John 13:(21)- “When Jesus had thus said, he was troubled in spirit, and testified, and said, Verily, verily, I say unto you, that one of you shall betray me.”
Our Lord “was troubled in spirit” because the final events leading up to His Crucifixion were beginning to unfold. He previously told us that Judas Iscariot “is a devil” (John 6:70). When asked who it was, “Jesus answered, He it is, to whom I shall give a sop, when I have dipped it. And when he had dipped the sop, he gave it to Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon.” (John 13:26); thus, positively identifying him as the deceiving “devil”. Then “Satan” reared his ugly head and “entered into” Judas (John 13:27) moving him and giving him the wicked courage to carry out his vile deed. Like much of what was happening that evening, the other Disciples did not understand what it meant (John 13:28-29); and would not until they were illuminated by the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2). But, being empowered by the “Devil”, he “went immediately out: and it was night” (John 13:30). “Judas” would find the Jewish authorities and would lead them to Jesus later that evening. But when “Judas” “was gone out, Jesus said, Now is the Son of man glorified, and God is glorified in him. 32 If God be glorified in him, God shall also glorify him in himself, and shall straightway glorify him.” (John 13:31-32)! All of this seems strange, couldn’t Jesus, who had just recently shown that He even had the power to raise the dead, do something to stop “Judas”?! Yes, He did have the power to do so; but, the unfolding events were leading to the pinnacle reason for Him coming to this earth. The Jewish authorities and the Roman Soldiers were going “to do whatsoever” God’s “hand and” His “counsel determined before to be done” (Acts 4:28). They had evil intent, but our Lord’s sure purpose was to “save his people from their sins” (Matthew 1:21); and from Genesis Chapter Three up to this very evening the word of God is filled with Divine Prophecy that it must be the Unspotted, Perfect Lamb of God that would Sacrifice Himself to Justify and Glorify and Save to Eternal Heaven each and every one of His beloved Children, not losing a single one (John 6:37)! And if the “devil” and “Judas” had a part in setting it up, so be it, the evil of it would be on their heads, but the “glory” of it would be our Lord’s and the Joy of Eternal Salvation would be ours!