Charles Spurgeon Commentary Matthew 26:14-16

"Then one of the twelve, who was called Judas Iscariot, went unto the chief priests, and said, What are ye willing to give me, and I will deliver him unto you? And they weighed unto him thirty pieces of silver. And from that time he sought opportunity to deliver him [unto them.]" — Matthew 26:14-16 (ASV)

Then one of the twelve, called Judas Iscariot, went unto the chief priests, And said unto them, What will ye give me, and I will deliver him unto you? And they covenanted with him for thirty pieces of silver. And from that time he sought opportunity to betray him.

It was one of the twelve, who went to the chief priests, to bargain for the price of his Lord's betrayal. He did not even mention Christ's name in his infamous question, What will ye give me, and I will deliver him unto you? The amount agreed upon, thirty pieces of silver, was the price of a slave; and showed how little value the chief priests set on Jesus, and also revealed the greed of Judas in selling his Master for so small a sum.

Yet many have sold Jesus for a lesser price than Judas received; a smile or a sneer has been sufficient to induce them to betray their Lord. Let us, who have been redeemed with Christ's precious blood, esteem him highly, think much of him, and praise him much. As we remember with shame and sorrow, these thirty pieces of silver, let us never undervalue him, or forget the priceless preciousness of him who was reckoned as worth no more than a slave.

What a contrast to the incident we have just been considering! The anointing of Jesus is to be the theme of admiration wherever the Gospel is preached, but His betrayal by Judas will be a subject for execration to all eternity. It was one of the twelve, who went to the chief priests, to bargain for the price of his Lord’s betrayal. He did not even mention Christ’s name in his infamous question, What will ye give me, and I will deliver him unto you?

The amount agreed upon, thirty pieces of silver, was the price of a slave and showed how little value the chief priests placed on Jesus, and also revealed the greed of Judas in selling his master for so small a sum. Yet many have sold Jesus for a lower price than Judas received; a smile or a sneer has been sufficient to induce them to betray their Lord.

Let us, who have been redeemed with Christ’s precious blood, place great value on Him, think highly of Him, and praise Him greatly. As we remember, with shame and sorrow, these thirty pieces of silver, let us never undervalue Him or forget the priceless preciousness of Him who was considered as worth no more than a slave.