Who Was Judas Iscariot

Who Was Judas Iscariot?

So, everyone knows (or should know) that Judas Iscariot was one of the Twelve Apostles. He is notorious for betraying Jesus by disclosing Jesus' whereabouts for 30 pieces of silver. Judas brought men to arrest Jesus and identified him with a kiss. Jesus was then arrested, tried, and executed. Afterwards, threw down the pieces of silver in the sanctuary, and departed. He went away and hanged himself. (Matthew 27:5)

In the Book of Acts, the Disciples got together to draw straws to see who would replace Judas Iscariot:

Wherefore of these men which have companied with us all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us,

Beginning from the baptism of John, unto that same day that he was taken up from us, must one be ordained to be a witness with us of his resurrection.

And they appointed two, Joseph called Barsabas, who was surnamed Justus, and Matthias.

And they prayed, and said, Thou, Lord, which knowest the hearts of all men, shew whether of these two thou hast chosen,

That he may take part of this ministry and apostleship, from which Judas by transgression fell, that he might go to his own place.

And they gave forth their lots; and the lot fell upon Matthias; and he was numbered with the eleven apostles. (Acts 1:21-26)

Ok, here’s a quick detour: If you notice, you never hear anything more about Matthias that was selected to be the replacement Apostle for Judas. You see, the disciples tried on their own to replace Judas by casting lots. However, Jesus selected his own Apostles. (Have I not chosen you twelve, and one of you is a devil? – John 6:70) Later, we see that Jesus selected Saul, later to be the Apostle Paul.

Ok, back to Judas.

“…that he might go to his own place.”v.25

1. This is the expression used for Laban and Absalom (Genesis 31:55; 2 Samuel 18:18) Absalom is one of the greatest types of Antichrist in either Testament (2 Sam. 15:1-6). Jacob returning from Laban is a picture of A.D. 1948-1978

2. Judas was a devil (John 6:70-71), and his title was “the son of perdition” (John 17:12). The “son of perdition” goes to perdition (Revelation 17:8) because it is “HIS OWN PLACE” (Rev. 9:11)

3. It is not just “his” in the sense of “fitting, congenial,” or “adapted to.” Judas owned the place. He was king over it (Rev. 9:11). When Peter says “his OWN place,” he is putting it out just as hard and straight as he did in Matthew 16:22 or John 13:8, and don’t you doubt it for a minute.

Judas is in the pit now (Rev. 9:11), and his spirit will come up from that pit (Rev. 17:8) as Satan comes down to enter the body of the second most prominent character in the Bible: the Son of Perdition.