He then having received the morsel went immediately out: and it was night.
All Commentaries on John 13:30 Go To John 13
Cyril of Alexandria
AD 444
In haste he hurries away in obedience to the will of Satan, and like one stung and goaded on to madness he rushes from the house. He sees nothing that can overcome his love of gain, and, marvellous though it is, we shall find him in no way benefited by the gift from Christ, of course because of his irrepressible inclination for getting money. For, completely overpowered by his passion, and possessed heart and soul by the father of all iniquity, the wretched man henceforward cannot even discern whither he is rushing on. So with his soul sunk in a night of its own, and darkened by a gloom-bringing swarm of unholy thoughts, he falls headlong into the abyss of Hades as into a trap; and, according to the saying in Proverbs, he flees away as a stag smitten to the liver with a dart, or like a dog into chains, and knoweth not that he runneth with peril of his life. And it seems to me that the inspired Evangelist did not without a purpose say that, having received the sop, he straightway went out. For Satan is terribly wont to urge on those whom he has once captured, and who have once for all fallen into his power, to straightway accomplish their evil works; and, throwing aside all delay, to compel them even against their will to carry out his pleasure. He fears, perhaps, with his usual bitterness of spirit and continual maliciousness, lest perchance in the interval of postponement some change of mind should overtake the man, inducing him to repent and to form a good resolution, and causing him to lay aside his pleasure in sin as a drunkard might leave off drunkenness; and so drag out of his net a victim whom he had deemed already caught in its toils. For this reason I suppose the offender harasses ever those who have fallen into his power, urging them to make great haste and speed in doing whatever is pleasing to him. For instance, he compels Judas, straightway after receiving the sop, as holding him now in his power, at once to proceed to that unholy deed; being very probably afraid as well of his repentance as of the effective power of Christ's gift, lest this, shining as a light in the heart of the man, should persuade him rather to make a deliberate choice of well-doing, or at any rate should give birth to the genuine honest temper of one who had been at length persuaded against his better feelings even to attempt the betrayal.
For that this is ever the wont of the demon in working against us we shall also see to be the case from what happened by way of type. The Jews were in subjection to Pharaoh while still in Egypt, and being by his orders sore vexed with laborious tasks in working with clay and making bricks, were allowed no time for the services they owed to God. For instance, Pharaoh says to the overseers of their tasks: Let the tasks of these men be made heavier, and let them not regard vain words; meaning by "vain words" their eagerness to escape to a state of freedom, their ardent passionate longing for this object, their lamentations over their slavery, and prayer for the greatest blessings. For he was not ignorant that in the leisure time which would be spent on these they would find great comfort. Passing then from the types to the perfect knowledge of the truer meanings, we shall find Satan ever hurrying onward to perform their wickedness those who have once fallen within his snares, and urging on those over whom he has already won a complete victory to be the ministers of such evil deeds as please him.
