26:14-16 Then one of the twelve, called Judas Iscariot―(14) Then one of the twelve, called Judas Iscariot, went unto the chief priests, (15) And said unto them,
What will ye give me, and I will deliver him unto you? And they covenanted with him for thirty pieces of silver.
(16) And from that time he sought opportunity to betray him.‖ (Matt 26:14-16)
Judas, the Thief―One of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, the one that would betray him said, Why was not this ointment sold for
300 denarii and given to the poor? He said this not because he cared for the poor; but because he was a
thief and carried and administered the money" (John 12:4-6 Para)
Clearly, Judas was not concerned with the meaning of Mary's act of washing Y‘shua‘s feet or the anointing of
his head. What concerned Judas was the amount of money that could have been made by selling the sweet-
smelling nard. It is obvious that Judas' question was directed to the other disciples, because many of them
also took up his complaint:
―When the disciples saw this, they were indignant, and asked why the ointment had been wasted on Jesus,
when it could have been sold for a great amount of money [300 denarii] that could have then been given to
the poor, and they were angry with her for what she had done" (Matt 26:8-9; Mark 14:4-5 Para) see also
John 12:5-6.
The complaint of Judas and the other disciples about selling the ointment for 300 denarii to give to the poor
is yet more proof that the four Gospel accounts speak of the same event.
300 DenariiTo the casual reader, 300 denarii will mean very little; however, during the time of Y‘shua, 300 denarii was
an enormous amount of money.
One denarii was a full day's pay for a common labourer; therefore, the value of the ointment was at least the
value of a full year's pay for a common labourer.
In John 6: 1-10, we see that a meal to feed over 5000 people would have only cost 200 denarii.
The value of the ointment was either 10 or 7.5 times the amount of money that Judas received for his
betrayal of Y‘shua, depending on which reference you use. (Matt 26:14-15).
The ointment that Mary used to anoint Y‘shua was the extremely expensive nard which was made from a
rare plant grown in India. Because nard was very expensive, it was normally used very sparingly.
We can safely assume that Mary knew the value of the ointment, and that this occasion was of more value to
her than any amount of nard. Her decision to anoint Y‘shua with nard shows that her love for Y‘shua, and
what he thought of her and could do for her was much more valuable than the ointment.
This is also a part of the Gospel message. We are told that we are to love the Father and Y‘shua above all
other things – including our physical life. We are not worthy to enter the Kingdom of YHWH if we find
anything of more value or more important than the Father's call to salvation.
The Biblical Reasons for the BetrayalSome biblical scholars seem strangely reluctant to pursue the reasons for Judas‘ betrayal of Y‘shua. On the
other hand, some theories have little or no biblical support and must definitely be questioned. The Scriptures
do suggest several reasons why Judas betrayed the Master, and I believe these to be sufficient.
First of all, we must grasp the fact that Judas, distinct from the eleven, was never a true believer. We know
that the ̳Bread of Life‘ discourse‘ (John 6:22-71) caused many ̳followers‘ of Y‘shua to turn aside, refusing
His teaching of a Saviour Who was a suffering substitute for men (John 6:60ff.). As an explanation for the
turning away of the crowds, Y‘shua told His disciples that these unbelievers were not unknown or
unexpected. One of them, known to Y‘shua (but not yet comprehended by the eleven) was Judas the
betrayer: ― ̳But there are some of you who do not believe.‘ For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were
who did not believe, and who it was that would betray Him‖ (John 6:64).