The contradiction of Judas

[dp07]

There is two contradicting accounts of the death of Judas and the land that was bought. I have looked up alot and was wondering if anyone had anything to add. Any texts or comments.

About his date, which is important in connection with his credibility, there is Irenaeus' statement, later in the 2nd century, that Papias was "a hearer of John, and companion of Polycarp, a man of old time." If Polycarp was in fact born not later than AD 69, then there may be no reason to depend on a further, but disputed tradition, that Papias shared in the martyrdom of Polycarp (ca AD 155). In sum, the fact that Irenaeus thought of Papias as Polycarp's contemporary and "a man of the old time," together with the affinity between the religious tendencies described in the fragment from Papias's Preface quoted by Eusebius and those reflected in the Epistles of Ignatius and of Polycarp, all point to his having flourished in the first quarter of the 2nd century.​

Indeed, Eusebius, who deals with him along with Clement and Ignatius (rather than Polycarp) under the reign of Trajan, and before referring at all to Hadrian's reign, suggests that he wrote "as early as 110 and probably no later than the early 130s, with several scholars opting for the earlier end of the spectrum". No known fact is inconsistent with c. 60-135 as the period of Papias's life. Eusebius (3.36) calls him "bishop" of Hierapolis, but whether with good ground is uncertain. In this putative capacity as bishop, Papias was supposedly succeeded by Abercius of Hieropolis.
English translations of the surviving fragments of his writings can be found in links at the Ante-Nicene Fathers.



FRAGMENTS OF PAPIAS


Fragment 3
(Preserved in Cramer's Catena ad Acta SS. Apost. [1838])
1 From Apollinarius of Laodicea. Judas did not die by hanging, but lived on, having been cut down before he was
suffocated. And the Acts of the Apostles show this, that _falling headlong he burst asunder in the midst, and all his
bowels gushed out._ This fact is related more clearly by Papias, the disciple of John, in the fourth (book) of the
Exposition of the Oracles of the Lord as follows: --
2 "Judas walked about in this world a terrible example of impiety; his flesh swollen to such an extent that, where a
waggon can pass with ease, he was not able to pass, no, not even the mass of his head merely. They say that his
eyelids swelled to such an extent that he could not see the light at all, while as for his eyes they were not visible even
by a physician looking through an instrument, so far had they sunk from the surface. His genital was larger and
presented a more repugnant sight than has ever been seen; and through it there seeped from every part of the body
a procession of pus and worms to his shame, even as he relieved himself."'
3 After suffering an agony of pain and punishment, he finally went, as they say it, to his own place; and because of
the horrible smell the area has been deserted and no one has lived there up until now; in fact, even to the present no
one can go by that place without holding his nose. This was because the discharge from his body was so great and
spread so far over the ground."'



acts 1:15In those days Peter stood up among the believers (a group numbering about a hundred and twenty) 16and said, "Brothers, the Scripture had to be fulfilled which the Holy Spirit spoke long ago through the mouth of David concerning Judas, who served as guide for those who arrested Jesus— 17he was one of our number and shared in this ministry." 18(With the reward he got for his wickedness, Judas bought a field; there he fell headlong, his body burst open and all his intestines spilled out. 19Everyone in Jerusalem heard about this, so they called that field in their language Akeldama, that is, Field of Blood.)







Matthew 27:3Then when Judas, who had betrayed Him, saw that He had been condemned, he felt remorse and returned the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders,
4saying, "I have sinned by betraying innocent blood." But they said, "What is that to us? See to that yourself!"
5And he threw the pieces of silver into the temple sanctuary and departed; and he went away and hanged himself.
6The chief priests took the pieces of silver and said, "It is not lawful to put them into the temple treasury, since it is the price of blood."
7And they conferred together and with the money bought the Potter's Field as a burial place for strangers. 8For this reason that field has been called the Field of Blood to this day.







I havent decided on whether or not I think they can fit together it is hard with the evidence given but maybe there is something I am missing that makes it fit easier. The death could be possible if it is physically possible for him to move in such a state and if the failed hanging would cause what was described by Papias. The money is a more difficult subject to tackle maybe someone would like to have a go at it.

 

[Isaksson]

I believe it is a misconception from the old. The greek word for entrails in acts 1:17 can render "tender mercies."

This is my translation:

"He fell down, broke his heart, so all his tender mercies poured out"

that is my belief.

I can be wrong.

If i am right and all other schoolars are wrong on acts 1:17. doesn't that make me. well.... very bright.

 

[Jig]

The truth of the matter is, however, like the accounts of Jesus’ resurrection (and many other Bible events) these two verses simply supplement each other. It is not an either/or scenario. Judas, indeed, “hanged himself,” and sometime later, his body fell headfirst, causing his midsection to burst open.

What would cause his “stomach” or midsection to split open? Consider the following. When a person dies, the body begins to decompose. If left to itself (and not acted upon by the attempt to preserve the body, e.g., embalming), bacteria soon begin to break down various tissues. As a result, gases are released within the body, which in turn cause it to swell.

It certainly is not difficult to imagine that a dead human body, which may have been swelling for a number of days, could have fallen a short distance (from wherever it was hanging), and easily burst open when striking the ground.

Matthew 27:5 and Acts 1:18 cannot be accepted as legitimately contradicting each other if it is possible for both to be true—and it certainly is scientifically and logistically possible for both incidents to have occurred.

Also as a sidenote...When Judas threw the thirty pieces of silver down, the priests took the money and used it to buy the potter’s field (Matthew 27:7), not knowing that Judas was going to hang himself there. Judas may not have purchased the field himself, but it was the money Judas received for betraying Jesus that purchased the field.