Judas betrays
For truly against Your Holy Child Jesus . . . they were gathered together to do, whatsoever Your hand and Your counsel determined before to be done. Acts 4:27,28
Wednesday our Lord passed at Bethany with His disciples, enjoying rest and quiet. The chief priests and scribes and elders of the people, however, were not restful and quiet. They assembled in the palace of the high priest Caiaphas and took counsel together that they might subtly take Jesus and kill Him. But they said: "Not on the feast day, lest there be an uproar among the people." And lo, then one of the Twelve, Judas Iscariot, came to them and said: "What will you give me, and I will deliver Him to you " And they were glad, and made an agreement with him for thirty pieces of silver. And from that time he sought an opportunity to betray Him. (Matt. 26:3-5. 14-16.) But it was Satan who ruled the elders in their hatred toward Christ, and who had entered into Judas: he was bent on Jesus' destruction. But Satan and Judas and the Chief Council could only do what God's hand controlled and what God's counsel had determined before to be done. Indeed, God ruled amidst the wickedness of man and the enmity of Satan. God wanted to carry out what His gracious counsel determined before to be done, that the Saviour should become the Lamb of sacrifice that takes away the sins of the world.- And so henceforth all things must serve God to the end that you may be saved. Commit all things into God's keeping.
PRAYER: - Almighty, merciful God, I thank You that You so turned the evil counsel of the devil and of the elders of the church, as well as of Judas who betrayed You, that Your good and gracious counsel for the salvation of the human race was thereby accomplished. O God, give me Your grace that in faith in Your dear Son, my Saviour Jesus Christ, I may always commit myself into Your fatherly hands which will surely rule all things for my good and my eternal happiness. Amen.