Did Judas Iscariot die on the cross?

Answer 1

Matthew 27:5 says that Judas threw down the silver in the Temple and went and hanged himself. The priests took the blood money and bought the potter's field, which they called the field of blood. Judas committed suicide.

Acts 1:18 says that Judas bought a field with the reward of iniquity, and fell headlong, bursting asunder and all his bowels gushed out. Because of this, the field was called the field of blood. Judas' purchase demonstrates that he had no intention of commiting suicide. He died by misadventure, not suicide.

In other words, neither Matthew nor Luke knew how Judas Iscariot died. This conclusion is supported by other discrepancies in the two stories, not just the manner of Judas' death. Matthew seems to have got his story from the Book of Zechariah. There must have been a tradition that associated his death with the field of blood. In the Jerusalem are there are a lot of cliffs with trees near the edges that are often used for suicide, people could tie a rope to a branch on the tree and jump off and hang themselves that way, sometimes the branches would break and people would just fall to the bottom of the cliff, this is probably what happened to Judas Iscariot. Judas committed suicide by hanging. Matthew and Acts complement each other in their accounts rather than contradict. One is more general in nature while the other added more of the gruesome detail of the event.

Answer

There is also the potential issue of a mistranslated Greek word in Acts 1:18. the Greek word translated "falling headlong" is "prenes," and it is now believed, based on linguistic study of the word's usage, that it should be translated "swollen up." So it is also plausible that after hanging himself, Judas hung there so long that his body began to decompose and swelled up to the point where his internal organs burst open in the midsection area. This, again, is also not implausible or impossible. Thus, the passages are easily harmonized when all the facts are taken into consideration.

While some may attempt to rationalize away these facts by irrationally dismissing them without offering any linguistic evidential support, the fact remains that if indeed the Greek word "prenes" has been mistranslated, this changes the understanding of what happened to Judas' body. There is no need to suggest a "fall" from the hanging if the word "fall" is not part of the actual text. Thus, Judas simply hung there and decomposed (Matthew 27:5) until parts of his body burst open (Acts 1:18), which, again, is completely consistent with the scientific facts we know.

Sometimes the facts support "both...and" propositions, not "either...or" propositions. For example, Matthew 27:7 clearly speaks of how the priests physically, literally bought the land, using the Greek word "agorazo" meaning to buy or sell in the marketplace.

In Acts 1:18, however, we clearly do not have Judas physically, literally buying a field according to the use of a different Greek word for the purchase ("ektesato," from "ktaomai," meaning to acquire, get, possess), and according to the contextual facts. Since it should be quite evident that people do not literally purchase land with "the wages of iniquity" or "reward of unrighteousness" (ἐκ τοῦ μισθοῦ τῆς ἀδικίας), we know that Judas' "purchase" was not meant to be taken as a literal business transaction. Thus we logically can conclude that there is an oriental or Semitic play on words, where we have the priests making a literal purchase, but Judas making a figurative or metaphorical purchase by his sin (the "wages" of unrighteousness) of betraying the innocent blood of Jesus.

So there is no contradiction here, except in the minds of those who simply refuse to do adequate and thorough research into the issues to understand what the texts are saying. So there is no valid "either...or" situation in these texts. It is a "both...and" situation that can easily be seen by those who do not have some agenda to do eisegesis by reading contradictions and incompatible claims into the texts. While many are unwilling to accept that The Bible can ever contain inconsistencies or contradictions, the two stories of the death of Judas comprise one such example.

Answer

Matthew 27:5 says that Judas threw down the silver in the Temple and went and hanged himself. The priests took the blood money and bought the potter's field, which they called the field of blood, because it was blood money.

Acts 1:18 says that Judas bought a field with the reward of iniquity, and fell headlong, bursting asunder and all his bowels gushed out. In this account, the field was called the "field of blood" because of Judas' misadventure.

The two stories are entirely incompatible: either the priests bought the land or Judas did; either Judas hanged himself or he fell headlong. Some attempt to harmonise the two stories to a limited extent by saying that Judas must have chosen a tree branch just strong enough to hold his weight, but that after death his increased "dead weight" broke the branch and his body fell, bursting asunder. Of course, the notion of an increased "dead weight" defies the laws of physics, but for some this is at least an argument. Others argue that those who interpret the passages according to the ordinary meaning of the words are guilty of failing to study the scriptures. Attempts to redefine the Greek word, prēnēs as meaning "swollen" make no difference to the actual meaning of the sentence in Acts. It is mere speculation to take this a step further and say that (after a few days) Judas' body might just have fallen from the tree and that Luke chose not to mention the hanging.

Answer

Scripture tells us that Judas Iscariot felt remorse about betraying Our Lord so he hung himself from a tree.

Answer 2

A:There are two diammetrically opposed narratives in the New Testament as to how and why Judas died.

Matthew 27:3-5 says that Judas repented of what he had done and took the thirty pieces of silver back to the Temple and cast them down at the priests. He then went away and hanged himself. We do not know where this took place - it could have been from a beam in the house where he lived, or it could have been from a tree outside Jerusalem.

In Acts of the Apostles, at Acts 1:19, Judas was no doubt pleased to be suddenly rich, and purchased a field with the money he had received. Unfortunately for him, he fell down and died, his bowels gushing out. This misadventure was in the field he bought, as it was for this reason then called the field of blood, but we simply do not know where it was.

Some have attempted to harmonise the two accounts, seeking to avoid contradictions in the Bible, but these attempts have so far been unsuccessful. We are left with two different ways in which Judas died, in two different locations, neither of which we can identify.

Answer 3

While many are unwilling to accept that the Bible can ever contain inconsistencies or contradictions, the two stories of the death of Judas comprise one such example.

Matthew 27:5 says that Judas threw down the silver in the Temple and went and hanged himself. The priests took the blood money and bought the potter's field, which they called the field of blood, because it was blood money.

Acts 1:18 says that Judas bought a field with the reward of iniquity, and fell headlong, bursting asunder and all his bowels gushed out. In this account, the field was called the "field of blood" because of Judas' misadventure.

The two stories are entirely incompatible: either the priests bought the land or Judas did; either Judas hanged himself or he fell headlong. Some attempt to harmonise the two stories to a limited extent by saying that Judas must have chosen a tree branch just strong enough to hold his weight, but that after death his increased "dead weight" broke the branch and his body fell, bursting asunder. Of course, the notion of an increased "dead weight" defies the laws of physics, but for some this is at least an argument. Others argue that those who interpret the passages according to the ordinary meaning of the words are guilty of failing to study the scriptures. Attempts to redefine the Greek word, prēnēs as meaning "swollen" make no difference to the actual meaning of the sentence in Acts. It is mere speculation to take this a step further and say that (after a few days) Judas' body might just have fallen from the tree and that Luke chose not to mention the hanging.

Answer 4

Much careful study reveals there is no contradiction between Matthew 27:5-8 and Acts 1:18,19. In summary, we first note that Judas was the treasurer for the apostles. The “reward of iniquity” was money he stole from the treasury and was not the same as “the pieces of silver” cast down in the temple. Despite both being called “the field of blood”, “the potter's field” bought with "the price of blood" by the chief priests "to bury strangers in" was distinctly different than the property purchased by Judas, “Aceldama” (where Judas spilled his own blood). When Judas hanged himself, it was also described as "falling headlong" and was similar to a military man falling on his sword and did not involve a rope around his neck as in western culture.

archive.org/details/bibletellsmeso01wier/page/150/mode/2up

Judas took his own life by falling and suspending himself on a stake and the fact that “all his bowels gushed out” was because his abdomen was punctured by doing this.

And he cast down the pieces of silver in the temple, and departed, and went and hanged himself. And the chief priests took the silver pieces, and said, It is not lawful for to put them into the treasury, because it is the price of blood. And they took counsel, and bought with them the potter's field, to bury strangers in. Wherefore that field was called, The field of blood, unto this day. Matthew 27:5-8

Now this man purchased a field with the reward of iniquity; and falling headlong, he burst asunder in the midst, and all his bowels gushed out. And it was known unto all the dwellers at Jerusalem; insomuch as that field is called in their proper tongue, Aceldama, that is to say, The field of blood. Acts 1:18,19

Answer 5

Matthew tells us that sometime after Jesus was sentenced to death, Judas took his own life.

Then Judas, which had betrayed him, when he saw that he was condemned, repented himself, and brought again the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders, And he cast down the pieces of silver in the temple, and departed, and went and hanged himself. Matthew 27:3,5

Related scripture describing the same time period indicates that our minds have mistakenly read the word “immediately” into this verse as if it reads, “and [immediately] went and hanged himself.”

By disregarding this assumption, we conclude that Judas was present when Jesus appeared in his resurrected body.

And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures: And that he was seen of Cephas, then of the twelve: I Corinthians 15:4,5

Judas was also present on the day of the ascension, right up until the time Jesus was taken up.

…that he through the Holy Ghost had given commandments unto the apostles whom he had chosen: To whom also he shewed himself alive after his passion by many infallible proofs, being seen of them forty days, and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God: And, being assembled together with them… Acts 1:2-4

Since Judas was from Iscar and not Galilee, his absence was first noted immediately after the ascension.

Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven… Acts 1:11

By the day of Pentecost (ten days later) Judas had taken his life and was replaced by Matthias.

And they gave forth their lots; and the lot fell upon Matthias; and he was numbered with the eleven apostles. Acts 1:26

Answer 6

Judas hung himself after Jesus was crucified. The bible says he hung with a force to cause his internal organs to come out.

Answer 7

Jesus was not a disciple he had disciples.

Answer 8

he committed suicide by hanging