The Fruit of [Inauthentic] Repentance

Matthew 27:3-5

Then when Judas, his betrayer, saw that Jesus was condemned, he changed his mind and brought back the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and the elders, saying, “I have sinned by betraying innocent blood.” They said, “What is that to us? See to it yourself.” And throwing down the pieces of silver into the temple, he departed, and he went and hanged himself.

Tom Wright, Matthew for Everyone (Vol. 2)

[T]here are levels, and degrees, of remorse. We saw when we looked at Peter, at the end of the previous chapter, that there is a big difference between remorse, such as that of Judas, and genuine repentance, such as that of Peter. . . . Remorse and repentance both begin with looking at something you’ve done and realizing it was wrong. But the first goes down the hill of anger, recrimination, self-hatred and ultimately self-destruction, the way that leads to death. The second goes down the route Peter took, of tears, shame, and a way back to life (174).

Aaron Orendorff

John the Baptist—Jesus’ wild-eyed, locust eating, camel-fur wearing cousin—chastised his curious audience: “Bear fruit in keeping with repentance” (Matt. 3:18).

Jesus, with a similar bend, warned his disciples that the difference between authentic sheep and “ravenous wolves” will be seen by their “fruit” (Matt. 7:16, 20).

The dual stories of Peter and Judas bear this truth out. The key difference between these two failed disciples—one an deserter, the other a traitor—is in the fruit their “changes of heart” bore. Peter, broken and weeping, clings to the hope that this cannot be the end. He clings to his friends, and eventually clings to Jesus. Judas, on the other hand, surrenders himself to failure. Judas gives himself over to despair and goes the heart-breaking way of death.