{"collection":"scripture-revelation","full_text_available":true,"graph_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/api/page/gutenberg_48843/graph","html_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/page/gutenberg_48843","id":"gutenberg_48843","license":"Public Domain (US)","rights_basis":"gutenberg_metadata_copyright_false","source":"gutenberg","source_url":"https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/48843","summary":null,"tags":["Category: Historical Novels","Category: Religion/Spirituality","Christian fiction","Jesus Christ -- Fiction"],"text":"PHILOCHRISTUS\n\n _Memoirs of a Disciple of the Lord_\n\n [Illustration]\n\n\n\n\n\n PHILOCHRISTUS\n MEMOIRS\n OF\n A DISCIPLE OF THE LORD\n\n _\u1f14\u03bc\u03b1\u03b8\u03b5\u03bd \u1f00\u03c6\u2019 \u1f67\u03bd \u1f14\u03c0\u03b1\u03b8\u03b5\u03bd \u03c4\u1f74\u03bd \u1f51\u03c0\u03b1\u03ba\u03bf\u03ae\u03bd_\n\n London\n MACMILLAN AND CO\n 1878\n\n _The Right of Translation and Reproduction is Reserved_\n\n\n\n\n\n LONDON:\n R. CLAY, SONS, AND TAYLOR,\n BREAD STREET HILL, E. C.\n\n\n\n\n\n _TO_\n _THE AUTHOR OF \u2018ECCE HOMO\u2019_\n _NOT MORE IN ADMIRATION OF HIS WRITINGS_\n _THAN IN GRATITUDE_\n _FOR THE SUGGESTIVE INFLUENCE_\n _OF A LONG AND INTIMATE FRIENDSHIP._\n\n\n\n\n\n _PHILOCHRISTUS THE ELDER TO THE SAINTS OF THE CHURCH IN LONDINIUM,\n GRACE, MERCY, AND PEACE FROM THE LORD JESUS CHRIST._\n\n_Forasmuch as almost all those disciples who with me saw the Lord Jesus in\nthe flesh, are now fallen asleep, and I myself am well stricken in years\nand daily expect the summons of the Lord; it hath therefore seemed good to\nme to bequeath unto you some memorial of Christ in writing; which, instead\nof my voice, shall testify to you of him for ever._\n\n_All the more need seemeth thereof because the Lord delayeth his coming.\nFor now these ten years Jerusalem hath been trodden down of the Gentiles,\nand the words of the Lord concerning the destruction of the Holy City have\nbeen fulfilled; and yet he cometh not. Yea, and sometimes my mind\npresageth that his coming __may be yet longer delayed, even till all they\nthat knew him in the flesh have fallen asleep._\n\n_For this cause I was long ago moved, even from the second or third year\nafter the destruction of the Holy City, to leave some record behind me to\ntestify of the Lord. But when I adventured to write, behold, it was an\nhard matter and well\u2010nigh impossible, to set forth such an image of the\nLord Jesus as should be at once according to the truth, and yet not\naltogether too bright for mortal eye to look upon and love. Therefore at\nthe last, when I perceived that it was not given unto me to portray any\ncharacter of the Lord as he was in himself, I determined rather to set\nforth an history of mine own life; wherein, as in a mirror, might\nperchance be discerned some lineaments of the countenance of Christ, seen\nas by reflexion, in the life of one that loved him._\n\n\n\n\n\n THE TABLE\n\n\n_Chapter_\n 1 _Of my childhood in Galilee; and how I gave myself\n wholly to the study of the Law._\n 2 _Of my doubts concerning the Law; and of the Patriots\n or Galileans; and of the expectation concerning John\n the son of Zachariah._\n 3 _Concerning the casting out of unclean Spirits; and of\n the nature of the Redemption of Israel; and how I first\n saw Jesus of Nazareth._\n 4 _Of the doctrine of John the Prophet, how it suited\n with the people of the land; and how I was baptized of\n the Prophet._\n 5 _Of the Greek philosophers in Alexandria; and how I had\n discourse with Philo the Alexandrine._\n 6 _How I found not salvation in the worship of the\n Temple; nor in the teachers of Galilee; nor in the\n Essenes; and how I first spake with Jesus of Nazareth._\n 7 _Of the Good News; and concerning the Kingdom of God;\n and how we desired of Jesus new laws._\n 8 _Of the New Law._\n 9 _How Quartus interpreted the New Law._\n 10 _How some desired Jesus to mix the New Law with the Old\n Law; and concerning the legion of swine; and how Jesus\n began to teach in parables._\n 11 _Concerning the new power of the Forgiveness of Sins._\n 12 _How the Forgiveness of Sins is the Key that openeth\n the New Kingdom; and how the Old Law and the New Law\n must not be mixed._\n 13 _Of the plotting of the Pharisees against Jesus, how\n they said he had a devil; and concerning the Holy\n Spirit._\n 14 _How John the Prophet doubted concerning Jesus; and\n concerning them that are __\u201c__born of women;__\u201d__ and\n of the beheading of John the Prophet._\n 15 _How Jesus fled from Capernaum, and the Galileans at\n first fell away from him; and concerning the levy in\n Galilee; and of the visit of Jesus to Nazareth._\n 16 _How, after the death of John the Prophet, Jesus\n foresaw that he also must be slain; and of the Bread of\n Life, and the feeding of the five thousand; and\n concerning the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees._\n 17 _How Xanthias the Alexandrine said that the philosophy\n of Jesus aimed at the taking in of the Gentiles into\n the Kingdom, and at the enfranchisement of slaves; and\n how he found fault with Jesus for that he called\n himself the Son of man._\n 18 _Of signs in heaven; and concerning the healing of the\n Syroph\u0153nician maiden, how Jesus seemed to gain thereby\n some new knowledge._\n 19 _How Jesus would work no sign in heaven; and concerning\n his temptation and wherefore he denied to work signs in\n heaven._\n 20 _How Jesus led us, in our exile, to the Rock of\n Salvation; and how he founded the Temple of his\n Congregation thereon; and how he gave the Key thereof\n to Simon Peter._\n 21 _How Jesus, having now determined to die, spake of that\n which was to come, with Moses and Elias, upon the Mount\n Hermon._\n 22 _Of our going up to Jerusalem; and of the division\n between parents and children; and how Jesus testified\n of a Day of Judgment._\n 23 _Of covetousness; and of fleeing from Death into Life;\n and concerning the Law of Retribution._\n 24 _Of the falling away of Judas of Kerioth; and of the\n Times and Seasons; and of the Chief Places in the\n Kingdom; and how Jesus did and said nothing except it\n were prepared for him by the Father._\n 25 _Concerning the fire of the Lord; and of the parables\n of watching; and of the Holy Spirit; and how Quartus\n urgeth that Jesus knew not all things beforehand._\n 26 _How Jesus went down to Jerusalem, as a king, to wage\n war against Satan in the Temple; and how he foresaw\n that the Temple must be cast down; and of the parable\n of the withered fig\u2010tree._\n 27 _How Jesus prophesied of troubles, and of a great\n battle against Satan; and in the end the victory of the\n Son of man; but, first of all, his death._\n 28 _How Jesus, by his Testament, bequeathed himself to his\n disciples for ever; and how he bare the sins of men in\n Gethsemane._\n 29 _Of the crucifixion of Jesus; and of his last words\n upon the cross._\n 30 _How the Holy Spirit, through much sorrow, prepared the\n disciples to behold Jesus risen from the dead; and of\n the vision of angels, which appeared first of all unto\n the women._\n 31 _How Jesus appeared ofttimes to his disciples; and how,\n after many days, he ascended up to heaven._\n 32 _How Jesus now ruleth the world, sitting on the right\n hand of the Father in heaven._\n\n\n\n\n\n\n PHILOCHRISTUS\n\n\n\n\n\n CHAPTER I\n\n\nMy former name was Joseph the son of Simeon, and I was born in Sepphoris,\nthe metropolis of Galilee, in the twentieth year of the reign of the\nEmperor Augustus, about four years before the death of King Herod. In\nthose days Israel was grievously afflicted, and tribulation befell the\nrighteous. Satan put it into the heart of the rulers of the land to move\nthe people to the worship of false gods, and the Lord God had not yet\nraised up a Redeemer for Israel.\n\nIn my fourth year my father\u2019s brother, the Rabbi Matthias, was burned\nalive by Herod for causing his scholars to cast down the golden image of\nan eagle which the king had set up over the gate of the temple of the\nLord. Not many months afterwards, the Romans marched through Sepphoris in\norder to bring succour to Sabinus, who was hard beset by the men of\nJerusalem in the fortress called Antonia; and we fought against them, and\nmy father was taken captive and crucified by Varus. Now as concerning my\nfather and my father\u2019s brother, how they were slain, perchance I remember\ntheir deaths rather from my mother\u2019s often mention of them in after times\nthan from what I heard then: but this thing can I never forget, for I saw\nit with mine own eyes: namely, how, when my mother brought me forth from\nthe caves of Arbela whither we had been sent for refuge, behold, where\nSepphoris had stood, there was not now one house standing; and I saw also\nthe bodies of many of my kinsfolk, which lay unburied and crying unto the\nLord for vengeance. Yet the Lord sent no avenger.\n\nAfter this came tidings that the Parthians, which went with Varus, had\nlaid waste the country in the south far and wide, and had slain our\nbrethren with the sword; and that Varus had taken two thousand of my\ncountrymen in Jerusalem and had crucified them, and among them Eleazar,\nthe youngest and dearest of my mother\u2019s brethren. Then my mother led me to\na rocky place not far from Sampho. There was a cave there, and only one\npath led to it, and that so narrow that no multitude of men could force an\nentrance, if one brave man withstood them. When we were come thither, my\nmother lifted up her voice and wept, and pointing to the cave she said,\n\u201cIn former times this cave was held by my mother\u2019s brother, Hezekiah by\nname. Six children he had; and he fled from Herod the King with them and\nwith his wife, and here they took refuge. Now when the king could by no\nmeans drive Hezekiah hence by force, he offered much gold unto him if he\nwould come forth from the cave quietly. But when Hezekiah refused, the\nking began to let down armed men by ropes from the top of the hill, with\nfirebrands in their hands, to kindle fires at the mouth of the cave. Then\nwhen no hope of safety remained, behold, my mother\u2019s brother brought out\nhis children, and slew the youngest with his sword in the sight of the\nking. Afterwards he laid his hands on his second child. But Herod,\nperceiving his intent, stretched out his right hand and besought Hezekiah\nto spare his children and to come forth in peace. But he slew the second\nalso, heaping reproaches on Herod as an usurper and a son of Edom, sitting\non David\u2019s seat; and he slew the third and the rest likewise, even to the\nsixth, and last of all his wife; and then he cast himself down the steep\nplace and perished.\u201d Then spake my mother unto me and said, \u201cThe Lord do\nso unto thee, my son, and more likewise, if thou avenge not the blood of\nthy kinsfolk and of thy father.\u201d So it came to pass that, even from a\nchild, I hated the very name of a Gentile with an exceeding hatred;\ninsomuch that I should have accounted him blessed who should have taken\nthe children of Rome (according as it is written) and dashed them against\nthe stones.\n\nThere stood up at this time divers to lead Israel; but they were no true\nleaders of the people, and the Lord had not sent them. Athronges the\nshepherd, a man of great stature, and Simon, one of the servants of Herod\nthe King, rose up in the south of Judah; but they both perished, and their\nfollowers were scattered. Again, about the time of the numbering of the\npeople, when the decree went forth from the Emperor Augustus that all\nIsrael should be taxed, there rose up Judas of Gamala. This was about the\nthirty\u2010third year of the Emperor Augustus. The people came to him from all\nsides; and Judas taught them that it was not lawful to pay tribute to\nC\u00e6sar, nor to call any man Master, save God alone. At that time I was some\nthirteen years old; and I saw him when, with a thousand men, he marched\ninto Capernaum and burned down the house of customs there; and as I looked\nupon his face, and the numbers of his followers, I thought within my\nheart, \u201cSurely the hand of the Lord is with this man, surely this is the\nRedeemer of Israel, even the Messiah to whom all the prophets bear\nwitness, that he must arise and judge the land.\u201d But five Sabbaths had not\npassed away before he also had been cut off; and all the men that were\nwith him were either scattered to their homes or slain.\n\nMeanwhile, as I grew up, I was being trained by my mother with all care in\nthe paths of the law of Israel; and according to the custom of my people,\nat five years old I had begun to learn the Scripture, and, at ten years,\nMishnah; and I profited more than my companions in the study of the\nTraditions. But when I read how great things God had done in times past\nfor His chosen ones, and how He had redeemed Israel by the hand of His\nservants Gideon and David, then did my heart burn within me; and I\nbesought the Lord that He would repeat His mercies upon His chosen people,\nand that He would speedily send that Messiah of whom all the prophets\nspake, for the Redemption of Israel. Afterwards I questioned one of my\nteachers, by name Abuyah the son of Elishah, and I said unto him, \u201cIt is\nrevealed and known before the All\u2010seeing (blessed is He) that our will is\nto do His will: and what hindereth?\u201d Then he answered and said, \u201cThe dough\nin the leaven\u201d (meaning Gentile customs, which corrupt the customs of\nIsrael even as leaven changeth bread) \u201cand servitude to the Kingdom.\u201d Then\nI said, \u201cWhy therefore do we not rise up against the Gentile Kingdom?\u201d But\nhe answered, \u201cJoseph, son of Simeon, busy thyself with the Law. Whosoever\nis busied in the Law for the Law\u2019s sake deserveth many things; and not\nonly so, but he is worth the whole world. He is called friend, beloved;\nloveth God, loveth mankind; pleaseth God, pleaseth mankind. And it\nclotheth him with meekness and fear, and fitteth him to become righteous,\npious, upright, and faithful; and removeth him from sin, and bringeth him\ntowards the side of merit.\u201d Then said I, \u201cBut wherefore doth not the God\nof our Salvation bring freedom to Israel?\u201d But he answered, \u201cIt is said,\nThe tables were the work of God, and the writing was the writing of God,\ngraven upon the tables. Read not _charuth_, graven, but _cheruth_,\nfreedom; for thou wilt find none free, save only them which be occupied in\nthe learning of the Law. For whoso is occupied in learning the Law,\nbehold, it magnifieth him and exalteth him over all things.\u201d\n\nThen I applied myself more diligently to the study of the Law, and I\nobserved Sabbaths and festivals, and practised ablutions with all scruple;\nand I became known among my companions as a sin\u2010fearer, instructed in the\nwisdom of the Law, avoiding those lesser faults which are called the\n\u201cDescendants,\u201d as well as those which are called the \u201cFathers\u201d; insomuch\nthat I would not even curdle milk on the Sabbath, because that had been\ndeclared by the decisions of the Wise to be a lesser kind of building;\nneither would I walk upon grass during the Sabbath, because that also had\nbeen pronounced by the Rabbis to be a lesser kind of threshing. Also in\nthe matter of fringes and phylacteries, and in smaller matters, even to\nthe burning of nail\u2010parings, I walked diligently according to the\ndecisions of the Ancients. Thus in all things I strove to bear in mind the\nsaying that \u201cWhile in the written Law there are light as well as weighty\nprecepts, the precepts of the Scribes are all weighty.\u201d I took little\nsleep, little merriment; I associated myself ever with the wise, and\nabstained from the company of the people of the land (for by this name the\nPharisees were wont to call them that gave not themselves to the study of\nthe Law); I settled my heart to study; I asked, and answered, and\nwhatsoever I received I strove to add thereto. And it came to pass that,\nbecause I had a strength of memory more than was usual among my fellow\u2010\nstudents, my teacher said to me, \u201cJoseph, son of Simeon, thou art a\nplastered cistern, which loseth no drop of water\u201d; and by this name of\n\u201cplastered cistern\u201d I became known among my fellows. And when I perceived\nthat the Traditions said little concerning a Messiah; and that my teachers\nalso said little, and had no hope, nor so much as a desire (for the most\npart) that a Messiah should ever come, but were wholly given up to the\nstudy of the Law; then I endeavoured myself also to do the same, and to\nput away the thought of a Redeemer.\n\nNevertheless at times the question would arise within me, \u201cWherefore do I\nserve God for naught?\u201d For all around I saw the wicked and the scornful\nseated, as kings, in high places, and the poor and the humble trampled\nunder foot. There was the name of peace among us, but it was no peace; for\nSatan was making war upon us under the semblance of peace. Everywhere\ndefilement was taking the land by force or by stealth. Many Greek cities,\ncalled by the names of the great ones among the Gentiles, were built in\nthe midst of us, such as Tiberias, and Julias, and C\u00e6sarea Stratonis, and\nC\u00e6sarea Philippi; and even in our city of Sepphoris, now rebuilt, we were\nconstrained to admit Greeks to be our fellow\u2010citizens. Theatres and\namphitheatres, and games, and alien rites in honour of false gods, had\nbeen brought in among us. Images of living things began to be seen on\nevery side, and even our coinage was defiled with the uncleanness of the\nGentiles; so that, in place of the vine\u2010clusters and wheat\u2010sheaf and star\nof Israel, we were forced to handle the semblances of Thracian shields and\nhelmets, and the winged rod of enchantments, called by the Gentiles the\ncaduceus. Moreover, as each year passed, our fears waxed greater and\ngreater, lest at last the eagles of the Gentiles should be brought from\nC\u00e6sarea into the streets of the Holy City itself, and lest the image of\nthe Emperor should be set up therein. For the former Emperor, even C\u00e6sar\nAugustus, was now dead, and a new Emperor reigned in his stead, whose name\nwas Tiberius. But he attained not unto the former Emperor in wisdom;\nwherefore the minds of many were unsettled, the common people fearing lest\nthe Romans should take away their religion, and the Scribes fearing lest\nthe common people should incense the Romans by fresh revolt, and so bring\ndestruction on the nation.\n\nSo it came to pass that by reason of my continual sorrow for the burdens\nof Sion, my heart was pressed down with care, and my trouble became too\nheavy for me to bear; and I found no peace, no, not even in the study of\nthe Law. In vain I repeated to myself the saying of the Wise, \u201cWhoso\nstudieth the Law, he becometh modest and long\u2010suffering and forgiving of\ninsult\u201d; and again, \u201cThe Law is acquired by long\u2010suffering, by a good\nheart, by faith in the Wise, by acceptance of chastisements.\u201d I looked\nupon my countrymen in their servitude, and I could not feel long\u2010\nsuffering; neither could I attain to the wisdom of the acceptance of\nchastisements.\n\nWhen I mentioned my trouble to my teacher, Abuyah the son of Elishah, he\nrebuked me for presumption; for he said that such doubts came of evil,\nneither would he hearken unto me. Therefore I turned to another of the\nScribes, whose name was Jonathan the son of Ezra. Now Jonathan was older\nthan Abuyah the son of Elishah, but not so learned. Howbeit he was of a\nmore gentle and loving disposition. He said to me, \u201cBeware lest thou\nfollow the path of Elishah the son of Solomon.\u201d \u201cWhat path?\u201d I asked. Then\nJonathan answered as follows: \u201cIt is reported that Elishah the son of\nSolomon was once studying the Scriptures, and he saw two men taking birds\u2019\nnests. The one obeyed not the Law, but took the mother with the young; yet\nhe went his way in peace. The other obeyed the Law and took the young\nonly, but let the mother go free; yet as he descended from the tree a\nserpent stung him and he died. Then said Elishah the son of Solomon, \u2018Is\nit not written, The young thou mayest take to thyself, but the mother thou\nshalt surely let go, that it may be well with thee and that thou mayest\nlive many days? Verily the promises of God are naught, for the man that\nobeyed hath not lived many days, but the man that disobeyed is unhurt.\u2019\u201d\nThen said I, \u201cAnd what answer was made to Elishah the son of Solomon?\u201d And\nmy teacher replied, \u201cWhosoever obeyeth the Law, his days will be long in\nthe world to come.\u201d Then was my heart comforted for a while, and I devoted\nmyself even more diligently than before to the study of the Law.\n\n\n\n\n\n CHAPTER II\n\n\nFor the space of nine or ten years I was content to give myself wholly to\nthe study of the Law; but when I had now numbered thirty years, my doubts\nand fears came back to me again. While I sat in the school with the\nScribe, and heard his answers and asked him questions, so long I seemed to\nmyself righteous and on the path of righteousness; but when I came forth\ninto the streets, or back to my mother\u2019s house, then seemed my\nrighteousness immediately to have vanished away. At such seasons the\nlearning of the Wise seemed to me not bread, but a stone.\n\nMoreover, my heart was turned from some of the Scribes that lived in\nSepphoris, even them that were counted as props and pillars of the Law. To\nJonathan the son of Ezra I ceased not to pay honour; but Abuyah the son of\nElishah I could not reverence, and others also like unto him: for they had\nregard unto the praise of men rather than to the love of God. As, for\nexample, Abuyah, whensoever he was delayed by the crowd so that he came\nnot to the synagogue in time for prayer, he would stand where he chanced\nto be, at the hour of prayer, praying in the middle of the market\u2010place.\nWhen he walked, he walked with a mincing gait and with his eyes half\nclosed, feigning to be given up to the meditation of the Law, so that he\nsaw no passer by. On fast days he would ever look pale and worn, as if\nwith watching and hunger; and whensoever he met a woman as he went in the\nway, he would shiver and turn aside. It came to pass that on a certain day\none of his pupils asked him which was the most weighty of precepts. Then\nAbuyah answered, \u201cThe Law of Tassels\u201d; and continued he, \u201cso do I esteem\nthis law that once, because I had chanced to tread upon a portion of the\nfringe of my garment, going up a ladder, I steadfastly refused to move\nfrom the spot where I stood, till such time as the rent had been\nrepaired.\u201d Another day, this Abuyah chid my mother because she wore on her\ndress a ribbon that was not sewn, but only fastened to her vesture. For\nthus, he said, my mother transgressed the Law by bearing burdens on the\nSabbath. But by such teaching Abuyah himself laid upon his pupils burdens\ngrievous to be borne; and among the Rabbis of Israel there were more like\nunto Abuyah the son of Elishah than unto Jonathan the son of Ezra.\n\nMany things also in the traditions of the Wise seemed to me not worthy of\nwise men, nor even of honest men. I had joined myself to a certain\nbrotherhood (who all, or almost all, were Pharisees), such as bound\nthemselves to observe the Law with special strictness, and in particular\nto pay tithes of all things. The brotherhood was called Chabura, and each\nof the brethren was called a Chaber. Now it was the custom of us Chaberim\nto meet on the Sabbath day at one another\u2019s houses that we might sup\ntogether. But the space between our houses often exceeded two thousand\npaces, which distance was not to be exceeded by a man journeying on the\nSabbath day. Therefore to a plain man it would have seemed that we could\nnot sup with one another on the Sabbath day and at the same time obey the\nLaw. But the Scribes were otherwise minded; and many of them, yea even of\nthe strictest sect, escaped from the Law after this fashion. On the\nevening before the Sabbath, they would place small pieces of meat, distant\ntwo thousand paces one from another, on the road whereon they desired to\njourney. Where a man\u2019s meat is, said they, there is his home. So when they\nwere come in their journeying to the first piece of meat, they would say,\n\u201cNow I am at my home and may walk yet another two thousand paces.\u201d And so,\nwalking from this home to other homes if need were, they walked as far as\nthey listed. This mixing of distances they called _er\u00fbbh_, or \u201cmixture;\u201d\nand the device remaineth unto this day.\n\nAgain, if a man\u2019s ox were dying on some holy day, and the owner thereof\ndesired to kill it; he was forbidden. But if he slew the beast and then\ntook of the meat and ate thereof, yea, even though it were a piece of\nflesh no bigger than an olive, and if he said, \u201cI slay the beast to\nprovide a necessary meal,\u201d then he was held excused. Likewise, though a\nman might not buy from a butcher on the Sabbath, yet if he abstained from\nmentioning the number or weight of the things bought, and the sum of money\nto be paid, then he might buy as much as his heart desired and be held\nblameless. Thus he would say, \u201cGive me a portion, or half a portion of\nmeat,\u201d and the butcher would give it; and the buyer would go away, paying\nnaught. But next day the money would be paid. And this was called not a\nsale, but a gift. After the same manner they did away with the Law which\nremitteth debts in the Sabbatical year. On the day of payment the creditor\nwould come (such was the ordinance of the Scribes) and say, \u201cIn accordance\nwith the Sabbatical year I remit thee the debt.\u201d Then the debtor was bound\nto reply, \u201cI nevertheless wish to pay it,\u201d and the debt was paid, and the\nLaw was made of none effect.\n\nAbout the thirteenth year of the Emperor Tiberius, it came to pass that I\n(being now thirty\u2010three years old or a little more) discoursed with a\nGreek proselyte concerning the Law. He said to me that it seemed to him\nbetter to disannul such ordinances as were not convenient (just as a man\nmight prune a too luxuriant vine); and not to say, \u201cI will obey the\nordinance, but I will make my obedience the same as disobedience.\u201d His\nwords pleased me; but when I reported this saying to some of the Scribes\nmy friends, they with one consent rejected it. Abuyah the son of Elishah\nsaid, scoffing at my doubts, \u201cThe Law drowneth them that cannot swim.\u201d\nThen said I (repeating a certain saying of the Greek), \u201cBut water groweth\nbad if it be kept long in one vessel.\u201d But he straightway put me to\nsilence saying, \u201cIs this likewise the case with the Law? Nay, it is like\nunto wine which groweth better as it groweth older.\u201d Jonathan the son of\nEzra also added in a gentle voice, \u201cMy son, thou knowest the saying of the\nElders, the first of the sayings of the Wise: Be deliberate in judgment,\nand raise up many disciples, and make a fence to the Law. But thou, O my\nson, wouldst fain pull down fences. But if we begin to destroy a part of\nthe Law, who shall stay the hand of the destroyer? And in the end we shall\nbe even as the Gentiles, which have no law. Is it not better to be too\ncareful rather than to be too careless? Is it not better to have too many\nfences rather than to have too few? For to what is the matter like? Even\nto a man watching a garden. If he watch it from without, it is all\nwatched. But if he watch it from within, the part in front of him is\nwatched; but the part behind him is not watched. Be thou therefore careful\nto go in thine obedience even beyond the things which the Law requireth at\nthy hands; and watch the Law not from within, but from without.\u201d\n\nThere seemed much wisdom in the sayings of Jonathan, and I knew not what\nanswer to make. For if to transgress the Law, even in the smallest matter,\nwas to fall into destruction, then it seemed wise to fence round the Law,\neven as a man would fence round a pit; and not to suffer the unwary to go\nnear, and peradventure to stumble, and so to be swallowed up. Yet I could\nnot but perceive that it was not well for men thus to resort to the Law\nand to the Traditions as to a sacred oracle, even on those occasions and\nin those matters wherein the voice of the Lord speaking unto the heart\nsaith clearly, \u201cThis is right, do this. This is wrong, do not this.\u201d For\nthus it must needs come to pass that men would pervert even the Law to the\ncontradicting of the voice of the Lord. And so indeed it was with us. As,\nfor example, the Law forbade fornication, neither did it permit us to\nmarry a woman with intent to divorce her; but one of the Traditions,\nmaking the Law of none effect, told us that \u201cIf a man first tell her that\nhe is going to marry her for a season, then it is lawful.\u201d Other\nTraditions sinned yet more grievously in the cloaking of sins and\nimpurities. Hence also the duties of children to parents (albeit upheld\nindeed by the better part of the Wise) were by many diminished, or even\nmade of none effect.\n\nNow I have heard certain Romans say that in their Law they also use the\nsame devices to observe the letter and to break the spirit. But the\nmischief was, that our Law was not as the laws of the Gentiles, which\nconcern naught save lands, and houses, and slaves, and the like, and which\nhave not to do with the souls and spirits of men. The Gentiles could break\nthe letter of their laws and sin not: for what sin was it to make a slave\nfree by feigning to sell him, or, in disputing about a farm, to treat of a\nclod as though it were the farm? But our Law had to do with the supreme\nGod, the Maker of all things, the All\u2010seeing (blessed is He). Therefore to\nobserve the letter and to break the spirit of His Law seemed to be a\nprofaning of His Holy Name. Now I had been trained up from my earliest\nyears to dread the pulling down of the fences, having this precept, as it\nwere, engraved and charactered in my memory, \u201cWhoso pulleth down a hedge a\nserpent shall sting him:\u201d and I had been taught to prefer Sinai, that is,\nthe teacher of the Law, even to an \u201cuprooter of mountains,\u201d that is, to a\nteacher which hath understanding to remove all manner of offences and\nstumbling\u2010blocks from the path of the weak ones. Howbeit, at times, after\ndiscourse with the Greek proselyte whom I mentioned above, there would\narise in my heart this thought, that when the words of the Law seemed to\ncontradict that which was right, then we ought to go into the presence of\nGod and to say, \u201cThou, O God of righteousness, art righteous altogether,\nneither can it be Thy pleasure that we should be unrighteous\u201d; and again,\n\u201cThou art a God of truth, neither can it be Thy will that we should lie\nwith our hands in Thy presence. Therefore permit us in this case to break\nThy Law. For Thy righteousness is greater than Thy Law.\u201d But the Scribes\nwould not so much as listen to such words as these; for they said that\nscarce even a prophet durst speak so exceeding boldly. But when I asked\nthem whether it might be that a prophet should arise in Israel, then the\nmost said that it was not possible; for the Shekinah and the Holy Spirit\nhad departed from Israel when the first Temple had been destroyed. Thus my\nwords were an abomination unto my teachers, so that I hid my thoughts in\nmy heart: but it was pain and grief to me.\n\nYet another trouble was added to me. For as I grew older and understood\nmore of the ways of men and perceived the thoughts of men\u2019s hearts, it\nseemed to me a strange and horrible thing that the Law of the Lord should\nbe cut off from the greater part of the Lord\u2019s people: so that it was a\ncurrent saying with the Rabbis that the common people were an accursed\nrabble which knew not the Law: insomuch that one of the most pious of our\nteachers, even Hillel the Great, said that no boor could be a sin\u2010fearer,\nand that the people of the land (for by that name they called the common\npeople) could not be pious. This, I say, seemed an horrible thing: yet\nindeed I could not deny that the Scribes must needs be right, and that the\npeople of the land could not be pious, so long as to be pious meant to be\nobedient to the light precepts of the Law, such as the laws concerning the\nexact observance of the Sabbath, and concerning purifications, and\nconcerning the consumption of nail\u2010parings, and the like. For the\nknowledge of all these things was not to be obtained save by men of\nleisure, that could give their time, and settle their minds to the study\nof such matters: and how was this possible for them that must needs earn\ntheir bread with the sweat of their brow, to wit, the sailors and\nfishermen, the vine\u2010dressers and ploughmen, the dyers and glassmakers; who\nall were called of the Scribes \u201cthe people of the land\u201d? So it was borne\nin upon me that our Law was a Law for the schools, but not for the lives\nof men; and for Scribes, but not for the whole nation. Then my heart sank\nwithin me, and I remembered the words of the Prophet, how that a time\nshall come when men shall no longer teach each one his neighbour, saying,\nKnow the Lord; but all shall know Him from the least even to the greatest;\nand I wondered if it would please the Lord to bring such a time as that to\nIsrael, and to make His Law clear to all our nation, yea, even to the poor\nand simple, even to the people of the land.\n\nOthers that did not observe the Law so exactly as I did, nor felt the\nburdens thereof so sorely, were nevertheless ill pleased that the Scribes\ndid naught to free them from the yoke of the Gentiles. Of these some dwelt\nin Jud\u00e6a, and a few in Per\u00e6a; but the more part dwelt in Galilee, insomuch\nthat the sect of Patriots was known by the name of Galileans. There were\nalso living among us James and John, the two eldest sons of Judas of\nGalilee, and their youngest brother Manahem. To these, for the sake of\ntheir great father, we all had respect. Many also (like myself) were ever\nin a readiness to avenge upon the Romans the blood of kinsfolk shed in the\nGalilean wars. Hence it came to pass that in Galilee more than in any\nregion of Syria, the minds of men were ready for revolt against the\nRomans, and waited but for the ripening of occasion.\n\nNow it came to pass that in the fourteenth year of Tiberius C\u00e6sar, there\narose a quarrel between the Tetrarch of Galilee and his father\u2010in\u2010law, the\nKing of Arabia; because the Tetrarch had behaved ill to the King\u2019s\ndaughter his wife, and sought to divorce her. Then it seemed good to some\nof my friends to join the army of Antipas the Tetrarch, to the intent that\nthey might thereby gain experience in war; but others spake against it,\nsaying that it was not lawful to take up arms for the unjust against the\njust.\n\nAt this time also a rumour went forth that a new prophet had of late\nappeared, John by name, the son of Zachariah a priest, who was calling the\nwhole of Israel to repent and to be purified with baptisms, prophesying\nthat the Lord would soon send the Deliverer of Israel, or Messiah: for by\nthis name of Messiah, the Deliverer that was to come (of whom the prophets\nhad prophesied) was commonly known among us. Some said that John himself\nwas the Messiah; others denied it, but said that the Lord had sent down\nElias from heaven, and that John was Elias. Many other rumours also were\nnoised abroad, and this rumour prevailed most, that \u201cOne from the East\nwould come forth to rule the world,\u201d which saying had spread even to Italy\nand Spain: and we in Galilee thought that this conqueror from the East\nwould be our Messiah. Thus, the hearts of all men everywhere being in\nexpectation, it came to pass that many of my friends (who were the leaders\nof the sect called the Patriots or Galileans), having purposed these many\nweeks to hold a council, determined at this time to confer together in a\nlittle valley between Sepphoris and Nazareth, there to resolve what should\nbe done.\n\nMost of those present were from the inland parts of Galilee: of these\nBarabbas, and one other, were from Jotapata. Only Hezekiah, the son of\nZachariah (a Scribe, who was thought to be well affected towards the\nGalileans), came from Jerusalem. And from Capernaum came my cousin Baruch,\nthe son of Manasseh, with three others. There were present also from the\nregion of Gaulonitis James and John and Manahem, sons of the famous Judas\nof Galilee. James the son of Judas spake first, giving his judgment for\nwar, and saying that Israel had slept too long: \u201cFor while we sleep,\u201d said\nhe, \u201cthe leaven spreadeth; Greek cities cover our land; our own cities are\nbeing defiled with Gentile abominations. They are stealing from us even\nour language. No man may earn a living in Galilee now, unless he speak\nGreek. With Greek theatres and amphitheatres, and baths, and market\u2010\nplaces; with Greek pictures and images, and feasts and games; with Greek\nsongs, and poems, and histories, they purpose, by easy degrees, to beguile\nthe hearts of our young men from the religion of their forefathers. Our\nprinces are Edomites in the pay of Rome. Our rich men long for the\nfleshpots of Rome, and call themselves by the name of Herod. Our Scribes,\nour wise men, cry peace when there is no peace, and wink at the payment of\ntribute. Publicans and harlots bring down the wrath of God upon the\nnation, and go unpunished. All these things are as the meshes of the net\nwherein Rome is encompassing our city. And lo, the fowler layeth the net\nand the silly bird stayeth still.\u201d Then Baruch said: \u201cBut is it so indeed\nthat the Romans would blot out our religion? Do they not suffer all\nreligions? The Gauls, the Spaniards, the Numidians, Egyptians and\nScythians, all worship divers gods: so have I heard from a Greek merchant\nat Capernaum; and this, without let or hindrance from the Romans.\u201d\n\n\u201cNay,\u201d cried Barabbas, \u201cbut thou seest not that the Roman suffereth all\nfalse religions and hindereth them not; but he hateth the worship of the\ntrue God of Israel. For this alone putteth other gods to shame. The\nSyrians and the Egyptians scruple not to worship the Roman gods, besides\nAstarte and Osiris, and to offer incense to the emperor of Rome, to boot.\nBut the children of Israel will bow down to no false god, neither offer\nthey incense before the image of the emperor. Hence cometh it to pass that\nthe Romans hate our religion and would fain destroy it. James therefore\nspeaketh the words of truth; and whoso speaketh otherwise allegeth naught\nbut pretexts of delay and cowardice.\u201d\n\n\u201cPeace, Barabbas,\u201d said John, the son of Judas; \u201cwe meet to hold\nconference, not to cast reproaches. Nevertheless, my judgment goeth with\nmy brother, that our choice lieth between lingering perdition and speedy\ndeliverance. Hereof this is proof. But lately I was at the Holy City, not\nmany days before the Passover; and there went abroad a rumour that the\nProcurator Pilate was minded to bring the eagles of the legions from\nC\u00e6sarea to Jerusalem, yea, even into the streets of the Holy City. Then\nthe Priests, even the Chief Priests, yea, even the whole Council, fell\ndown at Pilate\u2019s feet, if perchance he would change his purpose.\nMultitudes ran together round the Pr\u00e6torium. In vain did they pray and\nwere disquieted. Under the cloak of night the procurator brought in the\nAbomination. Then all the men of Jerusalem, and all the pilgrims which had\ncome together from the uttermost parts of the earth, clothed themselves in\nsackcloth, and sat down in the streets about the palace, with ashes on\ntheir heads after the manner of suppliants; crying aloud that they would\nsit there for ever rather than endure the presence of the Abomination. But\nwhen Pilate saw all the streets of Jerusalem thronged, so that no one\nmight pass night and day, and all business was at a stand, did he yield\nfrom his purpose? Nay, he gave orders that the armed cohorts should beset\nthe streets around us, threatening to smite us with the sword if we should\nnot straightway void the streets. And when we would not, then went the\nword forth from the captains to draw the swords; and the swords were\ndrawn, and the soldiers were in act to fall upon us. But we uncovered our\nnecks and held them out to the soldiers, crying \u2018Give us death rather than\ndefilement.\u2019 So at the last, but not till blood had been shed, the\nprocurator gave consent that the images should be sent back. Suppose ye\nthat this was a little matter, naught but an error in judgment of the\nprocurator? Would a procurator have dared to risk the peace of the whole\nprovince for a little matter? It was no little matter. Pilate did what he\ndid, not of himself, but at the express instance of the emperor; to prove\nthe limits of our slavishness, and to force us into defilement and into\nthe worship of the Abomination.\u201d\n\nHereat there was a general applause; but he, not heeding it, continued,\n\u201cIf ye be of one mind with me that the hour is come to smite with the\nsword; then how and where? I say, let certain of us join ourselves to the\narmy of the Tetrarch, which even now maketh ready to march against Aretas.\nThereby we shall gain experience of war, and, as I hope, win over some of\nthe army to our side. As for the tyrant\u2019s guards, the Gauls, Germans, and\nThracians, they are bought with his money, so that we have no hope of\nthem; but by far the larger part of the army consisteth of our own\ncountrymen; and many of them may revolt on our side; as they did with\nSimon against Archelaus, and some also helped Athronges, whom men call a\nrebel. Meantime, let the rest of us make ready our friends in our several\ncities to take up arms next Passover. They in Jerusalem will attack the\ngarrison there, others break open the armoury at Sepphoris and in Masada.\nOn the same day our countrymen in Joppa, C\u00e6sarea, and Ptolemais will\nattack and drive out the Greeks. Then will rise a flame of war from one\nend of Syria to the other. Our rich men, even the Herodians, seeing all\nthe people to be of one mind, will stand with us; and having Israel with\nus as one man, doing battle for the name of the true God against the gods\nof the Gentiles, doubt not but we shall have also the sword of the Lord on\nour side, as in the days of Gideon.\u201d\n\nThe applause was now yet louder than before; and at first it seemed as\nthough the whole assembly were minded with one consent to obey the words\nof John the son of Judas of Galilee. But one of the companions of\nHezekiah, Levi by name, an old man and grey\u2010bearded, rose up presently and\nsaid that the hour had not yet arrived, because, said he, the Sabbath was\nnot yet duly observed, and the wrath of the Lord still weighed upon\nIsrael. Then Barabbas answered with indignation, saying that it was only\nthe rich and delicate, or else they that were enfeebled with old age, who\nwere thus content to be the slaves of idolaters.\n\nUpon this Hezekiah the Scribe stood up to speak: \u201cThese young men of\nGalilee gladly make mention of the old times of Gideon and David, yet do\nthey not themselves imitate the old times in having respect unto old age.\nFor even though Levi were old and enfeebled, yet what saith the Tradition?\n\u2018Old age, though it be broken, is yet to be held in reverence, even as the\nbroken tables of the Law were kept in the ark of the Lord.\u2019 But what\nmeaneth this youth of Jotapata, when he calleth my friend and companion\nLevi, the son of Ezra, delicate or enfeebled; and all because the advice\nof Levi is not the advice of Barabbas? Hear, O ye young men of Galilee,\nthe words of Levi are true: the hour hath not yet arrived. \u2018What\nhindereth?\u2019 ye ask. I answer in the words of the Wise, \u2018The dough in the\nleaven.\u2019\n\n\u201cI also, like John the son of Judas, will give proof of my words; but do\nye, being Galileans, incline your ears to the saying of a Galilean,\naccording to the proverb, \u2018A Galilean said When the shepherd is angry with\nhis flock, he appointeth for their leader a blind bell\u2010wether.\u2019 Note\ntherefore the leaders of Israel, which have risen up against the Romans of\nlate. Hath God sent them in anger or in mercy? Have they been blind bell\u2010\nwethers, or endowed with sight? I say naught of Judas of Gamala, in the\npresence of his sons: but Judas the son of the robber Hezekiah, how went\nit with him? He thought in his heart that he was a second Joshua, and that\nthe waters of Jordan would part at his word. But who knoweth not his\nmiserable end? As also the end of Athronges: who aimed at the kingdom\nbecause, forsooth, he was in stature a second Saul. Simon also, the slave\nof Herod the king, when he had shewn forth his valour by destroying the\nking\u2019s palace at Jericho, became a portion for foxes at Amathus, and his\nhead was cast before the feet of the conqueror. Answer then unto me, ye\nyoung men. Hath the Lord sent Simon the slave, and Athronges the shepherd,\nand Judas the son of the robber, in mercy or in wrath?\n\n\u201cNay, but since shame hindereth your answering, I, even I, a man of Jud\u00e6a,\nwill answer for you, according as it is said, \u2018From Jud\u00e6a grain, from\nGalilee straw, from Per\u00e6a chaff.\u2019 The Lord sent these men in wrath. All\nthese were blind bell\u2010wethers, blinded by the lust of fame or gain. But do\nye therefore wait for the true leaders whom the Lord your God will send?\nLeave it to this young man of Jotapata to follow any knave that may chance\nto call himself the Redeemer of Israel because, forsooth, he may be a head\ntaller than his neighbours, or may have dreamed a dream, or may perchance\nhave gained some knowledge of herbs or unclean spirits.\n\n\u201cEven now they say there hath appeared in the southern parts (so I heard,\ncoming but now from Jericho) one John the son of Zachariah, concerning\nwhom I judge (if he be indeed a true prophet and no deceiver) that he is\neither the prophet spoken of by Moses, or else Elias. For that Elias is to\ncome again we all know, because it is so written; and that the prophet\nlike unto Moses must needs appear, this also the Scriptures tell us: but\nthat other prophets should appear is not written, neither is it likely;\nfor the age of prophets is past. But whether this John be Elias or\nwhatever else, meet it is that we go to him; for he may perchance reveal\nto us what it is our wisdom to do. If ye ask \u2018What shall be the sign of\nthe true prophet?\u2019: I answer, it is written in our traditions, \u2018A false\nprophet may shew signs on earth and in the deep; but a sign from heaven he\ncannot shew.\u2019 Wait therefore till the sign from heaven shall be\nvouchsafed, revealing the true Prophet, whom it will be our wisdom to\nobey, and for whom (during this present) it is our wisdom to wait.\u201d\n\nWhen Hezekiah had made an end of speaking, James the son of Judas was sore\ndispleased at his words, and made as if he would have spoken in answer;\nbut John (who was of a gentler disposition) prevented his brother, and\nsaid that Hezekiah gave good counsel. For he, like the rest of us, had\nbeen moved by the mention of John the Prophet. So in the end it was\ndetermined according to the words of Hezekiah the Scribe; and we brake up\nwithout resolving anything further, except that we would go straightway,\nso many of us as conveniently could, to Bethany beyond Jordan, where the\nprophet was baptizing. But on the morrow and on the day after, when I\nspake to my friends and acquaintance concerning John the son of Zachariah,\nit was a marvel to see how greatly the hearts of all men were stirred at\nthe thought of a new prophet in Israel. For that after so many hundreds of\nyears a prophet should arise in Israel (none having prophesied since the\ntime of Malachi, the last of the prophets, more than four hundred years\nago) this seemed a marvellous thing and well nigh impossible, and almost\nas if a man should rise again from the dead. For the prophets were counted\nas it were dead and out of mind in Israel, meet to be reverenced for their\npast words, but not to be hoped for in the time to come. For this cause\nwere we much moved by the mention of the name of John the son of\nZachariah. And as the Prophet Elias from the top of Carmel looking out\ninto the Great Sea and discerning a cloud no bigger than a man\u2019s hand,\nforetold the imminent storm, so did all we in Galilee, on the first breath\nof the rumour of the coming of a prophet, begin to forebode in our hearts\nof the coming of one that should be no common prophet; but, in all\nlikelihood, Elias from the dead; or else one greater than Moses, to give\nus perchance a new Law and a new Kingdom.\n\n\n\n\n\n CHAPTER III\n\n\nOn the fourth day, I set out in company with Baruch my cousin, the son of\nManasseh, my father\u2019s brother, intending to go to Capernaum, and thence to\ntake ship for Gamala, where we were to meet James and John the sons of\nJudas of Galilee; and so to journey all together to Bethany, where the\nprophet was. When we were come to Capernaum, we tarried two days in the\nhouse of Manasseh: and the second day was the Sabbath. Now the house of\nManasseh was nigh unto the wharf, so that nothing stood between it and the\nlake.\n\nIt happened that I was sitting on the house\u2010roof and the sun wanted yet an\nhour or two of setting; and a tumult arose on the beach below, between a\nGreek merchant and certain of the townsmen. Word had come to the Greek\nthat his son was sick in Bethsaida and nigh unto death: so he had besought\ncertain of the sailors that they would launch their ship and put out to\nsea, although the sun had not yet set; to the intent that he might pass\nover with all speed, if perchance he might see his child before he died.\nThe sailors were persuaded by the man\u2019s prayers and gifts, and were\npreparing their vessel to launch it. But the inhabitants, those of the\nmore devout sort, coming together with stones and staves, threatened the\nsailors, and forced them to cease, declaring that not a boat should leave\nthe strand till the Sabbath should be ended.\n\nThe air was calm and still so that the merchant\u2019s words came up even to my\nears, as he pointed again and again to the coast over against us: \u201cSurely\nyour God will permit you to do this service of kindness. Yonder is my son,\nmine only son, dying as if within sight of his father. Strangers will\nreceive his last breath, and close his eyes. I beseech you, as ye are\nfathers, have compassion on a father who must soon be childless.\u201d So\nsaying the Greek beat his breast and tore his hair; but in vain. The ruler\nof the synagogue, who had gathered the multitude together, would not\nlisten to his entreaties; and he departed, weeping and wailing and calling\nupon his gods in vain.\n\nThen the ruler of the synagogue, seeing the crowd running together,\nexhorted them to a more strict observing of the Sabbath, declaring that\nthe breaking of the Sabbath was the principal cause of the wrath of God\nwith His people, and of the delay of the Redemption of Sion. He went on to\nspeak of the blessing of the Redemption, and he besought the people to do\nwhat lay in them to hasten it forward, by raising up the fences of the\nLaw, and by constant and scrupulous obedience. \u201cLet all repent,\u201d he said,\n\u201cof former slackness and misdoings; for the Lord your God is merciful,\nlong suffering, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repenteth Him of\nthe evil. To Him belong mercies and forgiveness, though ye have rebelled\nagainst Him.\u201d\n\nBy this time a great multitude was come together, and in the uttermost\nparts of the throng stood certain tax\u2010gatherers (among whom was the\nprincipal receiver of customs in Capernaum, by name Matthew the son of\nAlpheus), with certain of the looser sort, men and women, outcasts from\nthe synagogue: which had been cast forth, some for weighty offences, but\nsome for light, according to the custom of our Scribes. These had\napproached, as it seemed to me, because they had heard mention of \u201cmercy,\u201d\nand \u201cforgiveness\u201d; and their faces were somewhat sad, as if they also\nwould fain have drawn near unto the God of Israel, that they might receive\nforgiveness of sins. But the ruler of the synagogue, catching sight of\nthem, drove them away with reproaches, reviling them as children of Satan.\n\u201cEven your alms,\u201d he cried, \u201cwe trample under our feet; away, extortioners\nand harlots, fit food for fire and worms!\u201d\n\nThey departed in haste amid the scoffs and curses of the crowd. But their\ncountenances changed as they went, and there seemed no more thought of\nrepentance in them; for they hardened their faces as flint stones because\nof the reproaches of the chief ruler. Then it came into my heart that the\nruler of the synagogue erred, in that he drove away the sinners that would\nfain have drawn nigh unto the Lord. And not only he, but all our Rabbis\nand Scribes seemed to be in the same error, because they drove away\ninstead of bringing nigh. For even the words of the Wise tell us that\npeace is to be proclaimed to the far\u2010off as well as to the near; and to\nthe far\u2010off first. Moreover the words of the Prophet Ezekiel came to my\nmind, that if the wicked turned from his wickedness and did that which was\nlawful and right, he should live. Now the ruler of the synagogue had\nhimself also used words like unto these; yet his acts had not been like\nunto his words. For after that he had spoken of God as merciful and\nforgiving, he had driven away the sinners as though God were unmerciful\nand unforgiving. Therefore he had on his lips the wisdom of the Law; but\nin the thoughts of his heart and the works of his hand there was no\nwisdom. Then I repeated to myself the tradition of the Wise, \u201cWhoso hath\nmuch wisdom and little works, to what is he like? Even to a tree whereof\nthe branches be abundant but the roots poor and thin: and the wind cometh\nand uprooteth it and overturneth it.\u201d Truly, said I, the wisdom of the\nScribes is like unto a tree whereof the roots suffice not for the\nbranches.\n\nThen began I to consider with myself what would be the doctrine of John\nthe son of Zachariah as touching forgiveness and repentance; and it was\nborne in upon my mind that we lacked, not the true doctrine of forgiveness\n(for this we had already in the Law and the Traditions), but somewhat\nbeyond the reach of doctrine; albeit, what it was, I did not yet\nunderstand. Also methought we had need of some new kind of wisdom that\nshould avail, not only for Scribes and lawyers but also for the people of\nthe land, for ploughmen and fishermen, yea, perchance even for tax\u2010\ngatherers and sinners. Then behold, as I mused, methought all the precepts\nof the Law and of the Traditions lay scattered about on the beach, like so\nmany dry bones (according to the vision of the Prophet Ezekiel), and there\nthey lay, awaiting, till the breath of the Spirit of God should blow upon\nthem and give them life. And, in my musing, I saw One coming, and his face\nwas as bright as the morning star, and the breath of the Lord breathed\nfrom his mouth, and he came forward to the bones for to breathe life into\nthem; and I spake aloud and said, \u201cPerchance John the son of Zachariah is\nthe Messiah, and will breathe life into these bones.\u201d\n\nBut while I thus mused, came Baruch behind me and touched my shoulder, and\npointed to the crowd and said, \u201cSee, the sun has now just set; and the\npeople are following the exorcist yonder. Shall we not go with them? He is\nno common exorcist, but by means of certain herbs known only to himself he\ncan draw an evil spirit out of the nostrils of the possessed; and this\nhath he done many times this week in the presence of certain of the most\nnotable people in Capernaum, insomuch that all men here do hold him in\ngreat esteem. And even now he goeth to cast out an evil spirit from\nRaphael, the son of one of our neighbours: who hath been possessed now\nthese two years.\u201d\n\nSo lost was I in thought that, while Baruch was speaking, I scarce\nunderstood the purport of his words. But shouts and shrieks from below\ncaused me to awake out of my trance. So I looked; and behold, a great\nmultitude below, and in the midst thereof a youth possessed with an evil\nspirit. The youth was led by three strong men; and as he went, he shrieked\naloud and struggled against them that led him. Close after them came one\nwhose sorrowful countenance betokened him to be the father of the youth.\nBefore them all went the exorcist.\n\nHere in Britain it is a rare thing to see a man possessed with a demon.\nTherefore it is needful to say first, that in the land of Israel (and\nespecially in the lowlands of Galilee along the coast of the Sea of\nGennesareth, and also in the valley of Jordan), the unclean spirits\nprevailed mightily in my days, insomuch that I have noted as many as\ntwelve or even more in a small town, such as Bethsaida. They wandered\nabout the country half clothed or naked, assailing their dearest friends\nor strangers, or even themselves, with stones or other weapons, such as\nthey could procure. They saw strange sights, demons and flames; their ears\nwere filled with thunderings and roarings of beasts and voices of devils.\nA stench, as of sulphur and brimstone, was in their nostrils. Their\nbellies also were beset with worms, toads, snakes, or scorpions; which\nnevertheless destroyed them not. Two voices, the voice of the demon and\nthe voice of the man, issued from the mouth of the possessed. Verily of\nall the diseases with which Satan hath been permitted by the Unsearchable\n(blessed is He) to afflict the children of men, this disease is the worst\nand cruellest; inasmuch as it poisoneth the very springs of love, causing\nthe son to hate even the father that begot him and the mother that gave\nhim suck.\n\nWhat were the causes of this evil, wise men have asked, and have given no\ncertain answer. They at Jerusalem said that it was a chastisement because\nof men\u2019s neglect of worship in the Holy Temple; and certain it is, that\nGentiles and outcasts from the synagogue were more often possessed than\nthe devout. Nay, I have known some (more especially women) that, having\nbeen possessed, were cured by the offering of sacrifice, or by a more\nconstant attending on the worship in the Temple. Others said that it was a\npunishment for eating swine\u2019s flesh; others for dwelling in houses built\namid tombs or on ancient burial\u2010places. But others said that they which\nlived in the lowlands about the Lake of Gennesareth and in the valley of\nJordan were more under the unclean demons; for that the demons possessed\nand ruled over waterish and low\u2010lying regions. And so much is undoubted,\nthat in the inland highlands of Galilee there were few possessed, and in\nJerusalem none, or at least no number worthy of mention; but down in\nJericho and Capernaum the possessed could be seen at the corner of every\nstreet.\n\nCure there was none, or at least no certain cure. Sometimes sudden terror\nor sudden joy availed to drive out the unclean spirit. I have heard of one\nJoachim the son of Levi, that was vexed with a dumb spirit for many years;\nbut seeing some robbers about to kill his father, the string of his tongue\nwas unloosed, and he cried out to them not to kill him. But no physic, nor\nno diet, was of any certain avail. This uncertainty brought great gain to\nmany vagrant exorcists which wandered here and there throughout Galilee,\ntheir scrips full of amulets, charms, drugs, magic roots, and books of\nincantations. These men, with shouts and shrieks and uncouth gestures and\ndances, were wont to amaze the demoniacs for a time and to drive them into\na kind of torpor; which torpor they called health and peace, and boasted\nthat they had wrought a cure. At other times, by magic arts, they would\npersuade Satan to go out of the man for a short time, that they might\nobtain a reward. But in either case, the cure lasted no long time. For in\na brief space the demon would awake again out of torpor; or if he had been\ndriven out, he would return, and sometimes bring with him other demons yet\nmore powerful than himself; insomuch that it was a proverb among us that\nit was better for a possessed person that the unclean spirit should not be\ndriven out at all, than that, having been driven out, he should be allowed\nto return.\n\nBut about the causes and cures of this evil let others consider and\ndispute: I speak now of the exorcist in Capernaum. Going down straightway\nwith Baruch, I followed him into a house not two hundred paces from the\nquay. When we entered, there seemed scarce space for the exorcist and the\ndemoniac in the middle of the chamber, so thick stood the people together;\nbut by favour of the master of the house, who was known to Baruch, we\nobtained place in the inner part of the circle. The father of the boy now\ncame up to my cousin. \u201cI have taken Raphael,\u201d he said, \u201cto many exorcists\nbefore, but never a man of them was to be compared with this learned man.\nI have described to him the nature of the unclean spirit that possesseth\nmy son, and he protesteth to me that he hath frequently driven out the\nlike kind of demons, and that he is assured of success.\u201d Meanwhile\nRaphael, the boy possessed with the unclean spirit, was seated on the\nground in the middle. He no longer struggled nor shrieked, but sat quiet,\nthough sullen withal.\n\nTwo slaves now came forth, the first carrying in one hand a bucket of\nwater and in the other a covered basket; but the second bore a chafing\u2010\ndish. Now all voices were hushed, for the exorcist stepped into the middle\nof the chamber. \u201cMany,\u201d he said, \u201cof my profession pretend to drive out\nevil spirits, but they do not perform what they promise. But that ye may\nperceive how far Theudas the son of Eleazar differeth from such common\nvagrants and impostors, I shall not only cast out this unclean spirit, but\nI shall also give you proof thereof which ye shall see with your own\neyes.\u201d He then bade the slaves place the bucket upon a shelf in the room\nwhere all could see it; but the basket and chafing\u2010dish were set in the\nmidst of the circle.\n\nPerchance the boy began to understand in part that the exorcist was\nspeaking of him; or it may be that from his father\u2019s anxious mien and\ntroubled countenance he conjectured that some new thing was at hand. For\nhe leapt from the ground, and shrieked, and blasphemed God, uttering\nobscene words, tearing his hair, and marring his cheeks with his nails;\nand but for the two keepers on either side of him he would assuredly have\nrent off his garments; and even with all their efforts they had much ado\nto hinder him.\n\nBut the exorcist threw a few leaves and fragments of root on the chafing\u2010\ndish, muttered a charm, waved his wand, and then waited as though for an\nanswer. Then frowning, he waved his wand a second time, and repeated a\nlouder charm, stamping his foot on the ground, and then waited again. A\ndeep silence fell on all in the chamber, insomuch that no one ventured so\nmuch as to draw breath; and even the boy ceased from his struggles and\nstared amazedly at the exorcist. But he, now standing upright and\nmanifesting in his face that he had received an answer from the unclean\nspirit, turned from us to the possessed, and fixing his eye full upon his\nface, he cried in a loud voice, \u201cThou unclean spirit, thine hour is come.\nThy name is revealed unto me, and thy shape likewise. In vain thou wouldst\nevade my sight, assuming the semblance of a long black worm. Lo! by the\nmysterious power of King Solomon\u2019s ring and these strong roots I will draw\nthee out of the poor boy\u2019s nostrils in the presence of this assembly: and\nwhen I say the word, thou, obedient to my commands, shalt leave the body\nwhich thou defilest, and, in thy passage, thou shalt overturn yonder\nvessel of water. Dost hear me? Thy name is Ialdabaoth.\u201d\n\nHereat the demoniac shrieked and raved louder than before, and a deep\nvoice, deeper than the voice of a youth, cried out from within him, \u201cI am\nIaldabaoth, the worm of darkness; depart from me.\u201d The crowd shouted, and\nthe sorcerer, turning to us, \u201cSirs,\u201d said he, \u201cye see how the evil spirit\nis already half conquered; for he hath confessed his name and nature to be\neven as I foretold.\u201d Then turning to the boy and applying a ring to his\nnostrils, he cried aloud, \u201cCome forth, Ialdabaoth;\u201d and with very great\nquickness, so that the motion could scarce be perceived, (all the time\nshouting charms and incantations with a loud voice,) he drew forth from\nthe nostrils of the demoniac a shape like unto a long black worm. Now\nverily the crowd shrieked as if they themselves were possessed; but the\nboy sat, not struggling, but still and pale, as though no life were in\nhim. But the exorcist, turning himself quickly round to the vessel of\nwater behind him, \u201cAway,\u201d he cried, \u201caway, worm of darkness! Back,\nIaldabaoth, to the abyss! Back through the air: and dash down yonder\nbucket as thou fliest!\u201d At the word, the worm vanished, the bucket was\ndashed down, and the boy fell, as it seemed, lifeless.\n\nWe all pressed in upon the youth, wishing to discern whether life were\nstill in him, or no; but the exorcist waved us back, as one having\nauthority; and taking the boy by the hand, he raised him up, speaking kind\nwords to him and to his father. Soon his life returned to the boy, and the\nexorcist restored him to his father, whole and sound (albeit weak and\npale), and, as it appeared, delivered from the unclean spirit. The father,\nweeping for joy, placed a heavy purse in the hand of the exorcist; who, at\nfirst, put it from him, as though he would have none of it. But\nafterwards, while he was receiving the salutations and greetings of them\nthat were departing, one of his slaves, being urged by the father, took\nthe purse and placed it in the covered basket.\n\nAs for us, it being now late, we stayed not to congratulate with the\nfather of Raphael; but with all speed, made our way through the press; all\nthe people around us praising God and marvelling at the power which the\nLord had given to Theudas the son of Eleazar. But we hasted to the house\nof Manasseh to make ready for our journey; for we were to set forth early\non the morrow. But when the morrow came, behold, Baruch was sick of a\nfever, and could not travel; and I tarried for him for the space of four\ndays. But on the fifth day after the Sabbath, Baruch being now in case to\ntravel, we purposed to take ship for Gamala, which lieth on the southern\ncoast of the lake. For our intent was there to join ourselves to James and\nJohn, the sons of Judas, and so to continue our journey with them till we\ncame to Bethany in Per\u00e6a where John was baptizing.\n\nNow it came to pass that very early in the morning when we were to set\nout, the sun being not yet risen, I went to the house of Joazar, the\nfather of Raphael, to inquire concerning the boy\u2019s welfare. And when I\ncame to the threshold, behold, another stood at the door; but his back was\ntowards me, so that I knew not who he was. And before I could accost him,\nthe door was opened unto us; and behold, a sound as of shrieking and\nlamentation. Then we both listened, and lo, a deep voice from an upper\nchamber, and it cried, \u201cWe are Ialdabaoth! We are Ialdabaoth, the worms of\ndarkness!\u201d Then came forth other words of blasphemy and filthiness, so\nthat I loathed to listen to them; and I turned to go back. But at that\ninstant I heard the voice of the father bewailing: and the stranger\ndelayed not, but entered into the house; wherefore I also, albeit against\nmy will, was moved to go in likewise.\n\nSo I went in, following the stranger till we both came to the door of the\nupper room: and there I stood, and durst not enter into the chamber; for\nmy heart was empty of comfort, neither knew I how to console the old man\nin his affliction. But the stranger that was with me, going forward, spake\nfirst of all to Joazar the father, and said some words of kindness to him.\nNow so it was, that when the stranger first entered into the chamber, the\nevil spirits ceased not, but raged yet more fiercely than before, crying\naloud and saying, \u201cDepart from us; let us alone; let us alone\u201d; and the\nyouth also rent his cheeks so that the blood gushed out; and he would fain\nhave leaped up from his bed. But the stranger (whose face I had not yet\nseen), hearing the voices of the spirits, turned himself round from the\nold man to the son: and going up to the bedside he stood there,\nsteadfastly looking at the youth. Now when he thus turned himself, then\nfor the first time I beheld his countenance; and, as I remember, I\nmarvelled thereat, and also at the manner of his dealing with the youth.\nFor, first of all, when he looked upon the youth, his face seemed\nswallowed up with pity; and then of a sudden it changed again, and he\nstretched out his arm as one having authority, and as if on the point to\nbid the evil spirits depart, and this he did twice; but twice again he\ndrew back his arm, as if changing his purpose. Then, at the last, the pity\ncame back upon his face all in an instant, so that his features seemed\neven melted therewith; and he stooped down and embraced the boy, and\nkissed him; and, as I thought, he whispered words in his ear. But this I\nknow not for certain; howbeit the boy, in any case, ceased from his raging\nand no longer struggled, but lay still and quiet, only muttering and\nmoaning a little. Hereat the stranger turned himself to Joazar to take his\nleave; but I (perchance because my mind misgave me that I had played the\neavesdropper, albeit, unwittingly, or for whatever other reason) feared to\nwait and meet the stranger; so I turned my back, and went forth in haste\nfrom the house.\n\nWhen I was come to Baruch again, I held my peace concerning Raphael, lest\nI should stir up melancholy in my cousin, since he was freshly recovered\nfrom his disease. But, when we went on board the vessel, the sailors were\nnot yet ready to sail. So I lay down on the sleeping\u2010cushion: but no sleep\nfell upon my eyes. For there appeared ever before me the image of the\ndemoniac Raphael and his sorrowful father; and my heart was weighed down\nwith the thought of their affliction. But I grieved not for them alone,\nbut also for the daughter of Sion; who seemed to be, in a manner,\npossessed with an evil spirit, and to cry aloud for some one that should\ncast it out. All the deliverers of old seemed to be even as Theudas the\nson of Eleazar; and even as the demon had returned into Raphael, so that\nhis last state was worse than the first, even so it seemed with Israel;\ntherefore I besought the Lord to hasten the time of the coming of the true\nRedeemer of Sion.\n\nAs I mused, I began to consider with myself what would be the manner of\nthe true redemption. Beside the demoniac, there appeared unto me the face\nof Matthew the publican and the faces of the sinners. It was borne in upon\nmy mind that, even though every legionary in Syria were slain or driven\nout, and though the borders of Israel should be enlarged from the Nile to\nthe Euphrates, yet if we still had amidst us sinners unforgiven, and\nPriests and Rulers with no power to forgive nor to convert, then of a\nsurety the evil spirit would not depart from us save only for a season.\n\nBy this time, as I remember, we were but just putting out into the deep,\nand the sun was risen. And there came down certain fishermen to the beach\nto prepare their tackling for fishing: and with them there came one that,\nas I noted, was no fisherman (for he was not girt as a fisherman): and he\nwalked down to the brink of the waters and looked out steadfastly to the\ndeep. And so it was that, as he looked, the sun even that instant rising\nabove the eastern mountains, shone suddenly upon his face so that I could\nsee it clearly (though we were by this time a full furlong from the\nshore); and behold, it was the countenance of the stranger that I had seen\nthat same morning in the house of Joazar. So I called to Tobias\nstraightway and asked him who the stranger might be: and Tobias raised\nhimself upon his elbow where he lay on the sleeping\u2010cushion, and he\nlooked, and knew him, and told me his name. And then first I heard the\nname of Jesus of Nazareth.\n\nAgain I lay down to sleep, but still no sleep would come to me: wherefore\nI took forth from my bosom the book of the prophet Isaiah, which I had\nwith me, and began to read therein. And so it was that as I unrolled it,\nmy eyes fell upon the place where the prophet saith, \u201cTo what purpose is\nthe multitude of your sacrifices unto me? saith the Lord: I am full of the\nburnt offerings of rams, and the fat of fed beasts.... Bring no more vain\noblations; incense is an abomination unto me; the new moons and sabbaths,\nthe calling of assemblies, I cannot away with; it is iniquity, even the\nsolemn meeting.\u201d\n\nNow at that word, \u201cthe new moons and sabbaths I cannot away with,\u201d I\nceased from reading. For I seemed to hear the Greek merchant weeping and\ncrying to the sailors, \u201cSurely your God will permit you to do this service\nof kindness.\u201d Then I called to mind the words of the Lord, \u201cI will have\nmercy, and not sacrifice;\u201d and behold, it came in upon me all at once, as\nin a flood, that our exactness in the observing of the Sabbath might haply\nbe an abomination in the eyes of the All\u2010seeing (blessed is He) whensoever\nit hindereth kindness and mercy. After this my eyes again fell upon the\nroll, and I read aloud these words wherein the prophet prescribeth the\ncure for the wounds of Israel. \u201cCease to do evil; learn to do well; seek\njudgment, relieve the oppressed, judge the fatherless, plead for the\nwidow.\u201d Then I cried aloud, \u201cIs not this a plain and simple path even for\nthe people of the land, that all Israel should walk therein.\u201d\n\nNow so it was that Baruch had come up while I was thus reading and\nspeaking aloud; and I knew it not. So he answered and said, \u201cThou speakest\nwell; notwithstanding I have heard a certain Greek of mine acquaintance in\nCapernaum say that virtue cannot be taught; for that some men have their\nhearts inclined by nature to do well, but others to do ill; so that it\navaileth nothing to say \u2018Learn to do well.\u2019\u201d Then was I silent for a\nwhile, for methought the Greek said well, and indeed we needed, not so\nmuch that a new path should be made plain, as that a clean heart and a\nright spirit should be created anew within us, according as it is written,\n\u201cMake me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.\u201d So in\nthe end I concluded to wait till we should understand what new message the\nprophet John the son of Zachariah might bring to us from the Lord, if\nperchance he might teach us aught concerning the creating of a right\nspirit. But by this time our ship was come to Gamala; where we were\ncourteously entertained by James and John the sons of Judas; and we abode\nwith them three days. But on the fourth day we set out for Bethany of\nPer\u00e6a.\n\n\n\n\n\n CHAPTER IV\n\n\nAs we drew near to Bethany, we noted many hundreds of travellers on the\nroad, the most part on foot, but many on asses and camels; for rich as\nwell as poor were journeying to the new prophet. A full score of Scribes\nwent past us in the space of an hour; there were also some soldiers going\nto Mach\u00e6rus; here and there was a tax\u2010gatherer; and Baruch took note of\ncertain that were sinners, outcasts from the synagogue of Capernaum. We\nhad now been journeying for a day and a half; and toward the end of the\nsecond day, we began to see the valley of Jordan right over against us.\nGoing down a little further, we perceived that there was a great multitude\ngathered together near the bank of the river; and presently we could\nclearly discern the prophet himself.\n\nAround him stood men in white garments awaiting purification; at a\nsomewhat greater distance, the mixed multitude hearkening to his words.\nJohn himself, wearing no tunic, but clad only in a rough mantle of camel\u2019s\nhair with a girdle of untanned leather, was sitting upon a rock, and\nthence he was speaking to the people in a clear voice, whereof the sound\n(though not as yet the meaning) was borne up even to our ears. For a while\nwe stood still, with one consent, marvelling at the sight; for there had\nnot been a prophet in Israel for four hundred years and more; but\npresently, riding down with all speed, we came into the valley, and joined\nourselves to the multitude: and, albeit, we could not come very nigh to\nJohn, for the press, yet was there such a stillness among all the\nassembly, that we very soon understood whatsoever he said.\n\nHe had been speaking (this I learned afterwards from one of the\nbystanders) concerning the old wars and troubles which the Lord had sent\non Israel; how, according to the saying of the Prophet Isaiah, the Lord\nhad brought the Assyrian against the land as an axe, whereby He had cut\ndown our chosen nobles and princes, even as a woodman felleth the choicest\ntrees. Also how, in the days of the Prophet Jeremiah, the Lord had sent\nthe blast of His wrath upon the people, and had winnowed away the unstable\nand faithless into captivity, even as a winnower fanneth the chaff from\nthe wheat. The same things were at hand even now, he said: \u201cNow also the\naxe is laid at the root of the trees; therefore every tree which bringeth\nnot forth good fruit is hewn down and cast into the fire.\u201d\n\nHereat the multitude cried aloud, saying that it was even so; for indeed\nwe all felt in our hearts that the prophet spake the truth. As the\nAssyrian axe in the days of old, so now the Roman axe was laid at the root\nof Israel; and unless the Lord turned away His wrath from us, the nation\nwould be destroyed. But then a stillness fell upon the multitude, as we\nwaited till the prophet should tell us what we should do to turn away the\nLord\u2019s wrath.\n\nThen the prophet set his face toward the men in white garments, and said\nto them that they should cleanse their hearts and not their bodies merely,\nand put away the iniquity of their souls, and he called upon them to\nconfess their sins. He bade them also not to trust in their being children\nof Abraham, nor in the purifications of the Law, nor in the observances of\nSabbaths and feast\u2010days. If, said he, the tree was to escape the axe, it\nmust no longer be barren: \u201cbring forth fruits therefore worthy of\nrepentance, and think not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our\nfather, for I say unto you that God is able of these stones to raise up\nchildren unto Abraham.\u201d\n\nSaying these words, he beckoned to the men in white robes that they should\nfollow him. The multitude made way for them; and he led them down to a\nplace by the side of the river where the reeds and thickets of willow\u2010beds\nhad been rooted up, so that there might be free passage into the water.\nThen he cried in a clear voice, \u201cReceive the baptism of Repentance,\u201d and\nbade them plunge themselves beneath the surface. At the same time he\noffered up prayers to God; and we upon the higher bank said, Amen. When he\nhad made an end of baptizing the men, he went up again to the rock, and\nthence he again spoke to the people; and as many as desired purification\nwent up to him there.\n\nNow while the people were going up by courses, I also began to resolve in\nmy heart that I too would go up in the order of my course. Yet had I sore\nmisgivings in my soul; for it seemed as if I were on the verge of a great\nsea, launching out into the deep I knew not whither. For the teaching of\nthis new prophet in no wise agreed with the teaching of the Scribes and\nLawyers, whom I had reverenced; and if I went with him, I perceived that I\nmust needs go away from them. Now it came to pass that a certain Scribe\n(who was with our company) perceived the reasonings of my heart, and that\nI was desirous to receive purification at the hands of John. Therefore he\ntook me by the cloak, and held me back, saying, \u201cBehold, if John the son\nof Zachariah speaketh well, the Scribes have spoken ill, and have taught\nill. Yea, and all thy study of the Law, and thy painful meditations\ntherein, and thy nightly watchings and weariness of the flesh have all\nbeen in vain. But wilt thou lightly forsake the teaching of the Law and\nthe Traditions of the Fathers, and all for the sake of one new prophet,\nconcerning whom thou knowest not as yet even that he is a prophet? And\nwherefore shouldst thou thus seek after prophets? Knowest thou not that\nthe Inscrutable (blessed be He) decreed that, after the destruction of the\nfirst Temple, there should be no longer with us the Shekinah, nor the Holy\nSpirit, nor the Urim and Thummim; wherefore it is said, \u2018From the fourth\nyear of King Darius, the Holy Spirit no longer rested upon the prophets.\u2019\nBut in the place of the prophets (who were not always with Israel) thou\nhast now the Scribes always with thee, according as it is said, \u2018Moses\nreceived the Law from Sinai, and the elders delivered it to the prophets,\nand the prophets to the men of the Great Congregation;\u2019 and it is also\nsaid, \u2018from the time that the Temple was destroyed, the gift of prophecy\nwas taken from the prophets and given to the Wise.\u2019\u201d\n\nHis words moved me, and I restrained myself for the time. Yet on the other\nside there rose in my heart a certain Voice, which seemed to come from the\nLord, saying, \u201cThe words of John are right, and they are simple,\nconverting the soul. Moreover, they are fit for the people of the land,\nand not only for Scribes and scholars and pedants. But that he is a\nprophet, thine own heart convinceth thee; for even when thou hearest him,\nthou knowest that he speaketh not from himself, but that he is taught from\nabove. And did not also the prophets of old speak like things, saying,\n\u2018Rend your hearts, and not your garments,\u2019 and bidding Israel not to offer\nsacrifice, but to shew mercy, and not to observe Sabbaths, but to do\njudgment and relieve the oppressed?\u201d So between the words of the Scribe\nand the words of the Voice within me I was in a great strait. Howbeit for\nthe time I restrained myself and did nothing, but remained where I was,\ngiving heed to the words of the Prophet.\n\nNow it came to pass that certain of the soldiers from Mach\u00e6rus went up:\nand all we in the crowd waited silently expecting that the Prophet would\ndeny purification to these men, except they should first promise to depart\nfrom the army of Herod. But he commanded them only to abstain from robbery\nand outrage. Upon this certain tax\u2010gatherers (whom the Romans call\npublicans) took confidence, and they too went up. And now indeed all we\nthat looked on, expected that there should have been a great outburst of\nwrath and of cursing upon them, as upon traitors and apostates from\nIsrael. But the Prophet received these also, and bade them exact no more\nthan that which was appointed to them. To others he said that they were to\nobserve that saying in the Traditions which enjoineth the doing of\nkindnesses; that is to say, they were to clothe the naked and to feed the\nhungry, and the like.\n\nHereupon arose a murmuring among certain of the Scribes from Jerusalem,\nwho were standing nigh to the place where I was: and I heard the voice of\nHezekiah son of Zachariah saying in an austere manner, \u201cIt is said, \u2018On\nthree things the world is stayed; on the Law, and on the Worship, and on\nthe bestowal of Kindnesses:\u2019 what meaneth this teacher of strange things\ntherefore, to subvert the Law and the Worship, in that he maketh no\nmention thereof, but he exalteth Kindnesses to the skies?\u201d Then another\nsaid, \u201cHe allegeth the authority of no teacher; why therefore hearken we\nto him?\u201d But a third said, \u201cPeradventure he is a prophet, and is taught of\nGod.\u201d But Hezekiah made answer, \u201cThe time of prophets hath passed.\nBesides, he hath wrought no sign from Heaven; how know we therefore that\nhe is a true prophet?\u201d\n\nThese things spake the Scribes together, as we went back from the river to\nthe place where our tents were pitched; for by this time the sun was\nsetting. But all that night long my thoughts still beat on the doctrine of\nJohn; and I marvelled much whence it came that the people so flocked to\nJohn as to a prophet; yea, and that my own heart also was so drawn towards\nhim, although he had wrought no sign in heaven, nor so much as driven out\nany unclean spirit. But the reason seemed to me partly in himself. For his\nvery countenance, yea, even his gesture and carriage, proclaimed him to\nbe, not a student of books, but one that was taught of God; and yet\nfurther the hardships that he endured, and the manner of his clothing and\nfood (for he fed on nothing but locusts and wild honey) shewed to all men\nthat he did not prophesy for gain. But another reason lay in his doctrine.\nFor the doctrine of John was simple and just, commending itself to the\nconsciences of men; not flattering any nor busying itself with abstruse\nmatters; but fit for the work of life and the paths of busy men, able, as\nit seemed, to carry purity and righteousness even to the side of the\nplough, and into the ranks of armed men, and into the shops and offices of\ntradesmen and tax\u2010gatherers. For this cause the teaching of John won a way\ninto the hearts of men of every degree, save only certain of the\nPharisees. So when I thought on all these things, I began to be convinced\nthat he was sent of God.\n\nBut when I went forth on the morrow to behold the purification of the\ndisciples and to hear the teaching of the Prophet, my heart was even more\ndrawn unto him. For I compared him with Abuyah the son of Elishah, and\nwith the ruler of the synagogue, that had driven away the tax\u2010gatherers\nand sinners from the teaching of repentance; and it seemed to me that John\nwas as much better than they, as light is better than darkness. For though\nhe were of a stern countenance and austere in aspect, yet was the\nausterity of John in no wise as the austerity of Abuyah the son of\nElishah. For Abuyah was sour and peevish, for that he ever loved to find\nfault, and because he desired to obtain occasion for rebuking, to the\nintent that he might persuade himself that he was better than others: but\nJohn seemed to be austere only because he hated sin. So I no more delayed,\nbut went up with the rest, about the second hour of the day; and I\nconfessed my sins and received purification.\n\nAfter we had been purified, I stood with the rest, clothed in white\ngarments, wholly given up to meditating upon the new life whereto we\nseemed to have risen out of the waters. But I was aroused by hearing these\nwords spoken with a great vehemency of anger: \u201cYe serpents, ye generation\nof vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come?\u201d Great\nindeed was my astonishment when, raising myself to see what they were to\nwhom the Prophet was thus speaking, I discerned the faces of some of the\nmost famous Scribes in Jerusalem. It seemed that they had been questioning\nhim who he was and by what authority he taught these things. But the\nProphet rebuked them with exceeding indignation. For he said that they\nwere even as barren trees, full of leaf, but bearing no fruit, fit for\nnaught but to be cut down and cast into the fire. Then they went backward,\nbeing put to utter confusion; but John turned to us that had been\npurified, and spake to us a second time as follows:\n\n\u201cI am not the Christ. Call not yourselves my disciples: for I myself am\nnaught but a herald in the wilderness preparing the way for the Great\nKing. But verily the King cometh. Therefore weep no more for the evils of\nsin. The rough ways of oppression shall be made smooth; the crooked paths\nof deceit and violence shall be made straight. Let the daughter of\nJerusalem rejoice greatly, for her salvation is nigh. For the glory of the\nLord draweth near, and all flesh shall see it together. Notwithstanding\nthink not of me as your deliverer. He that hath the bride is the\nbridegroom, and the Bridegroom of Sion is the Redeemer, who shall espouse\nher in the day of salvation. I am but the friend of the Bridegroom. Nay, I\nam but his servant, not worthy to follow him as slave, nor to loose the\nlatchet of his sandal. Ye ask in your hearts who I am. But think not of\nme, for I am as one that is no man. I am naught but a voice, even the\nvoice of one crying in the wilderness, \u2018Prepare ye the way of the Lord,\nmake His paths straight.\u2019\u201d\n\nThen he warned us that had been purified not to suppose that we needed no\nfurther purification. Speaking of the old days of Joshua the Conqueror, he\nbrought to our minds how our fathers had two kinds of purification; one\ninferior, with water, wherewith they purified things perishable, such as\ngarments and the like; but a more searching purification, wherewith they\npurified silver and gold and other imperishable things, and this was with\nfire. Even so, he said, it was given to him to purify only with the\nwashing of water; but one would come after him, the Messiah and Redeemer;\nand he would purify us with fire and with the Holy Spirit.\n\nIn the evening, when we, that had received the purification, conversed\ntogether in the inn at Jericho, there was much questioning whence the\nMessiah should come, and by what signs he should be known. But most of the\nScribes did not believe that John was a true prophet; and Hezekiah\nprotested that he ought not to be called a prophet, for he had wrought no\nsign, not even on earth, much less in heaven. But this he said not openly,\nfor fear of the multitude; for almost all believed John to be a prophet.\n\nBut on the morrow, when we turned ourselves to go northward, heaviness\nfell upon my heart, and all things seemed flat and unprofitable. All our\ncounsels of action, whether to join ourselves to the army of Herod, or\nstraightway to rise up against the Romans, behold, they now seemed no\nlonger the wisdom of men, but rather the vain talk of children. For what\ncould Barabbas and the sons of Judas do, in comparison with the true\nRedemption which had been prophesied by the Prophet; or how could they\navail to bring about the day of that Redemption? It seemed to be our\nwisdom to wait for the Lord, who alone could send the true Redeemer. And\nyet, on the other hand, how was it possible for one that loved Israel and\nlonged after righteousness, to look patiently upon the servitude of his\ncountry? Hence I loathed the thought of living in peace at home.\n\nWhen I returned to Sepphoris, I applied myself to labour and to study, if\nperchance I might settle my thoughts; but I could not, for I was divided\nbetween two minds. At one time I was minded to obey John and his teaching,\nand to set no store on the teaching of the Scribes, nor to give heed to\nwhat were called the \u201clight precepts\u201d of the Fathers, such as those\nconcerning tassels and fringes, and the purification of vessels, and the\nobservance of the Sabbath for things without life, and the like; and it\nseemed nobler to cast these things away, and to say that mercy, and\njudgment, and truth, and kindness, were the great commandments, and whoso\nobserveth these, observeth all. But then at other times, when I considered\nwith myself how frail and fitful a thing is man, how impotent for all good\nends, and how easily led aside from the right path by passion and by\nignorance, then I trembled at the thought of casting down the fences which\nhad been raised by the generations of the wise; for I feared lest I should\nbe guilty of presumption, and should fall, and be swallowed up with an\nutter destruction.\n\nBut in the minds of other men (and not in me alone) there was at this time\nmuch unsettlement and many searchings of heart. For many others in\nSepphoris became ill\u2010content with the teaching of the Scribes, and with\nthe performance of the precepts of the Law. Some men even said that, when\nthe Messiah came, there should be no more Law. So, if, even before, men\nhad been expecting the Messiah and looking forward to the Redemption of\nSion, much more did they do so now, after the preaching of John the\nProphet; insomuch that the whole of Galilee became as dry fuel ready for\nthe flame: and nothing was wanting save a spark of fire from heaven to\nkindle the whole into a great blaze.\n\nBy this time I had numbered thirty\u2010four years, or something more; and it\nwas the fourteenth year of the Emperor Tiberius.\n\n\n\n\n\n CHAPTER V\n\n\nNow it came to pass that about this time, at the beginning of the\nfifteenth year of Tiberius C\u00e6sar, very early in the spring, the only son\nof my mother\u2019s eldest brother died in Alexandria; and my mother\u2019s brother\n(whose name was Onias) sent to my mother desiring her that she would\nsuffer me to come to Alexandria to visit him during his affliction. He was\na shipwright and a man of great wealth, possessing many corn\u2010ships; and he\nwas desirous to have adopted me for his son. But to this I would not\nconsent, nor did my mother urge me thereto. Howbeit out of love for her\nbrother, and because she thought it would be for my advantage, she desired\nme to visit my uncle for a time. I had no mind to remain in Alexandria,\nnor to leave my mother for long. But at my mother\u2019s bidding I was willing\nto go to my uncle for a season, if perchance I might comfort him a little.\n\nTwo days I spent at C\u00e6sarea Stratonis waiting for the sailing of our\nvessel; and during that time my heart was moved within me, for that I saw\non all sides the signs of the power and prosperity of the Gentiles; for a\nGentile city this was, insomuch that, though the wall be on holy ground,\nyet was the city itself esteemed of our Scribes to be defiled and in a\nGentile land. For the region round about was called the land of life; but\nthe city was called the daughter of Edom. A great breakwater here\nprotecteth the ships from the rage of the sea. Each stone therein is\nthirty cubits long, six cubits deep, and seven cubits broad, let down into\nwater twenty fathom deep. Above the waters the breakwater is of the\nbreadth of one hundred and forty cubits. Over against the mouth of the\nhaven standeth a temple dedicated to C\u00e6sar, and thereon two images of\nmarble, very large, the one of C\u00e6sar, the other of Rome. There is also in\nthis city a theatre, and an amphitheatre, and a market\u2010place, after the\nmanner of the Greeks; and in all parts of the city there were to be seen\nbaths, and gardens, and palaces, and porticoes, and other public\nbuildings, all adorned, after the Greek fashion, with images of living\ncreatures. When I looked on these things, Satan tempted me and said, \u201cGod\nloveth the Romans more than He loveth the children of Israel; and the\nwisdom of the Greeks is greater than the wisdom of Sion.\u201d\n\nMore, yea much more grievously did Satan tempt me when I was come to that\ngreat city, even to Alexandria. For here the streets were broader and the\npublic buildings also larger and goodlier than those of C\u00e6sarea; and in\nthe streets and public gardens, yea even in the households of the Gentiles\nto whom my uncle commended me, I perceived the abominations of idolatry.\nFor on every side were to be seen images and pictures of false gods and of\ndemons which they called demigods and heroes; insomuch that the walls of\nthe houses and the chambers, yea even the seats, and couches, and\nornaments of dress, and utensils of furniture, and instruments of music\nwere all painted or carven with abominable devices, setting forth the\ndoings of these demons. But when I heard the interpretation of these\npictures and graven images, then sometimes indeed my heart loathed them\nfor their lewd and profane spirit; but at other times I was constrained to\nconfess that there was a certain wondrous beauty and delight in the songs\nof certain of the poets of the Gentiles.\n\nHere also men of all nations and religions, Jews and Greeks, Romans and\nEgyptians, and strangers from the East, lived all together in peace,\nmaking gain, and worshipping after the traditions of their fathers; and no\none vexed nor oppressed other. All this troubled me, for I said in my\nheart, \u201cThere is but one God: how then doth the All\u2010powerful (blessed is\nHe) endure that the Gentiles should live thus prosperously in the worship\nof gods that are no true gods?\u201d\n\nMy uncle\u2019s house also was a snare unto me and a temptation; for although\nhe himself reverenced the Law, yet did he consort with many of our nation\nwhich scoffed at the Scriptures and warred against all sacred things,\nmaking it their delight to have the commandments of the Lord in derision,\nand saying to the faithful among their countrymen, \u201cDo ye still make\naccount of your laws as if they contained the rules of the truth? Yet see,\nthe Holy Scriptures, as ye call them, contain also fables, such as ye are\naccustomed to laugh at, when ye hear others say the like.\u201d\n\nWhen I rebuked these backsliders and revolters in the presence of my\nuncle, he spake kindly to me; yet did his words shake my faith. As for the\nScribes whose teaching I had once so prized, he described them as meaning\nwell, but not teaching well; and he called them \u201cpuzzle\u2010browed sophists,\u201d\nand \u201cthose that busy themselves with the letter.\u201d The letter of the Law,\nhe said, was full of falsehoods, such as the Greeks call myths, which were\nintended to warn the wise from cleaving unto the letter of the Law.\n\nAgain, he exhorted me not to despise the learning of the Greeks, nor the\nteaching of the Gentile Scribes, whom they called \u201cPhilosophers.\u201d \u201cFor,\u201d\nsaid he, \u201cthey enlarge and open the mind and help to the right\nunderstanding of the Law of Israel.\u201d But when I repeated the proverb of my\ncountrymen, \u201cThe very air of Palestine maketh wise,\u201d and said that the\nScribes in Galilee eschewed the Greek learning, warning their pupils\nagainst it, as against a net that entangleth the feet, and when I appealed\nto the Scribes of my uncle\u2019s acquaintance, hoping that they should have\nbeen on my side, behold, they were with one consent against me and with my\nuncle. For they all said that the Galilean Scribes spake as unlearned men,\nand that there was much to be learned from a certain Gentile philosopher\ncalled Plato; and one added a line from a Greek play\u2010writer which saith\n\u201ceven from enemies one may win learning.\u201d Then was I staggered in my\njudgment, and bent to their opinion, so that I began to frequent the\nschools of the philosophers.\n\nBut great indeed was my perplexity and bewilderment when I found that\nthese philosophers treated not of such subjects as I had supposed, namely\nof the nature of the soul, and whether it be mortal or immortal, or\nwhether there be many gods or one God; but they questioned whether the\nworld came together by chance or by design, and whether there be any God\nor no. Yet howsoever they differed among themselves, they agreed all in\nbelieving that our God was not the true God, and that the stories of the\nmighty works wrought by Him for our forefathers were mere myths and\nfables; or, if any thought otherwise, they held that our stories were no\ntruer than their stories, and that \u00c6sculapius and Hercules were far more\nworthy of honour than Elijah and Samson. Now a certain voice within me\nconstantly testified that they were in error; for the righteous teaching\nof our prophets and our lawyers far exceeded anything that the Gentiles\ncould shew from their philosophers or lawgivers. But I had been taught by\nthe Scribes of Galilee not to trust to this voice within me, namely to my\nconscience, but only to tradition and authority; and behold, my traditions\nand the authority whereon I set store were rejected by these Gentiles:\nwherefore I knew not how to answer them.\n\nIt came to pass that, on a certain day, going from lecture\u2010room to\nlecture\u2010room, I perceived a great multitude passing into a hall in the\nGreat Library, where there was to be a dispute between two philosophers;\nso I followed with them. One of the two belonged to the sect called the\nStoics, and the other to the sect called the Epicureans; and the dispute\nwas concerning the government of the universe by the gods, which is\naffirmed by the former sect, but denied by the latter. Now the contention\nhad endured for the space of a whole day already, and yesterday the Stoic\nhad delivered his arguments: but to\u2010day the dispute was to be continued by\nthe other, and so it was that, when I entered the chamber, the Epicurean\nwas at the point to speak.\n\nHe began with reckoning up how many unjust acts, how many oppressions and\nsins, how many diseases and miseries, had been let loose by the gods (if\ngods there were) to prey upon the children of men. He set forth the\ndiverse gods and goddesses worshipped by diverse nations; the gods of the\nGrecians and Romans, wrought of marble or ivory; the sword worshipped by\nthe Scythians; the cat and ibis by the Egyptians. What, he asked, had they\nall done for their servants? Then he said that in a certain region of\nSyria there lived a nation which professed to reject the gods of other\nnations and to believe in one only god: but to what end? Their god had\nallowed their enemies to destroy his own temple with fire, and had given\nup his chosen people to be the servants of the Romans. He added a story of\none of our learned men, whose life had been blameless and whose teaching\nhad been of the One True God. \u201cYet,\u201d said the Epicurean, \u201cwhat befell this\nteacher of truth in his old age? His god delivered him into the hands of\npersecutors, who placed his tongue between the teeth of a dog which had\nbeen made exceeding fierce with hunger; and so the dog bit off the tongue\nof the pious teacher, even that tongue which had ever spoken words of\ntruth. What say we then? If there be a god, then he suffered this\nwickedness (for without him is naught); and therefore he is wicked. But if\nthere be no god, then at least we are delivered from the constraint to\nbelieve that the Supreme Governor of the world is worse than the worst of\nmen.\u201d\n\nThe people, who had been on the side of the Epicurean from the first, in\ndespite of the interruptions of the Stoic, now loudly applauded; and when\nit fell to the Stoic to speak, he had little to say. If he discoursed of\noracles as proofs of the divine foreknowledge, then the Epicurean asked\nwho had ever been profited by oracles, bringing forward many dark sayings\nof the gods, which had led men to destruction; and other sayings that\nsavoured of manifest folly; adding thereto jests and flouts of oracles\ndrawn from the plays of the comedians. When the Stoic spake of a life\nafter death, and alleged apparitions of the dead, then his adversary\nanswered that the said apparitions were mere unsubstantial phantasms, such\nas appear to madmen and drunkards when they see all things twofold.\nLastly, when the Stoic spake of judgment after death, and a final\nconsumption of the world by fire, then the Epicurean demanded proof\nhereof; and he laughed at the stories of Minos and Rhadamanthus as nursery\nfables and bugbears to frighten babes withal. He also compared the Supreme\nBeing of the Stoics burning up the world, to an unskilful cook that\nburneth the cake that he is baking.\n\nAgain the people laughed loudly, and shouted applause; but the Stoic,\ntouched with choler, left reasoning with his adversary and began to revile\nhim, calling him atheist and sacrilegious wretch, and other names; which\nonly made the people laugh the more. But I came forth from the theatre\nsick at heart and saddened, not more by the arguments of the Epicurean\nthan by the faithlessness of the multitude. Then said I, \u201cHow know I that\nthere is a life after death? or who hath returned from the grave to bring\nback word thereof? For it is written, \u2018Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do,\ndo it with thy might.\u2019 But wherefore? \u2018Even because,\u2019 saith the Scripture,\n\u2018there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom in the grave\nwhither thou goest.\u2019\u201d Then again I lamented that I had wasted my years in\nlabour, and much study had been to me a weariness in the flesh, and I\nsaid, \u201cIt would have been wiser to have preferred mirth, for it is\nwritten, \u2018A man hath no better thing under the sun than to eat and drink,\nand to be merry: for that shall abide with him of his labour the days of\nhis life, which God giveth him under the sun.\u2019\u201d\n\nFrom henceforth my days and nights were busied with such questions as\nthese, which crept into my soul against my will, and would not be driven\nout: After death shall I live no more, and will no one even once think of\nme, since infinite time burieth all things in forgetfulness? Will it be\neven as though I had never been born? When was the world created, and what\nwas in the beginning before the world? If the world was from all eternity,\nthen it will always be; but if it had a beginning, then must it likewise\nhave an end. And, after the end of the world, what will be then? What\nperhaps but the silence of death?\n\nBeing constantly given up to such thoughts, I resorted yet more diligently\nto the schools of the philosophers, hoping to obtain some deliverance from\nmy doubts: but I saw nothing but the contentions of orators, and the\nfoyning and thrusting of rhetoricians, fighting not for the truth, but\neach desiring to prove himself more skilful than his adversaries. So it\ncame to pass that I inclined, now to one, now to another. As, for example,\nat one time they that taught the immortality of the soul seemed to\nprevail; then again they that would have the soul to be mortal. When the\nformer doctrine had the upper hand, I rejoiced: when the latter, I was\ndowncast. Thus was I driven to and fro by differing opinions, and was\nforced to conclude that things appear not as they are in themselves, but\nas they happen to be presented on this side, or on that. My brain was in a\ngreater whirl than ever, and I sighed from the bottom of my heart.\n\nAt the last I went to my uncle in my distress, and poured forth my\ntroubles in his ear. But when he had hearkened to my complaints, he said,\n\u201cIt will be well that thou shouldst have speech with Philo; for he is our\nprincipal teacher here, and he will answer thy doubts.\u201d But I said in my\nhaste and impatience, \u201cBehold, I have resorted unto the wisest teachers in\nGalilee, and now, at thy word, I have frequented the lectures of these\nGentile philosophers; but they have added nothing to me, for they are as\ndried\u2010up springs.\u201d At this my uncle laughed, and said, \u201cSuppose not, O son\nof my sister, that our Philo is like unto the Scribes of Galilee: for as\nwell might a dog hope to lap up the Nile as that thou shouldst drain dry\nthe wisdom of Philo the Alexandrine.\u201d So without more ado I accompanied\nhim to the house of Philo.\n\nWhen we entered the house of Philo, I admired first of all the homely\nplainness of his household. For though he were one of the foremost Jews in\nAlexandria (and there were nigh unto a hundred myriads of our countrymen\nin the city and the country round about) and kinsman also to Alexander the\nAlabarch, whose wealth was known to all, yet were there no signs of\nluxury, nor of pride in his house, nor in his furniture nor in his\nclothing: and his wife also wore a plain and simple garment without\nplaiting of the hair, or painting, or adornment with gold and precious\nstones; and in all the house there was naught whereat the strictest\nPharisee could have been offended.\n\nPhilo received us courteously; and when I had opened to him at large all\nmy doubts, he replied fully to them. I cannot at this time set down\nexactly all that we spake together; but this was the substance. First, I\nsaid that I was loth to be as one of the backsliders among my countrymen,\nwho in effect gave up the Law, deriding it as a heap of fables; yet on the\nother hand, I confessed that after much study of the Law I had not been\nable to attain to righteousness nor peace. Thereto Philo made answer that\nhe was not one of them that rejected the Law of Israel; for he diligently\nobserved it, believing that it contained all knowledge and all wisdom;\n\u201cand,\u201d said he, \u201cI consider that Moses was the greatest and most perfect\nof men, and that he attained unto the very pinnacle of wisdom.(1) But as\nfor the wisdom of the Greeks, it is but as a handmaid in respect of our\nwisdom; even as the slave Hagar was, in respect of her mistress and queen,\nSarah. Notwithstanding,\u201d added he, \u201cwhen I speak of our Scriptures, I mean\nthat there are two interpretations of every Scripture. There is first the\nouter meaning, which is as it were the body; but there is, next, the inner\nspiritual meaning, which is, as it were, the soul. Thus, for example, when\nthou readest that Eve was made out of the rib of Adam, or that the world\nwas made in six days, or that God talked with Moses in a thorn\u2010bush, the\nletter of these Scriptures is indeed fable, but the spiritual meaning is\ntruth and life.\u201d Then said I, \u201cIf the letter be fable, why retain the\nletter?\u201d But he said, \u201cAnd if the body be unspiritual, why retain the\nbody? As well cast away the body because it is not soul, as cast away the\nletter because it is not spirit.\u201d\n\nThen I asked, \u201cBut how shall I attain righteousness?\u201d Philo replied, \u201cAll\nmen have in them a certain spiritual nature, in virtue whereof they are\nallied with the Word of God. Whosoever recogniseth the sins wherewith he\nis defiled, hath the power (if he will use it) of rising above his\npassions, and conquering his lusts, so that in the end, by repentance and\nby constant struggling after righteousness, he can follow after the\nvirtues of the Father in heaven who begat him.\u201d Then said I, \u201cAll this\nhave I done; for I have now these many years observed not only the words\nof the Law, but also the Traditions of the Elders; yet have I not attained\npeace.\u201d But he said, \u201cThou puttest first that which should come second;\nfirst aim after the virtues that have to do with men; afterward shalt thou\nattain the virtue that hath to do with God.\u201d \u201cIt would seem therefore,\u201d\nsaid I, \u201cthat thou dost not advise thy disciples to withdraw themselves\nfrom the world, after the manner of hermits.\u201d \u201cYea, but I do advise them,\u201d\nsaid Philo; \u201conly first men should attain to the lower step before aiming\nat the higher. For first, they should study truthfulness, striving to love\ntheir neighbours, and to be helpful and gentle to all; for man should be\ngentle, and not savage, being fitted by nature for fellowship and concord.\nBut after that thou hast attained to this lower stage, my counsel is that\nthou forsake thy home and thy friends, and thy wealth, and all that thou\nhast, and that thou abstain from business of state, and from all traffic,\nand that thou give thyself entirely to the contemplation of the divine\nessence.\u201d\n\nThen said I, \u201cMethinks, many of our Scribes in Galilee would not please\nthee; for they seek after righteousness by other ways, observing the\nsmallest matters of the Law, and afflicting the flesh.\u201d \u201cTell such an one\nfrom me,\u201d said Philo, \u201cwhen thou shalt see him perchance abstaining from\nfood or drink at the times of eating, or disdaining the bath and the use\nof oil, or tormenting himself with a hard couch or with night\u2010watchings,\ndeceiving himself with this show of abstinence, that he is not in the true\nway to continence, and that all his labour is in vain.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut what,\u201d asked I, \u201cis this highest revelation of the essence of the\nSupreme (blessed is He) to which the soul shall at last attain?\u201d Philo\npaused a moment and then answered, \u201cThou shalt attain to the knowledge of\nGod, as mere being or existence.\u201d But I, not understanding him aright,\nsaid, \u201cThou sayest \u2018existence:\u2019 dost thou mean \u2018holy existence\u2019?\u201d But\nPhilo answered with a smile, \u201cHow can we call Him holy who is holier than\nall holiness? But by \u2018mere existence,\u2019 I mean that which is known as\nexistence and in no other way.\u201d Then I said, \u201cMay we not therefore call\nHim good? or loving?\u201d \u201cCall Him so,\u201d replied Philo, \u201cif thou dost not\nbelieve that He is better than all goodness, more loving than all love.\u201d\n\nHereat my heart sank within me; for such a God as this \u201cmere existence\u201d\nseemed to me not a being able to love me nor to be loved by me, no more\nthan if it had been a triangle or a circle. But presently I called to mind\nthat Moses had named God the Father of the spirits of all flesh: and the\nprophets also had named God Father. Therefore said I to Philo, \u201cAnd the\nname Father also? May we not give this name to God?\u201d \u201cNo,\u201d said Philo,\n\u201cexcept in order to teach the common folk; as when the Scripture saith\nthat God chasteneth those whom He loveth, like as a father chasteneth his\nson. For God cannot change; neither can He feel anger, nor love, nor joy.\nBut when the Scripture sayeth such words as these, it speaketh for the\ncommon multitude, even as when it saith that God spake or heard; or that\nHe smelled a sweet savour; or that He awaked from sleep; or that He\nrepented of that which He had done.\u201d\n\nWhen I heard this, it seemed to me that I had come to Philo for naught;\nbut I said to him, \u201cThou speakest of that revelation of God, which thou\ncallest mere existence, as being the highest revelation. Is there then a\nlower revelation?\u201d \u201cCertainly,\u201d he replied, \u201cfor just as there is, in\nhuman life, the thing and the word that revealeth the thing, even so is\nthere also on the one hand God, the true God, THAT WHICH IS, and on the\nother hand the Word of God, which revealeth God to the minds of men.\u201d Then\nI questioned him concerning this Word of God, or Logos (as he called it,\nusing a Greek name): and he answered me fully, yet not so that I could\naltogether understand him. But this I gathered, that the Word or Logos was\na second divine being, inseparable from the Father; and that by the Word\nwas the world made. But sometimes he said that the world, as conceived by\nthe intellect, _was_ the Word, (\u201cfor,\u201d said he, \u201cas a city, not yet being,\nis in the mind or reason of the architect thereof, so the world, albeit\nnot being, was in the mind or reason of God\u201d;) and with these exact words\nhe made an end of this part of his discourse, for I set them down at the\ntime: \u201cIf any one should desire to use still plainer terms, he would not\ncall the world (regarded as perceptible only to the intellect) as anything\nelse but the Reason of God busied with the creation of the world; for\nneither is a city, while only perceptible to the intellect, anything else\nexcept the reason of the architect.\u201d\n\nThen said I, \u201cBut how do men attain to the revelation of the Word?\u201d \u201cBy\nthe exercise of the divine Word or Reason within them,\u201d said Philo; \u201cfor\nall men have in themselves a ray of light from the archetypal Light, the\nWord of the Supreme Being. For no mortal thing is framed, nor could have\nbeen framed, in the similitude of the Supreme Father; but only after the\npattern of the second deity, the Word. Now this Word can be received of\nall them that will live according to it. For the race of mankind is\ntwofold, the one being the race of them that live by the Divine Spirit and\nreason; the other, of such as live according to the pleasures of the\nflesh. The universe therefore, apprehended by the reason of man, conveyeth\nthe revelation of the Word. And this revelation, this heavenly food of the\nsoul (which Moses calleth manna), the Word of God meteth out in equal\nportions among all them which are to use it. For the blessed soul\nproffereth her own reason as the holy goblet of true joy. But who can pour\nforth the wine of life, save only the Cup\u2010bearer of God, the Master of the\nFeast, the Word? And indeed the Cup\u2010bearer differeth in no wise from the\ndraught. For the Word is the draught itself, pure and unpolluted.\u201d\n\nThen it was borne in upon my mind, that in all his discourse (which\ninforced attention by reason of the beauty of his sayings, and because of\nhis exceeding earnestness) he had left no place for the Messiah or\nRedeemer of Israel, whose coming had been prophesied by John, the son of\nZachariah. Therefore I questioned him of this matter. But he smiled and\nsaid, \u201cTrouble not thyself on this matter; for it is likely that no\nMessiah is to come. But it will come to pass, in the day of Redemption,\nthat the children of Israel, which be now scattered over the earth, will\nbe led from all parts back to the Sacred Land, by the light of a great\nlight invisible to all others, but visible only to such as are to be\nsaved.\u201d Then, seeing that I was of a sad countenance, he added, \u201cDost thou\nnot perceive that the revelation of a Messiah would be as much inferior to\nthe revelation of the Word, or Logos, as the revelation of the Logos is\nitself inferior to the revelation of mere existence, _\u03c4\u1f78 \u1f44\u03bd_, or THAT\nWHICH IS? For the revelation of the Logos (that is of God known by\ncreation) is through hope and fear; but the revelation of _\u03c4\u1f78 \u1f44\u03bd_ (that is\nGod in itself) is through love. And the revelation of a Messiah must needs\nbe a poor and low thing as compared with either of these. But thou\nshouldst aspire towards the highest revelation of all, even the Father of\nall, with a divinely inspired passion not inferior to the _enthousiasmos_\nwherewith the worshippers of the gods of the Gentiles celebrate their\ninferior rites.\u201d\n\nThe day was now far spent: so my uncle arose to bid Philo farewell. I\nthanked him with my whole heart: for righteousness and goodness breathed\nin his presence; and my spirit was refreshed while I heard him speak. For\nthe very voice of the Lord seemed to sound from him when he said that to\nafflict the flesh was of no avail without afflicting the spirit, and that\nthe practice of virtue with men should go before the practice of virtue\nwith God. But when I was departed from him, musing as I returned home,\nthen I saw that the philosophy of Philo could in no wise give me peace.\nFor it was not possible that I should feel that _enthousiasmos_, or divine\npassion, whereof he made mention, for such a being as Mere Existence: and\nmethought I could feel this _enthousiasmos_ for none save a man, or some\nsimilitude of a man.\n\nTherefore my heart went back to that lower revelation whereof he spake, to\nwit, to God revealed through the world; that is, the Word: and this seemed\nto me more likely to give peace. But as for Mere Existence, albeit Philo\ncalled it the Father of all, yet had he plainly told me he meant this only\nfor the unlearned multitude. And whereas he used one word, God, to signify\ntwo things, one thing for the learned, and another for the unlearned;\nherein, to say truth, his doctrine brought to my mind a certain tale of\nthe poet Homer, which my uncle had but yesternight related unto me; how a\ncertain mighty man of valour, and a wise counsellor among the Greeks,\nUlysses by name, deceived the giant Polyphemus, saying that his name was\nNOMAN. Wherefore, when Polyphemus said that NOMAN had blinded him, his\nbrethren, the giants, thought that he meant to say that not a man, but a\ngod, had blinded him. And even so Philo seemed to me, when he spake to the\nwise and learned, to call God _no man_; but when he spake to the foolish\nand unlearned, he called Him NOMAN, making them think He was a person.\n\nBut what troubled me in this revelation was, that it seemed not to leave\nany room or place for the Messiah, the Redeemer of Israel. And \u201cWhy,\u201d\nthought I, \u201cshould the Word reveal himself only through the world, and not\nthrough mankind? But if he revealed himself through mankind (which Philo\nalso would allow), why might he not reveal himself through a Messiah?\u201d All\nthat night I lay awake musing on the same thing, and asking whether it\nmight not be that Philo spake truth in proclaiming the revelation of the\nWord, and yet John the son of Zachariah might also speak truth in\nproclaiming the revelation of the Messiah. But after long tossing of the\nmatter in my mind I concluded that there was no cause why the one should\ndestroy the other: so I prayed that both might be true.\n\nBut as for my former studies, and my old strict observances of the Sabbath\nand of the precepts concerning the use of purifications and concerning the\nconsumption of nail\u2010parings, and concerning the wearing of tassels,\nbehold, all these matters began to seem unto me things far off, forgotten,\nand childish. And though I knew not clearly whither to turn, yet I felt at\nleast that to them I could return no more; for I perceived that, even if I\nbecame as perfect in these matters as Abuyah the son of Elishah himself,\nyet should I none the more attain to peace, nor could I find in them that\nfood for want whereof my soul was an\u2010hungered. Wherefore I was now\nresolved in my mind of this one thing, in any case, namely, that the\nobservance of the smaller precepts of the Law could not gain for me that\nBanquet, or Manna, or heavenly Draught of the Word of God whereof Philo\nhad made mention. But what the true Manna might be, or how I might attain\nto it, this I did not as yet perceive. For I was, at that time, even as a\nlittle child in a boat without oars or sail, which hath drifted out\nunawares far into the open sea.\n\n\n\n\n\n CHAPTER VI\n\n\nNot many days after my discourse with Philo the Alexandrine, when I\nreturned from the Great Library to my uncle\u2019s house, a messenger was\nwaiting for me, bearing a letter from Rabbi Jonathan. Opening it I read\nthat my mother was suffering under a grievous disease, and being, as she\nthought, nigh unto death, she would fain see me before she died. So I\nstraightway made all things ready for my journey, and having bidden\nfarewell to my uncle, I set sail on the morrow from Alexandria, and on the\nfifth day arrived in Jerusalem; where, according to my mother\u2019s desire, I\npurposed to offer sacrifice unto the Lord, and to make vows for my\nmother\u2019s health.\n\nThe sun was well nigh set when I came to Jerusalem. But on the morrow, as\nI went up to the Temple through the narrow ways, amid the throng of them\nthat sold oxen and sheep and doves, new thoughts and doubts rose in my\nheart, such as I had never felt before when I had gone up to sacrifice\nduring the three great feasts. Methought the Lord must needs turn His face\nfrom so much traffic and disorder and defilement of His Holy House. On\nboth sides of the gate Hor\u00e6a, as far as Solomon\u2019s porch, were shops of\nmerchants and stalls of money\u2010changers. Even in the Court of the Gentiles,\nwhich is a part of the Temple itself, there were penned flocks of sheep\nand oxen, with drovers and salesmen. Pilgrims and proselytes from all\nparts pressed and thronged; buyer reviled seller, and seller buyer; from\nthe stalls of the money\u2010changers one might hear the clink of money mixed\nwith the sounds of contention. The stench also of so many cattle, being\nincreased by reason of the great heat, made the ill\u2010savour of the place\nalmost past bearing. Also I could not but marvel at the greediness of the\nsellers. For the Chief Priests had let out the right of selling offerings\nat a great price, to make profit thereof for themselves, insomuch that a\nsingle dove was sold for a gold piece.\n\nThen, again, when it came to the offering of the sacrifice, I must needs\nwait for the space of an hour whilst others were offering up their\nsacrifices; and the Levites and priests seemed all in haste, and did their\nwork rather as an handicraft than as worship; and many others were\nsacrificing at the same time, and the cries and struggles of the victims,\nand the smoke and reek of the fat, and the blood flowing on all sides,\ncaused the place to seem rather like a butcher\u2019s shambles than like the\nHouse of the Lord. Now all this I had known and seen aforetime, yet had I\nnever taken it to heart. But now there came to my mind certain words of\nPhilo touching the sect called the Essenes, how they worship the Lord with\nan exceeding carefulness of purity: wherefore they think it not meet to\nsacrifice the blood of beasts unto the Lord, but they offer up their own\nhearts, purified so as to be a fit offering for Him. Also at this time\n(perchance because I was but freshly come from the lecture\u2010rooms of the\nphilosophers of Alexandria, or belike because the Lord would have it so to\nbe, willing by easy degrees to open mine eyes, and to reveal unto me His\nMessiah) so it was that I could think of naught but the words of Isaiah\nthe Prophet wherein the Lord saith, \u201cI am full of the burnt offerings of\nrams, and the fat of fed beasts, and I delight not in the blood of\nbullocks, or of lambs, or of he\u2010goats.\u201d These words, I say, so possessed\nmy soul that, even when the victim was being slain, I could not refrain\nfrom repeating them to myself again and again; albeit against my will,\nbeing fearful to pollute the sacrifice of the Lord. But though I made\nshift to dissemble my trouble until the sacrifice was ended, for fear of\noffending the priests, yet when I had returned to my lodging in the city,\nI could not forbear weeping; for behold, all worship seemed as vanity, and\nthe children of men were in mine eyes as beasts of the field, void of\nunderstanding and given over to all folly; and God was He that had made\nthem thus. Therefore I cried aloud in the fervency of my passion and said,\n\u201cIt is written, \u2018On three things the world is stayed: on the Law, and on\nthe Worship, and on the Bestowal of Kindnesses;\u2019 and lo, I know not the\ninterpretation of the Law; and worship is naught but vanity; and as for\nkindness, my heart is dry and empty of love, so that there is no kindness\nin me.\u201d\n\nOn the third day after the sacrifice, I came to Sepphoris. My mother was\nso far recovered of her sickness that she was no longer despaired of by\nthe physicians. For the time, my joy thereat, and our rejoicing together\n(because the Lord had suffered us to look on one another again) drove away\nmy former searchings of heart: which notwithstanding presently came back\nupon me. My mother took a delight in my continual presence, and that I\nshould sit by her bed, expounding unto her passages of the Law; and many a\ntime, while I was doing this, she would make mention of the title\nwherewith I had been honoured by Rabbi Jonathan, who had called me \u201cthe\nplastered cistern.\u201d But oftentimes it was not in my heart to find any\nwords of comfort or hope, and when my mother longed for the draughts of\nthe Law I felt that I was a dried\u2010up cistern, and no longer full.\n\nAt the last, on a certain morning, my mother, having (as I suppose) noted\nmy silence before, spake aloud reproving me, albeit gently, and saying,\n\u201cWhy flow not the drops of refreshment from the plastered cistern as in\nformer days?\u201d But I replied in haste, \u201cCall me no longer, O my mother, a\ncistern. For lo, I am become even as a strainer, which letteth out the\nwine and keepeth in itself nothing but the dregs.\u201d Then my mother wept\nbitterly, thinking that she had angered me, and that I had spoken falsely;\nand I also wept, partly for that I had made her weep, but still more\nbecause my words were true.\n\nThen went I forth hastily into the street; and meeting Jonathan the son of\nEzra, and Abuyah the son of Elishah, I accompanied them. And we came to\nthe well that is on the road to Nazareth, about a thousand paces from the\ntown, and there we sat down to rest. For a time we were silent. Then I\nturned to Rabbi Jonathan and said, \u201cSimeon the Just was of the remnant of\nthe Great Synagogue. He used to say, \u2018On three things the world is stayed:\non the Law, and on the Worship, and on the Bestowal of Kindnesses.\u2019 Now\nthere was a certain young man which observed the Law, and worshipped duly\nin the temple. Also he clothed the naked, and buried them that lay\nunburied, and fed the hungry: but there was no kindness in his heart. Is\nsuch an one, therefore, in the path of righteousness?\u201d Then Abuyah replied\nat once, \u201cHe is righteous. For it is written concerning the statutes and\njudgments of the Law of the Lord that whosoever doeth them shall live in\nthem; but whether he shall do them easily or with difficulty, or gladly or\nsorrowfully, concerning this, behold, nothing is written.\u201d But Jonathan\nthe son of Ezra was silent for a while, and said at last, \u201cAntigonus of\nSoko used to say, \u2018Be not as slaves that minister to their lord with\nintent to receive recompense; but be ye as slaves that minister to their\nlord without thought of recompense; and let the fear of Heaven be upon\nyou.\u2019\u201d\n\nThen I replied, \u201cTrue, oh my Master; but ought not the love of Heaven as\nwell as the fear of Heaven to be upon us? For is it not said, \u2018Learn for\nlove, and honour will come in the end\u2019?\u201d \u201cThou speakest well,\u201d said\nJonathan, \u201cand it is written also as the chief of all the commandments,\n\u2018Thou shalt love the Lord thy God, and Him only shalt thou serve.\u2019\u201d Then I\nsaid, \u201cBut what if a man feel no love of God in his heart? For I have met\nlately certain of the Gentiles, yea, and some also of our own nation,\nwhich have no love of God; whereof some even constantly say that there is\nno God. Yea, and even in mine own heart arise strange questionings as to\nwhence I came into this world, and whither I am going, and before whom I\nam to give account and reckoning.\u201d\n\nThen Abuyah brake forth again: \u201cJoseph son of Simeon, busy not thyself\nwith questions that are too high for thee: for it is said \u2018Whosoever shall\nconsider four things, what is above, below, before, behind, it were better\nfor him that he had not come into the world.\u2019\u201d \u201cYea, but,\u201d said I,\nsmiling, \u201cit is said by the Wise, \u2018Consider three things, and thou wilt\nnot come into transgression, Know whence thou earnest; and whither thou\nart going; and before whom thou art to give account and reckoning.\u2019\u201d\nHereat Abuyah arose hastily from his seat in sore displeasure, and he\nsaid, \u201cChild, thou hast defiled thyself by going to a city of the Gentiles\nwhich is not a place of the Law; for it is said, \u2018Two that sit together\nwithout words of the Law are a session of scorners;\u2019 and again, \u2018Betake\nthyself to a place of the Law, and say not that it shall come after thee,\nfor thine associates will confirm it unto thee: and lean not unto thine\nown understanding.\u2019 Howbeit, I thank thee, O Lord my God and God of my\nfathers, that Thou hast cast my lot among them that do frequent the\nschools and synagogues, and not among such as frequent the theatre and the\ncircus. For both I and they work and watch: I to inherit eternal life, but\nthey for eternal destruction.\u201d So saying he departed, and left me alone\nwith Jonathan the son of Ezra.\n\nJonathan sat still by my side saying naught, but gazing up into the\nheaven, or else upon the trees round about us. For all around us were\norange\u2010trees and pomegranate\u2010trees; the leaves thereof scarce to be seen\nfor the multitude of white and scarlet blossoms; for the spring was now\nsomething worn. The fields also and the gardens and the hedges of cactus,\nby reason of the rains, were of a marvellous verdure, even above their\nwont. Behind us, at a little distance, stood a grove of olive\u2010trees,\nwherein the doves made a pleasant murmuring: and birds of divers colours\nfluttered to and fro around the well. Nigh over our heads there were\npassing larger birds, flying in a long train towards the country of the\nLake; and far off I could discern an eagle, like a spot, high up in the\nsky. Then Jonathan spake unto me and said, \u201cMy son, dost thou not remember\nthe words of the Psalmist, how he praiseth the name of God because \u2018He\nsendeth the springs into the valleys, which run among the hills. They give\ndrink to every beast of the field: the wild asses quench their thirst. By\nthem shall the fowls of the heaven have their habitation, which sing among\nthe branches. He causeth the grass to grow for the cattle and herb for the\nservice of man: that he may bring forth food out of the earth; and wine\nthat maketh glad the heart of man, and oil to make his face to shine, and\nbread which strengthened man\u2019s heart.\u2019 Doth not the sight of all this\nglory and beauty cause thee also to say with the Singer of Israel, \u2018O\nLord, how manifold are Thy works! in wisdom hast Thou made them all\u2019?\u201d\n\nBut I made answer, in the bitterness of my heart, according to the words\nof the same Psalm, saying, \u201cThou hidest Thy face, they are troubled: Thou\ntakest away their breath, they die, and return to their dust.\u201d Then\nJonathan bowed his head and answered nothing, but I continued, \u201cDid not\nthe same hand which made the dove make also yonder eagle to destroy the\ndove? Did not the God which chose out Israel from among the Gentiles to\nserve Him, choose out Rome also to rend Israel in pieces? Thou speakest\nafter the manner of Philo the Alexandrine, who saith that God revealeth\nHimself to us through His Word in the universe. But verily He revealeth\nHimself not so unto me. Nay rather, unsearchable are the paths of the\nCreator in the universe, and His ways in the World are past finding out.\u201d\n\nThen the old man covered his face with his hands and wept; but soon\nraising his head he said, \u201cIs it seemly that a son of Abraham should have\nso little trust in the Lord? Bethink thee of the times when the Holy\nTemple was burned with fire, and Judah led into captivity: did not all the\nGentiles say in those days, \u2018God hath forsaken them\u2019? Yet did the Lord\nsave Israel out of the hand of the daughter of Babylon, and out of the\nhand of the Assyrian and the Philistine, as also out of the hand of the\nEgyptian, in the days of old. Commit thy way therefore unto the Lord, and\ntrust in Him, and He shall bring the word of His prophets to pass.\n\n\u201cIs not the Lord our God perchance even now on the point to stop the\nmouths of them that complained? Is there not even now, after four hundred\nyears, a prophet again in Israel? But if the Lord sendeth unto us a\nprophet after so long a time, as it were from the dead, surely it is like\nthat He hath some great redemption in store for Sion. Even during this\nweek have I heard that John the prophet, who hath these six months\nprophesied of a Deliverer shortly to come, hath of late prophesied that\nthe Redeemer is even now amongst us; and some say that it is a certain\nJesus, the son of Joseph, of the town of Nazareth, one famous in word and\ndeed. This Jesus, as they report the matter, being baptized of John,\nbeheld a vision of the Lord; and in that instant the Spirit of the Lord\nfell upon him; insomuch that, since that time, he both speaketh as a\nprophet and worketh signs as a man of God. Moreover, I had speech but\nyesterday with some that say he is come into Galilee, and is even now in\nthese parts. Who knoweth whether this may not be true? But whether it be\ntrue or false, trust thou in the Lord God of Abraham and of Isaac and\nJacob, whose arm is not shortened, and who is not a man that He should\nlie.\u201d\n\nFor an instant, my heart leaped up at the mention of the name of that\nJesus whom I had seen in the house of the father of Raphael; but then it\nseemed not possible that one of so gentle an aspect should be the Redeemer\nof Israel. Howbeit, I asked Jonathan concerning the vision that had been\nreported to have been seen of Jesus; and he told me that it had not been a\nvision of flames of fire, nor of angels, nor of thrones, nor of seraphim,\nnor any such vision as had been seen of the prophets in times past, but a\nvision of a dove descending from heaven. Hereat I marvelled and I said, as\nI remember, in the bitterness and folly of my heart, that the times needed\nan eagle, and, lo, the new prophet brought a dove.\n\nBut Jonathan rose up from his seat to depart, and paying no heed to my\nlast words, he spake kindly unto me and said, \u201cIf thy heart inclineth\nthee, my child, to prove whether there be any avail for thee in a life of\ncontemplation, and whether thou mayest thereby attain peace; wherefore\ngoest thou not unto the village of Jotapata where the Essenes dwell?\nMenahem the son of Barachiah is their chief ruler, a man that followeth\nafter holiness and seeth things to come; who, being my friend, will for my\nsake receive thee kindly. Finally my child, offer up prayers unto God and\npour forth thy troubles before Him; neither think too evil of thyself nor\ngive place unto dark thoughts; and let not thy prayers be uttered at set\ntimes and in set words, but let them express thy heart\u2019s desire, according\nas it is said, \u2018Make not thy prayer an ordinance, but an entreaty before\nHim who filleth all space (blessed is He).\u2019 Think not also too evil of\nthine own heart; but remember the saying, \u2018Be not wicked unto thyself.\u2019\nAnd now farewell, for I must needs go back to the city.\u201d\n\nSaying these words, the old man departed and left me still sitting by the\nwell. But, as it was not yet the third hour of the day (and the Essene\nvillage was distant not much more than a two hours\u2019 journey, or three\nhours\u2019 at the most), it came into my mind that I would hearken unto the\nvoice of Jonathan, and visit the village of the Essenes that very day. So\nI arose straightway and set out on my journey. I rested often during the\nheat of the day, for I was weary with long watching and fasting; but a\nlittle before noontide, I was come to the top of the mountain which\nlooketh down upon the village.\n\nThen I looked, and lo, in the valley the Essenes busy at their labours,\neven as the ants that move to and fro in an ant\u2010hill; and as near as I\ncould conjecture, they were to the number of three or four hundred thus\nlabouring together. But as I looked, behold, a sound as of one proclaiming\nthe hour of prayer; and lo, the fields were empty, neither was any one\nanywhere to be seen. Presently they appeared again in white robes\nthronging to the house of prayer. Then a sound, as of psalms sung by many\nvoices, rose up to my ears, and filled my heart with a deep peace. I\nwaited for the space of nearly an hour, till the assembly had broken up,\nreturning in their white robes to their several cottages. When I had\nbeheld all this, my heart rejoiced, and I said, \u201cIf only all Israel could\nthus return to the Lord, then would the dough be no longer corrupt with\nleaven, according to the saying; and the wrath of the Lord would be turned\nfrom His people.\u201d But then came into my mind the saying of Philo, that the\nvirtue towards man must come before the virtue towards God. I remembered\nalso that which I had often before heard of the Essenes, how they neither\nmarry nor give in marriage, but replenish their community by adopting the\nchildren of others and by admitting of strangers into their number. Then I\nbethought myself that if all the children of Israel should become Essenes,\nIsrael would speedily perish; neither could there be any Redemption. For\neven now, though there had been Essenes these thirty or forty years, or\neven more, yet did they number no more than three thousand or four\nthousand men in all Israel; and of these almost all lived in the country,\navoiding towns for fear of defilement, and exceeding even the Pharisees in\nthe strictness wherewith they observe Sabbaths and obey the precepts of\nthe Law (save only in the matter of sacrifice). So, as I looked down upon\nthe village, and round upon the hills which shut it in and hid it from the\nsight of men, the proverb came to my mind which sayeth that \u201ca city that\nis set upon a hill cannot be hid:\u201d but said I, \u201cthe city of the Essenes\nlieth in a valley.\u201d Then I turned my back upon the place and would not go\ndown to see Menahem, but set out to return to Sepphoris.\n\nBut as I went, my burden grew heavier than I could bear, and I cried unto\nthe Lord in the sore grief of my heart. For all Israel seemed unto me even\nas sheep without a shepherd, a nation given over to servitude. For behold,\nthe Scribes, and Lawyers, and all the Pharisees, had set their thought on\nvanity, and fed the people with chaff and not with wheat. Yea, they\ndespised the poor and simple, and said that the \u201cpeople of the land\u201d could\nnot attain to the knowledge of the Law. But as for the Priests and\nSadducees, they were given over to the pursuit of wealth and to the\npleasures of this world. And last of all, these Essenes were as naught\nsave for themselves alone. For they took for their watchword the saying,\n\u201cWithdraw thyself from an evil neighbour and consort not with the wicked:\u201d\ntherefore were they of no avail to the sinners of my people. For albeit\nthat saying of Hillel was often in their mouths, which saith, \u201cBe of the\ndisciples of Aaron, loving peace and pursuing peace;\u201d yet did they forget\nthe last words of that saying, which bid us also to \u201clove mankind and\nbring men nigh unto the Law.\u201d For the Essenes bring no man nigh unto the\nLaw save themselves only.\n\nBut when I came in my journey back to the well where Rabbi Jonathan and I\nhad discoursed together, then did my despair so weigh upon me that I could\nnot so much as cry unto the Lord; for the Lord seemed as one that heard\nnot; and even as I had made a circle in my journey that day, and was now\ncome back to the same place whence I had set forth at the first, and all\nin vain, even so did I seem to have journeyed these many years in a circle\nof vain thoughts, searching and groping after God; and all for naught.\n\u201cFor,\u201d said I, \u201cI have gone from the Scribes of Galilee to the teaching of\nJohn the Prophet, and from John the Prophet to the wisdom of the Greeks,\nand from the wisdom of the Greeks to the teaching of Philo the Wise; and\nyet seem I no nearer to God than before, but even where I was at the\nfirst. And they which did profess to guide, have been unto me as no\nguides. Therefore the foundations of my life are broken up, and the rock\nof my trust is become as unstable as water. Whithersoever I look, I see no\none to avenge, no one to deliver; for the ways of the world are crooked,\nand sin is stronger than righteousness.\u201d\n\nThen a Voice of the Lord spake unto me, and rebuked me in that, albeit I\ncompassed sea and land in search of guides, and had made much of them\nwhich explain the Law and the Prophets, yet I had not given myself so\nzealously to the true guides of Israel, even the Prophets themselves, of\nwhom John the son of Zachariah was one. Now they all with one consent\nprophesied of a day of Redemption, and of a Redeemer; and without a\nRedeemer their prophecies seemed maimed and void of fulfilment. Moreover\nJohn the son of Zachariah had prophesied that the Redeemer should come\nspeedily, and that the rough places should be made smooth, and the crooked\nplaces straight; and Jonathan the son of Ezra had spoken as if the\nRedeemer were even now among us, yea in our own country of Galilee. So\nfalling on my face before the Lord, I besought the Almighty (blessed is\nHe) to make no long tarrying, but to have mercy upon me and either to take\naway my life, or else to send the Redeemer unto me, even me, and to grant\nme His salvation.\n\nBut as I arose, there came one behind me unperceived and touched my\nshoulder; and he said unto me, \u201cWherefore weepest thou?\u201d I started at his\nvoice, for there was a power in it; but I looked not up for weeping, but\nmade answer and said, \u201cBecause of the yoke of the Law; for it is written\n\u2018Whoso receiveth upon him the yoke of the Law, THEY remove from him the\nyoke of oppression and the yoke of the path of the world.\u2019 But it is not\nso with me. For from a child I have settled my heart to study the Law, and\nto take upon me the yoke thereof, yet have I not attained to the knowledge\nthereof. But the yoke of the world and the yoke of the oppression of\nIsrael weigheth heavily upon me.\u201d Then he that spake said unto me, \u201cCast\naway the heavy yoke and take upon thee the light yoke.\u201d(2) So I looked up,\nmarvelling at such words, and behold, it was not the face of a stranger,\nfor I knew it; and yet again I knew it not, neither could I bring to mind\nthe name of him that spake to me. But I saw strength in his countenance,\nand his face was as the morning\u2010star in brightness; and I rejoiced with a\ngreat joy, for I knew that the Lord had sent unto me a teacher to guide my\nfeet into the path of life. So I replied, \u201cWhat yoke, O Master?\u201d And he\nanswered and said, \u201cTake my yoke upon thee, and learn of me; for I am meek\nand lowly of heart.\u201d When I heard that, I was speechless and as one\nastonied to hear such a saying, which seemed in part the words of a king,\nand in part the words of a child. But when speech came back to me, I said,\n\u201cMy heart is afflicted because of the wonder of the ways of the Lord, and\nbecause His paths are past finding out.\u201d But he answered, \u201cThey that\nwonder shall reign, and they that reign shall rest.\u201d(3) Now I perceived\nnot all the meaning of his words at the time; but thus much I did most\nclearly perceive, that here was one that could guide me through all\nwonderment and perplexity, even unto the haven of rest. But a sudden fear\nfell upon me that peace would depart from my soul, if my Master should\ndepart; therefore with many entreaties I besought him to tarry that night\nat my mother\u2019s house. So when he had consented we straightway went to the\ncity. But, as we went, my mind still beat upon the thought that I had seen\nmy Master\u2019s countenance before; yet could I not call to mind the when and\nwhere.\n\nBut even as we entered into the house, behold, my mother was crying aloud,\nbeing tormented beyond measure by her disease: and when my Master heard\nit, he asked who cried thus, and I answered and told him concerning my\nmother\u2019s condition. Then straightway he desired to go into the upper\nchamber where she lay; and having gone in, he looked steadfastly at her,\nand took her by the hand, and said, as one having authority, \u201cArise:\u201d and\nimmediately my mother arose and went about as one whole. Now it came to\npass, that when he looked steadfastly at my mother, even in that instant I\nknew his face, that it was the face of the stranger that had looked after\nthe like manner upon Raphael the son of Joazar, even the face of Jesus of\nNazareth; and then also in that same instant it was borne to my mind that\nthis was he of whom Jonathan had spoken, concerning whom John the son of\nZachariah had prophesied, saying that he was the Messiah of Israel: and I\nmarvelled that I had not known him before; but I perceived that, albeit\nthe same, yet was he not the same; so great a glory and a brightness, as\nof power from heaven, now reigned in his countenance. All this, I say, I\nperceived even when he was gazing on my mother; but I durst not for my\nlife speak to him then. But when my mother was made whole and arose from\nher bed, then straightway I fell down on my knees and bowed before him;\nand I spake also to my mother all the words of Jonathan the son of Ezra,\nhow that John had affirmed my Master to be the Redeemer of Israel: and I\nbelieved, and my mother also, and all our household.\n\nOn the morrow, when I would fain have accompanied Jesus to Capernaum (for\nhe was journeying thither), he suffered me not, but said that he must\nneeds go to Capernaum alone; but I was to remain for nine days at\nSepphoris with my mother, and on the tenth day I might go down to\nCapernaum. But he suffered me to go with him about twelve or thirteen\nfurlongs out of the town, and there I was to bid him farewell.\n\nHe did not speak many words to me by the way; but what I noted especially\nin him (as being that wherein he differed from all my former teachers) was\nthat he spake not according to rule, nor out of any books, nor traditions,\nbut as it were out of himself. For he taught as one having authority.\nThere was also yet another difference. For most of the Pharisees were wont\nto walk with their faces turned up to the sky, or else with their eyes\nhalf shut, repeating, as they went, certain passages of the Law, or\nprayers, or precepts of the Elders; and if they met women they would avoid\nthem; and of children also they took no note, except it were to instruct\nthem or question them in the Law and the Traditions; moreover they walked\nwith a sour and austere countenance. But Jesus was in all respects\ndifferent from these. For he looked on all things, and in all things\nseemed to see joy and gladness, taking note even of the smallest matters,\nsuch as the flowers of the field, and the birds of the air, and also of\nthe trees, and the cornfields. Moreover, as often as we met women on the\nway, he saluted them courteously and shunned them not.\n\nBut most marvellous of all, in my judgment, was the manner of his dealing\nwith children. For so it was, as I remember, that when we were passing by\na hamlet, about six furlongs from Sepphoris, a little child ran out from\nthe door of a house, even under the feet of our asses, insomuch that we\nhad much ado to prevent the asses from trampling down the child. But when\nI rebuked the child somewhat vehemently, Jesus chid me; and presently,\nafter we had ridden on awhile in silence, he turned to me and bade me\nalways have respect unto little children; \u201cFor,\u201d said he, \u201ctheir angels do\nalways behold the face of my Father which is in heaven.\u201d Then he added\nwords still stranger and harder for me to understand, that \u201cExcept a man\nwere born again and become as a little child, he could in no wise enter\ninto the Kingdom of Heaven.\u201d\n\nBut I returned, marvelling greatly at his words and pondering them in my\nmind. For I could in no wise perceive how we could redeem Israel and drive\nout the Tetrarch from Tiberias, and the Romans from Jerusalem, and set up\nthe Kingdom of God, and all this by becoming as little children.\n\n\n\n\n\n CHAPTER VII\n\n\nWhen I drew nigh to Capernaum, it was about the eleventh hour; so I hasted\nthat I might inquire where Jesus of Nazareth abode, before the sun went\ndown: for it was the day before the Sabbath. But as I journeyed down the\nvalley, called the Valley of the Doves, and came to the place where the\nroad turneth round to the right, I could not forbear to draw rein for a\nwhile, so beautiful was the sight; and though I had seen it often\u2010times\nbefore, yet never before, methought, had it seemed so beautiful as now.\n\nOn the tops of the hills were walnut\u2010trees; lower down fig\u2010trees; and\nbelow them grew luxuriant palms. For the place hath, as it were, several\nclimates suiting several trees and plants; corn also aboundeth in those\nparts, and flax is not wanting; but the olive\u2010trees (as elsewhere in\nGalilee) stand so thick together, and so thriving, that it was a common\nsaying, \u201cThou mayest sooner rear a forest of olive\u2010trees in Galilee than\none child in Jud\u00e6a;\u201d fruit\u2010trees also of all sorts grew there without\nnumber, laden with the goodliest fruits, exceeding the fruit\u2010trees of any\nother part of Galilee; insomuch that the place was justly wont to be\ncalled the Garden of Abundance. But the city itself was as a half\u2010circle\nof pearls, encompassed with gardens as with a circlet of emerald. A\nmultitude of ships and fishing\u2010boats bestrewed the surface of the lake,\nwhich was of a deep blue colour, as blue as sapphire; and the waves\nthereof were very still, because no wind at all was blowing. But as I\nlooked towards Chorazin, the sight in the surface of the waters surpassed\nthe sight of the land. For there, as in a mirror, one might see by\nreflexion in the water below, all that was on the land above; the walnut\u2010\ntrees and fig\u2010trees and palm\u2010trees, and the oleanders on the border of the\nwaters, and the white pelicans watching for their prey upon the brink\nthereof, and the hedges of cactus, and the cottages of the husbandmen; all\nthese things were to be clearly seen as if painted on the waters of the\nlake.\n\nThen came into my mind certain words which my Master had said to me when\nwe went forth from Sepphoris together; how that our Father in heaven\nprovideth for the adornment even of the grass of the fields, and how He\nhath made the simple flowers of the fields more beautiful than Solomon in\nhis glory. And so it was that, as I thought on these words, I praised the\nLord of Hosts, who hath made the world so beautiful; and though I had seen\nthis sight many times before when I had come down from Sepphoris, yet now\nmine eyes seemed, as it were, to be opened to discern a new beauty\ntherein. But I thought also on Israel and of the blessedness that was in\nstore for this goodly land, if only the Roman could be driven forth. As I\nthought on these things, an east wind sprang up; and lo, where there had\nbeen but a moment ago so fair a sight, naught was now to be seen save\ntroubled waters of many divers colours. Then I hasted onward, purposing to\ninquire concerning Jesus of Nazareth first, and afterwards to go to the\nhouse of my uncle.\n\nBut when I was now at the going down to the city, my cousin Baruch was\ncome forth to meet me, saying I was stayed for at a feast in the house of\nManasseh. So I went straightway with him, and the sun set and the Sabbath\nwas begun; and I had not yet seen Jesus of Nazareth. During supper time I\nwould have inquired of Manasseh concerning Jesus; but Baruch had\nforewarned me that I should be silent. For my uncle, (he was a dyer by\ntrade, and had many slaves and more than one house of merchandise, there\nand at Magdala, and elsewhere round about the Lake,) being fond of peace\nand wholly given to traffic, feared Jesus, lest he should beguile the\npeople of Capernaum to take up arms against the Romans. Also he feared for\nBaruch, lest he too should be led away by Jesus. This I learned from my\ncousin after supper; howbeit he said not much about Jesus, for my uncle\nwatched us. Only he said that Jesus had been now a full week in Capernaum,\nand that he was said to be able to work signs, and that certain of the\nfishermen had joined themselves unto him; but the most part still held\nwith John the Prophet, saying that John was greater than Jesus; neither\nbelieved they that Jesus was the Messiah.\n\nOn the morrow, about the sixth hour, we went to the synagogue. There was a\ngreat throng, so that we were fain to sit in the farthest seats from the\nArk of the Law; neither could we discern who sat in the chief seats, nor\nwho read, because a pillar stood between us and the pulpit. Now first the\nLaw was read and prayers were offered up according to custom; but by\nreason of my sadness, because I desired to have seen Jesus again, I was\neven as the parched ground, and no moisture fell upon my soul. But when\nthe Prophets were read, then it was as a shower of heaven on the\ncongregation, and the dew of the Lord upon our souls; for the voice of him\nthat read was the voice of Jesus of Nazareth.\n\nWhen he had made an end of reading, Jesus began to exhort the people,\nsaying that he was sent to proclaim good news, to release the captive,\ngive health to the sick, and light to the blind, and to bring Redemption\nto Israel. God, he said, loved all; not the good alone, but even the bad:\nyea, God was in very truth our Father in heaven. Therefore how much soever\nthe kindest father on earth may love his children, albeit they transgress\nagainst him, much more is the love of God toward us though we be sinners.\nHe did not tell us that we were not sinful; nay rather, he made it clear\nto us that our sins were as red as blood in the sight of the All\u2010seeing;\nbut none the less, he called us the children of God. As many as would\nrepent should be forgiven; and he spake as if he himself had a certain\ndivine power of forgiveness whereby he might purify the soul and bring us\nclose to God, one family in the presence of our Father. One thing was\nneedful, that we should trust in him and in his message. This day, he\nsaid, this very day, are the prophecies of Redemption fulfilled in your\nears. Then he cried aloud unto all that were hungering or thirsting for\nrighteousness, all that were weary of the burden of their sins, all that\nfelt themselves utterly hopeless, friendless, and vile, bidding them\nresort to him as their refuge: \u201cCome unto me all ye that are weary and\nheavy laden, and I will give you rest.\u201d\n\nWhile he was speaking, methought I was not hearing words, but seeing\nsomewhat that might be seen and touched; so solid seemed the mercies of\nGod, even as a rock whereon one standeth. For Jesus ever testified of the\nFather as one testifieth that knoweth by experience, and spake of heaven\nas of that which he had known and felt. Yea, and more than that; a certain\nstrange power was in him to make things invisible to seem visible by his\ndiscourse. Wherefore, albeit Moses had called God the Father of the\nspirits of all flesh, and the Prophets also had taught Israel to say unto\nGod, \u201cThou art our Father,\u201d and all this doctrine was well known and trite\namong us; yet now, for the first time, the doctrine seemed to be no more a\nmere dead letter, but a living word. Such a life did Jesus of Nazareth\nbreathe into it, insomuch that his Good News (for so he called it) came\nupon our hearts as news indeed, never heard before among the children of\nmen.\n\nThis long while (since Jesus had first begun to speak), a certain youth\nwhom I had before noted, sitting not far from me, had been muttering and\nmoaning gently to himself; but I was rapt in the words of Jesus, wherefore\nI had given the less heed to the boy. But now, he stood up, and cried\naloud in a deep hollow voice, as of a full\u2010grown man, \u201cWhat hast thou to\ndo with us? Let us alone, let us alone.\u201d Then in his own voice he cried\nagain, \u201cI know thee who thou art, the Holy One of God.\u201d Immediately I\nperceived that it was the demoniac, even Raphael the son of Joazar, whom\nTheudas the Exorcist had adventured to heal; but a great fear fell on all\nthe congregation, and the women rose up from their places, shrieking for\nterror. But Jesus, without use of charm or gesture, rebuked the unclean\nspirits and bade them come forth. Then they tare the youth, so that he\nshrieked with a piercing shriek; and so they came forth. And Jesus\ndelivered the boy to his father; who would scarce suffer Jesus out of his\nsight, between joy that the devils were gone forth, and fear lest they\nmight return. Howbeit, now the spirits were driven out so that they\nreturned no more. For the boy lived to be a man; nor did he die (as it\nhath been reported to me) till he numbered fifty years, dying about twelve\nyears ago, two years before destruction came upon the Holy City.\n\nWhen Jesus departed from the synagogue, the people thronged him, bringing\nto him divers requests, some concerning their friends that were diseased\nor lunatic, or afflicted with devils; others begging him to come and bless\ntheir children; others asking him that he would lodge in their houses, or\nat the least sup with them. For at this time all men, rich and poor,\nPharisees, Sadducees, and Galileans, inclined to follow Jesus. But he\nwould go to none of the rich men\u2019s houses, but only to the house of Simon\nthe son of Jonah (whom he afterwards called Peter); he was one of the\nfishermen of the place and had joined himself to Jesus. But Jesus suffered\nme to accompany him.\n\nBut when we were now entering into the house, behold all things were full\nof disorder and lamentation. For Simon\u2019s wife\u2019s mother (who abode in the\nhouse) had been suddenly afflicted with a grievous sickness, so that,\ninstead of serving the guests, she was laid speechless upon a bed in an\nupper room. Then they spake to Jesus concerning her. Now I was not myself\npresent when the thing took place; but (as it was reported to me) Jesus\nhealed her after the same manner as he had healed my mother; for he took\nher by the hand and lifted her up, and she arose whole and free from her\ndisease, and ministered unto the guests.\n\nJesus straitly charged us that we should tell no man; whereat we marvelled\nnot a little. But howsoever we obeyed him, it could not be hid. And\nbesides this, the fame of the healing of Raphael the son of Joazar had\nbeen noised abroad through the whole of the city, insomuch that at sunset,\nwhen we went forth, the Sabbath being now ended, we saw great multitudes\nof demoniacs, lunatics, and some also sick of the palsy and of fever, laid\nin their beds along the road through which we would have passed. Some\nalso, that were afflicted with incurable diseases, had been brought\nnotwithstanding, because of their entreaties; if perchance Jesus might\nheal them; and I saw one man that had been blind from his birth.\n\nNow it came to pass that when Jesus came forth from Simon Peter\u2019s house,\nand saw the faces of all these sick people, and the faces of their\nfriends, all waiting if perchance he would help them, his countenance was\naltered, and the shadow of sorrow fell upon him, and he sighed and said,\n\u201cVerily for the sorrowful I am sorrowful, and for the sick I am sick.\u201d(4)\nThen he passed along the ranks of the sick people; and wheresoever he\nperceived that any could be healed, he laid his hands on them, and lo,\nthey were at once freed from their infirmities; and many unclean spirits\nwere driven out from those whom they had possessed. Now most of them that\nwere healed had been possessed with evil spirits; but others were lunatic,\nor sick of the palsy, or of fever, or had impediment in their speech. But\nJesus had a marvellous power to discern, methought, not only them that had\nfaith from them that had not, but also such diseases as were to be cured,\nfrom such as were not to be cured, because it was not prepared for him\nthat he should cure them. But when Jesus had made an end of healing, the\nmultitude still followed us; and the friends of such as had not been\ncured, vexed us with importunities; and others, whose friends had been\ncured, called down blessings on Jesus, and refused to leave him. Thus, go\nwhither we would, we could not be alone. So Jesus returned to the house,\nand I went back to the house of Manasseh.\n\nI opened my mind to my uncle that night, and said to him that I purposed\nto go with Jesus of Nazareth whithersoever he went; and Baruch said the\nsame. But my uncle no longer opposed himself against our wills; only he\nforewarned us that evil was in store for us; \u201cFor,\u201d said he, \u201cI have\nsojourned in Italy among the Romans three years, and I know well that\nnothing can withstand their power. But whoso gainsayeth them gainsayeth\nthe strength of a king: according as it is written, \u2018Where the word of a\nking is, there is power; and who may say unto him, What doest thou?\u2019\u201d\n\nAll the night long no sleep came to my eyes for musing on all the things\nthat I had seen and heard that day: \u201cFor this day,\u201d said I, \u201cis, as it\nwere, the birthday of the Redemption of Israel,\u201d But when I thought\nthereon, and considered with myself that I had now joined myself unto\nJesus as the Redeemer, and when I compared Jesus with the image of the\nRedeemer of Sion (such as I had framed it in my mind from the reading of\nthe Prophets, and such as my countrymen expected), then was I as one\nastonied and amazed to find myself believing in Jesus, and standing on his\nside. For I had imagined unto myself one that should perchance appear,\nriding on the clouds of heaven, encompassed by thousands of angels, taking\nvengeance upon the enemies of Sion, according to the word of the prophet\nDaniel; or else I had thought to see a royal deliverer, even such another\nas David himself, mighty with the sword, riding at the head of his ten\nthousands, ruling the Gentiles with a rod of iron, or breaking them in\npieces like a potter\u2019s vessel; or else I had fashioned in my mind a\nDeliverer after the manner of Elias, rebuking kings in their pride, and\ncalling down fire from heaven for a sign, or for the destruction of the\nGentiles.\n\nNow before this time, I had had no leisure to consider the matter; for, in\nthe presence of Jesus, I had been drawn towards him as by an enchantment:\nbut in the stillness of the night, Jesus being no more before my face, I\nthought on all the signs and wonders wrought by Moses and Elias aforetime,\nand doubt fell upon me; and it seemed to me not possible that Jesus of\nNazareth could be greater than they, so as to be the Messiah. But when I\nasked myself, \u201cCould it then be that Jesus is a deceiver?\u201d my heart made\nanswer, \u201cNay, that could not be. And if thou trust not in Jesus, there is\nnot any one in the world in whom thou canst trust.\u201d So I comforted myself\nin my perplexity, saying to myself, \u201cPerchance the time hath not yet come\nfor Jesus to manifest himself as the son of David, nor as the Son of man\nspoken of by the prophet Daniel: but doubtless that time will come; and\nthen shalt thou see Jesus, as the Messiah indeed, in power.\u201d\n\nBut on the morrow, very early, when we went forth to the house of Simon\nPeter, behold, a mixed multitude had gathered round the doors waiting for\nthe coming of Jesus. And I also waited, standing with them, and heard how\nthey conversed with each other. But it seemed that one had but now come\nforth from the house of Peter, saying that Jesus could not be found in the\nhouse. Then arose a murmur in the crowd; and a certain man from Antioch\nsaid that Simon had set a snare for Jesus of Nazareth, and had betrayed\nhim to Herod the Tetrarch. But there was in the press one Gorgias the son\nof Philip, a man well known to Simon; and he laughed the man of Antioch to\nscorn. He had been in the army of Herod the King in former times, and his\nfather was a Greek; but he conformed himself to the Law and joined himself\nto the sect of the Galileans; and his word prevailed greatly with them,\nbecause he was versed in warlike matters. This man declared that Jesus had\nwithdrawn himself, that he might not be shut up in prison by the Tetrarch:\n\u201cAnd no marvel,\u201d said he, \u201cfor, seeing that the tyrant hath but now taken\nJohn the son of Zachariah, why should he not also adventure to take the\nnew prophet?\u201d\n\nOthers, beside myself, had not heard before that John had been cast into\nprison. So we questioned Gorgias, and heard that the prophet had been cast\ninto prison in the Black Castle at Mach\u00e6rus three days ago. Many of them\nthat were in the crowd had been disciples of John; and they cried aloud\nthat the men of Galilee ought to rise up and deliver the prophet. But\nGorgias beckoned with his hand that they should be silent, and when\nsilence was made, he said, \u201cLet us rise up, indeed, but not without a\nleader. Now the Lord hath sent to us this Jesus of Nazareth: and that he\nis a prophet sent from God none can deny.\u201d The multitude shouted that it\nwas even so, and one or other uttered praises of Jesus; and a certain man\nsaid, \u201cYea, never man spake as this spake.\u201d But Gorgias answered and said,\n\u201cIt is known to all that I am a soldier, neither do words prevail with me\nwithout deeds. Wherefore I also, until yesterday, did but lightly esteem\nJesus of Nazareth. But now he hath shown forth his power in deeds. And he\nthat can do such deeds as Jesus hath wrought in our streets, shall he not\ndo even greater deeds than these when the time shall come for them? Yea,\ndoubtless, all things are possible to him. And what will avail squadrons\nof horse, or legions of foot, against one that can call down fire from\nheaven, or cause the walls of a city to fall to the ground? Choose we\ntherefore Jesus to be our leader, and no one shall be able to stand\nagainst us.\u201d\n\nAt this instant Simon Peter came forth, and he confirmed what had been\nsaid, to wit, that Jesus of Nazareth was not in the house: but he thought\nthat he was gone forth to be alone. And so it was. For when we had made\ndiligent search for him we found him alone on a mountain, about three\nmiles from the town. We besought him to return; but he answered that he\nmust proclaim the Good News in other villages also, for to that end he had\nbeen sent. So Simon Peter and the rest of the disciples accompanied him,\nand Baruch and I went with them; and for the space of four or five weeks\nwe continued with him, going from town to town in Galilee; and Jesus\npreached the Good News, and healed the sick; and a great multitude of all\nsorts was added to our number.\n\nNow the greater part of our band were honest people, hungering and\nthirsting for the Redemption of Sion: but some were vain men, children of\niniquity, seeking the wages of unrighteousness. Especially they that had\nbeen formerly soldiers resorted to Jesus, as to a prince or general, like\nvultures hasting to the prey, supposing that they should gain much spoil\nif he prevailed against the Romans. And so it was that once when Jesus\nspake to his disciples, saying that they must be \u201cfishers of men,\u201d then\nBaruch, being offended by the presence of these children of mammon among\nus, answered and said, \u201cBut must the fishers catch vile fish as well as\ngood?\u201d\n\nHereat Jesus turned and looked sorrowfully on Baruch, and said, \u201cThe\nkingdom of heaven is like unto a net that was cast into the sea, and\ngathered of every kind: which, when it was full they drew to shore, and\nsat down, and gathered the good into vessels, but cast the bad away. So\nshall it be at the end of the age. The messengers of God shall come forth\nand sever the wicked from among the just, and shall cast them into the\nfurnace of fire. There shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.\u201d\n\nAnother parable spake he to the same effect, that the tares must needs\ngrow with the wheat till the day of harvest, for not till then can the\ndivision be made between good and evil. When we heard this, we grieved\nthereat; for we had supposed that none save the faithful should have been\nadmitted into the Kingdom, and we marvelled why Jesus should first suffer\nthe bad to enter, and then drive them forth. Howbeit, we besought him that\nhe would give us ordinances which we might observe, to the intent that we\nmight not be cast out of the Kingdom. For some of our number had begun to\nsay that Jesus had come to destroy the Law, so that every one might do\nwhat he listed; as though Jesus had said that God loveth the wicked as\nmuch as the righteous, even though the wicked abide in wickedness. Thus\nthey brought shame upon us, and they set stumblingblocks in the path of\nmany that had otherwise believed. Moreover the disciples of John the\nBaptist compared us with themselves, and asked us concerning our laws and\ncustoms and prayers; and, when they found that we had none of these\nthings, then they despised us, saying that our Master was not equal to\nJohn. For at this time the fame of John the son of Zachariah overshadowed\nthe fame of Jesus; yea, and for some time after this, even after John had\nbeen cast into prison. For this cause we intreated Jesus that he would\nboth teach us how to pray, as John also had taught his disciples, and also\nthat he would lay down laws for the new Kingdom, even as Moses had laid\ndown laws for the kingdom in old times.\n\nJesus hearkened to our petition in silence. Then he said that he must\ndepart from us for a season and go to the top of a certain mountain; but\nhe appointed the third hour of the following day that we should come to\nhim. Certain of the Scribes that followed with us murmured at Jesus,\nbecause he had appointed that we should come to him on the mountain: and\none, finding fault for that Jesus was often wont to spend the whole night\npraying alone on some mountain, said, \u201cIt is written, \u2018Out of the depths\nhave I cried unto thee, O Lord;\u2019 therefore it is good to pray from a low\nplace, and not from a high place.\u201d But Nathanael answered and said that\nJesus loved to be alone on the mountain by night, to meditate on the\ngreatness of the Lord and how He hath exalted the Son of man, according as\nit is written, \u201cI will consider thy heavens, even the works of thy\nfingers, the moon and stars which thou hast ordained:\u201d and \u201cthese very\nwords,\u201d said Nathanael, \u201cI heard the Prophet but yesterday repeat, when we\nwere upon the top of yonder mountain.\u201d Hereat the Scribes murmured the\nmore, saying that it was not written that any prophet in old times thus\ntook counsel with the heavens after the manner of a Chaldean. But Gorgias\nthe son of Philip murmured for another cause, saying that the Prophet\nought not thus to mistrust his followers, nor to be so fearful for his own\nsafety, and that it behoved the friends of Jesus to take him by force, if\nneed be, and to make him a king. And to this Judas of Kerioth consented\nand some others.\n\nBut to the most of us the words of Gorgias seemed an abomination; for we\nknew that Jesus did not depart for fear: for indeed fear was not in him.\nBut he desired to be alone because he wished to pray, and because of the\nburden of his heart. For it grieved him, more than can be told, to see the\nmisery and wretchedness, yea, and the ignorance and the sinfulness of the\nmixed multitude which pressed round him. All their pains pained him and\nall their sufferings he suffered, insomuch that more than once I have\nheard him saying in a low voice to himself, \u201cFor them that are hungry I\nhunger, and for them that are athirst I thirst, and for them that are sick\nI am sick.\u201d(5)\n\nNotwithstanding he was not so much distressed with the pains and diseases\nof the body as with the pains and diseases of the soul. For the sins of\nsouls seemed to him as real and loathsome as the diseases of the flesh to\nus; and oftentimes a transgression that would appear slight to us, he\ncounted as a work of Satan; so that whithersoever he moved, he saw sins\nmore than could be seen of common men, yea, a very sea of sinfulness;\nalbeit, underlying the sea of sin and sorrow, he still discerned the\nEverlasting Arms.\n\nMoreover, because he loved all men with an exceeding great love, for this\ncause every hour in his life brought unto him a burden passing the power\nof words to describe. For the sins of men were not unto him as the sins of\naliens and strangers, but as the sins of his own brethren: yea, they were\neven as his own sins; for, although he himself sinned not, neither knew\nsin, yet what pain cometh from the bearing of a brother\u2019s sin, that he\nknew full well. Wherefore in him was fulfilled the saying of the prophet\nIsaiah; who prophesied that the Messiah should be a man of sorrows and\nacquainted with griefs, and that he should carry our sins and bear our\niniquities.\n\n\n\n\n\n CHAPTER VIII\n\n\nOn the morrow, about the second hour, we began to go up the mountain which\nJesus had appointed. But having strayed from the path, we knocked at the\ndoor of a house which was near the foot of the mountain, and besought the\ngoodman of the house that he would guide us. There opened the door a man\nof churlish appearance; but he would neither come out, nor so much as\nspeak with us. This delayed us for a time, but we soon found the path, and\nthe way became steep. The sun shone, but not with too fervent a heat, and\nthe north wind blew gently from Hermon, whose top we saw clearly toward\nthe north, clad in snow. On the west was the Mount Carmel, shining with a\nbrightness as of purple; and further off the Great Sea, resembling a blue\nplain, whereon appeared many sails, almost too small for sight by reason\nof the distance. We climbed upward through groves of terebinth and oak. As\noften as we turned round to recover breath, the houses and fields grew\nsmaller, till, at the last, when we drew nigh unto the top, the whole\nplain of Esdraelon seemed but as a small ground\u2010plat; and large towns\nappeared as little hamlets, and all the works of man became very small in\nour eyes, as though we were leaving earth and approaching heaven.\n\nThen said Baruch, \u201cIs not this a second Sinai? For verily Jesus of\nNazareth is about to give us a new law.\u201d But Eliezer the son of Arak, the\nprincipal Scribe of Capernaum (for he at this time followed Jesus and was\nnow with us) rebuked him, saying, \u201cEven though Jesus of Nazareth were the\ngreatest of prophets, yet were he not equal to Moses; for it is said,\nSinai is to be preferred even to the uprooter of mountains!\u201d And another\nsaid, \u201cBehold, the Word of God, when it went forth from Sinai from the\nmouth of the Holy One (blessed be His Name), was like sparks, and\nlightnings, and flames of fire; a torch of flame was on his right hand,\nand a torch of flame on his left hand: it flew and hovered in the air of\nthe heavens, and returned and graved itself upon the tables of the\ncovenant which were given into the hands of Moses. How then is it possible\nthat the like wonders should be wrought on this mountain?\u201d\n\nThen said Nathanael to Simon Peter that it might perchance please the Lord\nnot always to speak by the whirlwind or by the fire, but, as in the days\nof Elias, by the still small voice. And to this Peter agreed, but others\ndid not agree: for though they inclined not to Eliezer the son of Arak,\nyet it was because they thought that Jesus would of a surety soon work\nsome sign in heaven to prove that he was the Redeemer. But Judas of\nKerioth affirmed that Jesus would not, at this present time, lay down laws\nfor the Kingdom, but only ordinances for a season, to instruct the host in\nthe journey towards Jerusalem; but until Jerusalem should be ours, lasting\nlaws would not be made.\n\nWhile we were disputing among ourselves concerning the saying of Judas,\nPeter cried \u201cPeace:\u201d for, said he, \u201cyonder is the Prophet:\u201d and looking\nupward, we saw Jesus on a rock stretching out his hands in prayer. When he\nhad made an end of praying, Peter approached him and besought him a second\ntime to teach us to pray; and Jesus gave us that well\u2010known prayer which\nis used in all the churches. Afterwards he beckoned to us to follow him,\nand he came down and stood in the bed of a torrent, which was dry by\nreason of the drought. While we were following him, I heard the companion\nof Eliezer murmuring because there were no words in the prayer concerning\nthe Redemption of Israel; \u201cmoreover,\u201d said he, \u201calbeit the prayer asketh\nfor bread, yet is there no mention of wine, nor oil, nor even of raiment.\nBut how can a man sit and search the Law and the Traditions, and know not\nwhence he is to drink as well as eat, and whence to be clad and covered?\u201d\nTo this I would have made reply; but Peter again cried to us to hold our\npeace, for Jesus was beginning to speak.\n\nWhen he opened his lips, every one was silent for expectation; but, as he\nproceeded, the silence was a silence as of them that are astonished and\ndisappointed. For he began with setting forth in his discourse a character\nand image of a citizen of the New Kingdom; and lo, it was not the image of\na conqueror, but of one conquered. Also he drew as it were a model of the\npalace of the Great King, and of the princes and nobles which stand about\nHis throne; and behold, when we compared the model with that which we had\nimagined in our hearts, and with that which we had read of in histories,\nthe model of Jesus was in all things contrary to the model in our hearts.\nFor in old times men had done reverence unto the valiant, the proud, the\nstrong, the rich and the wise; but Jesus said that the chief places about\nthe throne of God should be given to the hungry and thirsty, and poor; to\nthem that were innocent and simple; to them that made not war, but peace;\nyea, even to them which resisted not evil, but rewarded evil with good.\nUpon all these, as being the nobles and princes of the New Kingdom, Jesus\npronounced a blessing; to wit, that all things should work together for\ngood to them, so that they should have all that they needed, according to\nthe words of the prophet, \u201cBehold, my servants shall eat, but ye shall be\nhungry; behold, my servants shall drink, but ye shall be thirsty; behold,\nmy servants shall rejoice, but ye shall be ashamed.\u201d Even so did Jesus\nordain that they which hungered should be satisfied, and that the makers\nof peace should conquer and inherit the earth.\n\nNext, he described the statutes and judgments of the New Kingdom; and,\nbehold, instead of an easier yoke, he seemed to be placing upon us a yoke\neven heavier than the yoke of the ancient Law, too heavy to be borne. For\nthe old Law forbade us to commit murder; but the new Law forbade us even\nto hate our enemies. Again, the old Law forbade us to commit adultery; but\nthe new Law forbade us even to entertain a lustful thought in our hearts.\nIn a word, the old Law laid down certain ordinances, which if a man\nobeyed, he should live therein; but the new Law laid down nothing fixed\nnor certain for us, so that we might say \u201cI have done this or that, and\ntherefore I have fulfilled the Law of Christ.\u201d For the Law of Moses\ntouched the life of man, as it were, in certain points; as for example, in\nsacrifices, and feasts, and purifications, and Sabbaths, and in the\nobeying of the Ten Commandments: but the Law of Christ covered the whole\nof the state of man, the thoughts as well as the deeds; even as the\nencompassing air, which pierceth into every corner and cavern of the\nearth, wheresoever human life is. In fine, whereas the Law of Moses\ncommanded us what we should do, the Law of Christ commanded what we should\nbe. For this cause Jesus set himself against all bookishness, and against\nall worship of Traditions, and even of the precepts of the Scriptures; for\nhe taught that precepts, howsoever they may shape the outward action,\nshape not the inner man.\n\nAgain, as concerning the laws, and the judgments, and the rewards, and the\npunishments, in the New Kingdom, he spake as if they were not laws of\nman\u2019s device, but rather Laws according to the nature of things, like unto\nthe ordinances of the rain and the sunshine, the harvest and the seed\u2010\ntime. For he said that righteousness was not any such thing as could be\nattained by a price, nor by the doing of deeds; but that it consisted in a\nseeing of that which may be seen of God. He also spake of a certain eye of\nthe soul, which, if it were clear, the man would be righteous; but if it\nwere darkened, the man would be unrighteous. Also he spake of a certain\nlaw of retributions, which decreeth that whoso judgeth shall be judged,\nwhoso forgiveth shall be forgiven, whoso giveth shall receive: adding\nthereunto this most strange doctrine, that if we would go forth into the\nworld, giving and ready to give, then, from all sides, the world would\ngive to us again; yea, the angels of God, and the elements of the world\n(which are His ministers) and even the children of men, should make us\nmarvel by reason of their gratitude, giving us back good measure pressed\ndown and running over. Now there is a saying in the Traditions that,\n\u201cWhensoever a poor man standeth at thy door, the Holy One (blessed is He)\nstandeth at his right hand. If thou givest him alms, know that thou shalt\nreceive a reward from Him who standeth at his right hand.\u201d Jesus therefore\nadded to this doctrine, teaching that God standeth at the right hand not\nof the poor only, but of every one that is in need of aught, that is to\nsay, of every one of the children of men: wherefore whatsoever is given to\nmen, is given to God, and from God cometh back multiplied to the giver.\nHowbeit, we were neither to give alms, nor to do aught else, for hope of\nreward; but only out of love.\n\nConcerning citizenship in the Kingdom and how men should become citizens\ntherein, he spake little to us, as being already citizens therein: save\nonly this, that whoso would come, must come unto him; and through him, as\nthrough a door, they should pass into the Kingdom. And behold, the Kingdom\nwas no other than a family, wherein God was at once Father and King, and\nall men were as children of the Father in Heaven. For the foundation of\nall was, that the heart and not the hands shaped the goodness and badness\nof all deeds, and made men to become citizens of the Kingdom: wherefore\nthe heart and not the hands must be purified; nor could any be in truth\ncitizens of the Kingdom except they had the thought of the Kingdom always\nin their hearts, so that their hopes and treasures were all stored up, not\nin the banks of money\u2010changers, but in the Kingdom of Heaven.\n\nThen he spake of the exceeding joys of the citizens of the Kingdom of God,\nand how they are free from all troubles and all disquietudes. But none, he\nsaid, could serve God and Mammon at one time; neither was it possible to\nserve God aright and yet to be distracted and torn asunder by cares\nconcerning meat or raiment. Hereat the companion of Eliezer murmured\nagain, saying that Jesus had before spoken blasphemously in joining the\nforgiving of sins by God with the forgiving of sins by men, and now he had\nspoken as a madman, in forbidding us to be careful about food and raiment;\n\u201cCan a man sit,\u201d said he, \u201cand search the Law, and not know whence he is\nto eat, and drink, and to be clad?\u201d Now whether Jesus perceived his\nmurmuring I know not: but he pointed, first upwards to the birds (for even\nat that instant there was a flight of pelicans above us) and then downward\nto the flowers, which bestrewed the side of the brook, and he said that\nour Father in Heaven fed the birds and clothed the flowers; and should He\nnot much more care for us? Then he bade us seek first the Kingdom of God\nand His righteousness, and all things else should be added unto us.\n\nNow concerning this Kingdom of God (or Kingdom of Heaven, for he called it\nby both names) we understood not much at this time: but my judgment now is\nthat Jesus desired that all the Lord\u2019s people should be as Prophets, not\nteaching one the other and saying \u201cKnow the Lord,\u201d but all knowing the\nLord from the least to the greatest. For he perceived that all the tribes\nof the earth were joined together under one emperor through desire of\nwealth and ease, and that Israel was joined together through hatred of the\nRomans and through desire to be rescued from them; but he saw that neither\nlove of ease nor hatred of enemies could bind men together in an enduring\nKingdom: but that which bindeth men together is the Spirit of love, which\nis a Spirit of brotherhood among men and of childhood unto God. For all\nnations begin with being first families, and then many families together;\nhelping one another by reason of kindred, and not by reason of manhood.\nNow such a nation as this, and all men of such a nation, Jesus called\n\u201cborn of flesh and blood:\u201d and he said that no nation could leave off to\nbe a tribe and become a nation indeed, except it were born again, not of\nflesh and blood, but of the Spirit; so as to enter into a certain\ngovernment of God, which the Greeks called _theocratia_, but Jesus called\nit the Kingdom of God. Such a _theocratia_ Moses had partly established in\nold times; howbeit the King in the kingdom of Moses was the God of\nAbraham, but the King in the kingdom of Jesus was the Father of the Son of\nman.\n\nBut now to return to the words of Jesus. He ended his discourse with\nwarning. First he warned us to beware of the common saying, \u201cGive judgment\naccording to the greater number\u201d; for he said that the path to destruction\nis broad, and many go thereby. He bade us also try teachers and prophets\nby their works. Last of all, he spake very earnestly against certain which\npretended to obey him but obeyed him not. We were the salt of the earth,\nhe said, but if we lost our savour, how could the world be salted, and to\nwhat end could we serve, but to be cast out and trampled under foot? Whoso\nheard him and obeyed him not, such an one he likened unto a foolish\nshepherd (and even as he spake, there was nigh, within a bow\u2010shot of us, a\nsheep\u2010cote that had been cast down by the swollen waters of the brook)\nwhich built his house upon the sand, so that it fell: but whoso heard and\nobeyed, he likened him unto a wise shepherd, which built his house upon a\nrock so that it fell not. This parable Jesus did not at this time\ninterpret to us, but afterwards he made it clear. For even as the\nPsalmists of Israel spake often of a certain Rock of Salvation, even so\nwas it afterwards a common saying with Jesus both that each citizen of the\nNew Kingdom must build his house upon a Rock, and that the Kingdom itself\nmust be founded on a Rock, so that the gates of Hades or Destruction\nshould not prevail against it. Howbeit what this Rock might be, we did not\nas yet understand; for he had not at this time revealed it unto us.\n\n\n\n\n\n CHAPTER IX\n\n\nWhen Jesus had ended all these words, he came down from the mountain, and\nwe followed, reasoning much among ourselves. Baruch spake first,\ncomplaining that the new Law was full of hard sayings. \u201cFor,\u201d said he,\n\u201cwhen the Prophet proclaimed a blessing on the poor and hungry, that was\neasy to understand, and I rejoiced thereat: but afterwards, when he bade\nus bless them that cursed us, and do good to those that injured us, yea,\nand turn the left cheek to him that had smitten us on the right, and give\nour coat to him that had taken away our cloak, then indeed his doctrine\nseemed too wonderful for the mind of man to fathom.\u201d Then a certain Essene\n(who at that time followed with us) made answer and said, \u201cThis world is\nbut as a vestibule before the world to come: therefore the Prophet\u2019s\nintent is to instruct us how to prepare ourselves at the vestibule so that\nwe may find grace to come into the King\u2019s presence: and his words enjoin\non us to abstain from all earthly cares and pleasures, and to withdraw\nourselves from the cities of men.\u201d But to this Simon Peter made answer\nthat Jesus had taught us to live in the sight of all men, like a city on\nan hill or like a candle on a candlestick: moreover, he had promised that\nwe should inherit the earth.\n\nBut here Eliezer the son of Arak could no longer constrain himself. \u201cI\nmarvel,\u201d he said, \u201cthat we listen so long without first asking this\nProphet by what authority he sayeth these things, or what sign he can work\nin Heaven to prove his authority. For other teachers received of teachers\nbefore them; as, for example, Hillel and Shammai received from Shemaiah\nand Abtalion; and Shemaiah and Abtalion received from Jehudah the son of\nTabai, and Simeon the son of Shatach; and so on successively; but this\nteacher maketh mention of no teachers from whom he hath received his\ndoctrine: neither worketh he any sign in Heaven. But whence doth he draw\nhis knowledge about the Unapproachable (blessed is He)? Even from the\ncreatures; even from the weeds of the field, and the silly birds that are\ncaught in the snare of the fowler; from the senseless rain and from the\nshining of the sun; yea, and from the nature of the heart of man, which is\nevil from his youth! But how much better than all these is the Law,\nwhereby was created all that is; according as it is said, \u2018Beloved are the\nchildren of Israel, in that there was given to them the instrument by\nwhich the world was created.\u2019\u201d\n\nNo answer was made to the words of Eliezer: but Barabbas took up the words\nof Baruch, and said, \u201cIf we are to turn the left cheek to him which hath\nsmitten the right, and if we are to do good unto them which do us harm,\nwho shall cause injustice to cease in the world? For verily the unjust\nwill wax fat in their injustice and will go on from oppression to\noppression.\u201d But said Judas of Kerioth, \u201cListen unto me, O foolish ones,\nand take counsel from me: for is it not even as I foretold? Did not I say\nunto you that the Prophet would not at this time make laws that should\nendure for ever, but only ordinances for a season, till we had gained the\nupper hand? Wherefore ye must know that it is in the mind of the Prophet\nto draw unto himself the hearts of all people by fair words and gentle\ndealing: but when the time is come for different policy, then we shall\ntake fresh counsel according to our needs. But now hearken. Did not the\nProphet prophesy woe to the rich and the powerful? These are the Romans;\nand in foretelling woe to them, he foretold woe against the Romans. Again,\ndid he not prophesy blessing for the poor? And we are poor: and in every\ncity of Israel the poor are the greater part, and will fight on our side,\nand will have a part in our blessing. I grant, he said not that we should\nbe judges and princes: but he promised that we should have that for which\nwe asked; and is not this enough for us? Yea, and albeit he mentioned not\nexpressly money, or lands, or houses, yet he said that our reward should\nbe great. But if persecution or the shedding of some of our blood must\nneeds come before our success, who is so fainthearted and womanish as to\ndraw back for such a cause? Therefore, I say, be of good heart; and though\nthere be some dark sayings of the Prophet, let us be content to stand fast\non those sayings which are plain. But as touching the words of Eliezer, we\nall know in our hearts that Jesus is not a man as other men, but that he\nis a leader sent from God; and howsoever he teacheth, and whithersoever he\nleadeth, it is our wisdom to obey him and to follow him.\u201d\n\nThe words of Judas pleased us: and we all agreed to them. Only a certain\nAlexandrine (whose name was Quartus) said to Baruch that he judged not\nthat the words of Jesus were intended to be merely transitory ordinances.\nNow this Quartus was a man of no common understanding and discernment; and\ninasmuch as his father had been a Greek and had caused him to be trained\nin the Greek learning and philosophy, he spake with more art and subtlety\nthan most of my companions. Howbeit he lacked not faith and the love of\nrighteousness; and, his mother being of our nation, he had been\ncircumcised, and had conformed himself to the worship of Israel; but\nhaving been bred up in the schools of the Greeks and in the school of\nPhilo, he was at all times desirous to compare the teaching of other\nphilosophers with the teaching of Jesus. He was a merchant, and his\nbusiness brought him oftentimes to Capernaum, where I had met him; but I\nhad also met him before in the house of my uncle at Alexandria. So when I\noverheard Quartus saying these words to my cousin, I questioned him how he\ninterpreted the sayings of Jesus, and in particular, that saying\nconcerning the turning of the cheek to the smiter.\n\nThen said Quartus unto me, after some pause, \u201cBe not displeased if I speak\nin a parable. Many times in Capernaum have I seen mariners (such as know\nnot your waters) grievously tossed by a storm while they strove to enter\ninto the harbour by a straight course, and toiling hard for many hours,\nbut all to no purpose; but others (which know the secret) leave the\nstraight course on one side, and stand far out to Tariche\u00e6. Thence floweth\na current toward Capernaum, strong at all times; but in stormy weather it\ncannot be resisted. Falling into this current therefore, the wise mariner\nneedeth but to row softly, or scarce at all, and lo, he entereth into\nCapernaum as it were upon wings. Now even such a wise mariner doth Jesus\nseem unto me.\u201d\n\nI marvelled at his words. But Quartus perceived that I understood him not;\nand he continued, \u201cI speak as one groping in the dark. But the meaning of\nmy parable is this: The lake is the world; the vessel is Israel; and\nCapernaum is redemption. Other pilots have striven to guide Israel to\nredemption by dint of force, but they have failed: Jesus is the true\npilot, and knoweth the currents and streams in the nature of men and\nthings; and by his wisdom he thinketh to guide us aright.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut what,\u201d I asked, \u201care these streams and currents?\u201d Again Quartus was\nsilent for a while, and longer than before, so that by this time we were\nalmost come down from the mountain; but at last he said unto me, \u201cWhat\nseemeth to thee the strongest current in the nature of men?\u201d But, when I\nheld my peace, not knowing what to answer, he spake again very earnestly,\n\u201cThou art a student of the sayings of the Wise, O Joseph, and canst answer\nwith discerning. Tell me, then, on what standeth the earth?\u201d Then I\nreplied according to the saying, \u201cUpon the pillars; and the pillars upon\nthe waters.\u201d \u201cYea,\u201d replied Quartus; \u201cand after these cometh the wind; and\nwhat after the wind?\u201d Then I said, \u201cBeneath the wind is the storm, and\nbeneath the storm is the arm of the Holy One; for it is said, \u2018Underneath\nare the Everlasting Arms.\u2019\u201d Then said Quartus, \u201cIt is so; and verily the\nfoundations of earth are the Everlasting Arms of the Father in Heaven: but\nif the Fatherhood of God be the strongest thing on earth, and if this be\nthe mightiest stream or current in the nature of men, then how may we best\nsail with that current?\u201d I remembered the words which Jesus had spoken\nthat we were to become as little children; so I answered, \u201cI suppose, by\napproaching Him as children.\u201d\n\nHere Judas interrupted us and said, \u201cNay, but wisdom is the strongest\nthing in the world, for it is written of wisdom, \u2018The Lord possessed me in\nthe beginning of His way, before His works of old. When He appointed the\nfoundations of the earth, then I was by Him as one brought up with Him.\u2019\u201d\n\u201cThou sayest well,\u201d said Quartus, \u201cbut what human wisdom is like unto that\nwisdom which revealeth God to men? Now as no child can understand his\nfather unless he love his father, so no man can know God (who is our\nFather in Heaven) unless he love Him; but whoso loveth, understandeth;\ntherefore to love God is the highest wisdom of man.\u201d Then Judas scoffed at\nhim and said, \u201cThis is nothing but repeating in new words the old saying\nof the Law, \u2018Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with\nall thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength.\u2019 What! do\nye then deem our Master to be naught but a merchant that retaileth old\nwares as if they were new?\u201d So he left us and went on before.\n\nBut Quartus continued, \u201cJudas saith truly that the new Law aimeth at the\nsame mark as the old Law. But the means are diverse. For the old Law\nworketh by purifications and feasts and sabbaths; but the new Law belike\nworketh in part by these means, but in greater part by other means. And,\nas I judge, Jesus goeth toward the end of the old Law; but by a path that\nis new, yea, altogether new. For I have myself heard him say that the\nredeemers of old were like unto thieves and robbers, using force and\nviolence; but he himself cometh not like a thief over the wall, but like\nthe true shepherd through the door of the fold, that is to say, through\nthe path of Redemption which God hath appointed. Now this path is kindness\nor love. And Jesus saith that the former redeemers failed of their\npurpose, for they thought to redeem men by force; but he will not fail,\nfor he purposeth to redeem men by gentleness. And he saith that God\nordaineth strength out of babes and sucklings, and that the spirit of\nchildhood is the conquering spirit of the world. Rememberest thou not how\nour teacher Philo said some things not much unlike to these, teaching that\nthe highest revelation of God is through love? Howbeit, none methinks,\nsave Jesus only, can reveal this revelation. For Philo testifieth of that\nwhich is behind the veil; but Jesus of Nazareth hath power to lift up the\nveil.\u201d\n\nBy this time we had overtaken the others, whom we found all sitting, and\nJesus in the midst of them. By the side of Jesus was a man bearing in his\narms a little child. He was come forth from a house nigh to the place\nwhere Jesus sat, bringing a cup of water for Jesus to drink. While Jesus\nwas drinking, the father still kept his eyes upon the child in his arms,\nand his face was full of compassion and tenderness; for the child was very\nsickly. We soon perceived that it was the same man that had denied to give\nus guidance in the morning; but at first we knew him not; pity and love\nhad so transformed his countenance. Now it came to pass that when Jesus\nhad given back the cup to the man, he laid his hands on the child and\nblessed him. And as he blessed him, his face shone as with the glory of\nthe Lord; and the little one also seemed to rejoice and to partake in the\nbrightness of our Master\u2019s countenance.\n\nWe both stood still, beholding Jesus. Then said Quartus unto me, \u201cDid not\nEliezer the son of Arak say truly, that \u2018Jesus looketh upon the book of\nthe world as well as upon the book of the Law, and seeth in all things\nGod\u2019? For even as Elias the Prophet loved to commune with God on the tops\nof mountains, and in deserts, and in caves, and received revelations of\nthe Lord from earthquakes and fires, but most of all from the still small\nvoice; even so doth our Master look upon all things that are, yea even on\nthe smallest things that live or grow, and from all, he heareth a still\nsmall voice that speaketh of the Father. Yea, and there is yet more than\nthis. For whithersoever he turneth his face, methinks he giveth of his\nlove to all things, whether they be the flowers of the field, or the\nbirds, or the mountains, or the children of men: and because he thus\ngiveth, it is given to him again; yea, wisdom and joy and peace are given\nback to him, even from things that have not life; but most of all from the\nchildren of men, which are made in the image of God. Therefore said I that\nJesus seemeth as the wise mariner of whom we spake but now; for, by the\nWord of God in himself, he hath haply hit upon a certain current in the\nnature of created things, whereby he will easily prevail over the blasts\nof all opposing storms, and be carried into the haven of God, both he and\nall they that put their trust in him.\u201d\n\n\u201cThy words are fair,\u201d I replied, \u201cbut they do not persuade me. That the\nlove of children doth bind husband and wife together, and that the bond of\nfamilies is the bond of nations, this I deny not. Perchance also the love\nthat parents have to their children may have lifted up the hearts of many\nin Israel, during many generations, to the true God. But how we are to\ntake Jerusalem or thrust forth the Romans from Syria by becoming as little\nchildren, this passeth my understanding. Or dost thou not believe that\nJesus will lead us against the Romans in Jerusalem?\u201d\n\n\u201cI know not,\u201d replied Quartus (who spoke as one musing, and not giving\nheed to my question); \u201cbut what troubleth me most of all is the fear lest\nthe knowledge of Jesus may haply perish with him; for if he hath (as I\njudge that he hath) a certain inborn power of winning men over to his will\nby kindness and gentleness, then, as it seemeth to me, this power may be\nlikened unto the fabled ring of Solomon, which gave unto the owner well\nnigh whatsoever he desired. But there is this difference. The ring could\nbe delivered from one man to another; but the art or secret of Jesus is,\nin all likelihood, not able to be delivered to them that shall come after;\nbut it will perish with him. And then what becometh of his Kingdom of\nGod?\u201d\n\nAs long as Quartus was speaking I heard him gladly: but when he had\nceased, his words seemed like mist in the morning sun; but the words of\nJudas seemed as the solid ground from which the mist rolleth away. For\nwhat Quartus said was hard to understand; but the words of Judas seemed\naccording to reason, and very plain to be understood; to wit, that the\nordinances given on the mountain of blessing were transitory, and that we\nwere still to wait for the New Law: and to this I agreed, and not I only,\nbut the most part of the disciples.\n\n\n\n\n\n CHAPTER X\n\n\nIt came to pass, not many days afterwards (about a month after the Feast\nof the Harvest), that we journeyed to Capernaum; and Nathanael, and\nGorgias the son of Philip, and I, had been sent on before to prepare a\nlodging. Now when we were standing at the door of the house where we were\nto lodge, we heard a sound as of many feet; and, looking up, Gorgias said,\n\u201cSee, hither cometh the Tetrarch\u2019s Thracian guard.\u201d I looked and saw a\nband of about three hundred men, of a wild and savage aspect, bearing\ntargets and girt with scimitars. But Gorgias, noting as I suppose the\nanger in my countenance, answered, \u201cThese dogs (may the Lord destroy them\nroot and branch!) are swift indeed to shed the blood of women and\nchildren, but they are as naught compared with the Romans. Could\u2019st thou\nbut see a Roman legion how they march, these would seem unto thee but as\njackals at the lion\u2019s tail. Mark but how the dogs straggle. But when the\nRomans march, the spears in their hands all point one way, and the swords\nby their sides hang all after one fashion, and even their stakes and tools\n(which they carry behind their backs) do all swing to one time, and their\nfeet, arms, and heads, yea, even to the winking of their eyes, go all\ntogether after the manner of a five\u2010banked corn\u2010ship of Alexandria, with\nher five hundred oars all keeping time; and when they charge, they charge\nlike ten thousand elephants clad in iron. Moreover, they add to their\npower so much wisdom, that when they halt for the night, each man setteth\nup his stake in the ground, and taketh his spade, and diggeth his portion\nof trench before his stake, and behold, the solitary place becometh in a\ntrice a fortified city, with streets and walls and ditches. Verily these\nRoman swine are all as children of Satan; but a Roman legion is as Satan\nhimself.\u201d By this time our Master had arrived; so I was silent. But when\nhe went into the house, I remained without, musing; for the words of Jesus\ncame into my mind again, concerning the entering into the Kingdom; and\nmethought it would be very hard to overthrow these Thracians, and much\nmore the Romans, by becoming as little children.\n\nWhile I thought on these things there came to the door of the house\nJonathan the son of Ezra; for he knew that I was coming to Capernaum, and\nhe had appointed to meet me there. When he had greeted me in loving terms,\nhe said that he desired to speak with me touching Jesus of Nazareth;\n\u201cFor,\u201d said he, \u201cI hear that he turneth from him the minds of many, in\nthat he observeth not the Sabbath.\u201d I could not deny this; for indeed\nJesus had oftentimes, during our journey in Galilee, broken the Sabbath.\nSometimes he had healed the sick on the Sabbath; and but lately on the\nSabbath before the Feast of the Harvest, he had healed one that had an\nimpediment in his speech; and when certain of the Pharisees had blamed it,\nhe had said aloud, before all the people, that it was right to do good on\nthe Sabbath, but not to do evil. Moreover, he had not rebuked them that\ncarried the sick to him on the Sabbath, though the bearing of burdens be\nforbidden. Once, indeed, he had even commanded a sick man to carry with\nhim the bed whereon he lay. I therefore held my peace, but Jonathan added,\n\u201cEven though he cure the sick on the Sabbath, yet why need he offend the\nlearned and the pious by bidding the sick bear burdens on the day of rest?\nMoreover, if he desire to go more than a Sabbath day\u2019s journey on some\nerrand of mercy, why doth he not use the device of meat, so that he may\nkeep the letter of the Law? Therefore, speak thou unto him, as one that\nloveth him; and warn him that the Pharisees are wroth.\u201d\n\nThen there came into my mind how, on the last Sabbath day, Jesus had\npassed by a house in a certain village, which was the house of a poor\nwidow; and a great storm of wind and rain, which had arisen in the night,\nhad washed away some part of the wall thereof, so that the rest was in\ndanger to fall. And behold, a man, a mason by trade, was working\ndiligently to repair the breach. When we saw it we were ready to take up\nstones for to stone him; but Jesus forbade us, and said to the man, \u201cMan,\nif thou knowest what thou doest, blessed art thou; but if thou knowest not\nwhat thou doest, cursed art thou.\u201d(6) Thereat we all marvelled, and there\nwas much questioning among us. But when we had considered the matter, we\nperceived no more but this; that Jesus would not have us to observe the\nSabbath as the Scribes observed it.\n\nI therefore replied that I durst not speak to Jesus, nor did I believe\nthat he would give heed to my speech: for that I thought he brake the\nSabbath, not out of heedlessness, but of set purpose. Jonathan was\nastonished at these words, but I continued, \u201cNot that our Master aimeth at\nbreaking the Sabbath: but if a sick man needeth to be healed, he thinketh\nit right that the Sabbath should be broken for the sick man\u2019s sake.\u201d Then\nJonathan said, \u201cThen what new rule doth he teach? Doth he suffer you to go\nfour thousand paces or even five thousand paces on the Sabbath, instead of\ntwo thousand, which the Law alloweth?\u201d But I replied, \u201cNeither four\nthousand paces, nor five thousand; for our Master maketh no rules. But, as\nit seemeth to me, there is in him a certain spirit from God which\nprompteth him to do this or that, and forbiddeth him to do otherwise: and\nif the spirit of kindness say unto him \u2018Go,\u2019 then he will go and bid us\ngo, though it be ten thousand or twenty thousand paces; and this, even on\nthe Sabbath. For, in fine, he saith that the Sabbath is made for man, and\nnot man for the Sabbath.\u201d\n\nHereat Jonathan was sorely grieved, and said, \u201cIf this be so, I fear lest\ncounsel be of no avail.\u201d But after that he had weighed the matter, he\nsaid, \u201cEven though he be a prophet, and have a message from God, yet are\nthere seasons and ways of delivering a message; and in these matters the\nexperience and counsel of old age may have weight. Therefore I will\nadventure to speak to him.\u201d I was glad that he had thus determined: for\nmany of us had desired to speak with Jesus. Yet I feared lest Jonathan\nmight not prevail. For I had noted that Jesus at first brake the Sabbath,\nonly when a kindness compelled; but when the Scribes and Pharisees were\nwroth, and strove to place the yoke on his neck, so as to cause him to\ncease from good works on the Sabbath, then he not only rebelled against\nit, but made as if he would break the yoke from off the necks of all,\nespecially the poorer sort, to whom the Sabbath was rather a burden than a\njoy. For the more the Pharisees raged against him, the more he made war\nagainst the Sabbath. Therefore I did not forebode well for Jonathan:\nhowbeit, I accompanied him into the presence of Jesus.\n\nWhen we entered into the house, behold, Barabbas was with Jesus,\nbeseeching him that he would not go into the synagogue on the next\nSabbath: \u201cFor,\u201d said he, \u201cthe chief ruler of the synagogue hath a plot\nagainst thee, and desireth to question thee touching the Sabbath, that he\nmay raise up a tumult of the people against thee. For all the Pharisees\nand elders of the synagogue are wroth with thee for the sake of the\nSabbath, saying that thou dost both break it and teach others also to\nbreak it.\u201d\n\nHereon Jonathan, finding his occasion, spake to the same effect, saying\nthat all the Scribes in the country round about Sepphoris had been turned\naway from Jesus because it had been noised abroad that he observed not the\nSabbath. So he besought Jesus to consider his course well: \u201cDespise not\ninstruction from an elder, O my son, even though thou art a prophet. Art\nthou confident in thine heart that it is a spirit from God, and not a\nspirit from Satan, that tempteth thee thus to break the Sabbath? Bethink\nthee also how thou wilt cause the people of the land to go astray. For the\nsimple walk by rules, and straighten their path by ordinances. But lo,\nthou takest away rules and ordinances; and what dost thou leave in the\nplace thereof? I have heard from Eliezer the son of Arak that a certain\nman was working even at his handicraft on the Sabbath day, and thou sawest\nhim, and didst not rebuke him: but didst say, that if he had knowledge of\nthat which he did, he was blessed; but if he had not that knowledge, he\nwas accursed. Whence, O my son, should the simple and unlearned gain this\nknowledge whereof thou speakest? But if thou sayest, \u2018I am a prophet and\nwill give them this knowledge,\u2019 then remember that thou too art mortal,\nand as the grass of the field; and when thou shalt pass away, thy\nknowledge shall perish with thee, unless it be set forth in rules. But\nthou givest no rules to thy disciples.\n\n\u201cBut come, let us reason together as though thou wert altogether right in\nthis matter, having a message from God to us touching the Sabbath.\nNotwithstanding, is there not a place and a time for delivering a message,\nand a place and a time for concealing it? There is a time to go forward;\nbut is there not also a time to make a stand? It is good to set thy face\ntoward the light, that thou mayest advance; but it is good also to turn\nthy face from the light, that thou mayest see whither thou hast advanced.\nMoreover, why dost thou cause the Pharisees to stumble, and the rich to\ntake offence at thy doctrine? Art thou not the Redeemer of all Israel? Are\nnot the Pharisees also thy brethren, and the rich also sheep of the flock?\nWhy therefore dost thou drive them from the fold and cast them forth into\nthe wilderness? If thou sayest, \u2018They are weak,\u2019 then take pity, O my son,\non the weak ones of Israel, yea and perchance on thine own disciples, lest\nthey that may come after thee drink of thy doctrine and die, and the Name\nof Heaven be profaned.\u201d\n\nNow at the first the face of Jesus was not altered toward Jonathan the son\nof Ezra, and he heard him kindly, yet patiently withal, and as if he knew\nwhat the old man would say, before he said it. But when Jonathan begged\nhim for compassion\u2019s sake not to cause the weak ones to stumble, then the\nfashion of his countenance was changed as if he would have wept, and he\nseemed to us like one in sore straits, for he changed colour and was\nsilent. Judge, therefore, how great was our astonishment when he stood up\nand rebuked Jonathan as though his words were from Satan.\n\nPerplexity and sore grief fell upon us all, and the old man would have\nretired abashed. But Jesus took him by the hand and constrained him to\nstay, and made him sit down by his side and spake kindly unto him. Yet he\nbegan to speak again of the words of Jonathan as being a sore temptation,\ntelling us how in former times he had undergone a like temptation from\nSatan. He had been in the wilderness, he said, and lo, in a moment of time\nhe had been borne to the top of a mountain, whence he saw the kingdoms of\nthe earth and the glory thereof, and Satan said to him, \u201cAll these things\nwill I give unto thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me.\u201d\n\nWhile we marvelled at the words of Jesus, and disputed among ourselves how\nthat temptation in the wilderness could be like unto this temptation,\nbehold, Judas of Kerioth came into the chamber, saying the same things\nwhich Barabbas had said, to wit that the Pharisees in Capernaum were\nlaying a snare for Jesus, for to catch him in his teaching, that they\nmight cause the people to stone him. But Jesus gave command that we should\npass over on the morrow to the other side of the lake.\n\nOn the morrow, while we rowed across the lake, I asked Nathanael what\nseemed to him the nature of the temptation of Satan whereof Jesus had\nspoken. Nathanael made answer and said, \u201cThou perceivest that the heart of\nour Master overfloweth with pity for the miseries of men; and even to\nredeem them from these miseries he hath been sent by the Lord. Now as for\nsilver and gold, or fame, or wisdom, none of these things can in any wise\ntempt him once to go aside either to the right hand or to the left from\nthe straight path of Redemption. Howbeit, pity and love can tempt him.\nWherefore the only temptation that can befal him is from the Voice that\nsaith, Be pitiful, even though thou transgress in pitying; Do evil that\nthou mayest do good; Gain power by crooked ways, that thou mayest\nstraighten the paths of salvation for them which wander astray; Wink thou\nat falsehood, that they which err may be guided toward truth. Now this\nVoice, as it seemeth to me, is to our Master the Voice of Satan; and to\nlisten to it is to bow down to Satan. And Satan, perchance, knowing that\nin this way alone can our Master be tempted, hath caused Jonathan the son\nof Ezra to tempt him. But I know no more than thou; only such is my\nconjecture.\u201d\n\nWhile we thus conversed together the boat drew nigh unto the eastern\nshore. The mountains came down to the water\u2019s edge, so close, and so\nprecipitous withal, that there was scarce space enough to land: and,\nbecause the sun still lay low in the east, all was dark before us, though\nthe waters behind us shone fair and bright. But when we were now entering\nunder the shadow of the cliffs, so that we could discern things more\nclearly, we perceived that there was a margin of shore, but narrow and\nexceeding rocky, strewn all over with large and small fragments of black\nrock, which had fallen from the mountain above. Then suddenly there fell\non our ears a marvellous strange cry, neither as of a man nor yet as of a\nwild beast; and while we ceased rowing for to listen, behold, yet another\ncry, more piercing and strange than the first, and then straightway\nanother: and withal the rocks and cliffs took up the sound and multiplied\nit, and tossed it this way and that way till all the land seemed alive\nwith the clamour. But Gorgias trembled and said it was an evil spirit,\nfor, said he, \u201cThere be burial\u2010places in this part of the coast.\u201d Then\nPeter cried aloud and said, \u201cI see a form as of a man, lank and lean,\ncoming out from the rocks; and it is naked.\u201d Then some of us bade steer\ntowards another part of the coast; but Jesus commanded to keep on our\ncourse.\n\nNow when we landed, we perceived that it was a man, but he was one\npossessed with evil spirits. For he had chains about his body; and he had\ncut and lanced his flesh with grievous wounds. When he saw us, he took up\nstones to cast at us, so that we feared to approach him; and certain\nshepherds from afar off beckoned to us to go back from him. But Jesus went\nbefore the rest of us and accosted him. And lo, at the voice of Jesus, the\nman straightway let the stones fall from his hands; and, for a moment, he\nstood as one astonied and in a trance. Then he shrieked aloud and made\nanswer to Jesus in two voices, after the manner of those possessed with\nunclean spirits. For at one time the man spake, and at another the devils.\nBut the devils, speaking in a deep hollow voice, declared that they were\nswine, and three thousand in number, and that their name was Legion.\nMoreover they besought Jesus that he would not send them into the abyss\n(for by this name do the evil spirits use to call that place wherein they\nmust needs wander so long as they have no bodies of men to dwell in), but\nthat he would suffer them to remain in the man\u2019s body. But Jesus drove\nthem out, and the Legion went forth into the abyss, to the number of three\nthousand, and in the shapes of swine. But Jesus did not suffer the man to\naccompany him, but bade him return to his friends, and to tell them what\ngreat things the Lord had done for him.\n\nThis mighty work of Jesus I have set down the more exactly, because no\nsuch unclean spirit as this was ever cast out by any other exorcist. For\nother men have been possessed with swine, or toads, or scorpions, or\nserpents, but not with many in number, seldom with more than seven. But\nthis man was possessed with three thousand swine. For I not only heard him\nsay this to Jesus, but he also repeated it to me; for I conversed with\nhim. He told me also that he himself saw the three thousand swine go forth\nand run, first upward, and then violently down from the cliff, even to the\nabyss. Now the man was a Gadarene, a Jew by birth, and a patriot, one of\nthe sect of the Galileans. Howbeit, living in Gadara, which is a Greek\ncity, he had suffered himself to become defiled, and had rejected the Law\nand the Worship, and had eaten swine\u2019s flesh. But it came to pass that on\na certain day, even at the hour of prayer, when he thought on these\nthings, a darkness fell upon his soul, and he saw sights of demons; and\nsometimes also he saw the sun as though it were red as blood; and he\nloathed his food as it had been poison. And this continued for the space\nof six months. But at the end of the six months, on a certain Sabbath, as\nhe stood in the streets of Gadara, so it was that there came a cohort,\nwhich is the tenth part of a Roman legion, marching through the town. And\nhe turned and cursed them in the name of the Lord; and lo, as the curse\nwent forth from his mouth, the devils entered into him in the shape of a\nlegion of swine; and they possessed him even to the day when Jesus healed\nhim. All this I heard from the demoniac himself.\n\nWhen Jesus had worked this miracle we all rejoiced greatly; for we thought\nthat whoso could do so mighty a work, to him all things were possible; and\nwe desired Jesus to go back to the other side of the lake, and there to\nwork miracles that he might convince the Pharisees. But we marvelled that\nJesus set so little store on his mighty works, insomuch that he even\nseemed oftentimes unwilling to work them. Many also he wrought in private;\nand many he would fain have kept secret, but he could not. Now when I\nasked Nathanael (for he was as it were an interpreter unto me to explain\nsuch sayings of Jesus as were hard to understand) for what cause Jesus\nlightly esteemed his own miracles, he asked me whether I had not noted how\nthe common folk resorted to Jesus as a mere worker of wonders, so that\nsometimes they even interrupted his discourse, being desirous that Jesus\nshould cease to teach that he might begin to work cures. \u201cNow Jesus,\u201d he\nsaid, \u201cdoth not desire that men should come to him merely as the healer of\ntheir bodies, but as the healer also of their souls.\u201d\n\n\u201cFor this cause,\u201d said Nathanael, \u201cJesus often biddeth such as he healeth\nin Galilee to keep silence, although he suffered the Gadarene in these\ndistant parts to make it known. For he deemeth it his especial work not so\nmuch to drive out diseases and evil spirits from the body, as rather to\nheal the soul, ministering bread to the hungry and wine to them that are\nathirst, loosing the tongue of the dumb, and causing the deaf to hear,\nopening the eyes of the blind, and making the lame to leap as a hart in\nthe paths of salvation.\u201d\n\nWe made no long stay on the eastern side of the lake; but when we came\nagain to Capernaum we found the hearts of the people turned from us. For\nnot only did the chief ruler and the elders of the synagogue watch us, as\nbefore, if perchance they could take us at an advantage; but the zeal of\nthe townsmen also seemed to have waxed cold. Scarcely had our boat touched\nthe strand at Capernaum when my uncle Manasseh met me. He took me aside\nand spake with me very earnestly, saying that he had rebuked his son\nBaruch for his slackness at business, because poverty was coming upon them\nas an armed man, by reason of his constant attending on Jesus; and he\nadded, \u201cIt is true also of thee as of Baruch, \u2018He becometh poor that\ndealeth with a slack hand; but the hand of the diligent maketh rich. He\nthat gathereth in summer is a wise son; but he that sleepeth in harvest is\na son that causeth shame.\u2019\u201d \u201cAnd what said Baruch?\u201d I asked. \u201cHe hath\nconsented to my words,\u201d said Manasseh, \u201cand hath promised that he will no\nlonger accompany this Jesus of Nazareth in his wanderings: and do thou the\nlike.\u201d But this I would not do; so we parted in anger.\n\nNot a few left Jesus at this time, mostly they of the wealthier sort, as\nwere Baruch and Manasseh; some going back to their vineyards, others to\ntheir olive\u2010presses, others to the dye\u2010works and glass\u2010furnaces, whereof\nthere were many in Galilee. But the poorer sort joined themselves to Jesus\nas much as before, being drawn unto him by the fame of his mighty works.\nHowbeit they also began to wax impatient that Jesus should give the sign\nfor war. Nor did they give now much heed to the words of Jesus; but they\npaid regard to him as to some great exorcist and sorcerer, who useth his\nart for good ends. Therefore the heart of our Master was sad at this time;\nand he was grieved that the simple folk knew him not: and their words of\npraise were an abomination to him.\n\nNow it came to pass that on the third day after we had returned to\nCapernaum, the fame of Jesus, how he had driven out the legion of swine\ninto the abyss, having been now noised abroad on our side of the lake,\nbehold, the common people thronged him more than before; insomuch that,\nwhen he began to teach the people on the shore after his manner, during\nthe cool of the evening, they pressed in upon him and interrupted him, so\nthat he was not able to continue his discourse. But Jesus, being grieved\nthereat, gave command to Peter and to Andrew that they should straightway\nlaunch a boat; and he went on board. When the people saw it, they made\nlamentation; but the boat was stayed at about fifty paces from the land;\nand Jesus sat in the boat and taught us while we stood on the shore.\n\nWhen he opened his mouth, we perceived that he taught after a new fashion.\nFor he no longer said \u201cDo this,\u201d \u201cDo not that\u201d; but he spake in parables.\nNow almost all the teaching of the Wise is in parables, and Jesus also had\nbefore taught in parables; but these parables had been short, and along\nwith the parables there had been added the interpretation thereof. But it\nwas not so now; for the parable was naught but a tale about a certain\nsower, how he sowed seed on several kinds of ground: of the seeds, some\nfalling on rock were destroyed by birds; others by heat and the\nshallowness of the soil; others by weeds; but some brought forth fruit.\n\nHereat certain murmured, and Gorgias said aloud, \u201cDoth he think to redeem\nSion with a tale? Lo, the prophet John is in prison, and the men of\nGalilee wait but for a nod from Jesus to rescue him; and our Master\nrescueth him not, but openeth his mouth in dark sayings.\u201d But the greater\nnumber listened all agape, as though spell\u2010bound; for the very voice of\nJesus had power to bind the souls of a multitude. Howbeit, when evening,\nor at the most when the morrow came, the parable had clean vanished out of\nthe minds of the greater part. Notwithstanding some (but these only a very\nfew) stored up the words of Jesus in their hearts, and diligently pondered\nthem.\n\nIn the evening I went with the rest to Jesus; and we besought him to tell\nus what the parable might mean, and also why he taught thus in parables.\nWhen he had answered, I perceived the meaning of the parable, how that\nAbuyah the son of Elishah, and Eliezer the son of Arak, were the rocky\nground from which the birds picked up the seed; but Baruch, and such as\nBaruch, were the shallow ground; and Manasseh and the rich merchants and\nartificers were the fertile ground wherein weeds choked the seed. But\nstill we were fain to know why he spake in parables.\n\nWhen we again questioned him of this, behold, Jesus cried aloud with an\nexceeding bitter cry, saying, in the words of the Prophet Isaiah: \u201cI heard\nthe voice of the Lord saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?\nThen said I, Here am I; send me. And the Lord said, \u2018Go and tell this\npeople, Hear ye indeed, but understand not; and see ye indeed, but\nperceive not. Make the heart of this people fat, and make their ears\nheavy, and shut their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with\ntheir ears, and understand with their heart, and be converted, and be\nhealed.\u2019\u201d\n\nThen were we all sad, and sat silent for a while; for our Master\u2019s face\nwas full of sorrow, and this was, as it were, the first shadow of evil\nthat had fallen upon our path. Moreover we began to fear that, as in the\ndays of Isaiah, so it would be now. The Lord had sent his prophet, even\nJesus of Nazareth; but the hearts of the people would be hardened against\nthe words of the prophet; yea, the prophet himself would seem to make the\nhearts of the people hard and not soft, as it was with Abuyah the son of\nElishah and Eliezer the son of Arak, whose hearts were made fat and their\nears heavy by the words of Jesus of Nazareth.\n\nFor we perceived in part his meaning, to wit, not that he desired in truth\nto shut the eyes of the people, but that he was constrained of the Lord to\npreach the Gospel, and all pressed to hear it; yet could he in no wise\npreach it so as to make it plain to all, but only to a few. For behold, he\nhad made trial of the plain way of teaching, and men had thought they had\nunderstood him, but they had understood him not; but had esteemed him\nlightly, as little better than an exorcist. For his words had not pierced\ninto their hearts, but had rested without, as seeds on the wayside;\ninsomuch that they had been carried away by the angels of Satan. Therefore\nmust he now adventure a new path of teaching to the end that, at the\nleast, some few of us might be convinced of our want of understanding, so\nthat we might seek and find the truth; but, to the most, all things should\nbe in darkness, yea, the light itself should be as darkness unto the most.\n\nAll this the Lord Jesus spake more clearly afterwards, when he perceived\nthe will of the Father that only a few should be chosen, though many were\ncalled: but at this time (perchance because it had been but newly revealed\nto him) he spake more darkly and with a greater bitterness of sorrow.\nHowbeit when he had lifted up his head and perceived that we also were\nweighed down with his affliction, then straightway he made himself to be\nof a cheerful countenance, and comforted us, saying, \u201cUnto you it is given\nto know the mysteries of the kingdom of God; but unto them that are\nwithout, all things are done in parables.\u201d Then he bade us take heed that\nwe taught others even as he had taught us; for, said he, \u201cwith what\nmeasure ye mete, it shall be measured to you.\u201d He said also, \u201cTake heed\nhow ye hear; for whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and whosoever hath\nnot, from him shall be taken even that which he hath.\u201d These latter words\nwe understood not then; but, as I take it, the meaning of Jesus was\ntwofold; first, that whoso had not faith nor honesty would receive damage\n(even as Judas received damage, and not advantage) from the doctrine of\nJesus; but, secondly, he seemed to mean that the doctrine was, as it were,\nlent to each of the disciples, as money upon usury; each being bound to\ntraffic with the doctrine in the commerce of his own thoughts, so as to\nadd thereto. In the same way he told us, at another time, that we were to\nbring forth out of our treasuries things new as well as old; and he also\nbade us to \u201cbe trustworthy bankers.\u201d(7) For of all things Jesus misliked\nthat we should repeat his words by rote; nor did he even bid us copy his\nactions exactly (but he even said that a time should come when we should\ndo greater works than he had done); and the like also of his words. For\nthis cause perchance, Jesus spake afterwards to us also, even to us his\ndisciples, sometimes in dark sayings; to the intent that we might ponder,\nand ask and know the truth. For albeit we often feared to ask him\nquestions (because of our folly and our want of faith), yet did he ever\ndesire us to question him; teaching us that only to them that knock, is\nthe door opened; and only to them that hunger, is given of the bread of\nLife.\n\nWhen we went forth from the chamber, Gorgias said, \u201cWhat meaneth the\nProphet? Doth he say that whosoever is rich, he shall be made richer? And\nwhosoever is poor, shall he also be made poorer?\u201d Hereat we all smiled;\nfor we knew that our Master spake not of money, but of wisdom: and one\nmade answer to Gorgias to this effect. Then said Judas, \u201cBut if Jesus mean\nwisdom, then how sayeth he \u2018With what measure ye mete, it shall be\nmeasured to you?\u2019\u201d But Jonathan the son of Ezra replied, \u201cIs not this even\naccording to the saying of the Wise, \u2018Man is born to learn in order to\nteach?\u2019 And again, \u2018He that learneth the Law and doth not teach it, he it\nis that despiseth the Name of the Lord.\u2019 Therefore the meaning of Jesus\nis, that if a man teach others what he hath learned, the angels give into\nhis bosom a hundredfold reward.\u201d To this Nathanael agreed, and he added,\n\u201cThe reward is not as a price that is paid, so many shekels for so much\nteaching; but it is even as the rain cometh from the cloud, or as heat\ncometh from the fire. Even so doth wisdom come from teaching. For wisdom\nis not as a dead block that wasteth with the using, but as a living thing\nthat groweth with exercise. But most of all is this true of that kind of\nwisdom whereof our Master speaketh.\u201d\n\nThen Judas said, \u201cBut I would to God that our Master would leave off to\nspeak of wisdom and would do somewhat.\u201d And Gorgias said Amen to that. But\nSimon Peter replied: \u201cIt is said, \u2018Take to thyself a master, and be quit\nof doubt.\u2019 Now my Master is Jesus of Nazareth, and I purpose not to spend\nthe time in doubting, nor to halt between many opinions. For the man that\nis given to much doubting, to what is he like? He is like unto a ship with\nmany pilots, which attaineth not to the harbour. Therefore have I settled\nmy mind to believe that whatsoever Jesus doeth, that is righteousness, and\nwhatsoever he purposeth, that is wisdom.\u201d\n\nTo this we agreed, and no more was said. Howbeit many of us could not so\nfar constrain ourselves, but we had some searchings of heart; and passing\nclouds of trouble sometimes crossed our souls for that the Pharisees were\nset against us, and because Jesus himself had that day seemed like unto\none bearing a burden of the Lord. Notwithstanding on the morrow, when we\nlooked upon his countenance, full of brightness and cheerfulness, and when\nwe heard him speak, after his wont, of the greatness and the glory of the\nKingdom that was to come, behold, all our dark thoughts had immediately\nvanished away.\n\n\n\n\n\n CHAPTER XI\n\n\nAmong them that came to Jesus, a few were outcasts from the synagogues,\nor, as they were called, \u201csinners\u201d; and it grieved the chief ruler of the\nsynagogue in Capernaum and the elders of that synagogue that Jesus should\nreceive such people. But Jesus received them gladly, and his anger waxed\ndaily hotter against the rulers of the synagogues and against the Scribes,\n\u201cbecause,\u201d said he, \u201cthey kept the key of the Kingdom, and yet they would\nneither enter in themselves nor suffer others to enter in.\u201d He also spake\nsometimes of a new Key which he must give to his disciples; but this, as\nyet, he spake not clearly. But as I remember, these words concerning the\nScribes were spoken when Jesus first heard of the story of Hannah; which I\nwill set down here, though the matter occurred some days before.\n\nThere lived in Capernaum a certain woman whose name was Hannah, sister of\nthe mother of Nathanael. This woman was afflicted by Satan, so that she\ncould not stand upright, but was bowed down to the earth. Now it came to\npass that on a certain day when Nathanael visited her in her affliction,\nbehold, the Rabbi Eliezer was in her house, questioning her touching her\nsins. And Eliezer had persuaded the woman that she was guilty of many\nsins; for enquiring whether she had visited any of her acquaintance on the\nSabbath, he found that one of them, a widow, old and bed\u2010ridden, lived\nsomewhat more than two thousand paces from her house; wherefore he\ndeclared that Hannah had broken the Law in visiting this poor widow on the\nSabbath. Moreover he reproved Hannah because she had borne burdens on the\nSabbath, in that she had worn ribbons upon her garment during the Sabbath,\nwhich ribbons were not sewn to her garment; neither had she observed the\nLaw of the Sabbath as touching things that are not living. Many other like\nsins did Eliezer reprove in Nathanael\u2019s kinswoman.\n\nBut when she sought how to be forgiven, he said, \u201cThou hast not sinned\nagainst man, but against God. If a man sin against men, the judge shall\njudge him: but if a man sin against the Lord, who shall entreat for him?\nBut give of thy substance to the treasury of the synagogue, and I will\nentreat for thee if perchance the Lord will deal mercifully with thee.\nHowbeit thou must needs wait till the Day of Atonement: for until that day\nthou mayest not be forgiven. But in the mean season fast, and eat no\npleasant food, nor drink wine: but afflict thy soul before the face of the\nAll\u2010merciful (blessed is He) if perchance He may incline His ear unto thy\nprayer.\u201d\n\nNow when Hannah heard these things, her spirit fainted within her, and she\nknew not what to do, and she cried aloud to Eliezer, \u201cAlas! the Angel of\nDeath is even now upon my threshold, and my sins weigh heavily upon me. I\nbeseech thee therefore, entreat the Lord for me, that He may forgive me\nimmediately, lest I die unforgiven.\u201d But he made answer, as before, that\nshe must needs wait till the Day of Atonement; and he made ready to\ndepart. Then she caught him by the garment to entreat him; but he would\nnot stay, but went out.\n\nOn the third day after these things, it came to pass that seven evil\nspirits entered into Hannah and possessed her in the shapes of swine; and\nEliezer heard it, and said that it was a judgment of the Lord. Then was\nNathanael sorely grieved, and he came to Jesus and told him everything;\nboth that which Eliezer had said, and how Hannah had cried unto him, and\nafterwards how the evil spirits had entered into her. But Jesus (as it was\nreported to me by Nathanael), being exceeding wroth, arose in haste upon\nhearing of this story; and he went forth straightway to the house of\nHannah and cast out the seven devils, and bade her be of good cheer and\nlive in peace. And then it was that he uttered this saying against the\nScribes, whereof I made mention above, namely that they kept the key of\nthe Kingdom of God, but would neither enter in themselves, nor suffer\nothers to enter in.\n\nNow it happened that, soon after these things, I brought Nathanael to\nvisit the Rabbi Jonathan at his lodging in Capernaum; and we found there\nthe aforesaid Eliezer the son of Arak conversing with him. When Eliezer\nsaw us, he complained sorely of the light\u2010mindedness (so he called it)\nwhich our Master manifested in receiving sinners. But Jonathan replied\nsaying that the cause lay in the exceeding gentleness of our Master,\nbecause he knew not the evil nature of man.\n\n\u201cFor,\u201d said he, \u201cfrom his birth upward, Jesus of Nazareth hath moved in\nParadise; and being himself good, pure, and gentle, he believeth that\nothers also are in their thoughts like unto himself, and that they need\nbut a little help to make them in their deeds like unto himself. For he\nesteemeth of sin as being naught but an infirmity. But time and experience\nwill open his eyes.\u201d\n\nThen answered Nathanael and said to Eliezer, \u201cBut is it not truly said, O\nson of Arak, that \u2018The perfection of wisdom is repentance?\u2019 and again,\n\u2018When a man hath been wholly wicked, and hath repented at last, the Holy\nOne receiveth him\u2019? Nay, it is added that, \u2018If a sinner repent, all the\ntransgressions which he hath committed are imputed to him as merits,\u2019 and\nthat \u2018Repentance was created before the world.\u2019 How then is our Master\nwrong in receiving them that repent?\u201d But Eliezer answered, with an\naustere countenance, that repentance availed nothing without works; and he\nquoted the saying, \u201cNo boor is a sin\u2010fearer; nor is the vulgar pious\u201d; and\nanother saying which warneth men \u201cNot to frequent the company of the\nunlearned.\u201d \u201cMoreover,\u201d he added, \u201cthe All\u2010seeing (blessed is He) alone\nknoweth the hearts of men, and discerneth the true repentance from the\nfalse. Wherefore none can forgive sins but God alone.\u201d\n\nThen Nathanael, remembering how great an evil had befallen his kinswoman\nthrough the hardness of Eliezer, became exceeding wroth, and brake out\ninto bitter accusations against the Scribes, because they despised the\npeople of the land: \u201cFor lo,\u201d he said, \u201cmore than half of Israel even now\ngoeth down to the pit of destruction, and ye raise no hand to save them.\nYea, when the drowning ones lift up their heads from the waters and cry\nsaying, \u2018We are alive, help us,\u2019 then stand ye on the bank and answer,\nsaying, \u2018Down, down, ye ought not to be alive, ye are not alive.\u2019 For ye\nsay that ye make fences to keep in the Law; but ye make fences indeed to\nkeep out the people from the Law. Wherefore your fences are as offences,\nand ye are guilty of the blood of half the nation of Israel in the sight\nof the Lord.\u201d\n\nThen Eliezer arose in wrath, and as he went to the door, he turned and\nlooked on Nathanael and said, \u201cLike master, like scholar:\u201d and so he went\nout. But when he was departed, Jonathan said to us, \u201cEliezer spake\nunadvisedly and harshly; yet is there truth in his words. For when we shun\nthe \u2018unlearned\u2019 and the \u2018vulgar,\u2019 or the people of the land, we mean such\nas have not learned their duties toward God and man, which also are wholly\ngiven up to the things of earth. Such men are lovers of self, wallowing in\ncarnal lusts: and are they not to be blamed?\u201d\n\nTo this Nathanael replied, \u201cTrue, O my father; and if all the teachers of\nIsrael were as thou art, verily Israel would be blessed. But do not the\nScribes cast out many from the synagogues for small matters, even though\nthey perform the weightier duties? Yea, I myself have heard Eliezer say\nmany times, \u2018Hasten to a light precept\u2019; and I have seen him to be more\nangered for a light transgression than a heavy one. Also many of them say\nthat a \u2018vulgar\u2019 person is one that repeateth not the daily Krishma, or\nweareth not phylacteries, or fringes, or doth not wait on the learned.\nThese things do the Scribes exalt, but they pass over justice, mercy,\nrighteousness, and truth.\u201d\n\nJonathan made no answer to this at first; but presently he sighed and\nsaid, \u201cTruly we have need of a discerning spirit; and we should pray unto\nthe All\u2010seeing (blessed is He) that we may not make defiled the pure, nor\nmake pure the defiled, and that we may not bind the loosed nor loose the\nbound.\u201d No one spake further about this matter. But Nathanael sat musing,\nwhile I conversed with Jonathan concerning his return to Sepphoris and\nconcerning certain messages which I desired that he should deliver to my\nmother. Presently we bade farewell to Jonathan and departed.\n\nBut as we passed through the street together, Nathanael still mused, and,\nas it seemed to me, was repeating to himself the words of Jonathan, \u201cThat\nwe may not bind the loosed nor loose the bound.\u201d Then he turned to me and\nsaid, \u201cJoseph, is there not a certain saying touching the destroying of\nthe Evil Nature?\u201d \u201cYes, of a truth is there,\u201d replied I; \u201cfor it is said\nthat it shall come to pass, in the time to come, that the Holy One will\nbring the Evil Nature, and slay him in the presence of the righteous and\nin the presence of the wicked.\u201d Then Nathanael smote his hands together\nfor joy, and lifted up his voice and said \u201cPerchance, therefore, in the\nday of the Redemption of Sion, the Evil Nature shall be utterly destroyed,\nand we shall no longer pray according to the prayer of Jonathan the son of\nEzra, that we may not loose the bound; for all shall be loosed.\u201d\n\nWhile he spake thus, somewhat loudly, behold, a certain Barachiah the son\nof Zadok heard the last words of Nathanael; and he cried after us and\nmocked at us and our Nazarene prophet, for so he called Jesus. Now this\nman was a beggar, crook\u2010backed and lame, and of a malignant disposition,\none that took pleasure in slander and mischief: and oftentimes he had\nthrust himself in the path of Jesus and had besought Jesus to heal him of\nhis deformity. But Jesus would not. So this man called after us, mocking\nus and imitating the voice of Jesus and saying, \u201cGo in peace, go in\npeace.\u201d\n\nThen I began to question Nathanael why Jesus had not healed this\nBarachiah: Nathanael answered and said, \u201cBecause he hath not faith.\nMoreover, as thou knowest, Jesus doth not adventure to heal all\nafflictions and all diseases. And even if the affliction be such as can be\nhealed, yet he healeth not, except there be first faith.\u201d Then I said,\n\u201cBut how doth he discern such as have faith from such as have not faith?\u201d\nBut Nathanael answered, \u201cI know not; and indeed it is a marvel to me to\nsee how he healeth the sick. But he speaketh of these mighty works as\nbeing prepared for him beforehand in heaven. And indeed it seemeth to me\nthat whensoever Jesus doeth a mighty work on earth, he seeth it also done,\nin that instant, in heaven. For he looketh upon the body of the sick man\nwith his eyes; but with his spirit methinks he looketh on the spirit of\nthe man in heaven; and there he seeth a Hand, even the Hand of the\nEverlasting Arm; and whatsoever the Hand worketh in heaven, even that doth\nJesus work on earth; and if he seeth the Hand unloosing the chain from the\nspirit of the man in heaven, then Jesus unlooseth the chain on earth. But\nif he seeth that the Hand in heaven moveth not, then his hand also is\nstayed on earth.\u201d\n\nBut I said, \u201cWhen Jesus hath healed the sick, he biddeth them go in peace,\nas Barachiah but now cried after us. Now if there be no peace in the man\u2019s\nheart, how can he go in peace? Doth Jesus therefore make peace in the\nman\u2019s heart? Or is it that he merely seeth peace in the man\u2019s heart, and\nspeaketh aloud that which he seeth?\u201d \u201cBoth,\u201d replied Nathanael; \u201cat least,\nso it seemeth to me. For I judge that Jesus not only discerneth peace, but\nalso maketh peace. Likewise also he seemeth to me to make faith. I know\nnot how it is, but of late a certain Mattathias described to me the manner\nin which Jesus had dealt with him. Now this Mattathias was afflicted with\na disease in his feet, insomuch that he had not walked for these three\nyears: and he was carried by his friends into the presence of Jesus.\n\u2018And,\u2019 said he, \u2018before I saw Jesus, I had scarce any hope that he might\nbe able to help me; but when I looked upon Jesus, and saw what a strength\nshone in his countenance, then I began to have faith, but not much; for\nstill I feared more than I hoped. Yet as Jesus healed first one and then\nanother (for there were many waiting to be healed before me) my faith grew\nstronger and stronger. But when Jesus was come to the bed whereon I lay,\nhe fixed his eyes steadfastly upon me, so that the brightness thereof\npassed like purifying fire into my soul; and he looked up unto heaven and\nthen down upon me, and it was as if he had been wrestling with the evil\nspirit of faithlessness in my heart and had quite driven it out. For now,\nbehold, of a sudden, my doubts and fears and troubles were all clean gone,\nand my heart was as light as air, and a certain irresistible faith\npossessed me; insomuch that, though I lay still on my bed, I knew that I\nhad been made whole and that I needed naught save the bidding of Jesus to\ntell me when to arise. And when the word came, I arose.\u2019 Now,\u201d said\nNathanael, \u201cthus spake Mattathias to me. But if he spake aright, then\nmethinks Jesus hath a power to create faith in the heart as well as to\nheal the diseases of the body.\u201d\n\nAll that night I meditated upon the words of Nathanael and upon the story\nof Mattathias: for that a prophet should cure diseases seemed possible,\nthough wonderful; but that any one, yea, even though he were the Redeemer\nof Israel himself, should have power to create peace and faith, this\nindeed seemed a marvellous and almost an impossible thing. But it came to\npass that on the morning of the very next day, as I remember, we went into\nthe house of a certain rich man with Jesus; and a great company was\nassembled (some because of the mighty work that Jesus had wrought on the\nGadarene, but others, of the richer sort, because they desired to abet the\nplotting of the Pharisees against him), and Jesus was now on the point to\nspeak to the people, when a noise was heard from the roof above. There had\nbeen no small stir, even before, near the door of the house, and none had\ntaken heed thereof; but now we looked up, and behold, one sick of the\npalsy in a bed was let down by ropes, until the bed reached the place\nwhere Jesus was; for he sat in the gallery that ran round the court\u2010yard,\nbut we stood in the court\u2010yard below. Now many of us thought that Jesus\nwould not heal one that thus thrust himself into the midst of the people,\ninterrupting his exhortation and doctrine; and some cried out to remove\nthe man, but others cried out Nay. Howbeit, when Jesus gave command that\nthere should be silence, there was silence, even such a silence that men\nfeared almost to breathe; so great was the expectation of all to see what\nJesus would do.\n\nThen sounded forth these words above the heads of all the congregation,\nfull of pity, yet like unto the sound of a silver trumpet in clearness:\n\u201cThy sins be forgiven thee.\u201d I myself was so far off that I heard the\nwords, but could not see the countenance of Jesus. But they that saw him\ntold me that it was even as Nathanael had described unto me the healing of\nMattathias. For Jesus fixed his eyes steadfastly on the man, as if he saw,\nnot the man himself, but the man\u2019s angel standing in heaven bound before\nthe throne of God, with the chains of Satan round him, and all the host of\nheaven looking thereon. \u201cHis countenance also shone as the sun: pity and\nsorrow were there, but pity and sorrow swallowed up in the brightness and\nglory of joy and triumph; and the sick man\u2019s face gave back the\nbrightness. But when Jesus perceived that the time had come, and that the\nword of God had gone forth, and that the chains in heaven had been broken,\nthen Jesus spake and broke the chains on earth.\u201d So spake one unto me\nafterwards, describing the manner of Jesus, how he forgave the palsied\nman.\n\nBut after the first silence there arose a great murmuring and the sound of\nmany voices disputing. The voice of Eliezer was clearly heard saying,\n\u201cThis man blasphemeth; who can forgive sins but God alone?\u201d \u201cYea,\u201d said\nanother, \u201cand sins are forgiven not on earth, but in heaven, at the last\nday.\u201d But others mocking said that the sick man seemed not yet to have\ngained much profit, albeit his sins had been forgiven. All this noise and\nstir ceased at once when Jesus began to speak. He said, \u201cWhy reason ye\nthese things in your hearts? Whether is it easier to say to the sick of\nthe palsy, \u2018Thy sins be forgiven thee,\u2019 or to say \u2018Arise, and take up thy\nbed and walk\u2019? But that ye may know that the Son of Man hath authority\neven upon earth to forgive sins\u201d\u2014here he paused and stood up, and behold,\nthe whole of the congregation was constrained to stand up with one\nconsent; insomuch that I saw even Eliezer the son of Arak standing up with\nthe rest, and his face was kindling as the faces of the rest, and the\nsilence was even such as could be felt, and the palsied man himself seemed\nhalf to raise himself in his bed in expectation: and, like a shock, there\nfell on us the word \u201cArise.\u201d And lo, the man arose at once, and stood\nstraight up, and Jesus said to him, \u201cTake up thy bed, and go thy way into\nthy house.\u201d And immediately he arose, took up his bed, and went forth\nwhole before them all.\n\nThen were all amazed, and glorified God, and some said, \u201cWe never saw it\nin this fashion.\u201d But others praised and magnified the All\u2010merciful\nbecause He had given this new authority to men, so as to forgive sins, and\nthis too not hereafter in heaven, but at once and upon earth. But Eliezer\nand the chief ruler and others of the elders of the synagogue, when they\nhad recovered from their first astonishment, took counsel how they might\nagain catch Jesus in his doctrine. For they said, \u201cNone can forgive sins,\nexcept God only: therefore it is certain that this man maketh himself\nGod.\u201d Howbeit they veiled their thoughts with a smooth countenance, for\nfear of the multitude; and going up to Jesus they saluted him before they\ndeparted from the synagogue. But Jesus looked wistfully at them, like unto\none hoping for good news; for he thought that they would have understood\nthat God had sent him, perceiving the finger of God in the healing of the\nman that was sick of the palsy. But when he perceived their dissimulation,\nhe was silent until he had come forth from the synagogue: and then I heard\nhim sigh, and he said in a low voice to himself, \u201cFor judgment am I come\ninto this world, that those who see may see not.\u201d\n\nDuring the rest of that day Jesus sat musing: and at one time he seemed to\nbe sad, but at another time to rejoice. But even when he was sad, there\nalways appeared a joy beneath the sadness; so that his sadness was but as\nthe cloud that dappleth the side of a mountain, the summit whereof shineth\nbright in the sunlight. For it was the nature of Jesus always to be\ncheerful and to rejoice; insomuch that peace and joy seemed to go forth\nfrom him to all men and things around him, and from them to come back with\nincrease to him again. But now he was sorrowful, as we gathered, because\nof the hardness of heart of the Pharisees. For howsoever they might\noutwardly dissemble, yet did he discern their hearts, that they were\ninwardly grieved, yea, at the goodness of God; wherefore now indeed, after\nthis second token of their hardness, it seemed to be indeed the will of\nGod that the Good News should be of no avail unto the Scribes, save only\nto make their eyes blind, and their hearts fat, and their ears hard of\nhearing. For this cause our Master sorrowed: but for some other cause he\nrejoiced, or seemed in expectation of some joy to come.\n\nBut as for the rest of us, we disputed among ourselves touching this new\npower which Jesus had brought into the world; for it seemed more than\nhuman, and such as no prophet before him had ever used or so much as\nsought from God. Only Judas was silent more than was his custom: and he\nseemed disturbed and doubtful, as one uncertain of his path and not\nknowing whether to go forward or backward. For when Nathanael spake about\nour Master\u2019s authority to forgive sins, and how in the day of Redemption\nhe would destroy the Evil Nature, then Judas at times heard him gladly, as\nif he earnestly desired that this should be true; but at another time he\nscoffed and said that \u201cNo forgiveness of sins would drive out Herod from\nTiberias, nor the Romans from Jerusalem.\u201d\n\n\n\n\n\n CHAPTER XII\n\n\nBy this time the autumn was come round, and it wanted but a few days to\nthe tenth day of the month Tisri, which is the Great Day of Atonement. Now\nso it was that, when we arose on a certain morning (in the first week, as\nI remember, of the month Tisri), behold, Jesus was not in the house, and\nwhen we sought him, we found him on the shore musing; insomuch that at\nfirst he was not aware of our presence. But when he saw us, he bade Simon\nPeter prepare his fishing\u2010boat, for he desired to go out into the deep. So\nSimon Peter and Andrew launched the boat, and I with them; and Jesus went\non board, and there he sat, still musing, while we made ready the tackling\nand the nets. While we busied ourselves herein, many of the sailors and\nfishermen of the town came down to the coast and began to launch their\nvessels; for the day was fair for fishing.\n\nNow there was standing on the beach the hunchback Barachiah, the son of\nZadok: for his custom was to beg of the sailors, and to do for them such\nsmall services as he was able. But he was hated of the most part of the\nsailors by reason of his envious and malignant disposition, and because he\ncould not refrain from reproaches and revilings. Moreover they accused him\nthat he had sometimes mislaid or hurt their tackling. Others also said\nthat he had an evil eye and brought evil fortune. Wherefore he fared ill\nwith the sailors, and even when they gave him alms, it was as to a dog or\nan unclean creature: and oftentimes they struck him when he crossed them.\nNow it chanced that while we made ready our nets, behold, a certain\nmerchant, coming down to the water, stumbled upon a stone and fell against\nBarachiah. Then Barachiah cried out in anger, \u201cWast thou born with a\nbridle in thy hand that thou shouldst treat thy brethren as if they were\nmules or asses?\u201d But the other replied, \u201cYea, and thou wast born with a\nsaddle on thy back, that I might ride upon thee.\u201d So saying, he spurned\nBarachiah out of his path, so that he fell to the ground: and hereat all\nthe sailors laughed.\n\nNot long after this there came down two sailors, nigh to the place where\nBarachiah sat wiping the blood from his face; and one of them spake to the\nhunchback some words, I know not what, but, as it appeared, of kindness.\nThen straightway Barachiah rose up and went with the man, and willingly\nhelped him to launch his boat and to prepare his tackling. And the man\u2019s\ncompanion laughed and said, \u201cWhence hast thou the power to soften the\nheart of that child of Satan?\u201d But when Barachiah was departed, the sailor\nanswered that he had in times past shown kindness to a brother of\nBarachiah, that was now dead; and he added in jest, \u201cIn all men there be\ntwo hearts, a heart of stone and a heart of flesh: and Barachiah hath his\nheart of flesh, even as others, though he be a child of Satan.\u201d \u201cNay,\u201d\nreplied the other, \u201cbut if there be a heart of flesh in Barachiah, it\nwould need Solomon\u2019s ring to find out where it is hid.\u201d And so jesting\nthey rowed out into the deep.\n\nNow I perceived that Jesus noted all these words of the two sailors, and\nlikewise that which had befallen Barachiah, and while he listened and\nlooked, the appearance of his countenance was altered; for before, he had\nseemed in his musing like one waiting for an answer to a question, but now\nlike one that had received an answer. Howbeit still he mused and ceased\nnot, while we rowed out into the deep, and busied ourselves with casting\nour nets.\n\nBut so it was that, as we rowed and drifted hither and thither in our\nfishing, we were carried very close to the coast, where the rocks came\nstraight down to the sea after the manner of a wall; and suddenly we heard\na piteous sound as of bleating. When we looked up, we saw a lamb, which\nhad strayed from the flock, and had come to a stand upon a ledge in the\nrock, exceeding narrow, so that it could not go forward, neither knew it\nhow to turn back: but there it stood, and bleated often and piteously, so\nthat our hearts were sorry for the creature, and we would fain have helped\nit, but knew not how; for there was not space to land. But while we hung\nupon our oars not knowing what to do, Peter cried out, \u201cThe shepherd\ncometh\u201d; and presently we all discerned him, very high up, and clambering\nfrom rock to rock for to reach the lamb. And when we all shouted and\nbeckoned to him, he straightway understood us, and coming down, though\nwith much ado, took the lamb on his shoulders and bore it safely away.\nHereat we were all well content; but when I looked on Jesus, his face\nshone with an exceeding joy, too great, methought, for so small a matter,\nso that I marvelled. For there was no more in his countenance the look of\none questioning, but rather of one gazing upon the glory of God. Then when\nwe had hauled in the net, he gave command that we should row back to\nCapernaum.\n\nNow the next day Jesus showed forth what he had on his mind. For about\nnoon he went down to the place where one Matthew a tax\u2010gatherer was\nsitting at the house of customs near the quay. And for a while Jesus\nbeheld him, how he bore himself amid all the concourse and stir of that\nbusy place; then he drew nigh, and called Matthew to be one of his\ndisciples, saying unto him, \u201cFollow me.\u201d And Matthew arose and followed\nhim and bade him to a great feast in his house on the same day, and\nthereto he called many of his acquaintance, both tax\u2010gatherers and\nsinners, and others of the poorer sort; and Jesus promised that he would\ncome to the feast. But when this was noised about the town, the anger of\nthe Pharisees was great; for they counted it as a sign that Jesus would\nnot join himself to them, nor do anything to gain their favour. But as for\nthe sailors and common people, some rejoiced, others marvelled; insomuch\nthat when we came to Matthew\u2019s house, we found a great concourse of people\nboth round the doors and in the feast\u2010chamber.\n\nNow as we entered the chamber, I could not but chafe somewhat for the\nbaseness of the company with whom we were forced to consort. For they were\nall unlearned men, and given to vain conversation; and many of them had\nnot washed before supper; and the savour of their garments and the heat of\nthe room were scarce to be borne. Moreover I saw at one of the tables\nBarachiah the son of Zadok, and others with whom I should never have\nexpected to sit at meat. Then the words of Jonathan the son of Ezra came\nback to my mind, how he had said that Jesus was misled, in that he knew\nnot the evil nature of men; nor could I refrain from imparting these words\nto Nathanael, who was my companion at the table.\n\nBut Nathanael answered that I erred greatly, for that Jesus knew the evil\nthat was in men better than any man, and hated it more than any man:\n\u201cBut,\u201d said he, \u201cthe evil of unwashed hands and unsavoury garments doth\nnot seem to Jesus the greatest of evils.\u201d \u201cBut,\u201d said I, \u201cthese men are\ngiven to other sins; and how cometh it to pass that Jesus beareth with the\nsins of these men, but doth not bear with the Scribes, who do not commit\nsuch sins?\u201d Then said Nathanael, \u201cAs it seemeth to me, there is a certain\nlight in the hearts of men; and whoso hath this light in him, loveth\nlight, and is drawn towards the light whenever the light is placed near to\nhim, even though he may have turned his back upon the light: and thus\nthese sinners are drawn towards Jesus. But if a man for many years make it\nhis business to quench the light in himself, because he feareth it; then\nhe cannot love the light, nor can he be drawn towards it, even though it\nbe very close to him. Even as the Pharisees fear the light in themselves,\nand say there is no light save in the Law and the Traditions. Therefore\nthey quench the light in their hearts and cannot see the true light; and\nthey destroy the Word of God in their hearts, and cannot hear the true\nWord.\u201d \u201cBut,\u201d said I, \u201cif there be stripped off fine\u2010sounding words from\nthy speech, to what is the matter like? It is as though thou shouldst say,\n\u2018It is better that a man should commit murder and adultery and theft\n(provided that he love righteousness), than that he should abstain from\nall these sins, but not love righteousness.\u2019\u201d \u201cThou knowest well,\u201d replied\nNathanael, \u201cthat according to a man\u2019s love of righteousness will be his\nhatred of sin; and whoso really hateth sin, he cannot live therein. Yet\nwhat thou sayest is true; there is more hope of the vilest sinner than of\nthe man that hath in his heart no love of righteousness.\u201d\n\nI mused for a while, and then I said, \u201cThou speakest of hope: but doth it\nseem to thee truthful, looking upon a bad man, to say, this man is good,\nmerely because thou mayest have hopes that he may become good?\u201d But before\nNathanael could make answer, there came into my mind the words of the\nsailor, that \u201cIf Barachiah the son of Zadok had a heart of flesh as well\nas a heart of stone, it would need Solomon\u2019s ring to find out where the\nheart of flesh was hid;\u201d so I told the words to Nathanael. Straightway\nNathanael looked toward the place were Barachiah was sitting at table; and\nthen he turned to me and said, \u201cAnd hath not our Master the ring of\nSolomon?\u201d Then I also looked at Barachiah; and I marvelled to see what a\ngentleness there was in his countenance. But Jesus was at that instant\nbeginning a discourse; so we ceased conversing that we might hearken unto\nit.\n\nThe discourse told of a certain son of a kind father, who, taking his\npatrimony, wandered into a distant city, where he squandered his substance\nin riotous living, so that he was forced to keep swine like an hireling;\nbut returning to his father he was welcomed. Other like parables he spake:\nand all the people were marvellously attentive to hear him.\nNotwithstanding, Jesus would not always discourse himself alone: for he\ngladly heard others, and by questions led many to speak, questioning them\nwith courtesy in no way akin to condescension (even as a brother meeting\nbrothers after long absence); the merchants concerning foreign countries;\nthe officers of the customs concerning the commerce and wares of the\nplace; the mariners and soldiers concerning the ships and currents and\nstrong places and fortresses whereof they severally had knowledge. With\nall these common people did Jesus converse, and to each, methought, he\nadded somewhat of his own nature. And so it was that amid all that\nconcourse of vulgar and unlearned people and boors (as the Scribes would\nhave called them), not one did or said anything unworthy of the presence\nof our Master. Thus did Jesus give to others, and lo, they gave back to\nhim good measure into his bosom, pressed down and running over, according\nto his own saying.\n\nBut when he rose up to go, behold, Barachiah the son of Zadok also rose up\nin haste, and coming to Jesus he fell down on his knees before him, and\nbesought him that he would forgive all the slanders and revilings which he\nhad used concerning Jesus and concerning his disciples. And Jesus both\nforgave him and blessed him. And from that hour even to the day of his\ndeath Barachiah was a new creature; insomuch that he was no longer known\namong them of Capernaum as the viper, or the child of Satan, but they\ncalled him \u201cthe changed man.\u201d\n\nBut as Jesus was now going forth, two of the disciples of John the son of\nZachariah came unto him. For they had been present in the chamber, though\nthey had not partaken of the feast; and they marvelled at the cheerfulness\nof Jesus, because he ate bread and drank wine and conversed freely with\nthe common people, not after the manner of their master. So they were\noffended at Jesus, and said to him, \u201cMaster, why do we and the Pharisees\nfast oft, but thy disciples fast not?\u201d Now John himself had called Jesus\nthe Bridegroom of Israel. Jesus therefore, using these same words,\nanswered and said, \u201cCan the children of the bride\u2010chamber mourn as long as\nthe bridegroom is with them?\u201d Then he turned and looked at us, and his\nface was sorrowful; and he added, \u201cBut the days will come when the\nbridegroom shall be taken from them, and then shall they fast in those\ndays.\u201d Then first did Jesus speak concerning his departure from his\ndisciples: and he meant, perchance, that as John the Prophet had been\ntaken from the midst of his disciples, so also would he himself be taken\naway from us; for the Lord had revealed unto him that Israel was not to be\nredeemed easily, nor without much tribulation. But by what power he should\nbe thus taken, whether by imprisonment (as had befallen John), or by death\nof violence (as was shortly to befall John), or by death in course of\nnature, concerning these things he said naught at this time. But we\nneither understood his words, neither took we thought of them.\n\nBut as we came forth, we met Eliezer the son of Arak, and the chief ruler\nof the synagogue, and many of the elders of the synagogue; and they looked\nat us with sore displeasure. And the chief ruler did not restrain himself,\nbut said to Jesus aloud in the presence of us all, \u201cIs it even so that\nthou wouldst fain be Ruler over Israel? Behold, on thy side are Matthew\nthe tax\u2010gatherer, and Barachiah the child of Satan, and Mary the sinner;\nbut on my side are Eliezer the son of Arak and all the elders of the\nsynagogue. Is it not better to be the tail of a lion rather than the head\nof a dog?\u201d\n\nBut when Jesus noted how certain of the sinners feared to stand before the\nfaces of Eliezer the son of Arak, and of the ruler of the synagogue, and\nhow they were shaken in their faith and abashed (for that they were\naccustomed to be despised and to be trampled on, as being without all hope\nof redemption); then was he exceeding wrath, and he answered and said unto\nthe ruler of the synagogue, \u201cWoe unto the world because of offences: for\nit must needs be that offences come: but woe to that man by whom the\noffence cometh.\u201d Then he pointed to the sinners behind him (whom he was\nwont to call \u201clittle ones,\u201d because they were babes in faith), and he\nspake again to the chief ruler and his party, saying, \u201cTake heed that ye\ndespise not one of these little ones; for I say unto you that in heaven\ntheir angels do always behold the face of my Father which is in heaven.\nFor the Son of Man is come to save that which was lost.\u201d\n\nThen Eliezer the son of Arak interrupted him and said, \u201cWhy eatest thou,\ncontrary to the Traditions, with tax\u2010gatherers and sinners?\u201d But Jesus\nanswered and said, \u201cHow think ye? If a man have an hundred sheep, and one\nof them be gone astray, doth he not leave the ninety\u2010and\u2010nine, and goeth\ninto the mountains, and seeketh that which is gone astray? And if so be\nthat he find it, verily I say unto you, he rejoiceth more of that sheep\nthan of the ninety\u2010and\u2010nine which went not astray.\u201d \u201cBut,\u201d said another of\nthe Scribes, \u201cwhy dost thou shun and rebuke the righteous? What evil is it\nnot to be a sinner?\u201d When Jesus heard that, he said unto him, \u201cThey that\nbe whole need not a physician, but they that be sick. But go ye and learn\nwhat that meaneth, I will have mercy and not sacrifice. For I am not come\nto call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.\u201d So saying, he passed on\nand left the Pharisees, and we followed him.\n\nNow Andrew and Simon Peter had been disciples of John the son of\nZachariah, before they had joined themselves to Jesus. In the evening,\ntherefore, they resorted to Jesus to question him touching the answer he\nhad that day given to John\u2019s disciples concerning fasting. I was with\nthem, and also Judas of Kerioth, and a certain Eleazar the son of Azariah,\na Scribe of Sepphoris and a friend of Jonathan. Now Eleazar did not\nventure to advise Jesus to use shifts and subterfuges so as to keep\nfriendship with the Pharisees; but he said that perchance such sinners as\nmight be converted to the path of righteousness might not be able to\ncontinue therein, unless the path were fenced in by rules and laws,\nfeasts, fasts, and other like ordinances. He also bade Jesus not separate\nhimself from the congregation; for said he, \u201cWhatsoever is decreed by the\ncongregation below, that is decreed by the congregation above; and what is\nratified on earth is ratified in heaven; and with whomsoever the spirit of\nmen is pleased the Spirit of God is pleased.\u201d\n\nBut Jesus answered that as new wine was not like unto old wine, nor a new\ngarment like an old garment, even so the doctrine of John was not like\nunto his doctrine; neither could the two be mixed. The doctrine of the\nPharisees also, he said, was not like his doctrine, and the two kinds of\ndoctrine needed two several and distinct shapes, even as several kinds of\nwine need several bottles. When Eleazar heard this, he went out; for these\nwords seemed to him (as he said to John the son of Zebedee) to be a kind\nof proclaiming of war against the Pharisees; so that there appeared no\nlonger any hope of concord between Jesus and them. Judas also, although he\nstill seemed strangely perturbed, and spake less than was his wont,\nnevertheless said that a great gulf was opening itself between our Master\nand the Pharisees; \u201cand,\u201d said he, \u201cunless something is speedily done,\nthis gulf will be impassable.\u201d Many also that had been disciples of John\nthe Prophet murmured against Jesus, because he had promised to fulfil the\nLaw and had been expected to follow in the course of John, but now he went\ncontrary to the Law and was for choosing a path of his own. For at that\ntime in Galilee they that honoured John the Prophet were more than they\nthat honoured Jesus of Nazareth.\n\nBut for my part my soul was given up to thanksgiving and to praise of God,\nbecause of this new power which He had sent down to men, of forgiving\nsins. For if it seemed a divine word to say \u201cLet there be light,\u201d and\nthere was light, much more divine a word it seemed to say, \u201cLet there be\nrighteousness,\u201d and lo, there was righteousness. And when I remembered the\nsaying of the sailor, how that it needed Solomon\u2019s ring to find out the\nheart of flesh in bad men, and when I called to mind how Jesus had found\nit out, then it seemed to me that a greater than Solomon was among us. I\nthought also on the words of Nathanael, how that, in the day of\nRedemption, the Holy One (blessed is He) will bring the Evil Nature and\nslay him in the presence of the righteous and of the wicked; and my\nthoughts were swallowed up in wonder.\n\n\n\n\n\n CHAPTER XIII\n\n\nThe words of Judas were true, that a great gulf now lay between our Master\nand the Pharisees; and day by day the gulf grew wider, as I soon\nperceived. It chanced that Eliezer the son of Arak knew that I was a\nfriend of Jonathan; and desiring to draw me away from Jesus, he wrote a\nletter to Jonathan begging him to move me that I might return home. This\nletter of Eliezer therefore Jonathan sent unto me, and it was to the\nfollowing effect:\n\n\u201cFrom Eliezer the son of Arak to Jonathan the son of Ezra: salutation and\npeace. Be it known unto thee, O Jonathan, that this Jesus of Nazareth,\nconcerning whom we once had hopes that he might be a deep well or\nperchance even an ever\u2010welling spring of the Law, hath proved an empty\nvessel and a broken cistern. He profaneth the Sabbath and teacheth others\nto profane it; he eateth without the washing of hands; he teacheth that no\nman is defiled by that which he toucheth or eateth; in a word, he breaketh\nthe Law and causeth others to profane it. Yet this in part was known unto\nthee even before, and thou didst deceive thyself, and saidst, \u2018Perchance\nhe hath a message from God concerning the Sabbath and concerning the Law.\u2019\nHear, therefore, O son of Ezra, what new thing this blind guide hath taken\nupon himself to do. He not only teacheth all people everywhere to abstain\nfrom sacrifice, wresting to his own destruction that hard saying of the\nProphet which saith, \u2018I will have mercy and not sacrifice,\u2019 but he also\nhath dared to make himself as God, forgiving sins. This he hath done\npublicly in the synagogue, before the face of the congregation.\n\n\u201cNow we would fain deal gently with the young man, because he seemed once\nto purpose well, and because he hath made unto himself a name for casting\nout unclean spirits. Moreover he is befriended not only by the rabble that\nknoweth not the Law, but also by a few of the wise and pious, as, for\nexample, thyself. For this cause we are minded not at once to punish him\nin accordance with the law for blasphemy, but to make excuses for him by\nsaying that he is beside himself.\n\n\u201cAnd this indeed seemeth to be not unlikely, for he is not as other men\nare; for ofttimes he sleepeth not, but watcheth (as I am informed) whole\nnights together; and albeit he seeth no vision (which sheweth him to be no\nprophet), yet he carrieth himself in such strange fashion as if he saw\nvisions daily; also he is wroth at small faults and at no faults (as thou\nthyself knowest), and yet withal easy to forgive great faults. Moreover of\nlate he most strangely forsweareth the company of all the pious and\nlearned, and consorteth publicly with tax\u2010gatherers and sinners; insomuch\nthat, but now, having called one Matthew a tax\u2010gatherer, to be one of his\ndisciples, afterwards, at a feast in the house of this Matthew, amid mirth\nand wine\u2010bibbing, he took upon himself to forgive the sins of that\nBarachiah the son of Zadok, who, as thou knowest, is by all men called the\nchild of Satan.\n\n\u201cNow therefore, for the sake of the young man Jesus himself, it beseemeth\nthee, O Jonathan, to cause this evil to cease, and to warn his friends, if\nperchance they may see fit to restrain him. Write therefore, I pray thee,\nto his mother Mary, and to his brethren (but I grieve that his father no\nlonger liveth to restrain him) that they may come and lay hands upon him:\nfor they will listen to thy voice. We desire also that thou wouldst write\nto the young man, thy pupil and friend, Joseph the son of Simeon, that he\nmay return to Sepphoris, lest he too fall into the pit of destruction\nalong with this blind guide Jesus. If also thou shouldst inform Joanna,\nthe mother of Joseph, concerning all these things, she would peradventure\njoin her voice to thine, that thy pupil might return. But in any case it\nwere well that the certainty of the madness of this Jesus should be noised\nabroad among all thy friends and acquaintances, to the intent that we may\nthe more easily restrain him.\n\n\u201cHearken, I pray thee, unto my words, O Jonathan, for I will not hide the\ntruth from thee, that certain of us judge the young man Jesus of Nazareth\nmore harshly, saying that he is possessed by Beelzebub. Others also say\nthat hands should be laid upon him without delay, and that he should be\ndelivered to Herod. Now if he hearken unto thee and desist from his\nconsorting with sinners, or if his kinsmen lay gentle hands upon him, then\nwe are willing that he should suffer few stripes; but if not, many stripes\nwill be needful. But if he should be delivered to Herod, or if the people\nshould peradventure take up stones to stone him, who knoweth the end\nthereof? Peace be with thee!\u201d\n\nTogether with the letter of Eliezer was a letter from Jonathan, who\nbesought me to send word unto him about the welfare of Jesus; and I could\nperceive that, albeit the old man was wroth that any should say that Jesus\nwas possessed with an unclean spirit, yet even he inclined his ear to\nbelieve that Jesus was beside himself. For after some words touching the\nhealth of my mother, the letter ended thus, \u201cAlas, because of the iniquity\nof this generation! For verily Jesus was fit to be the Redeemer of Israel;\nbut the generation was unfit. He was as the morning star in his joy, and\nas the sun in the glory of his brightness; but the night cometh apace, and\nthe sun must give place to the darkness. Verily, Jesus was of them that\nhave entered into Paradise, and have tasted of the honey of the highest\nheaven. But perchance he hath seen things not vouchsafed to men to see,\neven the mystery of the Chariot; and the vision hath been too much for the\neye of man, and with much honey the mind hath been demented.\u201d\n\nWhen I received these letters, I purposed at once to inform Jesus\nconcerning the plots of the Pharisees. But he was not at that time at\nCapernaum, but at Bethsaida Julias; so I hastened thither. When I was come\nthither, Jesus was exhorting the people; and there was a great concourse\nto hear him, so that I could not come nigh unto him for the press. But\nwhile I stood afar off, behold, Eliezer the son of Arak advanced towards\nhim through the midst of the press; and all men made way for him. But he,\nmaking as though he could not advance further, called to Jesus in a loud\nvoice, so that all men should hear: \u201cBehold, thy mother and thy brethren\nstand without, desiring to see thee.\u201d\n\nNow could I see from Eliezer\u2019s countenance and from the manner of his\nspeech, and from the faces of some of the Scribes that were sitting in the\nprincipal places, yea, and from the faces of some others that were in the\noutermost part of the crowd (for they nodded and beckoned each to the\nother) that here was indeed the very plot of the Pharisees whereof Eliezer\nhad made mention in his letter to Jonathan. For the mother and brethren of\nJesus had come with intent to lay hands on him, having been persuaded that\nhe was beside himself. And immediately all that were in the chamber seemed\nto become aware of the plot. For Jesus ceased from his teaching; and many\nstood on tiptoe gazing toward that quarter of the crowd where the mother\nof Jesus was waiting, and then they gazed back on Jesus again, marking how\nhe bore himself. So there arose a marvellous great stillness, while every\none waited to hear what Jesus would say: and my heart beat so that I could\neven hear the beating thereof. But Jesus said, \u201cWho is my mother, and who\nare my brethren?\u201d Then he looked round about on those of his disciples\nthat sat nigh unto him and he said, \u201cBehold my mother and my brethren. For\nwhosoever shall do the will of God, the same is my brother and my sister\nand mother.\u201d\n\nWhen he had said these words, then the countenance of Eliezer fell. For he\nhad hoped either to have found occasion against Jesus (as though he paid\nno reverence to his mother, not rising up or going forth to meet her), or\nelse that the brethren of Jesus should have laid hands on him as he went\nforth, and so all men should ever after have esteemed him as one beside\nhimself. But the words of Jesus manifested that he ceased not to love and\nhonour his mother, howbeit he loved and honoured others also, even as many\nas were in the Family of God, unto whom he was as a brother or as a son;\nneither ought he to have forsaken all the Family of God to please the\nfamily of Nazareth; for, had he gone forth to meet them that stood\nwithout, he had forsaken and caused to stumble all them that sat within.\nSo they perceived what was in the mind of Jesus; and they magnified him\nthe more.\n\nWhen the Pharisees perceived that they had not prevailed with the common\npeople, they began to adventure a second plot. For they procured a certain\nScribe to accuse Jesus in the synagogue, and to say that he cast out\ndevils through Beelzebub the prince of the devils. The name of the Scribe\nwas Hezekiah the son of Zachariah, from Jerusalem; even the same Hezekiah\nof whom I spake before, when I spake of the meeting of the Galileans in\nthe valley nigh unto Sepphoris. Howbeit, neither did this plot prevail\nwith the common people. For the same accusation had been brought by the\nScribes against John the prophet: but in vain. For the people could in no\nwise be persuaded that such an one as Jesus was possessed with an unclean\nspirit, nor that sick men could be healed and devils driven out by\nBeelzebub.\n\nBut that which caused most surprise to many of the disciples was to note\nhow great a wrath was kindled in Jesus by this accusation. It chanced, as\nI remember, that we were in a small synagogue in the town called Jotapata.\nHe had driven out a devil from a young man, and the devil tare the young\nman as he passed out of him, so that the young man lay on the ground\nlifeless. Jesus, as his manner was, took the young man by the hand for to\nhelp him to arise; and because there seemed no life in him, he stooped\ndown and embraced him for to lift him up. Now the rest of them that were\nwith Hezekiah held their peace, albeit against their will; so great was\ntheir marvel at the deed, and so mighty was the presence of Jesus. Only\nHezekiah still hardened his heart. Therefore while Jesus was now lifting\nup the youth, of a sudden was heard the voice of Hezekiah crying aloud,\n\u201cThou castest out devils through Beelzebub the prince of the devils:\u201d and\nall the people were as men amazed, and stood agape, expecting what Jesus\nwould do.\n\nJesus himself, at first, seemed like unto one in a dream, turning his eyes\nfrom the young man (whose life had now returned to him) to the face of\nHezekiah, and from Hezekiah again back to the young man; as though either\nhe himself had not heard aright, or else Hezekiah had not seen clearly how\ngreat a work had been wrought for the young man. For belike he could\nscarce believe that any man in Israel could refrain from rejoicing at the\nyoung man\u2019s deliverance; nor did it seem possible to him that any among\nthe children of men could suppose that a devil could be cast out save by\nthe finger of God. But when he perceived that the face of Hezekiah was set\nas a rock against him, and that his eyes were as the eyes of one mocking\nhim; and when he looked round also upon the people, and perceived that\nsome of them were abashed and shaken in their faith because he had as yet\nmade no answer, then indeed his countenance was changed against Hezekiah,\nand he made answer to him after his folly: that, if it was so indeed, and\nif Satan was divided against himself, then let all men rejoice, for\nbehold, Satan could not stand. But if not, and if he cast out devils by\nthe hand of God, \u201cThen,\u201d said he, \u201cthe Kingdom of God hath come upon you\nunawares.\u201d\n\nWhen he had spoken these words, he stood, as if in pause, and fixed his\neyes on the face of Hezekiah. But he looked upon him no more with anger,\nbut with a marvellous pity; and behold, his countenance, which was wont to\nshine as the sun, became pale and cold to look upon, even as the moon in\nher brightness, looking down upon a man drowning in deep waters; and he\nadded and said, \u201cAll manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto\nmen; but the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit shall not be forgiven unto\nmen. And whosoever speaketh a word against the Son of man, it shall be\nforgiven him: but whosoever speaketh against the Holy Spirit, it shall not\nbe forgiven, neither in this age, nor in the age to come.\u201d Never before\nhad we seen Jesus so moved. Hezekiah himself was confounded, and gasped\nfor breath and could not speak, but went out of the synagogue in\nconfusion; neither was there one in the congregation that went out with\nhim.\n\nBut when the congregation had departed I went to Nathanael and questioned\nhim concerning this matter. For even from the first, Nathanael had a\ndiscerning spirit, able to discern matters wherein I groped as in\ndarkness; but moreover of late I had noted how he had seemed to grow in\nwisdom and discernment, so that it was a marvel to see how great a change\nhad come to pass in how short a time: and he was to me, as it were, an\ninterpreter of the words of Jesus. So I asked Nathanael what Jesus meant\nby the words \u201cblasphemy against the Holy Spirit,\u201d and why that sin was\nabove all other sins so that it could not be forgiven.\n\n\u201cFor,\u201d said I, \u201cJesus was blasphemed as a gluttonous man and as a wine\u2010\nbibber, not many days past, in this very place, and I noted well (but thou\nwast not with us) with what a calmness, yea, even to mirth, Jesus endured\nthe charge. For we chanced to be passing through this very street, and the\nchildren were coming forth from the school and sporting after their\nmanner; and Jesus sat him down on the stone yonder and watched them at\ntheir sports. And behold, the children had divided themselves into two\ncompanies, a small company and a large company; and the small company had\npipes and tabors, and were to play thereon; but the others were to conform\nthemselves to the music of their fellows. But when they were now\nbeginning, the larger company could not agree among themselves, and (after\nthe manner of wanton children) they knew not their own minds. So when the\npipers piped merry music they would not dance, but cried out for sad\nmusic; but when the pipers piped sadly, then they would not beat their\nbreasts, nor make as if they were in the house of mourning, but stopped\ntheir ears and called for merry music: whereat the pipers were vexed, and\ncomplained of the inconstancy of their fellows. Then do I right well\nremember how Jesus noted it all, and smiled thereat. And turning to us, he\nsaid, still smiling (though with some touch of sadness), that this\ngeneration was like unto those children: for he had come piping merry\nmusic, and John the Prophet had come piping sad music, but the men of this\ngeneration would listen to neither; for they said that John had a devil,\nand that he himself was a gluttonous man and a winebibber, a friend of\npublicans and sinners. Now wherefore, thinkest thou, did Jesus endure so\nlightly to be blasphemed as a gluttonous man and a winebibber, but endured\nnot to hear the words of Hezekiah? And what is this sin against the Holy\nSpirit?\u201d\n\nWhile I was saying these words, standing beneath the olive\u2010grove on the\nside of the hill which looketh on Jotapata, Nathanael sat down upon the\ngrass; and I sat down likewise. Then he said to me, \u201cNot many days gone\nby, I heard Jesus speak concerning the Holy Spirit; and his words were on\nthis wise. As in each man the man\u2019s breath or spirit is the life of the\nbody, so in each man there is a certain holy breath or spirit which is the\nlife of his soul; whence also cometh every good thought and deed unto the\nman. Moreover thou seest that the air which we breathe, and which is the\nbreath of our bodies, is but a part of that great sea of air which\nembraceth the whole earth so that there is nothing hidden from the touch\nthereof; insomuch that the same air or breath which is coming towards us\nfrom yonder mountain top, making the terebinth\u2010trees to bow, and which\neven now rustleth in the olive\u2010trees above us, even this is our breath and\nour life. Now I have heard Jesus say that there is a likeness between this\nbreath of our bodies and the breath or spirit of our souls. For as the\nwind bloweth where it listeth, and we hear the sound thereof, but know not\nwhence it cometh nor whither it goeth, even so it is with the spirit of\nour souls, the spirit of goodness, which is the Holy Spirit of God.\u201d\n\nThen I said, \u201cBut how shall we obtain this Holy Spirit? Or is it indeed\nneedful that we should obtain it, seeing that we have it already? Or do\nsome have it, but others have it not?\u201d Nathanael answered and said, \u201cAll\nhave it. But some have little, and none much; and Jesus hath come that we\nmay have it abundantly. But how we shall obtain it, this I know not now.\nBut this I know, that Jesus hath the Holy Spirit in himself, and that he\nwill impart it to us. For I heard him say that no man can enter into the\nKingdom of God unless he is born again of the Holy Spirit.\u201d\n\nThen he paused, and said, \u201cIs there not, O Joseph, a certain saying\ntouching the Shekinah, how that it dwelleth not with one man, but with\nmany?\u201d And I replied, \u201cYea, but with one also; for it is said, \u2018When _ten_\nsit and are occupied in words of the Law, the Shekinah is among them, for\nit is said, God standeth in the _congregation_ of the mighty. And whence\ndwelleth it even with _two_? Because it is said, Then they that feared the\nLord spake often _one_ to _another_. And whence even with _one_? Because\nit is said, In all places where I record my name I will come unto _thee_\nand bless _thee_.\u2019\u201d Nathanael smiled and said, \u201cOur Master also teacheth\nthat the presence of the Holy Spirit is with two or three, whensoever they\nare gathered together in his name. But this doctrine he foundeth not on\nwords of Scripture; but methinks he seeth that there is a certain Spirit\nof Goodness or Kindness which passeth from one man to his neighbour and\ngathereth strength as it passeth. But when a man is alone and without\nneighbours, it cannot in this way gather strength. For it is a Spirit of\nLove. Wherefore, as it seemeth to me, our Master teacheth that the Holy\nSpirit is present, in some sort, in the intercourse between man and man,\nwhensoever men do aught together as the children of God.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut yet,\u201d said I, \u201cI would fain know why Hezekiah the Scribe was thus\nrebuked, and why the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is not forgiven.\u201d\nThen said Nathanael, \u201cAll men have within themselves some portion of the\nSpirit of God; even as we now have some portion of that great wind and\nbreath of heaven which here in Jotapata is rustling in the olive\u2010branches,\nand yonder at Capernaum is driving the fishing\u2010boats, and out in the Great\nSea is speeding the ships of Tarshish on their path. Now if thou closest\nthy mouth and thy nostrils against the winds of heaven and sayest, \u2018The\nair is as poison to me, I will not breathe it,\u2019 behold, thou perishest.\nEven so is it with the Holy Spirit. Every man that cometh into the world,\nhath in him some portion of the Holy Spirit. For the spirit which is in\nhim breatheth of the Holy Spirit, and dependeth and liveth thereon. But if\nhe shall say knowingly in his heart, \u2018I will not breathe thereof; I will\ncall good evil, and the Holy Spirit I will call unholy\u2019; then lo, his\nspirit dieth within him, and he can no more enter into the life of God.\u201d\n\nThen I said, \u201cIs not the sin of Hezekiah less than the sin of Barachiah\nthe son of Zadok, who cursed Jesus?\u201d And Nathanael replied, \u201cNo, for\nBarachiah cursed Jesus in his anger and in his haste, knowing not the\ntruth: but Hezekiah saith in his heart, \u2018Lo, the truth is not pleasing\nunto me, therefore I will not look upon it; nay, it is hateful, therefore\nI will call it evil.\u2019\u201d\n\nThen I mused for a space, and afterwards I questioned Nathanael yet again\nand said, \u201cThou hast said that in the Day of Redemption the Holy One\n(blessed is He) will slay the Evil Nature of men. Therefore at the great\nday what thinkest thou of them which have blasphemed the Holy Spirit? Will\nthey also perish together with the Evil Nature? Or will there be yet\nanother age after the age that is to come, so that even the wicked may yet\nbe in the end redeemed? For Jesus said that they should not be forgiven,\nneither in this age nor in the age to come.\u201d But Nathanael could not\nanswer this question; and we feared to ask Jesus concerning the matter.\n\nWhile we thus spake together, behold, Barabbas stood before us: and he\nsaluted us and besought us that we would sup at his house; for he dwelt at\nJotapata. But I asked him for what cause he had been absent from us of\nlate, and where he had been, and what the people of Jotapata said touching\nthe words of Hezekiah the Scribe. Touching the cause of his absence he\nmade no answer; but as concerning the people, he said that the men of\nJotapata were of one mind, that Hezekiah had spoken for envy. \u201cNor is it\npossible,\u201d said he, \u201cthat a man should believe that Jesus hath a devil,\nunless he himself should have a devil. For they which have devils say and\ndo all things without forethought and with distraction, as if divided\nagainst themselves; but in Jesus there is the contrary from these: for he\ndoth all things with forethought, yea, and perchance\u201d (these words he\nuttered with some show of anger) \u201cwith more than enough of forethought.\u201d\n\nNow Barabbas spake with something of austerity, which was not usual with\nhim. Moreover I marvelled at those words which he had said touching \u201ctoo\nmuch of forethought.\u201d Therefore I asked him again where he had been of\nlate, and why he had forsaken the disciples. But he answered with still\nmore of passion than before, \u201cBecause I am weary of these idle wanderings\nabout Galilee, which bring forth no fruit. Not to sit on stools at the\nfeet of a Scribe did I and my friends join ourselves to Jesus of Nazareth.\nWhy tarrieth he so long idle? Why is his hand so backward to smite the\noppressor?\u201d But I bade him be of good cheer, for the hour was not yet\ncome, and Jesus would know better than we the season fit for our uprising.\n\nBut he replied, still in great heat, \u201cThou wouldst fain know where I have\ntarried these twenty days. Well, I will tell thee. I have but even now\ncome from Mach\u00e6rus, where I have tarried these two weeks and more, nigh\nunto the fort called the Black Castle, wherein John the Prophet is\nimprisoned. With the Prophet himself I had no speech; for he is kept in\nclose durance, insomuch that he pineth, as I hear, for lack of air and\nfreedom. This I heard from one of the guard, who is a kinsman of mine.\nMoreover my kinsman told me that had it not been for Chuza the Steward,\nthe Prophet had been slain ten days ago. For the Tetrarch, after supper,\nbeing heavy with wine, was moved by the adulteress, even by Herodias, to\nwrite letters that John should be beheaded. Howbeit Chuza took order that\nthe letter should be stayed for that time, and won the Tetrarch from his\npurpose. But what surety have we that the adulterous woman may not win the\nTetrarch to write even such another letter to\u2010morrow? And when John shall\nfeel the left hand of the Thracian gripping his hair and the Thracian\nscimitar (may it be accursed!) hacking at his neck, will he not then cry\nunto the Lord in his sore agony and say, \u2018Jesus of Nazareth hath forsaken\nme: Jesus of Nazareth is guilty of my blood\u2019? For this cause do we\nGalileans begin no more to trust your Master, because he speaketh many\nfair words, but we see not from him any doing of deeds.\u201d\n\nHis words so troubled me that I knew not what to say; Nathanael also was\nsilent. But I besought Barabbas to trust in Jesus because of his mighty\nworks, and because of his Gospel, which surely was a message from God.\n\u201cCertainly,\u201d I began, \u201cJesus of Nazareth will not suffer the Prophet to\ndie as a dog dieth.\u201d But, even while I spake, it came into my mind that\nthe ways of Jesus were not as the ways of other men; neither could I\nforetell what Jesus would do, or not do, save only I knew that he would do\nright. So I paused, and added, \u201cor, if otherwise\u2014\u2014.\u201d But Barabbas, at that\nword \u201cif,\u201d brake away from us, and was departing in fury. Howbeit,\nremembering himself, he returned and constrained himself, and courteously\nbesought us to tarry with him that night. But we could not; for we were to\npass on to another town, and not to tarry at Jotapata. So we bade him\nfarewell.\n\nAs we journeyed eastward, I looked back now and then to the high rock\nwhereon the tower of Jotapata is built: for it was exceeding high, being\nindeed one of the fire\u2010stations whence the new moon was wont to be\nproclaimed. And as the sun was now sinking towards the west behind the\nrock, the castle seemed to stand up very clear, and easy to be seen\nagainst the red sky. But as often as I looked thereat, the words of\nBarabbas would come again and again into my mind; and there rose up before\nme the black castle of Mach\u00e6rus and the face of the prophet shut up in\nchains and darkness, and waiting for a deliverer. Then it seemed to me\nthat the shadows of evil were encompassing our own Master also. For the\nPharisees had set their faces against him; and though he had avoided their\nfirst snares, yet I knew full well that they were even now making others\nready. Yea, Eliezer himself had confessed as much; for he had said in his\nletter to Jonathan that, if other means failed, it was purposed to deliver\nJesus over to Herod. And now behold, the Galileans also were like to sever\nthemselves from Jesus and to desert him. So all things seemed full of\ndanger, and there appeared no path of deliverance.\n\nIn my dejection there came one upon another into my mind all the dark\nsayings of Jesus, and especially the words which he had spoken to us in\nthe house of Matthew the tax\u2010gatherer, that \u201cThe days should come when the\nbridegroom should be taken away from the children of the bridechamber, and\nthen should they fast in those days.\u201d So I marvelled and pondered what\nthose words might mean, \u201cthe bridegroom should be taken away.\u201d But they\nwere too deep for me to understand, and I was as one wading in them and\nout of my depth; nor could I light upon anything solid in them save only\nthis, that they appeared to prophesy some evil.\n\n\n\n\n\n CHAPTER XIV\n\n\nOn the third or fourth day after that we had seen Barabbas, we came to\nBethsaida. And behold, as Jesus was exhorting the people, there came into\nthe synagogue two disciples of John the Prophet. And the principal Scribe\nof the place brought the men in, saying that they had a message from the\nProphet to Jesus of Nazareth. Then all men held their peace and expected\nwhat the message should be; and I remembered the words of Barabbas\nconcerning John, and my mind presaged that the prophet had sent to bid\nJesus release him. But the Scribe (for he knew what the message was, and\ndesired to discredit Jesus) said aloud that the message was a strange one,\nnot fit for the ear of the common multitude; therefore it should be\nreserved for the ear of Jesus alone. But all the people listened the more\nintently; and Jesus gave command that the messengers should deliver their\nmessage aloud, and they did so. Now the words of the message were these,\n\u201cJohn the Prophet hath sent us to thee from the prison of Herod, saying,\n\u2018Art thou he that should come, or must we look for another?\u2019\u201d\n\nWhen we heard these words we all looked that Jesus should either rebuke\nthe Prophet for his want of faith, or else make some comfortable answer,\nsaying that he would come with speed and deliver the Prophet from his\nbonds. Howbeit Jesus made no answer, but continued his exhortation; and he\ndrove out certain unclean spirits, and forgave sins. But when he had ended\nthese things, he called to the disciples of John, and he repeated to them\nthose passages of the prophets which describe the signs of Redemption, and\nin particular the prophecy of Isaiah: how the ears of the deaf shall be\nunstopped to hear the tidings of Redemption, and the eyes of the blind\nshall be opened to discern the truth of the Lord; and the lame man shall\nleap as a hart in the paths of salvation; and the tongue of the dumb shall\nsing the praises of the Lord. And he said unto the two messengers, \u201cGo and\nshow John the things which ye do hear and see: the blind receive their\nsight, and the lame walk; the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear; the\ndead are raised up, and the poor have the gospel preached to them.\u201d Then\nhe added these words, \u201cBlessed is he who shall not be offended in me.\u201d\n\nWhen the messengers were departed, Jesus spake to the people concerning\nJohn, saying that John (howbeit he might have changed and fallen from his\nfirst estate, seeming to be, for the time, unstable as a reed or pliant as\na courtier) was, none the less, truly a prophet, yea, and the greatest of\nprophets, inasmuch as he was sent by God as the herald of the Redeemer.\nThen he added thereto a certain saying which filled us all with amazement:\nyea, and even now after forty years, though I be enlightened with the Holy\nSpirit, yet can I not choose but be amazed thereat. For the words were\nthese: \u201cVerily I say unto you, among them that are born of women, there\nhath not risen a greater than John the Baptist: notwithstanding he that is\nleast in the Kingdom of Heaven is greater than he.\u201d\n\nWhen the congregation brake up, many of the people said among themselves\nthat this was an hard saying. Others asked what Jesus meant by dividing\nthem that were \u201cborn of women\u201d from them that are in the Kingdom of\nHeaven; and whether the former meant the living and the latter meant the\ndead. Now I understood (for Nathanael had instructed me) that Jesus put a\ndifference between them which are born of flesh and blood, and them which\nare born of the Spirit; wherefore I partly perceived the meaning of his\nsaying, namely, that the kingdom of the Law and of the Prophets now had an\nend, and that the kingdom of the Spirit of God was at hand; and that the\ngreatest in the former kingdom was less than the least in the latter.\nLikewise I understood Jesus to say that the sending of this message and\nthe moving of Jesus to take up the arms of the flesh argued in John a\ncertain nature of flesh; as if he thereby shewed himself to be born not of\nthe New Kingdom, but of the Old Kingdom of flesh and blood, albeit the\ngreatest therein. Yet for all this, that such an one as Jesus of Nazareth,\nwhose gentleness and meekness (albeit mixed at all times with a certain\nroyal carriage and demeanour) for the most part exceeded the meekness of a\nlittle child, should notwithstanding seem to rate so low the greatest of\nall the prophets of Israel, and exalt so high the meanest of all the\ncitizens in the Kingdom that was to come (which also seemed perforce to\ninclude a certain magnifying of himself as being chief in that Kingdom);\nthis, I say, for all my poising and pondering, still perplexed and\ndistracted my mind, as a thing new and strange, and (I had almost said)\nmonstrous to human reason.\n\nI desired to question Nathanael the son of Zebedee concerning these\nthings; but I could not. For having noted the face of one of my mother\u2019s\nhousehold in the congregation, and fearing lest he might have some message\ntouching my mother\u2019s health, I hasted to seek the man out: and it proved\neven as I feared, for my mother was indeed sick, and had sent, desiring\nthat I would come to see her. Therefore I went to Jesus at once, and\nbesought him that he would suffer me to go to my mother. As I went to\nJesus, I met Eliezer the son of Arak, and would have passed him. But he,\nnoting that I was somewhat moved, stayed me, and having questioned me, he\nsaid, \u201cIf thou art wise, thou wilt not go to Jesus: for but now, he\nforbade one of his disciples to bid farewell to his parents, and another\nhe would not so much as suffer to bury the dead body of his father. For he\nrageth like a young lion taken in the net of the hunter; and whoso leaveth\nhis side, though it be for an hour, seemeth to him a traitor. Be\npersuaded, therefore, and quit this Jesus of Nazareth, and his rabble of\nsinners, and come unto the side of the learned, and thou shalt have\neminence among us.\u201d\n\nNow I could not indeed deny that Jesus had forbidden certain of his\ndisciples to leave him; but he had done it for their advantage, and\nbecause he knew that it would have been ill for them to leave him.\nTherefore I answered Eliezer with the same proverb which the ruler of the\nsynagogue had said to Jesus, that it was better to be the tail of the lion\nthan the head of the fox; and so I left him. For he spake out of a\nmalignant heart, and not because he loved me. Moreover, I knew that if\nJesus should say, Go not, it would be well said; for I trusted him in all\nthings.\n\nI found Jesus surrounded by many disciples, who had been asking him\nquestions concerning John the Prophet, and concerning the manner of his\ndeliverance. For all we at that time were assured in our minds that John\nwould be delivered: for men counted John the son of Zachariah and Jesus of\nNazareth as yoke\u2010fellows in Israel, and the safety of one seemed to depend\non the safety of the other, and the salvation of Israel on both. And\nindeed I myself have often marvelled that Jesus was not moved to adventure\nto deliver John. But, as I judge, he rejected all such motions as\ntemptations of Satan, because he knew that he had not been sent to smite\nwith the sword but only with the breath of his mouth. Wherefore, if he\nwere tempted at all, it was rather, as I suppose, that he should die with\nJohn than that he should fight that John might live. And at this time,\nmethinks, it came into his mind that if indeed it was ordained that John\nthe Prophet should be slain, and perchance he himself also, then was it\nhigh time that new labourers should be sent into the harvest of the Lord,\nto take the places of them that were to pass away. Howbeit, concerning\nthese things I can but conjecture; but, as I remember, when I came to\nJesus, he was looking at the young corn in the fields around very\nintently, and as if he espied in the sight more than others could see.\nPresently he said to them which sat next to him, \u201cSay ye not, There are\nyet four months and then cometh the harvest? Behold, I say unto you, Lift\nup your eyes, and look on the fields, for they are white already to\nharvest. And he that reapeth receiveth wages and gathereth fruit unto life\neternal; that both he that soweth and he that reapeth may rejoice\ntogether.\u201d Then Judas said to them which sat nigh unto him, that these\nwords signified that John should be delivered at once, and that a levy was\nto be made throughout all Galilee: and he added aloud, looking to Jesus,\nthat, \u201cThe reapers were ready,\u201d or words to that effect. But Jesus\nanswered and said, \u201cThe harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are\nfew: pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth\nlabourers into his harvest.\u201d\n\nThen I spake to Jesus and told him that I desired to go and see my mother.\nBut I thought perchance that he would have restrained me, if it were so\nindeed that a levy was to be made throughout all Galilee. But he\nrestrained me not, but bade me go in peace and blessed me, and spake\ncomfortable words to me; and wished me to comfort my mother.\n\nOn the next day I came to Sepphoris, and behold my mother was grievously\nsick and nigh unto death. But when I took her by the hand and delivered to\nher the message of Jesus, saying that he bade her be of good cheer, even\nin that instant her strength came back to her, and her disease abated; and\non the fourth day it departed, so that she rose from her bed. But when the\nday came that I should depart, so it was that my mother desired me to go\nfirst to Tiberias, there to collect certain debts which were owing to her\nnow many days. To this I agreed, nothing loth, for it seemed to me that by\npassing through Tiberias to Capernaum I might bring unto Jesus the newest\ntidings touching the doings of Herod, and perchance also touching the\nstate of John the Prophet. For there were certain of mine acquaintance in\nthe house of Chuza, the king\u2019s steward, who lived in Tiberias nigh unto\nthe royal palace. So I set out for Tiberias first. But when I reached the\ncity, it being now about the tenth hour of the day, I found the people\ngathered together in the Greek quarter by twos and by threes in the\nstreets; and in our part of the city, instead of rejoicings (which I had\nexpected, because the Feast of Purim was at this time), there were\neverywhere signs of lamentation and mourning. So I saluted one of them\nthat passed by, and asked him what these things might mean. But he glanced\nat my mule (which I had borrowed, for more speed, of a Greek in Sepphoris;\nfor not many in Galilee, except Gentiles, use to ride on mules), and he\nsaid, \u201cI perceive that thou art but a sojourner here, else wouldst thou\nsurely have known these tidings which are in the mouths of all the people,\nsince the eighth hour of the day, touching John the Prophet.\u201d Then I said,\n\u201cWhat tidings?\u201d He answered \u201cThat he is dead, slain with the sword; and\nthey say that his head hath been given to Herodias on a charger. But why\nspeak I of things that concern me not?\u201d So saying he looked at me, as I\nhad been a spy (for the spies of Herod were everywhere in Galilee at this\ntime, and most of all in Tiberias); and so he passed on.\n\nStraightway I hasted on to come to the Greek quarter, seeking the house of\nChuza. But on my way thither I passed the royal palace; and at the gate\nthereof were certain of the Thracian guard keeping watch. Now as I passed\nthem, one of the soldiers called to his companion and said, \u201cBut wherefore\ndost thou keep guard to\u2010day?\u201d And the other said, \u201cI keep guard in the\nplace of Thrasymachus who is gone with three centuries to Capernaum.\u201d \u201cAnd\nwherefore to Capernaum?\u201d said the first. \u201cThere is like to be a tumult in\nthe town,\u201d replied the sentinel, \u201cbecause of the beheading of this John in\nMach\u00e6rus; and they say that the rabble will set some leader at their head,\nwho is to be arrested.\u201d \u201cNay,\u201d said the other, \u201cand sayest thou arrested?\nI would have no arresting, but make quick despatch with these leaders of\nthe rabble. But hath Herod heard of this leader?\u201d \u201cNot so,\u201d said the\nother, \u201cfor he is busy in the south with the army; but our general meaneth\nto take order that Herod shall never hear of him.\u201d With that he laughed,\nand made a sign to signify beheading, drawing his hand across his throat;\nthen he bade his fellow go carry some message for him, for he should be\nbusy that day; \u201cFor,\u201d said he, \u201cthe cohort hath not been gone one full\nhour yet, and will not be here again these six hours or more, for they\nmean not to take him by force publicly, but will arrest the man quietly at\nnightfall.\u201d\n\nWhen I heard these things, my spirit fainted, and there was no strength in\nme; but when I came to myself, it seemed best to journey forwards at once\nto Capernaum if perchance I might prevent the coming of the Thracian guard\nand give the alarm to Jesus. So I turned the mule\u2019s head straightway\ntoward the city gate, and rode on the way that leadeth to Capernaum. But\nshe was sore wearied by reason of the length of the journey, and could\nscarce carry me. Howbeit after the space of an hour\u2019s riding I came up\nwith the rear of the Thracians: but I perceived that I could not pass\nthem. For a certain merchant riding on a fresh mule had passed out from\nthe city gate before me, and behold, they had stayed him, and suffered him\nnot to pass; but he rode behind with the rear. Now when I saw this, I\nsmote my hands together, for I saw that I could be of no avail to my\nMaster. And by this time the houses of Capernaum, that is to say the quay\nand the houses near the quay, were in sight, and not far off. For one\nheadland only remained between us and the headland whereon the town\nstandeth; and when the Thracians should have passed round that first\nheadland, there were but six furlongs between them and the market\u2010place of\nCapernaum. But the sun was now nigh setting and the barbarians began to\nquicken their pace.\n\nTherefore I cried unto the Lord in sore distress and left my mule and\nclimbed up to a rock whence I could watch what befel, and there I offered\nup prayers to the All\u2010Powerful, who alone is able to save. Now behold, by\nthis time the Thracians had passed round the first headland, and the last\nof them were out of my sight, so that I could see nothing but the quay of\nCapernaum and two or three fishing\u2010boats riding at anchor just off the\nquay: and there seemed no signs of tumult; for there was no man stirring\nthere. And presently began the helmets of the Thracians to shine again\nbefore mine eyes as their front guard drew near unto the town, and still\nno man perceived them; for the cliff lay between them and the town, and\nthere were still none save two or three sailors on the quay. Then I took\noff the covering from my head and waved it in the air that the sailors\nperchance might take note of it: but they took no note.\n\nNow by this time there was but about a space of two furlongs between the\nfront of the column of the Thracians and the quay of Capernaum, and I\ncould hear the captain give the word of command (albeit not in a loud\nvoice) to hasten their march that they might enter the town the more\nquickly (for darkness was now falling upon the lake); and as the word of\ncommand sounded across the water even to my ears in the stillness of the\nevening, behold, the Thracians hastened their march so that they began to\nrun. Now I held my breath, for I could not so much as pray for very\ntrouble; when lo, a great noise of shouting from the other side of the\nheadland, even from Capernaum; and at the same time a great concourse of\npeople upon the quay, and immediately a long galley appeared, which rowed\nforth very swiftly toward the eastward side of the lake. Then the\nbarbarians halted, even without the word of command; for they knew that\nthe bird was escaped from the snare of the fowlers: and the noise of their\ncursing and clamour came up even unto mine ears as I sat upon my place of\nwatching. But I glorified the God of Israel; and gave thanks to Him whose\nmercy endureth for ever.\n\n\n\n\n\n CHAPTER XV\n\n\nWhen I came into Capernaum, I thought to have heard all men rejoicing for\nthat Jesus had not been taken by the Thracians. But, go where I might, I\nfound it quite contrary; for all men were wroth with him for departing.\nBarabbas was there, and James the son of Judas of Galilee, and many others\nof the Galilean sect; but I could not have much speech with them, so hot\nwas their anger against Jesus; but on the morrow, lighting upon my cousin\nBaruch, I questioned him touching that which had happened, and he said\nthat \u201cthe Prophet had turned from him all the hearts of the Galileans\nbecause he would not raise up Israel to avenge the death of John.\u201d\n\nThen I asked how soon they had received tidings of John\u2019s death, and he\nsaid \u201cYesterday a little before sunset.\u201d I marvelled how the news should\nhave been brought past the Thracians; for, said I, \u201cthey stayed all\ntravellers from Tiberias, neither suffered they any to pass them.\u201d But\nBaruch said that James the son of Judas had contrived that lights should\nbe held up each night from Gamala on the other side of the lake, to the\nintent that the Galileans in Capernaum might know how John fared; and one\nlight should signify that the Prophet lived, but two lights that he lived\nnot. \u201cAnd,\u201d said Baruch, \u201cyestereven before the sun went down, many of the\nGalileans had gathered together by twos or by threes upon the strand to\nwatch for the signal. And first one light appeared, as was usual; and the\nmen said that it was well, for they had one more day wherein to labour for\nthe Prophet\u2019s deliverance. But then Barabbas cried out that there were two\nlights; and at first no man would believe it, for (because the sun had not\nyet set) the lights were not plain to see. But presently Judas also saw\nthe second light, and then they all saw it. Hereupon arose a loud\nlamentation, and the news spread at once through all the city, and the\nwomen began to wail, and the men rushed forth into the streets, and there\nwas a great gathering. Presently with one consent the multitude ran\ntogether to the door of the house where Jesus lodged; and first Barabbas\nwent in to ask Jesus to be leader of the host, but soon he came forth\nagain, saying that Jesus would not. Then went in James the son of Judas,\nsaying that he would beseech Jesus in the name of his father, who had\nfought and died for Israel. With James there went in also three others of\nthe eldest and most reverend of the Galileans, and they remained in the\nhouse longer, so that the people thought they had prevailed upon Jesus;\nand there was a great expectation. But when the elders came out, they\nshowed by their countenances that they had not prevailed.\n\n\u201cThen there was much clamour; and the greater part cried out that they\nwould not depart from before the threshold of Jesus till they had\npersuaded Jesus to be leader of the host; and some cried out to draw him\nforth by violence and to make him leader of the host. But immediately the\ndoor opened, and Jesus himself came forth. Then they no more talked of\nviolence; but Barabbas and others of the armed men held out their right\nhands to him, and promised to give up their lives for his sake if he would\nbe their king. Others fell down on their knees before him; and some caught\nhim by the garment to have stayed him. Only James the son of Judas said\nnothing; and it seemed to me,\u201d said Baruch, \u201cthat at the sight of James,\nJesus was more moved than by all the rest. Howbeit he halted not, but\nmoved straight down to the beach.\n\n\u201cThen when the people perceived that he would leave them, they cried out\neven louder than before, and threw dust in the air and poured it upon\ntheir heads; and some threw themselves on the ground in his path for to\nstay him; and some also spared not threatening. But Jesus took no heed\nthereof, but went still onward with his eyes fast set upon the ground;\ntill one thrust himself before the rest, crying aloud and saying that they\nwould do more for John dead than for Jesus living, and that it was better\nfor a man to lose his life, as John the Prophet had lost it, than to save\nhis life as Jesus desired to save it. Thereat Jesus stayed for an instant,\nand lifted his eyes from the ground; howbeit not in anger, but rather as\nhe is wont to do (for thou well knowest his manner) whensoever he heareth\na Voice of God. But when all the people shouted again, supposing that he\nhad been bent from his purpose, then Jesus beckoned with the hand, and\nwhen he had commanded silence, he spake briefly unto them, and said the\nhour was not yet come; and so he departed.\n\n\u201cNow,\u201d said Baruch, \u201cwhile Jesus was speaking to the people, and even\nafterwards while he was in the sight of the people, it was a marvellous\nthing to see how still they were; for he hath a power over the hearts of\nthe people so that when he is present no one dare move his tongue against\nhim. But as soon as the boat had rowed away and they could see him no\nmore, straightway Barabbas and his friends began to curse and swear; and\nthey said that they would never again ask aught of Jesus, nor place any\nfaith in him. James the son of Judas said little, but his mind seemed to\nbe the same. For this cause therefore all the Galileans are incensed\nagainst Jesus; insomuch that, whereas they had begun to rate him far above\nJohn, they now esteem the memory of John more than the presence of Jesus.\u201d\n\nAfter this, Baruch began to advise me to sever myself from Jesus and to\nreturn to my home at Sepphoris, for, said he, \u201cHe hath the Pharisees for\nhis enemies; and the richer sort are also estranged from him; and it is\ncommonly reported that Herod the Tetrarch seeketh to slay him with the\nsword; and now behold, even the Galileans are turned away from him. Now\ntherefore be persuaded, and come back with me to the house of my father\nManasseh, and tarry with us for the night, and refresh thyself, and on the\nmorrow set forth for thy home.\u201d\n\nBut I made him some fair answer and bade him farewell; for I had\ndetermined with myself to take ship that same night, to have sailed over\nto the other side. But on the morrow, I thought it good (albeit perchance\nI erred therein) to return first to my mother and to relate to her all\nthat had come to pass, and to bid her farewell: for all men now accounted\nof Jesus as of one that must either fight or perish: for it could not be\nthat he should live and be honoured of men, and yet not avenge the death\nof John the Prophet. Wherefore, before I joined myself to a cause that\nseemed so full of peril, I desired to take leave of my mother.\n\nOn the fourth day after I was come to Sepphoris, word was brought that\nJesus of Nazareth was gathering the people for battle, and that he was\nmaking a levy throughout all Galilee, and for this intent had chosen out\ntwelve of his disciples, whom also he called Apostles; and these he had\nsent out by two and two through the several villages and towns. Jonathan\nthe son of Ezra brought me these tidings; and I was with him next day,\nwalking on the road between Sepphoris and Capernaum, when we met Simon\nPeter and Andrew.\n\nThey told us that they had been sent forth by Jesus to proclaim the\nKingdom of Heaven, and to drive out unclean spirits, and to heal diseases.\nThey came without wallet, or food, or money, trusting to the alms of the\npeople. But when we questioned them as to the Kingdom, and whether indeed\nit was to be achieved by force of arms (as the rumour went), or by signs\nsuch as fire from heaven and the like: concerning this they knew nothing.\nAs for the healing of diseases, we saw with our own eyes that they had\nthis power; for they healed certain that were sick in Sepphoris, and even\ncast out three or four unclean spirits.\n\nWhen we had bidden farewell to Simon Peter and Andrew (for they were in\nhaste, passing from place to place like messengers of war) then Jonathan\nturned to me and said, \u201cWhoso pulleth down his old house and doth not\nfirst build for himself a new one, is he wise?\u201d I replied, \u201cNay.\u201d Then\nsaid Jonathan, \u201cLo, Jesus of Nazareth pulleth down the house of the Law;\ntell me therefore, what buildeth he in the place thereof?\u201d I was silent,\nfor I knew not what to answer; but at last I said that Jesus spake of a\ncertain new Spirit which would purify the children of men and enable them\nto attain righteousness without the Law. But Jonathan said, \u201cNay but, my\nson, can a Spirit tell each man of the children of men, from day to day,\nwhat meat he shall eat and what he shall not eat; and when to fast and\nwhen to feast; and what to do on the Sabbath day, and what not to do? Now\nif the Spirit shall tell each man different things, shall there not be a\nconfusion as of Babel? But if the same things, then why should not these\nthings be written in a law? Moreover who shall tell which man hath the\nSpirit and which hath not? For all will say they have it.\u201d Then I said\nthat I could not answer those questions, but that I trusted in Jesus of\nNazareth as in one sent from God, who could not deceive, neither be\ndeceived, for that his deeds and words were those of a prophet. After this\nmanner I answered; but Jonathan said nothing, but only shook his head a\nlittle, as one that doubted more than he hoped.\n\nNow on the third day after this discourse (it being, as I remember, the\nmonth called Adar, a little after the Feast of Purim), my mother being now\ncompletely recovered of her disease, I determined to return to Jesus. For\ntidings came in daily that all Galilee was ready to rise up when he gave\nthe sign, and I was unwilling to show myself a laggard if matters should\ncome to smiting with the sword. But every day I heard that Jesus was more\nand more beloved of the people. For all (save only the Pharisees) were now\ndrawn towards him, in that he seemed to be bent upon avenging John the\nProphet. And his fame began to be noised abroad through all the country of\nGalilee and the parts beyond, insomuch that many that had not heard of him\nbefore, began to cast in their minds what he could be. And some said that\nhe was Elias. For the common folk, yea, and the Scribes also, were ever\nexpecting that Elias should be sent down to earth, according to the saying\nof the prophet Malachi. But others said that he was John the Baptist risen\nfrom the dead; and this saying was commonly reported, especially among the\nGentiles which border on the land of Galilee and in Decapolis, insomuch\nthat Herod himself heard of the rumour, and feared lest it might be even\nso. But whatsoever men reported about Jesus, in any case his fame waxed\nvery great at this time. For before John was beheaded, the fame of John\nprevailed over the fame of Jesus in the minds of many; but now all alike,\neven the disciples of John, looked to Jesus as the avenger of John and as\nthe only Deliverer; insomuch that, at this time, Jesus had both his own\nfame and also the fame of John the Prophet.\n\nI found Jesus in a village about seven miles to the north of Galilee. But\nwhen I had saluted him, I noted that he was marvellously changed; yet not\nso that he was austere, nor even very sad; yet still changed withal,\nalbeit I knew not how nor why. But I had expected that he should have\nrebuked me for that I had been so long absent, neither had I come to him\nwith all speed so as to be present when first he made the levy in Galilee.\nHowbeit, he reproved me not; but questioned me kindly touching my mother\u2019s\nhealth, and rejoiced when I gave him a good report: but afterwards he gave\nhimself again to meditation. When I was come forth from his presence, I\nasked the disciples concerning the state of Galilee, and what number of\nmen were ready to fight on our side, and when the levy should be made, and\nthe hour for battle should be at hand. But the rest were silent, and Judas\nalone made answer, that concerning these things the disciples knew\nnothing; yea, and from certain signs he conjectured that even to Jesus\nhimself the hour of uprising was not yet known, no, nor yet the manner of\nit, nor the means for it.\n\n\u201cBut,\u201d said I, \u201cdid not the people in Galilee receive you when ye went\nforth to proclaim the Redemption?\u201d \u201cYes truly did they,\u201d said Judas, \u201cbut\nall of the baser sort, and the poor folk which have naught of their own;\nwherefore they be always ready for warfare.\u201d \u201cAnd what answer made Jesus\nto your report?\u201d asked I. \u201cTruly a marvellous answer,\u201d replied Judas, \u201cfor\nwhen we said that only the poor and simple folk received us, he rejoiced\nthereat, and thanked God that it was even so.\u201d \u201cNay,\u201d said I, \u201cthat were\nhard to believe.\u201d \u201cBut yea,\u201d said Judas; \u201cfor his words were these, that\nhe thanked the Father, because He had hidden these things from the wise\nand the prudent, and revealed them unto babes.\u201d Then I looked at Nathanael\nto know whether it was even so, and Nathanael nodded his head, as if to\nsay that it was so.\n\nBut Judas continued: \u201cThis also is not the worst. For he hath not only\nturned from him the Galileans; but besides, since our flight, whereas\nthere is special need to be busy and striving, behold, these ten days, he\nmuseth and meditateth, and ceaseth not. Neither are his musings touching\nwar, nor vengeance, nor military matters; but he broodeth over\nprophesyings and abstruse matters. And a stranger might go near to think\nthat he had conceived an imagination that, because the Lord hath suffered\nJohn the son of Zachariah to die, therefore he must needs die also. But\nunless he be speedily raised up from this humour of dejection, all is\nlost.\u201d\n\nHe said no more at this time, for Jesus came forth into the court\u2010yard\nwhere we sat together around the fountain; and straightway we held our\npeace. Then we fell to discourse of John the son of Zachariah, how great\nthings he had prophesied, and how we had hoped that he should have\ntriumphed with us in the Kingdom of God; and one likened John unto Elias\nthe prophet, saying that he spake in the spirit of Elias, and that many of\nthe common people would have it that this John was indeed Elias risen from\nthe dead. Then another spake of the love in which the disciples of John\nthe son of Zachariah still had their Master, and how, though he were dead,\nyet did they still cleave to him in their hearts; insomuch that his spirit\nseemed to rule over them yet more than his living presence. But another\nsaid that John the Prophet could not be Elias: for was it possible that\nthe Lord should suffer such an one as Elias to be slain? And to him\nNathanael replied that Isaiah the Prophet was sawn asunder, and wherefore\nnot also Elias? Then Thomas, one of the Twelve, lamented for John the son\nof Zachariah, because he had been thus swallowed up by destruction,\nneither had he left children to stand in his stead upon the earth; \u201cfor\nthey that die, leaving children behind them,\u201d said he (quoting a certain\nproverb of my countrymen) \u201cdie not, but only fall asleep: but they that\ndie and leave no children, these die indeed.\u201d To this John the son of\nZebedee made answer that whoso leaveth behind him children perverse and\nalien from his own nature, he liveth not, for all his children; but whoso\nleaveth behind him disciples and followers like unto himself and imbued\nwith his own doctrine, such an one liveth, yea even though he be childless\nand lie in the grave. Hereat methought Jesus was strangely moved: howbeit\nhe sat still where he was, and spake never a word.\n\nBut presently mention was made of Jonah the Prophet, how that he also was\nan exile and fled from his country, even as our Master had been forced to\nflee. Then Judas said that Jonah had done ill to flee, for that none could\nflee from the presence of the All\u2010seeing, the Maker of all things, \u201cfor,\u201d\nsaid he, \u201cthe son of man, while he liveth, is like unto a horse tethered\nby a cord which suffereth him to graze, but resteth still in the hand of\nhis owner.\u201d Thereon some one took up the discourse and said, \u201cNay, but\nrather the cord is a cord of love, and the owner is not an owner, but a\nfather;\u201d and another disciple quoted the words of the psalmist, \u201cBy thee\nhave I been holden up from the womb.\u201d Thereat Jesus smiled as if to say\nthat that disciple had spoken well, and he bade John repeat the rest of\nthat same psalm. But when John came, in his repeating, to the words, \u201cO\nGod, Thou hast taught me from my youth: and hitherto have I declared thy\nwondrous works,\u201d then did Jesus seem somewhat moved. But afterwards when\nJohn came unto the words, \u201cThou, which hast shewed me great and sore\ntroubles, shalt give me life again, and shalt bring me up again from the\ndepths of the earth;\u201d then indeed the face of Jesus kindled with a\nmarvellous light, and he bade John cease. But he himself sat, still\nmusing, and his lips moved like unto one repeating the same words over and\nover again: \u201cThou shalt bring me up again from the depths of the earth.\u201d\n\nIt came to pass that, about two or three weeks after these things we came\nto Nazareth, where Jesus was born. Now Jesus had not gone to the place\nthese many days. Some said that he came thither now for to shew unto his\nmother and his brethren (for his father had been long since dead) that he\nwas sound in health and not possessed nor distraught. Others said that he\ndesired to cause his brethren to believe in him; for at this time they\nbelieved not. But others said that he desired to bid farewell to his\nmother before he went forth to deliver Israel; and to this most people\nagreed.\n\nBut when we came to Nazareth, we marvelled that there was so little faith\nin the men of that place. For they thronged us, as in the other towns, and\nthey were fain to look on Jesus, and called him by familiar names (some\nbeing playmates and schoolfellows, some his kinsfolk, and almost all of\nthe number of his acquaintances); moreover they were eager that he should\ndo some mighty work before their eyes; yet could they not believe that he\nwas a prophet, much less that he was the Redeemer of Israel. Neither would\nthey believe that he could drive out evil spirits or heal diseases.\n\nHence it came to pass that Jesus could do no mighty work there. And when\nthey brought unto him many that were sick, and possessed with evil\nspirits, he looked on them, but perceived that they had not faith to be\nhealed. Wherefore he healed none of them; save only that he laid his hands\non a few that were sick of slight diseases and healed them, and even these\nnot without labour. For the same things happened as once in another city,\nwhere a man was healed that had been afflicted with a deaf and dumb\nspirit. For there, because of the man\u2019s want of understanding and lack of\nfaith, Jesus took him apart from the people (for there was a great stir of\ntraffic and of men coming and going), and made signs to him, at the same\ntime touching his ears and his tongue; and he also spake very loud in the\nman\u2019s ears, not in Greek, but in the language of the Jews (which is used\nby the poorer people), saying _Ephphatha_. In this way the man was healed,\nbut only with labour and by degrees. And so it was now, but even worse.\nWherefore Jesus himself marvelled at their unbelief.\n\nNow the cause of their unbelief was that they knew him from a child. For,\nsaid one of them to Jesus himself in my hearing, \u201cBehold, these thirty\nyears we have known thy goings out and thy comings in; we have also sat by\nthy side in the school, and whatsoever thou didst learn we also learned;\nthou didst play with us at our games round the well; we have seen thee a\u2010\nworking in thy father\u2019s house; our couches and our seats are made by thy\nhand; and shall we call thee the Redeemer of Israel?\u201d Moreover another\nbade him come back to the carpenter\u2019s shop; and a third cried out that he\nhad changed trades for the worse, for the Redemption of Israel was a\ndangerous trade. All these were moved by jealousy, and spake out of the\nmalignity of their hearts.\n\nBut a certain old Scribe, Josiah the son of Hezekiah, (which also was the\nchief Scribe of the place, and had known Jesus and loved him of a child)\ncoming forth from his house, met him and fell upon his neck, and blessed\nhim, and embraced him; and then, when he had looked more narrowly at his\ncountenance, he began to mourn over him as if he were his own son,\nlamenting for that the bloom of beauty had departed from the countenance\nof Jesus: \u201cfor behold,\u201d said he, \u201csorrow hath driven out the former\nbrightness of thy joy. Thou wast as the dew of the morning, O my lamb, but\nart become as the parched ground at noontide. Behold, O my lamb, around\nthy cradle mercy and righteousness joined hands together; and when thou\ndidst sport amid this valley, lo, truth and peace went ever with thee, and\nthou didst still hold converse with the angels of God? Unfit art thou, O\nmy gentle one, to do battle with the wickedness of wicked men, and with\nthe cunning arts of the adversary. Verily thou wilt be led as a lamb to\nthe slaughter. Hast thou fathomed the depth of the pit of destruction? Or\ndost thou know by experience the snares of deceit? Return, O thou that art\nthe apple of mine eye, while there is yet time, lest evil befal thee. For\nI know that danger compasseth thee around, and if thou shalt go hence,\nthou wilt come back to me no more.\u201d\n\nJesus spake comfortably to the old man and consoled him; and while he\nconsoled him, his face shone with joy and love; insomuch that the old man\nalso rejoiced, saying that Jesus appeared now again as he appeared in the\ndays of his youth. But still he besought Jesus to return and to avoid\ncontention with the Pharisees, saying that \u201cno vessel but peace can hold\nblessing.\u201d But Jesus answered him kindly and bade him farewell. And so we\ndeparted from Nazareth.\n\nWhen we were now come to the top of the hill which looketh down on\nNazareth, we rested a little to recover our breath. Now Jesus was\nsorrowful because of the unbelief of his kinsfolk and acquaintance, and he\nwas silent (as was his wont when sorrow fell upon him), musing and\nmeditating, and, as it seemed to me, praying; even as one striving to\nunloose the knot of some hard saying or riddle. For the unbelief of his\nkinsfolk had filled him with astonishment. While he thus mused, we\nconversed together, and Judas said that it was an error to have come to\nNazareth. \u201cFor who knoweth not,\u201d said he, \u201cthat a prophet hath no honour\nin his own country? For a prophet known is a prophet despised.\u201d\n\nBut John the son of Zebedee replied that it was a strange thing that the\nacquaintance and kinsfolk of Jesus should suppose that they knew the mind\nand spirit of Jesus because they knew his outward shape and mien and\nmanner of speech: \u201cFor his mind and spirit pass knowledge; and the more a\nman knoweth thereof, the more a man must needs wonder thereat.\u201d So spake\nJohn; but Judas jested at him, and said that John spake as a babe and as a\nsimple clown, knowing nothing of the world. \u201cYet,\u201d added he, looking up at\nJesus, \u201cit is strange methinks that even our Master should also wonder at\nthat which is in no way wonderful.\u201d Then John rebuked him and said,\n\u201cKnowest thou not the saying of our Master, \u2018They that wonder shall reign,\nand they that reign shall rest?\u2019 Wherefore who knoweth whether it may not\nbe that even our Master day by day learneth some new revelation from God\nwhereat to wonder? For whoso increaseth not diminisheth.\u201d\n\nWhen I heard these words I looked at Jesus, and behold, it was even as\nJohn said. For the sorrow that rested upon his countenance because of the\nunbelief of his kinsfolk seemed to be passing away, and to be revealing\nbeneath it an exceeding joy, as of one learning some hidden mystery, or\nhearing some glad tidings. And there came into my mind the words of\nBarabbas (which were contrary to the words of John), how he said that\nJesus did everything with forethought; and behold, both the words of John\nseemed true and also the words of Barabbas; but the words of John seemed\nthe truer. For though Jesus did naught in haste nor in fear nor\nperturbation; yet was he not like unto one that seeth all things to come,\ngreat and small alike, marked out for him as in a chart, nor like unto him\nwhich trusteth in the strength of his own unchangeable will. Nay rather,\neven as a little child hangeth upon the bosom of his mother and hath no\nwill of his own, even so did Jesus continually look upon earth and heaven\nand on the deeds and words of men; and, look where he might, he discerned\nin all things some new knowledge, some revelation concerning the will of\nthe Father in heaven; insomuch that no day passed, yea no hour of the day,\nbut Jesus in this wise held communion with his Father.\n\nBy this time Jesus was arisen from his seat, and we ceased conversing\ntogether when he drew nigh. But Judas, desirous to say somewhat (so as to\nhide what he had been saying), pointed down to the white houses of\nNazareth and to the fields and orchards which compass the city round in\nthe bottom of the valley; and he said to Jesus that the place was\nexceeding beautiful, like unto a handful of pearls in a goblet of emerald.\nBut Jesus looked narrowly at Judas for an instant, and then down at\nNazareth, and then at Judas again; and the sounds of the bleating of the\ngoats and the piping of the shepherds came up to our ears, and the\nlaughter of the children as they sported round the well. When Jesus heard\nthese things, he sighed, and cast his eyes down again on Nazareth, even on\nthe place of his nativity; and he looked at it for a long while very\nlovingly. Then he turned away his head and departed, and he saw it no\nmore.\n\n\n\n\n\n CHAPTER XVI\n\n\nNow so it was that, at this time, the more the hearts of the people were\ndrawn toward Jesus (for though the people of Nazareth had rejected him,\nyet was he much honoured in the rest of Galilee), so much the more did\nJesus seem to thrust them away. For he began to teach us at this time that\nhe should give us no new law, but a certain manna or bread from heaven.\nNow if he had said no more than this, this was not hard to understand; for\nour Scribes also taught in parables after this fashion: but he added that\nthis manna or bread from heaven should be himself, his flesh and his\nblood, which should be given for the life of the world. Now albeit I have\nmyself heard the Scribes speak of \u201cthe days when Israel shall _eat_ the\nMessiah,\u201d(8) meaning that Israel shall enjoy the presence of the Messiah,\nyet Jesus seemed to mean somewhat more than this, insomuch that his words\nwere a stumbling\u2010block unto many. And straightway many of them departed\nfrom him.\n\nBut when I went (according to my wont) to question Nathanael touching\nthese words, he replied that they were hidden from him also.\nNotwithstanding it seemed to him that at this time our Master was\nreceiving some new revelation, whereof these words might peradventure be a\npart. For he said that on the day before, when I had been absent, mention\nhad been made of the coming Passover, and how Jesus would not be present\nthereat; and from mentioning the sacrifice of the Passover they came to\nspeak of other sacrifices; and one said that Jesus had come to take away\nsacrifice, for that he had said that God desired mercy, and not sacrifice,\nand that the right sacrifice was that the whole nation should serve the\nLord and do His will. Then another, quoting the Scripture, said, \u201cNay, but\nthe people may perchance stand in the place of the fuel and the fire: but\nwhere is the lamb for the burnt\u2010offering?\u201d Then answered another from the\nsame Scripture, and said, \u201cGod will provide himself a lamb for the burnt\u2010\noffering.\u201d And at these words, said John, \u201cthe countenance of Jesus\nchanged as if he had heard some new word from God.\u201d Hereat I marvelled\ngreatly, and wondered what new thing the Lord was preparing for us and for\nour Master. And the words of Judas came to my mind that, because John the\nson of Zachariah had been slain, therefore Jesus had begun to imagine that\nhe also must needs be slain. But it was but for an instant; for I durst\nnot so much as entertain the thought of so great an evil.\n\nBut, as I now judge, the Lord Jesus began at this time to see clearly that\nhe must needs die for Israel, even as John the son of Zachariah had died,\nand that he must needs rise again (according to the Prophets); even as the\ncommon people spake, saying that John the Baptist was at this very time\nrisen from the dead. For he perceived that the needs of the world, that is\nto say the will of the Father, required that he should rise again from the\ndead. Moreover as John the son of Zachariah had gained strength through\ndeath, so that all men still loved and honoured John, and were more ready\nto die for him dead than living; even so Jesus perceived that he also\nshould have more strength to help us after his death than before his\ndeath. But touching the manner of his rising again, and the time of it,\nand whether he should appear in his own shape (as he did indeed), or in\nsome other shape (as did Elias in the shape of John the Baptist),\nconcerning all this, what was revealed unto him I know not; the Lord only\nknoweth. But that he should of a certainty rise again from the dead, this\nwas without doubt revealed unto him; and, as I conceive, about this time.\n\nFor this cause, because he perceived that by the giving of his body and\nblood to die for men, his spirit would pass into his disciples (even as\nthe spirit of John the son of Zachariah had passed into the disciples of\nJohn), for this cause, I say, he spake at this time (as he did also\nafterwards), saying that he would give himself to be the food of men, even\nthe Bread of Life. For his spirit was a spirit of sonship to God, and of\nbrotherhood to men; and except the world should receive this spirit into\nitself, the world could not be quickened, and the nations of the earth\ncould not pass into the family or kingdom of God.\n\nFrom this time also he began to be very careful, even to disquietude,\nconcerning us his disciples, what should be our estate when he should have\ndeparted from us; and he desired to impart to us this Bread of Life that\nwe also in turn might impart it to the multitude. Moreover he would fain\nexercise us already in imparting this Bread of Life, yea, before he had\npassed away; to the end that, by beginning in his presence, we might learn\nby degrees to be steadfast in the ministering of the Bread even though he\nwere absent from us. And for this he found occasion not many days\nafterwards. For about the tenth day before the Passover, Jesus being still\non the other side of the lake (but I had been sent with Judas on an errand\nto Capernaum), it came to pass that much people resorted to him; some from\nCapernaum, and others from the parts round about the village wherein he\nhad lodged. For, because of the Passover, which was at hand, many were\ngoing up to Jerusalem. Also of the Galileans some came; howbeit not James\nnor Barabbas, nor any of them which had most authority with the Galileans.\nNow Jesus himself ministered unto certain of them the Bread of Life, and\nforgave sins, and healed the sick. But afterwards, because of the\nmultitude of them which came unto him (for they were more than five\nthousand) he caused the disciples to divide them into companies and to\nminister the Bread unto the people. So they ministered as Jesus bade them,\nand the grace of the Lord was with them; insomuch that Thomas (who had\nbeen at the first loth to minister the Bread, as not being worthy) came\nafterwards to Jesus saying, \u201cOf a truth the crumbs of thy Banquet which\nare fallen from the table of the guests do suffice unto them that\nminister: for the Lord hath increased the Bread of Life within us.\u201d So\nmightily did the Bread of our Master increase in the hands of the Twelve.\nAnd Matthew said that Jesus had not only spread a table in the wilderness\nfor the hungry, but that he had also fulfilled his saying, \u201cGive and it\nshall be given unto you. For,\u201d said he, \u201cbehold, to each of the disciples\nthere cometh back his basketful of the fragments of the Feast.\u201d And the\nlike happened on another occasion, when they ministered the Bread unto\nanother very great multitude about four thousand in number.\n\nAll this I heard when I returned with Judas from Capernaum, bringing word\nthat the Thracians had left the town. So we returned to Capernaum, and\nthere we kept the Passover; for Jesus would not go up to Jerusalem to keep\nit, though we were very desirous that he should go up; but he said that\nhis hour had not yet come. But scarcely had we been in Capernaum five or\nsix days, and the Feast of the Passover was still not ended, when we fled\n(upon some new rumour of danger) from Capernaum again to the eastern side\nof the lake. Now while we were rowing across, some of us murmured (though\nnot so loud methought that Jesus could hear) concerning our many flights\nand wanderings, and we wondered why our Master would not suffer the common\npeople to make him king.\n\nIn the midst of our disputing Jesus called unto us from the hinder part of\nthe boat and said, \u201cBeware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the\nleaven of the Sadducees.\u201d Then we looked one at another, for we felt that\nwe were guilty; for in the haste of our embarking, because we had come on\nboard before it was well dawn (for fear of the arrival of the Thracians,\nwhich was reported to us) we had forgotten to bring with us any unleavened\nbread; and the feast of the Passover wanted yet two days before it should\nhave an end, and behold, we were going to a Gentile country where our\ncustoms were not regarded, so that we could not easily obtain such bread\nas was needful. Therefore we confessed to Jesus, and said that indeed we\nwere verily guilty of sore neglect.\n\nBut when Jesus heard our words, he rebuked us for our want of\nunderstanding; and he asked us whether we did not remember how the\ndisciples had ministered the Bread of Life to the four thousand and to the\nfive thousand; and he made mention of the saying of Thomas, one of the\nTwelve, how the bread had been multiplied in the hands of the Twelve, and\nalso of the saying of Matthew the son of Levi, how the fragments of the\nFeast had returned to them that ministered, and had satisfied them. So we\nperceived that he spake not of the leaven that leaveneth bread of corn,\nbut of the leaven which leaveneth and corrupteth the bread of the soul.\n\nYet forasmuch as the Pharisees agree not with the Sadducees (neither do\nthey teach the same doctrine, nor observe the same customs) I could not\nunderstand what this \u201cleaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees\u201d might be. But\nwhen I asked Nathanael thereof, he said that perchance Jesus desired to\nwarn us lest we should be led away in our hearts by the desire of this\nworld, and by the haste to be prosperous. \u201cFor,\u201d said Nathanael, \u201cthe\nSadducees love place and wealth and ease, and the Pharisees love power\nwith the people, and the salutations of the rich, and the respect of the\npoor, and the name and reputation for piety; and these sects do both go\nstraight towards their several ends. But, though several in appearance,\ntheir ends are really the same. For both the Pharisees and Sadducees serve\nthemselves, and live for their own pleasure. And methinks our Master\nfeareth lest we too in the same way may follow him not out of love and out\nof faithfulness, but from a desire to be prosperous.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut are we not,\u201d asked I, \u201cto be prosperous in the end?\u201d \u201cYes, assuredly\nin the end,\u201d replied Nathanael; \u201cbut the end may perchance be somewhat\nfarther off than we suppose, and our course may perchance be somewhat\nslow. For in all works there are two courses, the course of men and the\ncourse of God. Now men work visibly and speedily, and with much stir and\nnoise; but the Father in Heaven worketh for the most part invisibly and\nslowly, and very gently. Now it may be that the slow ways are best. But in\nany case I begin to perceive that our Master loveth the slow ways best,\naccording to his saying that the Kingdom of Heaven is like unto the wheat,\nwhich is sown and watered and resteth long unseen in the earth, and\nspringeth up at last and by degrees, and putteth forth, first the blade,\nand then the ear and then the full corn; and all this by slow ways,\nquietly and gently, while the husbandman riseth and sleepeth and goeth in\nand out, and taketh no heed how great a work the gentle hand of the Lord\nis working around him.\u201d\n\nThus spake Nathanael, and I gave heed unto his words; for he seemed day by\nday to grow in the love and knowledge of our Master, and behold, the\nknowledge of Jesus seemed to bestow upon him knowledge of all spiritual\nthings, so that he was not like the same Nathanael whom I had first known\nnow a year ago. And the other disciples also were greatly changed from\ntheir former selves. For we had now been a full year with the Lord Jesus;\nand it was the sixteenth year of Tiberius C\u00e6sar.\n\n\n\n\n\n CHAPTER XVII\n\n\nBetween the Feast of Passover and the Feast of Weeks I was not much with\nJesus; for when I perceived that Jesus was in no instant peril, I returned\nto Sepphoris for a while, partly by reason of my mother\u2019s health, and\npartly to gather in the harvest. And during this time, when it was\nperceived that Jesus went not up to the Passover, neither made any levy of\nthe people as had been expected, the Pharisees for a while ceased to lay\nsnares for him: and the common people, though they murmured that he went\nnot up to Jerusalem, nevertheless had him in honour. But the harvest being\nnow over, when I went back to meet Jesus at Capernaum, I found there one\nof mine acquaintance, a merchant (whom I had known at Alexandria in my\nuncle\u2019s house), a Greek learned in the knowledge of the Greeks. This man\nwas not a proselyte; neither did he in any wise conform himself to the Law\nof Moses. But he spake of himself, at that time, as a seeker after truth;\nfor he did not join himself to any of the schools of the Gentile\nphilosophers, but chose forth from each whatsoever seemed to him useful or\ntrue. He had read our Scriptures, and was greatly given to the study of\nour psalms and prophecies; and when he had heard me speak of Jesus of\nNazareth as being our Messiah, his heart was moved to hear Jesus preach\nthe gospel. So it came to pass, about the first or second Sabbath after\nthe Feast of Weeks, he accompanied me into the synagogue where Jesus was\nto speak to the people. But as I went, I perceived Abuyah the son of\nElishah; and with him were certain of the Sadducees, and some also of the\nHerodians. And when I saw them, I knew that they had come for no good\npurpose.\n\nAnd so it proved. For when we were now assembled in the synagogue, Abuyah\ncame forward and said to Jesus, \u201cBehold, thou art a vessel very full of\nknowledge, and the people are come together at thy feet for to hear of\nthee the words of wisdom, according as it is said, \u2018Powder thyself in the\ndust of the feet of the wise, and drink their words with thirstiness.\u2019 Now\ntherefore, I pray thee, suffer me to ask of thee touching a certain\nmatter.\u201d And Jesus said, \u201cAsk.\u201d And Abuyah said, \u201cIs it lawful for a man\nto put away his wife?\u201d\n\nNow when Abuyah spake these words, all the Herodians and Sadducees\nlistened with greedy ears, as though they would devour the words that fell\nfrom Jesus, if perchance he should say something against Herod the\nTetrarch. For Herod had put away his own wife and had married Herodias,\nthe wife of his brother Herod Philip, which thing was not lawful for him\nto do. And it was for this cause that Abuyah had asked the question. For\nthe Pharisees considered that in this way they would do one of two things;\neither they would incense Herod against Jesus (even as they had incensed\nhim against John the son of Zachariah, whose death they had procured), or\nelse they would cause Jesus to appear unto the people a time\u2010server and a\nprophet of smooth things, a prophet not to be trusted.\n\nBut Jesus knew their devices and said to Abuyah, \u201cWhat did Moses command\nyou?\u201d And Abuyah said, \u201cMoses suffered a man to write a bill of\ndivorcement and to put his wife away.\u201d But Jesus answered and said, \u201cFor\nthe hardness of your hearts he wrote you this precept. But from the\nbeginning of the creation God made them male and female. For this cause\nshall a man leave his father and mother, and cleave to his wife: and they\ntwain shall be one flesh. So then they are no more twain, but one flesh.\nWhat therefore God hath joined together let not man put asunder.\u201d By these\nwords we understood Jesus both to find fault with them that allowed of\ndivorce for every slight cause (as did certain of the Pharisees); and also\nto disallow of divorce generally, except (as he afterwards said) for\nadultery; which alone is, of itself, a divorce. But it was quite after the\nmanner of Jesus to found this doctrine not upon the Law, but upon the\nnature of things, as it was created in the beginning; teaching that woman\nwas not made as an afterthought, nor as a mere pleasure to the man; but\nthat mankind was made, from the first, male and female. And according to\nthis doctrine did Jesus ever behave towards women, showing unto them not\nonly gentleness and kindness, but also a singular reverence.\n\nAfter these words Jesus began to exhort the people: and he taught them\nthat God requireth purity in the inner parts, namely, in the soul, saying,\nNot that which goeth into a man defileth a man, but that which cometh out\nof a man, evil and impure thoughts and deeds, these, he said, defile a\nman. Hereat many of the disciples were sore grieved that Jesus should thus\nopenly, as it seemed, trample upon the Law of Moses; and from this time\ncertain Essenes that had hitherto followed with us, now altogether left\nJesus. And one of the younger Scribes, interrupting him, cried aloud, \u201cHe\nthat despiseth the washing of hands shall be rooted out.\u201d But Jesus went\non to say, Nay, but every plant that the Father in Heaven had not planted,\nshould be rooted out; and as for the teaching of the Pharisees, he likened\nit to the tares, the end whereof is to be burned. He also likened them and\ntheir pupils to blind men leading other blind men; who should all together\nfall into the pit.\n\nThen he drew, as it were, a model of the New Kingdom; wherein, he said,\nthe only thing needful would be that a man should love God with all the\nheart, and his neighbours as himself. And when some one asked him who were\na man\u2019s neighbours, he replied, in parables, that whosoever was sick, or\nnaked, or an\u2010hungered, or in pain or sorrow, whosoever in fine was in need\nof aught, that man (yea, even though he were a Samaritan), was neighbour\nunto each citizen in the New Kingdom; and towards every neighbour the\ncitizens were to do whatsoever they would desire that their neighbours\nshould do unto them.\n\nWhen the people were come forth out of the synagogue, the Greek merchant\nwalked by my side for a while in silence: but Abuyah, who walked behind\nus, was plainly heard blaming Jesus as one that brake the Law and taught\nothers to break it. Hearing these words, the merchant nodded over his\nshoulder, and exclaimed, \u201cYonder pedant, who with his washings would\npurify the very sun, is altogether void of understanding; else would he\nperceive that the philosophy of thy Teacher mounteth up to something far\nhigher than the pulling down of the laws of thy nation.\u201d Then he\nquestioned me touching Jesus, and of his former doctrine and manner of\nlife since he had begun to teach; and I replied to all these things and\nasked of him in turn what he might mean by his words about the philosophy\nof Jesus. But he seemed rapt for the time in other thoughts, and, instead\nof answering me, he questioned me further concerning the birth and rearing\nand childhood of Jesus; and in particular, whether both his parents were\nof Israel, or whether his mother were not a Greek. But after that I had\nanswered again to all his questioning, when I perceived that he was still\nmusing on his own thoughts, and took no heed of my words, I waxed\nimpatient, and repeated my question somewhat loudly.\n\nThen my friend made answer, howbeit not in the way of a direct reply to my\nquestion, but rather as still partly meditating with himself: \u201cThou\ndescribest a gracious, a very gracious nature, ignorant of evil throughout\nhis youth, seeing ever in his mind\u2019s eye the Isles of the Blessed, and\ndesiring that same blessedness for all mankind. And lo, whatsoever he\ndesireth that he seeth: for he deceiveth himself, feigning that all things\nare like unto that beautiful idea which he seeth in his mind.\u201d But I said\nto the merchant, \u201cNay, friend Xanthias,\u201d for that was the man\u2019s name, \u201cbut\nwhen Jesus spake of the Pharisees, did he then seem to thee ignorant of\nevil?\u201d \u201cThou didst not give me time,\u201d replied the merchant, \u201cto finish my\nspeech: for I was about to say that, as it seemeth to me, thy teacher is\neven now awakening to the evil that is in the world; and, becoming at last\nundeceived, he seeth his fair phantasma vanishing away. Thus his gracious\nnature, yielding to the over great pressure of the evil that surroundeth\nhim, is becoming marred and wounded. Alas for the pitiful change! For\nbehold, his former life, as thou describest it, was like unto a deer\nsporting gladly in the woods, to whom the flowers of the fields are as\nfriends, and the wind ever bringeth glad tidings. But to what shall I\nliken the latter end of his life? It is like unto the same deer wounded by\nthe huntsman, who passeth by the same way, and through the same woods; but\nshe is glad no longer, for the dart still cleaveth to her side, and the\nflowers delight her no longer, and the breezes are messengers of evil.\u201d\n\nI was grieved at his words, and all the more because they agreed with\ncertain fears in the depth of my own heart, whereof I had up to this time\nmade no mention even to Nathanael, no, nor yet unto mine own self. But I\nwas grieved also because the Greek knew not the true nature of Jesus. For\nhe spake of him as of one gracious and lovable, but he knew not the might\nand the power of our Master, how he was like unto a rock immovable,\nunchangeable; even such another as the Gentiles fable Atlas to have been,\nwho bore up the world by the strength of his shoulders. For I knew that,\nif heaven and earth had set themselves in league against Jesus, to make\nhim do aught against the will of the Father, Jesus would have stood up\nalone against earth and heaven, and hell to boot. Moreover, I had noted\nhow there still came forth from Jesus a new strength to bear each new\nburden, and a new knowledge to discern each new Revelation from the\nFather, yea, and a new delight to delight therein. For though it were true\nindeed, as the Greek had said, that Jesus had sometimes marvelled at evil\n(when it befel him) as though he had been ignorant thereof before, yet was\nit also true that he seemed to have become greater through the increase of\nthe knowledge of evil. But Xanthias knew naught of this. For he was\ndeceived by the gentleness of Jesus, not perceiving that this same\ngentleness of Jesus was stronger than the strength of kings. Therefore was\nI grieved at his words; but I constrained myself and asked him yet again\nwhat he might mean by saying that the philosophy of Jesus mounted to\nsomewhat higher than the pulling down of the Law.\n\nThen said the Greek, \u201cAre there then in this country no slaves?\u201d \u201cThou\nknowest,\u201d I replied, \u201cthat there are slaves: howbeit, not many, nor ill\nused, nor treated like beasts, as the Gentiles treat them.\u201d Then said he\nto me, \u201cAnd wouldst thou willingly be a slave in this country?\u201d I said,\n\u201cNay.\u201d \u201cAnd if thou wert a slave, wouldst thou wish that thy master should\nretain thee as a slave, or should enfranchise thee?\u201d I replied, \u201cThe\nlatter.\u201d Then said the Greek with a smile, \u201cBut if ye all became followers\nof Jesus of Nazareth, would ye not perforce confess that all men were your\nneighbours, yea, even Greeks and Romans; yea, even Samaritans; yea, even\nyour own slaves?\u201d Then was I silent: for I understood now that his meaning\nwas, that the teaching of Jesus would in the end bring to pass the\nenfranchising of all slaves, and I knew not what to reply.\n\nBut he, still smiling, said, \u201cI perceive that thou understandest my\nmeaning. For the teaching of thy Master aimeth at nothing less than the\ndestroying of all manner of slavery. But without slavery the race of man\nneither hath existed, nor can exist, as thou knowest very well. For\nwithout slaves no work could be performed except the tilling of the land,\nwhich alone is fit for free men.\u201d I said then to him that in Israel there\nwas not the same disliking of handicrafts as among the Greeks and Romans.\nBut he said, \u201cDost thou suppose that thy Master\u2019s philosophy concerneth\nonly thine own people?\u201d \u201cYea, of a surety,\u201d said I; \u201cour own people, and\nnone else; for he himself proclaimed the Kingdom to no strangers.\u201d He\nreplied, \u201cThat may be, for a time: but is not the Samaritan thy\nneighbour?\u201d Then was I again silent. For there came into my mind that\nancient prophecy which saith that in the seed of Abraham, that is to say\nin the Messiah, all the nations of the earth shall be blessed; and I\nremembered how oft Jesus had of late taught us that the Samaritans were\nneighbours to the citizens in the Kingdom. But I put the thought away from\nme; for the truth was at that time hid from our eyes: neither could I at\nthat time perceive how we could be redeemed or delivered, if we were to\ntreat the Romans as neighbours. But while I mused thereon, Xanthias\ncontinued his speech concerning Jesus, and he said that Jesus did wisely\nin that he seemed to encourage marriage, and to prohibit many wives, and\nto forbid divorce. \u201cFor,\u201d said he, \u201cherein I incline rather to Aristotle\nthan to Plato, believing that the state is composed of families; and if\nthe family be rotten, the state cannot be sound. But to hope to destroy\nslavery is to hope to pull down the pillar whereon the life of all states\nis based.\u201d\n\nNow was my heart hot within me; and I was fain to speak, and to say that\nJesus would indeed pull down slavery in Israel, and make our people to be\na nation of priests and princes for the world, and would in the end\ndestroy even the Evil Nature of man. But I abstained from speech; for I\nknew that my words would be foolishness in his ears, and that he could not\nunderstand the Redemption unless he understood Jesus himself. Therefore I\nmade him some courteous answer and accompanied him toward the house where\nhe lay.\n\nBut he still continued his discourse of the philosophy of Jesus (as he\ncalled it), and he likened Jesus unto the Greek Teacher Socrates, in that\nneither Socrates nor Jesus would receive teaching upon mere authority, nor\nbecause this saying or that precept chanced to have been written in books:\nbut Socrates trusted to a certain power of reason or dialectic, and Jesus\nto a certain power which he called a Spirit: the two being diverse in\nappearance, but in truth following one and the same method. Thus Xanthias\ncontinued his speech of Jesus; but as he bade me farewell near the\nthreshold, it came to pass that Abuyah, who had been walking behind us,\ncame near, still talking with his companions, and saying in a loud voice\nthat Jesus was as the bramble, whereof Jotham maketh mention in the\nScriptures. \u201cWherefore,\u201d said he, \u201cmeet it is that we cut down this vile\nthorn\u2010tree, lest there come forth fire from the bramble and consume the\nolive\u2010tree, and the fig, and all the fruitful trees of the forest.\u201d\n\nWhen Abuyah had passed by, the merchant said unto me, \u201cTruly I have heard\nno philosopher whose lectures have so pleased me as the teaching of this\nthy Teacher; and, though I esteem little of wonders, whereof we have\nenough and to spare at Alexandria, yet if even the half of that which thou\nsayest touching the acts of thy Jesus be true, he will deserve worship\neven better than \u00c6sculapius or Amphiaraus. But as thou knowest, my dear\nfriend, I am one of them which doubt all things; and I incline to the\nbelief that there are no gods, or if there be, that they deal not with\nhuman matters. And thereto I incline the more because I see all human\nthings full of misery and oppression. And, unless my fears deceive me,\nthis my belief will be confirmed by the fate of thine own Teacher. For I\nfear, I greatly fear, lest the friends of Abuyah the Scribe may prevail\nover the friends of Jesus the philosopher of the New Kingdom and deliverer\nof the slaves.\u201d\n\nSo saying he turned himself round to depart. But I was scarce gone ten\npaces when he called me back, and taking me by the hand very earnestly, \u201cI\npray thee,\u201d said he, \u201ctell me by what name doth thy Master call himself. A\nprophet? or a teacher? Or doth he say that he is your Messiah? or a\nlawgiver like unto Moses?\u201d But I made answer that Jesus called himself by\nnone of these names; but, for the most part, only \u201cSon of man.\u201d Hereat\nXanthias marvelled and said, \u201cBut wherefore useth he this title? For thou,\nand I, and all men, are not we all sons of men? Doth thy Master therefore\nfear lest his disciples may perchance forget that he is a man and deem him\nto be a god? For such a title as this, albeit humble in appearance,\nseemeth in verity too proud for any save such as aspire to be gods. But\nperchance your prophets have so used this title that it hath some strange\nmeaning, whereof I know naught.\u201d Then I said that the word was indeed used\nby the prophets: for whensoever the Lord speaketh to Ezekiel as to a\nmortal creature, the Lord calleth him Son of man, as if to set the mortal\ninfirmities of the prophet over against the divine nature of the Lord; but\nagain the prophet Daniel saith that, in the day of Judgment, there shall\nappear one like unto the Son of man, sitting on the clouds of heaven, and\ncoming in glory to judge the nations of the earth: wherefore the title\nseemed to signify the weak nature of man, whether infirm or whether\nexalted. Howbeit, added I, before Jesus, no prophet spake thus of himself\nas the Son of man.\n\nHereat Xanthias marvelled the more, saying that this was indeed a strange\ntitle, and such as no philosopher had ever before taken upon himself. Then\nhe mused a while, still holding me by the cloak, and would have questioned\nme farther; but I could tell him no more. So at the last he let me go,\nshaking his head, and saying that it was strange, it was passing strange,\nand that there was more in this than he could understand: and as he turned\nhimself to depart, I heard him repeating again to himself that it was a\nproud title, a very proud title, and such as no wise and sober philosopher\nshould take. And thus he departed, meditating as he went, and so rapt in\nhis study that he forgot to bid me farewell. But when he was departed, so\nthat I had leisure to think on his wonder and on the cause thereof; then I\nalso began to perceive that there was more than I had as yet understood,\nin this title of the Son of man.\n\n\n\n\n\n CHAPTER XVIII\n\n\nNo evil followed on the words which Jesus had spoken concerning divorce;\nand we remained many days in peace, even till the day of Atonement, which\nfalleth toward the beginning of the autumn in the month called Tisri. But\nwe had friends in Tiberias, who were to send us word by day, or signify to\nus by lights during the night, if perchance any plot were intended against\nJesus.\n\nNow so it was that some of the Galileans did not consent to James the son\nof Judas, and to Barabbas in forsaking Jesus, neither did they allow the\nconduct of the Pharisees; but having gathered themselves together they\nagreed that it was not fit that Israel should so long halt between two\nopinions; but as it had been in the days of Elias the prophet, so should\nit be now. \u201cFor,\u201d said the chief man among them, \u201cElias gathered the\npeople together and the people promised to be on his side, if he brought\ndown fire from heaven; and he did so. Now perchance this Jesus is even\nElias; for many so report of him, and even the Scribes say that Elias must\ncome, and some say that Elias hath come oftentimes before now. But whether\nhe be Elias or no, doubtless, if he be a true prophet, he can work the\nsign of Elias. For a false prophet can work signs on the earth and in the\nair, and in the deep; but a sign in heaven or from heaven he cannot work.\nTherefore meet it is that the Pharisees, instead of setting snares for\nJesus, should promise to obey him if he will work a sign in heaven in\ntheir presence. My counsel is therefore that we ask Jesus to work a sign\nin heaven; and if he consent, then that we obey him, even though all the\nPharisees speak against him, yea, and though he bid us hold out our\nthroats to be cut by the Romans.\u201d\n\nThus spake the Galileans at their council, not many days after the\ndiscourse of Jesus concerning divorce. And the counsel of the Galileans\nwas reported unto the Scribes. But when Abuyah the son of Elishah heard\nit, he said that this was according to the Scripture and the Traditions,\nand that it should be so. But Eliezer the son of Arak said that it should\nnot be so; for that it was in no wise certain that a magician could not\nwork a sign in heaven, or at the least, a sign that should appear to be in\nheaven. But if he could, said Abuyah, then, though the sign should not\nreally be in heaven, yet if it appeared to be therein, all the foolish\nrabble, even the people of the land, would be drawn after Jesus, and the\nPharisees also would be obliged to submit to him. \u201cFor,\u201d added he, \u201cI have\nheard of magicians which can make statues walk, and can knead loaves of\nstones; and of others that can become serpents, and transform themselves\ninto goats, and can open locked gates, and can melt iron in a moment of\ntime; but if they can do things so wonderful, think ye they cannot\nlikewise perform signs which shall appear to be signs in heaven?\u201d\n\nOthers also protested to the same effect, and one said that he had been\npresent when a certain magician had been smitten right through his body\nwith the sword, but behold, the sword had passed through him as through\nsmoke, and he had taken no hurt; and another said that he had seen an\nenchanter at a banquet create all manner of images, and cause dishes to be\nborne of themselves to wait upon the guests, no bearers being seen. At the\nlast Abuyah himself confessed that he also had once seen a certain\nmagician roll himself on the fire, and yet not burned; and the same man\nalso to fly in the air. \u201cWherefore,\u201d said he, \u201ctrue it is, as Eliezer\nsaith, that one flying high enough in the air, might seem to fly down from\nheaven, and so to perform some sign in heaven; and thus might he lead away\nthe common people, which know not the Law.\u201d All this I heard from a\ncertain Scribe, a friend of Jonathan the son of Ezra; his name was Eleazar\nthe son of Azariah, and he was present at the meeting of the Scribes.\n\nThe same Eleazar also told me that whilst the Scribes were yet debating\nwhat they should do, a message was brought, as from one that had spoken\nwith the chosen disciples of Jesus, saying that Jesus would certainly not\nwork a sign in heaven; for that he had refused to do this, though he had\nbeen besought by his disciples. When they heard this, they rejoiced\ngreatly; and Eliezer the son of Arak rose up and straightway gave his\njudgment that they should now change their policy. \u201cFor,\u201d said he, \u201cthe\nLord having revealed this new thing unto us, meet it is that we change our\npath accordingly, neither harden our faces against the will of God.\nWherefore my judgment now is, that we ask this Jesus to work a sign in\nheaven before the face of the whole congregation in the synagogue. For\nwhen it shall be perceived that he cannot work a sign in heaven, all men\nwill go from him; for they will know that he is a false prophet.\u201d And\nthereto the rest agreed, and it was so resolved. But I knew not thereof\ntill many days after.\n\nIt was the intent of the Scribes to have asked Jesus to work a sign in\nheaven on the next Sabbath; but in the meantime, lights having been held\nup by night in Tiberias (on I know not what report or rumour of some\ndanger intended to Jesus by Herod, or some marching forth of the Thracian\nguard), Jesus gave command to pass over again unto the other side of the\nlake. We accompanied him, albeit sorely against our will; for there seemed\nto be no end unto these wanderings or flights; and each new flight was\nlike to turn the hearts of the people more and more from Jesus. Moreover,\nthe manner of Jesus at this time disquieted us, and made some of us to\ndoubt. Not that he seemed to fear; for fear had no part in him, neither\ndid he seem to know what fear meant. But he appeared again (as in former\ndays) like unto one waiting for a message and marvelling somewhat that the\nmessage came not.\n\nDuring these days, and these wanderings to and fro, the words of the\nprophet Jonah were often in his mouth, and he seemed as if he discerned a\ncertain likeness between that prophet and himself; but what it was we\nunderstood not. For sometimes he spake of Nineveh, and how Jonah thought\nonly of his own people, and had no compassion upon that great city of the\nGentiles, yea, and fought against the voice of the Lord, who bade him go\nprophesy unto them; and how he wandered hither and thither, if perchance\nhe could flee from the voice of the Lord. But at other times he spake how\nJonah cried unto the Lord even from the belly of hell, and how the Lord\ninclined His ear unto him, and heard him, and raised him up to prophesy\nunto the Gentiles; and he quoted oftentimes the words of the prayer of the\nprophet, \u201cI went down to the bottoms of the mountains; the earth with her\nbars was about me for ever; yet hast thou brought up my life from\ncorruption, O Lord my God.\u201d Likewise he made mention of some sign of\nJonah, which he said should be manifested to this generation; but whether\nhe meant that he should be sent far away unto the Gentiles, or that he\nshould be cast into the depths, and delivered again, as Jonah was, this we\nunderstood not, and the saying was hidden from us.\n\nNow it came to pass, when we had journeyed now many days on the other side\nof the lake, we came nigh to the mountain of Hermon. Snows cover the top\nof this mountain both summer and winter; and when the sun in his strength\nshineth on the snows thereof, it is as though the glory of the Lord had\ncome down from heaven. Towards this mountain Jesus had set his face as\nthough he had an errand thither from the Lord; and as we journeyed towards\nit, he gazed often thereon and rejoiced greatly. But it came to pass, as\nwe now drew nigh unto the mountain, we journeyed through a certain village\nof the country; and because we were in haste and Jesus desired that none\nshould know him, we were to have passed quickly through the village before\ndawn. For the fame of Jesus, how he could cast out unclean spirits, was\nspread abroad even in that country. But as we passed through the village,\nwe heard sounds as of one calling after us: and some thought they heard\nshrieks. Howbeit we turned not back, but journeyed forward the more\nquickly.\n\nNow a certain woman in this village (a worshipper of idols, after the\nmanner of the people of that land) had a daughter possessed with an\nunclean spirit, which, whensoever it took her, drove her to all manner of\nwickedness, even to the attempting of her mother\u2019s life. So the woman had\nresolved in her own mind that when Jesus passed by (for he must needs come\nthrough that village), she would beseech Jesus to heal her daughter, and\nshe had told her daughter of her purpose, and likewise all her friends and\nacquaintance; and she had been advised of the approach of Jesus and was\nwatching for us. Therefore seeing us pass quickly through her village, she\nadventured to bring out her daughter unto Jesus: but her daughter would\nnot come. For even then, at the hearing of the name of Jesus, the devil\ntook her, and she shrieked aloud and strove against her mother, and would\nhave slain her: but her mother ran forth from the house and followed\nJesus, calling and crying aloud and piteously lamenting.\n\nNow to us it seemed a strange thing and an unseemly, that a prophet of\nIsrael should thus be beset and importuned by an heathen woman. So we\nexpected that Jesus should have at once sent the woman away. But Jesus\nuttered never a word, nor so much as turned his face towards her, but\njourneyed steadfastly forward. And even as one running a race towards a\ngoal settleth his soul upon the prize that is before him, even so seemed\nJesus to settle his soul upon the snows of the mountain of Hermon: for\nthey shone in the light of the rising sun, like unto a dove sent from God,\nwhose breast\u2010feathers are as silver, and whose wings like unto fine gold.\nBut the woman ceased not from her following and lamenting, and poured\nforth before Jesus all the story of her troubles.\n\nAt last we adventured to accost Jesus, and we besought him to send her\naway. But he answered us, still not turning his face, \u201cI am not sent but\nunto the lost sheep of the house of Israel.\u201d Yet as he spake, he slackened\nhis going, and spake, as it were, like unto one doubting somewhat, and\nwilling to have his words amended. Now came the woman in haste up to him,\nand threw herself before his feet and said, \u201cLord, help me.\u201d Then Jesus\nstayed. Yet did he still keep his eyes fixed on that which he saw afar\noff; and for a brief space he was silent; but then he said, as though he\nwere asking a question of his own soul, \u201cIt is not meet to take the\nchildren\u2019s bread, and to cast it unto the dogs?\u201d But the woman answered,\n\u201cTruth, O Master, yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their\nmaster\u2019s table.\u201d\n\nWhen Jesus heard these words he turned his face straightway from the glory\nof the mountain and looked down on the woman; and behold, he rejoiced more\nbecause of that which he beheld nigh unto him, than because of the glory\nthat was afar off. For the fashion of his countenance was changed so as I\ncannot describe it. And immediately he stooped down, and took the woman by\nthe hand and raised her up, and said unto her, \u201cO woman, great is thy\nfaith; be it unto thee even as thou wilt.\u201d\n\nNow when the woman ran back to her house, she found the child on a bed,\nstruggling, and scarce held of her friends; who stood by, weeping and\nsupposing the child to be possessed, not now with one devil but with many.\nThen she cried aloud for joy, and told her acquaintance how that Jesus had\ngranted her prayer. And straightway, when the devil heard this saying,\neven at the mention of the name of Jesus, he tare the child, and departed,\nleaving her, as it seemed, lifeless. But presently she rose up whole and\nsound, being delivered from the devil; nor was she ever again afflicted.\nAll this was done by the word of Jesus spoken by the Syroph\u0153nician woman;\nfor he was not present to heal the girl; albeit (as I gathered) the girl\nhad before heard oftentimes of her mother that Jesus was to come to heal\nher, and how great things he had done for others that were possessed. But\nwhen Jesus had heard the words of the Syroph\u0153nician woman, he was no\nlonger minded to journey towards the north, but went back into the village\nwhere was the girl afflicted with the unclean spirit. Now the people would\nfain have constrained him to tarry with them; but he would not, but set\nhis face southward again to go toward the Sea of Galilee. For the faith of\nthe Syroph\u0153nician had strangely moved him, insomuch that he spake as if\nthe Redemption were nearer than it had been before; and, as I judge, he\ndesired to make one more proof of the Pharisees, whether they also would\nnot have faith in him. And straightway he crossed over and came again to\nCapernaum.\n\nAs we rowed across the lake back to Capernaum we rejoiced greatly; for we\nthought that the time was at hand when the Galileans (for of the intent of\nthe Pharisees we knew naught) would ask Jesus to work a sign in heaven,\nand Jesus would now grant their request. But when Jesus had done this, we\ntrusted that the whole nation should have believed in him, and that the\ntime should have come that he should redeem Israel. Howbeit certain of the\ndisciples (and more especially Judas of Kerioth) took it ill that Jesus\nshould have listened to the prayer of an heathen woman which was an\nidolater. For although Esaias saith that the Gentiles are to come to the\nrising of the Lord, and that the Gentiles shall seek to the Deliverer of\nIsrael, yet had it been always fixed and rooted in our hearts that the\ndeliverance of the Gentiles (if it should come to pass at all) must come\nby the uprising of the children of Israel, who should be princes and\nkings, conquering and triumphing over the nations of the earth. And then\nthe Gentiles were to seek to Israel and to become proselytes, entering\ninto the true fold. And this belief Jesus had confirmed in our hearts in\nthat he had bidden us to go not to the Samaritans nor to the Gentiles, but\nonly to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. Which saying Jesus himself\nnow seemed to contradict, having thus healed the Syroph\u0153nician maiden. But\nwhether it had been revealed to our Master, through the words of the\nSyroph\u0153nician, that the deliverance of the Gentiles should come more\nspeedily than had been supposed, and not by fetching a compass, as it\nwere, round all the borders of Israel, but by a more direct course,\nconcerning this I know nothing: but Quartus judgeth that it was so.\n\n\n\n\n\n CHAPTER XIX\n\n\nGorgias the son of Philip exceeded the rest of us in his rejoicing at the\nreturn of Jesus, and in the largeness of his expectation, saying that it\ncould not be that our Master, when he adventured to work a sign, would\nsuffer himself to be surpassed by any, albeit the most cunning magicians.\n\u201cNow,\u201d said he, \u201cI have heard an Alexandrine say that there are certain\nmagicians which, in the middle of the market\u2010place, in return for a few\nobols, will drive out demons and diseases, and call up the souls of\nheroes, and costly banquets, tables, dishes, and dainties, all as though\nready for a feast; all which at the magician\u2019s wand shall vanish away. If\ntherefore a common magician can do such things for hire, how much more can\nJesus do greater things than these for the Redemption of Israel!\u201d Judas\nalso spake after the same manner, and he said that perchance it was well\ndone of Jesus not to work a sign in heaven at first; for had he worked the\nsign too early, it would have been counted cheap, and would have been\ndespised. \u201cMuch wiser,\u201d continued he, \u201cto hold the sign back till the\npeople crave for it, and till the Pharisees (supposing forsooth that he\ncannot do it) venture to promise obedience to Jesus on the condition that\nhe work a sign in heaven. For thus shall they be taken in their own\nsnare.\u201d Only John was doubtful, saying to Judas, \u201cHast thou then forgotten\nhow once in our presence our Master said he should work no sign in\nheaven?\u201d But Judas replied that our Master had more than once changed his\ncourse, suiting it to the needs of the time; \u201cAnd,\u201d said he, \u201cwhen he\nshall once perceive that the Redemption of Sion dependeth upon the working\nof a sign in heaven, then, trust me, the sign will not long be wanting.\nAnd so strongly am I assured thereof, that it would even seem to me to be\na friendly deed to tell the Pharisees how Jesus hath said that he will\nnever work the sign, and in this way to move them to ask Jesus to work the\nsign; to the intent that they may dig a pit for Jesus and fall into it\nthemselves.\u201d\n\nNow this he spake jesting; but (as I afterwards learned) Judas had indeed\nmoved the Pharisees even, as he said, to ask Jesus to work a sign in\nheaven. And Judas it was that had sent to Eliezer that message whereof I\nhave before made mention. But these things Judas did, not because he\ndesired (at that time) to harm Jesus, but wishing to help him, and\nsupposing that he should help him by forcing him to do that which, of\nhimself, Jesus would not do. Howbeit of all these things we, at this\npresent, knew nothing; and we took the words of Judas as if spoken in\njest. But John shook his head and made no answer.\n\nIt was in the winter, in the month called Chisleu, that we returned to\nCapernaum. But it came to pass, on the first Sabbath day after that we had\nreturned, we went into the synagogue after our custom, and Jesus taught\nthe people; and the hand of the Lord was present among them, and the\npeople were very attentive to hear him. But when he had ended his words\nthere rose up Abuyah the son of Elishah; and he spake after the manner of\nthe Galileans, saying that it was not right that Israel should be any more\ndivided against itself, but that all should confess that Jesus was the\nAnointed or Christ, if indeed he could shew that he was the Christ. \u201cBut\nthe proof,\u201d said he, \u201cis, as we all know, the working of a sign in heaven.\nFor signs on earth and in the deep, false prophets can work; but not in\nheaven. Now, therefore, this is the sum of the matter: thou wouldst have\nus, the Scribes and teachers of Israel, to believe in thee and to follow\nthee. Our answer is, Work a sign in heaven such as Elias worked, and\nstraightway we follow thee.\u201d\n\nWhile Abuyah was speaking his last words, a hesitation and a gasping\novercame him, so that he was almost speechless. For he was abashed by the\naspect of Jesus and by the stillness of the multitude. And, to say the\ntruth, when Abuyah spake those words, \u201csuch as Elias worked,\u201d we held our\nbreath; expecting when the fire of heaven should come down, as in the days\nof Elias, and should consume Abuyah, and Eliezer, and all the enemies of\nJesus; or else we thought that the earth should have opened and swallowed\nthem up, as the earth swallowed up Korah and his fellows. But when Eliezer\nhad ended all his words, and no gulf yawned nor fire came down from\nheaven, then indeed our hearts sank within us. But Abuyah and Eliezer\nbegan to be of good cheer; for they perceived that they had been well\nadvised, and that Jesus would work no sign in heaven.\n\nWhen Jesus made answer to Abuyah, the people listened to him and were\nsilent; but their hearts no longer inclined unto him as before. For indeed\nhis words were not easy to understand. But he bade the Pharisees note the\nsigns of the times, even as they noted the signs of the weather, and\ntherein, he said, they should find proof enough. Moreover he spake those\nsame strange words which he had spoken before to us privately, to wit,\nthat they should have no sign but the sign of the prophet Jonah. Having\nsaid these words he departed from the synagogue; and at sunset, finding\nthat the hearts of all men were turned from him, he gave command once\nagain to launch the boat and to pass over unto the other side.\n\nNever before were the minds of the disciples so troubled as now: for we\nhad all been assured, in the very depth of our hearts, that Jesus had even\nfor this cause returned to Capernaum, because he purposed now at last to\nwork a sign in heaven. Neither could we in any way understand why he\nshould thus suffer the slanderers to triumph, delaying so long the\nRedemption of Sion. Judas especially inflamed our grief, saying that all\nwas now lost, and that one sign in heaven would have been better worth\nthan a thousand discourses about the Kingdom of Heaven.\n\nBut suddenly we were silent; for we heard the voice of Jesus speaking; and\nhe told us that he had formerly been tempted in a like fashion, even as\nthe Pharisee had tempted him; for he had been led by the Spirit into a\nwilderness, and there in some vision the Evil Spirit had placed him upon\nthe battlements of the Holy Temple, bidding him cast himself down as a\nsign unto the multitudes of them which were walking in the courts of the\nTemple; and the Evil One had said unto him, \u201cIf thou be the Son of God,\ncast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give His angels charge\nconcerning thee; and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any\ntime thou dash thy foot against a stone.\u201d But Jesus had made answer,\nsaying, \u201cIt is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.\u201d Now\ntherefore we all understood (after a dark fashion, and, as it were,\nobliquely) that Jesus esteemed the temptation to perform a sign in heaven\nto be a temptation from Satan. But why he so esteemed it, was hid from the\nmost of us, and we feared to ask him thereof.\n\nWhen Jesus lay down on the sleeping\u2010cushion, I questioned Nathanael why\nJesus would work no sign in heaven. \u201cFor,\u201d said I, \u201csigns on earth and in\nthe bodies of men he daily worketh; as but now, when he raised up the\ndaughter of Jairus (all men supposing her to be dead): and again, at\nanother time, albeit he neither said nor did aught, a woman was healed,\nthough she did but touch him, and that too in a throng: so powerful was\nthe mere garment of our Master to work healing. And when Jesus perceived\nthe woman (discerning the pressure of her hand, albeit in the midst of the\nthrong), then, as thou rememberest, he was neither wroth nor chid the\nwoman for thus, as it were, stealing a miracle; but bade her go in peace,\nand be healed of her disease. Wherefore then worketh he no sign in heaven?\nDid not Moses and Elias work signs in heaven? Yet our Master is greater\nthan they.\u201d To these words Nathanael made no answer for a while; but at\nlast he said, \u201cConcerning Moses and Elias, and concerning what they did or\ndid not, I am not able to speak. But as touching Jesus of Nazareth, thus\nmuch I know, that he lightly esteemeth all signs, both in heaven and in\nearth, except they reveal the mercifulness of God. For he teacheth that\nheaven and earth shall pass away, but his words shall remain for ever. And\nassuredly he seemeth to me to be greater than Moses and Elias, yea, though\nhe should work no sign at all. For he moveth upon the face of the earth\nlike unto the Son of God, and looketh upon all things that are, as being\nthe servants of his Father. But seeing that they are the servants of his\nFather, he loveth them; yea, he cherisheth even the flowers of the fields;\nthe sky also, and the winds, and the waters seem to him as the ministers\nof his Father; and the more he loveth the Father, the more he loveth his\nFather\u2019s servants; neither will he check them nor chide them save\naccording to his Father\u2019s will, but submitteth himself unto them even more\nwillingly than others submit themselves. For this cause he endureth to be\ncold, and an\u2010hungered, and athirst, and homeless; neither doth he chide\nthe frost, nor stamp on the ground to make the wheat spring up for him;\nnor strike waters from the rock; nor bid the stones come together at his\nword for to build him an house.\u201d \u201cBut is not this patience,\u201d asked I, \u201cthe\ncondition of a slave?\u201d \u201cYes, truly is it,\u201d replied Nathanael, \u201cbut what\nsaith our Master? He that is to be greatest among men must be as he that\nis least; he that is to rule must be as he that ministereth; he that is to\nbe king over all must be as the slave of all. Only it is needful that we\nserve not unwillingly, but willingly. But whoso serveth the Lord in all\nthings willingly, he is no slave, but a son.\n\n\u201cFor this cause, in part methinks, Jesus calleth himself the Son of man;\nas if to shew that he is willingly subject to all the fleshly weaknesses\nwherewith the All\u2010Wise hath encompassed the souls of men to the end that\nthey may depend on Him. For he teacheth that he, being the weakness of\nman, shall be made strength and exalted to the very throne of God, and we\nwith him; so that we shall reign with God, and the Kingdom of God shall\nalso be a Kingdom of man, according as it is said, \u2018What is man that thou\nart mindful of him, and the son of man that thou visitest him? Thou madest\nhim to have dominion over the works of thy hands: thou hast put all things\nin subjection under his feet.\u2019\u201d\n\n\u201cYea, but,\u201d said I, \u201cthe Psalmist speaketh only of the things of the\nearth, to wit, the \u2018sheep and oxen and the beasts of the field, the fowl\nof the air, and the fish of the sea, and whatsoever passeth through the\npaths of the seas.\u2019\u201d\n\nBut to this Nathanael made answer, \u201cIn the Kingdom of God the Son of man\nshall be Lord over all things in heaven and earth, not on earth merely;\nyea, over death itself, and over the Evil Nature in man. For this cause,\neven as an earnest of that which is to come, our Master checketh and\nchideth diseases and devils in them which be possessed. For our Master\nhateth the devils and diseases even as he hateth the sins of men,\nesteeming them as the work of Satan, and not as the work of his Father.\nBut the course and appointed order of the world he esteemeth as the\nvesture of God, whereof he would not disturb one single fold.\u201d\n\nNow herein Nathanael spake truly. For once only (as I have heard) did\nJesus so much as appear to adventure to alter the course of the world. It\nwas on a winter evening, and the disciples were on the lake; but I was not\nwith them. A great storm had suddenly come down on them (as storms are\nwont to come down from the mountains round about the lake) and the boat\nwas now well\u2010nigh filled with the waves and like to sink. Then the\ndisciples lifted up their voices for fear, and ran to Jesus as he slept\nupon the cushion, and besought him, saying, \u201cMaster, carest thou not that\nwe perish?\u201d Then he arose in grief for them, as it seemed, that they\nshould, after so cowardly a fashion, tremble before the winds; and he\nopened his mouth to rebuke them. \u201cAnd all this while,\u201d said Matthew (for\nhe was present), \u201cthe winds yet raged, and the waves beat in upon the\ndeck, and in another instant, methought, we had been all dead men. But\nJesus, noting this, turned himself from us toward the sea, and then (as if\nit were revealed to him that he, being the safety of the world, could not\nbe wrecked by any turbulence of winds or waves, and therefore that the\nstorm was to cease), behold, he stretched out his hands to the tempest,\npraying; and straightway the storm seemed to abate a little; and then,\nperceiving the will of the Father, he stood up like some great king or\nemperor, and rebuked the storm, bidding it be still; and immediately there\nwas a great calm.\u201d\n\nNow on this only occasion did our Master appear to change the course of\nthe world; and methinks, even here, he did it only in appearance. For he\nspake as he was moved by the Holy Spirit, it being revealed to him that\nthe storm must needs cease lest the fortunes of the world should be\nshipwrecked, if the Son of man should perish. But if Xanthias findeth\nfault with this story, saying that on this only occasion our Master spake\nafter the manner of a M\u00e6nad, and not worthily of himself, to this I reply\nthat, if Jesus of Nazareth was the Son of God (as I doubt not), then it\nwas fit that he should feel faith, yea, a singular faith in God his\nFather. And if Caius C\u00e6sar, the first Emperor, could be assured that he\nwas not to be drowned, saying to the boatmen that they must be of good\ncheer because they carried C\u00e6sar and his Fortune; how much more might the\ntrue Emperor of men be assured that the Fortune of mankind should not be\nshipwrecked, yea, and rather than this should come to pass, that the storm\nmust cease? For this cause I incline not to the opinion of Xanthias; who\nsaith that Jesus rebuked not the storm, but the disciples, bidding them\nnot be fearful and of little faith. And, though I was not myself present,\nyet was the matter reported to me afterwards by one that had heard the\nrelation thereof from Matthew the son of Levi, as I said above.\n\nWhile I spake with Nathanael, there came into my mind certain words of my\nGreek friend, whom I had met at Capernaum (I mean the Alexandrine\nmerchant), how he had praised Jesus in that he breathed a spirit of\nsoberness and peace, so that, wheresover he might be, he seemed happy and\nat home; and I told this to Nathanael. But he said, \u201cThy friend said well;\nfor to Jesus the world is as a great instrument of music giving forth\nsounds which we hear not, but he both heareth and enjoyeth. And well I\nremember how once, in the presence of Jesus, there arose a dispute between\na musician and another, concerning the sense of hearing and the sense of\nsight; and the other said, jesting at the musician, \u2018To believe thee, the\nsun should have a voice if it is to be perfect.\u2019 \u2018Nay,\u2019 said the musician,\n\u2018but the sun hath indeed a voice to those which have ears to hearken; for\nwhen it riseth in the east, it is not a large round shining shekel, but it\nis a minister of God and crieth with ten thousand times ten thousand\nvoices, Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord God Almighty.\u2019 And thereat Jesus\nsmiled and said that it was even so, and that in the time to come there\nwould dwell this power of sound not in the lights of heaven alone, but\nalso in the earth, and all that therein is; insomuch that the vine\u2010twigs\nand grape\u2010clusters should have voices of their own and commune with the\nchildren of men.\u201d(9)\n\nBy this time we had reached the coast, and we went forth from the vessel,\nand took our way to a little village lying in the road which leadeth unto\nC\u00e6sarea Philippi. And as Nathanael had been sent on before the rest to\nprepare lodging for us, I could find no more occasion that day to converse\nwith him. But my mind was still beating on the dark saying of Jesus\ntouching the temptation of Satan, and I still assayed to understand why\nJesus would not work a sign in heaven: for the words of Nathanael had not\nsufficed to make the matter clear unto me.\n\nOnly concerning the sign in heaven, thus much was revealed unto me, that I\nmyself was not drawn unto Jesus by his signs and wonders, but by reason of\nmy love for him and trust in him; and the same was true also of the other\ndisciples. Moreover Jesus desired that men should be drawn unto him in\nthis way, by love and trust, and by feeling that he was needful to them,\nand not by being astonished at signs and wonders. Further I questioned\nmyself and said, \u201cIf Jesus had caused the sun to stop still, would Abuyah\nthe son of Elishah, and Eliezer the son of Arak, and the chief ruler of\nthe synagogue straightway have loved Jesus and trusted in him, as Jesus\ndesireth his disciples to love and trust in him?\u201d Now I knew that they\nmight have obeyed him and followed him, but they could not have loved him.\nFor Jesus was light: but they loved darkness. Wherefore Jesus could not\nredeem them nor deliver them, even though he had worked a sign in heaven.\nFor he could not deliver them which loved him not; no, not though he had\nworked ten thousand signs in heaven.\n\n\n\n\n\n CHAPTER XX\n\n\nAs soon as day dawned on the morrow, we left the village where we had lain\nthat night, and journeyed northward; and Jesus set his face once more\ntoward Mount Hermon. We were all very silent, more than was our custom;\nfor we were downcast and dejected by reason of our often fleeing from\nbefore the face of our enemies, and because of the delay of the day of\nRedemption. And though we still loved Jesus and trusted him after a\nmanner, yet we knew not what to think concerning the things that he had\ndone of late. As we journeyed, Jesus spake much concerning faith, and how,\nwithout faith, no one could truly believe in him. From time to time he\nlooked at us, as we went by his side; and he seemed as if he were\nmeasuring our thoughts by our faces, and reckoning up the sum of our\nstrength: and now he seemed desirous to speak, and now to delay speaking;\nwatching over us as if some great burden were at hand, and as though he\nfeared lest the burden should be more than we could bear.\n\nBut as concerning faith he said some things hard to understand; to wit,\nthat if a man had not faith, there should be taken from him even that\nwhich he seemed to have; and yet, at the same time, he said that no man\ncould have faith in him nor come to him unless he were drawn by the\nFather. Moreover he said that whoso had faith as a grain of mustard\u2010seed,\nshould be able to overthrow trees or mountains. Likewise he added that, if\ntwo or three would agree together touching anything that they would ask of\nthe Father in heaven, it should be done for them.\n\nNow as touching the overthrowing of mountains or destruction of trees,\nsome have supposed that Jesus really wrought such wonders as these; and I\nhave heard that stories of this kind are currently reported in the Church.\nBut Jesus did never any such thing. But in our language an \u201cuprooter of\nmountains\u201d was a name given to any Rabbi that had power by his words to\nremove great difficulties out of the path of the righteous, and to make\nsmooth the rough places in the ways of the Law. And after the like manner,\nas I suppose, are to be interpreted the words of Jesus touching the answer\nto prayer. For it entered not into his mind that his disciples should ask\nfor earthly things as their hearts\u2019 desire; but they were to ask for\nheavenly things, and earthly things should be added to them, sufficient\nfor their needs. Howbeit Quartus explaineth this saying somewhat\notherwise, as I shall set forth further on.\n\nAs we journeyed, Jesus would not that any should know him: and few took\nheed of us; for instead of a great multitude, none now went with him, save\nthe Twelve, and three or four others beside myself. But passing by a\ncertain house wherein dwelt one of our countrymen (though we were by this\ntime far beyond the bounds of Galilee) Jesus entered in asking for water;\nfor the weather was exceeding sultry. And so it was that in the house the\ngood folk were making ready to circumcise a child; and (after the manner\nof the people in Galilee) an empty chair had been set for the prophet\nElias, as being the prophet of the covenant of circumcision. But some one\nof our company (Judas of Kerioth, as I remember) not knowing wherefore the\nchair was thus set, asked the cause thereof. So the good man of the house\nsaid that it was set for Elias the prophet, \u201cwho hath ofttimes appeared,\u201d\nsaid he, \u201cin the guise of a merchant, to one or other of the Scribes in\nold times; and, three days before the Messiah come, he needs must appear\nfor to anoint the Messiah: but I have heard it said of many, these ten\ndays, that he hath appeared indeed as a prophet, on the other side of the\nlake, for to avenge the death of John the son of Zachariah.\u201d\n\nWhen he said these words, we looked each at other but held our peace: and\nJesus, after he had courteously thanked the man, came forth and addressed\nhimself again to the journey; but, methought, even more sadly and\nsorrowfully than before. But still his discourse (as oft as he said\nanything) was on faith; and presently he began to say in a low voice a\ncertain psalm (which was both at this time and during many days afterwards\nupon his lips); and in the psalm are these words, first of supplication\nand then of praise: \u201cDeliver my soul from the sword, my darling from the\npower of the dog, save me from the lion\u2019s mouth, thou hast heard me also\nfrom among the horns of the unicorns. I will declare thy Name unto my\nbrethren; in the midst of the congregation will I praise thee.\u201d Now when\nhe spake these words touching the \u201ccongregation,\u201d and also the following\nwords, \u201cmy praise is of thee in the great congregation,\u201d then so it was\nthat Judas, who had been scarce able, these many days, to restrain himself\nbecause of his anger at the tarrying of Jesus, spake aloud and very\nvehemently, saying that, but one or two months ago, there was indeed a\ncongregation, and a great congregation, which also had been ready with one\nconsent to have risen up against the Romans; \u201cbut now,\u201d said Judas, \u201cwe be\nscarce a score in all.\u201d\n\nHereat Jesus stayed, and turned round and looked at Judas, methought, to\nhave rebuked him; but when his eyes fell upon our \u201clittle flock,\u201d as he\nwas wont to call us at this time, not a score in all (for herein had Judas\nspoken truly), then it seemed as if his thoughts for us drove out the\nthought of Judas: and he paused as if he would have questioned us: \u201cDo ye\nalso say as Judas saith?\u201d But then he turned again and went before us,\nbeckoning to us to follow a little behind; and so he continued his\njourney, steadfastly looking toward the north, where the Mount Hermon rose\nup before us all glorious to behold. But so far as I could gather from\nsome words that I heard, he still spake to himself concerning the\n\u201ccongregation:\u201d and once I thought I heard him praying for us with great\npassion, and beseeching God that he would bring us out of the horrible\npit, out of the mire and clay, and set our feet upon the rock.\n\nWhen I spake with one of the disciples concerning that which was to come,\nand how the Kingdom was to be established, now that all Israel was against\nus, he would fain have kept silence; and when I urged him, he said, \u201cWhat\nknow I? Sometimes I am lifted up in my soul, and I know and am sure that\nthe Kingdom shall come; but at other times I know not what to think, nor\ncan I understand why Jesus would work no sign in heaven. But then again I\nsay unto myself that whether he be the Redeemer of Israel or no, he is of\na surety the Redeemer of my soul. For in his presence I find life: but to\nbe absent from him is death. The sum is, that I trust in him to\u2010day, for I\nknow not what else to do: but as for the morrow and what it may bring\nforth, behold, all things are uncertain and unshapen in my mind.\u201d The like\nalso said others of the disciples, albeit not in such plain terms, for\nalmost all spake unwillingly. Yet could I not but perceive that the most\npart had been sorely shaken in their faith, because Jesus had denied to\nwork a sign in heaven: and it was even as Jesus had warned us; the leaven\nof the Pharisees and of the Sadducees had entered into our souls.\nWherefore, although we all still called our Master, as before, the Christ\nor Anointed, and the Redeemer, or at the least, the Prophet, yet inwardly\nwe were wavering in our hearts; and a breath would have moved us this way\nor that way, towards belief or towards unbelief. For indeed we were being\ndriven down, as it were, from our former faith, whereby we had believed in\nJesus as a worker of wonders or fulfiller of prophecy; and we were falling\n(as it seemed, but in truth we were rising) to another and a new belief in\nJesus as a man, full of tenderness, and suffering, and patience, and\nwithal of a goodness that could not be deceived nor disappointed; and this\nperchance was the very thing whereat Jesus aimed, to wit, that we should\nbelieve in him as the Son of man, conquering through weakness. For our\nformer belief was as the mire or shifting sand, because it could give no\nfirm footing: but our new belief in the Son of man was to be as the rock\nwhereon we and all others were to stand immovable for ever. But we, at\nthis present, being, as it were, still on the sand, and not yet aware of\nthe Rock, how nigh it was at hand, we, I say, knowing in our minds that we\nwavered, were notwithstanding desirous to keep our wavering secret;\ninsomuch that we spake little on this matter one to another, yea, we would\nscarce confess it each man to himself: so greatly did we tremble at the\nvery thought of severing ourselves from Jesus. Yet, for all our\ndissembling, Jesus knew our thoughts; even as though he had been seated in\nour hearts.\n\nBy this time the aspect of the country shewed that we were leaving the\nregion of the lake. For the thickets of oleander, which but yesterday we\nhad seen blossoming thickly with red blossoms, were here, in these\nnorthern and higher parts, still green and in bud. Now also the snows of\nHermon seemed very nigh, even over our heads; and we were not far from the\ntown called C\u00e6sarea Philippi. The grass was everywhere green under our\nfeet as though the land knew not drought; and trees of diverse foliage\nshaded us overhead; and as we drew nigh to the town, we heard the sound of\nmany rushing waters.\n\nYet though all things shewed thus fair around us, our hearts were sad,\nyea, all the sadder for the beauty of the place, which seemed to rejoice\nwhile we sorrowed. Jesus himself looked not now (as he was wont to do) on\nthe glories of the mountainous country, but rather on our faces; neither\ndid he take note of the cedars, and the olives, and the groves of oak\u2010\ntrees; nor of the great plains of green grass; nor even of the Mount\nHermon, the top whereof, all covered with snow, waxed daily larger and yet\nlarger as we journeyed still northward. Ever and anon he turned to us as\nif he would have said some new thing to us; but as often, he turned again,\nas if still perceiving that the hour was not yet come.\n\nWe were now nigh to the outskirts of the town called C\u00e6sarea, even at the\nplace where the fountain of the Jordan floweth forth; and here Jesus bade\nus sit down. If we had had leisure to admire, there was much cause for\nadmiration. Before us, just above the spring, was a cavern wherein the\ninhabitants worshipped a certain false god of the Greeks, which haunteth\nthickets and forests, and he is called Pan: whence also the town in former\ntimes had been called Paneas. Higher up, on the summit of the cliff, stood\na temple of marble, white and fair to look on, built by Herod in honour of\nAugustus C\u00e6sar. Below, from the foot of the same rock, there flowed forth,\nunder cover of poplars and oleanders, many little rills of pure clear\nwater, which, meeting together, made a rushing stream, the noise whereof\nwas exceedingly pleasant. This stream it is which passeth through the lake\ncalled Merom, and, flowing southward, becometh our river of Jordan.\n\nBut for all these sights we had at that time no leisure; or if we noted\nthem, they brought no delight to our eyes, being unto us but as signs and\ntokens that we were exiles. Our great river Jordan, the river of Joshua\nand of Gideon, a river of mighty works and wonders of the Lord, how\nexceeding small did it appear, even as a mere rivulet, in this land of the\nGentiles where it first arose! The cavern of Pan also and the temple of\nAugustus filled us with sad thoughts, to think how all the world was\ncovered with the worship of false gods as with a net; so that, save in one\nlittle corner of Syria, the true God was not known. The name of Augustus\nalso, yea, and the very names of the town whereon we looked, Paneas and\nC\u00e6sarea Philippi, these all but spake aloud, testifying unto us how great\nwas the power not only of the Greek worship, but also of the Roman\nkingdom, inasmuch as our own princes built these temples and towns, and\ncalled them by the names our conquerors. Wherefore it was not possible\nthat a son of Israel, fresh from Galilee, should look on such sights as\nthese and not feel downcast.\n\nJesus stood a while, steadfastly beholding the temple; then he sat down\namid the rest of us. Our speech among ourselves had, even before, become\nless and less while we waited for that which was to come from Jesus: for\nwe had all perceived these many hours that he purposed to say unto us some\nnew and strange thing. But now, because we knew that the time was at hand,\nnone dared so much as to open his mouth; and a deep silence and a great\nfear fell on us; and we saw the lips of Jesus moving as if in prayer. But\nwhen Jesus at last opened his mouth to speak, he said nothing at first\nsuch as we had expected and dreaded. For he neither rebuked us nor\nprophesied evil, but only asked us touching himself (calling himself by\nthat familiar title whereof I have made mention above) what the common\npeople considered him to be, saying, \u201cWhom do men say that I the Son of\nman am?\u201d Straightway all the disciples began severally to make answer,\nsaying that most men in that region deemed him to be Elias risen from the\ndead; but that others supposed him to be the prophet concerning whom Moses\nhad prophesied, and others again called him one of the prophets. These\nseveral answers we made to Jesus readily and promptly, for our hearts were\nlightened because we supposed that this was the question that he had had\nso long in mind, for which we had all been waiting. But Jesus, as I noted,\nlistened to our speech as a mother listeneth to the prattle of her\nchildren. For his lips still moved as if in prayer, and his eyes were\nfixed upon the temple on the rock before him; and his mind was not with us\nnor with our words, but with something that still was to come from the\ndepths of the future.\n\nAnd lo, while we were still reporting this and that, touching the opinions\nof the common people, Jesus turned himself round and set his eyes full\nupon us who were sitting before him, but most directly (as it seemed to\nme) upon Peter, who was face to face with him: and he opened his mouth and\nsaid, \u201cBut whom say ye that I am?\u201d As he spake these words, he looked at\nus for an instant as if he could read our inmost hearts, and as if he knew\nthat we could not and would not deceive him. Then he turned from us again,\nas though to leave us to our own thoughts, because he would not constrain\nus nor draw forth from us any word that was not our own: and so he\nremained, gazing steadfastly on the rock and waiting for our answer, for\nas long, I suppose, as one would take to count ten very slowly.\n\nI have read in a certain story of enchantments how a prince was caused by\na magician to plunge his head into a vessel of water and to hold his\nbreath, and behold, while he was holding his breath beneath the water, he\nseemed to himself to have travelled long journeys and to have been\nshipwrecked and to have had many other adventures, and to have married a\nwife and reared up children, and to have passed through a life of many\nyears even till he had reached old age, and all this within the compass of\na single breath. Even so was it with us while Jesus was waiting our\nanswer. For we seemed in that moment to be summing up all our past life\nand all the life that lay before us, in order to answer this question of\nJesus aright. For we dared not lie to him nor flatter him; yea, rather we\nwould have displeased him sooner than have flattered him. Such a\nconstraint lay upon us to speak the truth at all times in his presence;\nand especially now. But what the truth might be we knew not, and searched\nthrough all the past and groped in the future, if perchance we might light\nupon it.\n\nA few Sabbaths, before, we should have been very ready with an answer; for\nthen all men said that Jesus was the Redeemer, the Christ; and we had\noften said the same thing. But now many stumblingblocks lay in our path.\nThe Scribes and the pious and the learned, all, save a very few, had\nrejected Jesus. The patriots had joined themselves to him for a long time,\nbut they too had cast him off; yea, and even the rest of the men of\nGalilee had been led away with them. The poor, as well as the rich, were\nnow against us. In fine, none were now on our side except a few of the\nlowest of the people, sinners and tax\u2010gatherers and the like. Besides all\nthis, John himself, a prophet, and one whom Jesus had called the greatest\nof the prophets, even he seemed to have wavered in his faith in Jesus; and\nwhen he had besought help in prison, Jesus had helped him not. Yea, and\nJesus himself of late seemed to have cast off faith in himself. For when\nhe had been challenged to work a sign in heaven, which seemed an easy\nthing for a prophet to do, he had refused to do it. Also, he had fled from\nthe face of Herod and from the Pharisees, and seemed to have become a\nwanderer rather than a deliverer. Else, why were we, children of Abraham\nand inheritors of the Land of Promise, sitting there like exiles, looking\non the temples of false gods in a foreign land? Even in the words wherein\nhe had questioned us, Jesus had spoken of himself as the Son of man. Might\nit not be indeed that he was, and knew that he was, naught more than one\nof the common sons of man? When had he called himself the Redeemer? Never.\n\nWe seemed in that instant to have been brought by the hand of the Lord\ninto a place where two roads met, and we had to choose one of the two. And\nif we went by the one, behold we had against us not only Rome and Greece\nand the whole inhabited world, but also the princes of our own people, and\nthe priests and the patriots, and the traditions also of our forefathers\nhanded down through many hundreds of years, and the Law given unto us by\nGod for which many generations of our countrymen had fought and died; yea,\neven Moses himself seemed to be as an adversary if we went by that road.\nBut on the other road no one stood against us; only we saw not Jesus\nthere. So the conclusion seemed to be that we had in that instant to\nchoose between Jesus and all the world.\n\nAnd, as I judge, even for this cause did the Lord lead us into the\nwilderness together with our Master in sorrow and in exile, to the intent\nthat there, being apart from the world, we might weigh, as it were in a\nbalance, on the one side all the world, and on the other side the Son of\nman; a man of sufferings and sorrows, a man of wanderings and exiles,\nacquainted with rejections and contempts; and then that, having weighed\nthe two, we might prefer the Son of man, because of a certain voice in our\nhearts which cried within us, \u201cWhom have we in heaven but thee? And there\nis none on earth that we desire in comparison of thee.\u201d And this, as I\njudge, was the faith that Jesus desired of us: and to this faith was the\nLord leading our hearts, while Jesus was patiently waiting for our answer.\nBut though it needeth many words to show even a very little of the\nsearchings of our hearts in that sore extremity, yet the time thereof was\nshort, not more (as I said before) than while a man could count nine or\nten very slowly.\n\nThen Peter rose up. If it were possible to judge from their countenances,\nsome of the other disciples also were very nigh unto speaking; for their\nfeatures were as it were in a flux, dissolving in passion, and speech\nseemed welling upward through them, and the lips of John the son of\nZebedee were trembling as if upon the brink of utterance. Notwithstanding\nit was reserved for Simon Peter to set forth in words and to shape by the\nforce of his soul the thoughts of John and all the rest. He therefore rose\nup and spake as I never heard man speak before, neither think I ever to\nhear man speak again, saying, \u201cThou art the Christ, the Son of the living\nGod.\u201d\n\nTwice or thrice at least, before this time, I had heard words like unto\nthese; when either the disciples or the multitude, marvelling at his\nmighty works, had hailed Jesus as the Son of God. Also many thousands of\ntimes have I heard the like confession made in the accustomed worship of\nthe Church. But never till this day, nor ever after, did I hear the words\nuttered in the same way. For there seemed to come forth from the mouth of\nSimon Peter no mere airy syllables, unsubstantial beatings of the wind,\nbut a certain solid truth, able as it were to be seen and touched, and not\nto be destroyed by force of man. What made the difference I know not: nor\nknow I how to explain the difference, except it came from Jesus himself.\nFor indeed it seemed to me that power passed from Jesus into Peter and\ngave unto him a strength more than his own, and not human. Yea, again and\nagain, pondering that saying of Simon Peter in my mind, I have thought of\nthe words of Nathanael, how he said that Jesus gave a voice to all visible\nthings even though they be voiceless by nature; and, in the same way, it\nmight have been said also that Jesus had power to give a kind of light to\nsounds: such brightness did he seem to cast upon the words of Simon Peter,\ninsomuch that the words, though old, seemed new, yea quite new, and never\nheard before. For the tongue and the voice seemed the tongue and the voice\nof Peter, but the spirit and the light thereof seemed to proceed from\nJesus; so that one scarce knew whether it were truer to say that it was\nJesus speaking through Peter, or that it was Peter speaking in the spirit\nof Jesus.\n\nBut when Jesus heard the words of Peter, he turned and looked upon all the\ndisciples and upon Peter, and he rejoiced with an exceeding joy, as if in\nthat utterance of faith the first seed had been sown which was to grow up\ninto the Tree of Life; or as if he had seen before his very eyes the\nlaying of the foundations of a great temple, not like unto the marble\ntemple of Augustus built upon the visible rock, but a temple of human\nsouls compacted together by no hands of man, but by the Spirit of God, and\ndestructible by no power in earth or hell. Howbeit he called it not\nTemple, but rather (using the word which our fathers had used in old days\nconcerning Israel) Congregation. For oftentimes he had instructed us to\nbelieve that the gathering together of the disciples made a temple,\nwheresoever it might be, even at the ends of the earth: but the Temple\ncould not of itself make disciples: yea, though the Temple itself were\ndestroyed yet he said that God would raise up even in two or three days a\nnew temple not made by hands. So Jesus made answer unto Peter calling him\nby his two names, first by the name which he had from his father (which\nname he had as being \u201cborn of woman\u201d) and then by that name of Peter which\nhe bore in the Kingdom, which name Jesus himself gave unto him: and he\nsignified that Simon the son of Jonah, being changed by faith into Peter\n(which name meaneth a stone or rock), presented and manifested forth that\nvery Rock upon which the Congregation should be built; and these were his\nvery words: \u201cBlessed art thou, Simon son of Jonah: for flesh and blood\nhath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven. And I\nsay also unto thee, Thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my\nCongregation; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.\u201d\n\nThen, as if he already saw the Temple of the New Congregation standing on\nthe Rock, he added yet another blessing upon Simon Peter and his faith,\nmaking mention of the key of the New Temple, and promising that he would\ngive this key to Peter, because they which have faith, those alone can\nforgive: and forgiveness is the key which openeth the Congregation to all\nthe world. Now it is a common prayer with the scholars of the Scribes that\n\u201cWe may not make defiled the pure, nor make pure the defiled; that we may\nnot bind the loosed, nor loose the bound.\u201d But Jesus promised unto Peter\nsomething better than this, to wit, that the faith which Peter had this\nday manifested (that is, the faith of the New Congregation) should have\npower to loose them that else had been bound; and that forgiveness below\nshould go hand in hand with forgiveness above; saying that he would give\nunto Peter the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and he added, \u201cWhatsoever\nthou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatsoever thou\nshalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.\u201d\n\nWhen he had spoken these words, he arose and went into C\u00e6sarea, where we\nwere to tarry that night. We followed him, marvelling much at his words,\nand especially because of this promise touching binding and loosing. For\nwe did not understand how we could receive such a power; and even though\nwe should receive it, we did not perceive how it would avail us to conquer\nthe Romans nor how it could hasten the Redemption of Sion.\nNotwithstanding, we rejoiced even more than we marvelled; partly because\nwe dimly understood that the Lord had this day wrought some great work for\nus; partly because we felt ourselves to be more settled and confirmed in\nour allegiance to our Master; but most of all because we perceived that\nJesus rejoiced with an exceeding joy, and we could not but rejoice with\nhim.\n\nOnly Judas said that he liked not that Jesus should speak of a\nCongregation and not of a Nation or People. \u201cFor,\u201d said he, \u201ca\nCongregation goeth not forth to battle, nor taketh cities, nor setteth up\nempires and kingdom: but this is the work of a People. Wherefore my mind\nmisgiveth me lest our Master, becoming desperate of his first purpose of\nsetting up a kingdom, should now determine within himself to found a sect\nsuch as the sect of the Essenes or Pharisees. For he was not wont before\nto speak of a Congregation, but he ever spake of a Kingdom of God, or a\nKingdom of heaven.\u201d But one made answer and said that it was written, \u201cLet\nthe Congregation of saints praise him; let the saints be joyful with\nglory; let the praises of God be in their mouth, and a two\u2010edged sword in\ntheir hands, to be avenged of the heathen:\u201d wherefore, said he, the\nmeaning of our Master perchance is, that in the time to come, Israel shall\nbe both a nation of conquerors and a congregation of saints. And to this\nwe all agreed.\n\n\n\n\n\n CHAPTER XXI\n\n\nFrom that day forth we noted but seldom in our Master\u2019s countenance that\nlook of expectancy which had sometimes perplexed us before. For now, and\nfor many days after, he spake and acted like one that seeth things to come\nas clear as things past. On the morrow after the blessing of Simon Peter,\nhe called us together, and told us that we must go up to Jerusalem at the\nnext Passover. If we were joyful before, much more did we rejoice now; and\nJudas smote his hands together for very gladness, esteeming Jerusalem\nalready captured. For he supposed that Jesus could not march up to\nJerusalem so as not to raise up the Romans against him, \u201cand when they\ncome against us in battle,\u201d he said, \u201cthen Jesus will perforce put forth\nhis power against them, and will utterly destroy them.\u201d\n\nThese words said Judas (but not so loud that Jesus could hear them) during\nthe first stir that followed the saying of Jesus about going up to\nJerusalem. But Jesus opened his mouth to speak again, and behold, he\nprophesied things that passed all understanding; namely, that he should be\nrejected by the rulers of the people, and delivered over to them, and put\nto death with insult. But then he added that although this must needs come\nto pass, yet in a few days afterwards, yea no more than one or two, it\nshould be with him as with Jonah, whose prayer was heard even from the\nbelly of hell, and according to the words of the prophet Hosea, who wrote\nthis saying, \u201cCome and let us return unto the Lord, for he hath torn and\nhe will heal us: he hath smitten and he will bind us up. After two days\nwill he restore us to life; in the third day he will raise us up, and we\nshall live in his sight.\u201d\n\nWe stood silent around him, all agape with wonder, and scarce believing\nour ears. But he spake quietly and cheerfully, like unto one describing\nwhat had already been accomplished, or as if he perceived that the thing\nwas as much according to nature as that a stone should fall downwards or a\nspark fly upwards. For not long afterwards he spake as if this were an\nordinance of God, that \u201cWhoso saveth his life shall lose it; but whoso\nloseth it shall save it:\u201d desiring, as I suppose, to teach us that in\ndeath, no less than in life, there prevailed that great Law of God which\nwas ever in his mouth, \u201cGive, and it shall be given unto you:\u201d meaning\nthat whoso gave up his life unto the Father should receive it again\nabundantly, both now and ever.\n\nNotwithstanding, at this time our ears were deaf and our hearts were\nhardened against all such words as these, and we feared to ask him\nconcerning them. Only Peter, mindful how Jesus had of late blessed him,\nand therefore venturing somewhat more than the rest, would fain\nexpostulate. So after he had besought Jesus not to vex the hearts of us\nhis loving followers by prophesying evil things, he spake concerning the\ndeath of Jesus, saying, \u201cBe it far from thee, O Master; this shall not\nhappen to thee.\u201d Then Jesus looked wrathfully upon Simon Peter, even as he\nhad looked before upon Jonathan the son of Ezra, and he rebuked Peter as\nif he had been the Adversary himself tempting him; and he said, \u201cGet thee\nbehind me, Satan; thou art a stumblingblock unto me; for thou savourest\nnot the things that be of God, but those that be of men.\u201d Yet was there no\nhate in his countenance, though he used the name of Satan; but there was\ngrief, and trouble, and many signs of inward perturbation; as if Peter had\nassailed him where he was weakest, appealing to him in the name of the\ndisciples whom he must needs forsake. Yea, the tears seemed nigh at hand\neven in the moment of the bitterest rebuking.\n\nAfter this, Jesus began to speak to us of the journey to Jerusalem, how\nfull of peril, and how desperate it was like to be. For he said that\nwhosoever followed him must be prepared to risk all for his sake. Yea,\neven as men condemned to die might go forth to their doom with the ropes\nround their necks or the crosses on their shoulders, even so must we go up\nto Jerusalem, all prepared for death, if we were fain to go with him. And\nthis he said many times, saying that none might follow him except they\nwould take up the cross; and during all the time of our going up to\nJerusalem, the cross was, as it were, the only watch\u2010word that he would\nappoint for them that went with him: insomuch that some, mocking, called\nit a journey of the cross, or a journey of the halter. But he added that,\nif we had courage to go with him, a reward was in store for us: \u201cWhosoever\nwill save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my\nsake shall find it. For what is a man profited if he shall gain the whole\nworld and lose his own soul? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his\nsoul? For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father with his\nangels; and then shall he reward every man according to his works.\u201d\n\nNow at these last words Judas turned away in anger, saying in a low voice,\n\u201cHe speaketh only of what is after the grave.\u201d But Jesus straightway\nadded, \u201cVerily I say unto you, there be some standing here which shall not\ntaste of death till they see the Son of man coming in his Kingdom.\u201d At\nthese words we all rejoiced again, and Judas with the rest, for, said he,\n\u201cThese words are no dark saying, but such as babes can understand.\u201d So we\nwent out from the presence of Jesus marvelling indeed, but rejoicing even\nmore than we marvelled.\n\nNow when we were come forth, and were alone apart from Jesus, we disputed\namong ourselves what his words might mean. But Judas said (after his wont)\nthat whatsoever was obscure should be interpreted by that part which was\nclearer. Now Jesus had declared that he would come and reward his\nfollowers and take unto himself his Kingdom even in the lifetime of some\nthat were standing by. But as for the rest, concerning the losing of life\nand finding of it, and as for what Jesus had said concerning his own dying\nand rising again, it was clear, said Judas, that the words were used\npoetically and in a figure, as if one should speak of sinking into the pit\nof the darkness of ruin and then of being raised up therefrom, as it had\nbeen described also by Jonah, and as Hosea the prophet had spoken.\n\nBut then Thomas said, \u201cYet methinks, since all men must die, therefore\nalso the Redeemer of Israel must perforce come to the grave at some time;\nand then what shall befall the disciples that shall remain in the flesh?\u201d\nTo this some one made reply that Jesus would assuredly not depart from\nlife till he had established the kingdom and trampled all our enemies\nunder his feet. Another said that, if Jesus indeed died as a captive\naccording to his own words, then his death would be like unto that of\nSamson, who destroyed many thousands of the Gentiles in his own\ndestruction. But still Thomas persevered that, whensoever the time came\nthat Jesus should depart from the flesh, then all the brightness of joy\nwould depart from the disciples for ever.\n\nThen John answered and said that Thomas had well spoken, only that the\nLord would provide against so great an evil; and he added, \u201cLet us not\nsuppose that the gates of death can separate us from the love of the Lord,\nneither let our imagination assure us that the grave is a strong place\nagainst the hand of the Almighty. For by the Word of God we were framed;\nand by the Word of God we were born; and by the Word of God we live; and\nby the Word of God we die; and by the Word of God we are to give account\nbefore the King of kings. Wherefore if even we are in the hand of the Lord\nthough we lie in the grave, how much more is the Redeemer of Israel, who\nis in the bosom of the Father? Wherefore my counsel is that we trust in\nthe Lord, and that we rejoice because we see our Master rejoicing.\u201d\n\nTo this we all agreed. Howbeit, when we tried to understand the meaning of\nthe words of Jesus, the judgment of Judas seemed good to the most part of\nus. And so it was that when we rejoiced, we rejoiced with John; but when\nwe reasoned we reasoned with Judas. But of this we were all with one\nconsent persuaded, that it could not be that the Lord would permit such an\none as Jesus of Nazareth to die a common death; but either he would not\ndie at all, or if he were taken from us, it must be after the manner of\nElias, exalted to heaven in a chariot of fire.\n\nBut Jesus desired to offer up prayers to the Lord upon Mount Hermon before\nhe set his face to go southward to Jerusalem. For he had long been\njourneying towards it, and it seemed to be unto him as a goal and limit of\nhis wanderings. Moreover at all times Jesus loved to be alone on the tops\nof mountains, not as though he counted high places to be more holy than\nothers, but because all visible things testified to him of the Father, and\nwhen he looked forth upon the world at sunrise from the summit of a\nmountain, then the Angels of God which rule over the light and the sky and\nthe earth and the air, seemed to speak unto him with a louder and a fuller\nvoice. Moreover though he spake not of the moon and stars in parables (but\nonly of the flowers of the field and the seed and the smaller things of\nearth), yet did he oft consider the heavens and the lights therein which\nare the works of the fingers of God; and for this cause he would sometimes\nspend a whole night upon a mountain\u2010top alone, meditating on the works of\nGod. So it came to pass that on the morrow after these things we went with\nJesus even to the foot of Mount Hermon. There we tarried during the night\nin a village just below the mountain; but Jesus left us and went up the\nmountain alone, save that he took with him Simon Peter, and John, and\nJames the brother of John.\n\nNow as for what happened on the mountain, I myself was not present; but\nthe three disciples told us afterwards things that made us to marvel. At\nfirst indeed they saw nothing more than common, nor indeed took heed of\naught which they saw; for they were wearied with the labour of the long\njourney, going for many hours up hill, and besides they were faint with\nhunger; insomuch that, when they were come to that part of the mountain\nwhere the snow lieth continually, they were borne down with sleep. Hereat\nJesus bade them stay where they were, and pray; but he himself went\nforward higher up the mountain, as it were a distance of three bowshot;\nyet not so far but they could hear his voice; for the air was exceeding\nstill, and all sounds came with a marvellous clearness to their ears even\nfrom very far off. Now it came to pass that when the three disciples were\nalone, they strove to pray, sometimes standing up, but at other times\nkneeling or lying flat upon their faces. Howbeit their eyes were still\nweighed down and heavy with sleep; but even as they began to slumber,\nbehold, the voice of Jesus, like unto the voice of an angel, fell upon\ntheir ears magnifying and praising God. So the night passed, while they\nlay there betwixt sleeping and waking; sometimes hearing the voice of\nJesus and praying with him; anon falling into slumber and dreaming strange\ndreams and seeing visions; and (betwixt dreaming and waking) scarce able\nto know what they saw, nor what they heard, nor even whether they slept or\nwaked. But at the last the Lord sent upon them a deep sleep; and how long\nthey slept they knew not, but suddenly with one consent awaking, they\nperceived that they were on holy ground, and that the presence of the Lord\nwas around them, and the voice of the Lord sounding in their ears. Yet for\nthe instant they knew not what work the Lord had in hand; only they felt\nthat He was very nigh.\n\nBut when they came to themselves, they heard the voice of Jesus speaking\nwords as if conversing with men present and face to face. Then for a brief\nspace the disciples lay even where they had been sleeping, still and\nastonied, supposing that it was a dream and that the voice should have\nspeedily ceased. But it ceased not, but continued. And they heard Jesus\nplainly speaking both to Moses and to Elias concerning that which was to\ncome to pass in Jerusalem; which, he said, would not be an error, nor a\nmisadventure, but the very fulfilment of the Law and the Prophets, and the\nfore\u2010ordained will of the Father. (Also Quartus saith (but this I heard\nnot myself from any of the three) that Jesus testified unto Moses, saying\nthat he came not to destroy sacrifice but to fulfil sacrifice.)\n\nBut when the disciples perceived that it was no dream, they with one\nconsent started up; and behold, the sun was just risen, and Hermon was all\na\u2010fire with the glory of the Lord, and the ice and the snow all around\nshone like unto burning gold and silver and sapphire, only far brighter,\neven as the brightness of the Throne of the Majesty on High. But Jesus\nstood on a rock above them; and when they looked on him, behold, his\ngarments were exceeding white, whiter than snow, and his face was\ntransfigured as the face of an archangel, and his shape was all glorious\nto behold, shining with a wondrous light; and his eyes were set like unto\none looking on the forms of departing friends. For Moses and Elias were\nnow passed away and were no more to be seen.\n\nBut Simon Peter, being nigh distraught at the glory of the sight, and\nscarce knowing whether he were asleep or awake, cried out to Jesus in a\nloud voice that they would remain on that mountain\u2010top for ever; and he\nsaid, \u201cMaster, it is good for us to be here; and let us make three\ntabernacles, one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elias.\u201d But\nJesus took no heed of his words, but kept still gazing upon Moses and\nElias. And while they still looked, the Lord sent down on them a cloud,\nand compassed them round with darkness; and they feared exceedingly when\nthey entered into the cloud; and there came a voice as of thunder out of\nthe cloud, saying that Jesus was the son of God. Then fell the disciples\non their faces, and offered up prayers unto the Lord. But presently, when\nthey arose, the cloud had passed away, and Jesus alone was standing by\ntheir side.\n\nWhen Jesus came down from the mountain, all we that were waiting for him\nin the village below perceived that he had had a vision; for there was\nstill an unwonted brightness on his countenance. Likewise also the people\nwhich were with us (for there was a great multitude) marvelled at the\nbrightness of his countenance; and running to Jesus, they saluted him as a\nprophet. Some also began to beseech him to heal a certain boy which was\npossessed with an evil spirit. For so it was that, while Jesus was upon\nthe mountain, certain of the Pharisees that dwelt in that village (for\nthere was a synagogue there, and many Jews dwelt round about that country)\ncame to us bringing one possessed with an unclean spirit and bidding us\ncast him out. So we adventured to drive him out. But we could not do it.\nTherefore the Pharisees strove against us and declared that we were\nvagabonds and deceivers, and that our Master was like unto us; and of the\nmultitude part sided with us and part with the Pharisees, insomuch that\nthere was a great uproar and noise of contention. All these things had\ncome to pass while Jesus was coming down from the mountain; but when we\nsaw Jesus near at hand, straightway on both sides we all ceased from our\ncontention.\n\nNow when Jesus understood the cause of the contention, and that the\nPharisees were striving against us because we had not been able to drive\nout the unclean spirit, he looked around both upon us and our adversaries:\nand behold, we were all heated with disputing, and angered by\nreproachings, and there was no faith in us. Therefore he was sorely\ngrieved, and he sighed bitterly, and said, \u201cO faithless and perverse\ngeneration, how long shall I be with you, how long shall I suffer you?\u201d\nThen he turned to the father of the child (for the man was standing nigh,\npiteously bewailing his child) and he said, \u201cBring thy son hither to me.\u201d\nSo they brought him.\n\nBut Jesus, looking upon the boy and upon the father and upon the\nPharisees, and upon all them which were standing nigh, perceived\nstraightway that there was no faith as yet that the boy should be cured.\nTherefore he asked the father certain questions touching the boy, and the\nman replied that the boy had been possessed even from a child; \u201cand\noftentimes,\u201d continued he, weeping as he spake, \u201cit hath cast him into the\nfire, and into the waters to destroy him; but if thou canst do anything,\nhave compassion on us and help us.\u201d When Jesus perceived that the man had\nnot yet faith (but only desire bordering upon faith), he said unto him,\nrepeating the man\u2019s words, \u201c_If_ thou canst; _if_ thou canst. Nay, but\nbelieve. All things are possible to him that believeth.\u201d And straightway\nthe man cried out for anguish of soul, and said with tears, \u201cLord, I\nbelieve; help thou mine unbelief.\u201d Then the face of Jesus was glad, and\nimmediately he rebuked the unclean spirit; and it came forth tearing the\nboy and leaving him as one dead, insomuch that many said \u201che is dead.\u201d But\nJesus took him by the hand and lifted him up, and he arose.\n\nHereupon the multitude departed, praising God for His goodness; but when\nwe were come to the house, we asked him why we had not been able to cast\nout the unclean spirit. Jesus answered that it was because of our want of\nfaith; and he repeated the words which he had before spoken, that\nwhosoever had but faith, even as a grain of mustard\u2010seed, should be able\nto uproot mountains. But such spirits as these, he said, could not be\ndriven out save by much prayer. He did not further rebuke us for our ill\nsuccess: but our want of faith seemed to engender in him a certain\ndisquietude for our sakes, perchance because he perceived that we were as\nyet too weak to stand by ourselves; and this, though the hour was nigh\nwhen his hand could no longer hold us upright. Howbeit he said no more at\nthat season, but only gave command that we should straightway set out for\nCapernaum.\n\n\n\n\n\n CHAPTER XXII\n\n\nAs we passed through the country to Capernaum, we began to tell the people\neverywhere that Jesus had now determined to go up to Jerusalem at the head\nof his followers, and that the time of Redemption was at hand. But Jesus\nforbade us; for he would not that any man should know that he was passing\nthrough. Howbeit, even though we were silent, the rumour of his journey\nwas everywhere noised abroad, so that he could not be hid. Many therefore\nleft their ploughs, and their fishing\u2010boats, and their trades, and\nfollowed with us: or, if they followed not, they appointed to be with us\nat the next Passover when we went up to the Holy City. For it was already\nthe month called Adar, so that it wanted no more than four or five weeks\nto the Passover.\n\nNow certain youths and striplings followed us, not deliberately, nor with\nforethought, but because they were ever unstable and ever seeking after\nnew things. Them therefore Jesus warned to go back to their homes, telling\nthem that they had not counted the cost of the journey. Others were fain\nto have come with us; but their friends sought by all means to prevent\nthem, telling them what cruelties the Romans had wrought upon their\nfathers and kinsfolk in former times; how some had been sold for slaves,\nsome slain with the sword, some crucified; and with many tears sisters\nbesought their brothers, and mothers their children, not to go up to\nJerusalem, nor to bring them down with sorrow to the grave. Now Jesus did\nnot call upon such as these to come to him; but if they were minded to\ncome, he bade them remember that they must above all things trust in him\nand love him; yea, he said that they must love him better than houses, or\nlands, or kinsfolk.\n\nHence also it came to pass that in a certain village he spake words which\nhave been a stumblingblock to many. For so it was that a certain young man\nof that village had come forth to meet Jesus; and after he had saluted\nhim, the young man had promised to follow in his army, and to serve him\neven to the death. Howbeit he besought Jesus that he would suffer him\nfirst to go and bid farewell to his father and mother. Now Jesus looked on\nhim, and perceived that he was as a reed that bendeth with the wind. So he\nsaid unto him that he must not go: \u201cFor,\u201d said he, \u201che that putteth his\nhand to the plough and looketh back, is not fit for the Kingdom of God.\u201d\nThereupon the face of the young man fell and he became very sad; yet he\nobeyed Jesus, for that day, and followed him; but on the morrow he\nsecretly departed for to bid his parents farewell, meaning shortly to\nreturn to Jesus. So when Jesus passed through the village wherein the\nyoung man abode, behold, the young man was even then coming forth from the\ndoor of his home. But his mother ran behind him, and caught him by the\ncloak, and embracing him besought him again and again not to go with\nJesus. Thus she constrained him. But Jesus, looking back on the youth,\nsaid, \u201cVerily he that hateth not his father and his mother cannot be my\ndisciple.\u201d\n\nAlready, even at the beginning of our march, when we first departed from\nHermon, there had arisen a questioning among us, who should have the chief\nplaces in the New Kingdom. For now, within one month, we looked to see the\nRomans cast out of Jerusalem, the Holy City and Temple purified, and the\nthrone of the Redeemer established. This done, it seemed to us that Syria\nwould be portioned out to several princes or governors; Galilee to one,\nSamaria to another, Per\u00e6a to a third; after the manner of the Romans,\nwhose custom it is to divide their dominions among many princes. So we\ndisputed among ourselves who should have the best provinces. Judas, as\nbeing ever foremost in all actions, claimed a principal share; but the\nothers also were not backward. Thus we disputed as we walked behind Jesus,\nbeing now nigh to Capernaum; and so it was that, in the heat of our\ndisputing, we knew not that Jesus was standing still, waiting till we\nshould overtake him. Therefore we walked on, still disputing, with clamour\nand much anger, till, lo, Jesus was in the midst of us. He looked\nsorrowfully on us, but said nothing for that time, and we were all\nstraightway silent.\n\nBut in the evening, when we were all together in the house, Jesus called\nus to him, holding a little child by the hand; and when we were gathered\nround him, he set the little one in the midst of us, and said that we had\nforgotten his former saying, how that no man could enter the Kingdom\nunless he became as a little child. Then he added these words, \u201cWhosoever\nshall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the\nKingdom of Heaven.\u201d Then said Judas, \u201cWhoso hath wrought much, shall he\nnot receive much? and whoso hath wrought little, shall he not receive\nlittle? And is not the Master of the work faithful, who will pay us the\nwage of our work?\u201d\n\nFor an instant Jesus was silent, looking at Judas as though perchance he\nhad not heard his words aright. Then he answered that in the New Kingdom\nthere was no difference of reward; for the least were to be as the\ngreatest. At the same time he placed his hand on the head of the little\none and said, \u201cWhoso shall receive one such little child in my name\nreceiveth me, and whosoever shall receive me receiveth not me, but Him\nthat sent me.\u201d He also spake a certain parable to us, as if to shew that\nthe reward in the kingdom is not by way of price but rather by way of a\nfree gift, coming from the Father, as cometh the rain from heaven, and\nsufficing for all them which receive it; even as the lord of an estate,\nout of the kindness of his heart, might give unto all his labourers the\nsame wage (and that sufficing for their needs), even though some of the\nlabourers might perchance be hired later than the rest.\n\nJudas had withdrawn himself before Jesus began this parable. For he was\ngreatly abashed, though Jesus had not rebuked him by name. But Jesus\nseemed saddened by our disputing, and by our hardness of heart in that we\nunderstood him not. Notwithstanding he was still cheerful and gentle\naccording to his wont. For albeit he saw close before his feet the\ndarkness of the valley of death, yet, above and beyond the valley of death\nwas the hill of life, which (at that time) he seemed to see and to\ndescribe, even as if he had traversed and measured it out with a measuring\nreed. Notwithstanding for our sakes he seemed sometimes to be in\nmeditation and sorrow, as though, when he had reached Paradise, he should\nlook back upon us left behind and alone.\n\nWhen we went forth from before the face of Jesus, we found Judas chafing\nmuch at his repulse (for so he termed it), and asking how it was possible\nthat in any kingdom there should be no degrees of rank or honour? For\nsome, he said, must needs be near the throne, others far off; and some\ncourtiers; but others tillers of the land and artificers. To us there\nseemed much reason in the sayings of Judas, though we liked not that he\nshould pay so little deference to our Master. John also himself confessed\nthat he understood not how it should be otherwise than Judas had said.\n\u201cNotwithstanding,\u201d said he, \u201cif Jesus should see fit not to give us power\nand wealth in the New Kingdom, we must none the less be content, and not\nlust after the table of kings; for our table is greater than their table,\nand our crown greater than their crown, and faithful is our taskmaster who\nwill pay us the wage of our work.\u201d\n\nThe words of John did not please the most of the disciples; who said that\nit would not be fit that Jesus should give power and wealth to other\nservants and courtiers, and should neglect them that had borne the burden\nof the first persecutions, who were now to bear the brunt of the conflict\nat Jerusalem. So they went away still disputing among themselves. Then,\nwhen we were alone, I asked Nathanael whether he thought that Jesus had\nany certain plans how to take Jerusalem or how to drive out the Romans.\nBut Nathanael answered that it seemed to him that Jesus had no such\ncertain plans. Then said I, \u201cWherefore then goeth he up to Jerusalem?\u201d\n\u201cBecause,\u201d replied Nathanael, \u201cthus much hath been revealed to him that he\nmust needs go up to Jerusalem, there to be glorified and lifted up. But as\nto the manner and time thereof, he saith nothing. Yea, and I have heard\nhim speak as if he himself knew not these things, but they are known to\nthe Father alone.\u201d\n\nAt this time Jesus began to speak more often than before of a certain day\nof wrath in store for Israel; and, as David on Araunah\u2019s threshing\u2010floor\nsaw the sword between heaven and earth, even so did Jesus discern a sword\nof the Lord; howbeit not stayed, as David saw it, but uplifted and in act\nto strike. Sometimes he spake as if he himself were to wield this flaming\nsword; but evermore, beyond the fire and the sword, he discerned the glory\nof the Kingdom of God; and he spake as if the Kingdom could not come\nexcept the fire should first be kindled, and he must needs kindle it\nhimself. Therefore once, when Jonathan the son of Ezra said to him that he\nwas accused of his enemies the Pharisees as if he would fain set all\nIsrael on fire, he replied, \u201cThe nearer to me the nearer to the fire; but\nthe further from me, the further from the Kingdom.\u201d(10)\n\nSeeing this flaming sword ever before him, Jesus none the less continued\nto speak of his death. This perplexed us not a little. For at one time he\nwould say that his enemies would be slain with the sword; or destroyed as\ntares are destroyed with fire; and yet, on the other hand, he repeated\nagain and again that he should die at the hands of his enemies in\nJerusalem. Howbeit of the evil prophecy we his disciples took small heed,\nbut gave our minds to the prophecies of good things. For he spake much of\nbeing \u201cperfected,\u201d and of being \u201cglorified,\u201d and how he should be \u201clifted\nup\u201d or \u201craised up\u201d in Jerusalem. Moreover, Jesus was wont to use the word\n\u201cdead\u201d of them that were in the deep waters of sin; as when he said that\n\u201cThe dead should bury their own dead;\u201d and again, when he said that \u201cThe\nson of man hath power to quicken the dead.\u201d Oftentimes also he spake in\nthe same way of raising up the dead, as when he told the disciples of John\nthe son of Zachariah that \u201cthe dead are raised up.\u201d Hence it came to pass\nthat, if we heeded at all his words touching his death, we were assured\nthat he meant to say only this, that he should be for some days struggling\nwith Satan, and not at once overcoming, but as it were in darkness and in\nthe shadow and depth of death; but that in two or three days he should be\nraised up and triumph over Satan.\n\nIn this belief we were much confirmed by our Master\u2019s constancy and\nstoutness of heart. For on the second day after we had returned to\nCapernaum, Eliezer the son of Arak, with others of the Pharisees, came to\nJesus where he was seated in the midst of his disciples, and making as if\nthey were reconciled to Jesus, they bade him flee from Galilee lest Herod\nshould slay him. But this they did, not out of love to Jesus, but hoping\nto rid the city of him, and partly desiring to discredit him with the\ndisciples, as if Jesus once more would go into exile for to avoid strife.\nBut Jesus made an exceeding bold answer, and said that the Pharisees were\nto tell that fox (for so he called Herod) that he would go on his way to\nJerusalem not through fear of him, nor in haste, like unto a fugitive, but\nhealing and teaching as he went, both to\u2010day and to\u2010morrow; and on the\nthird day (for the journey was a journey of three days for a strong man,\naccording to the common saying) he said that he should be perfected, even\nin Jerusalem. Moreover, when Eliezer, nothing abashed, dissembled still\nfurther, and bade Jesus take heed lest he should perish even as the\nGalileans, whom Pilate had slain, Jesus answered that to be slain did not\nargue that the men slain were sinners above the rest; and then he added\nthat another sword (which they saw not) was near at hand to smite them\nalso themselves, if they repented not.\n\nThis gladdened our hearts and made us eager for the journey: and when on\nthe morrow we went up from Capernaum, journeying towards Samaria, there\nwas not one in our band that was fainthearted nor desirous to return. Now\nat that time there were about three hundred following Jesus. But the\ngreater part of our friends, as we understood, were not to go with us, but\nto meet us at the going in to Jerusalem, or at some place nigh unto\nJerusalem.\n\nWhen we were come to a certain village in the road (the name of the\nvillage is Beth\u2010Gader) where a man journeying towards Jerusalem from\nSamaria leaveth the Lake of Gennesareth behind him and seeth it no more,\nthen it came to pass that our Master turned him round to look his last\nupon Capernaum, and Bethsaida, and Chorazin, and upon all the cities of\nthe Lake, wherein he had taught and wrought. And he stood and gazed a long\ntime, and cried out that it should be ill for those cities in the day of\nJudgment; for if the mighty deeds that had been wrought there, had been\nwrought in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented a long while ago in\nsackcloth and ashes. But when he saw Capernaum, and the fields thereof,\nand the gardens which compass it round, all bright with the greenness of\nspring, and the lake, still and peaceful, whereon were fishing\u2010boats and\nships innumerable, then he lifted up his voice and prophesied evil against\nthe place, saying, \u201cThou also, Capernaum, which art exalted to heaven,\nshalt be brought down to hell; for if the mighty works which have been\ndone in thee had been done in Sodom, it would have remained unto this\nday.\u201d Then spake he to us, saying, that it should be more tolerable for\nthe land of Sodom in the Day of Judgment than for that city. When he had\nsaid these words, he turned his back upon Capernaum and upon all the\ncountry of the lake; and he departed and saw it no more.\n\n\n\n\n\n CHAPTER XXIII\n\n\nWhen we were now drawing nigh to the borders of Samaria, it being (as I\nremember) about the ninth hour in the second day of our journey, behold, a\ntumult arose in the front of the band, and shouts as of men contending\ntogether. Then those of us that had swords drew them; for we thought\nsurely the hour was now come for battle. But Jesus bade us put up our\nswords; and going forward he saw a multitude of Samaritans gathered\ntogether to oppose us, neither would they suffer us to pass through their\ncountry; and they reviled us and began to cast stones at us. When he saw\nthis, Jesus neither reproached them nor persuaded them to let us pass, but\nstraightway commanded that our band should go back a distance of many\nfurlongs on the road whereby we had come, and then to turn eastward; so\nthat we might pass through the country beyond Jordan, thus avoiding\nSamaria. This seemed to the most part of us a grievous thing and scarce\ntolerable, that the army of the Redeemer of Sion should be thus turned out\nof the path by a Samaritan rabble. Therefore we besought Jesus with many\nentreaties, and some even with tears, that he would suffer us to force a\npassage; but he would not hear. At the last, when he had now begun to go\nback, James and John, being filled with wrath because the Redeemer of\nIsrael was thus despised, prayed Jesus that, if he would not suffer them\nto smite with the sword he would, at the least, suffer them to call upon\nthe Lord that He might send down fire upon our enemies. Hereat we all were\nin suspense, and hearkened eagerly to what Jesus would say; for in our\nhearts we had long supposed that Jesus purposed in this way to destroy the\nbands of the Romans, even as the prophet Elias had destroyed the captains\nand footmen of Ahaziah. But Jesus looked steadfastly upon James and John\nand said unto them, \u201cYe know not what manner of spirit ye are of. For the\nSon of man is not come to destroy men\u2019s lives, but to save them.\u201d Then he\nwent back by the way whereby he had come; and we followed him, sorely\ngrieving. Some of us also murmured (and Judas most of all), saying that it\nwas a strange thing that our Master should have threatened to cast the\nPharisees into the valley of Hinnom, and notwithstanding would not force a\npassage through the Cuthite strip (for by this name we termed Samaria),\nnor call down fire on a rabble of unbelievers. Moreover Judas spared not\nto say that Jesus must be made perforce to shew forth some mighty work\nagainst the enemy, or else the Redemption of Sion would not come to pass.\nAnd the heart of Judas began from this time to be turned away from Jesus\neven more than before; and Jesus also, as it seemed to me, began to\nperceive that Judas was estranged from him. For whensoever his eyes rested\nupon Judas, then the face of Jesus was as if God had hidden His\ncountenance for a season.\n\nAfter this we went over Jordan and journeyed through the country that\nlieth eastward of Jordan, which is called Per\u00e6a. Here we tarried some\ndays, even till the beginning of Nisan, which is the month of the\nPassover: and, about this time, were completed two full years during which\nwe had followed Jesus of Nazareth. Now the people and the land of Per\u00e6a\nare not like unto the people and the land of Galilee. For in Galilee the\nfields are small, and they till corn and vines and olives; and the men are\nexceeding stubborn and resolute, neither very rich, nor very poor. But in\nPer\u00e6a they have great pastures, and some are rich in flocks and herds,\nwhile others have scarce bread to eat; moreover the men are of an unstable\ndisposition, fond also of wealth, and given to ease, and not so steadfast\nas the men of Galilee.\n\nTherefore it came to pass that in this country and at this season, our\nMaster testified most of all against covetousness, and lifted up his voice\nagainst them which had their good things in this world and wanted nothing\nmore. At this time also he spake many parables, which it needeth not to\nset forth at full length, for that they are well known among the saints.\nBut among other parables, as I remember, he spake one against a certain\nrich and foolish farmer (the like of whom we saw many in that country) who\nthought not of others but of himself only, and had promised unto himself\nmany years of plenty and ease, but was cut off by God that night; also\nanother parable against a rich man that suffered the poor to lie at his\ngate untended; but afterwards the poor man was comforted, but the rich man\npunished in hell.\n\nAbout this time also began Jesus to speak less of the Kingdom of God and\nmore of a certain Eternal Life, which, as he said, the righteous and none\nother should attain. Some would have it that he changed his words, only\nfor fear of the Romans, lest they should suspect his often mention of the\nKingdom of God, and lay hands upon him as one aiming to be king; and these\nmen said that Eternal Life signified the Kingdom of God, though in\ndifferent words. And perchance it did signify the same thing: howbeit\nJesus changed not his words for fear, but partly, as I judge, because the\ncovetousness of the people weighed upon him, and because he perceived them\nto be wholly given up to the lusts of the flesh, insomuch that they were\neven as dead, and content to lie in the valley of the shadow of death.\n\nFor ever as Jesus drew nearer to Jerusalem, the sins of the people seemed\nto weigh heavier upon his soul, and death and destruction seemed to grow\nlarger in his eyes; insomuch that now he desired to exhort the people not\nso much to enter into the Kingdom, as rather to flee from death unto life.\nYea, so exceedingly did he fear the power of Satan to slay the souls of\nmen, that about this time, when a certain disciple desired to have left\nhim for a season to bury his father, Jesus would have the young man still\ncontinue with him, saying that the dead should bury their own dead.\nHowbeit, though we understood this afterwards, we perceived it not at the\ntime; but whensoever Jesus spake of Eternal Life, then we would interpret\nthe words still to signify the setting up of his Kingdom in Jerusalem.\n\nNotwithstanding, while Jesus spake day by day more earnestly touching them\nwhich would not come into the Kingdom of God, and concerning those whose\nhearts were satisfied with the good things of this world so that they\nthought they needed nothing, he none the less was tender and gentle to all\nsinners, and to the afflicted, and to young children, after his wont; yea,\nand perchance, even exceeding his wont. For albeit he saw daily more and\nmore of the evil nature of men, yet was he not embittered thereby; but\nwhensoever his burden became heavier to bear, then, as it seemed to me,\nhis gentleness appeared greater likewise. Of which gentleness I will here\nset down one among many instances. When we were come into a certain\nvillage, at the end of a day\u2019s journey, the hour being now late (for the\nsun had already set), behold, at the going into the village, stood many\nwomen with children in their arms; and they besought Jesus to bless them.\nThen we (who went before Jesus and the rest to prepare a lodging for him)\nbade the women take away the children and to bring them on the morrow; for\nwe had walked a long journey and were weary and had fasted long; and, said\nwe, it was not seemly at that hour to trouble the Master. But he was sore\ndispleased at us, and took up the little children in his arms and blessed\nthem and said, \u201cSuffer little children to come unto me, and forbid them\nnot, for of such is the Kingdom of Heaven.\u201d He also repeated his former\nsaying, that none should inherit the Kingdom unless they became as little\nchildren. These words seemed to some of us well fit for peaceful times and\nfor quiet talk and meditation in Galilee, but not fit now when the hour\nhad come to enter the Kingdom, as we supposed, by smiting with the sword.\nHowbeit to Jesus these words seemed always fit and seasonable; so gentle\nwas he and so loving, even to the last.\n\nIt came to pass that in the throng, listening to these words of Jesus,\nthere was a certain young man whose name was Tobias the son of Zechariah.\nHe also came that same night to the inn, to hearken to the teaching of\nJesus: and he said unto certain of his friends in my hearing that he was\nwilling to do anything that Jesus should say, even to the giving of half\nhis wealth: moreover he made many professions as if on the morrow he would\njoin himself unto Jesus and go forth with us to Jerusalem. Howbeit on the\nmorrow, when we assembled early according to our wont to set forth, the\nyoung man Tobias was not with us. But we (for it was usual with us to hear\nmany promises and to see few fulfilments) began our journey without him.\nBut we had not gone more than six or seven furlongs when the young man\ncame in haste running after us, and when he had come near to Jesus, he\nsaluted him and knelt before him. For his heart had been inflamed with\nadmiration of the doctrine which Jesus taught concerning the Kingdom of\nGod; howbeit he trusted not in our Master as the Redeemer of Israel, but\nhe loved him as a very pious Scribe, teaching things lovable and\nexcellent. Therefore, willing to gain the favour of Jesus and yet being\nunwilling to journey forth with Jesus, he was fain to gain our Master\u2019s\nfavour and also satisfy his own conscience, if it might be, by doing some\nother good work in lieu of doing that which he had promised to do. So he\ncalled Jesus \u201cGood Teacher,\u201d and said unto him, \u201cWhat shall I do that I\nmay inherit eternal life?\u201d\n\nNow Jesus perceived that the young man was deceiving himself; for he\nsupposed himself to be righteous, but he was not; moreover he trusted in\nhis wealth and thought to buy the mercies of God with a price. Therefore\nJesus took compassion on him; and looking upon him, he loved him, and\nwould fain have opened his eyes that he might know himself and be less\ncontent with himself. So he desired to shew him that he was wrapped up in\nthe love of his possessions. Therefore first of all Jesus answered as a\nteacher (forasmuch as the young man also had called him a teacher), and he\nbade the young man obey the Law. But Tobias, like unto a pupil reproaching\na teacher for that the task appointed is too easy, replied that he had\nobserved the Law from his childhood upward. Then Jesus, knowing what would\ncome to pass, made mention of the watch\u2010word of our desperate journey,\ncalling it the journey of the cross (or halter, as some people termed it);\nand he said to the young man, \u201cOne thing thou lackest: go thy way, sell\nwhatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure\nin heaven; and come, take up the cross and follow me.\u201d Then the\ncountenance of the young man fell, for he had not supposed that the\nteacher would appoint so great a task; for he had great possessions. So he\nrose up from his knees, and departed, grieving much, and he went back by\nthe way he had come.\n\nJesus looked after him as he went; even as a physician regardeth the\npatient which struggleth against the knife of healing. And he stood still,\nand marvelled much because of the power of the things of this world over\nthe mind of man, and yet more because of the power of the Lord to deliver\nthe souls of men from the things of this world. For when he considered the\nweakness of men and the strength of this world, then it seemed to him (as\nhe was wont to say) a harder and a greater work to redeem a rich man\u2019s\nsoul than to uproot a tree or a mountain, or what else may be wrought by\nart of magic. So he turned to us and said, \u201cChildren, how hardly shall\nthey that have riches enter into the Kingdom of Heaven. It is easier for a\ncamel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into\nthe Kingdom of God.\u201d Hereat we were astonished out of measure, saying\namong ourselves, \u201cWho then can be saved?\u201d But Jesus looked upon us and\nsaid, \u201cWith men it is impossible, but not with God: for with God all\nthings are possible.\u201d\n\nAfterwards as we walked behind him, we discoursed further among ourselves\nconcerning these words, and Judas said, \u201cHow then? Are we never to be\nrich!\u201d But another said, \u201cHe meaneth that none that are rich can enter\ninto the Kingdom; howbeit when we have attained to the Kingdom, then shall\nwe be rich, though we be poor now; but the rich shall be shut out.\u201d But\nNathanael said to me privately he thought Jesus meant otherwise; as if he\ndivided the children of men into two parts, the one part having their\nhopes and treasures in heaven and the other part having their hopes and\ntreasures on earth (according as he had himself commanded us to have our\ntreasure in heaven, saying that where our treasure is, there would our\nheart be also): now if a man have his treasure in heaven, then though he\nhave five hundred talents on earth, yet they harm him not, for he useth\nthem to good end: but whoso hath his treasure on earth, though he have but\nfive hundred pence on earth, yet they harm him, clogging his soul, and\nhindering him from looking upwards, because he useth his little wealth to\nthe ends of his own pleasure. \u201cFor,\u201d said Nathanael, \u201cas often as Jesus\nspeaketh of wealth, he meaneth ever some spiritual meaning, as when he\nspeaketh of bread and corn and wine, and the like.\u201d\n\nI doubt not that Nathanael interpreted aright the words of Jesus. Howbeit\nalso true it is that very few whom the world calleth rich, entered either\nthen or afterwards into the Kingdom of God. Therefore I judge that Jesus\nmeant also perchance to warn us how dangerous a thing it is for a man to\nhave more wealth than is needful for simple wants. For the experience of\nthe saints hath been, everywhere and at all times, that fewer men come\ninto the Church with five hundred talents than with five hundred pence.\n\nBut after we had discoursed a long time concerning the matter, Judas moved\nPeter to question Jesus, and to ask whether indeed it was true, that the\ndisciples should never be rewarded with wealth. So Peter went to Jesus and\nsaid, \u201cLo, we have left all and followed thee.\u201d He said no more, but Jesus\nperceived what was in his heart; and he answered and said to us all,\n\u201cVerily I say unto you, there is no man that hath left house, or brethren,\nor sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my\nsake and the Gospel\u2019s, but he shall receive an hundredfold now in this\ntime, houses and brethren and sisters and mothers and children and lands,\nwith persecutions: and in the world to come eternal life.\u201d Then he ceased;\nbut when we thought that he had made an end and we were departing, he\nadded, \u201cBut many that are first shall be last, and the last first.\u201d\n\nThese latter words of Jesus troubled us not a little. For of late since we\nhad left Capernaum, many new disciples had joined themselves to us, and\nJesus had suffered them gladly; and now we thought that his intent was\nthat, in the kingdom of Jerusalem, they, even these new disciples, should\nhave equal reward with us, who had followed him through all his\nwanderings. Moreover we were vexed because in the beginning of our\nconsorting with Jesus he had set much store upon us his followers, saying\nunto us, \u201cWhosever is not with me is against me,\u201d as much as to say that\nonly we, which followed with him, were his friends, but all else were his\nenemies; but now he seemed to set store upon all them that were not siding\nwith his enemies. For of late when John the son of Zebedee saw a certain\nman adventuring to cast out evil spirits in the name of Jesus, and yet he\nfollowed not with us, John would have forbidden him. But Jesus said\n\u201cForbid him not: for whosoever is not against me is with me.\u201d These words\nwere contrary to the words which he had spoken before, insomuch that we\nknew not what to think.\n\nBut as concerning the first words of Jesus, namely, that all our goods,\nwhatsoever we had left for the sake of Jesus, should be multiplied an\nhundredfold, and that too even in this life, we rejoiced exceedingly. For\nsome that had left small fields, began to reckon that they should have\ngreat estates; others that had left houses or boats, counted up whole\nvillages and navies that should be theirs when Jesus should be king in\nJerusalem. Moreover a certain Scribe, who followed with us, said \u201cThis\nsaying of Jesus is also in accordance with the sayings of the Wise; for it\nis said all things are done according to exact retribution, whether in way\nof punishment or reward. Even as Samson (who followed after the desire of\nhis eyes) was blinded by the Philistines; and Absolom (who boasted of his\nhair) was hanged upon the tree by his hair, so that he died. Moreover also\nHam the father of Canaan (who sinned by seeing and by telling, that is\nwith the eyes and with the teeth) was therefore made a slave; as Moses\nalso enacted that whatsoever slave was sinned against by his master in the\nmatter of teeth or eyes, so as to suffer loss thereof, he should be made\nno longer a slave but free. For this is according to the law of\nretributions; for with what measure a man measureth, THEY measure to him.\u201d\n\n\u201cNevertheless,\u201d said Matthew the Publican, \u201cI would fain know how, when we\nattain to the Kingdom, the mothers of the faithful should be multiplied an\nhundredfold.\u201d But some one said, in answer to Matthew, that perchance the\nmeaning of that hard saying was, that as many as were in the Kingdom\nshould be as one family; so that all men, esteeming one another as\nbrethren, should look upon the mothers of their brethren as being their\nown mothers. Howbeit most of us agreed to the words of Judas, who said\nthat we should take our stand upon the clear sayings of Jesus and leave\nthe dark sayings: now Jesus had said that our houses and lands should be\nmultiplied an hundredfold, and that saying ought to suffice for us.\n\nThus for that season we gave not much heed to the deep saying of Jesus:\nbut afterwards when I wrote concerning it to Quartus the Alexandrine, of\nwhom I spake before, he explained it after a different fashion. For he\nsaid that Jesus had in his mind a law of retribution indeed, but not such\na law of retribution as that whereof the Scribes spake, but a far deeper\none, a certain retribution of the soul. \u201cFor,\u201d said he, \u201cthe meaning of\nJesus is (as I understand it) that whatsoever the mind of man giveth to\nGod, this returneth from God to the mind of man again with increase, in\nlike manner as there returneth from the earth to man whatsoever fruit or\nproduce man trusteth to the earth. For God giveth to man many good gifts,\nsuch as food, and houses, and lands, and wealth, and friends, and\nkinsfolk; and these all are as seed. Now if a man keep these good gifts to\nhimself, and use them for his own pleasure, he is like unto a husbandman\nthat should keep his seeds in a vessel, or closet, feasting himself with\nthe sight thereof, and not venturing to trust them to the earth; wherefore\nthey grow not nor return him fruits of increase. But whoso trusteth all\nthese seeds to God, and useth them according to His will, behold, unto him\nthere ariseth a harvest in heaven.\n\n\u201cFor whosoever useth food aright, there springeth up for him cheerfulness\nand thankfulness and temperance and self\u2010restraint; and whoso useth aright\nlands and houses and wealth, there springeth up for him liberality and\ngenerosity and magnanimity; again, whosoever casteth the seed of\nfriendship into the lap of the divine goodness, behold there springeth up\nfor him a tree of living friendship that knoweth not death. And in the\nsame way, whosoever consecrateth unto God the love of mother and father,\nhe receiveth a new power of love multiplied an hundredfold, and a new\nfeeling of fatherhood, whereby he is drawn nearer unto the Eternal Father.\nFor assuredly, whensoever Jesus speaketh of the increase of houses, and\nlands, and money, and the like, for them that enter into the Kingdom; he\nhath not in his mind shekels, and vines of Eschol or Engedi, but he ever\nseeth a certain spiritual coinage and a spiritual vineyard of the Lord.\u201d\n\nAfter this manner wrote Quartus unto me; making mention at the same time\nof the words of Jesus, how he had said that whosoever should receive a\nrighteous man, _i.e._ an observer of the law, in the name of a righteous\nman, should receive a righteous man\u2019s reward; and whosoever should receive\na prophet in the name of a prophet, should receive a prophet\u2019s reward.\n\u201cNow by these words,\u201d said Quartus, \u201cJesus signifieth not that a man shall\nhave more or less of shekels, or more or less of food, or raiment, or\nhappiness, for that he receiveth a prophet or a righteous man; but his\nmeaning is this: that whoso by force of fellow\u2010feeling and by the links of\nfaith shall be bound to a righteous man, or shall be bound to a prophet in\nhis heart, he shall become one with the righteous man or one with the\nprophet, so that he shall receive the like reward with the righteous man\nor with the prophet, to wit, increase of righteousness, or increase of the\nknowledge of God\u2019s will.\u201d\n\nWhether Quartus, or he that made answer to Matthew, be the better\ninterpreter of these words of Jesus, I know not even now: howbeit at that\ntime we gave not much thought to these words, nor to aught else of the\ndoctrine of Jesus. For whatsoever we had learned or whatsoever we thought\nthat we had learned aforetime, while we were in Galilee, concerning the\nforgiveness of sins, and the not resisting evil, and the becoming as\nlittle children, behold, all these lessons now began to seem to us dim and\nfar off, and fit rather for the schools of children than for the stir of\nthe lives of men: because we were now going up to Jerusalem, and because\nthe Day of Decision seemed nigh at hand. For each morning, when we arose,\nwe said unto one another, \u201cPerchance the Romans may this day attack us,\u201d\nand each day, when we lay down to take rest, we reckoned the time and\nsaid, \u201cThere wanteth now one day less to the day of the Passover: and on\nthat day, if not before, Jesus must of a surety redeem Israel with the\nstrong hand.\u201d\n\n\n\n\n\n CHAPTER XXIV\n\n\nOn the last day of the month Adar, as I remember, we left the young man\nTobias behind us: and about three or four days afterwards, to wit on the\nthird or fourth day of the month Nisan (which is the month of the\nPassover), we came down to the valley of Jordan over against Jericho. Now\ntherefore there wanted but ten days to the fourteenth day of the month,\nwhich is the great day of the Passover. As the time drew nigh for our\nentering into Jerusalem, Judas began to complain very bitterly that Jesus\nneither strengthened nor encouraged his followers like a wise leader, but\nkept back some from following, and others, which followed, he made to be\nof a faint heart. Especially he reproached Jesus for that he did not set\nforth the Kingdom in clear words; \u201cFor,\u201d said he, \u201ctwo or three words\nwould suffice, if Jesus would but tell us plainly the when and the where\nthereof; but now he speaketh darkly, saying at one time, that it is at\nhand; at another time, that it is among us; anon, that it is still\ndistant; then, that we must strive to enter into it. Wherefore, to what is\nthis Kingdom of God like? Even to a mist, which taketh many different\nshapes, because it hath no substance.\u201d\n\nNow Jesus seemed to me to perceive what was in the mind of Judas, and to\nbe grieved thereat; but he took no note thereof in our presence, although\nJudas had been these many days turning his heart from our Master and\ninclining himself to leave him. For indeed he had by this time begun to\nrepent that he had ever joined himself to Jesus. Notwithstanding even now,\nat certain seasons, while Jesus was speaking, Judas was drawn towards him\nas in old times; but, as it were, perforce, and in spite of himself. Hence\nit came to pass that he was sorely distracted in his mind, being tossed\nnow this way, now that, like unto a troubled sea. For sometimes, upon no\napparent cause, he would break out into protestations of love for Jesus;\nbut at other times, when he thought no one was at hand (yea, and even in\nour hearing when the passion was on him) he would rage and fume that he\nhad ever left Kerioth for to join such a leader as this, declaring that\nJesus would ruin all them that followed him, and saying that he could\nwell\u2010nigh hate him as a blind leader of the blind.\n\nOftentimes hath it been marvelled how it should come to pass that Jesus\nshould have chosen Judas to be one of his apostles; for he knew what was\nin men. Why therefore did our Master choose for an apostle one that should\nafterwards betray him? But the answer which Quartus giveth is this, that,\nat the first, perchance Jesus did not know that Judas would betray him;\nyea, and had not Judas hardened himself against Jesus, he might have\nbecome a chosen vessel of the Lord.\n\nFor, at the first, Judas was no traitor, nor like unto one that should be\na traitor; but of a sanguine complexion and disposition, cheerful even to\nmirthfulness, and frank on a first acquaintance; not given to musing nor\npremeditating; but active and strenuous, and withal a lover of Israel:\nalbeit perchance somewhat too ambitious and less ready in friendship than\nin counsel. From a child his mind was ever given to great purposes; and\ntowards these ends he bent all his faculties: for he was of a deep\nunderstanding, skilled in the ways of men, and of a discerning spirit,\nquick to perceive what means were fit to accomplish his ends. But the\nmischief was that the power to understand was quicker in him than the\npower to love; for his understanding moved as a flame of fire, but his\nheart was very cold.\n\nWhen he first became acquainted with our Master, he straightway clave unto\nhim as unto a great leader of the people, who was like to redeem Sion.\nHowbeit his heart went not out to Jesus as the heart of John the son of\nZebedee, and as the heart of Simon the son of Jonah. For I remember once,\nwhen I questioned Simon Peter for what cause he first joined himself to\nJesus, Peter said, \u201cBecause he had been drawn unto Jesus he knew not how,\nand by the hand of the Lord\u201d; but Judas said, \u201cNay, but thou speakest as a\nsheep or a goat, in whom there is feeling but no understanding: but I\napplied myself to him with deliberation, as deeming him to be the fittest\ninstrument to do good unto Sion.\u201d\n\nNow perchance because Judas gave not so much of his heart unto our Master,\nfor this cause he received not so much back again; wherefore he grew not\nin spirit like the rest, but went backward rather than forward. And when\nhe found that Jesus of Nazareth was not to be used as an instrument, no\nnot even to do good to Sion; then he began to repent that he had joined\nhimself unto him. Afterwards, when Jesus first took upon him to forgive\nsins, this was, as it were, the turning\u2010point in the course of Judas. For\nhe was sore disturbed at that time, insomuch that he carried his\nsearchings of heart written even upon his countenance. For he was much\nmoved to have poured himself out before Jesus of Nazareth, beseeching him\nto take away the coldness of heart, and to give him a heart of flesh.\nHowbeit Satan hindered it, taking advantage of his pride; for the man was\nalways very proud, and had hitherto been foremost among the apostles; nor\ncould he brook now to step down from his high place and to make himself\neven as one of the sinners. Wherefore he opened himself not to Jesus, but\nhardened himself against the voice of the Lord within him.\n\nYet methinks the conflict was no light one in his heart; and even to the\nlast, he could scarce refrain from giving himself up to Jesus. And, as it\nseemed to me, for this cause Jesus called him to be one of the Twelve,\nperceiving how great gifts the Lord had bestowed upon him, and also\nhoping, by this means, perchance, to have cast out the jealousy and the\npride from his heart, and in the end, to have drawn him wholly towards\nhimself. For if Judas could have felt that he was altogether trusted, even\nas the chief of all the apostles, then belike he would have cast away the\npride whereon he clothed himself, and would have opened his heart to our\nMaster; and then verily he would have been a light in Israel, not less\nthan the greatest of the apostles. But it was not so to be; for it was\notherwise willed by the Inscrutable.\n\nSo it came to pass that, from the time when he was rebuked by Jesus, as I\nhave related above (though in truth the rebuke was not more for Judas than\nfor the rest of the disciples), Judas withdrew himself more and more from\nJesus and from the other disciples; neither would he speak freely nor ask\nquestions as before, but he moved the other disciples to question Jesus in\nhis stead. Yet notwithstanding when Jesus exhorted or rebuked us, Judas\nwould ever take the rebuke unto himself above all, and say that Jesus\npointed at him, though he did not mention him by name. Then would he fume\nand rage and depart in anger, and avoid the rest for many hours together.\nBut when he came among the disciples, he would sow strife among us with\nspeech of passion and jealousy; so that he was, as it were, a thorn in the\nside of the Master.\n\nAll this Jesus perceived, and grieved thereat. Yet he said nothing. And,\nas it seemed to me, his grief for Judas was swallowed up in another and a\nlarger grief; which I understood not then, but now I understand in part.\nFor Jesus at this time began to see more and more clearly that all or\nalmost all in Israel should reject him; and that his disciples should\nprove faithless, at least for a time; and that he should bring troubles\nand sorrows and wars upon the earth, as well as joy and peace; and that\nthe day of Deliverance and Redemption was further off than had been\nsupposed. Howbeit, for all this, he turned not to the right hand nor to\nthe left from the going up to Jerusalem: for he knew that the Lord God had\nan errand for him there; and that his death was to be for the life of men:\nand that the Lord would in the end give him the victory over all his\nenemies.\n\nOn the fourth day of the month Nisan, being (as I said above) the tenth\nday before the Passover, we set forth again on our journey to Jerusalem,\nand much people went with us. And when we came down from the mountains to\nJordan, even to the fords of the river, then some expected that Jesus\nshould have stretched out his hand and dried up the river, even as a\ncertain Egyptian false prophet had lately promised to do; and likewise\nElias in old times had dried up Jordan, and it had been also dried up at\nthe word of the priests when Joshua passed over. (For both now, and\nbefore, and for a long time after, the minds of all in Israel were ready\nto expect any sign howsoever strange and monstrous, and to follow any that\nwould profess to work such signs; insomuch that, about ten years ago, even\non the very day that the Holy Temple was burned with fire by the Romans,\neven on that last day (as I have heard) a certain false Christ led some\nsix thousand of my countrymen into one of the courtyards of the Temple,\nexpecting a sign from heaven. So strong was faith in Israel; if it be\nfaith indeed, to trust in any that profess to work signs and wonders.)\nHowbeit Jesus wrought neither this nor any other sign at this season, and\nwe all passed over, even as the other pilgrims, by the fords; but with not\na little difficulty and even some peril, for the river was marvellously\nswollen. Hereat some of the common people that were with us began to\nmurmur, wondering when the time should come that Jesus should put away\ndelays, and work such works as they expected from a Messiah.\n\nWhen we came unto Gilgal we rested; but Judas made some pretext that he\nshould go on to Jericho before us to prepare the way for Jesus; and, as I\nafterwards learned, he went to the house of a certain Scribe in Jericho\none of his acquaintance, and a principal man among the Pharisees of that\ncity, and he conversed with him a long time. The name of the Scribe was\nAzariah the son of Simon.\n\nNow while we rested at Gilgal, we looked gladly upon Jericho, gazing at\nthe forest of palm\u2010trees which lay between us and the city. Much did we\nadmire also the four towers of the city, which rose up straight to heaven\non the other side of the forest, and the walls high and newly built;\nsurrounded on all sides by thickets of balsam, and gardens of roses, and\nfull of all delights. For the place knoweth not drought, by reason of the\nperpetual waters; but it is a paradise all the year round. Beyond Jericho,\non the other side, we could see, rising up as it were over against us, the\nmountains that lead up to Jerusalem; insomuch that it was a saying with\nthem of the Holy City that the sounds of the sacred music and the smell of\nthe incense go down even to the men of Jericho. But the ascent is steep\nand the way bleak and barren, through cliffs and rocks on the right hand\nand on the left; where no trees are, nor any water; but robbers and\nmurderers lurk at all times in the caves on the sides of the mountains,\nfor to come down unawares upon the pilgrims and travellers which pass by\nthat way. Then said Peter unto John, \u201cWithout doubt the Romans will not\nsuffer us to go up; but they will fall upon us by the way. And should not\nthe people be advised thereof, that they may stand upon their guard?\u201d But\nJohn said nothing; notwithstanding, he seemed troubled that Jesus took no\norder for what was to come to pass upon our journey.\n\nWhen we came unto Jericho, behold, the people had been advised of our\ncoming, and on both sides of the road there was gathered together a great\nmultitude to see Jesus as he passed; and the common people hailed him at\nthis time by the name that was dearest unto the patriots of our nation,\ncalling him a deliverer after the manner of David, and saying, \u201cHosanna,\nson of David.\u201d But Azariah the son of Simon, who was of the acquaintance\nof Judas, was come forth also; and he saluted Jesus and besought him to\neat bread in his house. Howbeit Jesus would not eat bread in the house of\nAzariah. For as he passed through the midst of the people, he had espied a\ncertain man, by name Zacch\u00e6us, looking down upon him from a sycamore\u2010tree,\ninto the which he had climbed up, out of the fervency of his desire to see\nJesus: and straightway he had called unto the man, and bidden him come\ndown, saying that he must eat bread in the man\u2019s house. Now the man was a\ntax\u2010gatherer, as might have been seen by his dress and tablets, and indeed\nthe crowd shouted aloud that he was a tax\u2010gatherer, when they saw that\nJesus had chosen him to eat bread in his house; and they were sore\ndispleased at Jesus. Notwithstanding Jesus was constant in his purpose not\nto eat bread in the house of Azariah the Rabbi, but in the house of\nZacch\u00e6us the publican. So Azariah dissembled his anger and came to the\nfeast in the house of Zacch\u00e6us, and certain other Pharisees with him.\nHowbeit they themselves feasted not with the common people and the tax\u2010\ngatherers; but they conversed with Jesus and asked him questions.\n\nNow it came to pass, during the feast, that the heart of Zacch\u00e6us the tax\u2010\ngatherer was turned unto Jesus (even as the heart of Barachiah the son of\nZadok had been turned to Jesus in the house of Matthew the publican, as I\nrelated above): and he stood up and repented aloud of his evil deeds, and\npromised to make restitution, and that also not twofold but fourfold,\nsaying moreover that he would give the half of his goods to the poor. And\nJesus rejoiced at his words and said, \u201cThis day is salvation come unto\nthis house, forasmuch as he also is a son of Abraham.\u201d\n\nNow while Jesus was saying these words, I took note that Judas was making\nsigns unto Azariah; and Jesus had scarce made an end of speaking when\nAzariah (upon a set plan, as I conjecture, devised with Judas) said to\nhim, \u201cThou sayest that the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand: tell us therefore\nwhen cometh it, and at what hour? So shall we be prepared and ready when\nit cometh.\u201d But Jesus made answer to him and said, \u201cThe Kingdom of Heaven\ncometh not with observation. Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, Lo\nthere! For behold\u201d (and saying these words he pointed to Zacch\u00e6us) \u201cthe\nKingdom of Heaven is within you.\u201d At these words the face of Azariah was\nclouded with anger; for he had not attained that which he desired: and we\nalso were somewhat sorry, for we had hoped that we should have heard some\nnew thing. But Judas straightway went out of the chamber, not able to\ncontain himself for displeasure.\n\nWhen the guests and the Pharisees were gone forth, and we were alone with\nJesus, we would have questioned him still further concerning this matter;\nbut we were afraid. Howbeit many of the common people, yea and some also\nof ourselves, expected that on the morrow Jesus should have made an\nassault on the barracks of the guard in Jericho and on the king\u2019s palace;\nor, at the least, that he should have suffered us to burn down the house\nof customs. But Jesus did none of these things: but on the morrow we set\nforth again to go up to Jerusalem. It was now the sixth day of the month\nNisan, and the eighth day before the day of the Passover.\n\nAfter we had journeyed for about an hour, the way being exceeding steep,\nand the sun (although it was not long risen) beating with an exceeding\nheat upon us, by reason of the rocks and cliffs around us and before us;\nit came to pass that we sat down to rest. And Jesus looked down upon\nJericho, and on the palm\u2010trees thereof and on the balsam\u2010groves, and on\nall the gardens of the place, and then he turned and looked to the right\nhand upon the country where Jordan floweth into the Dead Sea, and he\nopened his mouth and taught us concerning the Kingdom of God. For he said\nthat, as in old time the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah had been swallowed\nup in that same sea of destruction which we saw before our eyes, even so\nshould it be hereafter: and the Kingdom of Heaven should come in a flash,\neven as the lightning which lighteneth out of the one part under heaven\nand shineth unto the other part under heaven. But first he said that\ntrouble should come upon the disciples; for the Son of man should be\nrejected, and the days should come when we should desire to see one of the\ndays of the Son of man, and should not see it. Most of all he lamented\nthat in the darkness of that time there should be division in Israel, yea\nin every household and in every corner of Israel: \u201cI tell you in that\nnight there shall be two men in one bed; the one shall be taken and the\nother left. Two women shall be grinding together; the one shall be taken\nand the other left. Two men shall be in the field; the one shall be taken\nand the other left.\u201d\n\nNow this seemed quite contrary to the word which Jesus had spoken\nyesterday. For then Jesus had said that the Kingdom of God was within us;\nbut now he said that it should come like the lightning. Howbeit, these\nlatter words made us rejoice; for now again we were lifted up in our\nhearts, supposing that Jesus would work some sudden sign, to destroy our\nenemies in a moment of time. And Judas was now no longer able to constrain\nhimself (for he had been sore displeased, even before, that the question\nof Azariah had not been answered by Jesus): therefore, when Jesus had made\nan end of speaking these words, how that \u201cthe one shall be taken and the\nother left,\u201d supposing that now at last he should obtain to know that\nsecret which he had so long desired to know, he leapt up in the vehemence\nof his desire, and cried aloud to Jesus, \u201cWhere, O Master?\u201d But Jesus\npaused and looked steadfastly at him and said, \u201cWheresoever the body is,\nthither will the eagles be gathered together.\u201d Saying these words, Jesus\narose and turned his face from the Dead Sea and from the pleasant places\nof Jericho, and bent himself again to ascend the mountainous way which\nleadeth up to Bethany and thence to Jerusalem. But Judas remained behind\nstanding in the same place, and there I saw him still standing and musing,\nlong after the rest of the disciples had followed Jesus up the mountainous\nway.\n\nWhen Judas at last overtook us, he complained much that Jesus knew in\nhimself what was to come to pass, and yet hid it from his followers.\n\u201cFor,\u201d said he, \u201cwe risk our lives for him, yet he trusteth us not.\u201d Now\nwe were displeased at the words of Judas; for we were assured that Jesus\ndid all things for the best. Notwithstanding we were somewhat moved\nbecause Jesus thought not fit to tell us beforehand that which was to\nbefall us in Jerusalem and on our journey to Jerusalem. And so it was\nthat, while we were disputing, there was a great clamour in the front of\nour band, and a cry went up that the Romans were upon us; and straightway\nthere was much stir of men putting themselves in order of defence (those\nat least that had arms), and certain of the women cried out for fear. And\nPeter said it was not unlikely that the Romans should fall upon us here;\nfor this was the very place where they had laid ambush for Athronges and\nslain him; moreover one came running past us saying that he had seen the\nglittering of their helmets, and that they were lying in wait for us at\nthe corner of the road. Howbeit the report was false; for there were no\nRomans, but some one had been deceived by the shining of the sun against\nthe rocks, and so had caused all this stir.\n\nNow Jesus was grieved when he saw that some of the disciples were afraid;\nand he rebuked us, bidding us not to fear destruction of body, but only\ndestruction of soul. He himself also shewed no sign of fear, so that we\nmarvelled at his steadfastness and stoutness of heart. Nevertheless Judas\nsaid that it would have been better if Jesus, being a prophet, had\nforewarned the multitude and had said unto them, \u201cThe Romans will not fall\nupon us save at Bethany, or so many furlongs on this side of Bethany; or,\nthey will not fall upon us to\u2010day, but to\u2010morrow at the seventh hour,\nnaming the place and time exactly:\u201d and this, said Judas, would have been\nfar better than that our band should thus be thrown into a confusion upon\na mere rumour.\n\nWe said nothing against Judas; for we knew not what to say: neither do I\nperfectly know even to this day. But Quartus saith that \u201cJesus knew not\nall these things exactly, but only generally, and as it were on a large\nscale; as if a pilot, piloting a vessel into an haven, should know the\nwinds, and the currents, and the shoals, and the aspect and form of the\ncoast, but not all the pebbles upon the strand, nor even the very moment\nthat the ship should come into the harbour. For by certain signs of the\ntimes,\u201d said Quartus, \u201cJesus discerned of that which was to come, even as\na wise mariner foretelleth the weather by the clouds, and winds, and the\nother signs in the heavens. Neither was Jesus like unto a magician or\ncommon enchanter, who pretendeth to change the course of things by his\nenchantment; but he was even as a Son of God, who can read what is in the\nbook of the future, yea, and can shape the future, because he doeth all\nthings in accordance with the invisible laws of God.\u201d\n\nThus far Quartus; but concerning these things I know not, neither\npronounce judgment. But let us return to our journey. Soon after these\nthings, going to John the son of Zebedee, I found him conversing with his\nmother; and he received me with a constrained countenance not according to\nhis custom. Presently I perceived that his mother desired him to do a\ncertain thing, which he was loth to do. It seemed that Judas had been\nspeaking to her, saying that it was fit that strife should be quenched\namong the disciples by determining once and for all who should have the\nfirst places in the Kingdom; for, said he, until this be settled, there\nmust still be quarrelling among the disciples. For Simon Peter, forsooth,\nhad supposed himself to be chief, because Jesus had blessed him and given\nunto him a title; but the sons of Zebedee had done no less deeds, and\nshewn no less zeal, than Peter; and they, as well as Peter, had received a\ntitle, having been called Sons of Thunder; wherefore then (said Judas)\nshould they not claim the first places? For himself, he said, he had no\nthoughts about such high matters; for Jesus loved him not as the rest.\nHowbeit, he desired that the expedition should not fail owing to the\nstrife among the disciples. Now Jesus had promised that if two or three of\nhis disciples agreed touching anything they should ask, it should be done\nfor them. Therefore he bade the mother of John go with her two sons to\nJesus and ask of him a certain favour; and if Jesus granted it, then she\nwas to ask that her two sons might be next to Jesus in the place of honour\nin the New Kingdom.\n\nWhen James and John had been at last persuaded by their mother, they made\ntheir petition unto Jesus. But Jesus refused it, saying that to sit on his\nright hand and on his left hand was not his to give, save to those for\nwhom it had been prepared by the Father. For he would do nothing unjustly,\nnor out of respect for persons; but here, as in all things, he desired to\nconform himself to the unseen ordinances of the Father. And herein Jesus\nshewed himself very different from that which he was supposed to be by\nJonathan the son of Ezra. For Jonathan supposed that he was misled by his\ndesires, and that whatsoever things seemed to Jesus desirable, these Jesus\nfancied to be true: but it was not so; for no one ever saw, more clearly\nthan Jesus, that which must needs be. Only he rebelled not against it, but\nwillingly submitted himself to it and embraced it, as being the will of\nthe Father, and therefore very good. For this cause both now and at other\ntimes, he spake of all his words and works as being prepared for him;\nsaying that he could neither do nor say anything of himself, but only that\nwhich the Father had prepared. Also I marked, both at this time and often\nbefore and after, how Jesus joined together in himself virtues that mix\nnot well together in the minds of most. For with most men a nature that\njudgeth well and wisely is somewhat cold; and they which love warmly, love\nneither wisely nor well, but are fond. But with Jesus it was not so: for\nthe more he loved men, the more he loved justice and truth; because, as I\nsuppose, his love of men on earth sprang out of his love of Him in heaven\nwhose name is Truth and Justice.\n\nOn this same day Jesus spake much concerning that which was to come; and\nall his words tended to sadness. For he lamented over the divisions among\nhis disciples, and the divisions that should be in the world, saying that\nit was as if he had not come to bring peace but a sword; yea, and that he\nhad verily come to kindle a fire upon the earth. Moreover of the day of\nRedemption he spake as though it were a great way off, and the disciples\nwould need to wait long for it, and to watch, and to pray, and to resist\nmany temptations. Howbeit in every parable he spake confidently of a\ncertain day of Decision or Judgment, when the good should be separated\nfrom the evil, and the evil should be cast into the fire, but the good\nshould be preserved for everlasting life.\n\nThese things he said to all the disciples; but when the Twelve, and we\nthat were always with him, were come to him in the inn where he rested\nduring the heat of the noontide, he spake privately to us concerning our\ndisputings and contentions among ourselves. For he had noted how sorely\nthe rest of the apostles were displeased at John and James; and also at\nother times he had perceived that we were jealous one of another.\nWherefore he besought us (and as it seemed to me there were even tears in\nhis eyes) to be at peace among ourselves. Moreover he spake about himself,\nsaying that he had a cup of sorrow to drink and a baptism of suffering to\nbe baptized withal, and that he had come to give his life a ransom for the\nmultitude. Therefore if any man among us desired to be chief of all and\nforemost of all, he desired that man to be foremost in serving, and in\nministering, and in suffering; even as he also came to be a sufferer and a\nminister for the multitude.\n\nThen he besought us with great passion and fervency to suffer nothing to\ncome between us and our entrance into the Kingdom, saying that it were\nbetter for us to cut off our right hand or pluck out our right eye and so\nto enter into life, rather than to enter with two eyes and hands into\ndarkness, into the valley of Hinnom, where the worm ceaseth not and the\nfire is not quenched. Finally, he lamented over the world, how that it was\nnot fit to be a sacrifice to the Father because it was not salted; and he\ncalled us the salt of the world: \u201cBut if,\u201d said he, \u201cthe salt hath lost\nits savour, wherewith shall the salting be performed?\u201d\n\nNow some of his words were hidden from us, but these last were easy to\nunderstand. And we were ashamed of our disputings, and because we were not\nlike unto our Master in singleness of heart. Judas also himself seemed to\nbe moved somewhat at the time: yet, soon after, he spake again as before,\nsaying that it was impossible to obey Jesus, because Jesus said at one\ntime one thing and at another time another; \u201cWherefore,\u201d added Judas,\n\u201cinasmuch as our Master will neither plan nor perform aught to do good\nunto himself, methinks it is meet that we his disciples should strive to\ndo him good, even though it be against his own will.\u201d\n\n\n\n\n\n CHAPTER XXV\n\n\nAfter Jesus had made an end of this exhortation, he set forth on his\njourney to go towards Bethany, which lay still far up above us. There was\nin his countenance even such a brightness as we had noted when he came\ndown from the mountain with Peter and James and John. Whereat we\nmarvelled, because he that had but now spoken to us with such a passion of\nsorrow concerning a cup of suffering and death, seemed to go towards\nsuffering and death like unto one triumphing in glory. Howbeit we feared\nto ask him further concerning these things; but we followed after him,\nquestioning among ourselves.\n\nNow Judas ceased not cavilling at the exhortation of Jesus, saying that it\nwas not fit that a leader should make himself like a child, nor that whoso\nwould fain be greatest should make himself least; \u201cFor,\u201d said Judas, \u201ca\nleader must lead, not follow; and he must command, not obey; and he must\nhave the forethought of a man to arrange all things orderly, not the\nafterthought of a child to adventure all things at hazard. Now Jesus, in\nhis former days, when he was like himself, ever took upon himself the part\nof leader, yea, even a leader greater than Moses; for he was wont to speak\nin our ears such words as these, It was said to them of old time, Do this,\nbut _I_ say unto you, Do that; and again, Come unto _me_, and _I_ will\ngive you rest; Take _my_ yoke upon you, and the like. Were not these words\nthe words of a leader? But now what saith he? Even such words as these: \u2018I\nam not a leader, but a follower\u2019; \u2018I am not as the greatest, but as the\nleast\u2019; \u2018I am not a conqueror, but as one to be vanquished, yea and\nalready vanquished, even as a lamb led to the slaughter.\u2019 Nor doth he give\ncommand beforehand, nor warn us how to meet the enemy, nor where to expect\nthe onset. But behold it wanteth but a week or less, and there cometh the\nPassover; and nothing is settled. Verily we are as sheep without a\nshepherd.\u201d\n\nThus spake Judas in the bitterness of his heart, more freely than he had\never spoken before (at least in our presence), and we marvelled at the\nbitterness of his speech. But Peter rebuked him and said, \u201cSay not such\nwords as these, O Judas, for of a surety Jesus is our leader even unto\ndeath; but his ways are not as our ways, and we must have faith in him.\nHowbeit concerning what is to come to pass on the day after the morrow,\nsomewhat, as I know, is already settled; for he purposeth to enter the\nHoly City publicly, even before the face of all that dwell in Jerusalem.\nNow when that cometh to pass, then doubtless he will be moved to perform\nsome mighty work. I say not that he will smite with the sword; for he ever\nshrinketh from the sword. But perchance he will pray unto the Lord, and\nthe earth will open for our enemies, even as it opened for the children of\nKorah, or fire will go forth from the presence of our Master himself, and\nhe will consume his enemies with the fervency of his breath. For the\nmercies of the Lord are manifold, and very many are His paths for the\ndestruction of the wicked.\u201d\n\nWhen Judas heard mention of the going of Jesus into Jerusalem, he held his\npeace, thinking (as I perceived from his words afterwards) that this was\nperchance a sign that Jesus was minded to become a leader indeed. But\nanother, taking up the word spoken by Simon Peter touching the fire from\nthe presence of Jesus, said, \u201cAnd perchance this fire is even what our\nMaster signifieth, when he saith that the adversaries shall be cast into\nthe fire.\u201d But another said, \u201cNay, but it is written, the punishment of\nmalefactors shall be fire and worms. Also it is written in the prophet\nIsaiah that, when all things are made anew, in that day the righteous\nshall go up to Jerusalem to worship the Lord, \u2018and they shall go forth and\nlook upon the carcases of the men that have transgressed against me; for\ntheir worm shall not die, neither shall their fire be quenched.\u2019 Therefore\nit is most certain that, when Jerusalem shall be purified, the adversaries\nshall be cast forth into the valley of Hinnom, even to the fire and worms;\nand they shall be an abhorring to all flesh.\u201d\n\nTo this the most part agreed. Only Nathanael seemed doubtful; but he said\nnothing in the hearing of the rest. But when I questioned him concerning\nthe meaning of the words of Jesus, he answered that he knew not for\ncertain what they meant; only he felt assured that Jesus had in his mind\nnot a visible but some kind of invisible fire, which preyeth upon\nwickedness, even as the fire whereon we look preyeth upon fuel. This\nseemed to me at that time a hard saying, but now I consent unto it. And to\nthe same effect spake Quartus afterwards, saying, \u201cTo Jesus the invisible\nthings were visible, even as those things which are seen with the eyes;\nyea, they were more visible. Therefore when he looked upon the hearts of\nmen and discerned in them jealousy or malignity or hypocrisy, behold, such\nmen seemed to him as men that are suffering from a sore disease, which\ndisease must be burned away with the fires of God. For as the all\u2010\nencompassing sunlight bringeth life to them which are whole, but fiery\nheats to them in whose veins the fever rageth, even so the fire of God\n(which compasseth all invisible things, so that naught can escape from the\nflame thereof) purifieth that which will be purified, but consumeth that\nwhich is corrupt, according as it is written, \u2018The jealousy of the Lord\nburneth like fire for ever.\u2019\u201d\n\nNow Xanthias, the Greek merchant of Alexandria, was wont to say that Jesus\nwould have done well to make distinction between the fire of God and the\nfires of men; lest his disciples should be led astray by his words, and\nlest they should suppose that Jesus was speaking of earthly destruction.\nBut if Xanthias had lived unto these days, and had seen how, after the\ndeath of our Master, the most part of our nation were given up to darkness\nand madness, and their city and temple were burned with fire, and they\nthemselves were consumed by hundreds and by thousands, then, as it seemeth\nto me, he would have perceived that the fire whereof Jesus spake consumeth\nalike things visible and invisible, and on earth as well as not on earth.\nHowbeit at this season we understood none of these things, and almost all\nthought that the Romans and other Gentiles in Jerusalem, and whosoever of\nour own nation stood up against our Master, should be slain and cast out\ninto the valley of Hinnom to be consumed by fire and worms.\n\nBut while we thus disputed among ourselves, behold, we were now come nigh\nunto the village called Bethany; which lieth high up on the mountain\ncalled the Mount of Olives, and looketh, from above, upon the road that\ngoeth down to Jericho. And from Bethany to Jerusalem is but sixteen\nfurlongs or less. Here therefore our journey was at an end; for our Master\nwas to tarry at Bethany, in the house of Mary and Martha, for that night\nand during the morrow also; for the Sabbath was at hand. But of the rest\nof our band, some few remained with us; others went forward a little space\nto Bethphage, which was about a Sabbath day\u2019s journey; others, and these\nthe greater part, hasted to pass into Jerusalem before the Sabbath should\nhave begun; for there wanted but one hour of sunset.\n\nDuring all that night Jesus said not much to us. Only, while speaking to\nthe women after supper, he discoursed concerning the need of patience, and\nhow the disciples in the New Kingdom must be like unto wise virgins going\nunto a wedding, which take not only lighted lamps, but also good store of\noil that they may keep their lamps alight; but the foolish, which take no\noil, have not their lamps alight when the bridegroom arriveth suddenly:\nwherefore they come too late for the feast and are shut out. Thereby, said\nPeter, Jesus seemed to mean that he was to leave us for a time and to\nreturn suddenly; and whoso was not prepared to meet him should be shut out\nfrom the Kingdom. Some other parables Jesus spake to the same effect.\n\nNow concerning these parables Quartus judgeth that Jesus spake in them of\nhis resurrection. \u201cFor,\u201d said he, \u201cthe meaning of Jesus was, that if the\ndisciples had not prayed unto the Lord, and watched and waited after his\ndeath (but contrariwise had given themselves over to idleness and folly,\nas men desperate), then Jesus would never have appeared to them; and they\nwould have been shut out from the Kingdom.\u201d Others interpret the words, as\nif Jesus spake of some other coming, which may not perchance be fulfilled\nin our days. But I incline rather to think that our Master prophesied\npartly concerning some future coming which is not yet fulfilled; and\npartly concerning his resurrection and manifestation to us his disciples,\nsoon to be fulfilled; but partly also concerning our nation: how that,\nafter his death, some few should be ready to receive him, but the greater\npart should be unready; and as for these, darkness should fall upon their\nhearts, and then the door should be shut, and they should grope around the\ndoor, but find no entrance. Which things have indeed come to pass. For at\nthe first, Israel was desirous to enter into the Kingdom, but now the veil\nis upon their hearts, so that they can no longer have light to enter into\nthe Kingdom, no, not though they desire it.\n\nThe morrow, as I have said, was the Sabbath; and all the day, Jesus sat\nstill in the house talking with the women, especially with Mary and Martha\nthe sisters of our host; neither did he go forth all that day, save that\nhe went to the village of Bethphage to see some sick folk. But in the\nevening he spake to us very kindly, yea, very tenderly, even more than his\nwont. And though he said not many words, yet all his words were concerning\nus, not concerning himself; or, if he spake of himself, it was for our\nsakes, as if he were striving to look into the darkness of that which was\nto come, so that he might discern what perils awaited us, for to warn us\nthereof.\n\nAs we walked towards Bethphage, it came to pass that Philip said to Jesus\n(thinking to please him), that certain Greeks which were in Jerusalem\ndesired to see him. Now so it was, that when Philip spake these words, we\nchanced to be passing through the fields of corn; and the corn was now\nstrong and in ear, for the spring was well advanced. But Jesus stopped at\nthat word Greeks, and looked down at the corn; and then he said that the\nhour was verily come when he should be glorified: \u201cFor,\u201d said he, \u201cexcept\na corn of wheat fall into the ground, it abideth alone: but if it die, it\nbringeth forth much fruit.\u201d Then he went on to say that, after his death,\nwe need not fear lest we should be left desolate, for a Spirit should\nstrengthen us; and of this Spirit he spake, at one time as coming from\nhimself, but at another time as coming from his Father; moreover it should\ncome to us, he said, by a certain ordinance, which could not be altered.\nFor just as the ear of wheat cometh not unless the corn of wheat first\ndie, even so his Spirit should not come, except he also should first\ndepart from us.\n\nHereat Judas brake out in hot anger, \u201cWherefore, then, go we up to\nJerusalem, if our going is to be for naught, and if thou art to depart\nfrom us, and if we are to be left as sheep without a shepherd?\u201d Jesus\nrebuked him not, neither answered as we had expected; but said that it\ncould not be that a prophet should perish out of Jerusalem. Hereat one\nsaid, \u201cNay but, O Master, the prophet John perished not in Jerusalem.\u201d But\nto this Jesus made no answer; but only spake a few words touching the\ndifference between the simplicity of the Galileans and the subtlety of the\nmen of Jerusalem; and he condemned the Scribes of Jerusalem and the\npriests of the temple, for that they made darkness instead of light,\ncausing all Israel, and even the Galileans, to transgress. He also spake\nas if Satan reigned in the Holy City, and as if he were shortly going down\nto do battle there with Satan in Jerusalem. So he seemed to signify that\nJerusalem was as it were a field of battle, whereon it was meet and right\nthat a true prophet should die. After this he added, that if he were\nlifted up in the sight of all men, he should draw all men unto him. This\njoining together of words diverse in nature, of perishing and lifting up,\nand of departing and drawing all men unto him, filled us with perplexity;\ninsomuch that Judas said in a low voice that the words of Jesus were like\nunto oil and vinegar, which cannot be mixed. The rest of us also showed,\nas I suppose, by our countenances that we understood him not; for he\nlooked kindly on us, and rebuked us not, but said that he had yet many\nthings to say unto us, but we could not bear them now. He also added at\nanother time, this promise, that a Spirit of Truth should come, which\nshould guide us into all the truth.\n\nNow so it was that, while Jesus was saying these words, we were now\ndrawing nigh unto Bethphage, and we spake concerning the going into\nJerusalem on the morrow. And it came to pass that Matthew, looking upon an\nass (which was standing in the village at the back of a house where two\nways met), made mention of a certain prophecy which saith that the Messiah\nshall come into Jerusalem, not as an Egyptian nor as an Assyrian (for they\nride in chariots or on horses), but as one of the princes of our nation,\nwho used to ride on asses; and the words were these, \u201cRejoice greatly, O\ndaughter of Sion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem; behold, thy king cometh\nunto thee. He is meek and having salvation, lowly and riding upon an ass,\nand a colt, the foal of an ass.\u201d Now Jesus overheard these words, but said\nnothing; yet, as it seemed to me, he took note thereof.\n\nWhen we returned to the house, Jesus gave command for the morrow, that we\nshould rise early to go down into Jerusalem with him, and that certain of\nthe disciples should go before the rest into Jerusalem, even to our\nfriends and companions there, for to instruct them concerning the time of\nthe going down of Jesus, that they might come forth to meet us. Hereat we\nrejoiced greatly: and all the teaching of Jesus concerning his death and\ndeparture, and concerning the days of trouble and of parting, quite\nvanished away; and even Judas was glad. And now our minds began to be set\nonce more, and even more than before, upon the Kingdom, and upon our\nplaces in the Kingdom. So when we lay down on the supper couches, our\ntongues still harped thereon; and our disputings were so loud that Jesus\ncould not but hear them. Then was he sore displeased that we should thus\nthink of ourselves when he was to depart from us; and he opened his mouth\nto speak. But he spake not; for it was as if no words could avail to\npierce the hardness of our hearts. Howbeit, when supper was ended and I\nwas gone forth from the chamber, then, as it was reported to me by some\n(but others say that it happened on another evening), he arose from the\ntable, and girded himself as a servant, and would wash the feet of all the\ndisciples; and when they would have resisted, he constrained them; but\nwhen he had made an end, he said, \u201cI have given you an example that ye\nshould do as I have done to you.\u201d\n\nAfter this manner therefore that Sabbath ended; but throughout the whole\nof the Sabbath and all the evening after, yea and on the morrow, and\nduring all the days before his suffering, Jesus, as it now appeareth unto\nme, was wholly bent upon serving us, and upon helping us, thinking ever of\nour needs and our weaknesses, and how we should fare without him, and how\nhe could strengthen us so that we might be ready when he suddenly came\nback to us. For our sakes also, as I judge, he made entry after that\npublic and solemn fashion into Jerusalem, to the intent that no man might\nhereafter reproach any of us and say, \u201cThy master was no Messiah; for he\ndared not show himself as Messiah before the face of the people; neither\ndid he claim allegiance, but only professed himself a servant; nor did he\nmanifest bravery, but hid himself from his enemies even to the last.\u201d\n\nFor this cause do I in no wise assent to the saying of Xanthias, that the\ngoing in of Jesus into Jerusalem was not worthy of him. For, as I judge,\nhe did it for our sakes, and not for his own; yea, and for the sake of the\nwhole world; that it might be on record for ever how that the Son of man,\nthough he were the humblest of men, did nevertheless claim for himself the\nallegiance of all them that were in the city, yea, and of all that were in\nthe inhabited world; as if he were at once the king and the servant of\nmankind.\n\nBut as touching that other saying (not of Xanthias, but of the Scribe\nHezekiah) that, \u201cIf Jesus had been a prophet indeed, he should have\nprophesied unto his disciples the whole manner of his death, and the\nmanner of his resurrection, and the manner of the giving of the Holy\nSpirit,\u201d concerning this I say nothing, as one doubtful and waiting for\nthe truth. But Quartus is perchance herein too bold (though he speak out\nof his great love for the Lord Jesus) in saying that our Master \u201cknew not\nlittle matters that were to come, but only great matters. And so he knew\nthat the fire of heaven would fall on Jerusalem, but when it would fall,\nthis was hidden from him. Likewise, he knew that he must die; for unless\nhe died his Spirit would not come; but when the Spirit should come, this\ntoo was hidden from him.\n\n\u201cYea and even as touching his own death and rising again; that he should\ngo unto the Father he knew, and that he should come again he knew; but on\nwhat day he should come again, and at what hour he should manifest himself\nto his disciples, this he knew not. And even for this cause, perchance,\u201d\nsaith Quartus (who was not present in Jerusalem when the Lord suffered and\nrose again), \u201che was so earnest with you that ye should give your minds to\nwatching and praying in the hour when he should be taken from you; to the\nintent that, when he came suddenly back to you from the grave (manifesting\nhimself to you in the night, whether in the first watch, or at midnight,\nor at cockcrow, or whensoever it might be) he might not find you given\nover to surfeit and drunkenness, and to the thoughts and cares of this\npresent world; and so your hearts should be closed against the sight of\nhim, and he should not be able to reveal himself unto you. For if, when\nJesus died, ye had given yourselves over to despair and recklessness, then\nthough Jesus himself had stood before you, coming from his grave, yet\nwould ye none the more have seen him.\u201d\n\nAgainst these words of Quartus there standeth, as it were, in opposition,\na certain prophecy of Jesus, wherein he was wont to declare to us that he\nshould be raised from the dead in three days, limiting the time exactly.\nAnd true it is that Jesus made often mention of certain words of the\nprophet Hosea which speak thus about being revived in three days: \u201cCome\nand let us return unto the Lord: for he hath torn and he will heal us; he\nhath smitten, and he will bind us up. After two days will he revive us: in\nthe third day he will raise us up, and we shall live in his sight.\u201d Now\nbecause of this prophecy, which was very often in the mouth of Jesus, it\nhath been supposed by many that Jesus knew for certain that he should die\non the day of the Passover, and that he should lie in the grave two days,\nand be raised up on the third day.\n\nBut to this Quartus yieldeth not. For he saith that the words \u201ctwo days\u201d\nand \u201cthree days\u201d were used by the prophet Hosea to signify only \u201ca short\ntime,\u201d even as the Romans also, and men of other nations, speak of \u201cthe\nday after the morrow,\u201d or \u201cin a day or two,\u201d when they mean \u201ca short time\nhence\u201d; or even as the Hebrew tongue, speaking of past time, useth \u201cthe\nthird day\u201d to signify \u201csome time ago.\u201d Moreover Quartus urgeth that, if\nJesus had known of the day and hour, he would assuredly not have harrowed\nour souls with a needless sorrow, but would have told them to us; and he\nthinketh that Jesus spake concerning his coming from the grave, when he\nsaid that the day of the coming of the Son of man was not known to any,\nneither to the angels, nor even to the Son himself, but only to the\nFather.\n\n\u201cTherefore in my judgment,\u201d saith Quartus, \u201cwhen Jesus spake about the\nfire which should consume his enemies, and concerning his death and\nlifting up or glorifying, and concerning his departing and coming again,\nand concerning the giving of the Holy Spirit, he knew indeed that all\nthese things must needs come to pass, because they were according to the\npattern and ordinance of things invisible; but when, and where, and how\nthey should come to pass, he knew not. Neither did he hide that which he\nknew, cloaking it from you his disciples, for to keep you in ignorance and\nin suspense; but he spake as he knew, and all that he knew, so far as ye\ncould understand it.\u201d\n\nThus wrote Quartus to me; and sometimes I incline to his words, but at\nother times I do not. Howbeit, to whichsoever opinion I incline, it\nmattereth little; for whether Jesus knew little or much of that which was\nto come (and he himself told us that he knew not all), my love for him is\nthe same: save that sometimes it seemeth to me as if he were almost more\nlovable and more divine, going forth into the darkness of death in trust\nand faith, and knowing not everything that was to betide him, than if he\nhad had the descents and ascents and all the paths of Hades marked out for\nhim exactly beforehand as in a chart.\n\n\n\n\n\n CHAPTER XXVI\n\n\nOn the morrow (which was the first day of the week), some of us rose\nearlier than the rest, and went down to Jerusalem to carry word to the\nother disciples and to such as were friendly among the Galileans (for many\nof them favoured us at this time, and a great number of them had come up\nto the Feast) that they might come forth from the city to meet Jesus and\nto welcome him. But the rest of us stayed with Jesus in Bethany. About the\nsecond hour of the day, when we were now about to set forth, Jesus sent\nMatthew the tax\u2010gatherer, and another, to the village over against us,\nbidding them bring the ass whereof we had taken note yesterday; and if any\nman said aught, Matthew was to make answer that \u201cthe Master hath need of\nhim.\u201d When the ass was brought, Jesus mounted thereon, and we set forth at\nonce; and it was now about the third hour of the day.\n\nWhen Bethany was by this time out of our sight, as we went by the road\nthat lieth between the Tombs of the Prophets and the Mount of Offence,\nsuddenly we heard a shouting as of a mixed multitude, and presently we\ndiscerned a great crowd of the disciples coming over the brow of the hill\ntowards us, with many hundreds of the Galileans, all waving palm\u2010branches\nin their hands, and hailing Jesus as the son of David. Now Jesus was\nriding before our band, upon the ass; but when the two bands met, there\nwas a great shouting for joy; and the former band turned round and went on\nas vanguard, but our band marched on behind. Presently, as we drew near to\nthe descent of the Mount of Olives, when we began to descry that quarter\nof the Holy City which men called the City of David, the shouting became\nlouder, and so it continued, even there where the road descendeth so that\nthe Holy City is no longer seen.\n\nBut when at last we attained unto the summit of the Mount Olivet, so that\nthe whole of the city was seen at once spread out before our eyes, with\nall the roofs, and towers, and pinnacles thereof, and the gilded\nbattlements of the temple, shining like fire in the sun, then indeed the\nsplendour of the sight so lifted up our hearts that we were even beside\nourselves for admiration; and looking unto Jesus as the King of all this\nglory, we cried even louder than before unto him as our King and\nConqueror, like unto David of old. But Jesus neither now nor at any time\nduring the entering into Jerusalem seemed at all lifted up by our\nsalutations and praises; nor yet, on the other hand, was he of a gloomy or\nsad countenance as though he foreboded evil and ruin. Rather he was as one\nwaiting and expecting, looking perchance for some sign of the will of the\nLord, in case it might yet please Him to turn the hearts of the Pharisees,\nthat they might be converted and live. Therefore also when he looked on\nthe glory of Jerusalem below his feet, he was neither astonished at the\nbeauty thereof, nor did he (at least at this time) weep or lament over it:\nbut he gazed at it, as it were in suspense and questioning his own spirit;\nif perchance it might be the Lord\u2019s pleasure to manifest Himself to the\ndaughter of Sion, and to stay His hand from destroying the beautiful city;\nor whether that could not be, but evil must take his course.\n\nBut we, at this time, perceived naught of that which was in our Master\u2019s\nmind; but we lifted up our voices and shouted amain, hailing him as Son of\nDavid, and crying, \u201cHosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is He that cometh\nin the name of the Lord! Blessed is the kingdom that cometh of our father\nDavid!\u201d Some also cast their palm\u2010branches down in the road before him,\nand others strewed their garments in the path to do him honour. After this\nfashion therefore, shouting, and singing, and praising God, the whole\nmultitude of us came down from the mountain into the valley below.\n\nWhen we drew nigh unto the gate of the city, we saw that only some few of\nthe citizens were come forth to welcome us. For the most part feared\nJesus, lest he should bring down the wrath of the Romans upon the Holy\nCity; neither knew they him as the Galileans knew him. But instead of the\ncitizens, there stood a great throng of children gathered together before\nthe gate; and when they heard the voices of the disciples and the voices\nof the Galileans, immediately they also took up the cry, and sang\n\u201cHosanna, Hosanna,\u201d in a clear shrill voice, after the manner of children,\nso that their song sounded forth quite distinctly, and above all the noise\nand shouting of the multitude. Now of the Pharisees, none had gone forth\nfrom the city to welcome Jesus; but certain of the younger among them,\ndesirous to look on the coming in of Jesus, as on a show in a theatre (and\nperchance willing, by the manifesting of their contempt of him, to overawe\nand to control the multitude of pilgrims), were come as far as the gate;\nand there they stood, over against the children, waiting the coming of\nJesus, and with many gestures and beckonings signifying their displeasure.\nWhen therefore they heard the sound of the singing, they straightway\nrebuked the children, and would have them to hold their peace: but when\nthe children would not, then turned the Pharisees in sore displeasure to\nJesus, and bade him constrain them.\n\nNow Jesus all this while had seemed rapt in other matters; even as if he\nheard not the shouting nor the singing, neither understood the meaning\nthereof; but as if he heard other voices which we could not hear, and\nwhich, even for him, were not easy to understand. And when he drew nigh\nunto the gate of the city, and beheld the Pharisees, how they stood all\ntogether, and made no sign of welcome; then he looked up (methinks as I\nnow remember it) with a wistful countenance to the gate, as though he\npartly expected that the very stones should cry out from the wall\n(according to the saying of the prophet Habakkuk), as if bearing witness\nagainst the unbelief of the Pharisees. Even thus looked Jesus, as he drew\nnigh to the gate, and there seemed as it were a shadow of doubt and\nexpectancy upon his face; and just then it was that the Pharisees thrust\nthemselves in his way and bade him stop the brawling of the children, for\nso they termed it.\n\nNow for an instant Jesus seemed scarce to understand the intent of the\nPharisees, nor even the meaning of their words. But when he perceived it,\nand when he turned his face toward the children (who all this time ceased\nnot from their singing, but cried Hosanna, Hosanna, even louder than\nbefore), then his mind seemed to come back to earth, and his countenance\nbecame clearer, and he smiled for joy; for methought in the voices of\nthose simple children he acknowledged the very voice of the Father in\nHeaven speaking by His little ones on earth, and showing unto him how that\nthere must be no sign of fire from Heaven, nor no mighty work of any\nvisible sort; but only strength through weakness, and wisdom through\nsimplicity, and the Kingdom of God through little children, according to\nthe eternal ordinance.\n\nThis behaviour of Jesus, though we understood it not then, yet was it\npartly interpreted to us, even at that time, by the answer which he made\nunto the Pharisees, saying unto them, \u201cVerily I say unto you, if these\nshould hold their peace, the very stones should cry out.\u201d Moreover,\nafterwards, when they would have had him rebuke them in the Temple, and\nwhen they said unto him, \u201cHearest thou what these say?\u201d then Jesus spake\nunto them yet more clearly, and said, \u201cYea, have ye never read, \u2018Out of\nthe mouths of babes and sucklings Thou hast perfected praise\u2019?\u201d\n\nWhen we came to the foot of Mount Moriah, we arrayed ourselves to enter\ninto the temple, and we went in by the gate called Shushan. But lo, the\ncourts of the temple and all the ways which lead into the courts were\ncrowded with oxen and doves, and drovers and money\u2010changers; and it was\nmore like unto a market\u2010place or shambles than to a temple of the Lord:\neven as I had beheld it two years before, when I came to offer sacrifice\nduring my mother\u2019s sickness, yea, and worse also. For during the week\nbefore the Passover, almost the whole of the Jewish nation was wont to\nassemble in Jerusalem for to offer sacrifice, even as many (so it hath\nbeen reported to me, but it is well nigh past belief) as three hundred\nmyriads; wherefore, though there should be but one lamb slain for a score\nof pilgrims, yet the number of beasts to be sacrificed at one time must\nneeds be many thousands, not less than one hundred and fifty thousand.\nWhen Jesus looked around on all this stir and traffic, he was sore\ndispleased, and his anger was very hot, yea, such as I had seldom noted\nthe like in him before; and he bade the merchants and money\u2010changers take\ntheir wares hence. But when they would not, he made unto himself a scourge\nof cords and drove them before him; and the disciples and the people did\nthe same, and overthrew the tables of the money\u2010changers, and thrust out\nthem which sold doves. And Jesus said unto the Pharisees, \u201cIt is written,\nMy house shall be called the House of Prayer; but ye have made it a den of\nthieves.\u201d\n\nWhen Jesus spake these words, the Pharisees were exceeding wrath, and\ncertain of their servants ran forward as if they would have laid hands on\nJesus. Howbeit, Hezekiah the Scribe (the same of whom I have often made\nmention above) checked them, lest there should have been a tumult of the\npeople. But it was plain to all men that they would fain have destroyed\nJesus, only they feared the people. Therefore Jesus made no long stay for\nthat day in the temple, but gave commandment to return to Bethany (for he\nwould not tarry in Jerusalem by night lest the chief priests and Pharisees\nshould lay hands upon him); and certain of the disciples accompanied us to\nthe gate of the city, but not many.\n\nWhile we were going through the streets of the city toward the gate, we\nconversed concerning that which had happened, and especially concerning\nthe driving out of the merchants and the money\u2010lenders; and most said that\nit was well done, for the presence of them that bought and sold defiled\nthe House of the Lord. But a certain Greek, of Philip\u2019s acquaintance (one\nof them that had desired Philip that they might see Jesus), said that it\nwas not well done of our Master, thus with his own hand to drive out them\nthat bought and sold: \u201cFor,\u201d said he, \u201cit is not the part of a philosopher\nto use violence, nor to be moved by passion to anything that is against\nseemliness and dignity, nor to take upon himself the part of a common\ndoor\u2010keeper.\u201d Not much was said in answer at that time, for other thoughts\npossessed our minds; only John said that our Master did well to be angry,\nbecause he saw his Father\u2019s House defiled. Nevertheless oftentimes, since\nthat day, the words of the Greek have come into my mind, and also other\nlike words of Xanthias, how that \u201ctowards the end of his life, Jesus of\nNazareth was driven out of the bounds of his patience by the persecution\nof enemies; so that he became bitter and somewhat austere.\u201d\n\nBut my judgment is not so. For to me it seemeth that all through those\ndays of tarrying in Jerusalem and in Bethany, our Master was neither\nbitter nor austere. But he had ever before his eyes the thought of us his\ndisciples; and he was ever musing on our desolation, (which should fall\nupon us when he should be parted from us), and how we should fare,\ncontending without him against the Pharisees and against all other evil.\nTherefore he desired to leave it, as it were, on record, that the worst\nkind of sacrilege is the sacrilege of them which handle sacred things\nwithout the feeling thereof. And, as he had entered into Jerusalem like\none having authority, so he desired perchance (for our sakes) to manifest\nhimself, in the temple also, as one to whom obedience was due. Again,\nwhereas Xanthias saith that Jesus, ever before in Galilee, taught us to\nendure evil, and not to put down evil by force, as now in Jerusalem; \u201cThe\nformer rule,\u201d saith Quartus, \u201capplieth only to the brethren that live in\nthe midst of them that know not the truth. But wheresoever a nation or a\ncongregation, shall recognise a certain law\u201d (as our nation did in the\nworship of the temple), \u201cthere perchance the breaking of the law is not to\nbe suffered, and the law is to be maintained, even by force. For it is one\nthing to avenge oneself, but another to avenge a law.\u201d After this manner\nwrote Quartus; but, in any case, Xanthias was assuredly wrong in saying\nthat Jesus was \u201cembittered by persecution;\u201d unless it be bitter to call\nSatan Satan. For he was gentle and tender and very loving even to the\nlast.\n\nHowbeit at this time our thoughts were full of other matters, so that we\nwere the less bent on defending our Master against the friend of Philip.\nFor we were something downcast, and Judas even more than the rest, because\nnothing had come of our entering into Jerusalem; but, as Judas phrased it,\nall our great purposes had ended in naught. \u201cFor,\u201d said Judas, \u201cthe Lord\nhath given occasions, but we have used them not. For first, when we\nentered in at this same gate this morning, then I looked that Jesus should\nhave given the word to disarm the guard that kept watch therein. But\nafterwards, when we had entered into the city and all the citizens were\ngathered to us, then at least I hoped to have heard him give commandment\nto assail the Fort of Antonia; or else I expected that he would have\nworked some sign in heaven, to have turned every one to our side, and so\nto have driven out the Gentiles without shedding of blood. But now we have\ngained nothing. Nay, we have lost everything. For we shall not again\ngather the multitude thus round us. And as for the Pharisees, he hath now\nso angered them that, even were he to work an hundred signs in heaven, I\ndoubt they would not now accept him.\u201d Hereupon John said that we must have\npatience and trust in Jesus; but Judas made answer that the time had\npassed for patience, and that other courses must be tried.\n\nFor the space of two days, namely, the second day of the week, and\nlikewise the third day, Jesus resorted to the temple daily, and taught the\npeople there: but the more he saw of the temple, and of the priests\ntherein, and likewise of the Pharisees and Sadducees (who disputed with\nhim daily in the temple), so much the more his heart loathed the\nabominations which he discerned, insomuch that he seemed like unto one\ncontending against Satan himself, enthroned in the Holy Place; and his\nwords against the Pharisees in those days were as if he desired that they\nshould be engraven in fiery letters upon the hearts of all that heard him,\nfor ever. So hot was the vehemency of his passion against them; yet not\nagainst them, but against the Satan in their hearts, who through them\nreigned over Israel. For whatsoever Jesus had noted of evil in the\nteaching of the Scribes in Galilee, and whatsoever of blindness and\nnarrowness, yea, and of persecution and malignity; all this, and much more\ndid he note in the Scribes of Jerusalem; insomuch that the Holy City and\nthe temple itself now seemed to him to have become a very source of evil,\npoisoning the waters of life for the whole of the people.\n\nAt the first, the Pharisees began to lay snares to take him at an\nadvantage before the face of all the people; but he answered them\naccording to their folly, proving to all the people that they knew not the\nfoundations of truth. When they asked him by what authority he did that\nwhich he did, he would not tell them; but they must first tell him whether\nthe baptism of John were from heaven or no; which question they feared to\nanswer. As to the giving of tribute, he said that the denarius (which had\non it the image of C\u00e6sar) spake, of itself, that they that used it should\ngive C\u00e6sar his due. But when he gave back unto the Pharisee the denarius,\nsaying these words, \u201cRender therefore to C\u00e6sar the things which are\nC\u00e6sar\u2019s,\u201d then he paused for an instant, and afterwards added, \u201cand to God\nthe things that are God\u2019s.\u201d This he said, not as though some things\nbelonged to C\u00e6sar and not to God; but as though each man, in giving unto\nC\u00e6sar his dues, must bear in mind that he was thereby giving to God his\ndues also; for a time might come when it might be a defrauding of God to\ngive C\u00e6sar tribute; but, at that time, to have refused tribute to C\u00e6sar,\nwould have been to refuse God His dues. So he bade them obey the signs of\nthe times, yet so as never to defraud God; nor would he lay down any rule,\nas they had desired, but pointed to the foundations of righteousness,\nwhich lie in the heart and not in the hands. The like also he did in\nsaying that the love of God and of man was the chief commandment of the\nLaw. But concerning the Sadducees and their doctrine, that there is no\nresurrection, he said that the second life differeth from the first as\nmuch as angels differ from men; so that the bands whereby we are bound\ntogether here, will not be the same as will bind us together there.\nHowbeit he said not that there should be no bands hereafter, nor that\nthese present bands should vanish; but only that they should be different,\nand not carnal, but spiritual. Moreover he questioned the Pharisees\nconcerning their expectations of the Messiah and their interpretations of\nthe Scriptures; and they could not make answer to his questions.\n\nBut all these were only as the beginnings of the conflict. For presently\nthe Pharisees began to wax more vehement in their disputations and to\nreveal their hatred of him more clearly. And when Jesus looked upon their\nfaces, he discerned his own death instant therein. So he turned and spake\nto the people in parables, likening Israel to an estate let out to greedy\nhusbandmen, which killed the servants of their lord, and last of all slew\nhis son also, when he came to receive of the fruits of the land. Again, he\nlikened the Kingdom of Heaven to a wedding feast, and the Pharisees to\nmurderous people, subjects of a king; who would not come to the wedding of\nthe king\u2019s son, but slew his servants that invited them. Then one in the\ncrowd, a Galilean by birth, and a man of loose life, cried aloud, \u201cThat is\nwell said, O prophet; for we, that are poor, shall enter into the Kingdom;\nbut the rich shall not enter.\u201d But Jesus straightway continued his parable\nand described an unworthy guest, admitted indeed to the feast, but soon\ncast out, because he had come in not having on a wedding garment.\n\nThus all the day was spent in contention; but in the evening, at Bethany,\nJesus spake unto us very tenderly concerning the Holy Spirit (the mention\nwhereof was at this time daily more and more upon his lips), and how this\nSpirit should abide with us for ever and be always our guide and helper.\nMoreover he encouraged us to be of good cheer, saying that, though the\nworld were against us, yet he had overcome the world: and that he could\ngive us a peace that should last for ever. Likewise he began at this time\nto say more oft and more clearly (for he had said the like before once or\ntwice in dark sayings) that, besides his little flock (for so he was wont\nlovingly to call us), there should be yet other flocks gathered unto him,\nand there should be one fold, and one shepherd. Now of all this we\nunderstood not much at that season; for our hearts were not yet opened to\nit. Howbeit his words were sweet to the ear, yea, and they reached to our\nvery souls; insomuch that we were drawn unto him even more than before,\nand loved him with an exceeding love: but still it was hidden from us that\nour Master was shortly to depart.\n\nBut as concerning the Pharisees, Jesus told us that the wrath of the Lord\nmust needs fall upon them. And he likened them unto a fig\u2010tree which\n(after the manner of fig\u2010trees) should, by course of nature, put forth\nfruit first and leaves afterwards; but this fig\u2010tree, he said, putteth\nforth leaves but no fruits. Therefore the Lord, seeking fruit, goeth unto\nthe tree, rising up early in the morning; and he looketh on it, and behold\nthere are leaves, but no fruits. Then was the Lord wroth, and breathed\nupon the tree, and said unto it, \u201cNo man eat fruit of thee hereafter for\never:\u201d and lo, when He returned and came by the same path again in the\nevening, the tree had withered away. When we heard these things,\nstraightway there came into our minds another parable which our Master had\nspoken in former times concerning a barren tree; how the owner thereof\ncometh to the gardener and saith, \u201cLo, these two years I come seeking\nfruit and find none. Cut it down.\u201d But the gardener besought the Lord that\nit might not be cut down till another year should pass, if perchance it\nmight in the meantime bear fruit. Thence we perceived, comparing the two\nparables together, that Jesus discerned the wrath of God now nearer at\nhand. For before, there was mention of hope and of a respite of two years;\nbut now there was to be no hope and no respite.\n\nBut most strange it was to us to note how the worship and splendour of the\ntemple, caused him no pleasure, but rather displeasure. Yet so it was. For\non the second day of the week, when he was going forth from the city in\nthe evening, a certain citizen of Jerusalem besought the disciples that\nthey would shew him the buildings of the temple; \u201cFor,\u201d said he, \u201cit were\na shame that Jesus of Nazareth should have been now two whole days in\nJerusalem and not to have seen these sights.\u201d But when the disciples moved\nhim to see these things, he seemed like unto one constraining himself to\nlook upon them that he might do us a pleasure: and when he had looked\nround upon them all, then he was silent for a while, and we perceived that\nthey pleased him not. At last he opened his mouth and said unto us, \u201cSee\nye not all these things? verily I say unto you there shall not be left\nhere one stone upon another that shall not be thrown down.\u201d\n\nBut when another spake of the many years during which the temple had been\na\u2010building, Jesus answered that, even though the temple were destroyed to\u2010\nday, the Lord could raise up the true temple in three days. Now whether by\n\u201cthree days,\u201d he meant three days exactly, or \u201ctwo or three days,\u201d\naccording to the common phrase, concerning this matter, it has been\ndisputed sufficiently above. But when he spake of the true temple,\nassuredly he meant, not the temple of Herod, but that invisible temple set\nupon a rock, whereof he had before spoken to Simon Peter; and this temple\nseemed to him at all times one with himself: therefore said he that the\ntrue temple would be raised up, meaning the Son of man, and, in himself,\nthe Church or Congregation of mankind.\n\nBut all this was hid from us at that time, save that we understood Jesus\nto set no store by the temple of Herod, in that he discerned the fire of\nGod\u2019s wrath impending over it. And to us, as I remember, yea even to us\nthat had daily converse with Jesus, it seemed strange that he should so\nset at naught that same temple which he had himself cleansed. For\nthroughout all the land of Israel, the temple, being but one (and not\nmany, as in Gentile countries), and very full of most ancient memories,\nbecause it presented and signified to us the former temple of Solomon and\nthe tabernacle of Moses, this temple, I say, albeit Herod the Idum\u00e6an had\nbuilt it, nevertheless seemed to us, in Israel, very holy, and well nigh\none with Israel itself. And for this cause Xanthias blameth the saying of\nJesus touching the temple, how that it should be thrown down: for saith\nXanthias, the casting down of the temple must needs have seemed to the\ncommon folk in Israel all one with the casting down of Israel itself even\nas the Romans took it ill when, in after days, Gaius C\u00e6sar desired of his\ngods that the Roman people might have had but one neck that he might have\ndestroyed it at a blow. Wherefore Xanthias findeth fault with this saying\nof Jesus, as not politic, nor discreet.\n\nBut, in my judgment, Jesus spake herein not truthfully only, but also\nexpediently; yea and expediently for all time; bearing witness, as it\nwere, even now to all the churches, lest perchance the service of the Lord\nbecome the service of Satan: as it was in the temple of Herod. For all\nthings therein seemed unto him to savour of hypocrisy, being done to\nobtain praise and admiration of men, but not to lift up the heart unto the\nLord; so that the very splendour and brightness hid, instead of revealing,\nHim whose name is the Truth. Therefore when he was led to the treasury and\nbidden to mark how great gifts the rich men cast therein, he stood awhile\nwatching; then turning round to us, he pointed to a certain poor widow\n(who had cast in no more than two mites, or a farthing), and he said,\n\u201cThis poor widow hath cast in more than all they which have cast into the\ntreasury.\u201d Many other like words he said at this time: and, in fine, he\nceased after the first day to speak concerning the purifying of the\ntemple, nor would he any more call it his Father\u2019s house; for he perceived\nthat it was become a den of thieves and that the purifying must be by\nfire. But that which most of all made us at that time to marvel, was, that\nhe spake of the Chief Priests and Pharisees as murderers. But hereby he\nmeant, as I judge, not only that they desired to slay him, but also that\nthey were slaying the souls of all Israel by giving unto the people a\ndoctrine and a worship, that were as poison to the hearts of mankind.\nWherefore, as a man might discern with the eye the spots of blood upon the\nhand of a murderer, even so (but with much more clearness) did our Master\ndiscern the blood of Israel upon the souls of the Priests and Scribes in\nthe temple; insomuch that the temple itself appeared even as a great\nslaughter\u2010house, and the worshippers as murdered men, and the priests, as\nbutchers girt for the slaughter of Truth.\n\nTherefore on the last day, even on the third day of the week, when the sun\nwas nigh setting, and the time was now at hand that Jesus should depart\nfrom the temple, and he knew he should enter it no more; behold, he stood\nup in the presence of all the people, and poured forth denunciation\nagainst the Pharisees as being verily the children of Satan. Some of them\nhe charged with love of gain; and he bade the multitude especially to\nbeware of those Scribes who devour widows\u2019 houses and wring forth gifts\nfor the synagogues, and for a pretence make long prayers. These, he said,\nshould receive even greater condemnation than the rest. But even against\nthem that cared not for money, yea even against all the Pharisees, he\nbrought grievous accusations.\n\nFor he said they had quenched the spirit of life within their hearts, so\nthat Satan had taken possession of them and used them as his tools. For\nthis cause they could not distinguish between small things and great,\nbetween the purifying of the outside and the inside, between that which\nsanctifieth and that which is sanctified; and they esteemed the tithing of\nmint and anise and cummin of more avail than mercy, judgment, and truth.\nAlso he said they had made the interpretation of the Law into a gainful\nprofession, doing whatsoever they did for to be honoured and admired of\nmen. Therefore he spared not to call them, not only fools and blind, but\nalso hypocrites. For he said that they knew in their own hearts that they\nhad no sight and no knowledge, yet they professed to see and to know; and\nthey had cast out their own consciences, yet would they fain appear able\nto judge between right and wrong. Thus they presented one appearance to\nmen, which look only on the outside; but another appearance to God, who\ndiscerneth the inside; and therefore he called them actors in masks, or\nhypocrites; he likened them also unto whited sepulchres, hiding death\nwithin them. For they hated the Spirit of life, and they lived by rules\nand precepts which work death; and they would neither enter into life\nthemselves, nor suffer the people of the land to enter in; and they feared\nand hated prophets and prophecies, and would fain destroy them; and they\nhad hated John the prophet while he lived, and now they hated Jesus, even\nto the death: and this, while they professed to repent of the persecutions\nof the prophets by our forefathers, and to build monuments to their\nmemory, saying, \u201cIf we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not\nhave been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets.\u201d\n\nAfter this, he turned round, to go forth for the last time from the\ntemple. But as he came to the steps, he looked back upon all the\nPharisees, and upon all their friends (who stood all gathered together\nbehind him, watching him depart), and he pronounced a curse upon them; as\nthough it needs must be that they must yet continue their course; and\nSatan must accomplish his purpose in them, and must be revealed in all his\nwickedness working through the Pharisees his bondsmen; and the judgment of\nthe Lord must needs fall upon these servants of Satan: \u201cFill ye up the\nmeasure of your fathers. Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye\nescape the damnation of hell? Wherefore behold, I send unto you prophets\nand wise men and scribes: and some of them ye shall kill and crucify: and\nsome of them shall ye scourge in your synagogues and persecute from city\nto city. That upon you may come all the righteous blood shed upon the\nearth, from the blood of righteous Abel unto the blood of Zachariah son of\nBarachiah, whom ye slew between the temple and the altar. Verily I say\nunto you, all these things shall come upon this generation.\u201d\n\n\n\n\n\n CHAPTER XXVII\n\n\nWhen Jesus had made an end of denouncing the Pharisees, many of the young\nmen with them and their servants were desirous to have laid hands on him;\nand they came near as if for that intent, but the older sort checked them.\nYet was their wrath clearly to be read in their faces: and when I came out\nof the temple, being a little space behind the rest, Hezekiah the Scribe\novertook me and said, \u201cYoung man, I warn thee that thou mayest with speed\nsever thyself from this blind shepherd: for lo, he hath to\u2010day provoked\nwar, and war shall fall upon him; for unless he perish we shall perish.\u201d\nBut I made answer, that I should follow Jesus constantly even to the end.\nThen he spake again of the evil which, he said, had befallen that rash\nyoung man Barabbas; how that he had been taken ten days ago by the Romans\non the road that goeth down to Jericho, while he was riding at the head of\na band of Galileans that were raising sedition: and, said Hezekiah to me,\n\u201cThy friend of Jotapata is to be crucified, as I hear, two or three days\nhence. Take heed therefore unto thine own steps, lest thou also fall into\nthe same destruction.\u201d I made him no further answer, but departed,\nsorrowing not a little for the sake of Barabbas: for I had not before\nheard how great an evil had befallen him.\n\nWhen I overtook the rest, I heard the disciples conversing earnestly one\nwith another; and the Greek, even the friend of Philip, bade us take note\nthat we were beset with spies and watched; for \u201cWhen ye issued from the\ntemple,\u201d said he, \u201cI perceived that the servants of the chief priests and\nthe Pharisees watched you whithersoever ye turned; and, meseemeth, it is\ntheir intent to lay hands on your Master this night. But I marvel why your\nMaster so inveighed against the Pharisees, transgressing the bounds of\nseemliness and decorum, at least in my judgment.\u201d So spake he, after his\nGreek fashion; but Judas also spake to the same effect, and said that we\nhad come up to Jerusalem to destroy enemies, and lo, we had destroyed\nnone, but made many.\n\nThe rest knew not what answer to make to these words; neither did I myself\nat that time. Howbeit, now I know well that Jesus came not to prophesy\nsmooth things, but to teach us the truth. Therefore was it most needful\nthat he should speak the truth, and nothing less than the truth,\nconcerning the Pharisees; to the intent that the eyes of all mankind might\nbe opened, even to the generations of generations, that they might discern\nthat the sin of sins is hypocrisy. For other sins wound, but this sin\nslayeth, the conscience. Peradventure also Jesus foresaw that a time might\ncome when certain, even among his own disciples, would err as the\nPharisees had erred, shutting their eyes against the truth, as being unfit\nfor use and not convenient. And he that came to make a spiritual Israel, a\nnation of priests and ministers for mankind, was it not most needful that\nhe should thus as it were mark out and brand with censure the special sin\nof priests? He also that came to redeem all the children of men from all\nevil, was it not most necessary that he should make clear in the sight of\nall men what was the greatest evil? For if men knew it not, how could he\nredeem them from it? And well I know that, if he had not assailed the\nPharisees as he did, then these same Greeks who now say that \u201cJesus\ntransgressed the bounds of seemliness,\u201d would in that case have said (even\nas Jonathan the son of Ezra said) that \u201cJesus knew not the evil in human\nnature.\u201d Notwithstanding at this season we thought not of these things;\nbut we feared what should betide to our Master if the Pharisees took him\nand cast him into bonds.\n\nBut a certain man of the Pharisees, Joseph by name, of the town of\nArimath\u00e6a, clave unto Jesus; and although he dared not openly consort with\nus, he sent a servant after us, when we came forth from the Temple, to bid\nJesus not abide in the same house this night as last night, because, said\nhe, \u201cthe Pharisees purpose to take thee.\u201d He also warned Jesus not to come\ninto Jerusalem on the morrow. But if Jesus desired to have some chamber in\nthe city wherein to keep the Passover, Joseph promised that he would\nprovide one. So much I heard myself; for I was nigh to Jesus when the\nservant of Joseph brought the message; but the answer of Jesus I heard\nnot, save that he thanked the messenger courteously.\n\nIn the meantime we had passed out of the gate of the city, and had begun\nto climb up the side of the hill called Olivet; and by reason that we were\nin the depth of the valley, the sun had by this time set for us. But when\nwe had gone some space up the side of the hill, as we turned round to take\nbreath and rest, behold, the sun had not yet set, but was just beginning\nto sink; and the western quarter of the heaven was lit up with a light\nexceeding red and fiery, and the roofs of the temple and the towers of the\ncastle of Herod shone as with a blood\u2010red flame; and though our hearts\nwere heavy with many thoughts, yet could we not choose but look. But when\nJesus saw the city and the temple, whence he had but now come and wherein\nhe was never to set foot again; his eyes were filled with tears, and he\nchanged colour and could go no further, but sat down upon a stone and\ncovered his face with his hands: and then he looked again upon the city\nand wept, mourning over it and saying, \u201cO Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that\nkillest the prophets and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often\nwould I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her\nchickens under her wings, and ye would not! Behold, your house is left\nunto you desolate. For I say unto you, ye shall not see me henceforth,\ntill ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.\u201d\n\nHaving said these words, he arose and went on his way, going up the hill.\nAnd we followed him, as men in the Valley of the Shadow of Death, that\nfollow an angel of deliverance, but fear while they follow, lest at any\ntime their guide should vanish out of their sight, and they should be left\nalone. Even so followed we Jesus up the Mount of Olives, and we feared\nmuch to question him concerning his words, but we feared even more to\nremain silent and so to be ignorant concerning the approaching peril.\nTherefore presently Simon Peter, with two other disciples, went to him and\nquestioned him, saying, \u201cTell us when shall these things be.\u201d Jesus turned\nand looked upon our faces, and he perceived that we were all desirous to\nquestion him. So he beckoned to us to sit down, and he himself sat down\nupon a stone, and we also sat down upon the ground around him.\n\nThen began Jesus to pour forth many prophecies of troubles near at hand\nand troubles far off; and he seemed like unto one upon the shore of a\nstormy sea covered with mists and darkness, who peereth into the night if\nperchance he may descry the ship wherein his friends sail tempest\u2010tossed;\neven so did Jesus look forward into that which was to come, for our sakes.\nFor though his own end was at hand, his thoughts and words were all for\nus. But he also had in his mind the prophecies of the prophet Daniel; who\nhad prophesied, many generations before, that a time should come when the\nworship of God should fail, and a king of evil set himself up to be\nworshipped, and the daily sacrifice should be taken away, and the\nabomination of desolation set in the place thereof. Daniel likewise\nprophesieth that those of the nation who were of understanding should\nremain upright; yet even these should fall for a time, to try them and to\npurify them. But because the prophecies of Daniel were like unto the words\nof our Master, I will here set them down; for Daniel saith, \u201cThey shall\npollute the sanctuary of strength, and shall take away the daily\nsacrifice, and they shall place the abomination that maketh desolate. And\nsuch as do wickedly against the covenant shall he corrupt by flatteries;\nbut the people that do know their God shall be strong and do exploits. And\nthey that understand among the people shall instruct many; yet they shall\nfall by the sword, and by flame, by captivity, and by spoil many days. Now\nwhen they shall fall they shall be holpen with a little help; but many\nshall cleave to them with flatteries. And some of them of understanding\nshall fall, to try them, and to purge, and to make them white, even to the\ntime of the end, because it is yet for a time appointed.\u201d\n\nNow these prophecies of Daniel were fulfilled, in part, in the days of\nthat wicked king Antiochus who is called Epiphanes, or Illustrious; but\nJesus prophesied that they, or others like unto them, should still be\nfulfilled. Howbeit, in my judgment, he did not prophesy that these things\nshould come to pass merely because Daniel had prophesied the like; but\nbecause, looking upon the present, he discerned the signs of the times\n(according to his own saying), and hence he perceived that which was yet\nto come. For his words were the words of Daniel; but his thoughts were the\nthoughts that came to him from that which he saw in the world. For when he\nlooked upon the world, he saw love of self, and love of ease, and all\nmanner of baseness and servility; and all the empire was given up to the\nworship of a man, even the Emperor Tiberius, and that man a tyrant and a\nman of sin, a slave to all abominations of the flesh. Wherefore death was\nreigning over the whole of the world. But when he looked to Israel, which\nwas appointed to redeem the world and to lead the world to the knowledge\nof the true God, behold, Israel himself was blind; and they which should\nhave been priests unto the Gentiles were as naught but pedants; and these\ntoo, given over unto all sin, hypocrites, and murderers in their hearts,\nand children of Satan.\n\nTherefore it was discerned clearly by Jesus (having his eyes open to\nthings future even as our eyes are open to things present), that a great\nconflict was at hand between evil and good, evil rearing itself aloft in\nthe world to receive the worship of all mankind and driving out the true\nworship of God; and for a time evil must prevail. For if he looked upon us\nhis apostles or disciples, then he perceived even too easily in our hearts\nthe signs of weakness and instability; and for this cause he prophesied\nthat we should all desert him and fall away for a time. Moreover, because\nhe saw how the men of Israel thirsted for redemption, yea, and how all the\nchildren of men desired some deliverance from their present evils,\ntherefore he knew and prophesied that, when he had departed, his place\nwould not be left empty, neither at once nor in after generations; but in\nevery time and in every nation false deliverers and false redeemers should\narise, saying that men should obey them, and that they would deliver men.\nFor this cause he warned us against false Christs, yea, even though they\nshould work signs and wonders.\n\nBut as concerning the times and seasons when these several troubles should\narise, he said naught; nor did he describe the manner of the wars, nor the\nnations, nor the armies that should make war. Now Quartus judgeth that\nJesus knew not these matters; and true it is that Jesus himself spake\nconcerning the time of his coming, saying, \u201cBut of that day and hour\nknoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, neither the Son, but the\nFather.\u201d Only, concerning one part of the prophecy, he said, for certain,\nthat this generation should not pass away till all had been fulfilled. But\nthis, saith Quartus, he knew because of the signs of the times: for as to\nthat which he said, \u201cYe shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say,\nBlessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord,\u201d Quartus supposeth that\nJesus himself knew not the time thereof, but only this, that it was not\npossible that Sion could behold him until Sion desired him: for the\nbeholding of Jesus after his death was not to be with the bodily eye, but\nwith the spiritual, through love and desire. Now concerning the\nforeknowledge of Jesus, what things he knew, and what things he knew not,\nI have said above that I pronounce no judgment. But true it is that at\nthis time he spake unto us a third parable concerning the fig\u2010tree, and\nsaid that we were to discern the coming of these evils from the signs of\nthe times, even as men discern the coming of the summer from the fig\u2010tree,\nwhen it putteth forth leaves. For, like as the summer causeth the fig\u2010tree\nto put forth her leaves, or like as the scent of the carcase guideth the\nvultures to the prey, even so he taught us that the sins of men, and\nespecially of Israel, would bring after them miseries and judgments, not\nby chance, but of necessity.\n\nTherefore he prophesied that great tribulation should fall on the land of\nIsrael, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no,\nnor yet ever shall be. And except those days should be shortened, there\nshould no flesh be saved; but for the elect\u2019s sake those days should be\nshortened. But after the tribulation of Israel, he prophesied that all the\nempire should be shaken, and the thrones and princedoms thereof should be\ncast down, and the throne of the Son of man should be set up on high in\nthe sight of all men, and the tribes of the earth should mourn, and the\nGentiles should see the Son of man coming on the clouds of heaven with\npower and great glory, and the elect should be gathered together by an\nangel as with the sound of a trumpet from all the corners of the earth.\nFinally he exhorted us to watch in patience, for we knew not at what hour\nour Master would come.\n\nNow as concerning these prophecies, part were perchance fulfilled when our\nMaster came to us from the grave; for then to them that watched and waited\nhe appeared. But part also, in my judgment, yea, and a great part, were\nfulfilled ten years ago, when Jerusalem was trodden down by the Gentiles,\nand the temple was burned with fire, and Israel was scattered over the\nface of the earth, and many were slain, and many more sold for slaves, and\nsuch tribulation befell them as never before. But part remaineth to be\nfulfilled, when men\u2019s hearts shall fail them because the empire shall be\nshaken, and the thrones of this world shall be cast down, and the worship\nof the Son of man shall be set up. For albeit the empire fell not in the\ndays of Nero, when all men expected that the end of all things was at\nhand; yet must the empire needs be cast down. And it is like that this\nshall come to pass in my days, even in the days of me Philochristus, the\nwriter of this book. And when Israel shall turn unto the Lord Jesus and\nshall call them blessed that come in his name, then shall Israel see him,\naccording to his saying. Howbeit concerning the day and the hour we have\nno knowledge thereof; only we know that in the end the Son of man must\ncome with glory; and until the Son of man shall reign over the world,\npeace cannot be; that is to say, cannot be so as to be settled and firm.\nFor all things move violently to their place, but easily in their place.\nWherefore the ways of the world cannot be smooth, nor can the children of\nmen and the tribes of men move smoothly and easily in the world, until the\nSon of man be in his place as King of the world over all men and over all\nnations, and until all men and all nations be in their places as his\nservants; and then there shall be peace for ever; but not till then.\n\nBut all this I write, having been enlightened by the Spirit. But at the\ntime when we were sitting thus round about Jesus, listening to his\nprophecies, we were not yet enlightened; for the Spirit of Jesus was not\nyet in the world, because Jesus was yet with us. Therefore were we all\ngreatly dismayed by his words, and our hearts quite failed us; and when he\nhad made an end of speaking, we sat still silent; and the shadow of night,\nstretching over the face of the earth, seemed unto us like to a shadow of\nSatan encompassing both us and all the world and our Redeemer himself, in\nwhom we had trusted that he should have redeemed Sion. Thomas at last\nbrake silence, and said, \u201cAlas, O Master, dost thou not remember thine own\nwords on that other mount in Galilee, where thou didst pour blessings on\nus, and didst strengthen us with comfortable sayings, telling us that the\nmeek should inherit the earth? Verily the prophecies of the Mount of\nOlives do not accord with the prophecies of the Mount of Blessing.\u201d By\nthis time it was become dark, so that we could not clearly discern the\nfeatures of Jesus, for the moon had not yet risen; but he seemed to turn\nhis face suddenly to Thomas as though his words had grieved him. Howbeit,\nhe said nothing, but arose from his place, and we followed him up the\nmountain even unto Bethany.\n\nWhen we had been a full hour in Bethany, our Master called for Judas, that\nhe should bear some message to Joseph of Arimathea in Jerusalem; for Judas\nwas oftentimes employed by Jesus about such matters, being a man of\nunderstanding, and of a ready wit, and having a knowledge of the ways of\nmen, more than the rest of the disciples. But search being made for Judas,\nhe was not to be found; and this seemed not a little to disquiet Jesus.\nHowbeit, he bade me go in his stead, and bear a certain letter to Joseph\nof Arimathea. So I went down straightway and delivered the letter; and\nhaving received an answer written and sealed, I set forth to return to\nBethany. Now the moon was by this time risen, and shining very brightly.\nSo, because I was minded not to be seen of any of the servants of the\nchief priests, I kept myself in the shadow of the street as I went forth\nto the gate of Kidron; and it being now late, even in the second watch of\nthe night, there were few people stirring.\n\nBut as I was now near to the street called Straight, whereby one turneth\nto the right hand to go unto the gate, methought I heard the sound of the\nvoice of the night\u2010watch going their rounds. So I drew near to the wall,\nand remained in a corner where I could not be seen. And straightway\nHezekiah the Scribe came by, and Judas with him, walking very near the\nplace where I was (but they discerned me not) and talking in a low voice\ntogether. And as they passed, I clearly heard Judas say to Hezekiah, \u201cBut\nif he should call down fire upon the guards?\u201d And Hezekiah made answer,\n\u201cThen thou wouldst have done him good service,\u201d or words to that effect:\nbut the exact words of Hezekiah I heard not, because they were by this\ntime gone somewhat past me. Neither could I hear what Judas said in answer\nto the words of Hezekiah. Only I noted, even afar off, that after they had\nconversed some while longer, Judas held out his right hand to Hezekiah,\nand Hezekiah seemed to take it as a pledge.\n\nWhen I saw this, my mind misgave me that all was not well; yet did it not\nso much as enter into my mind, at that time, that one of the Twelve could\npurpose treachery against our Master; and, because of my message and my\nhaste, I gave no thought to the words that I had heard. But I sped away to\nthe gate, and passing through unquestioned, I went up the mountain in\nhaste; and when I came to the top, I found John, the son of Zebedee,\nwaiting for me, to take me to the house where Jesus lay that night; for he\nwas not to abide in the same house as before, for fear of the Pharisees.\nSo I came to Jesus and delivered my letter; and I found with him a certain\nNicodemus, a great teacher among the Pharisees. He had come to converse\nwith Jesus, but secretly, for fear of the chief priests. Then I delivered\nmy letter to Jesus, and I told him how I had seen Judas discoursing with\nHezekiah. But the old man, even Nicodemus, was troubled when he heard me\nmake mention of Judas, and he turned to Jesus and said that from friends\ncame sometimes even more dangers than from enemies; and as he had before\nwarned Jesus against the plotting of the Chief Priests, so now again he\nbesought Jesus not to adventure himself in Jerusalem on the morrow. Then\nhe gave thanks to Jesus for his doctrine, and departed. But when the\nletter of Joseph of Arimathea was opened, it confirmed the words of\nNicodemus; for he also bade Jesus not come to Jerusalem on the morrow, but\nto tarry till the next day. He also added (but these words Jesus read not\naloud, so that I knew not of them till afterwards) that Jesus should keep\nthe Passover on the day after the morrow; howbeit not at his house, but at\nanother house which his servants should prepare. He also gave Jesus a sign\nwhereby he might be guided to the house. Likewise the letter bade him\nbeware of false friends.\n\nWhen Jesus had made an end of reading aloud those last words bidding him\nbeware of false friends, his heart was sorely troubled, and the burden\nseemed more than he could bear; and he went out for a while to be alone\nand to pray. But presently he returned and spake comfortable words to us,\nand cheered us with his kindness; and so for that night he lay down to\nrest; and some of us slept while others watched. Howbeit that night no\nenemy came.\n\nOn the morrow (which was the fourth day of the week) Jesus neither went\ndown to Jerusalem, nor sent any down to make preparation for the Passover.\nBut he remained with us in Bethany, part of the time in the house, and\npart in the fields round about, going with us hither and thither, and\nspeaking more and more to us of that same Holy Spirit whereof he had\nspoken before; which should guide us, he said, into all truth, and teach\nus what to reply unto our enemies, and be unto us a comforter and a\nfriend, yea, the source of all happiness and good. And more and more he\nspake concerning his departure; insomuch that, though we were unwilling,\nyet by this time we were constrained to suppose that our Master must be\nsevered from us for a season, and that we must watch for his return. Yet\nhow or in what way he should be taken from us we could not conjecture:\nonly that he should be slain by his enemies we had no manner of belief,\nno, nor so much as a fear thereof, although he had so many times\nprophesied it to us. For the thing was hidden from us of the Lord, that we\nshould neither believe it nor conceive it.\n\nBut the women were otherwise minded, and were very full of fears. To them\nit seemed that, if Jesus was indeed about to be taken from them, then it\nmattered not whether he were taken in a chariot of fire or by whatever\nother means: and they lamented over him as over one already dead. Many\ntimes did we rebuke them for their faithlessness (for so it seemed to us),\nbut they would not cease. Judas also rebuked them even more bitterly than\nwe: for he had come to us on the morning of that day, saying that he had\nbeen with certain of his acquaintance in Jerusalem that he might be\ninformed concerning the plots of the Pharisees. Jesus received him kindly,\neven more methought than was usual; and when we sat together at meat that\nnight, he placed Judas next unto himself, John being on one side of him\nand Judas on the other, in the seat of honour.\n\nNow so it was that, while we were at meat, behold, one of the women came\nbehind Jesus, having an alabaster box of very precious ointment, and\npoured it on his head, at the same time uttering most piteous cries and\nlamentations. Then Judas changed colour; for his heart misgave him, as I\njudge, that the lamentations of the women might prove true; and besides,\nhe was wrath perchance because the love wherewith this woman loved Jesus\nput his semblance of love utterly to shame. Therefore he rose up from his\nseat in indignation and said, \u201cTo what purpose is this waste? for this\nointment might have been sold for three hundred pence and given to the\npoor.\u201d We also ourselves in like manner murmured against the woman. But\nJesus said, \u201cWhy trouble ye the woman? for she hath wrought a good work\nupon me. For ye have the poor always with you; but me ye have not always.\nFor in that she hath poured this ointment on my body she did it for my\nburial.\u201d Then he paused, and mused for an instant, and added a prophecy,\nthat wheresoever his good tidings of Redemption should be proclaimed in\nthe whole world, there also should this that this woman had done be told\nfor a memorial of her.\n\nNow before these words, while we had sat at meat listening to the\ndiscourse of Jesus, Judas seemed as if his heart were enlarged towards\nJesus; and albeit at times he fell to pondering and musing (like unto a\nman doubting of two courses which to take), yet anon he would be aroused\nby some word that Jesus spake; and then his countenance would kindle, and\nhe would stoop forward, as in old times, with his eyes all a\u2010glow,\nlistening as if he would fain devour each syllable with his ears. But now\nhis countenance fell, and he was filled with rage because he had been\nrebuked by Jesus; and he went forth from the chamber, and we saw him that\nnight no more. But as for us that remained, our hearts became exceeding\nsorrowful; for now indeed it pressed upon us that the departure of Jesus\nmust needs be sad and grievous and full of sorrow, like unto death. But\nstill, that he should die indeed, and be buried: this, even now, we could\nin no wise believe.\n\n\n\n\n\n CHAPTER XXVIII\n\n\nWhen the morrow came (which was the fifth day of the week) Jesus abode\nstill in Bethany, and went not forth to Jerusalem. Now so it was that the\nPassover that year fell on the Sabbath day; and because of the multitude\nof the sacrifices that were to be slain between the two evenings in the\ntemple, it was a custom that certain of the pilgrims should keep the\nPassover on a day before the Sabbath. For it was said (though I can scarce\nbelieve it) that there were nigh upon three hundred myriads of souls in\nJerusalem during the Passover week; and even though the women partook not\nof the feast, yet the number of lambs to be slaughtered must needs be very\ngreat. Therefore we expected that he should have gone down to Jerusalem\nthat day, for so it had been determined with Joseph of Arimathea; and we\nmarvelled that he did not go. But he continued speaking unto Mary and\nMartha and other of the women. And by this time it was noon, and yet\nnothing had been done.\n\nBut at the last Peter went to him and reminded him that after two days\nwould be the feast of the Passover; and he asked Jesus where he desired\nthat we should prepare for the feast. Then Jesus bade Peter and John go to\na certain street in Jerusalem and to stand there during the ninth hour of\nthe day; and they should meet there a certain slave of Joseph of Arimathea\nbearing a pitcher of water upon his head; and they were to say, as a sign\nto the man, \u201cThe Master saith, my time is at hand; I will keep the\nPassover at thy house with my disciples;\u201d and the slave would shew them an\nupper room prepared; and there they were to make ready. For the space of\nan hour after Peter and John were departed, Jesus continued still speaking\nunto the women: then he arose and bade them farewell, and set his face to\ngo down to Jerusalem.\n\nWhen it was now late, the sun having set two hours or more, we sat down to\nkeep the feast; and Judas also was with us. While we sat at meat, we\nspake, according to the custom, concerning the ancient deliverance of\nIsrael in the days of Moses: but our hearts were very heavy, for we said\nwithin ourselves, \u201cWe need not a past, but a present deliverance; and,\nbehold, it is not to be.\u201d Jesus alone was of good cheer, and rejoiced with\na marvellous joy; and he spake very cheerfully and tenderly to us, and\nsaid that his heart had yearned to eat this Passover with us, for he\nshould not eat with us again till the Kingdom of God should be\nestablished. Now at this we marvelled, but we rejoiced not; for we had\nlearned by much experience not to rejoice at the promises of Jesus as if\nthey were the promises of common men. Moreover we were sore disturbed by a\ncertain saying of Jesus. For in the midst of his comfortable discourse to\nus, he suddenly brake off, saying that one of us, that sat there at meat\nwith him, should betray him. And he said, \u201cThe Son of man goeth as it is\nwritten of him; but woe unto that man by whom the Son of man is betrayed!\nIt had been good for that man if he had not been born.\u201d And hereat we sat\na while dumb and looking each at other, wondering whom Jesus might mean,\nand afterwards we brake out into many and passionate questionings, each\nasking whether he himself was to be the traitor: but Jesus made no certain\nanswer, none at least that I heard. At the last, before rising from the\ntable, Jesus looked earnestly upon us all, as if his heart went out to us:\nand he pitied us, and said that he would now give us his last gift; for\nthis feast was as a funeral feast, and he was to die and leave us alone;\ntherefore, before he died, he desired to bequeath to us somewhat by his\nlast will and testament.\n\nWhile we marvelled what this gift or legacy might be, behold, Jesus took\nbread and blessed God, and brake it and gave it to each of us, saying,\n\u201cTake, eat, this is my body.\u201d After this he took wine and blessed that\nlikewise, and bade us drink of it, saying, \u201cThis is my blood of the New\nTestament, which is shed for many.\u201d So we ate and drank as we were bidden,\neven like children that have no understanding; nor did we then discern the\nmeaning of his words. Howbeit, even at that time we understood somewhat of\nhis purpose; for we perceived that Jesus was pouring his love, yea, and\nhis life, into our hearts; and our souls stretched out as it were toward\nthe truth, namely, that Jesus, in this testament of his, was bequeathing\nhimself to us his disciples, to be our possession for ever.\n\nNow all the other disciples were strangely moved, insomuch that their\nhearts were melted with the fervency of their love; but Judas alone was\nunmoved. Yea, rather he was moved indeed, but in a manner quite contrary\nto the rest. For when Jesus reached unto him the bread, all eyes were upon\nhim, for we could not now refrain from suspecting him: but he ate it\nagainst his will, and as though he ate it with difficulty; and when he had\neaten it, he looked angrily at us that gazed still upon him, and then he\nrose up in haste from the table, like unto one possessed with Satan. Now\nwhile he was eating, Jesus beheld him with a marvellous love and pity,\nyea, and, as it seemed to me, with a great struggle and conflict of soul,\nas if he were wrestling for the last time against Satan for the soul of\nJudas. But, when he perceived that Judas had hardened his heart against\nhim, he sighed, and said some word unto him, but what it was I heard not:\nand hereupon Judas went hastily forth, and left Jesus still sitting with\nus. Then did our hearts misgive us yet more. For none could any longer\ndoubt that Judas was indeed a traitor; and we bethought ourselves for what\ncause he had gone forth, and when he would return.\n\nBut Jesus neither stayed him, nor lamented when he had departed; but he\nseemed like unto one in whom all tears and sorrow had been swallowed up in\na certain unfathomable depth of joy. For he looked up to heaven and\noffered up praise unto the Lord, the Deliverer of Israel, and he bade us\njoin him in singing a portion of the great Hallel; for the singing of\nthese psalms was according to the custom of the Passover. Now so it was\nthat, in the singing, Jesus must needs utter certain words that tell how\nthe Lord giveth life out of death: \u201cThe snares of death compassed me round\nabout, and the pains of hell gat hold upon me. I shall find trouble and\nheaviness, and I will call upon the name of the Lord, O Lord I beseech\nthee, deliver my soul:\u201d and then, \u201cTurn again then unto thy rest, O my\nsoul, for the Lord hath rewarded thee. And why? Thou hast delivered my\nsoul from death, mine eyes from tears, and my feet from falling. I will\nwalk before the Lord in the land of the living.\u201d While he sang these\nwords, it was a wonder to see the face of Jesus, with what a brightness he\nlooked up to heaven, and how great a trust shone from his countenance;\ninsomuch that, as we gazed upon him, our hearts also seemed lifted up with\nhis. But Jesus went on, until he came to those following words of the\nHallel which say how \u201cThe right hand of the Lord hath the pre\u2010eminence:\nthe right hand of the Lord bringeth mighty things to pass. I shall not die\nbut live, and declare the works of the Lord. The Lord hath chastened and\ncorrected me, but he hath not given me over unto death. Open me the gates\nof righteousness, that I may go into them and give thanks unto the Lord.\u201d\n\nAt the last, when we sang of the stone refused of the builders but become\nthe head stone of the corner, he sang with an exceeding clear voice, not\nloud, but very piercing, so that it seemed to cleave us to the very heart;\nand behold, our voices became lower, even as his became clearer; and we\nfeared to sing the same words as he sang; but we were rapt with wonder as\nwe looked upon his countenance; for it was as the countenance of an angel\nseeing the very glory of the Most High and gazing upon Him face to face.\nAnd when he sang the last words of all, \u201cGod is the Lord who hath shewed\nus light, bind the sacrifice with cords, yea even unto the horns of the\naltar. Thou art my God, and I will thank thee; thou art my God, and I will\npraise thee\u201d; then indeed it came to pass that all we that listened to him\nwere lifted up in spirit with him in an ecstasy, being delivered from all\nour doubts and cares and fears, looking down on them as petty things; and\nit was even as if Jesus were holding us by the hand and carrying us up\nwith himself above the firmament, to the seventh heaven and beyond, yea\neven to the Throne of the Blessed.\n\nThat instant, a knocking was heard at the door, and one entered in haste\nand as if in terror; and he went up to Jesus and whispered in his ear.\nThen the glory faded from the face of Jesus, and he became sad, and\nstraightway gave commandment to depart. But as we went forth from the\nchamber to the roof (for the guest\u2010chamber was an upper chamber and upon\nthe roof, as was the custom in my country), we heard from the slave that a\nguard had been sent forth by Annas to seek Jesus, and that Judas of\nKerioth was thought to be with them, to guide them to the place where\nJesus was. So we went down immediately from the upper chamber where we had\nbeen at meat; and behold, as we passed from the brightness of the\nmoonlight, which shone upon the roof, down into the darkness of the shadow\nof the street, we seemed to have passed out of life into death, and to\nhave been cast down from Paradise to the depths beneath the earth.\n\nNow when we were all come down from the house into the street, Jesus stood\nfor a while in the midst of his disciples looking up to the sky; and he\nseemed for an instant like unto one doubting whither he should go. For\nfirst he made two or three steps toward the temple and the tower of\nAntonia, as if to go thither (but this would have been certain death, for\nthe guard was coming thence, and we should have met them); but then he\nlooked at us and seemed to change his purpose. For he turned towards the\ngate that leadeth to the vale of Kidron. Now why he did this we knew not\nat that time; but afterwards we judged that he was moved at first to go to\nmeet the guard that he might give himself up at once unto death; but when\nhe had thought thereon, it seemed better for our sakes that he should\nstill remain with us a few hours longer. Perchance also he wished to\ncommune with God alone upon the mountain of Olivet; for he ever loved the\nloneliness of mountainous places and nightly prayers. Moreover Quartus\nwriteth to this effect, that \u201cthough Jesus knew that he was to die, yet\nthe manner of his dying, and how he should be taken, was not known to him:\ntherefore he would not prevent the hand of the Lord, but would avoid the\nperil by all honourable means even till the last, leaving the decision\nwith the Lord.\u201d\n\nAs we drew nigh to the gate of Kidron I was near him, and I heard him\nrepeating some saying of Scripture to himself; and at the last, he spake\naloud and said, \u201cAll ye shall be offended because of me this night, for it\nis written, I will smite the shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered.\u201d\nBut when he marked us, how exceedingly we sorrowed at these words of his,\nthen he began to encourage us again; and he spake some words how that he\nwould return to us, or guide us hereafter. Now what he said exactly I know\nnot, for I was a little behind the rest. But he looked around him in the\nnarrow street, as though that were no place for him to abide in: and then\nhe added some words concerning Galilee, which I did not clearly hear.\nHowbeit, it seemed to me that he said he should manifest himself to us\nhereafter, not in Jerusalem but in Galilee.(11) And so also most of the\ndisciples interpreted his words. But we all with one consent cried out\nthat we would never desert him nor go from his side; and he listened to us\ngently, even as a mother listeneth to the prattle of a little child which\nprattleth concerning the things which he will do when he cometh to man\u2019s\nestate. Even so listened Jesus to our speech; but when Peter was vehement,\neven above the rest, in protestations, Jesus interrupted him, and said\nthat before the morrow\u2019s sun had risen, yea, before cockcrow, Simon Peter\nshould have denied him.\n\nBy this time we were come to the gate of the Kidron valley; and methought\ncertain of the servants of the chief priests, which stood together at the\ngate, were advised of the intent to arrest Jesus, and were fain to lay\nhands on him. Howbeit, many were coming in and going out, and we that were\ngoing with Jesus joined ourselves together around him, insomuch that the\nguards suffered us to pass; for they could not then have taken him\nquietly, nor without a tumult; which thing they purposed to avoid. And so\nit was that, as we closed ourselves together for to encompass Jesus and to\nguard him, my place was very nigh unto Jesus, even next upon his left\nhand; and as we went down the steep path which leadeth across the brook\nKidron, I chanced to stumble; and Jesus took me by the right hand to stay\nme from falling. And the touch thereof remaineth with me unto this day;\nfor his hand was not again to touch my hand upon earth.\n\nWhen we were now going up the hill on the other side of the brook (being\nby this time quite out of the shadow of the city walls, so that we could\nsee all things in the moonlight very clearly), we perceived that Jesus was\nstill meditating on prophecies; and ever and anon he looked upon us, as\nthough his care for us were a burden on his soul. And perchance he desired\nto prepare us to live without him in the world; and not to depend upon the\nexact words of his precepts, nor to make therefrom a rule nor a law unto\nourselves, but to obey the Spirit only; making new rules and laws for\nourselves if need were, even as the times might suggest and the Spirit\nmight bid us. For he said unto us, \u201cWhen I sent you without purse, and\nscrip, and shoes, lacked ye anything?\u201d And we said \u201cNothing.\u201d Then said he\nunto us, \u201cBut now he that hath a purse let him take it, and likewise his\nscrip.\u201d Here he paused awhile, and then he added these words: \u201cAnd he that\nhath no sword let him sell his garment and buy one. For I say unto you\nthat this that is written, must yet be accomplished in me: \u2018And he was\nreckoned among the transgressors.\u2019 For the things concerning me have an\nend.\u201d Hereat we wondered, that Jesus (who had ever spoken against smiting\nwith the sword) should bid us buy swords. Howbeit, we answered that we had\ntwo swords with us. Straightway Jesus ceased from walking, and stood quite\nstill for an instant; and it seemed as if he marvelled at our want of\nunderstanding, but yet perceived that he must needs be content, for he\ncould do no more to help us. Therefore he said nothing, but presently\ncontinued to walk on as before. But, as I now suppose, his meaning was to\nprepare us for much tribulation, and that we should, in the days to come,\nuse all means and all faculties in his service. Howbeit, even to this day,\nI understand not altogether that saying about the buying of a sword. But\nas I judge, Jesus had invisible things in his mind, and he spake of the\nstores and treasures, and of the weapons also, that were like to be needed\nin the great and terrible war which we were to wage against Satan in the\ndays to come.\n\nAgainst this, Xanthias urgeth (and methinks not without shew of reason)\nthat the scrip and purse whereof Jesus made mention in Galilee were not\ninvisible things, but visible: but, if they were visible, so also must the\nsword needs be, whereof Jesus made mention in the same saying. But Quartus\nreplieth that when Jesus, being still with us in the flesh, sent the\ndisciples forth in Galilee without purse and scrip, he would have them to\ngo forth not only without visible purse and scrip (which indeed they did),\nbut also without the spirit of the purse and the spirit of the scrip, that\nis to say without forethought and provision, the better to awaken them to\nwhom they were to preach the Good News: and this, saith Quartus, was the\nmain part of the precept of Jesus. But now that he was to be no longer\nwith us in the flesh, he changed his precept, bidding us use the spirit of\nthe purse and the spirit of the scrip: and \u201cafter those words,\u201d saith\nQuartus, \u201cthat ye might the better understand them, Jesus paused\u201d (which\nindeed he did, for I took note of it) \u201cin the midst of his saying, and\nbade you buy a sword, supposing that ye would know assuredly that he (who\never hated the sword) could not mean a visible sword, but an invisible:\neven that two\u2010edged sword which Jesus brought into the world to do battle\nagainst evil withal. And belike,\u201d saith Quartus, \u201cJesus meant that, after\nhe should be taken away, we were never to be content to defend ourselves\nagainst evil, nor to lead harmless lives in peace and quiet (as the\nEssenes are wont to do); but that we were evermore to do battle against\nevil, and to assail it, and to give up all things sooner than cease to\nmake war against it.\u201d\n\nAt this time came down one from Bethany to tell us that the servants of\nthe chief priests had beset the house of Mary and Martha, and others were\nwatching on the road for to take Jesus if he should come up the hill.\nTherefore Jesus turned aside from the road and went unto a place whither\nhe had also beforetime gone with us: it was a small vale, wherein grew\nmany olive\u2010trees, insomuch that it was hence called the Press of Olive\nOil, or Gethsemane. When Jesus came to this place, we would fain have\nstill accompanied him; but he suffered us not, but bade us stay where we\nwere, and there to watch and pray, lest we entered into temptation: for\nthese were his very words to us. But taking John and Peter and James, he\nhimself went forward about a stone\u2019s cast; and we noted that, after a\nshort while, he parted from them, though they were fain to stay him (for\nwe could hear all things as well as see, because the night was very calm,\nand no less still than bright); and he went on yet another stone\u2019s cast or\nsomewhat less, and the three disciples sat down where they were. Then\nJesus stretched out his hands unto the Lord and prayed with exceeding\nearnestness; and to us, where we stood, he seemed as one in a sore agony;\nfor at one time we could discern him standing erect, but at another time\nkneeling or prostrate upon the ground; and though he spake not loud, yet\ncould I hear words that made my very flesh to shiver and creep; for he\ncried unto the Lord and said, \u201cFather, if it be possible, let this cup\npass from me.\u201d These words he said more than once, so that I could not but\nhear them; and a sickness of heart and an horror fell on me that such an\none as Jesus of Nazareth should come to such a pass, and should ever need\nto say, \u201cif it be possible.\u201d\n\nNow so it was, that in spite of our sorrow and anguish of heart, all we\nthat watched with Jesus at this time were so pressed down with a strange\nslumber that it was not possible for us to resist the burden thereof upon\nour eyelids; and oftentimes we would walk up and down and speak each to\nother for to shake off the leaden weight from our eyes; but we could not,\nno, though we were angered, and reproached ourselves aloud. For we had not\nslept much during three nights past or more, because of the need of\nwatching for Jesus; and besides, the very unexpectedness of all that\nsorrow which had of late encompassed us round on every side, caused us to\nfeel like unto them which wander in the wilderness of a dream or vision of\nthe night, insomuch that we scarce knew whether we were asleep or awake:\nand the anguish of Jesus itself was unto us as it were but a part of a bad\ndream. For we could not attain to understand his sorrow, nor to share in\nhis burden. Only we knew that he sorrowed not for fear of death. But we\nknew not at that time the secret of his agony, how he was at that instant\nwrestling with Satan for the salvation of all the children of men. Yet so\nindeed it was. And though the suffering of Jesus was seen of men when his\nbody hung upon the cross, yet meseemeth it was seen of God when he was\nprostrate upon the ground in Gethsemane, and his soul was crying unto the\nLord and saying, \u201cif it be possible.\u201d\n\nLoth am I to write many words concerning that which is above all reach of\nwords, yea, and above all reach of the thoughts of men; yet will I here\nset down that which was said unto me concerning this matter by a certain\nAlexandrine, a friend of Quartus, who was a man of an understanding spirit\nand of discernment above the common. This man, when I once marvelled\naloud, in his presence, as to the cause of the agony of Jesus, made answer\nto me and said, \u201cWhat was it, thinkest thou, that caused Jesus more pain\nand sorrow than aught else?\u201d So I replied, \u201cWithout doubt, the sins of\nmen: for he often spake as if it were a pain to him, even to forgive the\nsins of men.\u201d But the Alexandrine replied, \u201cAs it seemeth to me, Jesus did\nnot merely forgive sins twice or thrice in a week, nor in a day, no, nor\neven in an hour: but his whole life was a state of forgiving, and a state\nof bearing sins and of carrying iniquities, and of making himself one with\nsinners. For this end it was needful that Jesus should have strength to\ntrust in men and to hope for men: for without trust and hope thou knowest\nit is impossible for thee to lift up a sinful man in forgiveness,\nhowsoever great may be thy love for the sinful.\n\n\u201cTherefore, even as the Gentiles fable that Atlas doth bear up the pillars\nof the earth, even so, methinks, Jesus of Nazareth knew in himself that he\nbare up the pillars of the invisible Jerusalem, the city of the souls of\nmen; and so long as he had strength to trust and hope, so long he knew\nthat the invisible city stood and was to stand; but, if he should fail in\ntrust and hope so that he should fall (even for a single instant), then\nbehold, in that same fall of the Son of man fell all the world, yea, all\nthe souls of men, and all the Temple of the Congregation of the children\nof God; and so the universe became the hunting\u2010ground of Satan, and the\nchildren of men his prey, and God was not. Peradventure, therefore, the\nburden of Jesus was this bearing of the sins of men, and especially of the\nsin of Judas and the infirmities of you his disciples, and the thought of\nthe impotence of good to conquer evil. Moreover perchance there rose up\nbefore him the image of the morrow, when he should hang upon the cross,\nand when the strength and force of life should leave him, and there should\nbe no one to succour, no one to comfort; and a vision from Satan stood\nbefore him, and he heard a voice that whispered evil things: \u2018If now thou\nshouldest lose thy trust for an instant? and the pillar should be snapped?\nand the invisible city should fall? and the gates of hell should prevail\nover the gates of heaven?\u2019\u201d\n\nThis then is what the Alexandrine said unto me concerning the suffering of\nJesus: but it needeth not to say that at this time we understood naught of\nthese things: only we perceived that some terrible thing was at hand. But\nabout the space of an hour or more, as I judge, had passed since we first\nheard Jesus say, \u201cif it be possible\u201d; and now methought Jesus was less\ndisturbed in praying. And presently we saw him standing upright, very\nclearly to be seen in the light of the moon, which streamed upon him\nthrough the olive branches; and these words were borne to our ears through\nthe stillness of the night, \u201cO my Father, if this cup may not pass away\nfrom me, except I drink it, thy will be done.\u201d But some of the disciples\ntold me afterwards that at this time they saw a shape, as of an angel\nclothed in white, ministering unto him. But I saw it not, for it may be\nthat I was at that time slumbering: for soon after I had heard Jesus speak\nthese last words, there fell a deep sleep upon me and upon the rest of the\ndisciples that were nearest to me. Afterwards they all slumbered and\nslept, even the sons of Zebedee and Peter also; and perchance this thing\nwas from the Lord, to the intent that Jesus might bear all his burden\nalone.\n\nAfter this, I remember no more, save that I had a vision of the night in\nmy slumber, wherein I saw Jesus of Nazareth clothed in bright raiment,\nglorious to behold. He stood and prayed upon the summit of a mountain.\nHowbeit in my dream it seemed to be not Mount Olivet, but the Mount of the\nLaw in Galilee. And as I looked upon him, his stature grew larger and his\nraiment brighter, till the brightness thereof filled the sky, and set it\nall in a flame. With that I awoke on a sudden, and opening mine eyes, I\nperceived that there were flames indeed around me; then, leaping up, I\nfound myself in the midst of torches, and armed men compassing me round.\nYet could I discern, through the midst of them all, Jesus, with a calm\ncountenance, stooping over John and Peter and James, and arousing them\nfrom sleep.\n\nNow all that came to pass thereafter was finished in a few moments, though\nit take long to tell. For Judas, who was the guide of the armed men, ran\nswiftly before the rest up to Jesus and said, \u201cHail, Master,\u201d and saluted\nhim. And, as I was told by them that were nigh to see, Judas seemed as if\nhe knew not, even at the last, what would come to pass, nor scarce what he\nhimself was doing. For he embraced Jesus and pointed to the soldiers that\nfollowed behind him, as if half expecting that Jesus would call down fire\nupon them. But Jesus looked upon him as if looking upon a stranger, and\nmade him such answer as to shew that he perceived his treachery; whereat\nJudas drew back, they said, as one distraught. Then Simon Peter drew a\nsword and struck a blow at one of the soldiers; and the rest of us ran up\nto have joined in the fray. But Jesus straightway rebuked us, and bidding\nPeter put up his sword, he yielded himself up to the soldiers. Yet even to\nthe last he was as a son obeying the will of the Father, and not like unto\none acting from constraint; for I myself heard him say unto Simon Peter,\n\u201cThinkest thou that I cannot pray to my Father and He shall presently give\nme more than twelve legions of angels? But how then shall the Scriptures\nbe fulfilled, that thus it must be?\u201d\n\nNow up to this moment we had not yet fled; for we could not even then\nbelieve that our Redeemer, the Messiah, the Son of the Living God, would\nbe led captive; yea, even though he resisted not, yet were we assured that\nthe Lord God of Israel would stretch out His hand to deliver His Holy One.\nSo we still waited and were in expectation. But when at last the servants\nof the high priests laid their hands on him and the soldiers bound him and\ndragged him roughly away, and yet no fire from heaven came down upon them,\nneither did the earth open her mouth to swallow them up; then we all\nforsook him and fled.\n\n\n\n\n\n CHAPTER XXIX\n\n\nThough we had so basely fled from our Master, yet away from him we were\nnot able to rest. Therefore we followed after the guard down the mountain,\neven into Jerusalem, and mingled with the concourse that was gathered\ntogether before the doors of the High Priest\u2019s house. Near me was John the\nson of Zebedee; who, having some acquaintance in the household of the High\nPriest, gained access into the house; and Peter also with him. But I\nremained without; and I conversed with the people, making as if I were no\nGalilean, but a citizen of Jerusalem. For I perceived that the most part\nof the multitude were men of Jerusalem, some indeed citizens, but the\ngreater part servants of the chief priests, and money\u2010changers, and\ncattle\u2010dealers; who had been gathered together of set purpose by the\nenemies of Jesus.\n\nBut when I asked one why he hated Jesus (for the man had declared aloud\nthat he trusted that day to see Jesus on the cross), he replied, \u201cBecause\nthis Galilean marreth our trade, and taketh away our living; for behold,\nthese three days men buy no beasts for sacrifice from my stalls in the\ntemple.\u201d And another said, \u201cYea, and he maketh no secret that he purposeth\nto destroy our religion, and change our customs which Moses appointed: for\nhe saith that he will destroy this temple, and boasteth, forsooth, that he\nwill raise up another equal to this in three days.\u201d Now this saying of\nJesus (which indeed he had not said, for I have set down his words exactly\nabove) had been carried from mouth to mouth throughout Jerusalem; and the\nchief priests had everywhere caused it to be rumoured that the intent of\nJesus was to destroy the temple with fire during that Passover. Therefore\nthe hearts of many of the devout and sober people were turned away from\nJesus.\n\nAfter we had waited about two hours or something less, a certain Scribe\ncame up to a servant of the chief priests, who was conversing with me; and\nthe Scribe asked the man concerning the multitude, for what cause it was\ngathered together: and the man said, \u201cTo see the false prophet, named\nJesus of Nazareth, who is to be condemned to death.\u201d \u201cNay,\u201d said the\nother, \u201cthen thou losest thy labour. For if a man be tried for his life,\nhe may not be tried on the day before the Sabbath; for the Law alloweth\nappeal on the morrow. Therefore if, as thou sayest, Jesus of Nazareth is\nyonder being tried, it cannot be that he is tried for his life.\u201d Hereat I\nrejoiced greatly, for I bethought myself that it was even so as the Scribe\nhad said, wherefore it could not be that Jesus was to be tried for his\nlife. But when I drew nigh unto them (for the press had parted us for an\ninstant): \u201cI give thee a yea for thy nay,\u201d said the other, \u201cfor thou\nknowest the Law, but I know my master Annas; and he is not the man to\nallow a little matter of a day to stand in his way; nor to permit the\nbooths and shops in the temple (whence cometh profit to the priests) to be\ndestroyed by false prophets and Galileans to boot.\u201d Then indeed my heart\nmisgave me that it was to be no trial, but only a murder.\n\nJust then one came down the steps leading from the High Priest\u2019s house,\nand the people ran together towards him to know what had been done. He\nstood still, and made a gesture that they should keep silence; and then in\na clear voice he spake to the multitude and said, \u201cThe council hath\npronounced that Jesus of Nazareth is a man of death.\u201d Hereupon there was a\ngeneral shout, for all knew that to be \u201ca man of death\u201d meant to be\ncondemned to die: and straightway a cry arose, \u201cStone him, stone him;\nbring him out that we may stone him.\u201d But the man checked them that\nshouted, saying that the accused must first be led to the judgment seat of\nthe procurator, Pontius Pilate, for without his judgment it was not lawful\nthat any should be put to death.\n\nThen my heart revived a little again; for it seemed there was still some\nhope. But seeing Simon Peter come forth from the High Priest\u2019s house, I\npressed through the throng if perchance I might come at him, to ask him\ntouching the trial, and what the witnesses had testified, and how Jesus\nhad borne himself. But Peter seemed not to see me; and even when I called\nhim by name he would not hear me. At last, by dint of striving, I came\nnear him in the throng and caught hold of his garment, and stayed him by\nforce. Then, indeed, he stayed; but as he turned round and his face looked\nupon my face, behold, I saw in his countenance shame, and remorse, and\ndespair; and he assayed to speak, but could not, and wrung my hand in\nsilence. Then waving me off that I should not any more stay him, he hasted\naway, and I durst not follow him; for it was evident to me that the\nprophecy of Jesus had been fulfilled, and that Simon Peter had denied our\nMaster.\n\nI turned back into the throng, for my intent was to have remained standing\nwithout, till such time as Jesus came forth. But I heard the servant of\nthe High Priest say to one of his acquaintance that the procurator was not\none to have his sleep broken by business at so early an hour; \u201cTherefore,\u201d\nsaid he to his companion, \u201cgo home to thy house, and warm thee, if thou\nwilt; for there will be naught to see these three hours.\u201d Then it came\ninto my mind that the mother of Jesus, and likewise Mary Magdalene, and\nthe other women, were all this while in Bethany, neither knew they aught\nof that which had befallen Jesus; and it was fit they should be told.\nTherefore I went forth by the gate of Kidron and up the Mount of Olives\neven to Bethany; and there I writ a few words, telling what had befallen,\nand left it in the hand of one of the servants of the house; for to go in\nmyself and to tell the tale, and to look upon their sorrow, I durst not do\nit. This done, I hasted back for to go down to the house of the\nprocurator, making sure to have arrived thither long before they had made\nan end of the trial. But when I was gone but two or three hundred paces\nfrom Bethany, one of the women ran after me with tears and lamentations,\nbeseeching me to return and to tell them all; and she constrained me. So I\nreturned and told them all; and the memory of their lamenting remaineth\nwith me unto this day.\n\nThus passed a long time, a very long time as it seemed to me; but at last\nI withdrew myself from them perforce, and hasted down the mountain. But\nwhen I was come to the palace, behold the trial was over; and I saw the\nrear part of a moving throng, and one told me that they were taking the\nprisoner to be crucified at Golgotha. Then my heart within me seemed to\nburst; but though I was faint before with long watching and weariness, I\nwas not faint now, but sped after the throng. Many times did I strive to\npress in amidst them, if perchance Jesus might look but once upon me, or I\nmight see his face, or so much as catch a sight of his garment as he\nwalked; and I wept and was ready to curse myself that I had gone from the\nHigh Priest\u2019s door before I had seen my Master\u2019s face. For now I could not\nsee him, no, nor anything of him, save now and then the cross, which, as\nthey told me, he was carrying upon his shoulders; but I heard the men in\nthe crowd saying what insults had been offered to him, and how he had been\nscourged and mocked and spit upon, decked with a crown of thorns and a\nsceptre of reed; and I was as one distracted, in whom there is no power of\nthought.\n\nBy this time we had passed out of the city through the western gate, and\nthe fore part of the multitude was come to the place of execution; and\nthey that went before me came now to a stand; and I saw the cross lifted\nup for an instant, to the intent, as it seemed, that it might be laid upon\nthe ground; and one near me said, \u201cNow they are making ready.\u201d Then I\ngnashed my teeth, for I could do naught else; but I was ready to curse God\n(blessed is He), for I knew right well what that \u201cmaking ready\u201d meant; and\na deep silence fell on all the crowd; and I could hear the blows of the\nhammer upon the nails; and every man held his breath, if perchance there\nmight come the sound of a shriek or a groan. But no such sound came to the\nplace where we stood.\n\nPresently arose a very loud shouting from the multitude that stood before\nme, and behold, the cross was reared up so that the top thereof was a\nlittle above the heads of the people; and from afar off I could just\ndiscern Jesus. But I saw not his face; for his head was bowed forward and\nhis hair, hanging over his forehead, hid his eyes. But when I thrust\nmyself forward to have approached nearer, I could not for the press. At\nthe same time there rang in upon mine ears a very storm of mocking and\nreviling and cursing against Jesus from all the bystanders, yea, even from\nthe women and little children (with such a venom of slander had the Chief\nPriests poisoned the minds of the people); insomuch that I seemed to stand\nalone among a host of the children of Satan; neither could I endure any\nlonger to behold such a sight, amid such beholders, and to be of no avail.\nWherefore I became as one possessed; and I turned my back upon the cross\nand forced my way out of the crowd; the people calling after me and\nmocking me, and plucking me back by the cloak as I fled.\n\nBut even as my body fled away, my soul was drawn back unto the cross; and\nI feared to go back lest I should see Jesus, and I feared to go forward\nlest I should never see him. And these two fears were as two devils that\npossessed me, driving me hither and thither about all the hills and\nvalleys of that neighbourhood for the space of two hours or more; and\nduring all that time the fear to go back was the stronger. But about the\neighth hour of the day, as I wandered like unto one dreaming, not knowing\nwhither I went, behold, I stood on the top of a certain hill; and thereon\nwas a flock of sheep quietly pasturing, and the shepherd\u2010boy piping to\nthem, and sunlight was all around. But casting mine eyes downward, I saw\nvery far off, under a dark cloud, the multitude still standing round\nJesus, and three crosses in the midst (for other two were crucified with\nhim); and all in so small a space that it seemed no larger than a man\u2019s\nhand.\n\nThen came my misery back to me with a shock; and it seemed a wonderful and\nan horrible thing that in a little corner of the earth the Almighty should\nsuffer such a one as Jesus of Nazareth to be slain on the cross: and yet,\nbehold, the sun shone and the shepherds piped to their sheep, and there\nwas peace upon the mountains, and all as if nothing strange were happening\nbelow. But soon these and all other thoughts were swallowed up in one\nremembrance, namely, that if I would see Jesus alive, not many minutes now\nremained unto me; for the sun was sinking towards the west, and I knew\nthat he could not be suffered to remain upon the cross when the Sabbath\nbegan; for that had been against our customs. Therefore I ran down with\nexceeding speed, and came again to Golgotha about the tenth hour.\n\nWhen I was now within two or three furlongs of the place, I perceived that\nsome of the people were already coming away; for the Passover was near at\nhand, so that they must needs go to their homes. So I ran on, and came to\nthe place where the multitude was standing. And because the throng was\ndiminished, I was now able to come very much nearer to the midst of the\nmultitude, not more than a stone\u2019s cast from the cross. But alas for the\nsight I saw! For though I was so close, I could not discern anything of\nJesus as he once had been; because his head was bowed forward even more\nthan before, and moreover there was an unwonted darkness over all the\nplace. The people were very still, nor was there now any more sound of\ncursing or mocking; for of them that still remained round the cross some\nwere the friends of Jesus, and others had been greatly moved (so it was\ntold me afterwards) by the manner in which he had borne himself upon the\ncross; insomuch that even the soldiers which kept guard mocked him no\nmore, but stood watching in silence. But I came forward to the furthest\nthat I might, and placed myself where haply he might see me; and I would\nfain have called unto him; but I durst not, lest I should trouble him, for\nhe was very still. But when I was now come so close unto him that I might\nalmost discern his features in spite of the darkness, behold it was as if\na trembling ran through all his limbs, and he raised his head a little,\nand a voice came forth, which, whoso heard, could not forget for ever: \u201cMy\nGod, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?\u201d Then there was another cry\nexceeding long and loud, and a second trembling running through all the\nlimbs even to the neck and face; and then a stiffness as of death.\n\nNow up to the very last I had not given up all hope that Jesus might yet\ncome down from the cross, shewing forth some mighty work worthy of a\nMessiah; nor did I indeed know how much hope I had had, till this moment\nwherein all hope perished. But now, when I turned myself to go away from\nthe cross and to leave Jesus for ever, all things seemed ended, and I felt\nas one alone in the world; yea, I knew not whether there were a God, or\nwhether I myself lived, or all life were not a dream. Thus I went forward,\nas one in a trance; when on a sudden I heard the voice of Hezekiah the\nScribe: \u201cArt thou not yet convinced of thy folly? Behold, it is written\nthat thou shouldest not put thy trust in any child of man. For when the\nbreath of man goeth forth, he shall turn again to his earth, and then all\nhis thoughts perish; even as this thy master, the false prophet, hath\nperished. But blessed is he that hath the God of Jacob for his help, who\nkeepeth His promises for ever. But thy master, how keepeth he his\npromises? Unless perchance,\u201d and here he lowered his voice and looked\njealously at me, \u201cunless (as is reported to us) ye Galileans hope to steal\nhis body from the grave and so to feign that he is risen; but that shall\nnot be. For though your patron Joseph of Arimathea may have his will to\u2010\nday, yet will we take good order that we have our will to\u2010morrow. For the\nbody of a false prophet deserveth not honourable burial.\u201d\n\nI could endure his words no longer, but ran past him as one mad. But, when\nI was now rid of his presence, passing back into the city by the western\ngate, my mind ran on all such things as I had done with Jesus on the day\nbefore, and my feet turned of themselves toward the house where we had\nkept the Passover together. Thence, but still as one in a dream, scarce\nknowing what I did, I bent my way towards the gate of the valley of\nKidron. Here I was musing how, but yesterday, in this very place, I had\nwalked by the side of Jesus, even at his right hand, and how the touch of\nhis arm had held me up in my stumbling; when behold, I started back as if\nI had seen a spirit. For the voice of one close to me in the twilight\nwhispered with an hissing sound, \u201cHe is not dead.\u201d I looked, and behold,\nJudas stood before me. His face was pale and his eyes glared, and passion\nso wrought his features that they moved and quivered, as if against his\nwill, like unto the features of one possessed by Satan. When I drew back\nfrom him, at first he would have stayed me; but seeing that I loathed him,\nhe also drew back and said, \u201cNay, be not afraid, I cannot betray another.\nBut he is not dead. Hast thou not seen him?\u201d I marvelled at him, but said\nnothing, only shaking my head. Then Judas replied, \u201cThink not that I have\nslain him; he liveth: he hunteth me to death; these three times have I\nseen him. I have not slain him. Why then doth he yet hunt me? But thou,\nthou didst love him, be thou at peace with me.\u201d Saying these words, he\ncame forward again to have taken me by the hand; but I could not. Then he\nturned away and laughed such a laugh as I pray God I may never hear again.\nBut as he departed, he cried aloud, \u201cThou rememberest his words, \u2018It were\nbetter for him that he had never been born\u2019: verily he was a prophet.\u201d\nThen he laughed again, even such another laugh as before; and he cursed\nthe God that had made him. With that he went his way, and I saw him no\nmore.\n\nFor a while I stood where I was, as if in a trance, almost expecting that\nthe words of Judas should prove true, and that Jesus should come forth to\nme out of the air around me. Then I passed through the gate of Kidron;\nand, crossing the brook, I began to go out by the way which leadeth to\nBethany. But ever as I went up the mountain, I pondered over the words of\nJudas, \u201cHe is not dead, I have seen him:\u201d for I could not forget them, nor\nput them away from my mind. And behold, whithersoever I looked in the\ntwilight, all things bore witness unto Jesus and seemed to say the same\nwords, \u201cWe have seen him. He is not dead.\u201d For if I looked back at the\ncity gates, then I remembered how Jesus had lately passed through them in\ntriumph; and if I looked on the road before me, then every tree and rock\nseemed to testify that Jesus had but now been there again and again, in\nhis passing between Bethany and the city; and at one place he had spoken a\ncertain parable: at another, he had sat down and rested; or at a third, we\nhad asked him certain questions and he had answered them. Thus the whole\nof the mountain and all things thereon seemed to cry aloud with one\nconsent, \u201cHe is not dead\u201d; but my heart cried back again, \u201cNay, but he is\ndead indeed.\u201d\n\nWhen at last I came in my wanderings nigh to the top of the mount, even to\nthe stone whereon Jesus had sat down in the midst of the disciples and had\nprophesied of his coming, then could I no longer refrain myself; but I\nthrew myself on the ground in a passion of tears and sobbings, beating my\nbreast and rending my garments. And when I desired to cry unto the Lord in\nmy agony, behold, the words of Jesus on the cross came into my mouth; and\nif I tried to fashion some other prayer, no other words would come to me,\nbut I could do naught but repeat them over and over again, crying unto the\nLord and saying, \u201cWhy hast Thou forsaken him? Why hast Thou forsaken him?\u201d\nSo speaking, I scarce refrained from doing even as Judas had done, so as\nto curse the day wherein I was born; and I became again as one distraught.\nBut after a time (but how long a time I know not) a darkness came down\nupon mine eyes, and all things swam around me, and I fell to the ground as\none without life.\n\nWhen I came to myself, behold, I lay upon my back and looked upward, and\nthe moon was shining high in the heavens above me. So I thought how the\nsame moon had shone down with the same brightness yesternight upon my\nMaster in Gethsemane. \u201cAnd now where is he?\u201d I ceased from that thought,\nand went back in my mind to thoughts of the past. Then I remembered what a\nsplendour, even such as I now saw, had shone upon our Master\u2019s face when\nhe came down from Mount Hermon, and when he came up from Jericho to\nBethany, and also when of late he gave us the bread and wine at our last\nsupper together. Also there came into my mind the words that he had\nspoken, when this brightness had been upon his countenance: how he had\nthen prophesied, and more than once, that he should be slain; but we had\nnever believed him. Yet his words had come to pass. Then I asked within\nmyself how it was that Jesus had foreseen his own death and prophesied it\nso oft, yet had never been dismayed nor even disturbed by the thought\nthereof; and I remembered that whensoever he had spoken of his death, he\nhad spoken also of a certain rising again, or coming: and I said aloud,\n\u201cIf Jesus prophesied his death truly, why might he not also prophesy truly\nconcerning his coming again?\u201d\n\nBut against this hope there set themselves those last words which had come\nfrom the mouth of Jesus on the cross, \u201cMy God, my God, why hast thou\nforsaken me?\u201d Now these words are the first words, and as it were the\nprelude, of one of our psalms. So I began to repeat to myself the words of\nthe psalm; which beginneth with sadness, yea even from the depths of\nsorrow, but these words follow afterwards: \u201cI will declare thy name unto\nmy brethren: in the midst of the congregation will I praise thee. For he\nhath not despised nor abhorred the affliction of the afflicted; neither\nhath he hid his face from him, but when he cried unto him he heard.\u201d So I\nwondered whether Jesus, in speaking those last words, had in his mind all\nthe words of the psalm, and \u201cPerchance,\u201d I said, \u201cin saying the first\nwords, he signified (in his sore weakness when the breath was departing\nfrom him) that he desired to say the whole; for the first words are but as\na title to the whole. Wherefore, perchance, beneath the sense of the\nforsaking, there was a deeper sense that God did not despise the\naffliction of the afflicted.\u201d Then I mused again concerning the words of\nthe Psalm, and especially on these, \u201cWhen he cried unto him, he heard.\u201d\nAnd I looked up to the moon and the stars in heaven, which are the work of\nthe hand of God, and I asked whether it was possible that the Maker of so\nbeautiful an order in heaven should suffer disorder to prevail upon the\nearth; and my heart said that it could not prevail for ever. \u201cTherefore,\u201d\nsaid I, \u201cGod must needs have heard Jesus of Nazareth when he cried unto\nHim. Yea, though He seemed not to hear, yet must He have heard indeed.\nYea, even though Jesus be dead, yea, even though Jesus be not the Messiah,\nyet surely the Lord must have heard Jesus; for not to have heard him,\nwould have been not to be God.\u201d\n\nThen rose I up and stood and stretched out my hands in prayer unto the\nLord with whom all things are possible, that He would shew forth His mercy\nupon me; and behold, when I tried to pray, my lips would shape forth no\nother prayer, but that He would bring back Jesus unto us, even though it\nwere for a moment of time, that we might look upon him and know that he\nstill lived. And at one moment I rebuked myself because the thing seemed\nimpossible; but the next moment that prayer rose up again, and no other.\nBut when I had prayed, I lay down again, for I was very weary; and because\nI was now more at peace within myself, there came upon me a sweet sleep.\n\nIn my sleep I dreamed; and the Lord sent unto me a vision of the night,\nwhereof the former part was like unto the vision which I had had the night\nbefore, but the latter part was different. For again, methought, I saw\nJesus standing on the top of a mountain in great glory; and albeit his\nface was like the face of him that hath passed through much tribulation,\nyet did the glory prevail over the sorrow, and he rejoiced as one\ntriumphing over Satan and Death. As I looked, methought Jesus was lifted\nup in a chariot from the mountain towards the clouds, and angels\naccompanied him as he rode upward; and a sound of solemn music came down\nfrom above to greet him. The heavens opened, yea, even to the seventh\nheaven, and there appeared the likeness of a throne on the right hand of\nthe Majesty on high; and ten thousands of thousands of saints were about\nthe throne, with palms in their hands, singing hosannas unto the Son of\nDavid. But even as the chariot rose higher and higher, the music waxed\nlouder and fuller; till at the last, when the chariot was now nigh unto\nthe throne, behold all the harps in heaven rang out hosannas with such a\npeal of praise as made me start out of my vision; and I awoke, and it was\na dream.\n\n\n\n\n\n CHAPTER XXX\n\n\nWhen I awoke, it was now hard upon the third hour of the day, and the sun\nfrom behind Mount Olivet was shining brightly down upon the city. All\nthings below were full of beauty and glory, nor would a stranger have\nknown that the stain of innocent blood was upon the place; so fair shone\nall the city rejoicing in the Sabbath sun. When I looked thereon, the\nmemory of my dream vanished, even as the mists which I saw rolling upward\nfrom the side of the mountain and vanishing into the pure air. My misery\nreturned upon me again; and I felt once more alone and without God in the\nworld. But I resolved to go up straightway to Bethany, if perchance I\nmight there find the apostles in the house of Mary and Martha. When I was\ncome thither, I found them all, save Judas; and I entered in and sat with\nthem in silence; and for a long time we neither prayed nor spake together,\nnor so much as lamented aloud; but there we sat speechless and\ncomfortless; for the hand of the Lord was heavy upon us.\n\nAt the last spake certain of the women, saying that they had brought\nspices, such as are used in the embalming of bodies, and that they\npurposed to go early on the morrow for to embalm the body of Jesus. Then I\nasked where he was buried; and they told me, \u201cin a garden of Joseph of\nArimathea, nigh unto the place of crucifixion.\u201d After that, I asked\nwhether any had stood near, and in view of the cross while he was\nsuffering; for I had been thrust away by the crowd. Then John the son of\nZebedee answered and said that he had been nigh, and that Jesus had borne\nall the anguish with a marvellous constancy. He told me also of certain\nother words which Jesus had spoken while he was on the cross, and that a\nsoldier, after his death, had wounded his side with a spear; but when I\nasked him whether he had heard Jesus speak also those words which I had\nmyself heard, namely that God had forsaken him, then John said nothing,\nbut only moved his head as if to say that it was so; and the rest also\nwere silent, for we feared to think on those words.\n\nAfter we had all thus sat silent for a while, one of the women began to\nspeak again and to say that all things had happened according to the words\nof Jesus; for he had said that he should be slain; and he had blessed\nMary, in that she had anointed his body for the burial. Then another of\nthe women began to bring to our mind how Jesus had long ago prophesied\nthat the time should come when we should desire to see one of the days of\nthe Son of man, and should not find it. And another spake how, at another\ntime, when we were in the country round about Hermon, he had prophesied\nthat he should be slain; therefore, said she, he was a true prophet. But\nThomas made mention of the saying of Hosea, whereof Jesus had oftentimes\nbeen used to speak, \u201cCome and let us return unto the Lord, for he hath\ntorn and he will heal us; he hath smitten, and he will bind us up. After\ntwo days will he revive us; in the third day he will raise us up, and we\nshall live in his sight.\u201d Then said Thomas, \u201cA part of the sayings of\nJesus hath indeed come to pass\u201d; and he added no more. But all we that\nwere in that chamber sitting together, knew what Thomas had in his mind to\nsay (for it was in our minds also), namely, that the rest of the words of\nJesus were not to be fulfilled. So again we sat silent; for indeed our\nsouls were wholly given up to meditating on those words of Jesus, \u201cafter\ntwo days he will revive us\u201d; and each knew that the others were meditating\non the same; yet durst none of us say so much as a word, nor so much as\nconfess to himself that the words could import anything now; for about\nthat matter we feared even to hope.\n\nBut by degrees our tongues were loosed, and we began to speak more freely\nconcerning the goodness of Jesus, how exceeding gentle he was at all times\nto the young and simple, and to the poor and oppressed; how full of peace\nand cheerfulness; how thoughtful for others, how forgetful of himself.\nThen we spake of his marvellous power in the forgiving of sins, and in the\nhealing of diseases, and in the casting out of unclean spirits. And one\nsaid that with all these faculties he joined a marvellous grace of modesty\nand humility, so that no child could carry himself with less of pride or\nostentation. \u201cYea,\u201d said another, \u201cand yet withal, though he were never so\nsimple and humble, he ever spake of himself, none the less, as the haven\nand refuge for men, saying such words as these unto us, \u2018Come unto me, and\nI will give you rest,\u2019 and again, \u2018Take my yoke upon you:\u2019 moreover he\nbade us take his voice as our Law in the stead of the Law of Moses,\nsaying, \u2018It was said to them of old, do this, but I say unto you, do\nthat.\u2019 Therefore are we of all men most miserable in that, having received\nfrom God the very source of light and life, now we are deprived thereof.\u201d\nThen Peter said, \u201cYea, verily we have none else to whom we can go, for\nJesus alone hath the words of eternal life; and without him we have no\nlife.\u201d But said another, \u201cIf God be good, how could it be that He should\nhave forsaken Jesus, so that he cried aloud, \u2018My God, my God, why hast\nthou forsaken me?\u2019\u201d Then Nathanael spake and said (the very thought that\nwas in my heart also) that perchance Jesus used those words, desiring\nbriefly to pour forth all the trouble and all the trust of his heart; for,\nsaid he, \u201cThese words are as it were the title of the psalm, and the psalm\nbeginneth with trouble, but it endeth with trust.\u201d To this the rest agreed\nthat it might be so; but we all felt within ourselves that this was small\ncomfort: for we needed not only to think that it might be so, but to know\nthat it was so.\n\nThen one said that the Kingdom of God and the Redemption of Sion were now\nas far off as ever. But Mary of Magdala said with great vehemency, \u201cthat\nshe mourned not for the Redemption of Sion, but because the breath of life\nwas taken out of the world, for without Jesus there was no more truth nor\nrighteousness. He trusted in God, would not God deliver him? Was he not\nthe Son of the living God? If, therefore, the Father live, how can the Son\nbe dead?\u201d She added yet other words still more passionate, as if God were\nno God unless Jesus were restored to life. We chid her, and would have\nstayed her speech: for, though she did indeed express the very feelings of\nour hearts, yet were we afraid to see them put into plain words, and\nbesides, we dreaded the pain of new hopes. For to hope that we should look\nagain on Jesus, and afterwards to fail of that hope, had been to have had\nJesus snatched from us a second time.\n\nBy this time the sun had set, and the women began to make ready the spices\nfor the embalming. But I (because it had been reported to certain of the\ndisciples that the chief priests purposed to set a guard round the tomb)\ndetermined to go down that I might see whether the tomb were beset with\nguards or no, and whether the women could have easy access to it. I easily\nfound the place in the light of the moon, and it was even as the women had\nsaid; for the garden of Joseph lay not more than three stones\u2019 cast from\nthe place where Jesus had been crucified. So I stood for a while looking\non the stone, which was at the mouth of the tomb, and no man else was in\nthe garden. But while I stood near the tomb, very nigh unto the mouth\nthereof, I heard a sound on my right hand; and when I turned round,\nbehold, a light; and the lights grew many as I looked, and I perceived\nthat there were torches approaching. So I went back some distance, and\nstill the torches came nearer; and the men were, as it seemed to me,\nservants of the chief priests, but I discerned also the face of Hezekiah\nthe Scribe; and they all stood round the tomb, and I also stood and\nwatched them from afar off, to see what they would do. But I could not\nremain; for they sent out watchers on all sides calling to one another in\na circle, like unto men keeping sentinel, for to spy whether any one were\nnear. Then I fled perforce and in haste; and though I fled straightway,\nyet could I not contrive but the watchers perceived me and chased after me\nand went near to take me. But I escaped out of their hands, and went up to\nBethany to bear word unto the women. And when the women heard these things\nthey were sore distressed. Howbeit they resolved that in any case they\nwould go forth to the tomb very early on the morrow.\n\nBut before we lay down to rest that night, we spake again of Jesus, and\nconcerning all that he had said and done; and we continued our discourse\nlate into the night, and were loth to break off; for while we discoursed\ntogether of former times, we seemed to have Jesus again in the midst of\nus. But at the end, when we were now ceasing, the Spirit of the Lord fell\nupon Mary of Magdala, and she lifted up her voice and sang as the Lord\nmoved her, and the words were even from the psalm whereof we had been but\nnow speaking, while discoursing concerning the forsaking of Jesus by God.\nNow the song describeth the suffering of the Messiah. Therefore when she\ncame in her singing to these words, \u201cThey pierced my hands and my feet; I\nmay tell all my bones; they stand staring and looking upon me. They part\nmy garments among them, and cast lots upon my vesture\u201d: then we wept,\nremembering the sufferings of Jesus. But when she sang the next words,\n\u201cBut be not thou far from me, O Lord. Thou art my succour, haste thee to\nhelp me. Deliver my soul from the sword, my darling also from the power of\nthe dog. Save me from the lion\u2019s mouth: Thou hast heard me from among the\nhorns of the unicorns. I will declare thy name unto my brethren; in the\nmidst of the congregation will I praise thee. For he hath not despised,\nnor abhorred the low estate of the poor; he hath not hid his face from\nhim; but when he called unto him he heard him\u201d: then we wept no longer,\nbut we marvelled while we looked on her, and while we hearkened to the\nwords of her singing: for she sang as one taught of God, so that we durst\nnot stay her; yet we thought in our hearts, \u201cNotwithstanding when Jesus\ncalled unto Him, He heard him not.\u201d And when we thought on this we\nbesought her that she would cease.\n\nHowbeit she ceased not, but began to sing yet another psalm, a part of the\ngreat Hallel; even the very words that Jesus himself had sung to us on the\nnight before he suffered. And the other women joined with her, and they\nsang so that the sound thereof pierced to our very souls. Then could we\nendure it no longer, but covered our faces with our hands. But they\ncontinued singing, \u201cI shall not die, but live, and declare the works of\nthe Lord. The Lord hath chastened and corrected me, but he hath not given\nme over unto death. Thou art my God, and I will thank thee; thou art my\nGod, and I will praise thee.\u201d\n\nNow while they were singing, I had closed mine eyes; and lo, there rose up\nbefore me a vision of the upper room where we had supped together with\nJesus on the night that he was betrayed: and I seemed to see the face of\nJesus himself; yea, though I was not asleep nor in a trance, yet did I see\nJesus himself sitting again as if at meat with us. Therefore was I loth to\nopen mine eyes; for I feared that, when I opened them, I should no longer\nsee what I saw. But when the women had made an end of singing, then opened\nI mine eyes, half expecting that it might prove no vision, and that Jesus\nwould be sitting before me in the midst of us. But I saw nothing; nor were\nthe women any longer with us, for they were gone forth into another\nchamber to finish their preparations for the embalming. For they desired\nto visit the sepulchre very early in the morning, and it was by this time\nthe third watch of the night. About the space of an hour, I remained in\nthe chamber with the rest: then I heard the footsteps of the women as they\npassed forth from the house. I tried to sleep, but could not; for ever in\nmy mind was present the thought of Jesus in the tomb, waiting the approach\nof the women to embalm him. So my heart went forth with the women upon\ntheir errand, and I reckoned over the time and said ever and anon, \u201cNow\nthey are come down from the mountain; by this time they are nigh to\nGolgotha; now they are in the garden; now they are at the tomb.\u201d Then I\nsaw before mine eyes the women embracing the dead limbs of our Master.\n\u201cAnd now,\u201d said I, \u201cthe stone is rolled away and they have entered in:\nthey weep, but he answereth not, neither heareth; his eyes move not nor\nmake any answer to their eyes; they clasp his hands, but his hands clasp\nnot theirs again.\u201d\n\nWhen I thought on these things I arose in sore extremity nigh unto\ndespair, and went up to the house\u2010top. Above the mountains of Moab, to the\neast, there was a faint token of dawn. I thought of the coming day, and I\nloathed it; for without Jesus the light seemed unto me as darkness.\nMoreover when I strove to pray, Satan tempted me very sorely, so that I\ncould not pray: for I said, \u201cBehold I am without Jesus: but God without\nJesus is to me as no God.\u201d Then fell I flat upon my face and wrestled with\nSatan in prayer, and I besought the Lord again and again that He would\ngive Jesus back to us, yea, though it were but to look on him for one\nmoment, that we might be assured that all was well with him. How long I\nprayed I know not, but it seemed to me many hours; and sometimes I stood\nin my praying and watched the dawn growing brighter; and even as the dawn\ngrew, my fears and doubts grew with it; but at other times I lay prostrate\nand shut out the light. So at last the sky began to brighten towards\nsunrise; and still I was crying unto the Lord from the depths, according\nas it is written, \u201cI wait for the Lord; my soul doth wait, and in his word\ndo I hope. My soul waiteth for the Lord more than they that watch for the\nmorning, more, I say, than they that watch for the morning.\u201d\n\nNow while I lay grovelling in the very deepest of the depths, beseeching\nthe Lord to destroy me if I might not have peace, behold, a sound as of\nmany feet below, without the house, and then a knocking, exceeding loud;\nand one asked from within, \u201cWho is there?\u201d And the answer came piercing\nthe air, \u201cHE IS RISEN! HE IS RISEN! JESUS IS RISEN FROM THE DEAD!\u201d Now at\nfirst I thought that the voice was the voice of an angel; but when I\nconsidered, and heard how answer was made, and the door forthwith opened,\nand a sound as of feet entering, then straightway I knew that it was the\nvoice of one of the women come back from the sepulchre. Immediately,\ntherefore, going down, I found all the household stirring, and the women\nreturned, and all the disciples gathered together, and standing round the\nwomen, questioning them, and listening to their words.\n\nThen the women told us how they had gone down to Golgotha, even to the\ntomb; and when Mary of Magdala was now nigh, even at the mouth of the tomb\n(for she walked somewhat before the rest), behold, the great stone at the\nmouth of the tomb was rolled away. Then she called aloud for despair, and\nher companions hasted to her; but when they were now come to her, as she\nwas even now adventuring to enter into the tomb, of a sudden Mary cried\nout again, saying, \u201cBehold, an angel of the Lord!\u201d And lo, there appeared\nto them (even to all the women and not to Mary only) an angel clothed in\nwhite; and they all heard a voice which said, \u201cHe is not here, but is\nrisen.\u201d And, said Mary Magdalene, the voice added that we were to return\nto Galilee, and there we should see him; but another of the women said\nthat the voice seemed to her also to speak of Galilee, but she heard not\nthose other words which Mary heard.(12) Also some of the women had seen\ntwo angels, but others only one. But as concerning this at least, all the\nwomen were agreed, namely, that they had seen a vision of angels, and that\nthey had heard a voice which cried out, \u201cHe is not here, he is risen.\u201d\n\nNow when we had spent much time in questioning and hearing the women, I\ndesired to go down forthwith to the sepulchre, for to see it with mine own\neyes: but the women stayed me, and said, \u201cIt were better to wait; for\nPeter and John are already gone down.\u201d So I waited, but in sore trouble of\nmind; for at one time I believed, but at another time I doubted. For as\nconcerning the tomb, it came into my mind that it was like enough that the\nservants of the chief priests (whom I had seen in the garden during the\nnight) might haply have broken open the tomb and stolen away the body; but\nthen on the other side there was the vision of the angels and the voice;\nand besides, it was being borne in upon my mind, and upon the minds of\nmost of us, that Jesus must indeed arise from the dead, for thus should\nboth the words of the prophets be fulfilled, and his own words also; but\notherwise they could not be fulfilled. So I waited till John and Peter\nshould return.\n\nBut while I was still waiting and marvelling that they tarried so long,\nthere came in certain of the disciples; these were not Galileans, but\nabode in Jerusalem, and they asked us whether we had seen aught that\nnight. We said \u201cNo.\u201d Then said one of them to us, \u201cLast night, in\nreturning from beholding that which came to pass at Golgotha, about two\nhours after sunset, Miriam, my sister\u2019s daughter, saw her father (who hath\nnow been buried these six weeks) risen from the grave and standing wrapped\nin the grave\u2010clothes near her bed; moreover two other women of mine\nacquaintance saw the bodies of their little children, fresh and blooming\nas if they were verily alive; and another, a certain young man named\nMattathias (but he is not known to me), is said to have seen his brother,\nwho hath been buried more than a year, standing as if alive, so that he\neven approached him and called him by name. And other wonderful sights\nhave appeared to very many.\u201d And his companions confirmed all his words,\nsaying, \u201cThe like also we ourselves have heard.\u201d\n\nWhile we marvelled at their words, the two disciples, Peter and John, came\ninto the chamber. But they had seen nothing; only the stone rolled away,\neven as the women had said, and the tomb void of the body. Then one of the\ndisciples brought again to our minds how that Jesus, even before his\ndeath, had bidden us go into Galilee, saying that he would there manifest\nhimself unto us; and when we questioned Mary of Magdala, she constantly\naffirmed that the voice of the angels was to the same effect. Therefore I\nresolved that I would set forth that very day to go to Capernaum. For a\nhope was now waxing strong within me that I should after all see Jesus\nagain. So I set out without delay, with certain other of the disciples;\nhowbeit the greater part would stay in Jerusalem yet a few days.\n\n\n\n\n\n CHAPTER XXXI\n\n\nWhen we came to Capernaum, on the evening of the third day, we spent the\nrest of that day in praying and praising God; and we fasted and besought\nthe Lord that we might see Jesus according to His promise. And so we spent\nthe next day likewise. But on the morrow, which was the fifth day of the\nweek, it being now a full week from the time when Jesus had broken bread\nwith us on the night when he was betrayed, we determined that we also\nwould break bread together, even as he had commanded us, in memory of him.\nAnd about the sixth hour of the day, when we were seated together in an\nupper room praying to the Lord, there came in Peter and James and other of\nthe disciples, but now returned from Jerusalem. And Peter related how the\nLord Jesus himself had appeared to him; and James said that he also had\nseen the Lord Jesus. Now at first I feared lest it might be the will of\nthe Lord that Jesus should reveal himself to none save the Twelve; but I\nunderstood that Mary of Magdala also had seen him.\n\nThen two other of the disciples, and they not of the number of the Twelve,\nrelated to me how Jesus had appeared to them also, at the breaking of\nbread. For they had walked forth together conversing much about Jesus of\nNazareth, and about the hopes which they had had that he should have\nredeemed Israel. \u201cAnd so it was,\u201d said one of them (for I will set down\nthe story as it was told me by one of the disciples, whose name was\nCleophas), \u201cthat we had just made mention between ourselves of the voice\nand the vision of angels; making mention thereof as of an idle tale. And\nit was the hour of prayer. And because of the extremity of our sorrow we\nboth fell on our faces, and poured out all our desire before the Lord,\nbeseeching Him for the Redemption of Israel. Then the Lord Jesus had\ncompassion on us and came to us. For when we rose up from praying, we\nheard a voice from the Lord Jesus himself, chiding us for our folly and\nslowness of heart in not believing all that the prophets had spoken; for\nthat it was needful that Christ should have suffered these things, and\nthus to enter into his glory: and lo, at an instant the whole of the truth\nof the Scriptures lay before our eyes, and all the meaning of the words of\nthe Lord Jesus withal.\n\n\u201cAs we went forward, our hearts burned within us while the Lord revealed\nunto us the Scriptures and all the meaning of his prophecies; but still\nour eyes were not opened to discern that he himself was present with us;\nyet we perceived that there was a divine presence near us. But when the\nsun was setting and we drew nigh unto the village whither we were going,\nour hearts became faint and dull, as if the presence were departing from\nus. Therefore we knelt down once more and besought the Lord that he would\ncontinue to us the strength of his presence. Notwithstanding even now our\neyes were not opened that we should discern him.\n\n\u201cBut in the evening, it being now late, when we were sat down to eat bread\ntogether, our hearts being full of the presence of Jesus, we brake the\nbread and blessed it, even as Jesus had broken and blessed, and then we\nsaid aloud, according to his word, \u2018Behold, the body of the Lord;\u2019 and lo,\nat that word the cloud was removed from our eyes, and first my companion,\nand then I also, discerned Jesus on the other side of the table, reclining\nas if at meat (even as he reclined when he last brake bread with us), and\nwith his hands stretched out as if in the breaking and blessing of bread.\nNow for a while (but I knew not how long, except that it was not very\nlong), Jesus remained with his hands still outstretched as at the first,\nlooking at us with a very loving countenance, but saying naught; and we\nsat upright as men astonied and speechless, and not able to move for\nastonishment; but when we rose up for to have embraced him, straightway\nJesus vanished out of our sight.\u201d\n\nAll we that were in the chamber rejoiced when we heard Cleophas saying\nthese things. Only Thomas believed not; for the thing seemed unto him too\nbeautiful to be verily true, and he said, \u201cIf I believe that Jesus is\nrisen from the dead, and afterwards find that it is not so, then shall my\nmisery be increased twofold: therefore will I believe not.\u201d And he added\nmoreover, \u201cExcept I shall see in his hands the print of the nails and put\nmy finger in the print of the nails and thrust my hand into his side, I\nwill not believe.\u201d We were grieved at the words of Thomas: howbeit none\nrebuked him, for we knew that he spake out of his exceeding love of Jesus.\nBut we besought him to break bread with us that evening, according to the\ncommandment of Jesus.\n\nSo about one hour after sunset, we were assembled all together in the\nupper room (it was a room in the house of Peter, wherein Jesus was wont to\nsit at meat with us in past times), and Thomas also was with us. But the\ndoor was shut and made fast for fear of spies; whom the Scribes in\nCapernaum had begun to set over us for to watch us. When all things were\nnow ready, first we sang a psalm, even the same psalm that Jesus had sung\non the same night in the week before, when we kept the Passover together.\nThen Simon Peter offered up prayers and praises to God, and made mention\nof the comfortable words of the Lord Jesus, how he had said that he would\nnever leave us nor forsake us, but that wheresoever two or three were\ngathered together in his name, there would he be present among them. Last\nof all he spake of the testament of the Lord Jesus, how he had bidden us\nbreak bread and drink wine in memory of him, that we might partake of his\nbody and his blood. Then began Simon Peter to break bread and to reach it\nto each of us, and at the same time he said, \u201cThis is the body of the\nLord.\u201d But behold, in the midst of his giving of the bread, Peter made a\nsudden pause and was silent, and his eyes were fixed, and he gazed\nsteadfastly upon the place which had been left empty at the table; for\nJesus had been wont to sit there in times past, wherefore in that place\ndurst no man sit. Then I turned round hastily to look, and behold, Jesus\nwas there; as clear to view as ever I had seen him in this life, only very\npale, and there were the nail\u2010prints in his hands, and methought there was\na wound in his side; and the brightness of his love and compassion passed\nsensibly forth from his eyes to mine, and all my soul went out to him as I\nlooked; but I could in no wise speak, nor did I desire to speak; for I had\nthoughts deeper than all words.\n\nNow not a hand moved, not a word was spoken: and there was such a silence\nas if one could hear and count the footsteps of time; neither could I turn\nmine eyes from Jesus till I heard Thomas weeping beside me; but he threw\nhimself on the ground, stretching out his hands to Jesus, and reproaching\nhimself for his faithlessness; and at the same time, pressing the bread,\neven the body of the Lord which he held in his hand, he cried out saying,\n\u201cMy hand hath touched; yea I have touched; I believe, I believe.\u201d But\nneither he nor any of us durst adventure to go to that part of the table\nwhere Jesus sat; but when I looked again, behold his hand was stretched\nout (even as the two disciples had described their vision of Jesus) as if\nhe brake and blessed the bread that was his body; and Thomas also heard a\nvoice (but I heard not the voice) saying that he was to touch with his\nhand, according to his own saying, and to be no more faithless, but\nbelieving. After this Jesus vanished from our eyes, and neither in his\ncoming nor in his departing was the door opened, but it remained shut\nfast; whereat we all marvelled.\n\nFrom henceforth old things seemed to pass away, and all things became new\nunto us. For whithersoever we went, and whatsoever we did, we knew that we\nhad the presence of Jesus with us, even when we saw him not. But\noftentimes he revealed himself to us, and we saw him plainly; and this too\nnot only in the house and sitting at meat (albeit he oftentimes, and\nmethinks most times, revealed himself to us in the house), but sometimes\nalso abroad in the fields, or even on the lake. Yea I myself was once\npresent when a storm came down upon us on the lake, and the winds sent up\nsuch waves as were like to have covered our boat, and we cried unto Jesus\nin our terror; and behold, the storm ceased, and the clouds parted\nasunder, and we saw Jesus walking on the waves and stilling them under his\nfeet. And to others of the disciples he appeared at another time, when\nthey had been toiling the night long at fishing, and had caught nothing;\nand he gave unto them a draught of fishes exceeding any that they had ever\nbefore taken.\n\nBut the most of the manifestations of Jesus were vouchsafed to us when we\nbrake bread together; after which manner also he revealed himself unto\nJames, as I have heard. For James had taken an oath that he would neither\neat nor drink until he had seen Jesus risen from the dead. Therefore on\nthe night after the vision of angels which had been seen by the women,\nJames was in the house at Bethany with Simon Peter and John, and the table\nwas spread for supper; but James would not eat. Then suddenly Jesus was\nseen sitting in the midst of them, breaking bread and blessing it, and\nbidding James to partake thereof.(13) But, as I have said, Jesus appeared\nto us at other times and in other places, and not merely in the breaking\nof bread; and sometimes in visions without a voice, but at other times in\na voice without any vision, and sometimes also, as it has been reported\nunto me, by signs and tokens (without either voice or vision), and even in\nthe guise of strangers; and all this for the space of little less than a\nyear, insomuch that, if any one should adventure to set forth all the\nmanifestations of Jesus, and the time and place and manner of each, I\nsuppose that the world itself could not contain the books that should be\nwritten. Therefore passing over these, I will relate how Jesus appeared in\nGalilee on a certain mountain to more than five hundred of the brethren at\none time.\n\nIt was on this wise. A year, or not much less, had passed away since the\nrising of Jesus from the dead; and we were still tarrying in Galilee, and\nthe Passover was at hand. Now during that year the number of the disciples\nhad been increasing, but not much; for we had not at that time been moved\nto proclaim the Resurrection of Jesus. But as the Passover drew nigh,\nJesus began to manifest himself less often to us; and he made known to us\nby the mouth of Peter and of other of the disciples that the time was at\nhand when he should ascend up to heaven. Then there arose a questioning\namong us whether we should go up to the Passover or not; for some said\nthat Jerusalem was an accursed city (because the doom of our Lord had gone\nforth upon it), and that we should not go up; but others said that we\nshould go up; for the Lord would there reveal his will to us. Then it\nseemed good that the disciples should meet together on a certain mountain\nin Galilee, whereto Jesus had often resorted aforetime; and there we were\nto consider of these matters and to ask counsel of the Lord. Now when we\nwere assembled to the number of five hundred in all, women and men\ntogether, behold, as we were all offering up prayers with one consent in\nthe name of the Lord Jesus, there was a cry, \u201cBehold him.\u201d And Jesus\nappeared unto us, of the same aspect as before, but fainter, and as it\nseemed standing at a distance from us; insomuch that some that had not\nbefore seen Jesus risen from the dead, were in doubt; and others said they\nsaw nothing. But when we prayed more earnestly, behold, Jesus came closer\nto us, so that all, or almost all, could discern him; and he waved with\nthe hand as if bidding us go southward. Afterwards the Lord spake by the\nmouth of Peter, saying that we were verily to go to Jerusalem. And so it\nwas determined.\n\nNow in the meantime, while we were waiting till the Feast of the Passover\nshould come round, our hearts began to burn within us as if something\ngreat must surely come to pass, and the time must be at hand when we\nshould go forth to preach Jesus to the world. For words may not describe\nwith how great a joy we lived during those days one with another, and what\na passion of love knit our hearts together; and it seemed a sin that so\nmuch joy and happiness should not be imparted to others besides ourselves\nonly. For at this time we, the disciples of Jesus, were as it were in\nParadise, and joy went ever with us. For if we sailed upon the lake in our\nfishing\u2010boats, Jesus was there; or if we remained in Capernaum, working in\nthe gardens, or on the quay, or about the booths, or went out into the\nfields, Jesus was there; and when we met together in the evenings to break\nbread in memory of him, or in the early dawn on the first day of the week,\nto renew the remembrance of his rising again, then verily Jesus was not\nonly there, but also often visibly there; insomuch that while we touched\nhis body with our hands, and while we drank of the blood from his side, we\nwere able at the same time to feast our eyes upon the brightness of his\ncountenance. Yet with all our joy we were not yet moved to go forth to\npreach the Good News. For it seemed sufficient for that present time that\nwe should take delight in the presence of Jesus, and suck in strength from\noften beholding him visibly present among us.\n\nHowbeit, though we were still as children clinging to the mother, and not\nyet able to walk alone, notwithstanding day by day we were learning some\nnew thing concerning the will of the Lord: and the teaching of Jesus,\nwhich had in times past been hid from us, began now to appear more clear,\nand our eyes were being opened also to understand the Law and the\nprophets; and we all now understood that it had been the will of God from\nthe first that Jesus should die upon the cross and give his life as a\nransom for many. Moreover, we began to perceive that a time might be at\nhand when the Lord Jesus would depart from us, and seem to leave us alone\nupon the earth to preach the Kingdom of God: and we no longer feared to be\nalone, for we knew now that the Lord Jesus could never really leave us.\n\nSo we came up to Jerusalem. And it came to pass on the day of the Feast of\nthe Passover, Jesus once more revealed himself visibly to us; and by the\nmouth of Peter he spake concerning that which was to come, and said that\nhe must now be lifted up from among us: howbeit his Spirit should abide\nwith us, and thence we should receive the power of forgiving sins. Some\nalso said that they saw Jesus open his lips like unto one breathing forth\nbreath upon another; as if he then breathed upon us the spirit of\nforgiveness: but this I saw not, nor anything that Jesus did, save that he\nblessed and brake bread, after his wont.\n\nNow after the Passover we waited patiently at Jerusalem for nigh forty\ndays; and all that time Jesus revealed himself not to any one of us,\nneither by sight nor by voice: and we questioned much among ourselves\nwhether we ought to delay longer, for our hearts were desirous to preach\nJesus. But when the feast of Pentecost was now at hand the word of the\nLord Jesus came to us, saying that we should go forth to Mount Olivet,\neven to Bethany. And we went forth even as the Lord led us: yet he spake\nno word more to us; and it was now the tenth hour of the day. And after\nthat we had walked for some while this way and that way upon the uplands\nof that mountain (even where our Master had walked in times past), and\nwhen we had spoken much together concerning all that he had said and done\nin these same places, behold, we came unto a hollow cleft in the mountain,\nwhither no path led, nor was any habitation of men nigh unto it. Now by\nthis time it wanted but a little of sunset: yet were we loth to go back to\nJerusalem till we should have understood what the will of the Lord might\nbe. So Peter said, \u201cSit we down here, and let us pray that the Lord may\nreveal his will unto us.\u201d\n\nSo we sat down and prayed; but we saw nothing, neither did the Lord speak\nby the voice of any of us. So we waited yet longer; but nothing came,\nvision nor voice nor sign; and by this time the sun had set.\nNotwithstanding it was not yet dark, for there was a wondrous brightness\nin the west, and behold, all the clouds and air above us were filled with\na glorious appearance as of amber, and sapphire, and gold, and flames of\nfire. Then Peter stood up and stretched out his hands unto the Lord Jesus,\nand looked up to the heaven and said, \u201cThou, O Lord, didst promise that\nwheresoever two or three were gathered together in thy name, there wouldst\nthou be in the midst of them. Therefore, O Lord, be present now, we\nentreat thee.\u201d Now before the words had well passed from his lips, he\nceased on a sudden, and his eyes were fixed, and his hand pointed to the\nsky, and John also cried out, saying, \u201cHe goeth up: lo, I see the Lord\nJesus going up to heaven.\u201d Then I looked where John pointed, and lo, I\nalso saw the Lord. But his face was no longer pale as before, nor were the\nprints of nails any more to be seen in his hands and feet, neither could I\nnow discern his features so clearly as was usual: for his whole form\nseemed robed in a vesture of glory, and a crown of light about his head,\nand he sat upon a throne of sapphire. For the space of a minute or more we\nall gazed fixed in wonder; but then the throne rose slowly upwards, and\nwith it rose likewise the angels, like unto flames of fire, round the\nsapphire throne; and so the glory grew fainter and more distant, and at\nthe last a cloud or a darkness passed over it, and received it out of our\nsight.\n\nBut when the glory had now quite departed, we remained a long while\nsteadfastly looking up to heaven, yea, even to the darkness of heaven, if\nperchance the glory might yet return to us. For we knew that we were now\nbidding farewell to the Lord Jesus for ever. But at the last Peter spake\nto us and said, \u201cBe not sad, brethren, because Jesus is gone from us: for\nI heard the word of the Lord coming unto me, even from the angels about\nthe throne of Jesus, and the message of the Lord unto us is this, \u2018Why\nstand ye gating up unto heaven? This same Jesus which is taken up from you\ninto heaven shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into\nheaven.\u2019\u201d\n\nThen we returned thanks to God, praising and magnifying Him whose mercy\nendureth for ever; and we returned to Jerusalem rejoicing and singing\nsongs of praise. But in the evening, when we sat together at meat, Simon\nPeter said that it behoved us, while we returned thanks to God for the\ngift of the Law (for it is a custom of our nation to do this on the\nevening before the morning of Pentecost), to return thanks yet more for\nthe gift of the grace of Jesus; and he also besought the Lord to give us\nhis grace even more abundantly, that the law of Jesus might be written on\nour hearts. So we sat late into that night conversing together and praying\nand singing praises unto God.\n\nOn the morrow we rose up very early and assembled ourselves together again\nto pray: and there were with us many disciples of several nations, devout\nmen; not Galileans only, but also Alexandrines, and men of Cyrene, and\nsome of Mesopotamia and Cappadocia, who all believed in Jesus. When we\nwere now all assembled together and the door had been made fast, then\nPeter stood up, and thanked the Lord for that He had given to us His Holy\nOne, Jesus of Nazareth, whom He had now taken to Himself; and he besought\nthe Lord that, as He had taken up Jesus to heaven after the manner of\nElias, so, after the same manner, He would send down some portion of His\npower upon us (even as Elias had sent down power upon his disciples) to\nthe intent that all the people might know that the Lord had sent us to\npreach His word to Israel.\n\nThen did the Lord hear us and answer us from heaven, even as He answered\nElias by fire in the former days. For behold the Spirit from above fell\nupon us, and there was a sound as of many voices, even as the roar of many\nwaters; and as the Lord touched the mouth of the prophet Esaias with fire,\neven so did He give unto us the Spirit of fire upon us, according to the\nsaying of John the son of Zachariah, so that our hearts were all a\u2010glow,\nand our faces kindling; and we prophesied as the Spirit gave us utterance,\naccording to the saying of the prophet Jeremiah, \u201cBehold I will make my\nwords in thy mouth as fire.\u201d But herein was a great marvel; for we sang no\npsalms, nor did we speak in Scriptures, nor even in any articulate words;\nbut we uttered strange sounds, whereof we felt the sense, but knew not of\nwhat language they were; for our tongues moved as the Spirit bade us. But\nbehold, certain of the disciples that had not been moved by the Spirit to\nspeak in tongues, were moved by the same Spirit to understand the meaning\nof our words; and one came up to me and said, \u201cThou speakest the language\nof Mesopotamia, even as I heard it in my childhood; and I verily\nunderstand thee, for thou speakest the very thoughts of my heart, thanking\nGod for that He hath chosen us forth to be the servants of His son and to\nproclaim His Gospel to all the world.\u201d Then came another, a man of Cyrene,\nand he said the like, namely, that I spake in his own language, which was\nnot the language of Mesopotamia, but the Punic tongue. Now while we all\nmarvelled hereat, and knew not what to think, Peter stood up and said that\nthe purpose of the Lord was that, in the times to come, all men upon the\nface of the earth should be of one language and of one family. \u201cAnd to\nthis end,\u201d said he, \u201cGod hath this day sent unto you this sign and token.\nFor this day is fulfilled among you the saying of the prophets: And it\nshall come to pass that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh. For the\ntime is at hand when all men shall know the Lord from the least to the\ngreatest. For men shall no longer be taught of priests saying, Know the\nLord; nor shall the knowledge of Him be given only to the rich and to them\nthat have leisure; but upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those\ndays will the Lord pour out His Spirit.\u201d\n\nThen did we all rejoice with an exceeding joy, and we went forth openly\ninto the temple for to magnify the Lord therein. And as I went, my heart\nleaping up and dancing within me for the fervour of my gladness, there\ncame into my mind how, about three years ago, Philo the Alexandrine had\nspoken to me of a certain _enthousiasmos_ that should fall upon the\nrighteous: but his _enthousiasmos_ was I knew not what, a passion for\n\u201cmere existence,\u201d or for \u201cthat which is\u201d; and I could not attain to\napprehend so much as the meaning of it. But now I had indeed attained to\nthe true _enthousiasmos_, which uplifteth and ennobleth and comforteth the\nsoul, and stirreth to action, and purifieth the thought, and pervadeth\nevery corner of the life of man, and includeth all things create and\nuncreate; so that my heart went out in love to all the creatures of God,\nand to all men without distinction, Gentiles as well as Jews, tax\u2010\ngatherers as well as Scribes; yea, even to the Romans did my heart now go\nforth in love.\n\nBut when we were come together to the temple, the Pharisees and the chief\npriests and all the people marvelled at our boldness. For we were as\nchanged men in their sight; because we no longer feared them as of old;\nneither, on the other hand, did we hate them, nor desire to revenge\nourselves on them for that they had slain Jesus. But we pitied them; yea,\nwe felt an exceeding compassion and love for them, as for them that\nwandered in darkness, while we sat in a great light. Therefore were we\nexceeding bold; and as for fear, we had forgotten what it meant: but we\ndesired to pour out the good news of Christ before all men. For our hearts\ncould not contain themselves for the abundance of joy and gladness and\npeace which the Lord had vouchsafed to us. So the people gathered\nthemselves together around us. But when the Holy Spirit fell upon us, some\nmen mocked, and called us drunkards; but the more part gave heed when\nPeter spake to them.\n\nSo Simon Peter spake in the ears of all the people, and said to them, even\nas he had said to us, that this out\u2010pouring was for a sign to men, because\nthe Lord was to pour out His Spirit upon the face of the earth. Moreover\nhe added that Jesus was indeed the Christ, and that the Lord had raised\nhim from the dead (whereof we were witnesses), to the intent that he\nshould come again to judge the world in power; for he should assuredly\nprevail, and cast down all his enemies beneath his feet. When the people\nheard these words, they believed in Jesus; for a power went forth from the\nmouth of Peter and from the mouths of the other disciples, so that their\nwords pierced into the very souls of such as should be saved. And we\npurified them (for we also baptized, even as John the son of Zachariah had\nbaptized his disciples) and baptized them in the brook of Kidron. Then was\nfulfilled the word of Jesus of Nazareth, which he spake unto the apostles,\nsaying that he would make them \u201cfishers of men;\u201d for on that day the net\nof the Gospel was indeed cast, and great was the draught of the fishes, so\nthat there were added unto the Lord three thousand of them that believed.\n\n\n\n\n\n CHAPTER XXXII\n\n\nHere must this history have an end. But I marvel how smoothly and easily\nthe relation seemeth to have ascended from Jesus on earth to Jesus in\nheaven, as if by some ladder of easy ascent, and as though there were not\nseven heavens between. And perchance men would marvel the more, if I had\nbeen able to set down exactly the image of Jesus as he appeared to me at\nthe first in my mother\u2019s house at Sepphoris, or when he sat with us in the\nfishing\u2010boat on the lake; so that the image of Jesus as he seemed then,\nmight be compared with the image of Jesus as he seemeth now. But I know\nthat I have not been able to do this. For my pen hath still outrun the\nstory: and in adventuring to describe Jesus as he appeared to me on earth,\nI have often failed of my intent, and have described him, not as he\nappeared to me on earth, but as he was hereafter to appear to me from\nheaven.\n\nOftentimes, musing on the difference between Jesus, as he was in deed and\nin truth, and Jesus, as we in Galilee supposed him to be, I have\nquestioned myself and said, \u201cWhence this waste of the life of the Lord\nJesus? For if it be good for us to know him, and if the knowledge of him\nbe eternal life, as we believe; then how much better had it been that we\nshould have known him while he was alive, and not to have tarried for the\nknowledge till death had taken him from us?\u201d\n\nNow, looking back, I seem to discern a reason for our ignorance, or, at\nthe least, a certain wholesome fruit springing therefrom. For methinks,\nhad we known the Lord Jesus as he was, and all his greatness and glory,\nand all that was to betide him, and his resurrection, and his ascension,\neven then when he sat with us at meat, and went in and out with us\nthroughout the villages of Galilee; I say, had we known even then that\nJesus was to be raised from the dead, and to sit at the right hand of God,\nmethinks we could not have loved him so dearly, nor have spoken with him\nso familiarly, nor have questioned him so freely, revealing unto him all\nour infirmities, and trusting him as a friend, yea, loving him as a very\nson of man, even one of ourselves.\n\nBut the Lord so ordained it that we should come to Jesus as to a great and\ngood man, becoming infected with his spirit and imbued with the love of\nhim as of a mortal being; and then, when he had caught our hearts as it\nwere by guile, so that he had made himself now needful unto us even as the\nvery breath of our lives, then began he to say unto us, \u201cWhom say ye that\nI, the Son of man, am?\u201d And lo, trying our hearts, we began to perceive\nthat this same Son of man, who had so given life to our souls, could be\nnone other than the very Son of the Living God.\n\nHence it came to pass that, when he departed from us, and when we felt a\nvoid in our hearts, and when we questioned ourselves what it was that we\nhad lost, and what it was that we most loved and trusted and revered, yea\nalso, and what it was that we most worshipped as divine; then behold,\nsearching our hearts, we found that there was nothing in heaven above nor\nin the earth beneath, nor in the waters under the earth, no, nor in the\nhost above the heavens, that could compare with Jesus of Nazareth. And so\nit was that, when we worshipped him as the Son, it seemed not unto us as\nif we were honouring him by calling him God; but (if I may speak as a\nchild) it seemed rather as though we were striving to honour God by saying\nthat God was one with Jesus. For saying this, seemed all one with saying\nthat God was Love.\n\nTherefore if any put this question unto me, \u201cWhy believest thou not that\nRomulus is God, and Liber, and Amphiaraus, and Elias, and Enoch (who all\nare said to have escaped death), and yet thou believest that Jesus of\nNazareth is God?\u201d: my answer is this, that I believe Jesus to be God,\nfirst, because God is Love, and Jesus is Love; secondly, because God is\nMight and Jesus is Might; and lastly, because, if Jesus was not indeed\ndivine, then must he needs have been a poor deluded creature, unfit and\nunable to do any great work for the children of men. For certainly, albeit\nhe was the most humble and lowly of men, yet did he ever speak of himself,\nnot as one of many redeemers, but as the redeemer of men, the refuge of\nthe wretched, the forgiver of sins, the source of life and truth.\n\n\u201cBut,\u201d say some, \u201cJesus was of a surety not Might; for he came not as a\nconqueror, but as one conquered.\u201d Now, methinks, concerning them that say\nsuch things, it was well said by Xanthias that \u201cthey are like unto the\nfoolish giant Polyphemus, who could not think that Ulysses could be\nUlysses indeed, for that he was not a giant like unto himself. In the same\nway certain persons of gross understanding\u201d (even of such an understanding\nas I myself had, before that I had been enlightened by the spirit of\nChrist) \u201csuppose that Jesus could not have been the Messiah, for that he\ndid not come into the world as they themselves would have come, nor do the\nworks which they themselves would have done, had they been Messiahs. For\nthey would have come into the world, forsooth, riding on the clouds, or\nborne on chariots of fire, or working signs in heaven or portents upon\nearth. Now this is even such a Messiah as Polyphemus would have devised\nfor himself. But it was surely a much more divine thing that the Word of\nGod should come into the world as a poor man, and the child of the poor\n(as if to shew that no estate of man is too low to be sanctified by the\nDivine Word); and that he should subdue all men unto himself, not by force\nnor portents, but by love, patience, and suffering; submitting himself\npatiently to all the laws of the world, yea even to the law of death, and\nyet triumphing over them all through the force of righteousness.\u201d\n\nThus spake Xanthias, and I assent unto his words. But furthermore, if I\nbelieved Jesus to be the Son of God when mine eyes were opened to discern\nhim after his resurrection, much more do I believe it now; because all the\nyears as they pass by, yea, and all the seventy nations of the earth, are\nas so many angels of God, which do cry aloud with a clear voice and say,\n\u201cJesus of Nazareth is our King; Jesus of Nazareth, though he be in heaven,\nis ruling on earth.\u201d For whithersoever I look throughout the Empire, I\nbehold the love of Christ beginning already to rule over the tribes of the\nearth, though as yet it be in small beginnings. In Britain, where I now\nwrite, in Gaul, in Spain, in Italy, in Greece, in all the parts of Asia\nMinor, in Carthage and Egypt, yea even unto Babylon and the parts far\nbeyond the River, the Lord Jesus now hath his worshippers.\n\nToo long were it now to recount what I beheld in Alexandria and in Rome\nconcerning the power of Christ and how the churches in those cities\nincreased and are still increasing. But thus much have I noted concerning\nthe law of Christ, that it differeth from all other laws, in that it is\nfitted for all nations and climates and times. It is as useful for the\npoor as for the rich. It loveth order and concord, and hateth disorder and\ntumult. It loveth truth, righteousness, and happiness; it hateth deceits\nand unrighteousness and misery. It doth not say unto all nations, \u201cTake\nunto yourselves the customs of the Greeks,\u201d nor yet \u201cTake unto yourselves\nthe laws of the Romans,\u201d neither doth it prescribe any pattern of\ngovernment as the best: but what saith it? It saith, \u201cLove God and thy\nneighbour; and I, even I, will give thee strength to love them.\u201d For our\nlaw is none other than the Lord Jesus himself, dwelling with us again, and\nabiding in our hearts for ever, through faith.\n\nTherefore is the law of Jesus in the end to prevail over other laws. For\nother laws are laws of fear, and they rule by constraint and hinder\ngrowth; but the law of Jesus is a law of love, and ruleth through freedom,\ncausing all good things to grow, and making the heart to leap up with joy.\nOther laws need addition of rewards and punishments; but the law of Jesus\nassigneth fit reward, and executeth needful punishment, of itself, without\nhelp of king or lawgiver. The laws of other lawgivers will pass away with\nthe passing of those needs for which the laws were made: but the law of\nlove will abide for ever, for the need thereof passeth not away. And when\nthat law shall be established, then, and not till then, shall wars cease\nfrom the earth, and all nations shall be as one: for as Moses gave Israel\na law to knit the ten tribes into one nation, even so hath the Lord Jesus\ngiven us a law to knit the seventy nations of the earth into one family of\nGod.\n\nIn this hope I rejoice, even in the midst of tribulations, for I trust\nthat Jesus of Nazareth reigneth. Therefore shall my heart not fail, albeit\nthe signs and mighty works of the Church seem now to be passing away, and\ndevils be not now cast out as of old; nor are the sick so often healed;\nand the saints speak less oft with tongues. For if the signs of\nrighteousness and mercy and truth abide in the Church, those other signs\nmay perchance be suffered to pass away. But that which sometimes troubleth\nme more, is that, as I hear in some of the churches, the saints are\novermuch given to the governing of the congregations, and the arranging of\nthe worship of the saints, and the observing of feasts and fasts, more\nthan to the waging of the war against unrighteousness. For though it be\nwell to follow after peace, yet can I not forget that the Lord Jesus\nstudied not to lead a quiet life, but spake unto us saying that he must\nneeds send a sword on earth. And who knoweth not how he stood up with the\nsword of his mouth against the Pharisees in the Temple of the Lord? The\nlike of which contests and protestations against evil we hear not so oft,\nmethinks, as in old times: howbeit, perchance even herein the Holy Spirit\nguideth us. But be this as it may, I still trust in the Lord Jesus; yea,\neven though there be (as I hear there be) divisions in certain of the\nchurches, yet trust I in him. For I perceive that the Lord\u2019s ways are not\nas our ways; but the last are made first; and the weak become strong; and\nthe foolish are exalted above the wise. Therefore, even as from the fall\nof Sion there seemeth to have come uprising to the Gentiles, even so\nperhaps out of the divisions of the churches may arise truth for all the\nworld.\n\nBut as concerning the hour of the coming of the Lord, I deny not that he\ntarrieth long, even past all expectation. But inasmuch as the Lord Jesus\nhimself said that he knew not that hour, for this cause I judge that no\nman shall know it. Only this is revealed unto me, that when the Lord shall\ncome, it shall not be after such manner as we expect and shape forth in\nour minds, but the manner thereof shall be unexpected and new: better, I\ndoubt not, than ever we hope or imagine, yet none the less, strange; yea,\nand perchance, at the first, full of disappointment. For I perceive that\nall the dealings of the Lord with men are after this fashion. He ever\nprepareth some good thing for us, exceeding all that we had expected;\nnotwithstanding, with the good, there cometh also some wholesome pain or\ntemptation that we expect not. For thus the Lord dealt with Adam in\nParadise, and thus with Israel in the Promised Land; and thus also dealt\nthe Lord Jesus with his disciples on earth. Wherefore thus also, I doubt\nnot, the Lord Jesus will deal still with his disciples now that he\nreigneth in heaven.\n\nBut why speak I in conjectures concerning these unknown matters, or why\nyearn I thus impatiently for the hour of the Lord\u2019s coming, seeing that\nthe Lord vouchsafeth to me, even on earth, his perpetual presence in mine\nheart, and the signs of his presence compass me everywhere around, so that\neven to live is joy? For verily to thee, O Lord, and to thy Kingdom, all\nthings in heaven and earth do bear witness.\n\nThe faces of all children, whom thou didst call thy little ones, give back\nthe brightness of thy countenance; the goodness of all good men testifieth\nunto thee, the supreme pattern of all good; yea even the bad and the weak\nproclaim their need of thee, O Lord our Redeemer, in whom alone is power\nto create goodness in the worst, and to make the weakest strong. To thy\nword the seed\u2010time and harvests bear witness; the flowers also do sing of\nthy trustfulness and hope. If I look unto the earth, thou hast trodden and\nsanctified it; if to the heaven, thou hast gone up into it and dost\npossess it; if I think of the terrors of the depths beneath the earth,\nbehold, thou knowest them, and hast passed through them, and overcome\nthem, and hast broken the bars thereof; that they may no more keep captive\nthem that shall follow in thy footsteps, passing through the darkness of\nthe grave. Thus hast thou, O Eternal Word (by whom in ages past the worlds\nwere created) now in these last times created the universe anew for them\nthat love thee; so that all things do serve thee and proclaim thy Good\nTidings, and the world is become unto thee as a vesture, and the elements\nare become thy servants: yea death itself thou hast subdued to be thy\nminister, and sin thou shalt subdue to be thy bond\u2010slave.\n\nWho is like unto thee, O most mighty Lord, for verily thy truth is on\nevery side. Whither shall I go from thy Spirit, or whither shall I flee\nfrom thy presence? If I climb up into heaven, thou art there. If I go down\nunto the dead, thou art there also. If I take the wings of the morning and\nremain in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there also shall thy hand\nlead me and thy right hand shall hold me. Therefore when I sleep in the\ngrave, I am in thy cradle; and when I shall arise up and awake, behold\naround me are thy everlasting arms.\n\n\n\n _THE END OF THE HISTORY_\n _OF_\n _PHILOCHRISTUS._\n\n\n\n\n\n POSTSCRIPT\n\n\n_It had been my purpose, beloved brethren, to have continued this history\nfrom the year after the Lord Jesus suffered (in which year I left Syria\nand came to Alexandria) even to this present year, the tenth year after\nthe destruction of the Holy City. Herein I was minded to have set forth\nhow great things the Lord wrought for us in the Church of Alexandria, and\nthe troubles that befell us there; even to the time of my going on the\nembassage unto Gaius C\u00e6sar along with Philo the Alexandrine. Next it was\nmy intent to have spoken of the Church of Rome, how it grew and prospered,\nand how in those days the Spirit of the Lord began to lead the saints\ntowards wisdom in the governing and administering of the Church; lastly,\nthe history would have told how I accompanied Julius Plautius the legate\nhither, even to Londinium, where now I write, where the Lord had prepared\na work for me to do in building up the Church in Britain. For in this way\nmethinks it might have been possible __for you, my brethren, more clearly\nto discern how the Lord Jesus, though he be now in heaven, still guideth\nhis Church upon earth._\n\n_Notwithstanding, because I am now stricken in years (being now fourscore\nand six years of age), and forasmuch as I know not whether I may have life\nto complete so great a work, it seemeth best (although I have in part\nalready written these matters of my later life) first to make an end of\nthis former history, especially considering the troubles now imminent in\nBritain from the barbarous people, and to defer the rest to a more\nconvenient season._\n\n\n _Farewell._\n\n\n\n\n\n\n SCHOLIA\n\n\n _SCHOLIA_\n\n\n\n\n _I_\n\n\n_These words of the Lord Jesus are not indeed found in our Gospels; but\nthey have been handed down by tradition._(_14_)_ Nor have I been able to\nfind in the history of Philochristus any sayings of the Lord Jesus, save\nsuch as have been either handed down by tradition or else recorded in our\nGospels._\n\n_Moreover, the writer (as it seemeth to me, having diligently compared\nthis history with the Gospels of the holy Evangelists Matthew and Mark and\nLuke) maketh mention of all such miracles as are found in all the three\nGospels (though the raising of Jairus\u2019 daughter and the healing of the\nwoman with the issue be but briefly mentioned): but if any miracle is\nfound in one or in two Gospels only, concerning that he is silent. And\nthis he seemeth to do not by chance, but of set purpose, as if he were\nminded to speak of those miracles only which are common to the first three\nGospels. But Anchinous the son of Alethes maketh conjecture that\nPhilochristus had in his mind a certain Original Gospel (whether it were a\nbook or tradition) of exceeding antiquity; whence also the holy\nEvangelists drew that part of their several relations which is common to\nthe first three Gospels._\n\n\n\n\n _II_\n\n\n_Here again the writer of this history addeth nothing to our knowledge:\nfor of all the words that Philo the Alexandrine uttereth to Philochristus,\nthere is scarce one that may not be found in the writings of Philo, such\nas we now possess._\n\n_The like observation also is to be made concerning that which\nPhilochristus reporteth of the sayings of the Scribes: whereof there is\nscarce one but I have found it (or the like of it) among these sayings of\nthe Teachers of Israel which have been handed down to us even to this\nday._(15)\n\n\n\n\n _III_\n\n\n_Whereas Philochristus reporteth that a certain Scribe in his days spake\nof __\u201c__eating the Messiah,__\u201d__ I find no such saying current in those\ndays. But true it is that, many years afterwards, Rabbi Hillel (but this\nis not the same as Hillel the Great, who lived in the generation before\nPhilochristus) said these words: __\u201c__There is no Messiah for Israel,\nsince they have already eaten him in the days of Hezekiah.__\u201d_(_16_)_\nMoreover the saying of Moses, how that the nobles of Israel __\u201c__saw God\nand did eat and drink,__\u201d__ is, without doubt, explained by some of the\nTeachers among the Jews to mean that the Shekinah was as meat and drink to\nthe nobles. But whether this saying was current in those days, or whether\nPhilochristus erreth here also (as elsewhere), certain it is that many of\nthe sayings of the Scribes reported by Philochristus were not made known\nnor published till very long after; and meseemeth he hath perverted the\ndoctrine of the Scribes with intent to cause the reader to have them in\nderision._\n\n_But Anchinous the son of Alethes saith that, howsoever the sayings of the\nScribes (whereof Philochristus maketh mention) have not been handed down\nto us as spoken in those times; yet the cause is, saith Anchinous, that\nfew sayings of those times have been preserved. But if they had been\npreserved, then, saith he, we should have found that Philochristus\ndescribed the teaching of the Scribes with exactness; even as the Gospels\nalso bear witness that the Scribes in those days strained at gnats but\nswallowed camels; and overmuch esteemed the tithing of mint and anise and\ncummin, and the purification of pots and platters; and counted an oath\nthat was sworn by the gold of the Temple, as being weightier than an oath\nthat was sworn by the Temple itself._\n\n\n\n\n _IV_\n\n\n_Herein it is marvellous to see with what a persistence Philochristus\ncleaveth only unto that part of the first three Gospels which is common to\nall the three; so that one might go near to suppose that Anchinous was\nright, in that he conjectured that Philochristus doth this not by chance,\nbut of set purpose; having before him, perchance, some book or tradition\nwhich contained no more than this. For whereas Philochristus saith that\nthe women heard some mention made of Galilee, but what it was, they agreed\nnot exactly among themselves: I will here set down, in order, the three\nrelations:\u2014_\n\n1 (_Saint Matthew, xxviii. 7_) \u201c_And behold __HE GOETH BEFORE YOU INTO\nGALILEE__; there shall ye see him: lo __I HAVE TOLD YOU__._\u201d\n\n2 (_Saint Mark, xvi. 7_) \u201c_HE GOETH BEFORE YOU INTO GALILEE__: there shall\nye see him, as __HE SAID__ unto you._\u201d\n\n3 (_Saint Luke, xxiv. 6_) \u201c_Remember how __HE SPAKE__ unto you __WHILE HE\nWAS YET IN GALILEE__._\u201d\n\n_But as to the Gospel of the holy Apostle John, I have not been able to\nfind out whether any part of it were known to Philochristus. Howbeit\nAnchinous saith that Philochristus, although he make no mention __of any\nof the acts, nor of the long discourses, nor set dialogues of that Gospel,\nnevertheless useth the doctrine of that Gospel as the foundation of the\nwhole of his history. Notwithstanding, saith Anchinous, Philochristus\nseemeth not to attribute this doctrine to John the son of Zebedee (who\never speaketh after a different manner, and rather as one of the Sons of\nThunder, or as the writer of the book of Revelation, than as the writer of\nthe Fourth Gospel), but to Nathanael and Quartus._\n\n\n\n\n _V_\n\n\n_Here Philochristus is unlike himself. For whereas he is wont for the most\npart to omit miracles, albeit the Gospels relate them, here on the other\nhand he inserteth one, albeit the Gospels omit it. Howbeit, true it is\nthat the holy Apostle Paul seemeth, in his first epistle to the\nCorinthians, to make mention of some manifestation of the Lord Jesus to\nthe holy Apostle James. And the same is mentioned in certain traditions._\n\n_But it is to be noted that, in the whole relation of the Resurrection of\nJesus, Philochristus departeth from his usual course. For he reporteth\nmany manifestations whereof mention is not made in all the three Gospels,\nnor even in two, but in one only; and he speaketh of others also\ninnumerable. Howbeit he maketh no mention of that manifestation wherein\nthe Lord partook of fish and honey with the Disciples._\n\n\n\n\n\n LONDON: R. CLAY, SONS, AND TAYLOR, PRINTERS.\n\n\n\n\n\n FOOTNOTES\n\n\n 1 See Note II.\n\n 2 See Note I.\n\n 3 See Note I.\n\n 4 See Note I.\n\n 5 See Note I.\n\n 6 See Note I.\n\n 7 See Note I.\n\n 8 See Note III.\n\n 9 See Note I.\n\n 10 See Note I.\n\n 11 See Note IV.\n\n 12 See Note IV.\n\n 13 See Note V.\n\n 14 _They belong to the twenty traditional sayings __\u201c__which seem to\n contain, in a more or less altered form, traces of words of our\n Lord.__\u201d_\u2014(_Westcott\u2019s Introduction to the Study of the Gospels, p.\n 453_).\n\n 15 _\u201c__Sayings of the Jewish Fathers,__\u201d__ by C. Taylor, M.A.,\n published by the Cambridge University Press._\n\n 16 _Ibid. p. 74._\n\n\n\n\n\n TRANSCRIBER\u2019S NOTE\n\n\nVariations in hyphenation (e.g. \u201cwinebibber\u201d, \u201cwine\u2010bibber\u201d, \u201ccourtyard\u201d,\n\u201ccourt\u2010yard\u201d) or spelling have not been changed.\n\nSeveral missing quote marks have been added silently.\n\nOther changes, which have been made to the text:\n\n page 36, \u201cwaived\u201d changed to \u201cwaved\u201d\n page 67, \u201csaid, I\u201d changed to \u201csaid I,\u201d\n page 80, \u201cReedemer\u201d changed to \u201cRedeemer\u201d\n page 103, \u201cNathaniel\u201d changed to \u201cNathanael\u201d\n page 205, \u201cfamilar\u201d changed to \u201cfamiliar\u201d\n page 374, comma removed after \u201cthis\u201d\n page 378, double \u201cbe\u201d removed after \u201cthy will\u201d\n page 417, period changed to comma after \u201cled\u201d","title":"Philochristus: Memoirs of a Disciple of the Lord","tradition":"scripture-revelation","translated_text":null,"word_count":130906}