A Note on the Death of Judas in Papias

In early Christian literature the death of Judas is broadly understood as a fitting end to the life of the betrayer of Jesus. Papias’ description of Judas’ death can be illuminated by comparison with ancient biographical and medical literature, in which oedema and parasitic infections are a consequence of greed, and also apocalyptic texts, in which worms become an emblematic form of divine punish- ment after death. Viewed in this context the death of Judas serves a pedagogical function as a warning about the dangers of greed.