What does Mark 14:18 mean?
After four hundred years of slavery and nine horrible plagues, God knew that if He killed the firstborns of Egypt, the Pharaoh would give the Israelites just enough freedom to make it to the Dead Sea. The Israelites needed to be ready to go. God told the Israelites to roast a lamb and place the blood on their doorposts and lintels. This would identify their house as protected from the curse. He told them to eat, "with your belt fastened, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand. And you shall eat it in haste" (Exodus 12:11).Today, some thirty-five hundred years later, the feast commemorating that first Passover has become a much more involved affair, including a ceremony of food, wine, and ritual that take no less than fifteen steps. Jesus' meal is probably a bit less complicated, but the presence of reclining benches suggests a long meal. And John 13—17 shows that what Jesus may have lacked in liturgy, He made up for with teaching.
During this deeply significant Passover observance, Jesus tells the disciples that one of them will betray Him; eleven, at least, never suspected.
Every time Judas is mentioned in the Gospels, he is either identified as Jesus' betrayer or is in the process of that betrayal. Jesus chose Judas to follow Him with full knowledge that Judas would one day betray Him (John 6:64). He is the "son of destruction [or perdition]perdition" (John 17:12), the one destined for destruction. Of all the people who wanted Jesus dead (Mark 3:6; 11:18), Judas' betrayal stings most acutely. The Jewish leaders want to protect their law or position (Mark 3:6) or the peace in Jerusalem (Matthew 26:3–5; John 11:49–50). They have listened to Jesus teach and resolved that He is a threat. Judas has listened to Jesus teach and just doesn't care—about the teaching or the man. He may have higher, political, motivations, but the Scriptures only mention he wants money (Matthew 26:15).
