaoh's family found Moses in the River and took him in. Moses told Pharaoh to let God's people go so they could worship God. Pharaoh declined. God hardened Pharaoh's heart..... and Pharaoh's son died that night.Now God has hardened the heart of Judas. Judas showed the signs all along.... who would steal from the offering plate? Judas. Who would lie to cover it up? Judas. So who would be chosen to betray Jesus rather than let anyone know just how much money they had pilfered from the offering plate? Judas. Jesus knew it. According to some of the commentary, Judas was sad about it.... but Judas was trapped by his addiction to money. He worshipped a different god than the other disciples. Judas was an idol worshipper. He loved his little coins.
Jesus was on a strict timeline now. He has to be in the tomb for at least three days.... The experiment with Lazarus was a success....but Jesus had to stay on the timeline. Judas had to betray Him tonight.... to begin the recycle of Passover.... when Jesus "God's Only Begotten Son" deals with the Angel of Death.
God told Adam and Eve He would fix this mess they made. God told Adam and Eve they would die... and they did.... deader than a maple leaf three years after it falls from the tree. God told Adam and Eve He would send someone to deal with that viper who talked Eve into doing what she was told not to do. God put everything in motion.... the plan was set.... Jesus is about to be betrayed by Judas.... and the arrest, hearings, trials, beatings, insults, crucifixion, and the tomb were waiting. Jesus was well aware that all this was going to happen.
Jesus was about to endure all this mistreatment as a human.... not God... a human..... so when God goes to judge someone... Jesus can honestly say "I know how he feels, Dad. He was afraid or He was in pain or He just could not take another second". Jesus would know how I felt when I did such and such... because Jesus became a human... like me. Once Jesus gets done with the "experience" then He will get to go back home to Heaven.... so even though I'm sure He was dreading what He was about to go through.... He was willing to get on with it... He needed to be in the Tomb for three days and this Passover/Sabbath was just the ticket to buy Him enough time to clean up the sin=death situation.
What kind of human would steal from the poor? Judas That's what he did. Jesus knew Judas would be the perfect slug for the job. Judas was a thief and a liar.... and for that... to save his own skin.... . Judas would become a perfect snitch.
