Matthew 25:46: “And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
This post begins a new series in The Inevitable Truth titled “Biblical Q&A.” Here, we’ll discuss issues in a question-and-answer format as interpreted by the Bible. I invite you to suggest your question by adding a comment to the Q&A series posts.
The Question
Judas betrayed Christ for thirty pieces of silver.
Assuming the silver coins paid to Judas were the commonly used Tyrian shekel or tetradrachm, and that each coin contained roughly 14 grams of silver, the total silver for all 30 pieces would have been approximately 420 grams. At a spot price of $1.01 per gram, the current value would be a measly $424. That is the sum total of what Judas received for his betrayal and eventual crucifixion of the Incarnate God-man, Jesus Christ.
However, the Gospel of Matthew 27:3-5 records that Judas felt remorse after seeing that Jesus was condemned. Approaching the chief priests and elders, he proclaimed, “I have sinned by betraying innocent blood.” When the religious leaders dismissed his concerns, Judas threw down the pieces of silver in the temple and departed, only to hang himself.
Does this mean Judas ultimately repented and went to Heaven when he died?
Our Binary Afterlife
Initially, we should establish that we are all eternal beings with a binary afterlife: eternal punishment or everlasting life. Other religions have suggested additional scenarios, including purgatory—a temporary punishment before Heaven, soul sleep, reincarnation, and even Nirvana. However, none of these options are ever mentioned in the Bible, and multiple verses express the exclusivity of Heaven and Hell.
The Bible claims, all the way back in Ecclesiastes 3:11, “…He has put eternity into man’s heart…” Daniel 12:2 states, “And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt.” Christ Himself, in Matthew 25:46, after a long dissertation concerning the final judgment, claimed, “And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
The Bible is clear: all people, when they die, will either be with God forever in Heaven or apart from God permanently in Hell.
The Gospel of Salvation
Next, it is crucial to understand how we receive everlasting life or eternal punishment. It is here that we need to comprehend the gospel. Ephesians 2:8-9 highlights that eternal life is a gift from God, obtained through grace and faith and not by merit: “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast.” Additionally, Acts 20:21 summarizes this message: “I have declared to both Jews and Greeks that they must turn to God in repentance and have faith in our Lord Jesus.”
Conversely, John 3:18 explains how we are born into the sin of Adam and condemned already, “Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.” In like manner, John 3:36 continues, “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on them.”
The Bible does not list any other prerequisites. There are no church attendance requirements, gifting minimums, or even required sacraments. Of course, out of love, those saved will show their love by obeying God’s commands, but even that was not to be difficult as 1 John 5:3 announces, “For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome.”
Yet Judas Was Chosen
We know that Judas was chosen as one of the original apostles. This was announced in John 15:16: “You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit…” Was Christ deceived? Certainly not. In John 13:18, Christ states, “I am not speaking of all of you; I know whom I have chosen. But the Scripture will be fulfilled, ‘He who ate my bread has lifted his heel against me.’” Of course, this fulfilled a prophecy concerning Judas in Psalm 41:9, which announced, “Even my close friend in whom I trusted, who ate my bread, has lifted his heel against me.” Additionally, Christ explained in John 17:12, “While I was with them, I kept them in your name, which you have given me. I have guarded them, and not one of them has been lost except the son of destruction, that the Scripture might be fulfilled.” This term, “son of destruction,” is used only one other time in the New Testament to refer to The Antichrist in 2 Thessalonians 2:3, where it warns, “Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction.”
To be “lost” as a “son of destruction” clearly indicates Judas’ eternal fate.
They also knew that Judas was a thief with ill intentions. According to John 12:6, Judas objected when Mary anointed Jesus with an expensive perfume: “He [Judas] 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.” Judas was along for the ride because he envisioned being part of an earthly kingdom, as Luke 19:11 illustrates, “As they heard these things, he proceeded to tell a parable, because he was near to Jerusalem, and because they supposed that the kingdom of God was to appear immediately.”
Indeed, Christ was fully aware of Judas’s sinful heart and repudiation. Although the other eleven apostles were “chosen” for salvation and apostleship, Judas was chosen solely for apostleship. Christ used Judas’s sinful life to facilitate His eventual sacrifice on the Cross of Calvary.
The Remorse of Judas and His Eternal Destiny
But, what of Judas’ “remorse” spoken of in Matthew 27:3, sorrow so intense that he committed suicide? The Bible even answers that in 2 Corinthians 7:10, where it explains, “For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death.” Judas’ remorse was indeed a worldly grief that produced death and was not the repentance that led to salvation when coupled with faith in Christ.
Judas’ betrayal for a measly 30 pieces of silver was followed by one last desperate act, his suicide, which only illustrated his worldly grief and was a precursor of his eternal destiny.
