He went away and hanged himself.
—Matthew 27:5
What happened to Judas after he betrayed Jesus? “He was seized with remorse” (Mt 27:3).
There is a “before” and “after” to sin. “Pre-sin” promises advantages: prosperity, position, pleasure. “Post-sin” delivers results: guilt, regret, remorse.
Judas’s greedy pre-sin disposition that led to betrayal was overwhelmed by post-sin remorse.
At the point of post-sin remorse, there is a choice: repent and be reconciled to God or surrender to despair and self-condemnation. Peter chose the first; Judas the latter.
There is a final chapter to every life. We know how the final chapter of Judas’s life reads. Ours need not end that way. We can’t rewrite the past, but we can accept what Jesus did for us and write a victorious final chapter.
End well.