Judas Agrees to Betray Jesus(A)

22 Now the Festival of Unleavened Bread, called the Passover, was approaching,(B) and the chief priests and the teachers of the law were looking for some way to get rid of Jesus,(C) for they were afraid of the people. Then Satan(D) entered Judas, called Iscariot,(E) one of the Twelve. And Judas went to the chief priests and the officers of the temple guard(F) and discussed with them how he might betray Jesus. They were delighted and agreed to give him money.(G) He consented, and watched for an opportunity to hand Jesus over to them when no crowd was present.

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Judas’ Decision to Betray Jesus

22 Now the Feast of Unleavened Bread,[a] which is called the Passover, was approaching. The[b] chief priests and the experts in the law[c] were trying to find some way[d] to execute[e] Jesus,[f] for they were afraid of the people.[g]

Then[h] Satan[i] entered Judas, the one called Iscariot, who was one of the twelve.[j] He went away and discussed with the chief priests and officers of the temple guard[k] how he might[l] betray Jesus,[m] handing him over to them.[n] They[o] were delighted[p] and arranged to give him money.[q] So[r] Judas[s] agreed and began looking for an opportunity to betray Jesus[t] when no crowd was present.[u]

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Footnotes

  1. Luke 22:1 sn The Feast of Unleavened Bread was a week long celebration that followed the day of Passover, so one name was used for both feasts (Exod 12:1-20; 23:15; 34:18; Deut 16:1-8).
  2. Luke 22:2 tn Grk “And the.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
  3. Luke 22:2 tn Or “and the scribes.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 5:21.
  4. Luke 22:2 tn Grk “were seeking how.”
  5. Luke 22:2 tn The Greek verb here means “to get rid of by execution” (BDAG 64 s.v. ἀναιρέω 2; cf. also L&N 20.71, which states, “to get rid of someone by execution, often with legal or quasi-legal procedures”).
  6. Luke 22:2 tn Grk “him”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  7. Luke 22:2 sn The suggestion here is that Jesus was too popular to openly arrest him. The verb were trying is imperfect. It suggests, in this context, that they were always considering the opportunities.
  8. Luke 22:3 tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.
  9. Luke 22:3 sn The cross is portrayed as part of the cosmic battle between Satan and God; see Luke 4:1-13; 11:14-23.
  10. Luke 22:3 tn Grk “Iscariot, being of the number of the twelve.”
  11. Luke 22:4 tn The full title στρατηγὸς τοῦ ἱεροῦ (stratēgos tou hierou; “officer of the temple” or “captain of the temple guard”) is sometimes shortened to στρατηγός as here (L&N 37.91).
  12. Luke 22:4 tn Luke uses this frequent indirect question to make his point (BDF §267.2).
  13. Luke 22:4 tn Grk “him”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  14. Luke 22:4 tn Grk “how he might hand him over to them,” in the sense of “betray him.”
  15. Luke 22:5 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
  16. Luke 22:5 sn The leaders were delighted when Judas contacted them about betraying Jesus, because it gave them the opportunity they had been looking for, and they could later claim that Jesus had been betrayed by one of his own disciples.
  17. Luke 22:5 sn Matt 26:15 states the amount of money they gave Judas was thirty pieces of silver (see also Matt 27:3-4; Zech 11:12-13).
  18. Luke 22:6 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of the arrangement worked out in the preceding verse.
  19. Luke 22:6 tn Grk “he”; the referent (Judas) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  20. Luke 22:6 tn Grk “betray him to them”; the referent of the first pronoun (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  21. Luke 22:6 tn Grk “apart from the crowd.”sn The leaders wanted to do this quietly, when no crowd was present, so no public uproar would result (cf. v. 21:38; 22:2).