His name? His name was Judas Iscariot.
"What will you give me," Judas said, "if I turn Jesus over to you?"
The priests and rulers could hardly believe their ears.
"Thirty pieces of silver you shall have," they cried, "if you give us Jesus!"
So for thirty pieces of silver Judas agreed to show them where Jesus was, at some time when there was no one around but the twelve disciples.
"Send soldiers when I tell you," Judas said. "The other disciples will all be there, and the soldiers won"t know which man to take. But I will go up to Jesus and kiss him. The man I kiss will be the one you want."
Some dark night soon, a quiet place with no one around to see--and n.o.body would have to worry about Jesus of Nazareth any more!
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13. The Last Night
It was Thursday. On Friday afternoon the lambs would be killed for the Pa.s.sover, and on Friday evening all good Jews would sit down to eat the lambs at the Pa.s.sover feast. The disciples wondered where Jesus was planning to celebrate the feast with them.
But Jesus did not wait until Friday to have a meal with all his disciples. On Thursday he sent two of them into Jerusalem from Bethany. He told them the name of the man to whom they were to go.
"Go to this man," said Jesus, "and tell him that I said the time has come. He will show you where we are going to have supper tonight. Then you can get the supper ready."
That evening Jesus and the twelve disciples met together at the house in Jerusalem. On the second floor there was a room, where food was spread upon the table.
As they were eating supper, Jesus suddenly spoke.
"One of you is a traitor!"
[Ill.u.s.tration]
Everyone stopped eating. And each one of the twelve disciples thought of his own sins. Each one wondered if he were loyal enough to Jesus.
Each one cried out:
"Master, is it I?"
Jesus only answered:
"It is one of you twelve men, eating with me now. It would have been better for that traitor if he had never been born!"
A moment later Judas Iscariot slipped quietly out of the door. The other disciples did not know where he had gone.
Jesus spoke again: "I wanted so much to eat the Pa.s.sover feast with you this year, before I suffer. But I shall not eat it again with you until a better day, when we shall all be together once more."
He took up a piece of bread, and said a prayer of thanks to G.o.d. Then he broke the bread, and pa.s.sed the pieces among the disciples--only eleven of them now. He said words that they did not understand.
"Take and eat this. This is my body."
He took a cup of wine, and once more he gave thanks. Then he pa.s.sed the cup among the disciples, saying:
"Drink--all of you--drink of this wine. It is my blood, which I am going to shed so that the sins of many people may be forgiven. And in the days to come, do this same thing often, always remembering me."
Then they sang a hymn together and walked out into the night air and went up the Mount of Olives.
As they walked, Jesus said to the disciples:
"You will all desert me tonight. For it is written in the Scriptures that when something happens to the shepherd the sheep will go away in all directions. However, I shall meet you again."
Peter spoke up, and said bravely,
"Even if everyone else deserts you, I will not!"
Jesus answered: "Before the rooster crows at sunrise to tell you that morning has come, you will have said three times that you do not even know me."
But Peter cried out that even if he died for it he would be true to Jesus. And all the other disciples said the same.
Presently they came to a grove called Gethsemane. It was late. Jesus said to the disciples,
"Sit here, while I go and pray."
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He took only Peter and James and John with him, and went a little way apart from the rest. To the three disciples he said:
"I am greatly troubled. I do not know how I can bear it any longer.
Wait here, and stay awake with me."
Going a few steps farther on, Jesus fell on his knees and began to pray aloud:
"O my Father, if it is possible, take this cup away; do not let these things happen to me! Yet not my will, but thine, be done."
When he had prayed this way, he came back to Peter and James and John.
All three were fast asleep. Jesus woke Peter up, and said:
"What! Couldn"t you stay with me for one short hour? Stay awake and pray. Pray for yourselves. You are going to need strength. You are not so strong as you want to be."
He left them again, and once more he fell on his knees and prayed,
"O my Father, if I must suffer these things, thy will be done."
When he returned, the disciples again were sleeping. They were too tired to stay awake.
A third time he went apart from them and prayed. He prayed in the same words he had used before. And suddenly he began to feel stronger. He rose from his knees at last, and came back to the disciples. His voice broke in upon their sleep: "Are you still sleeping? Well, you"ve slept long enough! My time is up. I am going to be turned over to sinners now! Get up! Look, the traitor is coming!"
While he was still speaking, a crowd of soldiers carrying swords and clubs burst into the grove. Judas Iscariot was leading them. Judas ran to Jesus and kissed him, saying,