whom he meant. One of the disciples, the one Jesus loved, was reclining near Jesus; so
Simon Peter signaled him to ask Jesus whom he meant. And the disciple, who was
reclining near Jesus, asked him, “Lord, who is it?” Jesus answered, “I shall dip a piece
of bread in the dish, and he to whom I give it, is the one.” So Jesus dipped the bread in
the dish and gave it to Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon. As Judas took the piece of bread,
Satan entered into him. Jesus then said to him, “What you are going to do, do quickly.”
None of the others, reclining at the table, understood why Jesus had said this to Judas.
As Judas had the common purse, they may have thought that Jesus was telling him,
“Buy what we need for the feast,” or, “Give something to the poor.” Judas left as soon as
he had eaten the bread. It was night. When Judas had gone out, Jesus said, “Now is the
Son of Man glorified, and God is glorified in him. God will glorify him, and he will glorify him
very soon. My children, I am with you for only a little while; you will look for me, but as
I already told the Jews, now I tell you: where I am going you cannot come. Simon Peter
said to him, “Lord, where are you going?” Jesus answered, “Where I am going you cannot
follow me now, but afterward you will.” Peter said, “Lord, why can’t I follow you now? I am
ready to give my life for you.” “To give your life for me?” Jesus asked Peter. “Truly I tell you,
the cock will not crow, before you have denied me three times.”

Reflect

“Grow in faith.” It was night. This is how the narrator of the Gospel of John described the
event after Judas Iscariot had left Jesus and the other disciples during the meal
characterized by the washing of the disciples’ feet. This event will be followed by Judas’
betrayal of Jesus. Night connotes darkness. We may reflect that the darkness here does
not only refer to the predicament of Judas Iscariot for the wrong decision he made but
also to the condition of the rest of the other disciples. While Judas made the wrong choice,
the other disciples still needed to grow in faith. In the Gospel of John, knowledge
connotes belief while ignorance connotes unbelief. The other disciples were still lacking in
faith. They lacked knowledge. Should they have known and understood what was going
on between Jesus and Judas when they were at table, they certainly would not allow
Judas to go out of the cenacle. Evil besets our society simply because we lack the needed
knowledge. Proper knowledge leads to sound decisions, and sound decisions lead to good
actions. On this Holy Tuesday, may we truly grow in faith. It is through an informed faith that
we are strengthened to sacrifice for others.

© Copyright Bible Diary 2024