Judas (of Damascus)

Biblical Record

Judas is named only in Acts 9:11. While traveling to Damascus, Saul (later Paul) encountered the risen Jesus on the road and was struck blind. He was led by the hand into Damascus, and for three days he was without sight and neither ate nor drank (Acts 9:8-9). The Lord then spoke in a vision to a disciple named Ananias, telling him to go to the street called Straight and inquire in the house of Judas for one called Saul of Tarsus (Acts 9:11). Ananias entered the house and laid his hands on Saul, who regained his sight and was baptized (Acts 9:17-18).

The text tells us only that Judas had a house on the street called Straight in Damascus. It says nothing about his occupation, his faith, or his relationship to Saul. His name also does not appear in Acts 22 or 26, where Paul recounts his conversion.

Significance in Scripture

In the account of the conversion of Paul, Judas's house is where Saul waited, unable to see. It is also where Ananias of Damascus met Saul and laid hands on him. The text records that the Lord sent Ananias with specific directions, naming both the street and the owner of the house. The name "Straight" means "straight road," and the street is known to have been a major thoroughfare running east to west through Damascus.

Interpretation and Points of Discussion

The text does not say whether Judas was a disciple who believed in Jesus or a Jewish householder with whom Saul's party lodged, and interpreters' conjectures therefore differ. Some describe Judas as the keeper of a lodging house or as someone connected with the synagogue, but these are inferences rather than statements of the biblical text.

Several figures in the Bible bear the same name, so this Judas should be distinguished from them. Judas Iscariot, who betrayed Jesus; Thaddaeus (Judas the son of James), one of the twelve disciples; Judas the brother of Jesus; and Judas surnamed Barsabas in Acts 15 are all different individuals.

In the Korean Church

Sermons and study materials devoted specifically to Judas are rare. He is usually mentioned only briefly, as the owner of the house where Saul stayed, in treatments of the account of Paul's conversion in Acts 9.