Matthew 26:47  And while he yet spake, lo, Judas, one of the twelve, came, and with him a great multitude with swords and staves, from the chief priests and elders of the people.

48 Now he that betrayed him gave them a sign, saying, Whomsoever I shall kiss, that same is he: hold him fast.

49 And forthwith he came to Jesus, and said, Hail, master;and kissed him.

God used “play acting” to convey prophecy to and through the prophets. In this case in Zechariah He told Zechariah to get two staffs through which He would teach a prophetic lesson.

 

Zechariah 11:10  And I took my staff, even Beauty, and cut it asunder, that I might break my covenant which I had made with all the people.

12  And I said unto them, If ye think good, give me my price; and if not, forbear. So they weighed for my price thirty pieces of silver.

13  And the LORD said unto me, Cast it unto the potter: a goodly price that I was prised at of them. And I took the thirty pieces of silver, and cast them to the potter in the house of the LORD.

Now whom do you know that was associated with thirty pieces of silver and the potter’s field?  Furthermore, whom do you know that will make a covenant and break it  (Daniel 9:27)?

 

Daniel 9: 27  And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.

John 6:70  Jesus answered them, Have not I chosen you twelve, and one of you is a devil?

71  He spake of Judas Iscariot the son of Simon: for he it was that should betray him, being one of the twelve.

This is a simple matter of English Grammar.  As we look at verse seventy and notice the last part of the verse which says, “one of you is a devil,” we need to examine it in the light of English Grammar.  The word “one” is a pronoun and is the subject of the clause.

The word “devil” follows the linking verb “is,” and is a predicate nominative or subjective complement. The rule is that a predicate nominative renames the subject and the subject is “one.”  Jesus goes on in verse 71 and identifies that person as Judas Iscariot.

So what Jesus  is telling us is that Judas Iscariot is a devil.  The Greek word for “devil” is one of the two that is translated that way.  This one is “diablos,” the other being “daimonion,” from which we get the English word “demon.”

Now don’t get caught in the trap of trying to interpret Scripture.  Never mind what it means—what does it say?  If you just believe what it says you will have no trouble figuring out what it means.

Looking further at Judas Iscariot, we find that there are 13 letters in his name—the number of rebellion.  We discover more in John 17: 12—“While I was with them in the world, I kept them in thy name: those that thou gavest me I have kept, and none of them is lost, but the son of perdition; that the scripture might be fulfilled.”

The words “son of perdition” only occur twice in the New Testament, Once here in John 17:12 and the other in II Thessalonians 2:3.

 

“Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;”

 

In John 17:12 there is unanimous agreement that this refers to Judas Iscariot.  We would have to assume that Second Thessalonians 2:3 also refers to him.  In that verse he is also called the “man of sin,” identifying him as the Antichrist.  Furthermore, there is a close association of the word “perdition” and “Apollyon” in Revelation 9:11.  The word “perdition” is --

 

684. apoleia, ap-o'-li-a; from a presumed der. of G622; ruin or loss (phys., spiritual or eternal):--damnable (-nation), destruction, die, perdition, X perish, pernicious ways, waste.

 

The word “Apollyon”

623. Apolluon, ap-ol-loo'-ohn; act. part. of G622; a destroyer (i.e. Satan);--Apollyon.

Revelation 9:11  And they had a king over them, which is the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in the Hebrew tongue is Abaddon, but in the Greek tongue hath his name Apollyon.

 

The general  idea is that Judas went to Hell.  He did not!  Acts 1:25 tells us , “That he may take part of this ministry and apostleship, from which Judas by transgression fell, that he might go to his own place.”

Judas went to “his own place”—the bottomless pit.

If we follow this to its logical conclusion we would have to conclude that Judas Iscariot is the Antichrist and that he will come out of the bottomless pit during the tribulation.                     

 

Revelation 13:1  And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy.

2         And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority.

3   And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast.

 

Zechariah prophesied of this

  Zechariah 11:17  Woe to the idol shepherd that leaveth the flock! the sword shall be upon his arm, and upon his right eye: his arm shall be clean dried up, and his right eye shall be utterly darkened.

 

Revelation furthers describes it

  Revelation 17:8  The beast that thou sawest was, and is not; and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition: and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder, whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the beast that was, and is not, and yet is.

This is interesting-  “the beast that was” --- past tense,  “the beast that is not” when John wrote the Book of Revelation, and “the beast that yet is” — in the bottomless pit .

I urge you to think for yourself in this matter.  This is not the “popular” teaching about Judas, and people are often offended when they are faced with the Word of God versus tradition.  I have given you the pure Word of God — not man’s opinions.

You have to draw your own conclusion --- tradition or “what you have always been taught.”