Who Bought a Graveyard?

What’s In Your Bible: Who Bought a Graveyard?

There are 2 alleged contradictions within the same verses. We already dealt with how Judas dies, now we’ll deal with what happened to the blood money.

Imhanginginthere_ asks “What about the silver? One says he cast it in the temple, the other says he bought the field with it.

Well, it's both! Let’s take a look at it.

Matthew 27:3-8 Then Judas, which had betrayed him, when he saw that he was condemned, repented himself, and brought again the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders, 4 Saying, I have sinned in that I have betrayed the innocent blood. And they said, What is that to us? see thou to that. 5 And he cast down the pieces of silver in the temple, and departed, and went and hanged himself. 6 And the chief priests took the silver pieces, and said, It is not lawful for to put them into the treasury, because it is the price of blood. 7 And they took counsel, and bought with them the potter's field, to bury strangers in. 8Wherefore that field was called, The field of blood, unto this day. Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremy the prophet, saying, And they took the thirty pieces of silver, the price of him that was valued, whom they of the children of Israel did value; 10 And gave them for the potter's field, as the Lord appointed me.

Acts 1:18 “Now this man purchased a field with the reward of iniquity…”

This is a good example of the Full Mention hermeneutical principle.

Matthew 27 provides a full explanation of how the land was purchased and that since it was purchased with the Blood money of Judas, Judas is attributed with its purchase.

This also shows that if you only had Acts 1:18 verse, You could not fully understand it without Matthew.

The same as with the Gospels.

You cannot get the complete story unless you take into consideration all of the reports.

To recap, Judas returned the blood money to the temple priests and cast it on the floor.

The temple priests didn’t want their hands bloodied by taking the money so they purchased a potter's field with it.

Judas’s money was used to purchase the field.

Podcast: Alive with Jesus

Dr. Steven A. Hite