When Jesus had thus said, he was troubled in spirit, and testified,
and said, Verily, verily, I say unto you, that one of you shall
betray me. Then the disciples looked one on another, doubting of whom
he spake. Now there was leaning on Jesus' bosom one of his disciples,
whom Jesus loved. Simon Peter therefore beckoned to him, that he
should ask who it should be of whom he spake. He then lying on Jesus'
breast saith unto him, Lord, who is it? Jesus answered, He it is, to
whom I shall give a sop, when I have dipped _it_. And when he had
dipped the sop, he gave _it_ to Judas Iscariot, _the son_ of Simon.
And after the sop Satan entered into him. Then said Jesus unto him,
That thou doest, do quickly. Now no man at the table knew for what
intent he spake this unto him. For some _of them_ thought, because
Judas had the bag, that Jesus had said unto him, Buy _those things_
that we have need of against the feast; or, that he should give
something to the poor. He then having received the sop went
immediately out: and it was night.--_St. John xiii: 21-30._
* * * * *
_NOTE BY THE ARTIST_
_Comment has already been made upon the custom prevailing at this
time of reclining at meat. We are aware, from other sources of
information, that in partaking of the Passover, the attitude of
standing had, as a point of ritual, long been abandoned in favor of
the recumbent posture, and this is directly evidenced by the words of
the text (v: 23 and 25), which are only compatible with the
supposition that on the present occasion the guest-chamber was
furnished with couches which ran around the three sides of the table
in the usual manner. Authorities differ as to which was regarded as
the "highest seat" some maintaining that this was the outermost place
on the right-hand couch; others, again, preferring the arrangement
followed in the painting, where Jesus occupies the centre_.