Following up on the last post: Perhaps we are to see Judas throwing the money to the priests as a kind of day of atonement. He “throws” ( hripto ) Jesus’ innocent blood, turned to cash, into the temple, then leaves the temple (like a scapegoat) and kills himself. The description of Judas’ death in Acts 1 cannot help but conjure up images of scapegoats tossed from cliffs. The whole procedure looks to be modeled on the day of atonement.
Which reinforces the hint that the blood of Jesus brings an end to the old covenant system. Jesus’ blood (in the form of silver) is brought into the temple; later the blood of martyrs will cling to the temple as well, poured out on the city (as Revelation shows). That blood is the final reminder of sin (Hebrews 10:3), which brings the whole system down, so that sin is remembered no more.
Dear Reader,
Can I be direct with you?
War abroad. Socialists on the rise. AI upending human life. Endless uproar online. The modern attention economy doesn’t want readers — it wants users enslaved to the tyranny of the present.
First Things is the antidote: literary excellence, timeless truths, and a fixed point of reference in a culture that has lost its bearings.
But we can’t do it without readers like you.
Our goal: Raise $150,000 by November 1 to sustain First Things in the year ahead.
Your gift anchors readers in the permanent things.
Make your Fall Campaign gift now using the button below.
If you have any questions or would like more information, please contact Giovanni Del Piero, Director of the Editor’s Circle, at gdelpiero@firstthings.com or 212-627-1985.
YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE
The Church in the Age of Therapy
In 1966, Philip Rieff wrote in The Triumph of the Therapeutic that “Religious man was born to…
Canada’s Deadliest Blind Spot
On September 20, the Daily Mail ran a story with the provocative headline, “Our 83-year-old Christian grandmother…
The Faithful Joy of Dolly Parton and Fulton Sheen
Dolly Parton and Fulton Sheen seem to have had little in common. She favored rhinestones; he wore…
