Hypocrisy: Jesus and Judas (John 13:18-35 )
By By Warren W. Wiersbe
A dark shadow now fell across the scene as Jesus dealt with Judas, the traitor. It is important to note that Judas was not a true believer; he was a hypocrite. He had never believed in Jesus (John 6:64-71 ), he had not been bathed all over (John 13:10-11 ), and he had not been among the chosen ones whom the Father gave to the Son (John 13:18 and 17:12). How close a person can come to salvation and yet be lost forever! Judas was even the treasurer of the group (John 12:6 ) and was certainly held in high regard by his fellow disciples.
At that hour, Jesus had two great concerns: to fulfill the Word of God (John 13:18-30 ) and to magnify the glory of God (John 13:31-35 ).
The Scripture Jesus quoted was Psalm 41:9 —“Yea, mine own familiar friend, in whom I trusted, which did eat of my bread, hath lifted up his heel against me.” When David wrote the psalm, he was probably referring to his counselor Ahithophel, who turned traitor and joined Absalom’s rebellion (see 2 Sam. 15-17 ). It is significant that both Judas and Ahithophel committed suicide by hanging themselves (2 Sam. 17:23 ; Matt. 27:3-10 ; Acts 1:18 ). However, Judas did not commit suicide in order to fulfill biblical prophecy, for that would make God the author of his sin. Judas was responsible for his own decisions, and those decisions fulfilled God’s Word.
Jesus was concerned that Judas’ treachery would not weaken His disciples’ faith. This is why He related it to the Word of God: when the disciples saw all of this fulfilled, it would make their faith stronger (see John 8:28 ). Judas had been disloyal, but He expected them to be loyal to Him and His cause. After all, He was God the Son sent by God the Father. They were Christ’s chosen representatives; to receive them would be the same as receiving the Father and the Son. What a privilege, to be ambassadors of the King!
The remarkable thing is that the others at the table with Jesus did not know that Judas was an unbeliever and a traitor. Up to the very hour of his treachery, Judas was protected by the Saviour whom he betrayed. Had Jesus openly revealed what He knew about Judas, it is likely that the men would have turned on him. Remember what Peter did to Malchus when soldiers came to take Jesus!
From the very beginning, Jesus knew what Judas would do (John 6:64 ), but He did not compel him to do it. Judas was exposed to the same spiritual privileges as the other disciples, yet they did him no good. The same sun that melts the ice only hardens the clay. In spite of all that our Lord said about money, and all of His warning about covetousness, Judas continued to be a thief and steal from the treasury. In spite of all our Lord’s warning about unbelief, Judas persisted in his rejection. Jesus even washed Judas’ feet! Yet his hard heart did not yield.
Jesus had spoken before about a traitor (John 6:70 ), but the disciples did not take it to heart. Now when He spoke openly about it at the table, His disciples were perplexed.
Peter signaled to John, who was the closest to Jesus at the table, and asked him to find out who the traitor was. The Lord’s reply to John was certainly not heard by all the men; in fact, they were carrying on discussions among themselves about who the traitor might be (Luke 22:23 ). When Jesus gave the bread to Judas, it was interpreted as an act of love and honor. In fact, Judas was seated at the place of honor, so our Lord’s actions were seen in that light: He was bestowing a special honor on Judas. No wonder, after Judas left the room, the disciples got into an argument over who was the greatest (Luke 22:24-30 ).
John was no doubt stunned by this revelation, but before he could say or do anything, Jesus had sent Judas on his way. Even though Satan had entered Judas, it was Jesus who was in charge. He lived on the timetable given to Him by the Father, and He wanted to fulfill what was written in the Word. Since Judas was the treasurer, it was logical for the disciples to conclude that he had been sent on a special mission by the Lord. Judas had hypocritically expressed an interest in the poor (John 12:4-6 ), so perhaps he was on an errand of mercy to help the poor.
Keep in mind that Judas knew what he was doing and that he did it deliberately. He had already met with the Jewish religious leaders and agreed to lead them to Jesus in such a way that there would not be any public disturbance (Luke 21:37-22:6 ). He heard Jesus say, “Woe unto that man by whom the Son of man is betrayed! It had been good for that man if he had not been born!” (Matt. 26:24 ) Yet, he persisted in his unbelief and treachery.
John’s little phrase “and it was night” carries a tremendous impact when you remember that light and darkness are important spiritual images in his Gospel. Jesus is the Light of the world (John 8:12 ), but Judas rejected Jesus and went out into darkness; and for Judas, it is still night! Those who do evil hate the light (John 3:18-21 ). Our Lord’s warning in John 12:25-26 went unheeded by Judas—and it goes unheeded by lost sinners today, people who will go where Judas went unless they repent and trust the Saviour.
The instant Judas was gone, the atmosphere was cleared, and Jesus began to instruct His disciples and prepare them for His crucifixion and His ultimate return to heaven. It was after Judas’ departure that He instituted the Lord’s Supper, something that Judas as an unbeliever certainly could not share. Judas was out in the night, controlled by the prince of darkness, Satan; but Jesus was in the light, sharing love and truth with His beloved disciples. What a contrast!
The theme now changes to the glory of God (John 13:31-35 ). From the human perspective, the death of Christ was a dastardly deed involving unspeakable suffering and humiliation; but from the divine perspective it was the revelation of the glory of God. “The hour is come that the Son of man should be glorified” (John 12:23 ). Twelve times in this Gospel, the title “Son of man” appears, and this one in John 12:31 is the final instance. Daniel 7:13 identifies this title as messianic, and Jesus sometimes used it this way (Matt. 26:64 ).
What did it mean for Jesus to glorify the Father? He tells us in His prayer: “I have glorified Thee on the earth; I have finished the work which Thou gavest Me to do” (John 17:4 ). This is the way all of us glorify God, by faithfully doing what He calls us to do. In our Lord’s case, the Father’s will was that the Son die for lost sinners, be raised from the dead, and then ascend to heaven. The Son glorified the Father and the Father glorified the Son (John 17:1 , 5 ).
There would come a time when the Son would be glorified in these disciples (John 17:10 ), but they could not follow Him at that time. Peter boasted that he would follow the Lord even to death (Luke 22:33 ), but unfortunately ended up denying Him three times.
Jesus had said to the Jews on two occasions that they would seek Him but not be able to find Him or follow Him (John 7:33-36 ; 8:21-24 ). Note that He did not tell His disciples that they would not be able to find Him, but He did say that to the unbelieving Jews. One day the believing disciples would go to be with Him (John 14:1-3 ), and they would also see Him after His resurrection. But during this time of His suffering and death, it was important that they not try to follow Him.
I have heard eloquent sermons about the sin of Peter who “followed afar off” (Luke 22:54 ), and the emphasis was that he should have followed nearer. The simple fact is that he should not have followed at all! The statement in John 13:33 is proof enough, and when you add Matthew 26:31 (quoted from Zech. 13:7 ) and our Lord’s words in John 18:8 , the evidence is conclusive. Because Peter disregarded this warning, he got into trouble.
The disciples’ responsibility was to love one another just as Christ had loved them. They would certainly need this love in the hours to follow, when their Master would be taken from them and their brave spokesman, Peter, would fail Him and them. In fact, all of them would fail, and the only thing that would bring them together would be their love for Christ and for each other.
The word love is used only twelve times in John 1-12 , but in John 13-21 it is used forty-four times! It is a key word in Christ’s farewell sermon to His disciples, as well as a burden in His High Priestly Prayer (John 17:26 ). The word new does not mean “new in time,” because love has been important to God’s people even from Old Testament times (see Lev. 19:18 ). It means “new in experience, fresh.” It is the opposite of “worn out.” Love would take on a new meaning and power because of the death of Christ on the cross (John 15:13 ). With the coming of the Holy Spirit, love would have a new power in their lives.
This section begins and ends with love: Jesus’ love for His own (John 13:1 ) and the disciples’ love for one another. It is love that is the true evidence that we belong to Jesus Christ. The church leader Tertullian (a.d. 155-220) quoted the pagans as saying of the Christians, “See how they love one another?” And how do we evidence that love? By doing what Jesus did: laying down our lives for the brethren (1 John 3:16 ). And the way to start is by getting down and washing one another’s feet in sacrificial service.
By Warren W. Wiersbe
