The Confluence of Plots Text: Luke 22:1-6
Introduction: The Divine Conspiracy
When we come to the passion of our Lord, we must be careful not to read it as a simple tragedy. It is not the story of a good man caught in the gears of a corrupt system. It is not a tale of bad luck or unfortunate circumstances. What we are about to witness is the intersection of three distinct plots, three conspiracies, all converging on one man at one appointed time. There is a human plot, a demonic plot, and a divine plot. And the glorious, bedrock truth of our faith is that the divine plot hijacks and subverts the other two, using their malice and hatred to accomplish the greatest good the universe has ever known.
The human plot is born of envy and fear. The religious leaders of Israel, the men who should have been rolling out the red carpet for their Messiah, are instead sharpening their knives. Their plot is cowardly, political, and driven by the desire to maintain their own petty kingdoms of influence. The demonic plot is born of ancient, cosmic hatred. Satan, the adversary, who has opposed God since the beginning, sees his opportunity to strike at the Son. And so he enters the fray, not as a roaring lion, but as a whispering serpent, finding a willing accomplice in the heart of a disciple. These two plots, the human and the demonic, are what we see on the surface. They are the gears and levers that are visibly moving.
But underneath it all, driving it all, is the divine plot. This is the plan of God, determined before the foundation of the world. As Peter would later preach, Jesus was "delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God" (Acts 2:23). God is not reacting to the treachery of men or the malice of the devil. He is conducting the orchestra. He is the playwright, and every actor, whether righteous or wicked, speaks the lines He has written for them. The cross was not an unforeseen disaster that God had to clean up. The cross was the plan. The betrayal, the false trial, the mockery, the nails, all of it was part of the "definite plan." Understanding this is the key to understanding everything. It is the difference between seeing the cross as a tragic defeat and seeing it as the enthronement of the King.
The Text
Now the Feast of Unleavened Bread, which is called the Passover, was drawing near. And the chief priests and the scribes were seeking how they might put Him to death; for they were afraid of the people. And Satan entered into Judas who was called Iscariot, who belonged to the number of the twelve. And he went away and discussed with the chief priests and officers how he might betray Him to them. And they were glad and agreed to give him money. So he consented, and began seeking a good opportunity to betray Him to them apart from the crowd.
(Luke 22:1-6 LSB)
God's Appointed Time (v. 1)
We begin with the divine stage-setting.
"Now the Feast of Unleavened Bread, which is called the Passover, was drawing near." (Luke 22:1 LSB)
Luke does not mention this as a casual detail, like noting the weather. The timing is everything. The Passover was the great festival of redemption, commemorating God's deliverance of Israel from slavery in Egypt. It was the night the angel of death passed over the houses marked with the blood of the lamb. For centuries, Israel had been rehearsing this story, killing a lamb, and painting its blood on the doorposts. And now, the ultimate Passover is drawing near. The true Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world, is about to be sacrificed. God is not just in control of the events; He is in control of the calendar. The entire liturgical life of Israel was a shadow, a picture, a prophecy pointing to this very week. The redemption from Egypt was a type; this is the antitype. The blood of a literal lamb was a stand-in; this is the reality. The whole thing is saturated with divine, covenantal meaning. The greatest act of betrayal in human history will occur during the feast that celebrates God's greatest act of faithfulness.
The Human Plot: Fear and Hypocrisy (v. 2)
Next, we see the human conspiracy taking shape.
"And the chief priests and the scribes were seeking how they might put Him to death; for they were afraid of the people." (Luke 22:2 LSB)
Here are the spiritual leaders of Israel, the men entrusted with the oracles of God, and what are they doing? They are plotting a murder. And what is their motivation? "For they were afraid of the people." This is the fear of man, which brings a snare. They do not fear God; if they did, they would fall on their faces before His Son. Instead, they fear losing their poll numbers. They fear a riot. They fear the disruption of their comfortable religious establishment. Jesus was a threat to their power, their prestige, and their pocketbooks. His righteousness exposed their hypocrisy. His authority challenged their authority. And so, in the name of preserving religious order, they conspire to kill the Author of life. This is what happens when religion becomes a mask for unbelief and a tool for control. It becomes murderous. They are the guardians of the law, and they are about to commit the ultimate act of lawlessness.
The Demonic Plot: The Open Door (v. 3)
Now the second plot intersects with the first.
"And Satan entered into Judas who was called Iscariot, who belonged to the number of the twelve." (Luke 22:3 LSB)
We must not psychologize this away. This is not a metaphor for Judas's dark thoughts. This is a spiritual reality. Satan, the personal adversary of God, entered him. Judas had, through his own greed and unbelief, opened a door in his heart, and the devil walked right through it. John tells us that Judas was a thief who used to help himself to the money bag (John 12:6). His love of money had hollowed out his soul, leaving it vacant and ready for a new tenant. And Satan came to occupy. But we must immediately affirm that Satan is not a rival power to God. He is a creature, and a creature on a leash. God is utterly sovereign over this demonic transaction. God uses the hatred of Satan to accomplish the love of the cross. Satan thinks he is destroying God's plan, when in reality he is fulfilling it. He is a pawn in a game he cannot comprehend.
And notice the terrifying detail: "who belonged to the number of the twelve." Judas was not an outsider. He was in the inner circle. He walked with Jesus for three years. He saw the miracles. He heard the sermons. He broke bread with the Son of God. This is a sober warning to every one of us. Proximity to the things of God is not the same as possession of God. You can be in the church, you can sing the hymns, you can know the catechism, and still have a heart that is a wide-open door for the enemy. Judas is the ultimate proof that external religion without internal regeneration is worthless.
The Unholy Alliance (v. 4-6)
The plots now converge into a single, wicked course of action.
"And he went away and discussed with the chief priests and officers how he might betray Him to them. And they were glad and agreed to give him money. So he consented, and began seeking a good opportunity to betray Him to them apart from the crowd." (Luke 22:4-6 LSB)
Satan's influence does not erase Judas's responsibility. Judas "went away and discussed." He was an active, willing participant. He made the appointment. He negotiated the terms. The chief priests, in their turn, "were glad." Think of the spiritual sickness here. They are overjoyed at the prospect of murdering an innocent man. Their consciences are so seared that they rejoice in their own wickedness. And what is the lubricant for this entire transaction? Money. They agreed to give him money. Thirty pieces of silver, the price of a gored slave in the Old Testament. They put a slave's price on the head of the King of the universe.
So Judas consented. The deal was struck. And now he seeks a "good opportunity." A good opportunity for what? A good opportunity to commit the most heinous act of treachery in the history of the world. And he must do it "apart from the crowd." Again, we see the cowardice, the love of darkness. They are all afraid of the people. They want to do their wicked deed in the shadows, away from the light. They are trying to manage the public relations of their deicide.
Conclusion: God's Checkmate
So we have the three plots. The religious leaders plot to save their power. Satan plots to destroy the Son. Judas plots to get some cash. And all of them think they are acting according to their own will, to achieve their own ends. But they are all fools. They are all puppets. They are all, in their wickedness, unwittingly carrying out the eternal decree of God.
Their conspiracy to kill Jesus was, from a higher vantage point, God's conspiracy to save the world. Every move they made was anticipated. Every wicked thought was harnessed. Every treacherous act was woven into the tapestry of redemption. God took their sin, their fear, their greed, and their hatred, and He used it all as the fuel for the fire of His salvation. The cross was not man's greatest triumph over Christ. It was God's greatest triumph through Christ over sin and death and hell.
This is the bedrock of our comfort. If God can take the most evil act in history, the murder of His own Son, and turn it into the greatest good, the salvation of His people, then what can He not do? What trial in your life is beyond His power to redeem? What sin is beyond His power to forgive? What enemy is beyond His power to subdue? The cross is God's checkmate. The king is on the board, and though the forces of darkness make their pathetic moves, the outcome was decided before the game ever began.