Bible Contradiction? What did Judas do with the silver?

For today’s post we will tackle the question the Skeptic Annotated Bible asked: What did Judas do with the silver?

Here are the two answers which the skeptic believes shows a Bible contradiction:

He bought a field.

“Now this man acquired a field with the price of his wickedness, and falling headlong, he burst open in the middle and all his intestines gushed out.” (Acts 1:18)

He threw it on the ground.

“And he threw the pieces of silver into the temple sanctuary and departed; and he went away and hanged himself.”” (Matthew 27:5)

 

(All Scriptural quotation comes from the New American Standard Bible)

Here’s a closer look at whether or not there is a contradiction:

1. When dealing with skeptics’ claim of Bible contradictions it seems one can never be reminded enough of what exactly is a contradiction.  A contradiction occurs when two or more claims conflict with one another so that they cannot simultaneously be true in the same sense and at the same time.  To put it another way, a Bible contradiction exists when there are claims within the Bible that are mutually exclusive in the same sense and at the same time.
2. It is important to know the context of both Acts 1:18 and Matthew 27:5.
   1. Acts 1:18 in the context of the chapter describes events after the resurrection and ascension of Christ but here in the immediate context the narrator looks back and recall what happen to Judas and why the early church had to appoint a new apostle in his place.
   2. Matthew 27:5 in the context of the chapter describes Judas’ regret of betraying Jesus.  In the narrative Jesus has yet to be crucified.  Judas’ regret led him to go to the priests and try to return the money to the priests.
3. Did Judas throw down the pieces of silver?  It is conclusive that he did from Matthew 27:5.  The Greek verb for “threw” in the phrase “he threw the pieces of silver” is ῥίψας.  ῥίψας is a Greek attendant participle from the Greek verb ῥίπτω which mean “thrown down, cast, throw off, toss, etc.”  The active voice of the participle ῥίψας with Judas being the subject indicates that Judas was the one who threw down the pieces of silver.  After throwing down the silver coins the rest of the verse mentioned that Judas departed.
4. The question then would be how do we explain Acts 1:18 that on the surface suggests Judas brought a field instead.  What follows below is a look at Acts 1:18 in the Greek.
   1. The Greek verb used in Acts 1:18 for “acquired” is ἐκτήσατο and comes from the root verb κτάομαι.  The noun form of this verb is κτῆμα and basically means “possession.”  While the verb has the idea of purchased, gain or obtained it does not necessarily mean a transaction of exchange of money.
   2. We see an example of a use of the verb κτάομαι in a non-monetary sense in 1 Thessalonians 4:4 where in the context Paul is talking about holiness and not pursuing sexual immorality.  The verse states  ^“that each of you know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor.”  Obviously the verb here in talking about “possess” it is not saying we should use money to obtain sanctification and honor.
   3. In light of this one should not see Acts 1:18 as telling us that Judas himself purchased the field with his silver coin.  Instead it is simply telling us that Judas possessed the field in some capacity.
5. From observing the verbs we can arrive at a synthesis that does not result in a contradiction.  From the argument from our previous post, “Bible Contradiction? Who bought the potter’s field?” we established that it was the priests who purchased the field from the money Judas threw down.  Yet in purchasing the field these priests made it a burial place for strangers according to Matthew 27:7.  Judas who died who have been buried here and therefore he “possessed” the field.  Of course if the priests brought the field for Judas that meant they had his money which Matthew 27:5 explained that the way they had the money was because Judas threw them down in the temple.

There is not a Bible contradiction here.