John Chrysostom, On Judas's Betrayal

if that one did not pay attention, the Lord is not to blame; and the witness is the prostitute; for she, paying attention to herself, was saved. Therefore, do not despair of yourself, looking to the prostitute; nor trust in yourself, looking to Judas. For both of these are destructive, both trusting and despairing; for trusting makes the one who is standing fall, while despairing does not permit the one who is lying down to rise. For this reason Paul advised, saying: He who thinks he stands, let him take heed 49.376 lest he fall. You have the examples of both, how the disciple, thinking he stood, fell; and how the prostitute, lying down, arose. Our mind is prone to slip, our will is easily overturned; for this reason it is necessary to secure and fortify ourselves on all sides. Then one of the twelve, Judas Iscariot, went. Do you see from what a choir he fell? do you see what teaching he despised? do you see how great an evil is carelessness and negligence? Judas who is called Iscariot. Why do you tell me his city? Would that I did not know this man! Judas who is called Iscariot. For what reason do you mention his city? There was another disciple, Judas, called the Zealot. Therefore, so that there would be no confusion because of the same name, he distinguished this one from that one, and named that one from his virtue, Judas the Zealot; but this one he did not name from his vice; for he did not say, Judas the traitor. And yet it was fitting, just as he called that one by his virtue, so also to address this one by his vice, and to say, Judas the traitor; but in order to teach you to keep your tongue clean of accusation, he spares even the traitor himself. For, he says, one of the twelve, Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests, and said to them: What are you willing to give me, and I will deliver him to you? O that polluted voice! And how did it leap from his mouth? how did he move his tongue? how did his whole body not grow numb? how did his mind not become distraught?

3. What are you willing to give me, and I will deliver him to you? Did Christ teach you these things, tell me? Was it not for this reason He said, Do not possess gold, nor silver, nor bronze in your belts, from the beginning checking the occasion for your avarice? Did He not continually advise these things, and with them say, If anyone slaps you on your right cheek, turn to him the other also? What are you willing to give me, and I will deliver him to you? O, the madness! In return for what, tell me? what accusation, small or great, do you have, that you betray the Teacher? that he gave you authority over demons? that he made you able to heal diseases? to cleanse lepers? to raise the dead? that he set you over the tyranny of death? In return for these benefactions do you give these rewards? What are you willing to give me, and I will deliver. him to you? O, the madness! Or rather, O, the avarice! For it was that which gave birth to all evils; having desired it, he betrayed the Teacher. For such is that wicked root, it maddens the souls it captures worse than a demon, and makes them ignorant of all things, of themselves and their neighbors and the laws of nature, and drives them out of their minds and makes them crazed. For see how many things it cast out from the soul of Judas: conversation, intimacy, fellowship at table, the miracles, the teaching, the exhortation, the admonition; avarice then cast all these things into oblivion. For this reason Paul fittingly said, that the love of money is the root of all evils. -What are you willing to give me, and I will deliver him to you. Great is the madness of the saying. You betray, tell me, the one who holds all things, who has authority over demons, who commands the sea, the Master of all nature? Therefore, to quell his madness, and to show that if He had not willed it, He would not have been betrayed, hear what He does. At the very time of the betrayal, when they came upon him, having 49.377 clubs and torches and light, He says to them: Whom do you seek? and they did not know whom they were about to seize. So far was Judas from being able to betray him, that he did not even see him present, whom he was about to betray, and this though there were torches

μὴ προσεῖχεν ἐκεῖνος, οὐχ ὁ Κύριος αἴτιος· καὶ μάρτυς ἡ πόρνη· αὕτη γὰρ προσέχουσα ἑαυτῇ ἐσώθη. Μὴ τοίνυν ἀπογνῷς σεαυτοῦ, πρὸς τὴν πόρνην ἀπιδών· μηδὲ θαῤῥήσῃς σεαυτῷ, πρὸς τὸν Ἰούδαν ἰδών. Ἀμφότερα γὰρ ταῦτα ὀλέθρια, καὶ τὸ θαῤῥεῖν, καὶ τὸ ἀπογινώσκειν· τὸ μὲν γὰρ θαῤῥεῖν τὸν ἑστηκότα ποιεῖ πεσεῖν, τὸ δὲ ἀπογινώσκειν τὸν κείμενον οὐκ ἀφίησιν ἀναστῆναι. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο ὁ Παῦλος παρῄνει λέγων· Ὁ δοκῶν ἑστάναι, βλεπέτω 49.376 μὴ πέσῃ. Ἔχεις ἀμφοτέρων τὰ παραδείγματα, πῶς ὁ μαθητὴς δοκῶν ἑστάναι, ἔπεσε· καὶ πῶς ἡ πόρνη κειμένη, ἀνέστη. Εὐόλισθον ἡμῶν ἡ γνώμη, εὐπερίτρεπτον ἡ προαίρεσις· διὰ τοῦτο ἑαυτοὺς πανταχόθεν ἀσφαλίζεσθαι καὶ τειχίζεσθαι χρή. Τότε πορευθεὶς εἷς τῶν δώδεκα, Ἰούδας Ἰσκαριώτης. Ὁρᾷς ἀπὸποίου χοροῦ ἐξέπεσεν; ὁρᾷς ποίας διδασκαλίας κατεφρόνησεν; ὁρᾷς ὅσον κακόν ἐστιν ἡ ῥᾳθυμία καὶ ἡ ὀλιγωρία; Ἰούδας ὁ λεγόμενος Ἰσκαριώτης. Τί μοι λέγεις αὐτοῦ τὴν πόλιν; Εἴθε μὴ τοῦτον ἐγίνωσκον! Ἰούδας ὁ λεγόμενος Ἰσκαριώτης. Τίνος ἕνεκεν τὴν πόλιν αὐτοῦ λέγεις; Ἦν ἕτερος Ἰούδας μαθητὴς, ζηλωτὴς ἐπικαλούμενος. Ἵν' οὖν διὰ τῆς ὁμωνυμίας μὴ γένηταί τις πλάνη, διεῖλε τοῦτον ἀπ' ἐκείνου, καὶ ἐκεῖνον μὲν ἀπὸ τῆς ἀρετῆς ὠνόμασεν, Ἰούδας ὁ ζηλωτής· τοῦτον δὲ οὐκ ὠνόμασεν ἀπὸ τῆς κακίας· οὐ γὰρ εἶπεν, Ἰούδας ὁ προδότης. Καίτοι ἐχρῆν, ὥσπερ ἐκεῖνον ἀπὸ τῆς ἀρετῆς ἐκάλεσεν, οὕτω καὶ τοῦτον ἀπὸ τῆς κακίας προσαγορεῦσαι, καὶ εἰπεῖν, Ἰούδας ὁ προδότης· ἀλλ' ἵνα σε παιδεύσῃ καθαρὰν ἔχειν κατηγορίας τὴν γλῶτταν, καὶ αὐτοῦ τοῦ προδότου φείδεται. Πορευθεὶς γὰρ, φησὶν, εἷς τῶν δώδεκα, Ἰούδας Ἰσκαριώτης, πρὸς τοὺς ἀρχιερεῖς, εἶπεν αὐτοῖς· Τί μοι θέλετε δοῦναι, κἀγὼ ὑμῖν παραδώσω αὐτόν; Ὢ τῆς μιαρᾶς ἐκείνης φωνῆς! Καὶ πῶς ἐξεπήδησε τοῦ στόματος; πῶς ἐκίνησε τὴν γλῶσσαν; πῶς οὐκ ἐνάρκησεν ἅπαν τὸ σῶμα; πῶς οὐκ ἐξέστη ἡ διάνοια;

γʹ. Τί θέλετέ μοι δοῦναι, κἀγὼ ὑμῖν παραδώσω αὐτόν; Ταῦτά σε ἐπαίδευσεν ὁ Χριστὸς, εἰπέ μοι; οὐ διὰ τοῦτο ἔλεγε, Μὴ κτήσασθε χρυσὸν, μηδὲ ἄργυρον, μηδὲ χαλκὸν εἰς τὰς ζώνας ὑμῶν, ἄνωθεν προαναστέλλων σου τῆς φιλαργυρίας τὴν ὑπόθεσιν; οὐ ταῦτα παρῄνει διηνεκῶς καὶ μετὰ τούτων ἔλεγεν, Ἐάν τίς σε ῥαπίσῃ εἰς τὴν δεξιὰν σιαγόνα, στρέψον αὐτῷ καὶ τὴν ἄλλην; Τί θέλετέ μοι δοῦναι, κἀγὼ ὑμῖν παραδώσω αὐτόν; Ὢ τῆς ἀπονοίας! Ἀντὶ τίνος, εἰπέ μοι; τί μικρὸν ἢ μέγα ἐγκαλεῖν ἔχων, παραδίδως τὸν διδάσκαλον; ὅτι σοι παρέδωκε τῶν δαιμόνων τὴν ἐξουσίαν; ὅτι νοσήματα λύειν ἐποίησεν; ὅτι λέπρας καθαίρειν; ὅτι νεκροὺς ἀνιστᾷν; ὅτι τῇ τυραννίδι ἐπέστησε τοῦ θανάτου; ἀντὶ τούτων τῶν εὐεργεσιῶν ταύτας δίδως τὰς ἀμοιβάς; Τί θέλετέ μοι δοῦναι, κἀγὼ ὑμῖν παραδώσω. αὐτόν; Ὢ τῆς ἀπονοίας! μᾶλλον δὲ, ὢ τῆς φιλαργυρίας! πάντα γὰρ ἐκείνη ἔτεκε τὰ κακά· ἐκείνης αὐτὸς ἐπιθυμήσας, προὔδωκε τὸν διδάσκαλον. Τοιοῦτον γάρ ἐστιν ἡ πονηρὰ ῥίζα ἐκείνη, δαίμονος χαλεπώτερον τὰς ἀλούσας ἐκβακχεύει ψυχὰς, καὶ ποιεῖ πάντας ἀγνοεῖν, καὶ ἑαυτὸν καὶ τοὺς πλησίον καὶ τοὺς τῆς φύσεως νόμους, καὶ αὐτῶν ἐκβάλλει τῶν φρενῶν καὶ παραπλῆγας ἐργάζεται. Ὅρα γὰρ πόσα ἐξέβαλεν ἐκ τῆς τοῦ Ἰούδα ψυχῆς· τὴν ὁμιλίαν, τὴν συνήθειαν, τὴν κοινωνίαν τὴν ἐν τραπέζῃ, τὰ θαύματα, τὴν διδασκαλίαν, τὴν παραίνεσιν, τὴν νουθεσίαν· ταῦτα πάντα εἰς λήθην ἐνέβαλεν ἡ φιλαργυρία τότε. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο εἰκότως ὁ Παῦλος ἔλεγεν, ὅτι Ῥίζα πάντων τῶν κακῶν ἐστιν ἡ φιλαργυρία. -Τί θέλετέ μοι δοῦναι, κἀγὼ ὑμῖν παραδώσω αὐτόν. Πολλὴ ἡ ἀπόνοια τοῦ ῥήματος. Παραδίδως, εἰπέ μοι, τὸν πάντα κρατοῦντα, τὸν δαιμόνων ἐξουσιάζοντα, τῇ θαλάττῃ ἐπιτάττοντα, τὸν τῆς φύσεως ἁπάντων ∆εσπότην; Ἵν' οὖν αὐτοῦ καταστείλῃ τὴν ἀπόνοιαν, καὶ δείξῃ ὅτι εἰ μὴ ἐβούλετο, οὐκ ἂν παρεδόθη, ἄκουσον τί ποιεῖ. Κατ' αὐτὸν τὸν καιρὸν τῆς προδοσίας, ὅτε ἐπῆλθον αὐτῷ, ξύλα 49.377 ἔχοντες καὶ λαμπάδας καὶ φῶς, λέγει αὐτοῖς· Τίνα ζητεῖτε; καὶ ἠγνόουν ὃν ἤμελλον συλλαμβάνειν. Τοσοῦτον ἀπεῖχε τοῦ δυνηθῆναι παραδοῦναι αὐτὸν ὁ Ἰούδας, ὅτι οὐδὲ ἑώρα παρόντα, ὃν ἤμελλε παραδώσειν, καὶ ταῦτα λαμπάδων οὐσῶν