Shalom Lechem, Rabboni!

Along came with armed soldiers of the High Priest, Judas approached the Lord and said: “Rabboni”. As these words were said, his lips touched the Lord’s cheek. The soldiers grabbed the Lord as if like an animal to be slaughtered. The Lord endured the punches and blows given by the merciless soldiers of Caiaphas. The Lord remained calm and meek as a lamb waiting for its death as a sacrificial offering for the atonement of man’s sins.

Thirty pieces of silver, a good price for the Messiah’s head. Judas sold his Lord for just thirty pieces of silver, a lesser element than gold. He grasp so hard on the purse that contains his vanity. He won’t let go of the cheap price for the Son of God. He was succumbed by greed, envy and vain. Poor Judas, his kiss delivered the Lord into the hands of suffering, agony and death. He betrayed the Lord. But the Lord drank the cup of death and embraced His dreadful fate. While the traitor Judas was just there on the side, counting the silver coins if they are in exact quantity.

The Lord was condemned to die on the most humiliating death, was beaten with clubs, lashed with “fulcrums” and crowed with two- inch thorns. The Lord was stripped off from His garments, lifted the burdensome cross to “Golgotha” and nailed on it with an insignia that criticizes Him written in Hebrew, Greek, and Latin. On the other hand, the traitor Judas realized his flaws. His conscience began to devour him. He can’t endure living in disgrace and humiliation because he sold the Lord for mere silver coins. He began to beg for forgiveness. But it’s too late for an apology. The Lord has already been held in the arms of Hades. Alas, Judas was left desperate with nothing to do. He rushed to the field he bought called “Akeldama” or the Field of Blood, remorse from his sins, hanged himself until he bursts open and all his insides spilled out, a tragic fate for the one who sold the Lord and betrayed the Son of God.

But in some way Judas is to be honored. There were men and women who betrayed their kindred, their love or their God, but offered no remorse, no apologies, nor regrets and, held their sins with pride. Woe to them! Judas is far better than them because he learned how to regret even if it was too late. Let this be the bottom-line, traitors will suffer the same fate as of Judas, from the tribe of Iscarii, in the land of Hebron Valley unless they know how to regret or better to avoid being another Judas the Iscariot.