Theudas

Biblical Record

Theudas is mentioned only once in the Bible, in Acts 5:36. The passage describes the apostles, who had been arrested for teaching in the name of Jesus, being interrogated before the Sanhedrin, the highest Jewish council. When the council sought to put the apostles to death, Gamaliel, a Pharisee and teacher of the law, rose and urged the council to proceed with caution (Acts 5:34-39). Gamaliel supported his counsel by citing two past events. The first concerned Theudas; the second concerned Judas of Galilee, who rose up after him "in the days of the taxing."

The text says the following about Theudas:

• He rose up "boasting himself to be somebody" (KJV). The sense of the original is that he presented himself as a person of great importance.
• About four hundred men joined him.
• When he was slain, all who followed him were scattered and brought to nought.

The Bible does not record his origins, the content of his claims, or the circumstances of his death.

Significance Within Scripture

In the Acts of the Apostles, Theudas serves as an example supporting Gamaliel's argument. Gamaliel concludes that "if this counsel or this work be of men, it will come to nought: But if it be of God, ye cannot overthrow it" (Acts 5:38-39). The council accepted his advice and, after beating the apostles, released them (Acts 5:40). Theudas and Judas of Galilee are examples of movements that vanished once their leaders died. The scene stands in contrast to the apostles' movement, which did not disappear after the death of its leader.

Interpretation and Debate

The first-century Jewish historian Josephus records a man named Theudas in his Antiquities of the Jews. According to Josephus, during the administration of the Roman procurator Cuspius Fadus, this man called himself a prophet and led a great multitude to the Jordan River, claiming that he would divide its waters, but he was killed by Roman troops. Fadus's term of office is generally dated to the mid-40s AD. Gamaliel's speech, however, took place before that time, and Acts places Theudas before Judas of Galilee. Views therefore differ on the relationship between the two accounts.

• Some hold that the Theudas of Acts and the Theudas of Josephus were different men, noting that the name was common at the time and that such uprisings were frequent. This explanation is widely adopted in evangelical interpretation, which emphasizes the historical accuracy of Scripture.
• Some scholars regard them as the same man and conclude that the chronology in either Acts or Josephus contains an error.

Neither view has been conclusively established. The account of an attempt to divide the Jordan River comes from Josephus and does not appear in the biblical text.

In the Korean Church

In Korean church preaching, Theudas is reportedly mentioned in the course of expounding Gamaliel's counsel rather than treated on his own. He is used chiefly as an example of how a work that comes from men will come to nought.