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A chi è rivolto
You will love this if you enjoy early Christian history, lost gospels, and ancient ideas about knowledge, stars, and hidden worlds. It suits anyone curious about how Judas has been imagined.
Che cos’è questo libro
What would you do if the teacher you follow laughed at your prayer? In the Gospel of Judas, Jesus finds his twelve disciples giving thanks over bread, and he laughs. They are hurt and then angry. Only Judas Iscariot can stand before him.
This is a Gnostic Christian writing from the second century. You get a private talk between Jesus and Judas, a strange map of the heavens, and the scholars' quarrel over what it means.
In questo riassunto
- 1A lost gospel surfaces from Egyptian sandsFree
- 2Gnostic Christians sought saving knowledge, not faith alone
- 3Jesus laughs at his disciples and draws Judas aside
- 4The altar vision shows the disciples the error of their own worship
- 5Judas receives teaching and a vision of a house
- 6A map of the heavens explains where error comes from
- 7Scholars still debate whether Judas is hero or villain
Punto chiave 1 di 7
A lost gospel surfaces from Egyptian sands
The Gospel of Judas survives in one Coptic codex, a book of folded papyrus sheets. Scholars think the book was found in the 1970s in a cave near Beni Masah, along the Nile. Its pages then passed into the murky world of the antiquities trade.
Poor storage left the papyrus brittle, and many leaves broke into small pieces. That is why the text has gaps today. A Swiss dealer, Frieda Tchacos Nussberger, finally acquired it and had conservators piece the fragments together. The National Geographic Society presented the work in 2006.
The Greek original was most likely composed in the second century. The Coptic version is usually placed in the third or fourth century. The author is unknown.
The work was known by rumor long before it was found. Irenaeus, the bishop of Lyon, wrote around 180 about a Gnostic group that honored a gospel of Judas. He called it a fabricated work and a false teaching. Many scholars think the codex holds that very work. Church leaders favored writings tied to the apostles, and Irenaeus judged that Gnostic books taught a different God and a different Jesus. So copies faded.
A single damaged book can open a door into a community known mostly through its critics.
That’s 1 of 7 key points.
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Who’s who
- Jesus
- Jesus teaches his disciples about divine mysteries and speaks privately with Judas about the realm beyond the visible world.
- Judas Iscariot
- Judas Iscariot is the disciple who stands before Jesus and receives private teachings that distinguish him from the others.
- The disciples
- The disciples are Jesus's followers, whose understanding of worship and divine authority he challenges during their conversations.
About this edition
Every format is free to start, and print and large print are at cost.
- LengthAbout 3,030 words
- Reading timeAbout 15 min
- FormatseBook, large-print eBook, audiobook, 15-minute summary; paperback and large print at cost
- LanguagesEnglish and 14 other languages
Questions about The Gospel of Judas
What is the Gospel of Judas about?
It presents a private conversation in which Jesus teaches Judas Iscariot the mysteries of the kingdom. It includes the disciples' altar vision, a description of heavens and rulers, and Jesus's warnings about the stars and false worship.
When was the Gospel of Judas written and who wrote it?
Scholars generally place the Greek original in the second century. The author is unknown. The text survives in a Coptic version, usually dated to the third or fourth century, found in Egypt and published in 2006.
Is Judas a hero or a villain in this gospel?
Scholars disagree. An early reading saw him as the one disciple who understands Jesus. Others, such as April DeConick, argue the Coptic calls him a thirteenth demon and treats him as a lesser, doomed figure.
Who are Saklas, Nebro, and Barbelo in the Gospel of Judas?
Nebro, also called Yaldabaoth, and Saklas are lesser rulers; Saklas and his angels fashion Adam and Eve. Barbelo is a name from Sethian myth for a divine realm in the highest heavens.
Why is the Gospel of Judas not in the Bible?
The New Testament was settled over several centuries from writings tied to the apostles and widely used in worship. Church leaders such as Irenaeus judged Gnostic books to teach a different God, so this text was set aside.
Cite this edition
The Gospel of Judas. Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/loa-gospel-of-judas.
The Gospel of Judas. (2026). Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/loa-gospel-of-judas (Original work published ca. 150)
The Gospel of Judas. Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/loa-gospel-of-judas.
@book{anonymous2026gospel,
title = {The Gospel of Judas},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/loa-gospel-of-judas},
note = {First published ca. 150}
}
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