Judas Iscariot
Judas Iscariot (died AD) was a disciple and one of the original Twelve Disciples of Jesus Christ. According to all four canonical gospels, Judas betrayed Jesus to the Sanhedrin in the Garden of Gethsemane by kissing him and addressing him as "Rabbi" to reveal his identity to the crowd who had come to arrest him. His name is often used synonymously with betrayal or treason. Judas's epithet "Iscariot" most likely means he came from the village of Kerioth, but this explanation is not universally accepted and many other possibilities have been suggested.
The Judas Tree
Betrayal is the dominant theme of "The Judas Tree". Here despite and because of the protagonist, a pattern of betrayal is repeated. David betrayed Mary, Doris, his religion, and himself. These betrayals demanded - in Cronin's narrative - the ultimate price, which is death.