John Chrysostom, On Judas's Betrayal

gaining wealth from a little money. Forgive me, the merchant of loss and perdition; forgive me, who was robbed of my reason by gold; have mercy on me, who was wickedly deceived by the Pharisees. He said none of these words, nor did he think them, but with a swifter voice he revealed the audacity of his soul, crying out: Is it I, Lord? O shameless tongue! O unyielding soul! As if ignorant, he asks about the things he has plotted, and thought to escape the notice of the sleepless eye. He carried the deceit in his soul, and with 50.718 his tongue he brought forth the word of ignorance; in his mind he wrought the betrayal, and with his mouth, as he thought, he hid the sin.

He used the same words as the other disciples, but not in the same manner; being a wolf in mind, he answered with the voice of the sheep. What then did the Savior say to him? You have said so. With a long-suffering voice he exposed the wicked one's stage-play. For he could have said to him: What are you saying, you abominable and wicked man? What are you saying, you slave of money and true partner of the devil? Do you dare to feign ignorance? Do you dare to hide what cannot be hidden? For was I not present with my divinity when you were doing evil? Did I not see you with the eye of divinity approaching the chief priests? Did I not hear you, though absent, saying, "What will you give me, and I will deliver him to you?" Do I not also know for how much you have sold him? What then? After the refutation, are you so shameless? Why do you strive to cover what you wish to do? To me all things are naked. Being able to answer thus, Christ did not speak so, but simply and with forbearance and gently: You have said so, teaching us to behave so toward our enemies.

Nevertheless, after so much attention, Judas remained sick, but not because of the physician's neglect, but because of the sick man's. For the one brought all the medicines of salvation, but the other did not wish to receive them, but knowing only the love of money, he loved gold more than Christ, and became well-disposed and faithful toward those who had hired him. And Judas, approaching, said to Christ, Hail, Rabbi, and kissed him. This is a strange manner of betrayal, coming from a kiss and a greeting. But Jesus said to him, Friend, for what are you here? Why do you bid me rejoice, when you intend to cause me pain? Why do you soothe with your word, while striking with your deed? You call me teacher, though you are not a disciple? Why do you wound the rights of love? Why do you make the symbol of peace a sign of betrayal? Whom did you imitate in doing this? Is this how you saw the prostitute before, kissing my feet? Is this how you saw the centurion kneeling? Is this how you saw the demons falling at my feet? I know who showed you the way of this deceitful kiss; the devil suggested to you the manner of this embrace, and you, persuaded by an evil counselor, fulfill his will. Friend, for what are you here? Fulfill the evil agreements you have made with the Pharisees; complete the bill of sale; sign what you have dictated; hand over him who wishes to be handed over; acquire at last, along with the money box, the purse of iniquity; make way for the thief who is about to receive through confession the rank which you lost through betrayal. Then they came and laid hands on Jesus and seized him. And that prophetic saying was fulfilled: They surrounded me like bees around a honeycomb, and they were kindled like a fire in thorns; and again, Many dogs surrounded me, fat bulls beset me round.

But O the forbearance that befits him alone! In heaven the Cherubim and the Seraphim, not daring to look upon his exceeding glory, cover their faces with their wings as with hands, and on earth, when his flesh was being held by lawless hands, he endured it. You see how long-suffering and

πλοῦτον ὀλίγων χρημάτων προϊέμενος. Συγχώρησόν μοι τῷ τῆς ζημίας καὶ τῆς ἀπωλείας ἐμπόρῳ, συγχώρησόν μοι τῷ παρὰ τοῦ χρυσοῦ κλαπέντι τὸν λογισμόν· σύγγνωθι τῷ παρὰ τῶν Φαρισαίων ἐξαπατηθέντι κακῶς. Τούτων μὲν τῶν ῥημάτων οὐκ εἶπεν οὐδὲν, οὔτε ἐνενόησεν, διὰ δὲ ταχυτέρας φωνῆς ἐδήλου τὴν τῆς ψυχῆς ἰταμότητα βοῶν· Μήτι ἐγώ εἰμι, Κύριε; Ὢ γλώττης ἀναιδοῦς! ὢ ψυχῆς ἀτεράμονος! Ὡς ἀγνοῶν ἐρωτᾷ περὶ ὧν ἡ μελέτη, καὶ λανθάνειν ἐνόμιζεν τὸν ἀκοίμητον ὀφθαλ- μόν. Ἐπὶ τῆς ψυχῆς τὸν δόλον ἐβάσταζεν, καὶ διὰ 50.718 τῆς γλώττης τὸν τῆς ἀγνοίας λόγον προέφερεν· τῇ διανοίᾳ τὴν προδοσίαν κατειργάσατο, καὶ τῷ στόματι, ὡς ἐνόμισε, τὴν ἁμαρτίαν ἔκρυπτεν.

Τοῖς ῥήμασιν ὁμοίως τοῖς ἄλλοις μαθηταῖς ἐχρήσατο, ὁμοίῳ τρόπῳ μὴ χρώμενος· λύκος ὢν τῇ γνώμῃ, ἀπεκρίνατο τῇ τῶν προβάτων φωνῇ. Τί οὖν πρὸς αὐτὸν ὁ Σωτήρ; Σὺ εἶπας. Μακροθύμῳ φωνῇ διήλεγξεν τοῦ πονηροῦ τὴν σκηνήν. Ἠδύνατο μὲν γὰρ εἰπεῖν πρὸς αὐτόν· Τί λέγεις, βδελυρὲ καὶ πονηρέ; τί λέγεις, δοῦλε χρημάτων καὶ τοῦ διαβόλου γνήσιε κοινωνέ; τολμᾷς ἄγνοιαν ὑποκρίνεσθαι; τολμᾷς κρύπτειν τὰ κρύπτεσθαι μὴ δυνάμενα; μὴ γὰρ οὐ παρήμην κακουργοῦντί σοι τῇ θεότητι; μὴ γὰρ οὐκ εἶδόν σε τῷ τῆς θεότητος ὀφθαλ-μῷ προσιόντα τοῖς ἀρχιερεῦσιν; μὴ γὰρ οὐκ ἤκουον ἀπὼν λέγοντός σου, Τί θέλετέ μοι δοῦναι, κἀγὼ ὑμῖν παραδώσω αὐτόν; μὴ γὰρ οὐκ οἶδα καὶ πόσου πέπρακας; Τί οὖν; μετὰ τὸν ἔλεγχον οὕτως ἀναισχυντεῖς; τί σκέπειν φιλονεικεῖς ἃ βούλει πράττειν; ἐμοὶ γυμνὰ τὰ πάντα. Οὕτως ἀποκριθῆναι δυνάμενος ὁ Χριστὸς οὐχ οὕτως ἐφθέγξατο, ἀλλ' ἁπλῶς καὶ ἀνεξικάκως καὶ πράως· Σὺ εἶπας· διδάσκων ἡμᾶς τοῖς ἐχθροῖς ἡμῶν οὕτω προσφέρεσθαι.

Ὅμως, μετὰ τοσαύτην περιοδείαν, ἔμεινεν Ἰούδας νοσῶν, ἀλλ' οὐ παρὰ τὴν τοῦ ἰατροῦ ἀμέλειαν, ἀλλὰ παρὰ τὴν τοῦ κάμνοντος. Ὁ μὲν γὰρ προσήγαγε πάντα τὰ τῆς σωτηρίας φάρμακα, ὁ δὲ ταῦτα οὐκ ἠθέλησε δέξασθαι, ἀλλὰ μόνην τὴν φιλαργυρίαν εἰδὼς, ἠγάπησε μᾶλλον τὸν χρυσὸν ἢ τὸν Χριστὸν, καὶ γέγονε περὶ τοὺς μισθωσαμένους εὔνους τε καὶ πιστός. Καὶ προσελθὼν Ἰούδας εἶπε τῷ Χριστῷ· Χαῖρε, Ῥαββὶ, καὶ κατεφίλησεν αὐτόν. Ξένος οὗτος προδοσίας τρόπος, ἀπὸ φιλήματος καὶ προσηγορίας ἐρχόμενος. Ὁ δὲ Ἰησοῦς εἶπεν αὐτῷ· Ἑταῖρε, ἐφ' ᾧ πάρει; τί μοι χαίρειν ἐπιτάττεις, λυπεῖν προαιρούμενος; τί τῷ ῥήματι θεραπεύεις, πλήττων τῷ πράγματι; καλεῖς διδάσκαλον, μὴ ὢν μαθητής; τί παρατιτρώσκεις τῆς ἀγάπης τὰ δίκαια; τί σημεῖον προδοσίας ποιεῖς τῆς εἰρήνης τὸ σύμβολον; τίνα μιμησάμενος τοῦτο πεποίηκας; Οὕτως εἶδες πρώην τὴν πόρνην φιλοῦσάν μου τοὺς πόδας; οὕτως ἐθεάσω γονυπετοῦντα τὸν ἑκατόνταρχον; οὕτως εἶδες τοὺς δαίμονας ὑποπίπτοντας; Οἶδα τίς σου τοῦ δολεροῦ φιλήματος ὑπέδειξε τὴν ὁδόν· ὁ διάβολος τῆς περιπτύξεως ταύτης τὸν τρόπον ὑπέθετό σοι, σὺ δὲ κακῷ συμβούλῳ πεισθεὶς, ἐκείνου τὸ βούλημα πληροῖς. Ἑταῖρε, ἐφ' ᾧ πάρει; πλήρωσον τὰς κακὰς συνθήκας ἃς πρὸς τοὺς Φαρισαίους πεποίησαι· συντέλεσον τὸ γραμματεῖον τῆς πράσεως· ὑπόγραψον ὅπερ ὑπηγόρευσας· παράδος τὸν παραδο-θῆναι βουλόμενον· κτῆσαι λοιπὸν μετὰ τοῦ γλωσσοκόμου καὶ τὸ τῆς ἀδικίας βαλάντιον· ὑποχώρησον τῷ λῃστῇ μέλλοντι διὰ τῆς ὁμολογίας λαμβάνειν τὴν τά-ξιν, ἥν σοι διὰ προδοσίας ἀπώλεσας. Τότε προσελθόντες ἐπέβαλον τὰς χεῖρας ἐπὶ τὸν Ἰησοῦν, καὶ ἐκράτησαν αὐτόν. Καὶ τὸ προφητικὸν ἐκεῖνο λόγιον πέρας ἐλάμβανεν· Ἐκύκλωσάν με ὡσεὶ μέλισσαι κηρίον, καὶ ἐξεκαύθησαν ὡς πῦρ ἐν ἀκάνθαις· καὶ πάλιν, Ἐκύκλωσάν με κύνες πολλοὶ, ταῦροι πίονες περιέσχον με.

Ἀλλ' ὢ τῆς ἀνεξικακίας τῆς μόνῳ πρεπούσης αὐτῷ! ἐν οὐρανῷ τὰ Χερουβὶμ καὶ τὰ Σεραφὶμ μὴ τολμῶντα προσβλέπειν τὴν ὑπερβάλλουσαν δόξαν, αὐτῶν ταῖς πτέρυξι καθάπερ χερσὶ καλύπτει τὰ πρόσωπα, καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς τῆς σαρκὸς αὐτοῦ κατεχομένης ὑπὸ χειρῶν ἀνόμων, ἠνείχετο. Εἴδετε ποίου μακροθύμου καὶ