JUDAS'S BETRAYAL AND THE GARDEN OF GETHSEMANE
MEMORY VERSE
Philippians 2:8, ESV
And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.
DAY 1
Matthew 26:1-5, NIrV
1 Jesus finished saying all these things. Then he said to his disciples, 2 “As you know, the Passover Feast is two days away. The Son of Man will be handed over to be nailed to a cross.”
3 Then the chief priests met with the elders of the people. They met in the palace of Caiaphas, the high priest. 4 They made plans to arrest Jesus secretly. They wanted to kill him. 5 “But not during the feast,” they said. “The people may stir up trouble.”
BIBLE STUDY
Since he was God’s Son, Jesus knew everything there is to know. He knew what other people were thinking. And he knew what would happen in the future. That's why he told his disciples, “Soon, I’ll be arrested and nailed to a cross.” Jesus knew the Jewish leaders were waiting for the perfect time to capture and kill him. Now, if I knew people were making plans to kidnap and kill me, I’d run as far away as possible. But not Jesus! He came to earth to die for our sins. Instead of running away, he stayed right where he was, even though he knew it would end up getting him nailed to a cross!
+ How could Jesus know what would happen to him in the future?
+ Why didn’t the leaders want to arrest Jesus during the Passover feast? (vs. 5)
DAY 2
John 12:1-8, NIrV
1 It was six days before the Passover Feast. Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus lived. Lazarus was the one Jesus had raised from the dead. 2 A dinner was given at Bethany to honor Jesus. Martha served the food. Lazarus was among the people at the table with Jesus. 3 Then Mary took about a pint of pure nard. It was an expensive perfume. She poured it on Jesus’ feet and wiped them with her hair. The house was filled with the sweet smell of the perfume.
4 But Judas Iscariot didn’t like what Mary did. He was one of Jesus’ disciples. Later he was going to hand Jesus over to his enemies. Judas said, 5 “Why wasn’t this perfume sold? Why wasn’t the money given to poor people? It was worth a year’s pay.” 6 He didn’t say this because he cared about the poor. He said it because he was a thief. Judas was in charge of the money bag. He used to help himself to what was in it.
7 “Leave her alone,” Jesus replied. “The perfume was meant for the day I am buried. 8 You will always have the poor among you. But you won’t always have me.”
BIBLE STUDY
Like light and dark or hot and cold, Mary and Judas were opposites. Mary was a woman who poured expensive perfume on Jesus. Then, she used her own hair like a towel to wipe Jesus' feet. This was a type of thing a servant would do for a king! Judas was one of Jesus’ twelve disciples. For years, he heard Jesus teach and saw Jesus' miracles. But Judas had a dark secret: he’d been helping himself to the money Jesus’ disciples had collected. When he saw Mary "waste" all that expensive perfume, he complained. Why? Because he wanted to sell it, then swipe it when no one was looking!
+ How much was Mary’s perfume worth? (vs. 5)
+ What had Judas been doing with the disciples’ money? (vs. 6)
DAY 3
Matthew 26:14-16, NIrV
14 One of the 12 disciples went to the chief priests. His name was Judas Iscariot. 15 He asked, “What will you give me if I hand Jesus over to you?” So they counted out 30 silver coins for him. 16 From then on, Judas watched for the right time to hand Jesus over to them.
BIBLE STUDY
Judas watched Jesus heal the blind, walk on water, and even raise a man from the dead. He listened to Jesus teach about the kingdom of God. But Judas didn't believe a single word Jesus said. Tragically, there was something Judas treasured way more than Jesus: money! For years, he secretly stole coins from Jesus and the disciples. To collect even more cash, he had a meeting with Jesus’ enemies. For 30 silver coins, he agreed to betray his friend. He would help these evil men find the perfect time to snatch Jesus. For just a bit of money, Judas helped send the Son of God to the cross!
+ What was the name of the disciple who betrayed Jesus? (vs. 14)
+ After this secret meeting, what was Judas watching and waiting for? (vs. 16)
DAY 4
Matthew 26:20-25, NIRV
20 When evening came, Jesus was at the table with his 12 disciples. 21 While they were eating, he said, “What I’m about to tell you is true. One of you will hand me over to my enemies.”
22 The disciples became very sad. One after the other, they began to say to him, “Surely you don’t mean me, Lord, do you?”
23 Jesus replied, “The one who has dipped his hand into the bowl with me will hand me over. 24 The Son of Man will go just as it is written about him. But how terrible it will be for the one who hands over the Son of Man! It would be better for him if he had not been born.”
25 Judas was the one who was going to hand him over. He said, “Surely you don’t mean me, Teacher, do you?”
Jesus answered, “You have said so.”
BIBLE STUDY
During the last supper, Jesus’ final meal before his death, he told his disciples to eat bread and drink wine. Each bite of bread was a reminder of Jesus’ body, beaten and bruised. Each sip of wine was a reminder of Jesus’ blood, spilled to pay for their sins. During that meal, Jesus said something shocking to his disciples: “One of you will betray me.” Every disciple asked Jesus the same question: “You don’t mean me, do you?” Only two people in that room knew the secret identity of his betrayer: Jesus (who knows everything) and Judas (who had made secret plans with Jesus’ enemies).
+ How could Jesus know that Judas secretly betrayed him?
+ What did Jesus say about his betrayer? (vs. 24)
DAY 5
Matthew 26:36-46, NIRV
36 Then Jesus went with his disciples to a place called Gethsemane. He said to them, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.” 37 He took Peter and the two sons of Zebedee along with him. He began to be sad and troubled. 38 Then he said to them, “My soul is very sad. I feel close to death. Stay here. Keep watch with me.”
39 He went a little farther. Then he fell with his face to the ground. He prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, take this cup of suffering away from me. But let what you want be done, not what I want.”
40 Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. “Couldn’t you men keep watch with me for one hour?” he asked Peter. 41 “Watch and pray. Then you won’t fall into sin when you are tempted. The spirit is willing, but the body is weak.”
42 Jesus went away a second time. He prayed, “My Father, is it possible for this cup to be taken away? But if I must drink it, may what you want be done.”
43 Then he came back. Again he found them sleeping. They couldn’t keep their eyes open. 44 So he left them and went away once more. For the third time he prayed the same thing.
45 Then he returned to the disciples. He said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? Look! The hour has come. The Son of Man is about to be handed over to sinners. 46 Get up! Let us go! Here comes the one who is handing me over to them!”
BIBLE STUDY
After eating his last supper, Jesus led his disciples to Gethsemane. It was a garden of olive trees. Knowing his death was near, Jesus wanted to pray. He asked his disciples to join. However, it was so late, they couldn’t stop snoozing! That night, Jesus prayed the same prayer three times. His prayer had two parts. First, he asked if it was possible for God to take away his “cup,” which stood for the punishment he would face on the cross. Second, he said, “God, do what you want, not what I want.” Jesus’ sorrowful prayers show us he was willing to go through the very worst so we could have the best.
+ How was Jesus feeling, knowing that he’d soon die on the cross? (vs. 37)
+ Read Luke 22:43-44. What extra detail does Luke tell us about that night?
DAY 6
Matthew 26:45-50, NIRV
45 Then he returned to the disciples. He said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? Look! The hour has come. The Son of Man is about to be handed over to sinners. 46 Get up! Let us go! Here comes the one who is handing me over to them!”
47 While Jesus was still speaking, Judas arrived. He was one of the 12 disciples. A large crowd was with him. They were carrying swords and clubs. The chief priests and the elders of the people had sent them. 48 Judas, who was going to hand Jesus over, had arranged a signal with them. “The one I kiss is the man,” he said. “Arrest him.” 49 So Judas went to Jesus at once. He said, “Greetings, Rabbi!” And he kissed him.
50 Jesus replied, “Friend, do what you came to do.”
Then the men stepped forward. They grabbed Jesus and arrested him.
BIBLE STUDY
In the middle of the Garden of Gethsemane, in the middle of the night, Jesus asked the same thing three times: “Is it possible to not have to face the punishment of the cross?” But each time he asked, he also added, “God my Father, let what you want be done, not what I want.” Jesus knew he had not come to earth for a lazy vacation; he’d come on a deadly rescue mission!
The moment Jesus finished praying, Judas the betrayer showed up. And he wasn’t alone either. He brought with him a crowd carrying swords and clubs! They all had the same goal: to find and capture Jesus. Judas had been Jesus’ disciple and friend. But here he was, ready to lead Jesus right into the waiting claws of his enemies!
Before that could happen, Judas needed to let his men know which person in the garden was Jesus. It was hard to see in the dark of the night. And when Jesus lived, you couldn’t show your men a photo of what he looked like on your electronic device. So Judas prepared a secret signal: “the one I kiss, that one is Jesus!” That may seem weird, but in Judas’ country, greeting someone with a kiss was sort of like shaking their hand.
So that’s what Judas did. He marched over to Jesus and greeted him with a kiss hello. With that, his men knew exactly who to arrest. If Jesus or his disciples decided to put up a fight, Judas’ men were prepared, swords and clubs ready for battle!
Still, Jesus was the mighty Son of God. With a few words, he once stopped a raging storm and calmed the sea. A million soldiers with a million clubs would not stand a chance against him in battle. And yet, Jesus just stood there. He let Judas’ men arrest him. Though he didn’t deserve to be arrested, he just let them tie him up. He could have swatted them all away like mosquitoes, but he gave himself up without a fight.
You might be wondering, “Jesus, why didn’t you do anything? Why did you just give up?” I bet his disciples wondered the same thing! Well, what’s the answer?
Jesus left his Father’s side in heaven and came to earth for one reason: to save God’s people from their sins. To do that, he had to be nailed to a cross and die in our place. He let himself be arrested so that these evil men could kill him... and he could finish his mission!
He could have destroyed the mob with his hands tied behind his back. Instead, he did absolutely nothing! And doing absolutely nothing was one of the bravest things anyone has ever done. Because Jesus didn’t do anything to save himself, he saved everyone else. Though he knew the horrific pain that was headed his way, he also knew what would happen on the third day – he would rise from the dead!
+ How did Judas let the crowd know which man was Jesus? (vs. 48)
+ Why didn’t Jesus do anything to save himself?
© 2023 Andrew Doane. All rights reserved.