¹⁸ (With the payment^(A) he received for his wickedness, Judas bought a field;^(B) there he fell headlong, his body burst open and all his intestines spilled out.

³ When Judas, who had betrayed him,^(A) saw that Jesus was condemned, he was seized with remorse and returned the thirty pieces of silver^(B) to the chief priests and the elders. ⁴ “I have sinned,” he said, “for I have betrayed innocent blood.”

“What is that to us?” they replied. “That’s your responsibility.”^(C)

⁵ So Judas threw the money into the temple^(D) and left. Then he went away and hanged himself.^(E)

⁶ The chief priests picked up the coins and said, “It is against the law to put this into the treasury, since it is blood money.” ⁷ So they decided to use the money to buy the potter’s field as a burial place for foreigners. ⁸ That is why it has been called the Field of Blood^(F) to this day. ⁹ Then what was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet was fulfilled:^(G) “They took the thirty pieces of silver, the price set on him by the people of Israel, ¹⁰ and they used them to buy the potter’s field, as the Lord commanded me.”^[a](H)

Judas Agrees to Betray Jesus^(A)

¹⁴ Then one of the Twelve—the one called Judas Iscariot^(B)—went to the chief priests ¹⁵ and asked, “What are you willing to give me if I deliver him over to you?” So they counted out for him thirty pieces of silver.^(C)

¹⁵ They have left the straight way and wandered off to follow the way of Balaam^(A) son of Bezer,^[a] who loved the wages of wickedness. ¹⁶ But he was rebuked for his wrongdoing by a donkey—an animal without speech—who spoke with a human voice and restrained the prophet’s madness.^(B)

¹⁵ To one he gave five bags of gold, to another two bags, and to another one bag,^[a] each according to his ability.^(A) Then he went on his journey.

²⁰ Gehazi, the servant of Elisha the man of God, said to himself, “My master was too easy on Naaman, this Aramean, by not accepting from him what he brought. As surely as the Lord^(A) lives, I will run after him and get something from him.”

²¹ So Gehazi hurried after Naaman. When Naaman saw him running toward him, he got down from the chariot to meet him. “Is everything all right?” he asked.

²² “Everything is all right,” Gehazi answered. “My master sent me to say, ‘Two young men from the company of the prophets have just come to me from the hill country of Ephraim. Please give them a talent^[a] of silver and two sets of clothing.’”^(B)

²³ “By all means, take two talents,” said Naaman. He urged Gehazi to accept them, and then tied up the two talents of silver in two bags, with two sets of clothing. He gave them to two of his servants, and they carried them ahead of Gehazi. ²⁴ When Gehazi came to the hill, he took the things from the servants and put them away in the house. He sent the men away and they left.

²⁵ When he went in and stood before his master, Elisha asked him, “Where have you been, Gehazi?”

“Your servant didn’t go anywhere,” Gehazi answered.

²⁶ But Elisha said to him, “Was not my spirit with you when the man got down from his chariot to meet you? Is this the time^(C) to take money or to accept clothes—or olive groves and vineyards, or flocks and herds, or male and female slaves?^{(D) 27} Naaman’s leprosy^(E) will cling to you and to your descendants forever.” Then Gehazi^(F) went from Elisha’s presence and his skin was leprous—it had become as white as snow.^(G)