The Cost of Jesus Crucifixion
Last year, we began a new Good Friday sermon series called “The Cross and the Crowd.” From 2018–2024, we looked at the seven statements of Christ on the cross. And last year, we started a new Good Friday series, where we considered the impact of the cross on the various people—individuals and groups—who stood around the cross. Or, as we will see this year, some who did not stand around the cross.
As one of the twelve, Judas Iscariot, if he had not scattered, should have been standing at the cross. For this is where John was, as well as many of the women in Jesus’s life. Yet, for reasons which made Judas become infamous, he was not at the cross. Instead, he hung himself when he discovered that his actions sentenced an innocent man to death.
Tragically, Judas saw no hope when he looked to Jesus. For reasons known and unknown, he traded the whereabouts of Jesus for thirty pieces of silver. At a time before satellite tracking, Judas offered to Jesus’s enemies something they could not find on their own—the location of Jesus. And so, on the night before Christ was hung on a tree, Judas became the first cause of Jesus’s crucifixion.
Certainly, there were other parties involved—the chief priests, the Roman soldiers, Pontius Pilate, Herod, and others—but none of these figures could have brought Jesus to the cross, unless Judas brought a crowd with swords and clubs to Jesus. And for his efforts, Judas received the redemption price of a slave (Exod. 21:32)—thirty pieces of silver.
And on Good Friday, we considered what thirty pieces of silver tell us about Jesus, Judas, and our own approach to Christ. And here I want offer a few related reflections.
What Zechariah 11 Says
You may remember, thirty pieces of silver is also what Zechariah received when the people of Israel resisted him. In Zechariah 11:12–13 we read,
12 Then I [Zechariah] said to them, “If it seems good to you, give me my wages; but if not, keep them.” And they weighed out as my wages thirty pieces of silver. 13 Then the Lord said to me, “Throw it to the potter”—the lordly price at which I was priced by them. So I took the thirty pieces of silver and threw them into the house of the Lord, to the potter.
With symbolic action, this scene both addresses the problems of Zechariah’s day and previews what will transpire with Judas, the priests of Jerusalem, and Jesus—only with that preview will come some ironic reversals, too. So, let’s consider the original context and then how Zechariah 11 helps us understand Judas’s coin exchange.
In the days after the exile of Judah, the Lord called Zechariah to take up the form of a shepherd twice. First, he would be a righteous shepherd (Zech. 11:4–6), whom the people would reject (Zech. 11:7–14). Then again, he would wear the apparel of the shepherd again—whether literally or symbolically, commentators are not in agreement. Only, in this second shepherd-action (Zech. 11:15–17), he was to play the part of a wicked and foolish shepherd, whereby the people would be destroyed.
As many have noted, Zechariah 11 is perhaps the hardest chapter in a difficult book. And part of that challenge is the timing of Zechariah’s prophecy. As he takes two staffs (Favor and Union) and breaks them to show the breaking of the covenant people, it is likely that Zechariah writing around 520 BC looks back in time to the exile. Yet, as one reads all of Zechariah 9–14, it is a section that points ahead to a time when Christ will be the shepherd, the sacrifice, and the source of salvation. Truly, these six chapters are equal to Isaiah 53 for explaining the final week of Christ’s earthly life. And in Zechariah 11, one part of that story is the thirty pieces of silver.
In Zechariah 11, the prophet breaks the staffs to show the judgment coming upon the people. And for his service, he receives payment from the sheep traders, which he mockingly calls a “lordly [or handsome] price.”
In actuality, thirty pieces of silver is poor sum—as it is the price of a slave. And so, the prophet rejects the wage, when the LORD tells him to throw it back into the temple (the house of the LORD). And by means of that rejection, the downfall of the nation is sealed. And in Zechariah 11:15–17, we see Zechariah take on the form of a shepherd again, which symbolizes the rise of Gentiles shepherds who will strike the flock.
As I read it, these symbolic actions which look back upon the destruction of Jerusalem foreshadow a coming reality, when the nation’s wickedness will again invite destruction and God will bring in foreign kings to destroy the flock. As history rhymes, the same situation arises in days of Jesus. And for the price of a slave, the king of the universe will be sacrificed.
What Zechariah 11 Reveals
First of all, Zechariah 11 reveals a day when Israel will be led by wicked shepherds who are looking to kill Jesus. Equally, for those in Israel who are not looking to kill Jesus, many like Judas, are looking to Jesus for illicit ends—money, power, liberation from Rome, etc. Confirming this, John 6 tells us that Jesus knew Judas was a devil in his midst. But ironically, this is revealed as many followers of Jesus leave him, because he tells them that he has come for more than providing food for their stomachs.
At the same time, Jesus, who is the true shepherd, is going to be sacrificed as a sacrificial lamb. This is a point that Zechariah 12–13 will make. Yet, in Zechariah 11 itself we learn that the people will give Zechariah a slave price of silver. This reveals their estimation of this man of God, and his rejection of the money also confirms their wickedness.
Fast forward to Judas. He is a follower of the Lord, like Zechariah, but he is not a true believer. While Judas may have followed Jesus with hopes of receiving a kingdom, his true character is found in the way he stole money from the poor (John 12:4–6). Accordingly, when Satan entered him, he was used by the devil to bring Jesus into the hands of the wicked shepherds. Yet, as God is sovereign over the wicked machinations of men, this act of betrayal was used for better purposes—namely, the forgiveness of sins that Zechariah 12–13 would describe.
Focusing on the silver pieces alone, however, we discover another important point from this coin exchange—namely, that Jesus was sold into the hands of the priests like a slave. In other words, the slave-price of the coins not only made it possible for Jesus to be captured. It also indicated the kind of crucifixion he would have. As he himself identified himself as a slave who came to serve and not to be served (Matthew 20:28), so this silver exchange confirmed that point: Jesus was the servant who would die for his peoples sins.
And on Good Friday, we will consider the life and death of Judas, as it reveals the meaning of Christ’s death and resurrection. And conversely, we will see how the cross of Christ reveals our own hearts, as we consider why we follow our Lord.
So, join us tonight at 7:00pm for our Good Friday service. Then, on Sunday come at 10:00am, as we celebrate the resurrection of Christ. For Easter, we will look at 1 Corinthians 15:12–19 and the historical basis for believing in the resurrection. In short, we have a great weekend ahead. And I look forward to seeing you, as we lift our eyes to the risen Christ.
As one of the twelve, Judas Iscariot, if he had not scattered, should have been standing at the cross. For this is where John was, as well as many of the women in Jesus’s life. Yet, for reasons which made Judas become infamous, he was not at the cross. Instead, he hung himself when he discovered that his actions sentenced an innocent man to death.
Tragically, Judas saw no hope when he looked to Jesus. For reasons known and unknown, he traded the whereabouts of Jesus for thirty pieces of silver. At a time before satellite tracking, Judas offered to Jesus’s enemies something they could not find on their own—the location of Jesus. And so, on the night before Christ was hung on a tree, Judas became the first cause of Jesus’s crucifixion.
Certainly, there were other parties involved—the chief priests, the Roman soldiers, Pontius Pilate, Herod, and others—but none of these figures could have brought Jesus to the cross, unless Judas brought a crowd with swords and clubs to Jesus. And for his efforts, Judas received the redemption price of a slave (Exod. 21:32)—thirty pieces of silver.
And on Good Friday, we considered what thirty pieces of silver tell us about Jesus, Judas, and our own approach to Christ. And here I want offer a few related reflections.
What Zechariah 11 Says
You may remember, thirty pieces of silver is also what Zechariah received when the people of Israel resisted him. In Zechariah 11:12–13 we read,
12 Then I [Zechariah] said to them, “If it seems good to you, give me my wages; but if not, keep them.” And they weighed out as my wages thirty pieces of silver. 13 Then the Lord said to me, “Throw it to the potter”—the lordly price at which I was priced by them. So I took the thirty pieces of silver and threw them into the house of the Lord, to the potter.
With symbolic action, this scene both addresses the problems of Zechariah’s day and previews what will transpire with Judas, the priests of Jerusalem, and Jesus—only with that preview will come some ironic reversals, too. So, let’s consider the original context and then how Zechariah 11 helps us understand Judas’s coin exchange.
In the days after the exile of Judah, the Lord called Zechariah to take up the form of a shepherd twice. First, he would be a righteous shepherd (Zech. 11:4–6), whom the people would reject (Zech. 11:7–14). Then again, he would wear the apparel of the shepherd again—whether literally or symbolically, commentators are not in agreement. Only, in this second shepherd-action (Zech. 11:15–17), he was to play the part of a wicked and foolish shepherd, whereby the people would be destroyed.
As many have noted, Zechariah 11 is perhaps the hardest chapter in a difficult book. And part of that challenge is the timing of Zechariah’s prophecy. As he takes two staffs (Favor and Union) and breaks them to show the breaking of the covenant people, it is likely that Zechariah writing around 520 BC looks back in time to the exile. Yet, as one reads all of Zechariah 9–14, it is a section that points ahead to a time when Christ will be the shepherd, the sacrifice, and the source of salvation. Truly, these six chapters are equal to Isaiah 53 for explaining the final week of Christ’s earthly life. And in Zechariah 11, one part of that story is the thirty pieces of silver.
In Zechariah 11, the prophet breaks the staffs to show the judgment coming upon the people. And for his service, he receives payment from the sheep traders, which he mockingly calls a “lordly [or handsome] price.”
In actuality, thirty pieces of silver is poor sum—as it is the price of a slave. And so, the prophet rejects the wage, when the LORD tells him to throw it back into the temple (the house of the LORD). And by means of that rejection, the downfall of the nation is sealed. And in Zechariah 11:15–17, we see Zechariah take on the form of a shepherd again, which symbolizes the rise of Gentiles shepherds who will strike the flock.
As I read it, these symbolic actions which look back upon the destruction of Jerusalem foreshadow a coming reality, when the nation’s wickedness will again invite destruction and God will bring in foreign kings to destroy the flock. As history rhymes, the same situation arises in days of Jesus. And for the price of a slave, the king of the universe will be sacrificed.
What Zechariah 11 Reveals
First of all, Zechariah 11 reveals a day when Israel will be led by wicked shepherds who are looking to kill Jesus. Equally, for those in Israel who are not looking to kill Jesus, many like Judas, are looking to Jesus for illicit ends—money, power, liberation from Rome, etc. Confirming this, John 6 tells us that Jesus knew Judas was a devil in his midst. But ironically, this is revealed as many followers of Jesus leave him, because he tells them that he has come for more than providing food for their stomachs.
At the same time, Jesus, who is the true shepherd, is going to be sacrificed as a sacrificial lamb. This is a point that Zechariah 12–13 will make. Yet, in Zechariah 11 itself we learn that the people will give Zechariah a slave price of silver. This reveals their estimation of this man of God, and his rejection of the money also confirms their wickedness.
Fast forward to Judas. He is a follower of the Lord, like Zechariah, but he is not a true believer. While Judas may have followed Jesus with hopes of receiving a kingdom, his true character is found in the way he stole money from the poor (John 12:4–6). Accordingly, when Satan entered him, he was used by the devil to bring Jesus into the hands of the wicked shepherds. Yet, as God is sovereign over the wicked machinations of men, this act of betrayal was used for better purposes—namely, the forgiveness of sins that Zechariah 12–13 would describe.
Focusing on the silver pieces alone, however, we discover another important point from this coin exchange—namely, that Jesus was sold into the hands of the priests like a slave. In other words, the slave-price of the coins not only made it possible for Jesus to be captured. It also indicated the kind of crucifixion he would have. As he himself identified himself as a slave who came to serve and not to be served (Matthew 20:28), so this silver exchange confirmed that point: Jesus was the servant who would die for his peoples sins.
And on Good Friday, we will consider the life and death of Judas, as it reveals the meaning of Christ’s death and resurrection. And conversely, we will see how the cross of Christ reveals our own hearts, as we consider why we follow our Lord.
So, join us tonight at 7:00pm for our Good Friday service. Then, on Sunday come at 10:00am, as we celebrate the resurrection of Christ. For Easter, we will look at 1 Corinthians 15:12–19 and the historical basis for believing in the resurrection. In short, we have a great weekend ahead. And I look forward to seeing you, as we lift our eyes to the risen Christ.
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