JUDAS, ju'das: One of the twelve Apostles.
The name occurs in the New Testament only in
the lists of the Apostles, yet, including the matter
of the reading of the text, it raises several knotty
problems. This Judas is to be distinguished from
Judas Iscariot on the basis of John xiv. 22; and
from Jude (Judas, Juda), the brother of our Lord
(Matt. xiii. 55; Mark vi. 3Luke vi. 16 and
Acts i. 13
("the brother [better, the son]
of James "). The chief difficulty is raised by the
fact that in two of the lists of Apostles the name
of this Judas is omitted and apparently in its place
is found either "Lebbeus, whose surname was
Thaddeus" (Matt. x. 3
A. V., a . confiate reading,
cf. R. V., which, following the leading textual critics,
omits "Lebbeus, whose surname was"), or
"Thaddeus" (Mark iii. 18). Accordingly most
scholars accept the identification of this Judas with
Lebbeus and Thaddeus, though some have supposed
that James had died and that his place was
taken by Lebbeus-Thaddeus. Of the career of
Judas nothing is known except that he asked the
question recorded in John xiv. 22. Yet a considerable mass of legend grew up (cf. Acta Thaddaei;
see APOCRYPHA, B, II., 12)
in connection with his
mission (as Thaddeus) to Abgar (q.v.), in which
confusion is apparent as to his relation to Jesus
or perhaps as to his identity. Eusebius (Hist.
eccl., I., xii., NPNF, 1 ser., i. 99) makes him one
of the Seventy (not of the Twelve), while Jerome
(on Matt. x. 4, MPL, xxvi. 61) calls him an apostle. The later accounts professing to tell the story
of his life and work have no historical value.
GEO. W. GILMORE.
JUDAS: A chronographer mentioned by Eusebius
(Hist. eccl., vi. 7, NPNF, 2 ser., i. 254). In this passage Eusebius speaks of a certain Judas, otherwise
unknown, who, in a tract on the "Seventy Weeks
of Daniel," put forth some chronological reckonings
on the basis of Daniel's prophecies, coming
down to the tenth year of Septimius Severus (202),
and predicting the speedy return of the Lord.
Closer identification of the author is impossible.
G. KRÜGER.
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
A. Schlatter in TU, xii. 1 (1894); K. Erbes,
in TLZ, 1895, pp. 415-418.
