MATTHEW 27:3-10

As believers we never walk this  journey alone! 

Never rely on yourself to judge spiritual things but on Holy Spirit who will guide you.

Faith in Jesus alone is our hope, our comfort and the only way to restore our relationship with God. 

Through a relationship with Jesus, both of these things can be true at the same time: We can walk through the gritty tunnel of affliction and not lose heart. We can face persecution and know we are not forsaken. We can be struck down by the cares of life and not be utterly destroyed (2 Corinthians 4:8-9). When we shift our perspective to an eternal one, the darkness and heaviness begin to lift. First5 

And here’s the deal: Now, we can live out the story—our story—with new self-compassionate eyes. And the profound fundamental reality, that all are beloved children of God, and that no one of us is on this journey alone. SabbathMoments 

We don’t need to know what will happen tomorrow. We only need to know that Hebrews 4:16 promises “we will find grace to help us when we need it.” Max Lucado

MATTHEW 27:3 Then Judas, His betrayer, seeing that He had been condemned, was remorseful and brought back the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders, 4 saying, “I have sinned by betraying innocent blood.” And they said, “What is that to us? You see to it!” 5 Then he threw down the pieces of silver in the temple and departed, and went and hanged himself. 6 But the chief priests took the silver pieces and said, “It is not lawful to put them into the treasury, because they are the price of blood.” 7 And they consulted together and bought with them the potter’s field, to bury strangers in. 8 Therefore that field has been called the Field of Blood to this day. 9 Then was fulfilled what was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet, saying, “And they took the thirty pieces of silver, the value of Him who was priced, whom they of the children of Israel priced, 10 and gave them for the potter’s field, as the Lord directed me.” The New King James Version

Judas felt remorse because he had not planned for this to happen; he may have betrayed Jesus in order to force Him to take action against His enemies and inaugurate His kingdom. But that was not God’s timing and plan. 

Acts 1:18 says that the death of Judas was due to a headlong fall. The likely explanation is that Judas hanged himself on a tree, only to have the rope or branch break. If the tree was over a rocky precipice, the account in Acts can be correlated with this account.

 

The religious leaders, who had no problem condemning an innocent person to death, suddenly became very scrupulous about the Law. Because of Deuteronomy 23:18, it was felt that blood money should not be used for religious purposes.

Originally this plot of ground was known as the potter’s field, a place where potters dug for clay. Consequently, it was full of holes, which would have made it easy to bury people who had no family tombs. It was purchased as a cemetery for strangers who died in Jerusalem. It is likely Gentiles were also buried there. 

This prophecy is found in Zechariah 11:12, 13; however, Matthew states that the prophecy was made by Jeremiah. The best solution to the problem seems to be that the prophecy was spoken by Jeremiah and recorded by Zechariah. A second option is that the name Jeremiah stands for the collection of prophetic writings in which Zechariah is found. It may also be that in the days of Christ, the Book of Jeremiah headed the books of the prophets. The quotation is then identified with the name of the first book in the section and not the name of the specific book within the group. The NKJV Study Bible

Recognizing his guilt in Jesus’ death sentence, Judas hangs himself. 

The plot was a burial place for Gentiles who died while in Jerusalem and its surrounding area. Gentiles could not be buried with Jews. 

The reference to the potter and 30 pieces of silver comes from Zecharias. The allusion to a business transaction appears to reflect Jeremiah 32:6–9. 

Thirty pieces of silver is also the price someone owed if their ox killed a slave. Faithlife Study Bible

Wicked men see little of the consequences of their crimes when they commit them, but they must answer for them all. In the fullest manner Judas acknowledged to the chief priests that he had sinned, and betrayed an innocent person. This was full testimony to the character of Christ; but the rulers were hardened. Casting down the money, Judas departed, and went and hanged himself, not being able to bear the terror of Divine wrath, and the anguish of despair. There is little doubt but that the death of Judas was before that of our blessed Lord. But was it nothing to them that they had thirsted after this blood, and hired Judas to betray it, and had condemned it to be shed unjustly? Thus do fools make a mock at sin. Thus many make light of Christ crucified. And it is a common instance of the deceitfulness of our hearts, to make light of our own sin by dwelling upon other people’s sins. But the judgment of God is according to truth. Many apply this passage of the buying the piece of ground, with the money Judas brought back, to signify the favour intended by the blood of Christ to strangers, and sinners of the Gentiles. It fulfilled a prophecy, Zechariah 11:12. Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary

Zechariah 11:12 Then I said to them, “If it is agreeable to you, give me my wages; and if not, refrain.” So they weighed out for my wages thirty pieces of silver.

Zechariah 11:13 And the LORD said to me, “Throw it to the potter”—that princely price they set on me. So I took the thirty pieces of silver and threw them into the house of the LORD for the potter.

Matthew 26:14 Then one of the twelve, called Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests