The Betrayer and His Replacement

THE BETRAYER AND HIS REPLACEMENT

An Exposition of Acts 1:15-26

By Pastor Brian Wilbur

Date: January 26, 2025

Series: The Book of Acts

Note: Unless otherwise noted, Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

THE SCRIPTURAL TEXT

Holy Scripture says:

¹⁵ In those days Peter stood up among the brothers (the company of persons was in all about 120) and said, ¹⁶ “Brothers, the Scripture had to be fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit spoke beforehand by the mouth of David concerning Judas, who became a guide to those who arrested Jesus. ¹⁷ For he was numbered among us and was allotted his share in this ministry.”¹⁸ (Now this man acquired a field with the reward of his wickedness, and falling headlong he burst open in the middle and all his bowels gushed out. ¹⁹ And it became known to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so that the field was called in their own language Akeldama, that is, Field of Blood.) ²⁰ “For it is written in the Book of Psalms,

“‘May his camp become desolate,
    and let there be no one to dwell in it’;

and

“‘Let another take his office.’

²¹ So one of the men who have accompanied us during all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, ²² beginning from the baptism of John until the day when he was taken up from us—one of these men must become with us a witness to his resurrection.” ²³ And they put forward two, Joseph called Barsabbas, who was also called Justus, and Matthias. ²⁴ And they prayed and said, “You, Lord, who know the hearts of all, show which one of these two you have chosen ²⁵ to take the place in this ministry and apostleship from which Judas turned aside to go to his own place.” ²⁶ And they cast lots for them, and the lot fell on Matthias, and he was numbered with the eleven apostles. (Acts 1:15-26)

INTRODUCTION

Last week’s passage, Acts 1:1-14, is full of promise and glory – the promise of the Holy Spirit, the glory of Jesus’ ascension into heaven, the impending mission to the world, and the expectant believers waiting prayerfully for power from upon high. The next passage, starting in Acts 2:1, is full of fulfillment – the Holy Spirit descends, the first disciples proclaim God’s might works to Jews from all over the world, and a great spiritual awakening begins. But in between these two glorious passages is what seems like a more mundane passage about leadership personnel. I’m not saying that Acts 1:15-26 actually is mundane, but it might feel that way.

Even so, today’s passage is so helpful because the fact of the matter is that God cares about the practical details, the nuts and bolts, of our church community. Most days don’t have the high drama of the Lord’s ascension into heaven; most days don’t have the high drama of the Holy Spirit’s descent from heaven; and many days don’t have the obvious feel of cutting-edge gospel mission to all the peoples of the world. Some days by comparison are quite ordinary. Sometimes churches have business meetings to decide upon leadership personnel, disciplinary matters, or theological disputes. In Acts 1:15-26 Peter and the gathered congregation endeavored to select the new twelfth apostle, to take the place of the apostle who fell away. In Acts 5:1-11 Ananias and Sapphira were called to account for their deceit. In Acts 6:1-7 the church selected seven men to facilitate food distribution to Greek-speaking Jewish widows. Paul and Barnabas appointed elders in various churches in Acts 14:23. And in Acts 15 church leaders met in order to sort out a theological dispute. Sometimes we want to drive the church straightaway into mission, but the engine is sputtering, the tires aren’t aligned, and some people are in the wrong seats and other people aren’t clear on the message. God cares about these practical details, and our stewarding these practical details is part of our calling.

Whenever we dive into the practical details, what we discover is that it all connects back to the gospel anyway. God intends for His Word to govern everything in the church, including what we have come to call business meetings. Jesus is Lord of everything, including that. Don’t miss the obvious: Acts 1:15-26 begins with Scripture setting the pace (v. 16), which then leads into prayer (v. 24). Those two things, Scripture and prayer, ought to characterize all that we do. God addresses us through Scripture, and then as we seek to walk in the light of Scripture, we entrust ourselves and our activities to the Lord through prayer.

THINKING BIBLICALLY ABOUT THE TREACHERY OF JUDAS (v. 15-20)

With this in mind, let’s walk through the text. First, in verses 15-20, the apostle Peter leads the infant church to think biblically about the treachery of Judas and the need to replace him.

“In those days” (v. 15) refers to the ten-day period between Jesus’ ascension (in v. 9-11) and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit (in Acts 2:1-4). The group of disciples, including the eleven apostles who were named in verse 13, numbered around 120. The apostle Peter, who is typically named first when the apostles are named and who had a leadership role among the apostles, took the lead, stood up, and explained the treachery of Judas the betrayer in terms of Old Testament prophecy. It is important to point out that Judas the betrayer is not the same person as “Judas the son of James” (Acts 1:13), who was also an apostle. Judas the betrayer is “Judas the son of Simon Iscariot” (John 6:71).

The tragedy of Judas’ story (v. 17-19)

We will get to the Old Testament prophecy in just a moment. But first let’s recall the tragedy of Judas’ story. Judas was numbered among the apostles and shared in the ministry of the apostles (v. 17). In Luke 9, Jesus sent out the twelve apostles two by two, and they proclaimed the gospel, healed diseases, and cast out demons. Judas participated in that work of bringing the message and power of God’s kingdom to ordinary people. But although Judas had this tremendous privilege of walking with the Lord, learning from Him, and serving Him in ministry, his heart wasn’t truly consecrated to the Lord. He was a thief who stole from the apostles’ moneybag; he cared more for the money than for the mission. In John 6:70 Jesus indicated that one of his apostles “is a devil” (John 6:70), referring to Judas (John 6:71). Sooner or later, what is going on in the heart will manifest itself in practical action. And so, “Judas turned aside” (v. 25). A form of the Greek word parabainó occurs in verse 25 and is translated “turned aside”, and this word carries the idea of walking contrary to the right way, violating a boundary, transgressing God’s will.[1] Instead of adhering to the Lord’s way of obedience, self-denial, and suffering as the pathway to glory, Judas turned aside to go his own way of disobedience, thus leading to his own destruction. “Judas turned aside to go to his own place” (v. 25), far from the Lord and now subject to condemnation.

The picture of Judas’ demise and his loss of glory is powerfully depicted in verse 18. Judas had betrayed the Lord for thirty pieces of silver, and that was a very bad deal for Judas. All the silver and gold in the world cannot save a sinner from sin and guilt, judgment and death. Only the Lord is able to save sinners, but Judas abandoned the Lord in favor of worthless silver. If he had held fast to the Lord, he would have known the joy of salvation; instead all he got for “the reward of his wickedness” was a field, notoriously called “Akeldama… Field of Blood”. That this field is called “the reward of his wickedness” and that it is referred to as something that he acquired, is full of irony, since the field was acquired after his death by suicide. Judas was remorseful and he threw the thirty pieces of silver back to the religious leaders who had paid him, and they were the ones who bought the field with this blood money (see Matthew 27:3-10). As for Judas, “he went and hanged himself” (Matthew 27:5).

That Judas “hanged himself” is a matter of fact statement. The description in Acts 1 is more graphic: after the hanging proper, he “[fell] headlong [and] he burst open in the middle and all his bowels [or intestines] gushed out.” This was an inglorious end for the traitor who exchanged the glory of the Savior for the shame of wicked scheming. Scripture tells us that all things hold together in Christ (Colossians 1:17). Be forewarned: those who don’t hold fast to Christ will become unglued and face a shameful end. Those who don’t hold fast to Christ will go their own place, the place of judgment. Jesus spoke clearly: “woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been better for that man if he had not been born.” (Matthew 26:24) Better to be non-existent, than to exist and become an enemy of the Son of Man. Better to never be born, than to be born and choose the way of wickedness. Those who are born into this world, but are not born again by the Spirit of God, will face the judgment of eternal fire.

Scripture foretold Judas’ treachery (v. 16)

Even though Judas’ falling away and treachery is a tragic example of human sinfulness, it was all part of God’s plan. And this gets to the real point of what Peter is saying in verses 16-20, for he wants to communicate very clearly that Judas’ act of betrayal, Judas’ consequent demise, and Judas’ eventual replacement all accord with Old Testament prophecy. Peter begins:

“Brothers, the Scripture had to be fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit spoke beforehand by the mouth of David concerning Judas, who became a guide to those who arrested Jesus.” (v. 16)

This is remarkable. Less than two months earlier, Peter was clueless! He wasn’t getting it. But now he's confidently handling the Scriptures. The Holy Spirit hasn't even come upon him yet, but something beautiful is already happening: Peter is learning how to rightly understand the Old Testament. Where did he learn this? Well, this is what the risen Lord Jesus Christ had been teaching His disciples during the forty days before He ascended into heaven (see Luke 24:44-47 and Acts 1:1-8).

When Jesus told His apostles that He “must suffering many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes and be killed” (Mark 8:31), “Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him [Jesus]” (Mark 8:32). Peter thought that Jesus was wrong! Peter didn’t understand that the Old Testament foretold a suffering and dying Messiah. Peter, like so many of his fellow Jews, anticipated a Messiah who conquers like a political or military conqueror, not a Messiah who is crucified. But after the resurrection of Jesus, Jesus taught them that the Law, the Psalms, and the Prophets had been pointing first to His suffering and then to the victory that would follow (Luke 24:25-27, 44). By the time Peter wrote his first letter many years later, Peter said that the Holy Spirit had foretold through the Old Testament prophets “the sufferings of Christ and the subsequent glories” (1 Peter 1:11). And here in Acts 1:15-26, even before the coming of the Holy Spirit, Peter was beginning to understand this reality. What Jesus had taught the apostles over the previous forty days was sinking in.

The Psalms foretold that the Messiah would be opposed by the wicked rulers of this world (Psalm 2). Moreover, the Psalms foretold that the Messiah would be opposed not only by the obvious wicked people, but also by one of his own friends. Betrayal by an insider was part of the story, part of God’s plan. David says in Psalm 41:9, “Even my close friend in whom I trusted, who ate my bread, has lifted his heel against me.” God orchestrated David’s life in such a way that David’s experience was often a preview of what the Messiah would experience. David’s experiences and words were often prophetic, predicting beforehand the sufferings of the Messiah. With Psalm 41:9 in mind, Jesus spoke words of instruction and blessing to His apostles in John 13, but then He adds this important qualifier:

“I am not speaking of all of you; I know whom I have chosen. But the Scripture will be fulfilled, ‘He who ate my bread has lifted he heel against me.’ I am telling you this now, before it takes place, that when it does take place you may believe that I am he.” (John 13:18-19)

The Lord being betrayed by a close friend is part of the gospel story, part of the sufferings of Christ. Under the Father’s sovereign hand which had already planned the details: our Lord was betrayed by an insider, He was falsely accused and unjustly condemned by His own countrymen, He was sentenced to death and mistreated by the Gentiles, He was crucified on the tree and buried in the tomb.

Judas hanged himself as an act of remorseful self-pity, which resulted only in his own ripping apart and death. By contrast, Jesus was hanged on a tree by others, under the sovereign and purposeful hand of God, in order to die for the sins of others as an act of love for His people. While Judas’ body disintegrated, the body of Jesus did not undergo decay (see Psalm 16), and on the third day He rose again, and He now puts broken sinners back together through the blood that He shed for others. Judas betrayed innocent blood. But Jesus offered His very own innocent blood as payment for sin to satisfy the Father’s justice. Judas “acquired a field with the [thirty pieces of silver]”. Jesus acquired His people with His precious blood. As Peter wrote in 1 Peter:

“knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot.” (1 Peter 1:18-19)

‘May his camp become desolate’ (v. 20a)

But it isn’t only that Judas’ betrayal was foretold by Scripture. Scripture also foretold Judas’ consequent demise and eventual replacement. After telling us about Judas’ death in verses 18-19, Peter then says:

“For it is written in the Book of Psalms, ‘May his camp become desolate, and let there be no one to dwell in it’”. (v. 20a)

Peter is quoting David from Psalm 69:25. Psalm 69 has multiple prophetic references to the experiences and sufferings of Jesus. In the section that Peter quotes from, David prays for judgment to fall upon his enemies. Remember, David is the king of God’s choosing, and to set yourself against the king of God’s choosing is an act of wickedness against God. So David prays:

²² Let their own table before them become a snare;
    and when they are at peace, let it become a trap.
²³ Let their eyes be darkened, so that they cannot see,
    and make their loins tremble continually.
²⁴ Pour out your indignation upon them,
    and let your burning anger overtake them.
²⁵ May their camp be a desolation;
    let no one dwell in their tents.
²⁶ For they persecute him whom you have struck down,
    and they recount the pain of those you have wounded.
²⁷ Add to them punishment upon punishment;
    may they have no acquittal from you.
²⁸ Let them be blotted out of the book of the living;
    let them not be enrolled among the righteous.

(Psalm 69:22-28)

Peter has been learning from Jesus how to read the Old Testament and how to prophetically apply the sufferings and petitions of King David to the greater King, Jesus Christ. And so, Peter takes the petition for judgment against the king’s enemies in Psalm 69:25 and applies it specifically as a declaration of judgment against Judas the betrayer: “May [his] camp become desolate”. And it is right to apply the immediate surrounding verses against Judas, too: “may [he] have no acquittal from you”; “Let [him] be blotted out of the book of the living; let [him] not be enrolled among the righteous”. Judas was once numbered among the apostles, but after he turned away to go to his own place, he isn’t even numbered among God’s people.

The necessity of repentance and faith

The words of Psalm 69 and their application to Judas in Acts 1 remind us that human beings are not automatic recipients of God’s forgiveness. Sometimes people get very sentimental and like to think that God forgives everyone, but of course that isn’t true. All human beings are sinners, and God is willing to forgive any sinner who turns from sin and turns to God in humble repentance. But those who choose wickedness and refuse to turn away from it, will meet a bitter end. As Paul will preach to the Athenians in Acts 17,

“[God] commands all people everywhere to repent, because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed; and of this he has given assurance by raising him from the dead.” (Acts 17:30-31)

“[Unless] you repent, you will… perish” (Luke 13:3, 5). What does it mean to repent? Repentance means turning away from your sin, and turning to Jesus, trusting in Jesus and His promises, treasuring Jesus who suffered the penalty of our sins so that we could be forgiven and reconciled to God. As it is written in John 3:

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God…. Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.” (John 3:16-18, 36)

It's not about going to church. It’s not about attempting to be a nice person. It’s not about being a little bit better than the drunk two doors down. And it’s not about serving in the ministries of the church. Judas illustrates the sobering fact that you can share in the Lord’s ministry without sharing in the Lord’s salvation. It is possible to preach and teach and to help others and to be recognized as a productive servant, and yet be a complete and total stranger to the Lord’s transforming grace. Judas isn’t a rare exception. The fact is, there have been and will continue to be many Judases who did the Lord’s work but didn’t know the Lord. Jesus said,

“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to be, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many might works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, your workers of lawlessness.’” (Matthew 7:21-23)

Judas will spend eternity knowing that for a few years on the dusty streets of Palestine he rubbed shoulders with the Son of God, he heard the Master’s teaching, he did the Lord’s work, but he never got his heart right. He never came to truly love the Lord. He was surrounded by privileges, but inside he was an unconverted fool who loved all the wrong things. It’s not enough to be numbered among the apostles, or numbered among the church leaders, or numbered among the church members. The Lord knows those who are His, and the question is whether the Lord knows that you are His; the question is whether you are numbered and named in His book of life.

‘Let another take his office’ (v. 20b)

So, the emphasis in the first half of verse 20 is the desolation of Judas: Judas’ life, Judas’ dwelling place, Judas’ estate, Judas’ legacy, comes to absolutely nothing. But in the second half of verse 20 Peter shifts gears, draws upon another psalm, and makes a different point, namely, that with respect to the office that Judas held, someone else should take his place. In this case, Peter is quoting from Psalm 109. Peter says, “and ‘Let another take his office.’” (v. 20b)

Psalm 109 is another Psalm of David in which David is praying for judgment upon his enemies. The situation in Psalm 109 is that “wicked and deceitful” people have opened their mouths against David and are “speaking against [David] with lying tongues” (v. 2). These wicked people “encircle [David] with words of hate, and attack [David] without cause.” (v. 3) Therefore David prays against them in the following manner:

⁶ Appoint a wicked man against him;
    let an accuser stand at his right hand.
⁷ When he is tried, let him come forth guilty;
    let his prayer be counted as sin!
⁸ May his days be few;
    may another take his office! (Psalm 109:6-8)

Peter takes the condemnation of the evildoer and the evildoer’s replacement by another – because the evildoer occupied an official position of responsibility and oversight – and applies them to Judas. Judas’ apostleship was an official position of responsibility and oversight, and now that Judas played the fool and proved to be an unrighteous man, another man – and a better one – must take his place.

And so, Scripture foretold Judas’ treachery, condemnation, and replacement. And all this is part of the Old Testament telling the story of Jesus beforehand, and finally Peter is understanding it. The Lord’s sufferings were all essential to God’s purpose and plan.

MATTHIAS REPLACES JUDAS AS AN APOSTLE (v. 21-26)

Second, moving to verses 21-26, the apostle Peter leads the infant church to follow the Scriptural storyline and actually replace the office of apostleship that Judas had held but abandoned.

It isn’t Judas the man who is being replaced. It is Judas the apostle, Judas the officeholder, who must be replaced. The Lord chose twelve apostles, and the choosing of twelve apostles signified the starting point of a renewed Israel. Jacob’s twelve sons were the building blocks of old Israel, and old Israel had received promises that one day the Lord would do a new work, and make a new covenant, and build a renewed Israel. Jesus’ twelve apostles are the building blocks of this renewed Israel. And so, Judas vacating his office was a big deal. He needed to be replaced. There must be twelve. Jesus said to His apostles, “Truly, I say to you, in the new world, when the Son of Man will sit on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.” (Matthew 19:28) But not Judas! A replacement was needed. And in the holy city described in Revelation 21, “the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.” (Revelation 21:14) But not Judas! A replacement was necessary.

And so, following the Scriptural storyline, Peter leads the small congregation to identify a replacement to fill the apostolic office. To hold the office of apostle meant two very specific things: first, that the Lord Himself chose you for that office; and second, that you were an eyewitness to the ministry of Jesus from the time of Jesus’ baptism (in Luke 3) to the time of Jesus’ ascension (in Luke 24, Acts 1) (v. 22). Having this broad firsthand knowledge of our Lord’s life and ministry would then make someone a compelling witness to the resurrection of Jesus (v. 22). The eleven remaining apostles weren’t the only ones who had accompanied Jesus from the baptism to the ascension – there was a broader group of disciples who had also done this, as Peter indicates in verse 21. It wouldn’t be fitting for the eleven apostles or for the congregation of 120 disciples to actually name Judas’ replacement; the Lord is the One who needed to name the replacement. But notice, the Lord works through His people, especially through Peter who is teaching and leading here – and the Lord works through Scripture and prayer – in order to identify the new officeholder.

And so, in verse 23, these disciples identified two men who met the qualification of being an eyewitness from the baptism to the ascension of Jesus. Man number one: “Joseph called Barsabbas, who was also called Justus”. And the second: Matthias. And then, in verse 24, they set these men before the Lord in prayer:

“You, Lord, who know the hearts of all, show which one of these two you have chosen to take the place in this ministry and apostleship from which Judas turned aside to go to his own place.”

It would be the Lord's choice. They entrusted the matter to the Lord. And then they cast lots. You gotta love it! They cast lots, draw straws, roll the dice, flip the coin, that sort of thing. God rules every moment and every outcome, even the things that we call chance. It says in Proverbs 16:33, “The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the LORD.” (Proverbs 16:33)

Now, let me make just a few brief comments about the casting of lots. Casting lots isn't the ordinary way of decision making. God wants you to become a wise human being. He wants you to internalize the Word of God. He wants you to be transformed by the Word of God. He wants you to be in community with other people who are being transformed by the Word of God. He wants us to grow and wisdom and understanding and making sound judgments. And in the ordinary course of life, he wants us to take responsibility and make decisions that accord with His Word and that accord with His wisdom and will. So you don't want to cast lots because you're lazy. You don't want to cast lots because you're refusing to take responsibility. You don't want to cast lots because you know what the right thing to do is, and yet you really hope you can roll dice a certain way so that it gives you justification to do the wrong thing. ‘See, I rolled the dice!’ No, that's testing God. If you know what the right course of action is, don't roll the dice. Okay? But there are times when you're seeking to understand the Scriptures, you're seeking to walk in His ways, you’re not violating any of God's moral boundaries, and you're simply faced with two or more legitimate options. And in a situation like that, there's nothing wrong with casting lots. And that's what they were doing here. They had no reason to think that either Joseph or Matthias were an improper choice. They were both legitimate choices from their perspective, and they entrusted the matter to God by casting lots, knowing that its outcome would be from the Lord. So “the lot fell on Matthias, and he was numbered with the eleven apostles” (v. 26). And so now we have the twelve apostles again. All the building blocks of the renewed Israel are in place. Now it is time for the mission to begin.

REMEMBERING THE GOSPEL OF GOD’S GRACE

Now before I close here, I want to circle back to something I said earlier. And I want to minister the grace of the gospel to you.

There may be someone here who wonders, have I turned away? Have I turned away from the Lord? Like Judas, have I made such a shipwreck of my life that there's no forgiveness, there's no acquittal, there's no second chance?

People can get into really, really bad places, and they can wonder about where they stand with God. Or perhaps you're here and it's not that you have turned away from the Lord, but it's that you've never really turned to the Lord in the first place. And you wonder, where do I fit into all this?

Well, I just want to encourage you with an important line of thought here that's kind of tucked away. I want you to think about Peter. Peter wasn't standing up and pronouncing this judgment upon Judas because Peter had the moral high ground and because Peter was impressed with his own righteousness. Peter didn’t have the moral high ground! Peter wasn’t impressed with himself!

Think about a couple things. Number one: remember earlier I told you that Jesus referred to Judas as a devil in John 6:70. Well, let me remind you of a different text. In Mark 8, which I referred to earlier, Peter sought to correct Jesus, Peter rebuked Jesus for talking about His sufferings. When that happened, Jesus said to Peter: “Get behind me, Satan!” (Mark 8:33) Ouch!

Furthermore, yes, Judas was treacherous and betrayed the Lord. But don't forget what Peter had done. Peter, just less than two months earlier, had denied that he even knew the Lord. He was ashamed to be identified with the man who was about to go to the cross. And he vehemently denied that he even knew Jesus, to the point of calling down curses (Mark 14:66-72).

And so you see these two men, Judas and Peter, both sinful. The kingdom of God doesn't consist of people who figured out how to be great on their own. We're all fallen and sinful people. Peter turns away, but is restored. Judas turns away, and is condemned. And what I want to impress upon you is that the fact that you may be in a bad place. But the fact that you may have wandered far from the Lord doesn't mean that your story is over. If you have within your heart an inkling of desire to turn back to the Lord, to come clean with Him, to be renewed in His sight, then I want to encourage you from the example of Peter that you too can be restored.

Remember this gospel that Peter is proclaiming – this message of a suffering Messiah who suffered under Pontius Pilate and was crucified for the sins of His people. All of that is good news for sinners like you and me who continually need to be forgiven and renewed by the Lord. Turn back to Him this morning. Let's pray.

Father, I thank You for Your good and faithful Word of God to nourish us, to direct us, to protect us, to transform us. Father, I pray that we would drink deeply from the riches of Your grace. I pray that You would renew cold hearts, that You would inspire dull hearts, that You would strengthen those who are weak, and that You would lead all of us to follow You faithfully together. I pray in Jesus’ name, amen.

ENDNOTES

[1] See the Bible hub entry for “3845. parabainó”. Available online: https://biblehub.com/greek/3845.htm.