Akeldama is the Aramaic name for a place in Jerusalem associated with Judas Iscariot, one of the original twelve apostles of Jesus.
Christian tradition connects the place with Judas Iscariot, who betrayed Jesus for 30 pieces of silver. There are two accounts of his death.
The Gospel of Matthew describes how Judas returned the money to the Temple authorities before hanging himself. Deeming it as blood money, and therefore illegal to put into their treasury, they used it instead to buy a field as a burial ground for foreigners: thus the place gained the name "the Field of Blood" (Matthew 27:7, and possibly with allusions to Zechariah 11:12–13 and Jeremiah 18:2–3 and Jeremiah 32:6–15).
According to the Acts of the Apostles (Acts 1:18–19) Judas "acquired a field with the reward of his unjust deed, and falling headfirst he burst open in the middle and all his intestines gushed out. This became known to all who lived in Jerusalem so that in their own language they called that field Hakeldama, that is, 'Field of Blood.'"
The implication in Matthew is that the location name refers to the blood of Jesus, whereas in Acts the name refers to the blood of Judas. Barnabas Lindars holds the Acts narrative to be prior, and that although the incident is not created out of the Old Testament passages the text of Zechariah 11:12ff is "freely used to fill up the gaps in the story ... to the early Christian exegetes a perfectly legitimate hermeneutical procedure".
According to Ian Howard Marshall, Acts may be recording the (inaccurate) story as told within Jerusalem.
Another view holds that the passages (Matthew 27:3-9, Acts 1:18) are complementary. Both in the Matthew and the Acts accounts share the essential details of Judas’ betrayal, remorse, and suicide. Judas bought the field inadvertently through the priests. Luke states that Judas “fell head long and he burst open”. It has been suggested that the field could have been on a cliff and Judas’ body could have fallen off or it could have been that Judas’ body only rotted away. One interpretation connects the two, suggesting that after Judas hanged himself, his decomposing corpse fell to the ground and burst open
Zahi Shaked A tour guide in Israel and his camera zahigo25@walla.com +972-54-6905522 tel סיור עם מורה הדרך ומדריך הטיולים צחי שקד 0546905522
My name is Zahi Shaked
In 2000 I became a registered licensed tourist guide.
My dedication in life is to pass on the ancient history of the Holy Land.
Following upon many years of travel around the world, which was highlighted by a very exciting emotional and soul-searching meeting with the Dalai Lama, I realized that I had a mission. To pass on the history of the Holy Land, its religions, and in particular, the birth and development of Christianity.
In order to fulfill this "calling" in the best way possible, I studied in depth, visited, and personally experienced each and every important site of the ancient Christians. I studied for and received my first bachelors degree in the ancient history of the Holy Land, and am presently completing my studies for my second degree.(Masters)
Parralel to my studies, and in order to earn a living, I was employed for many years in advertising. What I learned there was how to attract the publics attention, generate and, increase interest, and assimilate information. All this I use as tools to describe, explain and deepen the interest in the sites that we visit. From my experience, I have learned that in this way, the Holy Land becomes more than just history, and that the large stones that we see scattered about in dissaray, join together one by one until they become - a Byzantine Church. This also happens when I lead a group of Pilgrims in the Steps of Jesus. We climb to the peak of Mount Precipice, "glide" over the land to the Sea of Galilee, land on the water, and "see" the miracle which enfolds before us. This is a many-faceted experience. Not only history which you will remember and cherish, but an experience which I hope will be implanted in your hearts and minds, and will accompany you all the days of your life.
