The death of Judas Iscariot, one of the original twelve disciples of Jesus, is described in the New Testament books of Matthew and Acts. There are some differences between the two accounts, leading to much debate over the centuries about how exactly Judas died.
According to Matthew 27:3-8, after Judas betrayed Jesus to the chief priests for 30 pieces of silver, he was filled with remorse when he saw that Jesus was condemned to death. Judas returned the money to the chief priests and elders and said “I have sinned by betraying innocent blood.” They responded “What is that to us? See to it yourself.” Judas then threw the money into the temple and went away and hanged himself. The chief priests, not wanting to put blood money into the temple treasury, used the money to buy a potter’s field as a burial place for foreigners. This field was called the Field of Blood.
The account in Acts 1:18-19 describes Judas’ death differently. It says Judas used the payment he received for betraying Jesus to buy a field himself. However, he fell headfirst in the field, his body burst open, and his intestines spilled out. This led the field become known as the Field of Blood, like the account in Matthew. But there is no mention of Judas hanging himself in Acts.
There have been many attempts by biblical scholars over the years to reconcile these two accounts:
- Judas hanged himself in the field he bought, and after his body decomposed and fell down, his guts spilled out.
- Judas hanged himself on a tree near a cliff at the edge of the field he bought, and the rope broke or the branch broke, and he fell headfirst onto rocks below, bursting open.
- Judas hanged himself in remorse after returning the money. The priests then took the money and bought the field and Judas was buried there, falling headfirst into the ground at some point, splitting open.
- The account in Acts combines two originally separate traditions – that Judas bought the field and that he died a sudden and violent death there. The author put them together, not intending the specifics to fit together chronologically.
- The differences are simply two conflicting traditions about Judas’ death that circulated in early Christian communities, which the authors recorded without attempting to harmonize them.
There are good arguments on each side of these various theories. Those who see the Bible as inerrant tend to favor reconciliation theories, while others accept the differences as reflecting diverse traditions. In the end, we cannot know for certain how the accounts should be harmonized, if at all. The main point, on which the writers agree, is that Judas died a dishonorable death associated with the “Field of Blood” purchased with his betrayal money.
Looking more closely at the details in each account:
The Matthew Account
Matthew’s account emphasizes Judas’ remorse and guilt:
Then when Judas, his betrayer, saw that Jesus was condemned, he changed his mind and brought back the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and the elders, saying, “I have sinned by betraying innocent blood.” (Matthew 27:3-4 ESV)
Overcome with guilt, Judas returned the money he was paid to betray Jesus and confessed he had sinned. But the religious leaders did not absolve him – instead they callously said:
“What is that to us? See to it yourself.” (Matthew 27:4 ESV)
This intensifies the tragedy of Judas. He realized the gravity of his sin and sought repentance, but was harshly rebuffed. Matthew is highlighting how corrupt and unsympathetic the Jewish leaders were.
In despair, Judas commits suicide:
So Judas, throwing the money into the temple, departed. And he went away and hanged himself. (Matthew 27:5 ESV)
He threw the betrayal money into the temple to get rid of it, seeing it as “blood money” (Matthew 27:6). Judas likely saw taking his own life as just punishment for betraying Jesus.
The chief priests, being pragmatic and corrupt, decide to use the money anyway:
But the chief priests, taking the pieces of silver, said, “It is not lawful to put them into the treasury, since it is blood money.” So they took counsel and bought with them the potter’s field as a burial place for strangers. Therefore that field has been called the Field of Blood to this day. (Matthew 27:6-8 ESV)
The priests buy a field to bury foreigners in, using Judas’ money. The field becomes known as the “Field of Blood” because it was bought with blood money. Overall, Matthew paints an unflattering picture of the temple leadership.
The Acts Account
Acts presents a briefer account without any details about Judas’ remorse or suicide:
(Now this man acquired a field with the reward of his wickedness, and falling headlong he burst open in the middle and all his bowels gushed out. And it became known to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so that the field was called in their own language Akeldama, that is, Field of Blood.) (Acts 1:18-19 ESV)
The key elements are that Judas acquired a field with his betrayal money, and died by falling in this field and bursting open. The field became known as the “Field of Blood” because it was purchased with blood money and blood was shed there.
There is no clear sequence implied – Judas could have purchased the field first then died there sometime later. The main focus is simply on his death and linking it to the Field of Blood.
Acts does not mention Judas’ remorse, confession, or suicide. It presents his death as fitting divine justice for his wicked betrayal, without any sympathy.
Key Differences
The accounts differ in several ways:
- Death method: Hanging (Matthew) vs. falling headlong (Acts)
- Sequence: Suicide in guilt, then priests buy field (Matthew). Vs. unclear sequence, just death in field he bought (Acts).
- Emphasis: Judas’ remorse and guilt (Matthew) vs. his wickedness and gory death (Acts)
- Who bought the field: The priests (Matthew) vs. Judas (Acts)
Scholars propose various explanations for these differences:
- The two accounts are complimentary, not contradictory – Judas hanged himself and later his body fell and burst open.
- They draw on different oral traditions about Judas’ death that circulated early on, which emphasized different details.
- An author altered an original version for theological reasons – e.g. to portray Judas more negatively.
- One account contains errors or embellishments that contradict the other.
There is also debate over the motivation for including these stories at all. Some theories:
- To portray Judas as deserving his horrible fate.
- To explain how Judas died and what happened to the betrayal money.
- To link Judas’ death to the Field of Blood tradition.
- To depict the corruption and hypocrisy of the Jewish leaders.
The early church viewed Judas’ death as a vital part of the passion story. But precisely how events unfolded was less important than the theological messages conveyed.
Later Traditions About Judas’ Death
Beyond what the New Testament records, other traditions about Judas’ death developed over the centuries:
- That Judas’ body was disemboweled after hanging, either by the rope breaking or being cut down.
- That Judas’ body fell onto rocks from a cliff edge after hanging, splitting open.
- That Judas hung himself at night but the branch broke and he was decapitated in his fall.
- That Judas swelled up to a huge size before bursting asunder.
These gruesome details aimed to portray Judas’ death as suitably horrific for betraying Jesus. His demise was seen as divine punishment.
The apocryphal Gospel of Nicodemus describes Satan entering Judas and his body swelling grotesquely before exploding when he hanged himself.
Later artistic depictions of Judas often envision dramatic and bloody deaths, showing his bowels and intestines gushing out.
Dante’s Inferno portrays Judas as trapped in the mouth of Satan himself, endlessly chewed on by the devil.
These violent traditions reflect the contempt early Christians held for Judas – seen as undergoing horrific suffering for his treachery.
Theological Significance
For Christians, the key lessons from Judas’ death are:
- Betrayal of Jesus leads only to despair and destruction.
- Evil actions ultimately carry negative consequences.
- God’s justice is enacted on unrepentant sinners.
- Remorse and repentance are vital when we do wrong.
- Guard against the love of money that motivated Judas.
Judas serves as a warning – his woeful end shows the results of betraying Jesus. His death fulfilled Old Testament prophecies about the Messiah being betrayed.
Some see Judas as an example of the sin of despair – taking your own life without hope in God’s mercy. His death is contrasted with Peter’s repentance after denying Jesus.
Overall, for Christians, Judas’ death is a tragic but deserved end for one who betrayed the Son of God and failed to properly repent.
Unanswered Questions
Numerous questions remain that the Bible does not answer conclusively about Judas’ death:
- Did he show genuine remorse or just despair over consequences?
- Would he have been forgiven if he repented properly?
- Did he willfully kill himself or just die accidentally in the field?
- Did the priests buy the field before or after his death?
- Were there spiritual forces driving Judas’ actions and fate?
- Could his death have been avoided or was it predetermined?
How we interpret Judas’ motives and the differences between accounts shapes our view on these questions. The Bible does not provide definitive answers.
We do not know if Judas could have repented and been redeemed. Some see him as destined for damnation, others as losing his chance at salvation in despair and guilt.
Matthew and Acts provide two perspectives on his demise but ultimately only God knows the full truth about the death of Judas Iscariot.
