Zealots
zeal·ot ˈzɛl ət - Show Spelled Pronunciation[zel-uh t]–noun
1. A person who shows zeal.
2. An excessively zealous person; fanatic.
3. A member of a radical, warlike, ardently patriotic group of Jews in Judea, particularly
prominent from a.d. 69 to 81, advocating the violent overthrow of Roman rule and
vigorously resisting the efforts of the Romans and their supporters to heathenize the Jews.
Jewish faction traced back to the revolt of the Maccabees (2d cent. B.C.). The name was
first recorded by the Jewish historian Josephus as a designation for the Jewish resistance
fighters of the war of A.D. 66–73. This term applied to them because of their fervent
veneration of the Torah and detestation of non-Jews and Jews lacking in religious fervor.
The Zealots were organized as a party during the reign (37 B.C.–4 B.C.) of Herod the
Great, whose idolatrous practices they resisted. Later (c.A.D. 6), when Cyrenius, the
Roman governor of Syria, attempted to take a census, the Zealots, under Judas of
Galilee and the priest Zadok, arose in revolt against what they considered a plot to
subjugate the Jews. Thereafter the Zealots expressed their opposition by sporadic
revolts and by violence against Jews who conformed to Roman ways. The Zealots
played a role in the unsuccessful revolt in which the Temple was destroyed ( A.D. 70) by
the Romans. The Zealot garrison at Masada, a mountaintop fortress near the Dead Sea,
was captured by the Romans only after its 900 defenders had committed mass suicide
(A.D. 73) rather than be captured.
The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2001-05.
Motivation of Judas
The Kiss of Judas, by Giotto di Bondone
Was the monetary value of 30 pieces of silver the only motivating force for Judas'
actions considering that 30 pieces of silver was also the price one paid for a slave
that had been gored by an ox in Old Testament Law? After seeing Jesus' popularity
declining, was Judas' motivation for handing Jesus over an attempt to force the
hand of God into action? Jesus often spoke of creating a kingdom and saving his
people. This was a reference to a spiritual kingdom not known to any of Jesus'
followers until after the day of Pentecost. Furthermore, the Bible notes that Satan
entered into Judas, so to speak, shortly before the events leading to Jesus'
crucifixion, so it is possible Judas may not have been acting entirely according to his
own will at the time. Many times Judas saw Jesus escape capture and stonings.
Judas might have been trying to spur Jesus into a war with the Romans by telling
them where he was.
The last reading may be plausible if the etymology of "Iscariot" (see below) is in fact
related to Sicarii, a sect of the Zealots committed to the violent overthrow of Rome.
If Judas was a Sicarius (which may or may not be historically possible), then it's
possible that he saw Jesus as the Messiah in the fashion expected by the Zealots: a
military leader who would defeat and cast out the Romans. If this scenario was the
case, then Judas may well have been trying to force Jesus into a position where he
had to reveal himself as the divinely appointed warrior-king who would destroy his
enemies.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Judas_Iscariot