Life.
Such a simple word. Yet, filled with many inexplicable dynamics. He used to think was it just there for living and he was not doing badly at that. His background, though not privileged, was fine. He’d seen the difference in his peers whose parents were dirt poor. Their family could afford to visit Jerusalem annually, during the Feast of Pentecost, and they never stayed at the seedier inns or in caravans.
Simon, his father, never tired of announcing that he was a simple man whose joy came from seeing his family happy. So, the elder Iscariot—man of Karioth—worked hard and provided and life was beautiful.
Maybe not completely.
It was not too long before he realized he wanted more than their father could afford. He began to find ways to augment. One went terribly south. It was escalating in such a messy way that Judas foresaw an arrest by the Centurion’s men and incarceration. That night, he left home without any ado.
And then he met life.
It was bearded, soft-talking, with the most piercing eyes ever and roving with a bunch of rag-tag fellows. And He was recruiting team members. There was something arresting about Yeshua. It made Judas follow Him. In the following months, Judas witnessed a dimension of life he would have had difficulty believing existed if he'd been told.
Ha Mashiyach lived simply, affected everyone He met and changed the trajectories of many. Especially the ones whom He liberated from whatever issues they had. Judas was not sure he bought into the whole ideology but being a disciple was cool. They wielded power over unclean spirits. Plus, folks were always bringing the Master stuff and they partook. And, as custodian of treasures, he helped himself as the need arose. Though itinerant, it was not a bad life.
Their leader, Yeshua, Ha Mashiyach, Jesus, Master, Rabbi, Son of Joseph, was not afraid of controversy. One could even say He courted it. As a result, He had as many enemies as He had names.
Tired of debates they always lost, doctrinal traps they ended up entangled in and secret plots that did not lead to Him shutting up or the movement shutting down. They began to take more physical measures.
First, they tried to arrest Him. It failed. Then they tried to push Him off a cliff. He simply walked through their midst amidst the cacophony and went away. One minute, he was there, the next He was not; was how Judas described it later. Other failed attempts and stories of conspiracies, real and imagined, led Judas to a conclusion; the Master was invincible!
It also birthed a business idea. If the Master's enemies were so intent on apprehending Him, they would be willing to part with some money to see that happen. He reached out to the leading priests.
His reasoning was simple: collect the quid, point out the Master (fulfilling his obligation) and sit back to enjoy the proceeds. He might even do it a couple of times. The Master would always escape—that was a given.
They agreed on thirty pieces of silver and a kiss as the means of identifying Yeshua. The Jewish leaders and Roman authorities had difficulty distinguishing from the disciples. The disciples found that quite hilarious.
Hours before the set time, the Master decided to have supper with the disciples. Following His instructions, they set it up.
At the table, He stated that He was going to be betrayed. Judas was not sure what that meant. Betrayal implied treachery. He was only going to make some money off the Sanhedrin who wanted Yeshua's fall. For the first time, he questioned the soundness of the plan. Maybe he should cancel it.
"Here." Jesus handed him bread dipped in wine.
The minute Judas swallowed it, something happened to him. All thoughts of changing his mind dissipated.
"What you have to do, do quickly." Jesus added. And Judas went out into the night.
And that was the beginning of the breakdown of everything. Not only was the Master arrested, He was tried and, horror upon horror, sentenced to death by crucifixion. Nothing had gone according to plan.
His heart shattered into fragments and could not get over what he'd done. Sleep fled his eyes and appetite divorced him. The events of the past hours, and his role, played unceasing in his head.
He went back to the Sanhedrin to return the silver. Their response was a rude awakening as to how people viewed him. Dropping the money, he ran out of the synagogue. He could not go on living this despair-wracked life. He would not.
That was how he ended up here, between two branches, a rope dangled from the upper one and wrapped around his neck.
Was this the best decision? Suddenly he was not sure about dying. Then his leg shifted. He tried to regain balance. He plunged many cubits at such a speed that the noose tightening and his neck snapping were almost simultaneous.
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