Etymology

betray with a kiss

Today it means: Of Judas, to kiss Jesus so as to discreetly signal to Roman soldiers that Jesus was the Christ, and as such was the one to be arrested. Full definition →

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The story

The term comes from the Gospel of Luke chapter 22, verse 48 of the New Testament: ⁴⁷ While He was still speaking, a crowd arrived, led by the man called Judas, one of the Twelve. He approached Jesus to kiss Him. ⁴⁸ But Jesus asked him, “Judas, are you betraying the Son of Man with a kiss?” The Gospel of Luke, Berean Standard Bible.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.