First of all, Zachariah 11, 10
through 13. And I took my staff, even beauty,
and cut it asunder. that I might break my covenant
which I had made with all of the people. And it was broken
in that day, and so the poor of the flock that waited upon
me knew that it was the word of the Lord. And I said unto
them, if ye think good, give me my price, and if not, forbear."
So they weighed for my price 30 pieces of silver. And the Lord said unto me, cast
it unto the potter, a goodly price that I am prized at of
them. And I took the 30 pieces of silver
and cast them to the potter, in the house of the Lord. Now in Matthew chapter 26 and
verse 14 through 16. Then one of the twelve, called
Judas Iscariot, went unto the chief priest and said unto them,
What will you give me and I will deliver him unto you. And they
coveted with him for 30 pieces of silver. And from that time,
he sought opportunity to betray him. And then in chapter 27,
and verse 3 and following. Then Judas, which had betrayed
him, when he saw that he was condemned, repented himself,
brought again the 30 pieces of silver to the chief priest and
elders, saying, I have sinned in that I have betrayed innocent
blood. And they said, what is that to
us? See thou to it. and he cast down
the pieces of silver in the temple and departed and went and hanged
himself. And the chief priest took the
silver pieces and said, it is not lawful for to put them in
the treasury because it is the price of blood. And they took
counsel and bought with them the potter's field to bury strangers
in, wherefore the field was called the field of blood unto this
day. Then was fulfilled that which
was spoken by Jeremy the prophet, saying, and they took the 30
pieces of silver, the price of him that was valued, whom they
of the children of Israel did value, and they gave them for
the potter's field as the Lord had appointed." Now we look first
of all at the prophecy in Zechariah and the overall context of Zechariah
chapter 11 in which our text is concerning the 30 pieces of
silver is a difficult and a complicated passage of the scripture couched
in imagery and not that easy to understand. but with a shepherd
or the prophet being here, a true type of the Lord as Messiah,
and begins to predict unto them, the people of that time, a great
judgment that would come upon the Jew and upon the Jewish nation. And there are some expositors
that I read who believe that the prophet speaks and acts as
a great type of the shepherd, our great shepherd, the Lord
Jesus Christ himself. When you look at chapter 11 and
4 through 14, look there in verse 4. Thus saith the Lord my God,
feed the flock, watch of the slaughter. feed the flock of
the slaughter, for they were about to bring ruin upon themselves
because of their sin and rebellion and iniquity against God, for
their rejection of the Lord's pastorship of them and oversight
and guidance of them. But Calvin wrote this about it,
now whilst to renounce all such care of them. It is as if he
is resigning as their overseer and their pastor and leaving
them or delivering them up under ruin. Here's what Calvin said,
no longer bear with their perverse wickedness, which was found in
them. And you can find that in verse
nine and verse 10 and verse 11. They are on the verge of being
abandoned under judgment. And verse 10, removing God's
restraint from the nations for the protection of Israel. And God would remove that restraint,
and then there would destruction come upon them. And the Romans,
at last, overran them and ravaged their temple and their city.
And the abomination of desolation stood in the holy place as Daniel
had predicted. Near, in verse 11, When the protective
restraint by God of the nations about them was withdrawn, then
the humble of the flock, some believe, the humble of the flock
believed it to be the fulfillment of the word of Jehovah, and they
fled the city in the face of the coming destruction. Now,
in chapter 11 and verse 12 and verse 13 that we have started
with as our principle text of the day. Do you mind if I read
it again? I said unto them, if you think
good, give me my price. If not, forbear. So they weighed
for my price 30 pieces of silver. And the Lord said unto me, cast
it unto the potter, a goodly price that I was priced of them. And I took the 30 pieces of silver
and cast them to the house of the potter." Watch, in the house
of the Lord. Now bear with me here as we try
to get our footing on this plate, for there is a difficulty here
as to the surrounding context of our passage, as to the demand
for wages from one who presents himself as a pastor overseer. Verse 12, look at it. Give me
my price, my wages, my recompense, my reward. Who speaks this in
this passage of the scripture? Is it the prophet or the prophet
in the Lord's name speaking these words? We know the fulfillment
was in connection with the Lord Jesus Christ. He was betrayed
for 30 pieces of silver as he dwelt here in the flesh. Now the idea here is of a faithful
and a good and a benevolent shepherd or pastor, and that would be
our Lord our God. He has been very faithful in
all things and unto the flock, but they had been on their part
rebellious and disobedient He had acted toward them in the
very best of faith, but it would seem that they had rejected him
as being their shepherd and would have him, as it were, quit his
office and oversight of them. and this would refer to their
final rejection of the Lord Jesus Christ. Gill called it a despising
of Christ and of the gospel found in them. But then notice again
how the resigning pastor or shepherd, frames his request for his wages. Give me my price. And then he adds, if you think
good, give me my price. If not, forbear. If you don't
think it's worthy, then forget about it, let it go, don't do
it. Certain commentators have paraphrased the words this way. Own my kindness unto you, if
you will. But if not, let it go. Forget
it, let it perish. Acknowledge the benefit that
I've been to you, if you will. If not, let it be thrown out.
I care not about it. If worth nothing, then give nothing,
is seeming to be what is said. Calvin again wrote this. I care
nothing for your compensation, but it was your business to see
what you owed me for my goodness unto you. Thus the word. So if
it seemed good, give it to me. If not, forbear or forget it. It's kind of like Jeremiah chapter
40 and verse 4. If it seemed good to you to come
to Babylon, come. If it seem evil, then forbear. Go where you will. Do what you
would. Again, in Ezekiel chapter 3 and
verse 27. He that hears, let him hear.
He that refrains, let him refrain. So God is speaking to them in
that light. Be that as it may, Zechariah
chapter 11 and verse 12 said, So they weighed for my price
30 pieces of silver. Give me my wages, what you think. And so they weighed for his price
30 pieces of silver. Now the Lord leaves it to their
estimate to name the price. To fix the price and they do
at 30 pieces of silver. Now what is significant of or
about this price 30 pieces of silver. How did they settle on
that particular amount? How is it that they came to settle
on that exact amount, 30 pieces of silver? And then this question,
is it underpaid, is it overpaid, or is it equal value, the 30
pieces of silver? Well, we read way back in Exodus
chapter 21 and 32 that the price of a dead slave was fixed at
30 pieces of silver. This dead slave had been gored
by a neighbor's ox and it had killed him and the neighbor was
responsible to the owner for 30 pieces of silver and was to
put the ox under debt. Let me put it in plain language.
if my ox gored your slave unto death, then I must recompense
you with thirty pieces of silver, and my ox was bid to be, as they
call it in our day, put down." Now Hosea chapter 3 verse 2,
Hosea purchased an adulterous wife for 15 pieces of silver
and a bucket of barley, price even cheaper. Now sometime, not
now, read Leviticus chapter 27 and the laws that are given there
for the appraising of value to certain things and person according
to their age, their condition, and their gender. That's in Leviticus
chapter 27. And it appeared that the priests
were the appraisers. that it was the priests that
were to set the particular price of the individual. But here in
Zechariah chapter 11 and verse 13, where the Lord commands the
prophet, as we read, to take the 30 pieces of silver, give
them to the potter in the house of the Lord. Now, the expression
is a contemptuous view of the price. It is a contemptuous view
of the price. Hinstingberg called it more offensive
than no price at all when we think about our Lord Jesus Christ. Calvin again called it a paltry
sum. and likened it to one hiring,
quote, a swineherd or a clown, unquote, at that price concerning
the Lord Jesus Christ. And by the Lord's command, the
30 pieces of silver were to be put in the potter's account in
the house of the Lord. The potter meaning the Jewish
temple. And so it is written I took the
30 pieces of silver and cast them to the potter in the house
of the Lord. Now the question that might raise,
if this be so, how is it that the prophet calls it a goodly
price that I am apprised at or am valued at of them? How can he say that? when the
price is paltry. Well, several reliable expositors
were of the opinion that those words are ironic, that they are
sarcasm, that they are satire, what some called trenchant wit. as he speaks of that, to revert
to the opposite meaning. A magnificent price? No! It is a paltry price concerning
the value of our God and of our Lord. Hence, he said to him,
take it unto the potter. Let him use it to purchase clay
for the bricks, for the repair, and the renovation of the temple. In Matthew 27, and verse 7 and
verse 10, this connection may have reference to the fact that
the temple potter had his shop in the valley of Hinnom because
it yielded the most suitable clay for his profession or for
his work. But the Jews considered that
particular valley to be a polluted and a defiled place because of
the idolatry that had been practiced there in former days and because
of King Josiah who polluted it in 2nd Kings chapter 23 and verse
10. Now we come to the New Testament and the fulfillment and find
this prophecy fulfilled in a man called Judas Iscariot as he betrayed
the Lord for that exact amount, 30 pieces of silver. And as it is so often the case
with something in the New Testament, it is written than the scriptures
were fulfilled which had said, and so forth. That is, the fulfillment
of the prophecy was consummated when the potter's field was bought
with the rejected money from Judas, the 30 pieces of silver. And then was the prophecy consummated
at that time. First, let us take a look at
the traitor that is to blame in the midst of the apostle. He's not an outsider, but he
had the office of an apostle. In Matthew 26 and 14, he was
one of the 12. He is identified as Judas Iscariot. How did such a traitor infiltrate
the elite circle of the apostles under the watchful eye of Christ. In Matthew chapter 10 and verse
4, Judas is the last one named of the 12 apostles in that plague. And he is identified there, even
there, as the one that should betray the Lord. Judas also which
betrayed him. Now you remember Nicodemus picked
up a name too. Nicodemus was known as the one
that came to Jesus by night and here ever after he was referred
to in that light. John 7 and verse 50, John 19
and verse 39, rather Nicodemus which came unto Jesus by night. So Judas has the shameful distinction
of being the betrayer of the Lord Jesus Christ. Here are some places where it's
mentioned, Matthew 10, 4, 26, 25, 27, and 3. Mark 3 and 19, Luke chapter 6
and verse 16, John chapter 12 and verse 4, John 18 verse 2
and verse 5. And in all of those places, Judas,
which betrayed our Lord. And by the way, Luke 6, 16 calls
him the traitor. That's how he is referred to
by Judah. Now again, let's ask ourselves
the question, how did this man get the office of an apostle? How did he come to be an apostle
in the circle of the 12, accompanying, traveling with our Lord, even
bearing the treasury? He had the money and took care
of it. Well, how he got to be an apostle? The Lord chose him,
knowing him to be a devil from the beginning. John 6 and verse
71, Jesus answered them, Have not I chosen you twelve, and
one of you is a devil? He spoke of Judas Iscariot, for
he it was that should betray him, being one of the twelve. Now I can't shake the thought
that these words in John chapter 6, where they come from, have
some relation to what has just been said or done there in that
passage of the scripture. I think it has something to do
with two things. First of all, with Peter's confession
of Jesus Christ and using the word we. He speaks in the name
of all of the apostles. Now, the Lord speaks to them,
and I think he has two things in his mind for them. Number
one, that a more shocking defection would come. You remember what
it said in the end of John 6? From that day, many went away,
and they walked no more with him. And then Peter's confession.
You're the son of God. You have the words of life, we
believe, and are sure. So the Lord is forewarning them,
look, a greater defection than that is soon to come. One of
the 12 themselves. And secondly, that it would be
one of the 12 in whom Peter confessed in his name, we believe and are
sure. And that one of them qualified
to be called a devil. And in John 6, 71, John leaves
us no doubt who? A. Judas Iscariot, B, the betrayer,
and C, one of the original 12. Now let's look at the question
a bit. Because it's relevant in the
arguments of Christendom, was Judas ever a saved man? Was Judas ever a Christian? He
was an apostle, but was he Christian? He served and went about doing
those things commanded of the Lord. But was he a vessel of
grace? Was he at one time a Christian
in the grace of God, knowing the Lord, then fell out of that
grace and had grace no more? Judas is one, we would think,
of the best examples of those who believe in falling out of
grace. And what of the Lord saying in
verse 70, I have chosen you twelve. Is this a choosing to salvation
through election or only a choosing unto office and apostleship? Could one be an apostle without
being a true and genuine believer? The Lord called him a devil before
he exposed him and before he betrayed the Lord. And Judas
is referred to again in Acts chapter 1. And let's note how. In verse 16 of Acts 1, he was
guide to them that took Jesus. Verse 17, he was numbered with
us and took part of this ministry. And in verse 25, it was the ministry
of apostleship from which Judas by transgression fell. And in none of those is it ever
said That he was in grace or that he fell out of grace. So now, if you would, let's go.
to John chapter 17 and look at some things for our admonition
in that place. In John chapter 17, you know
it's the Lord's closing prayer or the Lord's prayer as sometimes
it is called. And in that chapter, in verse
1 through 5, the Lord prays for Himself. In those five verses,
he prays concerning himself. Then, in verse 7 through verse
19, he prays concerning the apostles, those men, those servants that
he had prepared and would leave in the world. And particularly,
have you read verse 9 of John 17? I pray for them, that is the
eleven, the apostle, I pray for them. I pray not for the world,
but for those which you have given me, for they are thine
and you gave them unto me." Now, look at John 17 and verse 12. That's why we came here. While
I was with them in the world, I kept them in thy name. Those that thou gavest me, I've
kept. None of them is lost but are
saved. the son of perdition that the
scripture might be fulfilled." Now that's a mouthful. Those
you gave me, I've kept. None of them is lost. But the
son of perdition and that in order that the scripture might
be fulfilled. Now here on the very eve of his
death and departure out of the world, he prays for them. He
commends them under the care of the Father, saying, those
you gave me, I have kept and none are lost. Also in John 8,
9 and 6, 39, of all that you gave me, I should lose nothing. Now he makes an exception here
with Judas who he now calls the son of perdition. He is not the exception of being
the only one Christ failed to keep, the only one lost. The
exception is he was never given unto me and for me to keep. There is the exception. Anyway, this was done that the
scripture might be fulfilled. That is, it was in accordance
with the scripture what Judas did and how he acted and these
things were written up in the scripture. Now, let's come to
the actual betrayal of the Lord by Judas for the 30 pieces of
silver, fulfilling the prophecy of Zechariah, for all things
now are in place. at the hour of the betrayal. The betrayer is in the apostolate. The savior is necessary, rather
is close to the hour of his death. His death is imminent in the
next day. The corrupt Jewish leaders are
anxious to be rid of Christ and to put him unto death. And by
that I mean all things are falling into place. In John 13, the Lord
moved to declare his coming betrayal and exposed Judas as the betrayer
that he was. Now in chapter 13, I'm just referring
to some verses. Verse 13, he washed their feet. You know what he said? You're
not all clean. You're not all clean. You're
clean, but not all. He meant Judas is carried. Verse
18, that scripture be fulfilled. He that has eaten bread with
me hath lifted up his heel against me. That's Psalm 41 and verse
9. Verse 21 he said, one of you
will betray me. In verse 36 and again in Matthew
26 and verse 25, the Lord identified Judas and the devil entered into
him and he was told by Christ, what you do, do quickly. Christ
gave him the sop, you remember? And the other apostles sat there
dumbfounded. They didn't have an idea what
he meant. But he said to Judas, what you
do, do it, do quickly. What can this mean? Not even
the 11 understood it. And in John 13, 28 and 29, I
think you'll see. But how about this? It was now
time for the fulfillment of this prophecy of Zechariah. It must be fulfilled. Everything
that is written about him must be fulfilled. And Judas initiated
the betrayal with the priests of Jerusalem. They did not suborn
him. They did not sin for him. It
was this way, Matthew 26. 14 through 16, Judas offered
himself to betray and negotiated a price with them for that betrayal
of 30 pieces of silver. Mark 14 and 10. Judas went to
the chief priest to betray him to them. Luke 22 and 4. He communed with the chief priest
that he might betray him unto them. And Judas receives his
blood money, 30 pieces of silver. So they weighed for my price
30 pieces of silver. Zechariah 11 and 12. And Matthew
26 and 15. And they covenanted with him
for 30 pieces of silver. Now the question is this. What
is expected of Judas or from Judas for that 30 pieces of silver? Luke 22 and verse 6. And he, Judas, promised and sought
opportunity to betray him unto them. And I want you to listen
to these words. in the absence of the multitude. That's pretty important about
the betrayal. He communed with them for opportunity
to betray him in the absence of the multitude, not in the
street, not in the market, not in the public square, not where
thousands and thousands are gathered. The King James margin has it
without tumult. We want to take him quietly,
without tumult, apart from the crowd, with as little disturbance
as possible. Here, Matthew 26, 4 and 5, and
Mark 14, 1 and 2. They sought to take Jesus by
subtlety, by craft, by guile, lest the people revolt and cause
an uproar over the arrest of the Lord. Gil put it the most
secret manner, and with the least noise and disturbance possible,
they wanted to take the Lord into their hand. And so Judas
leads the band at night after dark, it's dark, and he leads
him to the garden where none but Jesus and a few of the apostles
are there. And Jesus is taken away, is condemned
by the Sanhedrin, and is sent over to Pilate for the civil
penalty and sinning. So with that, let's go to Matthew
chapter 27, Verse 3 and following. Judas the betrayer, seeing that
Jesus had been condemned, seeing that he was condemned, had some
sort, I can't tell you what, some sort of a fit of conscience. Perhaps he had thought that the
Lord would deliver himself out of their hand, as he had done
on other occasions. They tried to take him, they
tried to stone him, they tried to throw him over a cliff, and
he delivered himself out of their hand. And perhaps Judah thought,
that'll happen again, and I'll have my reward, 30 pieces of
silver. So he came back with the silver. And he declared Jesus to be innocent,
innocent blood, and himself a transgressor. And what a strange expression. He repented himself unto Not
with godly sorrow, not under life, but he repented himself. Pharaoh made a light confession
in Exodus 9, 27. Oh, wicked Pharaoh said, I have
sinned this time. I and my people are sinful and
the Lord is righteous. But both of them went on to die
a horrible death at the hand of the judgment of God. Now we
know Judas brought back to the temple the 30 pieces of silver
unto the priest who had given it and would give it back to
them to try to alleviate his guilt and gain some relief for
the anguish that had come upon him. But the hard-hearted priest
had no remorse for their act and no sympathy for Judas. They tell him, your situation
is nothing to us. We don't care what happens unto
you. It's on you. Do what you will.
Go where you will. Do what you would. Live with
it. It's not our business. Now they don't mind crucifying
the Lord, but they're mighty scrupulous about the 30 pieces. And with that, Judas wrote it
down in the temple, the ill-gotten gain, not in the treasury, Not
into the hands of the priest, but on the floor, evidently,
of the temple and went out and the scripture said, hanged himself. One of the three suicides that
are written up in the blessed and holy scripture. Now we need
to turn back again to Acts chapter 1 to get the completion of the
story and to tie the whole matter together. In the first chapter
of the book of Acts as Peter takes control in that particular
place and he recalls for the people the defection and death
of Judas. Verse 18, watch that. Falling
headlong, he burst asunder in the midst, and all of his bowels
gushed out as he fell unto his death. Matthew only states the
fact. Judas died by his own hand, by
hanging, as did Ahithophel in the Old Testament, 2 Samuel 17
and 23. Peter gives some details of it.
He said he violently fell and when he fell the fall ruptured
his abdomen and his inwards all gushed out, his insides spilled
out all over the place. Now the two accounts of Matthew
27 and of Acts chapter 1 can be reconciled easily if Judas
both hanged himself and fell, perhaps the rope broke or whatever.
But let's go back to the 30 pieces of silver in the prophecy and
the fulfillment of the 30 pieces. The 30 pieces is spent twice,
if you will, according to prophecy. Two times it is spent. Number one, it was the price
for betraying the son of God. Zechariah 11 and verse 12. So they weighed for my price
30 pieces of silver. Matthew 26 and verse 15. What will you give me? And they
coveted together for 30 pieces of silver. And this confirms
the fulfillment of the prophecy. But again, a second time, it
was the price of the potter's field Zechariah 11, 13, cast
it to the potter's house. Matthew 27 and 7, they took counsel,
bought with it the potter's field to bury strangers in, which in
the Old West we might call Boot Hill. Now, the priest would not
put the 30 pieces of silver in the temple treasury because they
considered it to be blood money and defiled. And what Peter in
Acts 118, called the reward of iniquity or the reward of unrighteousness. So they consulted. It was blood
money. What shall we do with it? And
they came to the conclusion, we will buy the potter's field
with it to bury strangers in. Now, bringing that money into
the temple, let me go to the Old Testament real quickly. In
Deuteronomy 23 and verse 18, it says that the hire of a whore
or the price of a dog was to be forbidden to be brought into
the house of God for the paying of a vow. These things, or the
money, was not to be used for the paying of a vow because they
were an abomination. And you find in Micah chapter
1 and verse 7, a like statement. What shall we do with it? So
they bought the potter's field, a track of land down in Himon
Valley, and Peter in Acts 118 said, Judas purchased a field
with the wages of iniquity, and it's called Akadema. the field
of blood under this day. And the priests used the wages
of iniquity given to Judas to acquire that particular tract
of land. Now the point about Matthew and
Peter is that this too was prophesied in the Old Testament scripture,
that it was to be cast into the potter's field. Now, Some complicated
thoughts, quickly, in closing our study of today. Number one. This is a complicated prophecy,
hundreds of years before, but is perfectly fulfilled in a hypocritical,
devil-possessed man with no intention on his part to fulfill or to
honor the scripture. Secondly, Thomas Goodwin called
Judas, quote, the most imminent instance of a temporary own record
in the scripture. He obtained apostleship, the
highest office there could be in the early church, and yet
without grace. Thirdly, how about the hypocrisy
of the priests? Scrupulous about the blood money
that they had given, scrupulous about bodies remaining on the
cross on the Sabbath day, scrupulous about eating with unwashing hand,
but none about killing the Messiah that God sent into the world.
What hypocrisy in their religion. Number four, and think of this,
the Lord was well known in the city of Jerusalem by the Jew,
and he might have been identified and found and taken without Judas
leading them to him. He was well known in that area. But the scriptures had predicted
it, and so it came to pass in that manner. And the priest might
have spent that money on something else. Give it to the poor, that's
the usual thing. Help somebody that's in need.
But no, they bought the potter's field, exactly fulfilling the
prophecy of Zachariah. And I close by saying, oh, the
harmony and the accuracy of the Holy Scripture. What was written
will come to pass. Every bit of it will come to
pass. And this is one proof.