Every month about 6,000 people ask Google who betrayed Jesus. The truth is that Jesus was betrayed by two of His disciples: Judas and Peter.
But there are significant differences between how Peter and Judas betrayed Jesus. They didn't betray Him together. And they didn't betray Him in the same way. Their motives were different, their responses were different, and the outcomes were different. So let's examine the differences between their betrayals and discover what we can learn from their examples.
Judas, the betrayer
By the time the Gospel writers were ready to document their experiences with Jesus, enough time had passed to reflect on everything that had happened. Because of this, you can catch little glimpses of their attitudes toward Judas.
Matthew, Mark, and John—the three Gospel writers who spent time with Jesus—almost can't help themselves. They all insert personal commentary about Judas in their stories. When Matthew is introducing the disciples, he finishes with Judas, saying, ". . . and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him" (Matthew 10:4b).
John tells a story about a time when Jesus turned off many of His followers by talking about eating His flesh and drinking His blood. After most of them left, He turned to the disciples and asked if they were also going to leave. Peter wisely responded, "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and to know that you are the Holy One of God" (John 6:68–69).
John adds: "Then Jesus replied, 'Have I not chosen you, the Twelve? Yet one of you is a devil!' (He meant Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot, who, though one of the Twelve, was later to betray him)" (John 6:70–71).
The disciple adds the parenthetical point to let the reader know what he didn't realize at the time: Judas was going to be a major problem.
Judas's problematic behavior
In retrospect, the disciples probably compared notes and realized things were off with Judas from the beginning. But at the time, there was no reason not to give Judas the benefit of the doubt. But the Gospel writers demonstrate that there were always problems with Judas.
John tells us this story:
Six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus lived, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. Here a dinner was given in Jesus' honor. Martha served, while Lazarus was among those reclining at the table with him. Then Mary took about a pint of pure nard, an expensive perfume; she poured it on Jesus' feet and wiped his feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.
But one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, who was later to betray him, objected, "Why wasn't this perfume sold and the money given to the poor? It was worth a year's wages." He did not say this because he cared about the poor but because he was a thief; as keeper of the money bag, he used to help himself to what was put into it (John 12:1–6, emphasis added).
It's unlikely that the disciples knew Judas was stealing at the time. They probably all saw him do things that seemed odd, but they shrugged it off. It probably wasn't until after the crucifixion that they started trying to understand how they missed Judas's activity. Most likely, that's when they began seeing Judas's patterns.
Here Judas makes a big show about caring for the poor, but John tells us that his intention was really embezzlement.
Striking a deal with the chief priests
At some point, Judas decides to betray Jesus, and Matthew tells us that he's the one who approaches the chief priests and strikes the deal:
Then one of the Twelve—the one called Judas Iscariot—went to the chief priests and asked, "What are you willing to give me if I deliver him over to you?" So they counted out for him thirty pieces of silver. From then on Judas watched for an opportunity to hand him over (Matthew 26:14–16).
Why would he do such a thing? Some have suggested that Judas wasn't happy with how things were unfolding and wanted to force a conflict between the Temple authorities and Jesus—and if he could financially benefit from doing so, even better.
This might explain why Judas was so full of remorse when, instead of displaying His power and might, Jesus was arrested and condemned to death. This doesn't seem to be the outcome Judas expected. It also helps explain why Judas immediately went to return the money he took for betraying the Lord and went off to hang himself (Matthew 27:1–5).
We may never know how Judas justified his betrayal, but we do know that there were other factors at work. Luke's version of Judas's treachery reads this way:
Now the Festival of Unleavened Bread, called the Passover, was approaching, and the chief priests and the teachers of the law were looking for some way to get rid of Jesus, for they were afraid of the people. Then Satan entered Judas, called Iscariot, one of the Twelve. And Judas went to the chief priests and the officers of the temple guard and discussed with them how he might betray Jesus. They were delighted and agreed to give him money. He consented, and watched for an opportunity to hand Jesus over to them when no crowd was present (Luke 22:1–6, emphasis added).
Luke wants us to understand that there were supernatural forces at play here. In fact, the last time we saw Satan in Luke's Gospel, he was tempting Jesus in the desert. When Jesus passed his test, Luke tells us that, "When the devil had finished all this tempting, he left him until an opportune time" (Luke 4:13). As it turns out, Judas's character provided the opportunity the devil was looking for.
To add heartbreaking insult to injury, Judas brought the chief priests and guards into the garden. He had arranged a signal with them that they should arrest the man he greeted with a kiss. Jesus, knowing why Judas was there, remarked on this fact, "Judas, are you betraying the Son of Man with a kiss" (Luke 22:48)? Judas used this act of intimacy to entrap the Lord.
Judas, the son of perdition
When everything was said and done, Judas's reputation was lost. The other disciples never looked back at him as a misunderstood figure who required compassion. Toward the end of John's Gospel, Jesus prays to God to protect the disciples. He makes this observation:
While I was with them, I protected them and kept them safe by that name you gave me. None has been lost except the one doomed to destruction so that Scripture would be fulfilled (John 17:12, emphasis added).
In the Greek, the words translated as "the one doomed to destruction" are literally "the son of destruction" or "son of lawlessness." These are the same words Paul uses to describe the antichrist:
Don't let anyone deceive you in any way, for that day will not come until the rebellion occurs and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the man doomed to destruction (2 Thessalonians 2:3).
The use of the same language here isn’t accidental. Judas allowed himself to be used by the devil to fulfill wicked goals, and Judas will never be known as anything but a traitor.
This is much different than Peter's experience.