Luke 22:3-6 3Then Satan entered into Judas called Iscariot, who was of the number of the twelve. 4HAnd after departing, he talked with the chief priests and temple officers how he might betray him to them. 5And they were glad and agreed to give him money. 6So he agreed and was seeking an opportunity to betray him to them without a crowd.
The second form of opposition to Jesus comes from the inside, from the disciple named Judas. Satan has been mentioned only a few times in Luke up to this point. Most of the references are about Satan, though the only reference to Satan acting in opposition is with Jesus’ temptation (4:13; 8:12; 10:18; 11:18; 13:16). Now Satan surfaces again and enters Judas. The question about this passage is Satan’s influence on Judas. Theologically, Satan cannot enter a believer who is protected by the power and presence of God the Spirit. Something had happened to Judas over time to where he was no longer living with God’s presence. He had turned away from the truth and was following a lie. Judas was introduced along with the other eleven apostles in 6:16 where he was called a traitor. The reader now comes to find out what the designation means.
Satan had tempted Judas, who had given in to this inclination and followed through by going to the religious leaders with a plan. The officers may have been the temple police who show up later in verse 52 to arrest Jesus. Something had been brewing in Judas’ mind that Satan took advantage of. We can see hints of Judas’ struggle in John 12:4-6. This was the opportunity the religious leaders were looking for–an insider who knew where to catch Jesus alone. In verse 5, Luke makes it sound like Judas came with a plan about asking for money for information. Using Judas’ secret knowledge would allow them to avoid the crowds who liked Jesus. The ball was in Judas’ court, who was seeking (a durative imperfect) when a good time was. This verb suggests further scheming on the part of Judas. Every mention of him shows how he was digging a deeper hole for himself. Judas is an example of what happens when we allow Satan to get a foothold (Ephesians 4:27).
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