Hello everyone.
Today, we will begon examining Luke 22:1-6. Here is my translation:
1 The Feast of Unleavened Bread, also called Passover, was drawing near. 2 Meanwhile, the chief priests and the scribes were searching for a way to get rid of Jesus, since they feared the people.3 Satan entered Judas, called Iscariot, who was one of the Twelve. 4 He had left to talk it over with the chief priests and officers of the temple guard about how he could hand Jesus over to them. 5 They were happy and agreed to give Judas money. 6 He consented and searched for an opportunity to hand Jesus over when he was not among a crowd of people.
The time for the Passover is getting close, so it is nearly time to celebrate this sacred Jewish holiday. This is the setting for all that is about to happen. As I am sure you are aware, the Passover celebrates Israel’s deliverance out of Egyptian slavery as God’s chosen people. So, pilgrims went to Jerusalem in large numbers to observe this holiday. Jesus has come to Jerusalem to complete his work, and the city was packed with people.
At the same time, the religious leaders in Jerusalem are diligently searching for a way to get rid of Jesus. Darrell Bock points out that the tense of the Greek word here ἐζήτουν. (ezētoun) would indicate that they were on a constant watch for some opportunity to seize Jesus. (Bock, 1703.) He has become a threat to their faith and their way of life. Plus, he is constantly outsmarting them. He gives deeply profound answers to their questions that are intended to trap him, and then gives them questions that they can’t answer. Every trap that they have put out for him has failed. They want very badly to rid themselves of Jesus, but they can’t do it openly because of his popularity and the volume of the crowds in Jerusalem for the Passover.
Finally, the religious leaders get their golden opportunity when one of Jesus’ disciples, Judas, offers to betray him. Luke records that Satan entered Judas, and he sneaks off to make this deal with Jesus’ enemies. Satan has not been mentioned specifically in Luke since the temptation in Luke 4. There, it says that Satan leaves Jesus for another time. That time appears to be now. Bock says this, “Jesus' death is ultimately a cosmic battle of the greatest proportions. Satan is making his move.” (Bock, 1704.)
The motive for Judas’ betrayal is not quite clear. It could be simple greed, it could be disappointment that Jesus, the Messiah, has not set up a political revolution to drive out the Romans, and doesn’t seem to be willing to do so. However, Judas' betrayal leads to rejoicing among the leadership and they pay him quickly and happily. From Matthew 26:15 we get the agreed upon price of thirty pieces of silver.
The goal now becomes finding an opportunity to grab Jesus when there wasn’t a large crowd of people gathered around him. Judas has consented to this deal, and is now looking for opportunity to betray the Son of God.
Darrell Bock, Luke, Volume 2:9:51-24:53, Grand Rapids, Michigan, Baker Academic, 1996.
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