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ESUS, the very thought of Thee
With sweetness fills my breast ;
But sweeter far Thy face to see,
And in Thy presence rest.
Nor voice can sing, nor heart can frame,
Nor can the memory find,
A sweeter sound than Thy blest name,
O Saviour of mankind.
O hope of every contrite heart,
O joy of all the meek,
To those who fall, how kind Thou art !
How good to those who seek !
But those who find Thee find a bliss
Nor tongue nor pen can show:
The love of Jesus, what it is,
None but His loved ones know.
THE
WONDERFUL LIFE.
BY
HESBA STRETTON,
AUTHOR OF ‘‘JESSICA’S FIRST PRAYER,†‘LOST GIP,â€
““THE KING’S SERVANTS.â€
“His NaME SHALL BE CALLED WONDERFUL.â€
Isaiah ix. 6.
TENTH THOUSAND.
HENRY S. KING & Co.,
65 CORNHILL, AND 12 PATERNOSTER Row, LONDON.
1875.
(AM rights reserved.)
PREFACE.
Tue following slight and brief sketch is merely the story
of the life and death of our Lord. It has been written for
those who have not the leisure, or the books, needed
for threading together the fragmentary and scattered in-
cidents recorded in the Four Gospels. Of late years these
records have been searched diligently for the smallest
links, which might serve to complete the chain of those
years passed amongst us by One who called Himself
the Son of Man, and did not refuse to be called the Son
of God. This little book is intended only to present
the result of these close investigations, made by many
learned men, in a plain continuous narrative, suitable for
unlearned readers. There is nothing new in it. It would
be difficult to write anything new of that Life, which has
been studied and sifted for nearly nineteen hundred years,
vi Preface.
The great mystery that surrounds Christ is left un-
touched. Neither love nor thought of ours can reach
the heart of it, whilst still we see Him as through a glass
darkly. When we behold Him as He is, face to face,
then, and only then, shall we know fully what He was,
and what He did for us. Whilst we strain our eyes to
catch the mysterious vision, but dimly visible, we are in
danger of becoming blind to that human, simple, homely
life, spent amongst us as the pattern of our days. “If
any man think that he knoweth anything, he knoweth
nothing yet as he ought to know. But if any man love
- God, the same is known of Him.†Happy they who are
content with being known of God.
Christmas, 1874.
CONTENTS.
oo
Boox IL—THE CARPENTER.
CHAP,
e PAGE
I. THe Hoty LAND avs 7 tee 3
II. JERUSALEM AND BETHLEHEM é aa 8
Ill. In THE TEMPLE _ tee a we =—« 10
IV. THe Wis—E MEN ... a sea oe 21
V. NAZARETH . . + 27
VI. THE First PAssovER or te 33
Book II.—THE PROPHET.
I. JouHN THE BAPTIST - 43
II. CANA OF GALILEE ase 48
III. THe First SUMMER... woe wwe = 54
IV. SAMARIA ... tes ons bie aes 61
V. THE First SABBATH-MIRACLE eas one ow. 68
VI. His OLp Home .., oo 73
VII. CAPERNAUM ...
Vill Contents.
CHAP. PAGE
VIII. Fors FROM JERUSALEM .. tee ee 88
IX. Ar NAIN Ls a oe Sa 96
X. MicutTy Works ... ete tee - 100
XI. A Ho.Lipay IN GALILEE a os we 108
XII In THE NortH ive ae 116
XIII. AT HoME ONCE MORE te fee we 124
XIV. THE Last AUTUMN oes ves 133
XV. Lazarus tee tea ae nee we 145
XVI. Tue Last SABBATH wis aa we «152
Boox IIL—VICTIM AND VICTOR.
J, Tue Son or DAvIp eas bee eee TOI
II. Tue TRAITOR ... bee nee we 172
Ill. Tue PAscHAL SuPPER : ie oe «TIT
IV. GETHSEMANE eae re wee 180
V. Tue HicH PRIEsT’s PALACE ... sae ww. 192
VI. PILATE’s JUDGMENT HALL toe Sas 198
VII. CALVARY ae a ae +. 200
VIII. IN THE GRAVE .., aes eae ae 212
IX. THE SEPULCHRE 28 Me Me wae 218
X. EMMAUS ies we ie ove 229
XI. Ir 1s THE Lorp is i oor ee 235
XII. His Frrenps ais eos ihe tee 241
XIII. His Fors
THE WONDERFUL LIFE
PALESTINE,
AND PHOENICIA
IN THE 'TIME OF CHRIST
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Edw? Weller. F.R.G.S
HENRY S. KING & C° 65, CORNHILL, LONDON.
BOOK I.
THE CARPENTER.
THE WONDERFUL LIFE.
1
CHAPTER I.
THE. HOLY LAND.
Very far away from our own country lies the land
’ where Jesus Christ was born. More than two thousand
miles stretch between us and it, and those who wish to
visit it must journey over sea and land to reach its
shores. It rests in the very heart and centre of the
Old World, with Asia, Europe, and Africa encircling it.
A little land it is, only half the length of England, and
but fifty miles broad from the Great Sea, or the Mediter-
ranean, on the west, to the river Jordan, on the east.
But its hills and valleys, its dusty roads, and green
pastures, its vineyards and oliveyards, and its village-
streets have been trodden by the feet of our Lord ; and
for us, as well as for the Jews, to whom God gave it, it is
the Holy Land.
The country lies high, and forms a table-land, on
which there are mountains of considerable height. Moses
describes it as ‘a good land, a land of brooks of water, of
4 The Wonderful Life.
fountains and depths that spring out of valleys and hills ;
a land of wheat, and: barley, and vines, and fig-trees, and
pomegranates ; a land of oil olive, and honey; a land
wherein thou shalt eat bread without scarceness. A land
which the Lord thy God careth for: the eyes of the Lord
thy God are always upon it, from the beginning of the
year, even unto the end of the year.’ The sky is cloud-
less, except in the end of autumn and in winter, and no
moisture collects but in the form of dew. In former
times vineyards and orchards climbed up the slopes of
every hill, and the plains were covered with wheat and
barley. It was densely peopled, far more so than our
own country is now, and over all the land villages and
towns were built, with farm-houses scattered between
them. Herds of sheep and goats were pastured in
the valleys, and on the barren mountains, where the
vines and olives could not grow.
There are two lakes in Palestine, one in the north-
west, the other south-west, with the river Jordan flowing
between them, through a deep valley, sixty miles long.
The southern lake is the Dead Sea, or Sea of Death.
No living creature can exist in its salt waters. The
palm-trees carried down by the floods of Jordan are cast
up again by the waves on the marshy shore, and lie
strewn about it, bare and bleached, and crusted over
with salt. Naked rocks close in the sea, with no verdure
upon them ; rarely is a bird seen to fly across it, whilst
at the southern end, where there is a mountain, and
The Holy Land. 5
pillars of rock-salt, white as snow, there always hangs a
veil of mist, like smoke ascending up for ever and ever
into the blue sky above. As the brown and rapid stream
of Jordan flows into it on the north, the waters will not
mingle, but the salt waves foam against the fresh, sweet
current of the river, as if to oppose its effort to bring
some life into its desolate and barren depths.
The northern lake is called the Sea of Galilee. Like
‘the Dead Sea, it lies in a deep basin, surrounded by
hills ; but this depth gives to it so warm and fertilizing
a Climate, that the shores are covered with a thick jungle
of shrubs, especially of the oleander, with its rose-
coloured blossoms. Grassy slopes here and there lead
up to the feet of the mountains. .The deep blue waters
are sweet, clear, and transparent, and in some places the
-waves ebb and flow over beds of flowers, which have
crept down to the very margin of the lake. Flocks of
birds build among the jungle, and water-fowl skim across
the surface of the lake in myriads, for the water teems
with fish. All the early hours of the morning the lark
sings there merrily, and throughout the livelong day
the moaning of the dove is heard. In former times,
when the shores of the lake were crowded with villages,
hundreds of boats and little ships with white sails sailed
upon it, and all sorts of fruit and corn were cultivated
on the western plain.
The Holy Land, in the time of our Lord, was divided
into three provinces, almost into three countries, as
6 The Wonderful Life.
distinct as England, Scotland, and Wales. In the south
was Judea, with the capital, Jerusalem, the Holy City,
where the Temple of the Jews was built, and where their
king dwelt. The people of Judea were more courtly
and polished, and, perhaps, more educated than the other
Jews, for they lived nearer Jerusalem, where all the
greatest and wisest men of the nation had their homes.
Up in the north lay Galilee, inhabited by stronger and
rougher men, whose work was harder and whose speech
was harsher than their southern brethren, but whose spirit
was more independent, and more ready to rebel against
tyranny. Between those two districts, occupied by Jews,
lay an unfriendly country, called Samaria, whose people
were of a mixed race, descended from a colony.of
heathen who had been settled in the country seven
hundred years before, and who had so largely inter-
married with the Jews that they had often sought to
become united with them as one nation. The Jews had
steadily resisted this union, and now a feeling of bitter
enmity existed between them, so that Galilee was shut off
from Judea by an alien country.
The great prosperity of the Jewish nation had passed
away long before our Lord was born. An unpopular king,
Herod, who did not belong to the royal house of David,
was reigning ; but he held his throne only upon sufferance
from the great emperor of Rome, whose people had then
subdued all the known world. As yet there were no
Roman tax-gatherers in the land, but Herod paid tribute
Lhe Holy Land. 7
to Augustus, and this was raised by heavy taxes upon the
people. All the country was full of murmuring, and
discontent, and dread. But a secret hope was running
deep down in every Jewish heart, helping them to bear
their present burdens. The time was well-nigh fulfilled
when, according to the prophets, a King of the House of
David, greater than David in battle, and more glorious
than Solomon in all his glory, should be born to the
nation. Far away in Galilee, in the little villages among
the hills, and the busy towns by the lake, and down in
southern Judea, in the beautiful capital, Jerusalem, and in
the sacred cities of the priests, a whisper passed from one
drooping spirit to another, ‘ Patience! the kingdom of
Messiah is at hand.’
As the land of our Lord lies many hundreds of miles
from us, so His life on this earth was passed hundreds of
years ago. ‘There are innumerable questions we long to
ask, but there is no one to answer. Four little books,
each one called a Gospel, or the good tidings of Jesus
Christ, are all we have to tell us of that most beautiful
and most wondrous life. But whenever we name the
date of the present year we are counting from the time
when He was born. In reality, He was born three or
four years earlier, and though the date is not exactly.
known, it is now most likely 1877, instead of 1874, years
since Mary laid Him, a new-born babe, in His lowly
cradle of a manger in Bethlehem.
8 Lhe Wonderful re
CHAPTER II.
JERUSALEM AND BETHLEHEM.
JERUSALEM was a city beautiful for situation, built on two
ridges of rocky ground, with a deep valley between them.
It was full of splendid palaces and towers, with aqueducts
and bridges, and massive walls, the stones of which are
still a marvel for their size. Upon the ridge of Mount
Zion stood the marble palaces of the king, his noblemen,
and the high priest ; on the opposite and lower hill rose
the Temple, built of snow-white marble, with cedar roofs,
and parapets of gold, which, glistening in the bright
sunshine and pure moonlight, could be seen from afar off
in the clear, dry atmosphere of that eastern land. From
ridge to ridge a magnificent viaduct was built, connecting
the Temple Mount with Mount Zion and its streets of
palaces,
Every Jew had a far more fervent and loyal affection
for the Temple than for the palace of the king. It was,
in fact, the palace of their true King, Jehovah. Three
times a year their law ordained a solemn feast to be held
Ferusalem and Bethlehem. » BOF
there, grander than the festivities of any earthly king.
Troops of Jews came up to them ftom all parts of the
country, even from northern Galilee, which was three or
four days’ journey distant, and from foreign lands, where
emigrants had settled. It was a joyous crowd, and they
were joyous times. Friends who had been long parted
met once more together, and went up in glad companies
to the house of their God. It has been reckoned that at
the great feast, that of the Passover, nearly three millions
of Jews thronged the streets and suburbs of the Holy
City, most of whom had offerings and sacrifices to present
in the Temple; for nowhere else under the blue sky
could any sacrifice be offered to the true God.
’ Even a beloved king held no place in the heart of
the Jews beside their Temple. But Herod, who was
then. reigning, was hateful to the people, though he had
rebuilt the Temple for them with extraordinary splen-
dour. He was cruel, revengeful, and cowardly, terribly
jealous, and suspicious of all about him, so far as to have
put to death his own wife and three of his sons. The
crowds who came to the feasts carried the story of his
tyranny to the remotest corners of his kingdom. He
even offended his patron, the emperor of Rome; and
the emperor had written to him a very sharp letter,
saying that he had hitherto treated him as a friend, but
now he should deal with him as an enemy. Augustus
ordered that a tax should be levied on the Jews, as
in other conquered countries, and required from Herod
10 The Wonderful Life.
a return of all his subjects who would be liable to the
tax, .
This command of the Roman emperor threw the
whole nation into disturbance. The return was allowed
to be made by Herod, not by the Romans themselves,
and he proceeded to do it in the usual Jewish fashion.
The registers of the Jews were carefully kept in the cities
of their families, but the people were scattered throughout
the country. It was therefore necessary to order every
man to go to the city of his own family, there to answer
to the register of his name and age, and to give in an
account of the property he possessed. Besides this, he
was required to take an oath to Cesar and the king ;
a bitter trial to the Jews, who boasted, years afterwards,
under a Roman governor, ‘ We are a free people, and were
never in bondage to any man.’ There must have been
so much natural discontent felt at this requirement that it
is not likely the winter season would be chosen for carry-
ing it out. The best, because the least busy time of the
year, would be after the olives and grapes were gathered,
and before the season for sowing the corn came, which
was in November. The Feast of Tabernacles was held
at the close of the vintage, and fell about the end of
September or beginning of October. It was the most
joyous of all the feasts, and as the great national Day of
Atonement immediately preceded it, it was probably very
largely attended by the nation; and perhaps the gladness
of the season might in some measure tend to counteract
the discontent of the people.
Ferusalem and Bethlehem. II
But whether at the Feast of Tabernacles, or later in
the year, the whole Jewish nation was astir, marching to
and fro to the cities of their families. At this very time
a singular event befell a company of shepherds, who
were watching their flocks by night in the open plain
stretching some miles eastward from Bethlehem, a small
village about six miles from Jerusalem. Bethlehem was
the city of the house of David, Ynd all the descendants
of that beloved king were assembled to answer to their
names on the register, and to be enrolled as Roman
subjects. The shepherds had not yet brought in their
flocks for the winter, and they were watching them with
more than usual care, it may be, because of the unsettled
state of the country, and the gathering together of so
many strangers, not for a religious, but for a political
purpose, which would include the lowest classes of the
people, as well as the law-loving and law-abiding Jews.
No doubt this threatened taxing and compulsory oath
of subjection had intensified the desire of the nation for
the coming of the Messiah. Every man desires to be
delivered from degradation and taxes, if he cares nothing
about being saved from his sins. It was not safe to
speak openly of the expected Messiah: but out on the
wide plains, with the darkness shutting them in, the
shepherds could while away the long, chilly hours with
talking of the events of the passing times, and of that
promised king whom, so their teachers said in secret,
was soon, very soon to appear to crush their enemies.
12 The Wonderful Life.
But as the night wore on, when some of them were
growing drowsy, and the talk had fallen into a few slow
sentences spoken from time to time, a light, above the
brightness of the sun, which had sunk below the horizon
hours ago, shone all about them with a strange splendour.
As soon as their dazzled eyes could bear the light, they
saw within it a form as of an angel. Sore afraid they
were as they caught sight of each other’s faces in this
terrible, unknown glory. But quickly the angel spoke to
them, lest their terror should grow too great for them
to hear aright.
‘Fear not,’ he said, ‘for, behold, I bring you good
tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For
unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour,
which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto
you: Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes,
lying in a manger.’
Suddenly, as the angel ended his message, the shep-
herds saw, standing with him in the glorious light, a great
multitude of the blessed hosts that people heaven, who
were singing a new song under the silent stars, which
shone dimly in the far-off sky. Once before ‘the morn-
ing stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted
for joy’ because God had created a world. Now, at
the birth of a child, in the little village close by, where
many an angry Jew had lain down to a troubled sleep,
they sang, ‘Glory to God in the highest, and on earth
peace, good will toward men.’
Ferusalem and Bethlehem. 13
The sign given to the shepherds served as a guide to
them. They were to find the new-born babe cradled in a
manger, with no softer bed than the fodder of the cattle.
Surely, the poorest mother in the humblest home in Beth-
lehem could provide better for her child. They must,
then, seek the Messiah, just proclaimed to them, among
the strangers who were sleeping in the village inn. All
day long had parties of travellers been crossing the plain,
and the shepherds would know very well that the little
inn, which was built at the eastern part of the village,
merely as a shelter for such chance passers-by, would be
quite full. It was not a large building; for Bethlehem
was too near to Jerusalem for many persons to tarry there
for the night, instead of pressing forward to the Holy
City. It was only on such an occasion as this that the
inn was likely to be over full. .
But as the shepherds drew near the eastern gate, they
probably saw the glimmering of a lamp near the inn. It
is a very old tradition that our Lord was born in a cave ;
and this is quite probable. If the inn were built near to
a cave, it would naturally be used by the travellers for
storing away their food from the heavy night dews, al-
though their mules and asses might stay out in the open air.
A light in the cave would attract the shepherds to it, and
there they found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying
in a manger. A plain working man, like themselves, his
wife, and a helpless new-born child ; how strangely this
sight must have struck them, after the glory and mystery
‘14 The Wonderful Life.
of the vision of angels they had just witnessed! How
different was Mary’s low, hushed voice as she pointed
out the child born since the sun went down, from that
chorus of glad song, when all the heavenly host sang
praises to God.
A strange story they had to tell Mary of the vision
they had just seen. She was feeling the first great glad-
ness and joy of every mother over her child born into the
world, but in Mary’s case this joy was brightened beyond
that of all other women, yet shadowed by the mystery of
being the chosen mother of the Messiah. The shep-
herds’ statement increased her gladness, and lifted her
above the natural feeling of dishonour done to her child
by the poor and lowly circumstances of his birth ; whilst
they, satisfied with the testimony of their own senses,
having seen and heard for themselves, went away, and
made known these singular and mysterious events. All
who heard these things wondered at them; but as the
shepherds were men. of no account, and Joseph and
Mary were poor strangers in the place, we may be sure
there would be few to care about such a babe, in those
days of vexation and tumult. Had the Messiah been
born in a palace, and the vision of the heavenly host
been witnessed by a company of the priests, the whole
nation would have centred their hopes and expectations
upon the child; and unless a whole series of miracles
had been worked for his preservation the Roman con-
querors would have destroyed both Him and them. No
Ferusalem and Bethlehem. 15
miracle was wrought for the infant Christ, save that
constant ministry of angels, sent forth to minister unto
Him who was the Captain of salvation, even as they are
sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of
salvation.
16 The Wonderful Life.
CHAPTER III
IN THE TEMPLE,
Josep and Mary did not remain in the cave longer than
could be helped. As soon as the unusual crowd of
strangers was gone, they found some other dwelling-
place, though not in the inn, which was intended for no
more than a shelter for passing travellers. They had
forty days to wait before Mary could go up to the Temple
to offer her sacrifice after the birth of her child, when
also Joseph would present him to the Lord, according to
the ancient law that every first-born child, which was
a son, belonged especially to God. Joseph could not
afford to live in idleness for six weeks ; and as he had
known beforehand that they must be detained in Beth-
lehem so long, he probably had carried with him his
carpenter’s tools, and now set about looking for work. It
is likely that both he and Mary thought it best to bring
up Jesus in Bethlehem, where He was born; for they
must have known the prophecy that out of Bethlehem
should come the Messiah. It was near to Jerusalem,
and from His earliest years the child would become
Ln the Temple. 17
familiar with the Temple, and its services and priests.
It was not far from the hill country, where Zacharias and
Elizabeth were living, whose son, born in their old age,
was still only an infant of six months, but whose future
mission was to be the forerunner of the Messiah. For
every reason it would seem best to return no more to
Nazareth, the obscure village in Galilee, but to settle in
Bethlehem itself.
At the end of forty days, Mary went up to Jerusalem
to offer her sacrifice, and Joseph to present the child, and
pay the ransom of five shekels for Him, without which
the priests might claim Him as a servant to do the menial
work of the Temple. They must have passed by the
tomb of Rachel, who so many centuries before had died
in giving birth to her son; and Mary, whose heart
pondered over such things, may have whispered to herself,
as she clasped her child closer to her, ‘In Rama was a
voice heard ; lamentation and weeping, and great mourn-
ing ; Rachel weeping for her children, and would not be
comforted, because they are not.’ She did not know the
full meaning of those words yet; but, amid her own
wonderful happiness, she would sigh over Rachel’s sorrow,
little thinking that the prophecy linked it with the baby
she was carrying in her arms,
At this time the Temple was being rebuilt by Hered,
in the most costly and magnificent manner, but we will
keep the description of it until twelve years later, when
Jesus came to His first passover. Mary’s offering of two
c
18 The Wonderful Life.
turtle-doves, instead of a lamb and a turtle-dove, proves
the poverty of Joseph, for only poor persons were allowed
to substitute another turtle-dove or young pigeon for a
lamb. These birds abound in the Holy Land, and were
consequently of very small value. After she had made
her offering, and before Joseph presented the child to the
Lord, an old man, dwelling in Jerusalem, came into the
Temple. It had been reveaied to him that he should
not see death before his eyes had beheld the blessed
vision of the Lord’s Christ, for whom he had waited
through many long years. Now, seeing this little child,
he took Him into his arms, and blessed God, saying,
‘Lord, now lettest Thou Thy servant depart in peace, for
mine eyes have seen Thy salvation.’ Whilst Joseph and
Mary wondered at these words, Simeon blessed them,
and speaking to Mary alone, he continued: ‘Behold,
this child is set for the fall and rising again of many in
Israel ; and for a sign which shall be spoken against ;
(yea, a sword shall pierce through thy own soul also,)
that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.’
This was the first word of sorrow that had fallen upon
Mary’s ears since the angel had appeared to her, more
than ten months before, in her lowly home in Nazareth.
Hitherto, the great mystery that set her apart from all
other women had been full of rapture only. Her song
had been one of triumphant gladness, with not a single
note of sorrow mingling with it. Her soul had magnified
the Lord, because He had regarded her low estate ; she
In the Temple. 19
was hungry, and He had filled her with good things. She
had heard through the countless ages of the future all
generations calling her blessed. A new, mysterious
tender life had been breathed through her, and she had
been overshadowed by the Highest, whose shadow is
brighter than all earthly joys and glories. Now, for forty
days she had nursed the Holy Child, and no dimness had
come across her rapture. Yet, when she brings the child
to His Father’s house, the first word of sorrow is spoken,
and the first faint thrill of a mother’s ready fears crept
coldly into her heart.
So as they walked home in the cool of the day to
Bethlehem, and passed again the tomb of Rachel, Mary
would probably be pondering over the words of Simeon,
and wondering what the sword was that would pierce her
own soul. The first prick of that sharp anguish was soon
to make itself felt.
Besides Simeon, Anna, a very aged prophetess, had
seen the child, and both spoke of Him to them that
looked for redemption or deliverance in Jerusalem.
Quietly, and in trusted circles, would this event be
spoken of; for all knew the extreme danger of calling the
attention of Herod to such a matter. They were too
familiar with the cowardice and cruelty of their king to
let any rumour reach him of the birth of the Messiah. It
does not appear, moreover, that either Simeon or Anna
knew where He was to be found. But a remarkable
circumstance, which came to pass soon after, exposed
20 The Wonderful Life.
the child of Bethlehem to the very peril they pru-
dently sought to shield Him from, and destroyed the
hopes of those who did not know that He escaped the
danger.
CHAPTER IV.
THE WISE MEN.
Amone the many travellers who visited Jerusalem
which was the most magnificent city of the East, there
came at this time a party of distinguished strangers who
had journeyed from the far East. They were soon known
to be both wise and wealthy ; men who had given up
their lives to learned and scientific studies, especially
that of astronomy. They said they had seen, in their
close and ceaseless scrutiny of the sky, a new star, which, -
for some reason not known to us, they connected with
the distant land of Judea, and called it the star of the
King of the Jews.
There was an idea spread throughout all countries at
that time, that a personage of vast wisdom and power, a
Deliverer, was about to be born among the Jews. These
wise men at once set off for the capital of Judea; for
where else could the King of the Jews be born? Pos-
sibly they may have expected to find all the city astir
with rejoicings ; but they could not even get an answer
to their question, ‘Where is He?’ Those who had heard
22 The Wonderful Life.
of Him had kept the secret faithfully. But before long
Herod was told of these extraordinary strangers, and
their search for a new-born King, who was no child of his,
He was an old man, nearly seventy, and in a wretched
state, both of body and mind; tormented by his con-
science, yet not guided by it, and ready for any measure
of cunning and cruelty. All Jerusalem was troubled with
him, for not the shrewdest man in Jerusalem could guess
what Herod would do, in any moment of rage.
Herod immediately sent for all the chief priests and
scribes, who came together in much fear and .consterna-
tion, and demanded of them where the Messiah should
be born. They did not attempt to hesitate, or conceal
the birth-place. If any of them had heard of the child of
Bethlehem, and Simeon’s and Anna’s statement concerning
Him, their dread of Herod was too powerful for them to
risk their own lives in an attempt to shield Him. ‘In
Bethlehem,’ they answered promptly. Right glad would
they be when Herod, satisfied with this information,
dismissed them, and they went their way safe and sound
to their houses. Thus at the outset the chief priests and
scribes proved themselves unwilling to suffer anything for
the Messiah, whose office it was to bring to them glory
and dominion.
Privately, but courteously, Herod then sent for the wise
men, and inquired of them diligently how long it was
since the star appeared ; and bade them seek the child in
Bethlehem, and when they had found Him to bring him,
The Wise Men. a3
word, that he might go and do homage to Him also.
There was nothing in the king’s manner or words to
arouse their suspicions of his real purpose, and no doubt
they set out for Bethlehem with the intention of returning
to Jerusalem.
Still it appeared likely that there would be some diffi-
culty in discovering the child, of whom they knew nothing
certainly, except that they were to search, and to search
diligently, for Him in Bethlehem... They rejoiced with
exceeding great joy, therefore, when, as they left the walls
of Jerusalem behind them in the evening dusk, they saw
the star again hanging in the southern sky, and going
before them on their way. No need now for guides, no
need to wander up and down the streets, asking for the
new-born King. The star, or meteor, stood over the
humble house where the young child was, and, entering
in, they saw Him, with Mary, His mother, and fell down,
doing Him homage as the King whose star was even now
shining above the lowly roof that sheltered Him. There
was no palace, no train of servants, no guard, save the
poor carpenter, whose day’s work was done, and who was
watching over the young child ; but they could not be mis-
taken. ‘The future glorious King of the Jews was here.
They had not come from their distant country to seek
a king empty-handed. Royal presents they had prepared
and brought with them; and now they opened their
treasures, and offered costly gifts to Him, gold, and
frankincense, and myrrh, such as they would have
24 The Wonderful Life.
presented, had they found the child in Herod’s own
palace in Jerusalem. Then, taking their leave, they
were about to return to Herod, when a warning dream
which they could not mistake or misinterpret, directed
them to depart into their country another way.
The hour was at hand when the costly gifts of the
wise men would be necessary for the preservation of
the poor little family, not yet settled and at home in
its new quarters. Even as a babe the Son of Man had
not where to lay His head; and no spot on earth was a
resting-place for Him. After the wise men were gone,
the angel of the Lord came to Joseph in a dream, saying,
‘Arise, take the young child and his mother, and flee
into Egypt, and be thou there until I bring thee word :
for Herod will seek the young child to destroy Him.’
Mary’s chilly fears then were being realized, and she
felt the first prick of the sword that should pierce her
soul. The visit of the wise men from the far East had
been another hour of exultation and another testimony to
the claims of her son. Possibly they may have told her
that the king himself wished to come down from Jerusa-
lem, and worship Him; and dreams of splendour, of
kingly and priestly protection for the infant Messiah,
might well fill her mind. But now she learned that
Herod was seeking the child’s life, to destroy Him. They
could not escape too quickly; there was no time to be
lost. ‘The angel’s words were urgent, ‘ Arise, at once.’
_It was night ; a winter’s night, but there must be no
The Wise Men. 25
delay. At daybreak the villagers would be astir, and
they could not get away unseen. _ Before the grey streak
of light was dawning in the east, they ought to be some
miles on the road. Mary must carry the child, shielding
Him as best she could from the chilly dampness of the
night ; and Joseph must load himself with the wise men’s
gifts. Little had she thought, when those rich foreigners
were falling down before her child in homage, that only a
night or two later she would be stealing with Him through
the dark and silent streets, as if she was a criminal, not
the happy mother of the glorious Messiah, And they
were to flee out of the Holy Land itself, into Egypt, the
old land of bondage !
Unseen, unnoticed, the flight from Bethlehem was
made. They were but strangers there ; and very few, if
any, of the inhabitants would miss the strangers from
Nazareth, who had settled among them so lately, and
who had now gone away again with as little observation
as they came.
Herod very soon came to the conclusion that the
wise men, for some reason or other unknown to him, did
not intend to obey his orders. They could very well
have made the journey to Bethlehem in a day, and when
he found that they did not return to him, he was exceed-
ing wroth ; for kings do not often meet with those who
disregard their invitations. He quickly made up his
mind what to do. If the wise men had brought him
word where the child was, he would have been content to
26 The Wonderful Life.
slay only Him; now he must destroy all the infants
under two years of age, to make sure of crushing that life,
which threatened his crown. There was ample margin in
the two years for any mistake on his own part, or that of
the wise men. The child must perish if he put to death
all the little ones of the unhappy village.
We wonder if the news reached Mary in her place of
refuge and safety in Egypt. Whilst she went about the
streets of Bethlehem she must have seen many of those
little children in their mothers’ arms: their laughter and
their cries had rung in her ears; and with her newly-
opened mother’s eyes, she had compared them with her
own blessed child, and loved them dearly for His sake.
Now she would know the dire meaning of these words,
‘In Rama was there a voice heard, lamentation, and
weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her
children, and would not be comforted, because they are
not.†A mystery of grief began to mingle itself with the
mystery of her Son’s life. In her heart, which was for ever
pondering over the strange events that had already be-
fallen Him and herself, there must always have been a
very sad memory of the children who had perished on
His account ; and it may be that one of the first stories
her lips uttered to the little Son at her knee was the story
- of their winter’s flight into Egypt, and the slaying of all
the children under two years of dge who lived in Beth-
lehem, the place where He was born,
CHAPTER V.
NAZARETH.
Herop died a shocking death, after terrible suffering
both of mind and body. Once even, in his extreme misery,
he attempted to put an end to himself, but was prevented
by his attendants. A few days only before he died he
put to death his son Antipater, and appointed his son
Archelaus to succeed him as king in Judea; but he
separated Galilee from the kingdom, and left it to another
son, Herod Antipas. He was in his seventieth year
when he died, after reigning thirty-seven years; one of
the most wicked and most wretched of kings.
It was now safe for Joseph and Mary to bring the
child back to their native land. They seem to have had
the idea of settling in Judea again, instead of taking
Jesus to.the despised province of Galilee ; but when they
reached Judea they heard that Archelaus reigned in the
room of his father Herod, and that during the Passover
week he had ordered his guards to march into the
Temple amid the throng of worshippers, where they had
massacred three thousand of the Jews. Such news
naturally filled them with terror, and they might have
28 | The Wonderful Life.
sought safety again in Egypt; but Joseph was warned in
a dream to go on into the land of Galilee. He was left
to choose the exact place where he would settle down,
and he returned to Nazareth, his and Mary’s early home,
where their kinsfolk lived. There was every reason why
they should go back to Nazareth, since Jesus could not
be brought up in his own city, the mournful little village of
Bethlehem, where no child of his own age was now alive.
Here, in Nazareth, they were at home again; and
long years of the most quiet blessedness lay before the
mother of Jesus, though the trifling daily cares of life may
have fretted it a little from too perfect a bliss for this
world. ‘The little child who played about her feet, who
prattled beside her as she went down to the fountain for
water, who listened with uplifted eyes to every word she
spoke, never gave her a moment’s pain, or made her heart
ache by one careless or unkind word. Never once had
the mother’s voice to change its tone of tenderness into
one of anger. Never had a frown to come across her
loving and peaceful face when it was turned towards
Him. As He grew in wisdom and favour with God and
man, she could rest upon that wisdom and grace, never
to be disappointed, never to be thrown back upon herself.
The most blessed years ever lived by woman were those
of Mary, in the humble home in Nazareth.
It lay in the heart of the mountains, at the end of a
little valley hardly a mile long, and not more than half a
mile broad, with the barren slopes of hills shutting it in
Nazareth, 29
on every side. The valley was as green and fertile as a
garden ; and the village clung to the side of one of the
mountains, half nestling at its foot. From the brow of
the hills rising behind the village a splendid landscape
was to be seen, westward to the glistening waters of the
Mediterranean, with Mount Carmel stretching into them ;
northward as far as the snowy peaks of Hermon; and
southward over the great plain of Jezreel, rich in corn-
fields; all the country being dotted over with villages
and towns. The landscape is there still, and the deep
blue sky hanging over all, and the clear atmosphere
through which distant objects seem near, and the sighing
of the wind across the plains, and the hum of insects,
and the songs of birds ; all is as it was when Jesus Christ
climbed the mountains, as He loved to do, and sat on
the summit, with a heart and spirit in full harmony with
the loveliness around Him, and with no secret sadness
of the conscience to make Him feel that He was not
worthy to be there.
It was no lonely life that Jesus led. We read again
and again of His brethren and sisters; and though it is
not generally thought that these could have been Mary’s
children,* but the children of her sister, they were so
* T agree in this opinion, chiefly for the reason that when Jesus
died he committed Mary to the care of His young disciple John,
which would seem unnatural to any tender-hearted, good mother,
who had at least four other sons and two daughters living. Our
Lord would hardly throw so much discredit upon such relation-
ships.
30 The Wonderful Life.
associated with Him that all His life long they acted as
His own brethren and sisters. With them He would
go to school, and learn to read and write, for all Jews
were carefully educated in these two branches. The
books He had to study we know and possess in the Old
Testament. Very probably He would own one of them,
though they would be so costly as to be almost beyond
His means, or those of His supposed father. We should
like to know that He had the Book of Psalms, those
Psalms which Mary knew so well and had sung to Him
so often; or the prophecy of Isaiah, in which His young,
undimmed eyes, that had hardly looked upon sorrow yet,
and had never smarted with tears of penitence, would
read and read again the warning words of the Messiah’s
sufferings, ‘a man of sorrow, and acquainted with grief.’
When He was alone yonder on the breezy summit of the
mountain, did He ever sing, ‘The Lord is my Shepherd’?
And did He never whisper to Himself the awful words,
“My God, my God, why hast Thou forsaken me?’
Besides His cousins there were His neighbours all
about Him, quite commonplace people, who could not
see how innocent and beautiful His life was. They were
a passionate, rough race, notorious throughout the country,
so that it had become almost a proverb, ‘Can any good
thing come out of Nazareth ?’ Jesus dwelt amongst them
as one of them ; Joseph the carpenter’s son. He could
not yet heal the sick ; but is there no help and comfort in
tender compassion for those who suffer? The widow’s
Nazareth, at
son at Nain was not the first He had seen carried out
for burial. The man born blind was not the only one
groping about in darkness, who felt His hand, and heard
the pitying tones of His troubled voice. We may be sure
that amongst His neighbours in Nazareth Jesus saw many
a form of suffering, and His heart always echoed to a cry,
if it were but the cry of an animal in pain.
In one other way Jesus shared the common lot of
boys. He had to take to a trade which was not likely to
have been His choice. Whether as the eldest son of a
large family, or the only son of a woman left a widow,
He had to learn the trade of His supposed father. ‘The
little workshop, where neighbours could always drop in
with their trifling gossip, or at work in their own houses,
where they could grumble and find fault ; this must have
been irksome to Him. The long, monotonous hours, the
insignificant labour, the ceaseless buzz of chattering about
Him; we can understand how weary and worn His
spirit must have felt as well as His body. If He could
have been a shepherd, like Moses, the great lawgiver,
and David, his only kingly ancestor, how far more fitting
that would have seemed! How His courage and tender-
ness towards His flock would have been a type of what
He would be in after life!. The solitude would have been
sweet to Him, and the changing aspects of the seasons
from year to year. In after life He often compared
Himself to a shepherd, but never once is there any
reference to His uncongenial calling in the hot workshop
32 The Wonderful Life.
of Nazareth, where the only advantage was that it did
not separate Him from His mother.
Does a blameless life win favour among any people?
There was one man in Galilee, one only in the wide
world, who never needed to go up to Jerusalem to offer
any sacrifice for sin. Neither sin-offering nor trespass-
offering had this man to bring to the altar of God. The
peace-offering He could eat in the courts of the Temple
as a type of happy communion with the unseen God,
and of a complete surrender of Himself to His will.
But, let the people scan His conduct as closely as village
neighbours can do, not one among them could say that
Jesus, the son of Joseph, had need to carry up to
Jerusalem an offering for any trespass. Did they love
Him the better for this? Did He find honour among
them? Nay, not even in His father’s house.
( 33 )
CHAPTER VI.
THE FIRST PASSOVER.
TueERE is one incident, and only one, given to us of the
early life of our Lord.
It was the custom of His parents to go up to
Jerusalem once a year, to the feast of the passover. For
the Jews living in Galilee it was a long journey ; but the
feast came at the finest time of the year for travelling,
after the rains of winter, and before the dry heat of
summer. It was a great yearly pilgrimage, in which
troops from every village and town on the road came to
swell the numbers as the pilgrims marched southward.
Past the corn-fields, where the grain was already forming
in the ear; under the mountain slopes, clothed with
silvery olive trees and the young green of the vines ;
across the babbling brooks, not yet dried by heat; through
groves of sycamores and oak trees fresh in leaf, the long
procession passed from town to town; sleeping safely in
the open air by night, and journeying by pleasant stages
in the day, until they reached Judea; and, weary with
D
34 The Wonderful Life.
the dusty road from Jericho to Jerusalem, shouted with
joy when they turned a curve of the Mount of Olives,
and saw the Holy City lying before them.
Jesus was twelve years old when, probably, He first
made this long yet joyous march up to Jerusalem. We
can fancy the eager boy ‘going on before them,’ as He
did many years later when He went up to His last
passover ; hastening forward for that first glorious view of
Jerusalem, which met His eye from Olivet, the mount
which was to be so closely associated with His after life.
There stood the Holy City, with its marble palaces
crowning the heights of Zion; and the still more mag-
nificent Temple on its own mount, bathed in the brilliant
light of the spring sunshine. The white wondrous
beauty of His Father’s house, with the trembling columns
of smoke ever rising from its altars through the clear air
to the blue heavens above, rose opposite to Him. We
know the hymn that His tremulous, joyous lips would
sing, and that would be echoed by the procession follow-
ing Him as they too caught sight of the house of God,
‘How amiable are Thy tabernacles, O Lord of hosts!
My soul longeth, yea, even fainteth, for the courts of
the Lord: my heart and my flesh cry out for the living
God!’ Thousands upon thousands of pilgrims had
chanted that psalm before Him; but never one like that
boy of twelve, when His Father’s house was first seen by
His happy eyes.
Perhaps there was no hour of perfect happiness like
The First Passover. 35
that to Jesus again. Joseph was still alive, caring for
Him and protecting Him. His mother, who could not
but recall the strange events that had accompanied His.
birth, kept Him at her side as they entered the Temple,
pointing out to Him the splendour and the sacred sym-
bols of the place. ‘The silvery music of the Temple
service; the thunder of the Amens of the vast congre-
gations ; the faint scent of incense wafted towards Him ;
all fell upon the vivid, delicate senses of youth. And
below these visible signs there was breaking upon Him
their deep, invisible, spiritual meaning ; though not yet
darkened with the shadow of that awful burden to be
laid upon Himself, when He, as the Lamb of God, was
to take away the sins of the world. This was the time,
perhaps, when ‘ He was anointed with the oil of gladness
above His fellows’ more than at any other season of
His life.
The Temple had been rebuilt by Herod in the vain
hope of winning popularity among his people. The
outer walls formed a square of a thousand feet, with
double or treble rows of aisles between ranks of marble
pillars. These colonnades surrounded the first court, that
of the Gentiles, into which foreigners might enter, though
they were forbidden to go further upon pain of death. A
flight of fifteen steps led from this court into that of the
women, a large space where the whole congregation of
worshippers assembled, but beyond which women were
not allowed to go, unless they had a sacrifice to offer.
36 The Wonderful Life.
The next court had a small space railed off, called the
Court of Israel; but the whole bore the name of the
Court of the Priests, in which stood a great altar of un-
hewn stones forty-eight feet square, upon which three
fires were kept burning continually, for the purpose of
consuming the sacrifices. Beyond these courts stood the
actual Temple, containing the Holy Place, which was
entered by none but a few priests, who were chosen by
lot daily; and the Holiest of Holies, open only to the
High Priest himself, and to him but once a year, on the
great Day of Atonement.
It was here, in the Temple, that Jesus loved to be
during His sojourn in Jerusalem ; but the feast was soon
ended, and His parents started homewards with the re-
turning band of pilgrims. Probably Jesus set off with them
from the place where they had lodged; and they, sup-
posing Him to be with some of His young companions,
with His cousins perhaps, went a day’s journey from
Jerusalem. But when the night fell, and they sought
Him among their kinsfolk and acquaintance, He was
nowhere to be found. A terrible night would that be for
both of them, but especially for Mary, whose fears for
Him had been slumbering during the quiet years at
Nazareth, but were not dead. Was it possible that any
one could have discovered their cherished secret, that this
was the child whom the wise men had come so far to
see, and for whom Herod had slain so many infants in
Bethlehem? They turned back to Jerusalem seeking
The First Passover. ae
Him in sorrow. It was the third day before they found
Him. Where He lived those three days we do not
know. Why not ‘where the sparrow hath found a house,
and the swallow a nest for herself’? It was in the
Temple that Joseph and Mary found Him; in one of
the public rooms or halls opening out of the court
of the Gentiles, where the Rabbis and those learned
in the law were wont to assemble for teaching or
argument. Jesus was in the midst of them asking ques-
tions, and answering those put to Him by the astonished
Rabbis, who had not expected much understanding from
this boy from Galilee. His parents themselves were
amazed when they saw Him there; and Mary, who
seems to have had no difficulty in approaching Him,
spoke to Him chidingly.
‘Son,’ she said, ‘why hast Thou dealt thus with us?
behold, Thy father and I have sought Thee sorrowing.’
The question fell upon Him as the first dimness upon
the glory and gladness of His sojourn in the Temple.
The poor home at Nazareth, His father Joseph, the car-
penter’s shop, the daily work, pressed back upon Him
in the place of the Temple music, the prayer, the daily
sacrifice. ‘There they stood, His supposed father, weary
with the long search, and His mother looking at Him
with sorrowful, reproaching eyes. He was ready to go
back with them, but He could not go without a pang.
“How is it that ye sought me?’ He asked, sadly ;
‘did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house ??
38 The Wonderful Life.
But He had not come to this earth to dwell in His
father’s house ; and He must leave it now, only to revisit
it from time to time. ‘He went down with them, and
came to Nazareth, and was subject unto them: but His
mother kept all these sayings in her heart.’
Eighteen more years, years of monotonous labour,
did Jesus live in Nazareth. Changes came to His home
as well as to others. Joseph died, and left His mother
altogether dependent upon Him. Galilee was still go-
verned by Herod Antipas ; but in Judea the King Arche-
laus had been dethroned, and the country was made a
province of Rome, under Roman governors, This had
happened whilst Jesus was a boy, and a rebellion had
been attempted under a leader called Judas of Galilee,
which had caused great excitement. Though it had
been put down by the Romans, there still remained a
party, secretly popular, who used every effort to free their
country from the Roman yoke. So strong had grown the
longing for the Messiah, that a number of the people
were ready to embrace the cause of any leader, who
would claim that title, and lead them against their
enemies and masters,
There was a numerous class of His fellow-countrymen
to whom Jesus must have been naturally drawn during
His youth, and to whom He may have attached Himself
for a time. This was the sect of the Pharisees, noble
and patriotic as our Puritans were, in the beginning; and
at all times living a frugal and devout life, in fair contrast
The First Passover. 39
with the Sadducees, who were wealthy, luxurious, and
indifferent. ‘The Pharisees were mostly of the middle
classes; and their ceaseless devotion to religion gave
them great authority among the common people. To
the child Jesus they must have appeared nearer to God
than any other class, There were among them two
parties: one following a Rabbi of the name of Hillel,
who was a gentle, cautious, tolerant man, averse to
making enemies, and of a most merciful and forgiving
disposition. Some say that he began to teach only thirty
years before the birth of Christ; and it is certainly
amongst his disciples that Jesus found some friends and
followers. The second party was that of Shammai, who
differed from the other in numberless ways. They were
well known for their fierceness and jealousy, for stirring
up the people against any one they hated, and for shrink-
ing from no bloedshed in furthering their religious views.
They were scrupulous about the fulfilment of the most
trivial laws which had come down to them through tradi-
tion. These had grown so numerous through the lapse
of centuries, that it was scarcely possible to live for an
hour without breaking some commandment.
Yet among the Pharisees there were many right-
minded and noble men, to whom Jesus must have been
attracted. ‘The only true Pharisee,’ said the Talmud,
that collection of traditions which they held to be of
equal authority with the Scriptures—‘the only true
Pharisee is he who does the will of his Father which is
40 Lhe Wonderful Life.
in heaven because he loves Him.’ Such Pharisees, when
He met with them, as He did meet with them, won His
love and approbation. It was the ‘Scribes and Pharisees,
hypocrites, whom He hated.
BOOK II.
THE PROPHET.
(Ag+) :
CHAPTER I.
JOHN THE BAPTIST.
Jesus was about thirty years of age when a rumour
reached Nazareth of a prophet who had appeared in
Judea. It was more than four hundred years since a
prophet had arisen; but it was well known. that Elias
must come before Messiah as His forerunner. Such a
prophet was now baptizing in Jordan; and all Judea and
Jerusalem itself were sending multitudes to be baptized
by him, Before long his name was known: it was John,
the son of Elisabeth, Mary’s cousin, whose birth had
taken place six months before that of Jesus.
We have no reason to suppose that any person living
at this time, except Mary, knew Jesus to be the Son of
God. Those-who had known it were Joseph, Zacharias,
and Elisabeth ; and all these were dead. John, to whom
we might suppose his parents would tell the mysterious
secret, says expressly that he did not know Him to be
the Messiah until it was revealed to him from heaven,
He was familiar with his cousin Jesus, and felt himself,
with all his stern, rigid life in the wilderness, to be
44 The Wonderful Life.
unworthy to stoop down and unloose the latchet of His
sandals; although he was a priest, who was known
throughout the land as a prophet, and Jesus was merely
a village carpenter, whose life had been a common life
of toil amidst His comrades. Mary, alone knew her son
to be the promised Messiah ; and though the long years
may somewhat have dulled her hopes, they flamed up
again suddenly when the news came that John the fore-
runner had begun to preach ‘The kingdom of God is at
hand,’ and that multitudes, even of the Pharisees, were
flocking to his baptism, so to enlist themselves as subjects
of the new kingdom.
But this news did not make any change in our Lord.
There was not less tenderness and pity in His heart when
He lived among His neighbours in Nazareth than when
He healed the sick who came to Him from every quarter.
Neither was there any more ambition in His spirit when
He passed from town to town, amid a throng of followers,
than when He climbed up into the loneliness of the
mountains about His village home. How could He be
touched by any earthly ambition, who knew Himself to
be not only a Son of God, but the only-begotten Son of
the Father? He had been waiting through these quiet,
homely years for the call to come, and now He was
ready to quit all, with the words in His heart, ‘Lo, I
come: in the volume of the book it is written of me, I
delight to do Thy will, O my God!’
It may well be that Mary went with Him a little way
John the Baptist. 45.
on His road towards Jordan, on that wintry morning,
when He quitted His workshop, and the familiar streets
of Nazareth, to dwell in them no more. There was no
surprise to her in what had cometo pass; but there must
have been a thrill of exultation mingled with fear. He
had been her son. all these years, but now He was to
bélong, not to her, but to the nation. What sorrow and
triumph must have been in her heart when at last He
bade her farewell, and she watched Him as long as He
was in sight, clad in the robe she had woven for Him
without seam, like the robe of a priest. Was He nota
priest and a king already to her?
It was winter, and though not cold in the valley of the
Jordan, the heavy and continuous rains must have dis-
persed the multitudes that had gone out to John, leaving
him almost in solitude once more. There could have
been no crowd of spectators when Jesus was baptized.
Yet even in January there are mild and sunny days when
He and John might have gone down into the river for the
significant rite which was to mark the beginning of His
new career. But John would not at first consent to
baptize his cousin Jesus, declaring that it would be more
fit for himself to be baptized by one whose life had been
holier and happier than his own. The rich and powerful
and pious Pharisees John had sent away with rebukes,
yet when Jesus came from Galilee, he forbade Him.
But Jesus would not take his refusal. For some months
John had been waiting for a sign promised to him from
46 The Wonderful Life.
heaven, which should point out to him the true Messiah ;
and the people of the land looked to him to show them
the Christ, whose kingdom he was proclaiming. Now, after
he had baptized his cousin in the waters of the Jordan,
already troubled with the rains from the mountains, and
they were coming up again out of the river, he saw the
pale, wintry sky above them opening, and the Spirit of
God descending, visible to his eyes in the form of a dove,
which lighted upon Jesus, whilst a voice came from |
heaven, speaking to him, and saying, ‘ This is My beloved
Son, in whom I am well pleased.’ What passed between
them further, the Messiah and His forerunner, we are not
told. Jesus did not stay with John the Baptist, for
immediately He left him, and the place where He had
been baptized, and went away into the wilderness, far
from the busy haunts of ordinary men, such as He had
dwelt among until now. His commonplace, everyday
life was ended, and had fallen from Him for ever: A
dense cloud of mystery which no one has been able to
pierce through surrounds the forty days in which He was
alone in the wilderness, suffering the first pangs of the
grief with which He was bruised and smitten for our
iniquities, being fiercely assailed of the devil, that He
might Himself suffer being tempted, and so able to suc-
cour all those who are tempted. The compassion and
fellow-feeling He had before had for sufferers He was
henceforth to feel for sinners. There was to be no gulf
between Him and the sinners He was about to call to
Fohn the Baptist. 47
repentance ; He was to be their friend, their companion,
and it was His part to know the stress and strain of
temptation which had overcome them, Sinners were to
feel, when they drew near to Him, that He knew all
about them and their sins, and needed not that any man
should tell Him. He had been in all points tempted as
they had been,
48 The Wonderful Life.
CHAPTER II.
CANA OF GALILEE,
WHEN Jesus returned to Jordan the short winter of
Palestine was over, and already an eager crowd had
gathered again about John. On the day of His return, a
deputation from the Pharisees had come from Jerusalem
to question John as to his authority for thus baptizing
the people. They were the religious rulers of the nation,
and felt themselves bound to inquire into any new
religious rite, and to ask for the credentials of any would-
be prophet. These priests who had come to see John
knew him to be a priest, and were, probably, inclined to
take his part, if they could do so in safety. They asked
him, eagerly, ‘ Art thou Christ?’ ‘ Art thou Elias?’ ¢ Art
thou that prophet ?’? And when he answered, ‘ No,’ they
ask again, ‘Who art thou? What sayest thou of thyself?’
The crowd was listening, and Jesus, standing amongst
them, was also listening for his reply. ‘I am a voice,’ he
said, ‘the voice spoken of by Isaiah the prophet, crying
in the wilderness, Prepare ye the ways of the Lord.’ The
Cana of Galilee. 49
priests were disappointed with this answer, and asked,
‘Why baptizest thou then?’ They had not given him
authority to appear as a prophet, yet here he was draw
ing great multitudes about him, and publicly reproving
the most religious sect of the nation, calling them a
generation of vipers, and bidding them bring forth fruits
worthy of repentance. From that time they began to
throw discredit upon the preaching of John the Baptist, -
and spoke despitefully against him, saying, ‘He hath a
devil.’ Nothing is easier than to fling a bad name at
those who are not of our own way of thinking.
Two days after this, John the Baptist pointed out
Jesus to two of his disciples as the Messiah whose coming
he had foretold. These two, Andrew and a young man
named John, immediately followed Jesus, and being
invited by Him to the place where He was staying, they
remained the rest of the day with Him; probably took
their first meal with Him, their hearts burning within
them as He opened the Scriptures to their understanding.
The next morning Andrew met with his brother Simon,
and said, ‘ We have found the Messiah,’ and brought him
to Jesus. The day following, Jesus was about to start
home again to Galilee, and seeing Philip, who already
knew Him, He said to him, ‘Follow Me!’ Simon and
Andrew, who were Philip’s townsmen, were at that time
with Jesus; Philip was ready to obcy, but he first found
Nathanael, and said to him, ‘Jesus of Nazareth, the
son of Joseph, is He of whom Moses and the prophets
: E
50 Lhe Wonderful Life.
did write !? ‘Can any good thing come out of Nazareth?’
cried Nathanael, doubtingly ; but he went to Jesus and
was so satisfied by the few words He spoke to him, that
he exclaimed, ‘Rabbi, Thou art the Son of God; Thou
art the King of Israel !’
With these five followers Jesus turned His steps home-
wards, after an absence of nearly two months. All of
them lived in Galilee; and Simon Peter and Andrew,
who had a house in Capernaum, at the head of the Lake
of Galilee, appear to have turned off and left the little
company, at the point where their nearest way home
crossed the route taken by the others. Jesus went on
with the other three: Philip, whom He had distinctly
called to follow Him ; Nathanael, whose home in Cana of
Galilee lay directly north of Nazareth; and John, who was
hardly more than a youth, and as yet free from the ties
and duties of manhood. A pleasant march must that
have been along the valleys lying south of Mount Tabor,
with the spring sun shining overhead, and all the green
sward bedecked with flowers, and the birds singing in
the cool, fragrant air of morning and evening.
But they did not find Mary at Nazareth. She was
gone with the cousins of Jesus to a marriage at Cana in
Galilee, the town of Nathanael, where he had a home, to
which he gladly urged his new-found Rabbi to go. He
could not have foreseen this pleasure ; but now, as they
went on northward to Cana, the Messiah was his guest,
and, with Philip and John, was to enter into his house.
Cana of Galilee. 51
But no sooner was it known that they were come into the
village than Jesus was called with His friends, one of
whom was an old neighbour of the bridegroom, to join
the marriage feast.
There was very much that Mary longed to hear from
her son after this long absence; but the circumstances
could not have been favourable for it. In His beloved
face, worn and pale with His forty days of temptation
and fasting in the wilderness, her eyes saw a change
which told plainly that His new life had begun in suffer-
ing. He looked as if He had passed through a trial which
set Him apart. Perhaps He found time to tell her of
His hunger in the desert, and the temptation which came
to Him to use His miraculous powers in order to turn
stones into bread for Himself. It seems that, in some
way or other, she knew that, like Elijah and Elisha, the
great prophets of olden times, He could, and would,
work miracles as a sign to the people that He came
from God; and she felt all a mother’s eagerness that He
should at once manifest His glory.
So when there was no more wine she turned to Him,
hoping for some open proof to the friends about her that
He possessed this wonder-working power. Besides, she
had been accustomed to turn to him in every trouble, in
any trifling, household difficulty; casting all her cares
upon Him, because she knew He cared for her. So she
said to Him, quietly, yet significantly, ‘They have no
wine.’ Some of Elisha’s miracles had been even more
52 The Wonderful Life.
homely ; he had made the poisoned pottage fit for food,
and had fed a company of people with but a scanty
supply of barley-cakes. Why should not Jesus gladden
the feast and save His friends from shame, by making
the wine last out to the end?
A few days before our Lord had been in the desert,
amid the wild beasts, with the devil tempting Him. Now
He, who was to be in all things one with us, was
sitting at a marriage feast among His friends; His
mother and kinsfolk there, with His new followers ;
every face about Him glad and happy. It was not
the first marriage He had been at, for His sisters, no
doubt, were married, and living at Nazareth; and He
knew what the mortification would be if the social mirth
came too suddenly to an end. He cared for these little
pleasures and little innocent enjoyments, and would
not have them spoiled. The miracle He refused to
work to satisfy His own severe hunger He wrought for
the innocent pleasure of the friends who were rejoicing
around Him. There were six water-pots of stone standing
by for the use of the guests in washing their hands before
sitting down to the table, and He bade the servants first
to fill them up again with water to the brim, and then to
draw out, and bear to the ruler of the feast. Upon.
tasting it he cried out to the bridegroom, ‘ Every man
at the beginning doth set forth good wine; but thou
hast kept the good wine until now.’
So Christ changes water into wine, tears into gladness,
Cana of Galilee. 5S
the waves and floods of sorrow into a crystal sea, whereon
the harpers stand, having the Harps of God. But He can
work this miracle only for His friends; none but those
who loved Him drank of that wine. It was no grand
miracle of giving sight to eyes born blind, or raising to life
a widow’s son. Yet there is a special fitness init. He
had long known what poverty, and straitness, and house-
hold cares were, and He must show that these common
troubles were not beneath His notice; no, nor the
little secret pangs of anxiety and disappointment which
we so often hide from those about us. We are not all
called to bear extraordinary sorrows, but most of us
know what trifling cares are; and it was one of these
small, household difficulties the Son of Man met by
His first miracle.
After this, Jesus, with His mother, and brethren, and
disciples, went down to Capernaum for a few days, until
it was time to go on their yearly pilgrimage to Jerusalem,
to the feast of the passover, which was near at hand,
Peter and Andrew were living there, and might join
them in their journey to Judea; though they do not
seem to have stayed with our Lord, but probably re-
turned after the passover to their own home until He
considered it a fit time to call them to leave all and
follow Him,
54 The Wonderful Life.
CHAPTER III.
THE FIRST SUMMER.
For the first time Jesus went up to Jerusalem with His
little band of followers, who knew Him to be the
Messiah ; and His cousins, who did not yet believe in
Him, but were apparently willing to do so if He would
‘act as they expected the Messiah to act. If He
would repeat His miracle on a large scale, and so con-
vince the mass of the people, they were ready enough
to proclaim Him as the Messiah.
Would not John the Baptist be there too? Heasa
priest, and as a prophet, would no doubt be looked for,
as Jesus afterwards was, at the feast of the passover. He
must have had a strong impetuous yearning to see Him,
who had been pointed out to him as the Lamb of God
that should take away the sin of the world. Maybe He
ate the Paschal Supper with Jesus and His disciples. We
fancy we see him, the well-known hermit-prophet from
the wilderness, in his robe of camel’s hair, with its
leathern girdle, and his long, shaggy hair, and weather-
The First Summer. 55
beaten face, following closely the steps of Jesus, through
the streets, and about the courts of the Temple, listening
to His words with thirsty ears, and calling himself ‘The
friend of the bridegroom, which standeth and heareth
Him, rejoicing greatly because of the bridegroom’s voice.’
It was the last passover John the Baptist would ever
celebrate ; though that he could not know.
Upon going up into the Temple, Jesus found the
court of the Gentiles thronged with sheep, and oxen, and
doves, animals needed for the sacrifices, but disturbing
the congregation, which assembled in the court of the
women, by their incessant lowing and cooing. Money-
changers were sitting there also; for Roman coins were
now in common use instead of the Jewish money, which
alone was lawful for payment in the Temple. No doubt
there was a good deal of loud and angry debate round
the tables of the money-changers ; and a disgraceful con-
fusion and disorder. prevailed. Jesus took up a scourge
of small cords, and drove out of the Temple the noisy
oxen and sheep, bidding the sellers of the doves to carry
them away. The tables of the money-changers He
overturned ; and no one opposed Him, but conscious of
the scandal they had brought upon the Temple they
retreated before Him. ‘Make not My Father’s house
a house of merchandise, He said. To Him it was
always His ‘Father’s house;’ and before He could
manifest forth His glory, His Father must first be glori-
fied. ‘The disciples, looking upon His face, remembered
56 The Wonderful Life.
that it had been written, ‘The zeal of thine house hath
eaten me up.’
But the priests and Levites of the Temple, to whom
this traffic brought much profit, were not so easily con-
science-pricked as the merchants had been. They could
not defend the wrong practices, but they came together
to question the authority of this young stranger from
Galilee. If John the Baptist had done it, probably they
would not have ventured to speak, for all the people
counted him a prophet. But this was a new man from
Galilee! The Jews held the Galileans in scorn, as only
little better than the Samaritans. ‘What sign shewest
Thou,’ they ask, ‘seeing that Thou doest such things ?’
The things were signs themselves ; the mighty, prevailing
anger of the Lord, and the smitten consciences of the
merchants, if they had not been too blind to see them.
Jesus gave them a mysterious answer, which none could
understand. ‘Destroy this temple,’ He said, ‘and in
three days I will raise it up.†What! were they to pull
down all they most prided in, and trusted in: their
Temple, which had been forty and six years in build-
ing! They left Him, but they treasured up His words
in their memories. The disciples also remembered
them, and believed them, when the mysterious sign was
fulfilled.
But Jesus did not seek to convince the people without
signs, and signs which they could understand. He
worked certain miracles in Jerusalem during the week of
The First Summer, 57
the feast, which won a degree of faith from many. But
their faith was not strong and true enough for Him to
trust to it, and He held Himself aloof from them. What
they looked for was an earthly king, who should plot and
conspire for the throne; and the Roman soldiers, who
garrisoned the strong fortress which overlooked the
Temple, would not have borne the rumour of such a king.
There was at all times great danger of these expectations
reaching the ears of Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor,
who was not a man to shrink from needless bloodshed.
For the sake of the people themselves Jesus did not
commit Himself unto them.
_Amongst those who heard of the miracles He had
wrought was one of the Pharisees, a member of the great
religious committee among them called the Sanhedrim.
His name was Nicodemus, and he came to our Lord by
night, to inquire more particularly what He was teaching.
Jesus told him more distinctly than He had yet done
what His new message to the Jews and to the whole
world was: ‘For God so loved the world, that He gave
His only-begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him
should not perish, but have everlasting life.’ Nicodemus
went away strongly impressed with the new doctrine,
though not prepared to give up all for its sake, and not
yet called upon to do so. But from that time Jesus had a
firm friend in the very midst of the Pharisees, who used his
powerful influence to protect Him ; and the feast passed
by without any further jealous interference from the priests.
58 The Wonderful Life.
But it was not quite safe or suitable to remain in
Jerusalem ; and after the greater number of their friends
and kinsmen had returned home, Jesus, with two or
three of His disciples, sought the banks of the Jordan,
whither John the Baptist had already returned. The
harvest was beginning, for it was near the end of April,
and bands of harvesters passed to and fro from up-
lands to lowlands until all the corn was gathered in by
the end of June. Down in the valley of the Jordan the
summer is very hot ; and the wants of life are few. They
could sleep in the open air, or in some hut of branches
rudely woven together; and their food, like John the
Baptist’s, cost little or nothing. There was to be no
settled home henceforth for any one of them. The
disciples had left all to follow the Son of Man, and He
had not where to lay His head.
Crowds of eager and curious followers came to Jesus,
as the year before they had flocked to John the Baptist,
who had now moved some miles farther up the river, and
was still preaching ‘The kingdom of God is at hand.’
But John did no miracle, and the crowds that followed
Jesus were greater than those who followed him. In the
eyes of the Pharisees it must have seemed that the two
prophets were in rivalry; and many a jest and a sneer
would be heard in the Temple courts and in the streets of
Jerusalem as they talked of those ‘two fanatics’ on the
banks of the Jordan. Even John the Baptist’s disciples
fancied that a wrong was done their Rabbi by this new
The First Summer. 59
teacher, who had been with him for a while, and so
learned his manner of arousing and teaching the people.
They went to John, and said, ‘Rabbi, He that was with
thee beyond Jordan, to whom thou bearest witness,
behold, the same baptizeth, and all men come unto
Him.’
Now was John’s opportunity to manifest a wonderful
humility and devotion. ‘Iam of the earth, earthy, and
speak of the earth,’ he said; ‘He that cometh from
heaven is above all. The Father loveth the Son, and
hath given all things into His hands. I am but the
friend of the bridegroom; I stand and hear Him, and
rejoice greatly because of His voice. This my joy there-
fore is fulfilled.’
Did he hear that voice often, and rejoice in it?
There were not many miles separating them, and both of
them were hardy, and used to long marches. It may
well be that during those summer months they met often
on the banks of the river—the happiest season of John’s
life. For he had been a lonely, unloved man, living a
wild life in the wilderness, strange to social and homelike
ways ; his father and mother long since dead, with neither
brother nor sister, he would find in Jesus all the missing
relationships, and pour out to Him the richest treasures
of a heart that no loving trust had opened until now.
So the summer passed away, and the autumn with its
vintage; then the rainy months drew near. Bands of
harvestmen and bands of pilgrims had gone by, tarrying
6o Lhe Wonderful Life.
for a few hours to learn truths they had never heard
before, even in the Temple. Many of them were baptized
by the disciples, though Jesus baptized not. The new
prophet had become more popular than the old prophet,
and John’s words were fulfilled, ‘He must increase, but
I must decrease.’
( 61 )
CHAPTER IV.
SAMARIA,
THERE were several reasons why our Lord should leave
the banks of the Jordan, besides that of the rainy season
coming on. The Pharisees were beginning to take more
special notice of Him, having heard that He had made
more. disciples even than John, whom they barely
tolerated. Moreover, this friend and forerunner of His
had been seized by Herod, the tetrarch of Galilee, and
cast into a dreary prison on the east of the Dead Sea.
This violent measure was likely to excite a disturbance
among the people ; and Jesus, whose aim was in no way
to come into collision with the government, could not
prudently remain in a neighbourhood too near the fortress
where John was imprisoned. He therefore withdrew from
the Jordan, in the month of December or January,
having been in Judea since the feast of the passover in
the spring.
One way to His old home, the place where His
relatives were still living, lay through Samaria, a country
62 The Wonderful Life.
He had probably never crossed, as the inhabitants were
uncivil and churlish towards all Jewish travellers,
especially if their faces were towards Jerusalem. But
Jesus was journeying to Galilee, and did not expect them
to be actively hostile to Him and His little band of com-
panions. It was an interesting road, and led Him
through Shechem, one of the oldest cities in the world,
lying between Mount Ebal and Mount Gerizim, in a
vale so narrow at the eastern end, that when the priests
stood on these mountains to pronounce the blessings and
the curses in the ears of all the children of Israel, there
was no difficulty for the people standing in the valley to
hear distinctly. Two miles away was a very deep well,
the waters of which were cool in the hottest summer ;
a well dug by the patriarch Jacob upon the same parcel
of a field where he built his first altar to the God of Israel.
Here too were buried the bones of Joseph, which had
been carried for forty years through the wilderness to the
land his father Jacob had given to him and to his children
specially. Shiloh also lay along the route; and Jesus,
who possessed every innocent and refined taste, must
have enjoyed passing through these ancient places, so
intimately connected with the early history of His nation.
Shechem lay about eighteen or twenty miles distant
from the fords of Jordan, near which we suppose Jesus to
have been dwelling. By the time He and His disciples
reached Jacob’s well, after this long morning’s march, it
was noon-day, and He was wearied, more wearied than
Samaria. 63
the rest, who appear always to have been stronger than
He was. They left Him sitting by the side of the well,
whilst they went on into the city to buy food for their
mid-day meal. Their Master was thirsty, but the well
was deep, and they had nothing to draw up the water.
They hastened on, therefore, eager to return with food for
Him whom they loved to minister to.
Not long after a Samaritan woman came to draw
water, and was much astonished when this Jew asked her
to give Him some to drink. She was probably less
churlish than a man would have been, though she was
barely civil, But as Jesus spoke with her she made the
discovery that He was a prophet; and immediately re-
ferred to Him the most vexing question which separated
the Jews from the Samaritans. The latter had a temple
upon Mount Gerizim, which had been rebuilt by Herod,
as the Temple at Jerusalem had been; and she asked
which is the place where men ought to worship?. Here,
or at Jerusalem? She could only expect one answer
from a Jew; an answer to excuse her anger, and send
her away from the well without satisfying His thirst. But
Jesus had now forgotten both thirst and weariness. He
knew that many a sorrowful heart had prayed to God as
truly from Mount Gerizim as from the Temple at Jeru-
salem. There is no special place, He answered, for in
every place men may worship the Father; the true wor-
shippers worship Him in spirit and in truth, for God is a
Spirit. This was no such answer as the woman looked
64 The Wonderful Life.
for; and her next words were spoken in a different
temper. ‘ We are looking for the Messiah, as well as the
Jews,’ she said, ‘and when He is come, He will tell us
all things that we do not yet know.’ Jesus had already
told her the circumstances of her own life, and she was
looking at Him wistfully, with this thought of the Messiah
in her mind, when He said to her more plainly, more :
distinctly, perhaps, than He had ever done before to any
one, ‘I that speak to thee am He.’
By this time the disciples had come back, and were
much astonished to find Him talking to the woman. If
they heard these last words they would marvel still more,
for Jesus generally left men to discover His claims to the
Messiahship. The wrong impression prevailing among
the Jews concerning the Messiah was not shared by the
Samaritans. ‘The latter kept closely to the plain and
simple law of Moses, without receiving the traditions
which the Pharisees held of equal importance with the
law, and were thus more ready to understand the claims
and work of Christ. The woman therefore hurried back
to the city, leaving her water-pot, and called together the
men of the place to come out and see if this man were
not the Christ. They besought Him to stay with them
in their ancient city under the Mount of Blessing; and,
no doubt very much to the amazement of His disciples,
He consented, and abode there two days, spending the
time in teaching them His doctrine, the very inner
Samaria. 65
meaning of which He had already laid open to the
woman, ‘God is a Spirit; He is the Father, whom
every true worshipper may worship in the recesses of his
own spirit.’ Many of them believed, and said to the
woman, ‘We have heard Him ourselves, and know that
this is indeed the Christ, tke Saviour of the world.
Wonderful words, which filled the heart of Christ with
rejoicing. Not His own nation, not His own disciples,
not even His own kinsmen, had learned so much of His
mission as these Samaritans; ever afterwards He spoke
of them with tenderness, and when He would take a
type of Himself in the parable of the man fallen among
thieves, He chose not a Jew, but a despised Samaritan.
From Sychar Jesus passed through one of the long
deep valleys which lead to the plain of Esdraelon, where
He was once more in Galilee. It was winter, and the
snow was glistening on the lower mountains, as well as
upon the distant range of Lebanon. The heavy rains
had swollen the brooks into floods; and all the great
plain before Him, which in four months’ time would be
ripe for harvest, a sea of golden grain, scarcely rippled by
a gust of wind, was now lying in wintry brownness and
desolation, and swept by the storms of hail and rain. He
seems to have passed by Nazareth, staying, if He stayed
at all, for a few hours only, and to have gone on with
Nathanael to his home in Cana, where Jesus had many
friends, especially the bridegroom whose marriage-feast in
the spring He had made glad with no common gladness.
F
66 The Wonderful Life.
He had not been long in Cana before the streets of
the little village witnessed the arrival of a great nobleman
‘from Capernaum, who had heard of the fame of Jesus in
Judea, and the miracles He had wrought there. Until
now, with the exception of Nicodemus, it would seem
that none but people of His owrf class had sought Him,
or brought their:sick to be healed by Him. But this
nobleman had a son, whose life all the skill of the Jewish
physicians could not save; and his last hope lay with
Jesus. His faith could not grasp more than the idea
that if Jesus came, like any other physician, to see and
touch the child, He would have the power to heal him.
‘Sir, come down,’ he cried, ‘before my son is dead.’
‘Go thy way,’ Jesus answered ; ‘thy son liveth.’ What
was there in His voice and glance which filled the father’s
heart with perfect trust and peace? The nobleman did
not hurry away, though there was time for him to reach
home before nightfall. But the next day, as he was
going down to Capernaum, he met his servants, who had
been sent after him with the good news that the fever
had left his son yesterday at the seventh hour ; that same
hour when Jesus had said to him, ‘Thy son liveth.’
Now He had a friend and disciple amongst the
wealthiest and highest classes in Capernaum, as He had
one amongst the Sanhedrim at Jerusalem. Both protected
Him as much as it lay in their power 5; and it is supposed
by many that the mother of the child thus healed was
the same as Joanna, the wife of Chuza, Herod’s steward,
Samaria. 67
who, with other women, attended our Lord during the last
year of His life, and ministered to Him of their substance.
Thus, on every hand, Jesus was making friends and
enemies. A year had scarcely passed since He quitted
his humble home in Nazareth ; but His name was already
known throughout Judea, Galilee, and Samaria; and
everywhere people were ranging themselves into two
parties, for and against Him. Amongst the common
people He had few enemies; amongst the wealthy and
religious classes He had few friends. He felt the peculiar
difficulty these latter classes had in following Him; and
expressed it in two sayings, ‘I came not to call the
righteous, but sinners to repentance,’ and ‘It is easier for
a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a
rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.’
68 The Wonderful Life.
CHAPTER V.
THE FIRST SABBATH-MIRACLE.
AFTER staying a short time in Cana, Jesus went once
more to Jerusalem, about the middle of March, a month
or so before the passover. At this time there was a
feast of the Jews, not a religious, but rather a national
feast, in celebration of the deliverance of their race in the
days of Esther. It drew together many of the poorer
and lower classes, among whom our Lord’s work specially
lay, and so offered to Him, perhaps, unusual oppor-
tunities for mingling with the common people living near
Jerusalem. For we do not suppose that the Galileans
went up to this feast ; only.the country-folks dwelling in
Judea, within a few miles of their chief city, who could
make a holiday at that time of the year. Either upon the
feast-day itself, or the Sabbath-day nearest to it, Jesus
walked down to the sheep-gate of the city, near which was
a pool, possessing the singular property, so it was believed,
of healing the first person who could get into it after there
had been seen a certain troubling of the water. A great
Lhe First Sabbath-Miracte. 69
crowd of impotent folk, of halt, blind, and withered, lay
about waiting for this movement of the surface of the
pool, There was no spot in Jerusalem where we could
sooner expect to find our Lord, with His wondrous power
of healing all manner of diseases. Not even His Father’s
house was more likely to be trodden by His feet than
this Bethesda, or house of mercy. Probably there was a
greater throng than usual, because of the feast, which
would offer an opportunity to many to come out of the
country. Jesus passed by until He singled out one man,
apparently because He knew he had now been crippled
for thirty-eight years, and had been so friendless that
during all that time he had no man to help him to get
down first to the water. The cripple was hopeless, but
still lingered there, as if to watch others win the blessing
which he could never reach.
Upon this: miserable man Jesus looked down with
His pitying eyes, and said, as though speaking to one
who would not hesitate to obey Him, ‘ Rise, take up thy
bed, and walk.’
It seems as though Jesus passed on, and was lost in
the crowd ; but the cripple felt a strange strength throb-
bing through his withered limbs. He was made whole,
and he took up his bed, to return home, if he had any
home, or at least to escape from that suffering multitude.
Then did the Pharisees behold the terrible spectacle of a
man carrying his bed through the streets of Jerusalem on
the Sabbath-day !_ They cried to him hastily, ‘It is not law-
70 The Wonderful Life.
ful for thee to carry thy bed on the Sabbath-day.’ He
answered them by telling the story of his miraculous cure,
though he did not know who the stranger was, for Jesus
was gone away. No doubt he put his burden down at
the bidding of the Pharisees, but he did not lose the new
strength that had given him power to take it up.
The same day Jesus found him in the Temple,
whither he had gone in his gladness. Once more those
pitying, searching eyes were fixed upon him, and the
voice that had spoken to him in the morning sounded
again in his ears. ‘Behold,’ said Jesus, ‘thou art made
whole ; sin no more, lest a worse thing come unto thee.’
The man departed and told the Pharisees who it was that
had made him whole, thinking, no doubt, to bring praise
and glory to his deliverer.
Possibly until now the presence of Jesus at this feast
had not been known to the Pharisees. The last time He
was in Jerusalem He had solemnly and emphatically
claimed the Temple as His Fathers house, and had
indirectly reproved them by assuming the authority to rid
it of the scandals they had allowed to creep into it. Now
they found Him deliberately setting aside one of their
most binding rules for keeping the Sabbath. John the
Baptist, though both priest and prophet, had never
ventured so far. Their religion of rites and ceremonies,
of traditions, of shows and shams, was in danger. With
their religion, they firmly believed their place and nation
would go, and Jerusalem and Judea would become like
The First Sabbath-Miracle. WI
the heathen cities and countries about them. It was
time to put a stop to it. John the Baptist was in prison.
What if Jesus of Nazareth could be slain quietly, so as
not to disturb the common people, who heard Him
gladly?
Jesus then, forewarned, it may be, by a friend, found
Himself compelled to quit Jerusalem hastily, instead of
sojourning there till the coming passover. He was now
too well known in the streets of the city to escape notice,
More than this, if He stayed until the Galileans came up
to the feast there would be constant danger of His
followers coming into collision with the Pharisees. Riots
in Jerusalem at the time of the feasts were not un-
common, and often ended in bloodshed. Not long
before, Pilate had slain eighteen Galileans in some tumult
in the Temple courts; and there was every probability
that some such calamity might occur again should any
provocation arise.
Jesus therefore retreated from Jerusalem with the few
friends who were with Him. He had not yet chosen
His band of twelve apostles, but John, the youngest
and dearest of them all, was with Him, for it is he
alone who has given us this record of the first year of
our Lord’s ministry. Philip ‘also we suppose to have
been His disciple from the first, in obedience to the call,
‘Follow Me ;’ for Jesus seems to have been particularly
grieved with his dulness of mind, when He says to him,
‘ Have I been so long time with you, Philip, and yet hast
72 The Wonderful Life.
thou not known Me?’ Moreover, when Jesus was next
at Jerusalem for the passover, those Greeks who wished to
see Him came and spoke to Philip as being best known
as the attendant of our Lord. Whether there were other
disciples with Him, or who they were, we do not know.
It was a little company that had lived together through
eleven months, most of which had been spent on the
banks of the Jordan, in a peaceful and happy seclusion,
save for the multitudes that came to be taught the new
doctrine, or to be healed of their afflictions. Now they
were to be persecuted, to have spies lurking about them,
to be asked treacherous questions, to have perjured
witnesses ready to swear anything against them, and to
feel from day to day that their enemies were powerful and
irreconcilable. With a sad foresight of what must be
the end, our Lord left Jerusalem and returned into
Galilee.
( 73)
CHAPTER VI.
HIS OLD HOME.
Jxsus came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up.
His aunt, Mary Cleophas, was still living there with her
children, if His mother was not. The old familiar home
was the same, and the steep, narrow streets of the village,
_in which He had played and worked. Coming down to
it from the unfriendly city of Jerusalem, it seemed like a
little nest of safety, lying amongst its pleasant hills.
Here, at least, so His disciples might think, they would
find repose and friendship; and the soreness of heart
that must have followed the knowledge that the Jews
sought to slay their Master would here be healed and
forgotten.
The Sabbath had come round again ; a week since He
had given strength to the cripple. It was His custom to
go to the synagogue on the Sabbath; and the congrega-
tion which met there had been familiar with Him from
His childhood, when He went with His supposed father
Joseph. The Rabbi, or ruler, could not but have known
74 The Wonderful Life.
Him well. These rulers of the synagogue had a certain
power of both trying and scourging heretics in the place
itself They could also excommunicate them, and lay a
curse upon them ; and Jesus knew that they would not
be averse to exercising their power. But now He went to
His accustomed place, looking round with a tender yearn-
ing of His heart towards them all; from those who sat
conspicuously in the chief seats ; to the hesitating inquisi-
tive villager, seldom seen in the congregation, who crept
in at the door to see what was going on.
For all the people of Nazareth must have been filled
with curiosity that day. Their townsman had become
famous; and they longed to see Him, and to witness
some miracle wrought by Him. Almost all had spoken
to Him at one time or another; many had been brought
up with Him, and had been taught by the same school-
master. They had never thought of Him as being
different from themselves, except perhaps that no man
could bring an evil word against Him: a stupendous
difference indeed, but not one that would win Him much
favour. Yet here He was among them again, after a
year’s absence or so, and throughout all the land, even
in Jerusalem itself, He was everywhere known as the
Prophet of Nazareth.
When the time came for the Scriptures to be read,
Jesus, either called by the minister or rising of His own
accord, stood up to read. It must have been what all
the congregation wished for. The low platform near the
is Old Fome. 75
middle of the building was the best place for all to see
Him; their eyes were fastened upon Him, and their
satisfaction was still greater when He sat down to teach
them from the words He had just read. They were
astonished at the graciousness of His words and manner,
and before He could say more than, ‘This day is this
Scripture fulfilled,†they began whispering to one another,
‘Ts not this Joseph’s son?’ ;
There is nothing strange or unnatural in this conduct,
nor indeed anything very blameable. It is precisely
what would take place among ourselves now under the
same circumstances. Jesus was grieved, though we can-
not suppose Him to have been disappointed. He knew
they wanted to see Him do something like what He had
done in Capernaum. His sinless life had been neither a
sign nor a wonder to them; so blind were they, and so
hard of heart. But if He would do some astonishing work
they would believe in Him. ‘No prophet is accepted in
his own country,’ He said, and leaving the verses He was
about to explain to them, He went on to remind them
that both Eljah and Elisha, their wonder-working
prophets of olden times, had passed over Jewish suf-
ferers to bestow their help upon Gentiles. They could
not miss seeing the application. If they rejected Him,
He would turn to the Gentiles.
A sudden and violent fury seized upon all who were
in the synagogue. ‘This threat came from the carpenter’s
son! They rose up with one accord to thrust Him out
76 The Wonderful Life.
of the village, As they passed along the streets the whole
population would join them, and their madness growing
stronger, they hurried Him towards a precipice near the
town, that they might cast Him down headlong. But
His brethren and disciples were there, and surely among
the people of Nazareth He had some friends who would
protect Him from so shocking a death at the hands of His
townsmen, He passed through the angry crowd, and
went His way over the green hills, which not long before
had seemed to promise Him rest and shelter from His
bitter foes. He had been accused of breaking the
Sabbath seven days ago ; who was breaking the Sabbath
now? The full time was come for all this formalism of
worship to be swept away, and for Christ to proclaim ,
Himself Lord also of the Sabbath. Did Jesus linger on
the brow of that eastern hill looking down upon the
village which nestled at the foot of the cliff? So quiet it
lay there, as if no tumult could ever enter into it. The
little valley, green and fresh in the cool spring-time, was
bright with flowers, like a garden amid the mountains,
He had loved this narrow glen as only children can love
the spot where they first grow conscious of the beauty of
the world around them. Here His small hands had
plucked His first lilies, more gorgeously appareled than
Solomon in all his glory. Here he had seen for the first
time the red flush in the morning sky, and the rain-
clouds rising out of the west, and had felt the south wind
blow upon His face. Upon yonder housetops he had
fTis Old Home. vy
watched the sparrows building ; and upon these moun-
tains He had considered the ravens. The difference
between now and then pressed heavily upon Him; and
as He wept over Jerusalem, He may have wept over
Nazareth. No place on earth could be the same to Him ;
and when he lost sight of it behind the brow of the
hill, He went on sadly and sorrowfully towards Caper-
naum.
78, The Wonderful Life.
CHAPTER VII.
CAPERNAUM.
THoucu Galilee was somewhat larger than Judea, it was
in reality but a small province, not more than seventy
miles in length, or thirty in breadth. This again was
divided into Upper and Lower Galilee ; the latter called
Galilee of the Gentiles. The district in which Jesus
worked most of His miracles, and went preaching from
town to town, was very small indeed, a circuit of a few
miles tending south and west of Capernaum, which for a
short time now became His home. This part of Galilee
is a lovely country, abounding in flowers and birds ; and
at His time it was thickly populated, with small towns
or villages lying near one another, and farm-houses
ccupying every favourable situation. The Lake or Sea
of Galilee is about thirteen miles long, six broad, and
all. the western shore was fringed with villages and
hamlets. Nowhere could Jesus have met with a more
busy stir of life. Not only Jews dwelt in this region, but
many Gentiles of all nations, especially the Roman and
Capernaunt. 79
Greek. His ministry in Judea, if the Pharisees had suf-
fered Him to remain in Judea, would not have been so
widely beneficial as in this province, where the people
were less in bondage to Jewish customs and ritualism.
It is at this point that Matthew, Mark, and Luke alike
begin the history of our Lord’s work. What we have so
far read has been recorded for us in John’s Gospel alone,
with the exception of the visit to Nazareth, which we learn
from Luke. Jesus had already some friends and believers
in Capernaum. There was the nobleman whose son He
had healed several weeks before. There were Andrew
and Peter, to whom He had been pointed out by John
the Baptist as the Lamb of God. It was quickly noised
abroad that Jesus of Nazareth was come to the town,
and multitudes flocked together, though it was no holy
day, to hear the words He had to teach them from God.
They found Him upon the shore of the lake, and in order
that all might see and hear Him, He entered into a boat
belonging to Peter, and asked him to push out a little
from the bank. It was early in the morning of the day
after He had been thrust out of His own village ; and
now, sitting in the boat with a great multitude of eager
listeners pressing down to the water’s edge, He spoke to
them the gracious words which the people of Nazareth
would not hear.
The sermon was soon over, for the listeners were work-
ing men, and had their trades to follow. Jesus then bade
Peter to put out into the deep waters, and let down his
80 - Lhe Wonderful Life.
net for a draught. Peter, who must have heard of the
miracles Jesus wrought, though he had never seen one,
seems to have obeyed without expecting much success.
But the net enclosed so many fishes that it began to
break, and his own boat, as well as that belonging to his
partners, John and James, became dangerously full. No
sooner had Peter reached the shore, where Jesus was still
standing, than, terrified at His supernatural power, he fell
at His feet, crying, ‘Depart from me, for I am a sinful
man, O Lord.’ ‘Follow Me,’ answered Jesus, ‘and I
will make you fishers of men.’ Andrew and Peter im-
mediately forsook all to attach themselves closely to
Jesus ; and the same morning John and James left their
father Zebedee for the same purpose.
The next Sabbath day, which was probably not a
weekly but a legal Sabbath, coming earlier than the end
of the week, Jesus entered the synagogue at Capernaum
with His band of followers, four of whom were well
known in the town. The synagogue here was a much
larger and more imposing place than the one at Nazareth;
and no doubt it would be filled with a congregation as
crowded and attentive. Whilst Jesus was teaching them
an unlooked-for interruption came, not this time from the
fury_of His listeners, but from the outcry of a poor man
possessed of a devil, who had come in with the congre-
gation. Jesus rebuked the evil spirit, and the man was
cast down in the midst of the synagogue in convulsions,
with the people crowding round to help. But when the
Capernaum. 81,
devil had come out of him the man himself was uninjured
and in his right mind. Such a miracle, in such a place,
spread far and wide, and with great swiftness, for all who
had seen it wrought would be eager to speak of it.
At noon Jesus went with Peter to his house for the
usual mid-day meal. Here He healed the mother of
Peter’s wife of a great fever so thoroughly that, feeling
neither languor nor weakness, she arose and waited upon
them. In the afternoon probably He went to the syna-
gogue service again, to be listened to more eagerly than
ever.
We can imagine the stir there would be throughout
Capernaum that afternoon. - Fevers were very prevalent
in the spring and autumn, and it is not likely that Peter’s
mother was the only sufferer. ‘There was no one there as
yet to cavil at miracles being worked on the Sabbath-day;
still the people waited until the sun was set, and then in
the brief twilight a long procession threaded the streets
to the house where Jesus was known to be, until all: the
city was gathered about the door. And as the light
faded in the clear sky, a number of little twinkling lamps
would be kindled in the narrow street, lighting up the
pale sickly faces of the patients who were waiting for the
great physician to come by. We see Him passing from
one group to another, missing not one of the sufferers,
and surely saying some words of comfort or warning to
each one on whom He laid His healing hand—words
that would dwell in their memories for ever. All had
G
82 The Wonderful Life.
faith in Him, and all were cured of whatsoever disease
they had.
It must have been late before this was over, and the
crowd dispersed to their homes. It seems as though our
Lord, after this busy day of active ministry and untiring
sympathy, was unable to sleep; for, rising a great while
before the dawn, He sought the freshness of the cool night
air and the quiet of a lonely place, where He could pray,
or rather speak to His Father unseen and unheard. He
trode softly through the silent streets, lately so full of stir,
and made His way to some quiet spot on the shore of
the lake, pondering, it may be, over the strange contrasts
in His life, His rejection by the Nazarenes, and the
enthusiastic reception of Him by the city of Capernaum.
_ As soon as it was day, however, the grateful people,
discovering that He was not in Peter’s house, urged His
disciples to lead them to the place where He had found
a brief repose. The disciples would probably require
little urging, for this was the homage they expected their
Master to receive. They came in multitudes, beseeching
Him to tarry with them ; for, like Nicodemus, they knew
Him to be a teacher from God, by the miracles He had
done. This host of friends crowding about Him to
prevent Him from departing from them must have given
Him a moment of great gladness. But He could not
stay with them, for He must go to preach the kingdom of
God in other cities also, and if He found faith there to
perform the same wonderful and tender miracles He had
wrought in Capernaum.
Capernaum. 83
For the next few days Jesus, with five or six disciples,
passed from village to village on the western coast of the
lake, and in the plain of Gennesaret, a lovely and fertile
tract of land, six or seven miles long, and five wide,
surrounded by the mountains which fall back from the
shore of the lake to encircle it. It was thickly covered
with small towns and villages, lying so near to one
another that the rumour of His arrival brought the in-
habitants of all the cities to any central point where they
heard that He was staying. Herod had built a city at the
south of the plain and called it Tiberias, after the Roman
emperor; but probably our Lord never entered its streets,
though all who desired to see and hear Him could readily
find an opportunity in the neighbouring villages. It was
in one of these places that a leper, hopeless as his case
seemed, determined to cast himself upon the compassion
of this mighty prophet. No leper had been healed since
the days of Naaman the Syrian; yet so wonderful were
the miracles wrought by Jesus, so well known, and so
well authenticated, that the man did not doubt His
power. ‘If Thou wilt, Thou canst make me clean,’ he
cried. He soon discovered that Christ’s tenderness was
as great as His power. He touched him; and imme-
diately the sufferer was cleansed. The leper noised it
abroad so much, that Jesus was compelled to hold Him-
self somewhat aloof from the town, and keep nearer to
the wild and barren mountains, where the plain was less
densely peopled, until a day or two before the Sabbath
'
84 The Wonderful Life.
He returned to Capernaum, at the northern extremity of
the plain. During those few days His journeyings had
been confined to a very limited space, the beautiful but
small plain of Gennesaret, with its thick population and
numerous villages, where He could teach many people,
and perform many miracles with no loss of time in taking
long journeys.
During the week Capernaum had been in a fever of
excitement. It was quite practicable for many of the
inhabitants to go out three or four miles to the spot
where Jesus was, for the day, and return at night with the
story of what He was doing. The excitement had not
been lessened by the arrival of a party of Pharisees from
Jerusalem itself, who were openly unfriendly to the Galilean
prophet and His new doctrines. The Galileans naturally
looked up to the priesthood at Jerusalem, especially to
the Sanhedrim, as the great authorities upon religious
points. There were, moreover, plenty of Pharisees in
Capernaum, as in every Jewish town, who readily took up
the opinions of these Pharisees from Judea, and joined
them eagerly in forming a party against Jesus and His’
innovations. No doubt they discussed the miracle
wrought in their own synagogue on the first Sabbath
day that Jesus was there ; and were the more zealous to
condemn Him, because none of them had seen the sin of
it before it was pointed out by their keener and more
orthodox brethren from Jerusalem.
No sooner, then, was Jesus known to be in the house at
Capernaum. 85
Capernaum than there collected such a crowd that there
was no room to receive them ; no, not so much as about
the door. But some of the Pharisees had made good
their entrance, and were sitting by cavilling and criticising
in the midst of His disciples. At this time the friends of
a paralytic man who were not able to bring him into the
presence of Jesus carried him to the flat roof of a neigh-
bouring house, and so reaching the place where He sat
to teach all who could get within hearing, they took up
‘the loose boards of the roof and let down their friend
before Him. Jesus, pausing in His discourse, said first
to him, ‘Thy sins are forgiven thee !’ words that filled
the Pharisees with horror, yet with secret satisfaction.
‘Who is this?’ they say to one another ; ‘who can forgive
sins but God alone?’ ‘You cannot see that his sins are
forgiven,’ answered Jesus, ‘but I will give you a sign
which you can see. It is easy to say, Thy sins be
forgiven ; but I say unto thee, O man, arise, and take up
thy couch, and go into thine house.’ Even the Pharisees,
the less bitter Pharisees of Galilee at least, were silenced
by this, and were for once touched with fear of this
Son of Man, who had power on earth to forgive sins.
They glorified God, saying, ‘We have seen strange things
to-day.’
But the day was not ended. Jesus, as His custom
was, went down to the shore, where He could teach
greater numbers than in the narrow streets. As He
was passing along He saw a tax-collector sitting in his
86 The Wonderful Life
booth gathering tolls for the hated Roman conquerors.
Such a person was singularly offensive to all Jews, but
especially so to the Pharisees, who looked upon publicans
as the most vicious and degraded of men. Mark tells us
this man was the son of Alpheus, or Cleophas, the uncle
of Jesus by his marriage with Mary, his mother’s sister.
If so, he was a reprobate son, probably disowned by all
his family, to whom he was a sorrow and disgrace. The
presence of Jesus and his brethren in Capernaum must
have been a trial to him, bringing back to mind the days
of their happy boyhood together in Nazareth, and making
‘him feel keenly the misery and ignominy of the present.
But now Jesus stands opposite his booth, looks him in the
face, not angrily but tenderly, and he hears Him say,
‘Levi, follow Me!’ And immediately he arose, left all,
and followed Him.
The same evening Levi, or Matthew as he was after-
wards called, gave a supper at his own house to Jesus
and His disciples ;. and, no doubt with our Lord’s per-
mission, invited many publicans like himself to come and
meet Him and hear His teaching. The Pharisees could
not let such a circumstance pass uncriticised. For their
part, their religion forbade them eating even with the
common people, and here was the Prophet eating. with
publicans and sinners: This was a fresh offence; and
Jesus answered only by saying, ‘They that are whole
need not a physician, but they that are sick. I came not
to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.’ No
C apernaum. 87
defence was offered, and no excuse made. But there was
a sad sdrcasm in His reply which must have stung the
consciences of some of them. Were they the righteous,
whom He could not call into the kingdom of God?
88 - The Wonderful Life.
CHAPTER VIII.
FOES FROM JERUSALEM.
As spectators at Matthew’s feast were two of John’s
disciples, who had been sent by their master with a strange
question, ‘ Art thou He that should come, or look we for
another?’ John had now been imprisoned for some time
in a gloomy dungeon on the desolate shores of the Dead
Sea. His disciples, who were inclined to be somewhat
jealous of the younger prophet, had brought him word of
the miracles wrought by Jesus, but wrought upon the
Sabbath day in direct antagonism to the- Pharisees, and,
as-it seemed, to the law of Moses, The very first miracle
at Cana of Galilee was altogether opposed to the austere
habits of John, who had never tasted wine. There was
something perplexing and painful to him in these reports ;
and he had nothing else to do in his prison than brood
over them. Was it possible that he could have made any
mistake—could have fallen under any delusion in pro-
‘claiming his cousin Jesus as the promised Messiah ?
Had he truly heard a voice from heaven? Could this
Foes from Ferusalem. 89
be indeed the Son of God, who mingled with common
people at their feasts, and visited Samaritans? He,
who all his life long had lived in the open air, free
from even social restraints, was becoming morbid in his
‘captivity. It grew necessary to him at last to send his
disciples to Jesus for some comforting and reassuring
message.’
When John’s disciples came to Jesus they seem to have
found Him feasting with the publicans—a circumstance
utterly foreign to their master’s custom. * They felt them-
selves more akin to the Pharisees, and asked Him, ‘Why
do we and the Pharisees fast oft, but Thy disciples fast
not?’ Jesus answered them that He was the bridegroom
of whom John himself had spoken, and that as long as
the bridegroom was with them they could not mourn.
But the days would come when He should be taken away,
and then they would fast. He would have no pretence
at mourning or fasting to be seen of men. He would
- have no acting. These were days of joy, and it was meet
. to make merry and be glad when a brother who had been
lost was found. Matthew was their brother, and he was
restored to them ; how could they mourn ?
But. Jesus kept John’s disciples with Him for a short
time, that they might see how miracles were His. every.
day work, not merely a wonder performed in the syna-
gogues on a Sabbath day, before sending them back to
the poor prisoner in Herod’s fortress. The next day was
a Sabbath. The Pharisees kept closely beside Jesus,
90 Lhe Wonderful Life.
following Him even when He and His disciples were
walking through the fields of standing corn, possibly after
the synagogue service, but before the Sabbath was ended.
It was the second week of April, and the grain was
growing heavy in the ear; perhaps a few ears of it were
ripe, for in the lowlands about Capernaum it ripened
_earlier than in the uplands of Galilee. The disciples
.plucked the ears of corn, rubbing them in their hands
with the careless ease of men who thought it no harm,
and who had forgotten the captious Pharisees beside
them. The latter accused them sharply of breaking the
law, and aroused Jesus to defend them by giving them —
instances from their own Scriptures and observances of
the law of Moses being broken without blame. ‘Then,
pausing to give more weight to His last words, He added,
‘The Son of Man is Lord also of the Sabbath.’ He-did
not acknowledge their authority to make laws for the
Sabbath. Nay, more, He claimed to De Lord of it .
Himself.
Without doubt this answer jetpened the enmity and
opposition of the Pharisees; nor can .we wonder at it.
There was now no middle course they could take. If
they acknowledged Jesus to be a prophet sent from God,
they must own Him as Christ, the Messiah, with a Divine
authority over their laws and traditions. He was setting _
_.these at defiance, asserting Hiniself to be Lord of the
_ Temple and Lord of the Sabbath. John kad made no
such claims, though it was well known that his birth had
foes from F erusalem. ' Or
been foretold by the angel Gabriel to Zacharias, his
' father, when he was ministering in the Holy Place. But
John’s career was at an end; and if Jesus was not taken
out of the way He would turn the world upside down, and
the Romans would bring them into utter subjection.
Both religion and patriotism demanded that they should
‘seek His death, .
_A day or two after this weekly Sabbath came a legal ~
Sabbath, one of the holy days among the Jews. Jesus
was in the. synagogue ; and there also, probably in a
conspicuous place as if to catch His eye, sat a man with
a withered hand. It seems almost-.as though he had
been found and posted there in ‘order to test Jesus. The
Pharisees were’ growing eager to multiply accusations
. against Him before they returned to Jerusalem’ for the
approaching feast of the passover. Even they might feel -
‘that the sin of plucking ears of corn was not a very grave
one. Here was aman for Jesus to heal. The case was
not an urgent one; to-morrow would do as well as to-
day for restoring the withered hand. But Jesus will show
to them that any act of love and mercy is lawful on the
Sabbath day, is, in fact, the most lawful thing to do.
'_. God causes His sun to shine, and His rain to fall, on that
day as on: any other. He looked round upon them all
with their hard faces set against Him; and He was
grieved in His heart. Then, with the authority of a
prophet, He bade the man stand up and stand forward
in the midst of them. If they had been secretly plotting
92 The Wonderful Life.
against Him in bringing the man there, He was not afraid
to face them openly. ‘Is it lawful on the Sabbath day
to do good or to do evil? to save life or to destroy it?’
He asked. But the Pharisees from Jerusalem could not
answer the question; and when He healed the man in
the sight of all the people, they were filled with madness.
Possibly they had reckoned upon the miracle failing,
for by this time it was understood that only those who
believed in the power of Jesus could be healed, and they
had not expected this man-to have faithin Him. It seems
that they left the synagogue at once, and though it was a
Sabbath day they held a council against Him how they
might destroy Him. They even entered into an alliance .
with the Herodians, their own opponents. For the
Herodians favoured the adoption of Roman laws. and..
customs, against which the Pharisees had formed them-
selves into a distinct sect. But they were now ready to
join any party, or follow any plan, so that wes might
destroy this common enemy.
It became impossible for Jesus to remain in Caper-
naum, and He left it immediately, probably the same
evening, withdrawing to some mountain near the lake,
where He continued all night in prayer to God. Toa
nature like His this bitter and pitiless enmity, aroused by
acts of goodness only, must have been a terrible burden.
They were His own people, not the heathen, who were
hunting Him to death—men who all their lives long had |
heard and read of God, His heavenly Father, who offered
foes from Ferusalem. 93
-
sacrifices to Him, and gave tithes to His Temple of all
that they possessed. They knew, or ought to have
known, what they were doing. There was no excuse
of ignorance for them, All night He prayed, with the
_ bright stars glittering above Him in the blue sky, and
. the fresh breeze from the lake and the mountain, laden
' with the scent of flowers, breathing softly on His face.
"Neo sounds near Him save the quiet sounds of night on
the mountain side, and the wail of the curlew over the
lake. This was better than sleep to Him; and as the
day dawned He was ready once more to meet His
disciples} and to face the numerous duties coming with
the sunrise.
- His first act was to call His disciples to Him, and
from them He chose twelve to form for the future a group
‘of attached followers and friends, who would go with
Him wherever He went and learn His message, SO as
to carry it to other lands when His own voice was
silenced. Him His foes might and would destroy; but
His message from God must not perish with Him. Philip
was one of them, he who had been with Him from the |
first; and John, the youngest and. most loved, who sat.
nearest to Him at meal times, and who treasured up every
word that fell from His lips, so that when he came to
_ write the history of his Lord so many memories crowded
‘ to his brain of things Jesus had said and done, that he
cried in loving despair, ‘All the world could not contain
the books that might be written !?
‘04 The Wonderful Life.
Two at least, if not three, of our Lord’s own family
were amongst the chosen twelve: James, His cousin, of
whom it is said he was so like Jesus as sometimes to
be mistaken for Him ; and Judas, not Iscariot, who, like
the other kinsmen of Christ, asked Him, even on the
last night that He lived, ‘ Why wilt thou manifest thyself
to us, and not unto the world?’ Levi, if he was the
son of Alpheus, was a third cousin, and each one wrote
for us a portion of the New Testament. How much
might these three have told us of His early life in Naza-
reth if no restraint had been laid upon them !
Then there was Peter, always the leader among the
apostles, impatient and daring, so eager that he must
always meet his Lord, and not wait for Him to come to
him ; walking upon the sea, or casting himself into ‘it.
to reach more quickly the shore where Jesus stood,
exclaiming rapturously at one time, ‘Thou art the Christ,
the Son of the living God,’ and at another, with oaths
and curses, repeating, ‘T know not the man.’ Of the
‘test we know little, save one dark name, read amidst
the blackest shadows of the past. - Why did Jesus call
Judas Iscariot ? Why did He make him a familiar friend
in whom He trusted? They went up together into the
house of God, and took sweet counsel together. He
‘gave and received from Jesus the kiss of friendship.
To him'was entrusted the wealth of the little band, and
every trifling want of his Master’s he had to supply, an
office that brought him into the closest intimacy with
foes from Ferusalem. 95
Him. Why was he chosen for this service? Was he
the eldest amid this company of young men? a wise,
shrewd man, cautious and prudent, where others might
have been rash or forgetful? We do not know; but
whilst Peter, James, and John followed their Lord into
the chamber of Jairus’ little daughter and up to the
Mount of Transfiguration, Judas had the bag, and bore
what was put therein. ,
em
06 _ The Wonderful Life.
CHAPTER IX,
AT NAIN.
Ir was broad daylight now, no time for secret assassin-
ation, and, surrounded by His twelve devoted friends,
Jesus could return to Capernaum, where His mother
would probably be waiting in a state of anxious restless-
ness. As soon as it was known that He was entering the
‘town, some of the rulers of the synagogue came to
meet Him, beseeching Him. to work a miracle in favour
of a Roman centurion, whose servant was likely to die.
The most bigoted amongst them could not deny that
. Jesus of Nazareth did many mighty works; and they
could not decline to offer. this petition to Him when the
centurion, who had built them a synagogue, commis-
sioned them with it. The servant was healed without
Jesus going to the house, the centurion sending to say
that he was not worthy that the Lord should enter under
his roof. Even Jesus marvelled at the man’s faith, and
though He had just chosen twelve of His most trust-
worthy disciples, He cried, ‘I have not found so great a
faith ; no, not in Israel.’
=
At Nain. 97
The next: day, Jesus, followed by many disciples,
' -both men and women, went out to visit the towns and
villages lying westward of the hills which enclose the
plain of Gennesaret. As He passed along His company
grew in numbers, for everywhere had men heard of Him,
_and those who-had sick friends brought them out to the
‘roadside that they might be healed. This day His
journey was a long one, and He could not tarry by the
“way, except to work some such loving miracle. He was
to rest in the little village of Nain that night; a place He
~ knew quite well, for it was only five miles from Nazareth,
and probably He had some friends there. Much people
had gathered around Him-when He trod the steep path
up to Nain; but before they reached the gate another mul-
titude appeared coming out as if to meet them, yet there
was no shout of welcome ; instead there were cries and
wailings ‘for one whom they were carrying forth to the
’ tombs outside the village.
Possibly Jesus knew both the young man who was
dead and his mother. -He hastened to her side, and
* said, “Weep - not’ Then He touched the bier, and those
who were carrying it stood still. What was the prophet
- about to do? He could heal any kind of sickness, but
this was-death, not sickness. It was a corpse. bound up,
~ and swathed with grave-clothes ; the eyes for ever blinded
_,to the light, and the ears too deaf to be unloosed. An
awful silence must have fallen upon the crowd ; and they
heard a calm, quiet voice saying, ¢ Young man, I say unto
an : +
98 The Wonderful Life.
‘thee, Arise ? He spoke simply, in a few words only ;
but the quiet voice pierced through all the sealed deaf-
“ness of death, and the dead sat. up, and began to speak.
Then Jesus, perhaps with His own. hands freeing him
from the grave-clothes, gave him back to his mother. A
thrill of fear ran through all. the crowd, and as they
thronged into Nain some said, ‘A great prophet is risen
up among us,’ and others, ‘God has visited His people.’
It has been thought that here, at Nain, dwelt Simon
the Pharisee, who now invited Jesus to his house to eat
meat with him. He was not one of our Lord’s enemies
from Jerusalem, but merely a member of the sect, which
was numerous throughout all Judea' and Galilee. He
probably regarded Jesus as a working-man from the
neighbouring village of Nazareth, though now considered
a prophet by the people: and he did not offer to Him
the courteous attentions he would have shown to a more
honoured guest. After His long and dusty walk Jesus
sat down to Simon’s table without the usual refreshment of
having His feet washed, and His héad anointed with oil.
But this slight, passed over by Jesus, was more than
- atoned for by a woman, who, coming in to see the supper
with other townspeople, stood behind Him at His feet,
and began to wash them with her tears, and'to wipe them
with her long hair, kissing them again and again. Caring
little who was watching her in her passion of repentance
and love, she brought’an alabaster box of precious oint-
ment, and poured the costly contents upon the feet she
At Nain. 99
had washed and kissed. Yet the prophet seemed to take
no notice of her and her touch. But Simon, the host,
said to himself, ‘This man, if He were a prophet, would
have known who and what manner of woman this is that
= toucheth Him ; for she is a sinner.’ The sinful woman’s
unheeded touch was more conclusive against Him than ©
> all His miracles were for Him, © Simon did not have her
thrust from his house ; but there was a secret satisfaction
in his heart at fading out that Joseph’s son after all was
not prophet enough to know who she was.
_. Did not Jesus know? Had He not felt every tear
_ that -had fallen upon His feet, and the touch of the
“trembling lips which dared not speak to Him? He
/spoke a short, simple parable to Simon, and asked Him
‘a question, the answer to which condemned the self
righteous Pharisee. And then, turning to the weeping
woman, He said, ‘Thy sins, which are many, aré for-
given ; thy faith hath saved thee; go in peace.’ Those
‘who sat about Him. began then with their old murmur,
. ‘Who is this that forgiveth sins also?’ But He gave them ,
no sign this time. No sign could be greater than the
miracle wrought that day. As Jesus Himéelf said in one
of His parables, ‘ They will not be persuaded, no, not if
‘one rise from the dead.’
100 The Wonderful Life.
CHAPTER X.
MIGHTY WORKS.
LeEavinG Nain, Jesus, with a large number of followers,
including the apostles, and certain women who ministered.
to them of their property, passed through all the villages
of that neighbourhood, gradually working their way back
to Capernaum.. Jt was some time during this week that
Jesus dismissed the disciples of John the Baptist, bidding
them tell: Him all they had seen and heard, and adding
to His messagea gentle reproof, ‘ Blessed is he whosoever
shall not be offended in Me.’ He knew how many were
already offended; and how the cause of offence must.
take deeper and deeper root, until the scandal of the.
cross came to eclipse every dream of glory in His
followers. The message thus sent to John in his prison,
with the marvellous tidings of the signs and wonders
wrought, and the report of the new doctrines, must have
greatly strengthened and comforted the prophet during
the short time that remained to him of life.
The circuit from Nain to Capernaum, though short,
.
Mighty Works. 101
was one of great exertion and fatigue; yet when they
reached ‘the latter town, and were in need of rest, so
great a multitude came-together again immediately, that
they could not so much as eat bread. Jesus, could not
‘attend to His own needs, whilst others were crying to
Him for help, or crowding round Him for instruction.
His meat-was to do the will of Him that sent Him, and
to finish His work ; and the bitter enmity of the Phari- —
_ sées warned Him that what He had to do must be done
_quickly. - But His relations thought it was quite time to
interfere with this self-forgetful zeal, and they sought to
take hold of Him, saying, ‘He is beside Himself’ They
~ did not yet believe'in Him, for they could not get over the
. impression made upon them by His homely simple life
: amongst them, when He worked at a trade like themselves,
apparently-unconscious of being different from them. Pro-
‘bably their words only meant that He was carried into
extremes by His burning enthusiasm. “But the Pharisees
from Jerusalem, who were still hanging about Him, caught
“up the hasty words, and bitterly exaggerated them.
i He hath Beelzebub,’ they’ ‘cried, ‘and by the prince
of the devils He casteth out devils,’ Jesus then called
' them to Him, bidding the. -erowd thake way. It was an
extraordinary scene. -Theré stood the powerful enemies.
. from the chief city and the chief -priests of the nation,
strong in their reputation for religion and for righteous-
ness, face to face with the young but well-known prophet
~ of pacarett, who boldly and solemily i in the hearing of
102 The Wonderful Life.
all the people warned them of the sin they were commit-
ting, blasphemy against the Holy Ghost, and declared
that if it was persisted in there was no forgiveness for it.
Tn the mean, time His mother, whose spirit could not
be as brave for her son as His was for God, came to the
outskirts of the throng with some of His cousins, and
sent a message to Him, which reached His ears as He
finished His warning to the Pharisees. ‘Behold,’ they
said, ‘Thy mother and Thy brethren stand without, de-
siring to see Thee.’ It was no moment for such a message
‘to come. His kinsmen, though we cannot think His
‘mother could have. taken a part in it, had given occa-
sion to the Pharisees to say that He had a devil; and it
was necessary that all should know that He owned no
- authority in them, and could not submit to any inter-
‘ference. Dearly as He loved His mother, even she
must cease to look upon Him as a son whom she |
might command. Solemnly and emphatically He pointed
to His apostles, and to the women who had come into
the city weary and hungry as Himself. ‘Behold My
mother and My brethren,’ He said, ‘ for whosoever shall.
do the will of My Father which is in heaven, the same
is My brother, and sister, and mother.’
_ The remainder of the day was one of ceaseless
activities. So many persons came in from other towns
that Jesus, as His custom was, led them down to some —
convenient spot on the shore, and there entered into a
boat, so as to be seen and heard by all. He taught them
— Mighty Works. * 103
by parables, by many parables, and by nothing else than
“parables ; a’ charming and fascinating. mode of teaching
to these imaginative eastern people, who carried them
home in their minds to ponder over, and find out their
- hidden meaning. There was no need for them to be ©
learned in the law, the common occupations of every
day served as lessons for them; sowing their seed, or
mixing their meal with yeast, was the symbol of the
_ kingdom of. heaven which had-come among them, _
: At last the sun sank behind the western hills, and
~ evening closed in. < The disciples sent away the crowds
from their exhausted Master. One of His hearers, a
“scribe even, for He had won some friends among the ranks
_of His foes, came to Him, saying, * Master, I will follow
-Thee whithersoever thou goest.’ Jesus was weary in body,
~~ and depressed i in spirit. .Capernaum lay there close by,
~ ‘but it was no safe place for Him-to spend the night in.
He had already decided that it was better to cross over
the lake to. the: eastern side, where His enemies might
: not care to follow Him ; and He answered the scribe in
those mournful and most.memorable words, ‘The foxes
‘have holes, and the birds of the air have nests ; but the
~ Son of Man: hath not where to/lay His head.’ The sky .
was darkening, and the stillness of night coming on; the
‘birds were singing their last songs; and the wild ‘beasts
“were creeping forth out.of their dens which had sheltered
_ them all day. But for Him there was no place of rest,
"save the deck of the boat; no bed, except a pillow, on
104 | The Wonderful Life.
which His aching head could lie. Yet perhaps the scribe
followed Him; for a little fleet of fishermen’s boats
" sailed out after Him into the gathering darkness, follow-
ing the bark, in which the Master was soon sleeping for _
very weariness near the helmsman ae was ‘steering for
the eastern shores, :
The Lake of Galilee, like all inland lakes, i is subject
to sudden storms of wind, which sweep down the ravines
between the mountains with great force. Such a gale
came on this night with so much fury, that even those
disciples who, as fishermen, were quite at home on the
water, were filled with terror. The eager followers in
the other boats must have been still more alarmed as the
waves beat over them, and filled their small vessels. No
one but Jesus could have been asleep, but He slept
soundly ; and it was not till they called Him that He
awoke, ‘* Master,’ they cried, ‘carest Thou not that we
perish?’ Yes, He cared. He cared even for their fears ;
and though there was no danger of their perishing whilst _
He was with them in the boat, He arose, and rebuked ©
the wind and the sea, and immediately there was a great
calm. Probably He fell asleep again; but all the crews
of that little company of boats were exceedingly afraid,
asking one another, ‘What manner of man is this, hungry
and thirsty, and worn out with weariness like ourselves,
yet even the wind and the sea obey Him ?’
The early morning found them on the eastern shore
near. Gergasa, which was in the tetrarchy of Philip, a
i
Mighty Works. tos
just and moderate prince, very different from his brother
Herod, who ruled over Galilee. Here, at least, Jesus
' mhight expect to find shelter and rest. But no sooner had
He landed than a terrible demoniac, whose dwelling was
- among the tombs near the town, rushed down to the
- shore to meet Him. So fierce and violent was he that
‘no man dare pass that way, and always, day and night,
the unhappy wretch was crying and cutting himself with
- stones, — Jesus at once commanded the legion of evil
spirits to come out of the man ;: but gave them permission
to enter into a herd of swine that were feeding near at
; hand ; upon which the whole herd,-in number about two _
thousand, ran violently down a steep place into the lake,
~and were choked in the waters. Those who kept them
fled into Gergasa, and the inhabitants immediately came
*-out to see who it was that had done this mischief. But
_ upon finding their fierce and powerful countryman clothed,
and in his right mind, they were afraid ; and learning by
what miracle he had been restored, they confined their
resentment at their loss to ‘beseeching Jesus to quit
’ their coast... é
- Wet and hungry as He was, Jesus returned to the
Bak bidding the poor man, who: wished to follow Him,
rather to go. home-to his friends, and tell them what great
things the Lord had doné for him, - Though the Gerga-
“senes would not receive Him, He would leave them a
witness to tell of His love and power. ,And now, driven
away. from that inhospitable coast, He returned towards
106 _ The Wonderful. Life.
Capernaum, giving up the hope of a few days’ rest, far
away from. His knot of enemies, and His thoughtléss
crowd of followers.
‘No sooner was it known that His boat was on the
shore than one of the rulers of the synagogue hastened
down to Him. — His little daughter was lying at the point
of death, and there. remained no hope but in Jesus. He
went at once with the father; yet He paused on the way
to heal a poor woman who touched in secret the hem of
His garment as He passed by. She had been suffer-
ing as many years as the child had lived, and Jesus.
could not neglect her for a ruler’s daughter, though He
should gain a powerful friend by it. ‘There was a great
tumult about the house when they reached it; the child
was. just dead, had died while Jesus lingered on the way
to heal this poor woman, who had spent all that she had
on physicians. ‘She is not dead, but sleepeth,’ He said ;
and they laughed Him to scorn, knowing she was dead. -
Into her chamber He passed, suffering no one to go in
but her father and mother, and His three most favoured
disciples; and taking the girl’s hand into His own, He
called to her, and her spirit came back again over the |
mysterious threshold it had just crossed.
But Jesus charged her parents that they should tell no
man what was done; He charged them straitly. He
would not have this young and happy life burdened with
the weight of such a mystery; if possible the’ girl
herself was not to know it, The widow’s son at Nain
: Mighty Works. 107
might bear the burden, and meet the curious eye bent —
upon him, and answer as he could the eager questions
-asked about that other life of which he had caught a
glimpse. But this child, just on the verge of happy
girlhood, must be spared it all. ‘She is not dead, but
sleepeth, He said, and He called her. back to her place
_~ on éarthas one who had only been wrapt in a deeper
-_ slumber than is natural,
108 The Wonderful Life.
CHAPTER XI.
A HOLIDAY IN GALILEE.
Jesus seems only to have entered Capernaum for the
sake of Jairus; for He did not. stay there; but going
away immediately, He went once more to Nazareth, where
some of His cousins were still living. Very probably He
knew from them that His townsfolk were now ashamed of
their savage assault upon Him three weeks before. Since
then they had heard of His wisdom and His mighty works,
especially of that one at Nain, a village within sight of
their owh town, They were even hoping to have their. |
own curiosity gratified by some wonder performed among
‘them ; but they could not get over the fact that He had
been a carpenter in Nazareth, and that all His relations
were known by them, poor, undistinguished people, who
were considered of no account. Jesus Himself marvelled
at their unbelief, surpassing any He had yet contended
against ; and He could not do any mighty work, save that
He healed a few sick folk, probably poor people, who
knew Him better than the wiser and richer men,
“een
A Holiday in Galilee. 109 ;
From Nazareth He sent out His apostles by two and.
~ two to make a short circuit of the towns lying about
’ before meeting Him again on an appointed day near
-Capernaum ;. for it was safer to be close upon the shores
of the lake, whence at any time He could seek refuge in
_ the dominions of Philip, rather than in any of the country
places from which there could be no speedy way of
_escapé from His enemies. He Himself went round the
villages teaching. The district travelled over thus was a _
small one, and by the separation of the apostles into six
parties, every village would be quickly visited. These _
little places lay close together, and only a central ‘spot
would be needed for the gathering of congregations ; the
Galileans seeming to be always ready to flock together
at the first hint of any excitement.
The first news that reached Jesus, when He returned
to the neighbourhood of Capernaum, was that of the
cruel death of His cousin, friend, and forerunner, John
__ the Baptist; whose disciples were come to bring Him the
tidings. The murder of their prophet must have stirred
the people to deep indignation, and wounded the tender
heart of Christ most keenly. But at the same time His »
apostles met. Him, full of triumph at the wonders they
had‘ themselves performed during their short separation
from Him. ‘To some of them John the Baptist had been
almost as dear-as Jesus was now; and thus two currents
of strong agitation ran counter to one another. Jesus
Himself felt in need of some hours of quietness in which
110 - The Wonderful Life.-
to mourn over His loss, and to hear from His apostles
what they had done and taught. But so long as they -
remained on the western shore of the lake there was no
hope of gaining any such leisure time; and He entered
into a boat with His disciples and passed over to. the
_ other side. . ;
They landed in a solitary spot ow the north ‘of the
lake, not more than three or four miles east of Capernaum,
where the hills shut in a small plot of tall green grass, yot
yet dried up by the summer's heat. But the multitudesâ€
of people from whom they had intendéd to escape for
a little while, seeing them depart, set out on foot along
the shore, and keeping the boat in sight, with its sails
fluttering over the glistening water, they outwent it in
speed. It was probably the day before the passover
supper, which was kept at Jerusalem ; a day on which no
work was done in Galilee: and thus the people gathered
from every village and farm-house, and from every fishing
- hamlet on the shore, until when Jesus reached the desert
place near Bethsaida, one of the largest crowds that could
ever have collected about Him, numbering five thousand
men, besides women and children, were waiting to receive
Him.
He was filled with compassion for. them, for they were
as sheep having no shepherd. No doubt the tidings of
John’s murder in prison was fresh among them; and our
' Lord knew how deeply their hearts felt the loss of such a
teacher. He began to teach them in this little temple
A Holiday in Galilee. 111
with the clear blue sky above them; and was not weary
‘of teaching, ‘nor they of ibsestiinig until late in the
afternoon, when His disciples asked ‘Him to send them
away before nightfall. There was a lad in the crowd who
had brought with-him five barley loaves and two small
fishes, most likely in the hope of selling them among so
many persons, and pushing himself forward in the crowd,
as lads are apt to do. Jesus bade the disciples. bring.
them to Him ; Judas perhaps grudging the money he wasâ€
- called upon to spend for such a purpose. -Then He told
them: ‘to “make the company sit down in fifties, the tall,
~ green: grass forming couches for them on which they could .
rest, as in the Paschal supper they were enjoined to ‘sit |
down leaning,’ not standing, as if they were slaves. ‘The
-command of our Lord was well: understood by them;
they sat down leaning upon these natural couches as their
brethren up in Jerusalem would so rest, when i in a few
hours they would eat the Paschal supper.
_* It was a suitable ending for the holiday. The sun
“was still shining.in the west, nor when it went down was
there any fear of the crowd missing the way to their
homesteads, for the full_moon was ready to rise beyond
e the eastern hills, flooding every mountain track, and every
narrow village street, with its silver light. The season was
the most delicious of all the year; and the cool air from
‘the lake was sweet and fresh, not chilly or damp.
Children were. there, some stealing up to the Master’s
feet, and maybe getting a piece of bread from His hand;
112 The Wonderful Life.
their. laughter and their voices mingling with the graver
hum of older people. What a surprise too for the
‘disciples as they began to understand their Master’s
purpose! This was such a miracle as the Messiah was
expected to perform. A table furnished in the wilderness,
as in the times of Moses, when he gave them bread from
heaven to eat. What was giving sight to a few blind
folk, or even raising from the dead a widow’s son in a
distant village, compared to this large, public, kingly
miracle of feeding thousands of His followérs with so
small a store of provisions?
There was but one happier hour for them in the
future, when they followed their Master in His triumphal
entry into Jerusalem, a,year later. But now as they went
about among the companies, they spread the story of the
wonder then being wrought, until the enthusiasm of the
people outgrew all bounds. They resolved to take Him
by force, and make Him a king, sure that thousands
would -now flock from all-quarters to hail Him as the
Messiah. This was the very danger Jesus had sought ©
carefully to avert, as it would bring Him and His party
into collision with the Roman government, whose soldiers
were garrisoned in many parts of the country. He con-
strained His disciples, who were unwilling to lose this
hour of promised greatness, to set sail, and go on before
Him, whilst He sent the multitude away. When ¢hey were
gone, whose wishes and plans were so different from His
own, He dismissed the crowds, who obeyed Him the more
A Holiday in Galilee. 113
readily as now the night was at hand, and maby of them
had far to go on foot.
At last, then, Jesus was alone, and, in need of rest
more than ever, in need of a moment or two in which He
could mourn over His friend, in need of close communion
with His. Father, He went up into the mountain, at the
foot of which He had been labouring all day. The
Easter moon shone down upon Him full and clear out of. .
the cloudless sky, and lighted up the waters of the lake
in which His disciples were rowing hard against the wind
~ to reach the point of the shore He had directed them to-
steer for. He saw them driven out of their course by
the wind into the midst of the lake ; but still He lingered
on the mountain side hour after hour. -Is it possible that,
bowed down by the death of John, a foretaste of His
agony in Gethsemane made this season of solitude one
“of bitterness and sorrow? Was His soul exceeding
-. sorrowful within as He watched His faithful followers
oS toiling on.the lake apart from Him? When the next
passover ‘came the eternal parting would come, when they
must sail out-into the fierce storm of life alone, without
Him in the ship; living by the faith, of which they yet
showed'so little sign. Next passover ! Where would they
be? What. loss would they have to bear then? How
-would they bear:it? -
Still He saw them tossing about.on the rough omaa
- gea, until when the fourth watch of the morning was near,
"He resolved to give them a proof of His power, which in
I
114 The Wonderful Life
after years every moonlight night, and every fresh burst
of life’s storm, would bring to their minds. They, look-
ing across the stormy waves, beheld Him walking towards.
them on.the sea; and they cried aloud ‘with fear and
trouble, for their, Lord was coming to them strangely, in no
familiar manner. Peter, bolder than the rest, attempted
to go to meet Him, but his courage failed, and he
would have sunk but for the outstretched hand of his
Master. “When they entered into the boat, the wind
ceased, and they, not considering the miracle of the
loaves and fishes, were sore amazed within themselves,
beyond measure. Their Master, possessing this mar-
vellous power, still refused to be made a king! Their
hearts, too hard yet to understand, could not perceive
why He steadily opposed all such ambition,
They landed on the plain of Gennesaret, and walked
northward to Capernaum, where ‘they were met by num-
bers of those who had been fed in the desert the day
before. It was the first day of the passover, a solemn .
Sabbath, and Jesus taught in the synagogue openly, and
_ without any opposition, except the murmurs of those who
were disappointed by His steady rejection of their desire
to proclaim Him king. His most hostile. enemies, the
Pharisees, were necessarily absent at the passover in
Jerusalem. -But from that day many of His disciples in
Galilee left Him, not being able to hear or rather to
understand the hard sayings, and the reproaches with
which He met them. ‘Ye seek Me,’ He said, ‘because
A Holiday in Galilee. 11s
"ye did eat of the loaves, and were filled.’ ‘Their love for
- Him was too earthy to bear the test He proposed to
them, so they went back, and walked no more with Him. |
‘Will ye also go away?’ asked Jesus, sadly, of His
twelve apostles, ‘Lord, to whom should we go?’ cried
-- Peter; ‘Thou hast the words of eternal life. And we
believe and are sure that Thou art that Christ, the Son of
the living God.’ ‘Not ‘all,’ He answered; ‘have not I
_. chosen you twelve, and one of you is a devil?’ Already
He could point out the traitor in His little camp.
- Probably Judas had made himself unusually busy the
day before in urging on the crowd to make’ Him. king by
force. - They all longed for Him to assert. His claims ;
His brethren were constantly urging Him to manifest
Himself; John and James asked Him to promise them
‘the chief places in His kingdom; but Judas looked
forward to be the treasurer of all the wealth of the
Messiah King of Judea, and no voice had been louder:
the day before, and no disciple so reluctant to obey,
' when He constrained them to set sail and leave Him
alone with the multitude. ‘Have not I chosen you ’
twelve, and one of you is a devil?’ Judas was to live in
close fellowship with Him for a whole year longer; but
even Christ could not cast out of him this demon of
covetousness, whilst he was cherishing it in his secret
heart.
116 Lhe Wonderful Life.
CHAPTER XII.
IN THE NORTH,
Durine this quiet week, with His enemies away, Jesus
was busily occupied in the plain of Gennesaret and the
region lying about, where, as He passed along the roads
or through the streets, sick people were laid, that they
might touch if it were but the hem of His garment. But
this undisturbed, unopposed course of kindly healing and
of teaching ended as soon as the Pharisees hastened
back’ from Jerusalem, not willing to remain at home
until they had got Him into their power. They began by
accusing Him of setting aside the tradition of the elders—
an accusation He did not deny. But He answered them
-sternly, calling them hypocrites, and pointing out how
they set aside the commandments of God. He deeply
offended them by. this reply, and the old danger of .
. dwelling in Capernaum revived in greater force. Besides
this, it was well known that Herod, the murderer of John;
had a great desire to see Jesus; Joanna, the wife of
Herod’s steward, probably warning Him of this danger.
Ln the North. | 117
Herod’s city, Tiberias, was on the western coast of the
lake, south of the plain of Gennesaret, where Jesus had
. lately been journeying. It was not more than ten miles
from Capernaum ; and our Lord must often have been
very near it, though it does not seem that He ever
- entered it.
It was only a few weeks since Jesus had been com-
pelled to quit Jerusalem and Judea; and now He found it
needful to withdraw from the busy, crowded coasts of the
Lake of Galilee, and to seek the west of Galilee, where
‘He was less- known, and where He could quietly instruct
His apostles, who as. yet knew little of the message they
_were to teach when He was gone. He went farther north
than He had ever travelled, to the very confines of the
Holy Land, and to the shores of the Mediterranean Sea,
so vast and limitless, compared with the little Lake of
Galilee. But even here He could not be hid; for a
certain woman, no Jewess, but a Gentile, who had already
become acquainted with His name, no sooner heard of
Him than she came, and, falling at His feet, besought
Him. to heal her daughter, who was possessed by a devil.
Jesus did so, as a recompense of her own faith, praising
it, as He had done the faith of the Roman centurion, no
doubt to the bewilderment of His disciples, who did not
yet know, what the Samaritans had known, that He was
the Saviour of the world.
From this north-western limit Jesus and His aisciies,
probably never staying long in the same place, made their
118 The Wonderful Life.
way gradually back to the eastern shore of the Lake of
Galilee, where they were in the tetrarchy of Philip. The
country through which they passed was still more beau-
tiful than the more southern parts of Galilee. They
journeyed under the range of Hermon, and past the high
hill of Bashan, with the Upper Jordan and the waters of
Merom on their left hand, in the month of May, whilst
the harvest was going on. A time of rest and possible
happiness. Who was there besides the chosen twelve we
do not know. Where they tarried and lodged, what route
they took, we do not know. But at length they reached
that inhospitable coast, where once before the inhabitants
had besought the Lord not to sojourn with them.
- But the fierce demoniac, whom Jesus had left to bear
witness of Him, had changed the minds of the people
with regard to a second visit from this mighty prophet.
They were now willing to receive Him, and they brought
to Him a man who was deaf, and had an impediment
‘in his speech. He led him away from the crowd, who
in this country must have been half of them. heathen,
with no motive influencing their coming to Him save
that of curiosity. For the same reason, probably, to
avoid the danger and distraction of a number of curious
followers, He bade the man and his friends to tell no
one of his cure; but they, not at all understanding His
motive, proclaimed the miracle about all that region.
' Great multitudes in consequence came unto Him, having
with them lame, the blind, dumb, maimed, and many
Ln the North. 1 19
others, and He healed them all, even though many of
_ them were heathen, as if now He would teach His dis-
ciples that the blessings He brought to earth were not
‘to be confined to the Jewish nation†And the people
glorified the God of Israel.
Three days this mixed multitude remained with Jesus.
He appears to. have been dwelling upon one of the
mountains on the shore of the lake, sleeping in the open
air, as they must have done, for it was now the early
summer, ‘and. the nights were warm. On the third day,
; when their. provisions’ were exhausted, He said to His
disciples, ‘I have compassion on this multitude; and I
will not send them away fasting, lest they faint by the
way.’ We often wonder how the disciples could have
been so dull as to answer in the manner they did, after
the feeding of the five thousand on the passover eve.
But we must remember that in the former case the crowd
consisted only of Jews, to whom they considered the
Messiah sent; in this the multitude was more than half
_ heathen,-of the same race as those who had rejected Christ
when He first landed on their shores. The disciples were.
jealous of these heathen followers, who brought. discredit
upon their Master among His own nation, They pro-
bably thought it impolitic for Him to eat as He did with
publicans and sinners, though they were at least sons of
‘Abraham, whilst these were Gentiles, who had no part
in the Messiah, More willing would even Judas have
been to exhaust their little purse in buying bread than
-see Him feed them as He had fed His own people
120 L he Wonderful Life.
But Jesus could not be influenced by any such
reasons. ‘These, like the Jews, were also as sheep
without a shepherd. He repeated His miracle for them,
spreading a table for them in the wilderness, as He had
done for His fellow-countrymen, noticing the women and
children, who were won te Him by His tenderness, giving
‘thanks to the Father of all, as though all there were His
children, as well as the descendants of Abraham, His
ancient friend. There seems to have been no excitement
among them as there had been among the Galileans, who
had wished to make Him a king by force. The disciples
themselves did not seek to fan any such excitement. The
crowd separated at His bidding, and He passed over the
lake into the near neighbourhood of Magdala, a village
- within two miles of Tiberias, Herod’s chief city. We know
He had friends in Herod’s household ; and. during the
three days He had been staying on the opposite shore
. ‘He might easily have received tidings that there was no
immediate danger in thus venturing into the close neigh- ©
bourhood of Tiberias,
But though we cannot suppose that the Pharisees
from Jerusalem had remained so long in Galilee, other
Pharisees, whose hostility they had aroused against Jesus,
very soon discovered His return among them, and came
to Him with the old demand for some sign from heaven.
Some Sadducees were now joined with them, a sect with
still greater political. power than themselves, as the high
priests and their families and most of the aristocracy
_Ln the North. 12k
were at this time belonging to it, though it possessed very -
_ much less religious influence over the nation. This union
of political with religious power made the danger still
greater to Jesus; and. once more He was compelled to
leave the western shores and seek safety in the com-
paratively friendly country of ERD the tetrarch of
Iturea,
On the eastern banks of the Upper Jordan, close
upon its fall into the Lake of Galilee, still in Philip’s
dominions, stood Bethsaida ; and our Lord, who was now
‘retracing His steps to'the north, where He had before
spent some time afar from His enemies, came to this place
on His way. A blind man was brought to Him, and He
took him by the hand and led him out of the town to
restore to him his sight; then bade him neither to go
back to the town, nor to tell it to any of the townsfolk.
He wished to avoid, if possible, any stir in this place,
where He was so well known ; for it was not more than
an hour’s walk to Capernaum, which He had not visited
since the Pharisees had returned to it, after the passover.
Almost as a fugitive now He was passing through a town |
where He had done many of His mighty works, and
many of whose inhabitants had eaten of the food He had
multiplied by miracle in the wilderness, Already His.
heart was heavy with the woe He afterwards pronounced
against it. -Here He must hide His miracle of restoring
sight to one blind man, where hundreds had been wit-
nesses of greater works than this.
122 The Wonderful Life.
Heavy-hearted, His disciples following Him with be-
wildered spirits and disappointed hopes, Jesus went on
northwards to the villages near Czesarea Philippi, a sum-
mer city, which Philip the tetrarch had built amongst
" the hills of Hermon, close to the easternmost source of the
Jordan, where a number of rivulets form first a small pool
of water and then a stream, rushing through the thickets
on the hill-side. It was the loveliest spot whither the
wanderings of Jesus had led Him. The sultry heat of the
Lake of Galilee was here exchanged for the cool shadows
of groves of trees, and its sandy shores for a carpet of
turf. Numberless brooks wound through the fields,
scarcely to be dried up by the summer sun ; for far above
them rose the snowy peak of Hermon, glistening against
the burning sky.. It was such a place as He must have
delighted in, if His heart had been less wounded by
enmity, and His spirit less. clouded by the sure end which
He saw coming nearer and nearer upon Him.
He did not here hide Himseif, as He had done near
Capernaum. He called the people about Him—the sum-
mer crowds, who had probably come north from the
hotter atmosphere of the lower lands—and asked‘ them,
among other teaching, ‘ What shall it profit a man, if he
gain the whole world, and losé his own soul?’ a solemn ©
question for these holiday-makers to consider. It was here
that Peter declared emphatically that He believed his
Master to be the Messiah, the Son of the living God, in
spite of all his own disappointment, and the mysterious.â€
- \
In the North. 123
deeds and sayings of his Lord. But when Jesus pro-
ceeded to speak more plainly to His apostles of the
certain death which must be the end of the enmity which
’ He excited, Peter could not bear it. He knew thatas the
Messiah his Lord had power to subdue His foes; nay,
the prophecies declared that so should the Messiah act.
It seemed to him so extraordinary a -contradiction, not
only of his own hopes, but of all the prophets had said
concerning it, that he began to rebuke his Lord. Jesus
so answered him that never more did any of His disciples
interfere by remonstrance or objection to anything: their
' Master did. ‘Let us go also, that we may die with Him,
~ was all they could say, when He seemed to run into
needless danger,
124 The Wonderful Life. °°
CHAPTER XIII
AT HOME ONCE MORE,
Bur though Jesus had rebuked Peter, He knew well the
condition of mind that had made him-speak so rashly.
_ Six days after He.took him with John and James into one
of the high, solitary peaks of the range of Hermon, under
which they had been sojourning. The ascent was a long
one, and all-the stillness of the mountains gathered round
them as they. climbed higher and higher into the purer
air. They could see stretching southward their own
land, which offered no sure resting-place to their Master.
The white snows glistened above them, and -all the
solemn influences of silence, and loneliness, and separa-
tion, wrapped them round. They forgot the sorrows of
the past weeks as the Lord prayed with them on
the mountain-height, lifted far above all the cares and
ambitions of the earth beneath. Then as Jesus prayed
a glory shone about Him, which transfigured. His beloved
face, and made His raiment white and glistening as
the snow, which dazzled them in the sunshine. And
At Home Once More. 125
whilst, with dazzled eyes, they gazed upon Him, two
forms of Moses and Elias, the greatest of the prophets,
appeared to them talking with Jesus. Their wondering
ears heard them talk, not of the triumphs and conquests .
of Messiah’s kingdom, but of the death which they shrank
from thinking of How long they listened to this heavenly
discourse we do not know ; but at length, sore aftaid as
_they were, Peter spoke, not knowing what to say.
‘ Master,’ he said, ‘it is good for us-to~be here ;. and let
us make three tabernacles, one for thee, and one for
Moses, and oné for Elias.’ Never would he choose to go
- down to the earth and common life again, if this heavenly
vision would but remain. . Even then, as -he finished
_ Speaking, a cloud overshadowed them, and a voice was
heard to come out of the cloud, ‘ This is My beloved Son ;
.hear Him.’ And suddenly all had vanished, and there
was no.man any more, save Jesus only, with themselves.
It seems as if they stayed all night in the solemn
stillness of the mountain, listening to much their Master -
had to tell them, and asking Him such questions as came
first to their minds. He told them that He should rise’ ©
_ again the third day after the chief priests and Pharisees
had slain Him ; but they kept that saying with themselves,
questioning what .it meant, and not venturing to ask. Him
for His meaning. When the morning came they began
their long descent.to the valley below, at every lingering
_ step drawing nearer to the stir and tumult of life, which
they had desired to escape from, and which seemed
126 The Wonderful Life.
so much poorer and more paltry than it had ever done
before.
As they drew near to the valley they saw a great
multitude of people surrounding the rest of the disciples ;
but as soon as they themselves were in sight, all the
crowd, beholding Jesus, were greatly amazed, and, run-
ning to Him, saluted Him. It would seem as though
some gleam of the indescribable glory still lingered in His
face, as the face of Moses shone when he had been
speaking with the Lord in Mount Sinai. Some scribes
were there who had been questioning the nine apostles,
and Jesus asked them what they had wanted. One of
the crowd replied that he had brought his son, who was
possessed with a devil, and as the Master was away, he
had asked His disciples to cast him out, and they could
not. Very probably they had attempted to do so, and
had failed, so arousing a great excitement among the by-
standers. ‘The poor father’s hope had been crushed, and
his faith weakened, if not destroyed. ‘O faithless gener-
ation !’ cried Jesus, ‘how long shall I be with you? how
long shall I suffer you? bring him unto Me.’ Then,
speaking to the father, He said, ‘If thou canst believe, all
things are possible to him that believeth.’ He, looking
into the divine facé before him, cried out with tears,
‘Lord, I believe: help Thou my unbelief’ ‘That was
enough ; his son was restored to him, and Jesus, passing
on, went into the house, where He and His disciples
were sojourning, worn out with the exhausting events of
the last twenty-four hours.
At [Tome Once More. - 127
After this Jesus returned quietly through Galilee,
wishing no man to know it. Some of His disciples, on this
journey, disputed among themselves as to which should
be the greatest, so little prepared were they for the end
which He foresaw so plainly. He taught them what that
end must be, but they did not understand Him, and were
afraid to ask Him. But we must remember that the nine
had not heard of the solemn transfigurafion on the
Mount; for Jesus had straightly charged the three that
they should tell no man.
As they approached Capernaum they found that at last
it was safe to enter it, after their wanderings, and to, be at
home once more. ‘The hottest months of the year were
come, when there was almost a burning heat in the valley
of the Jordan, and on the shores of the Lake of Galilee ;
and very likely the wealthiest and most influential persons
of the towns on the lake were gone away, or, at least, were
less inclined to active exertions. Neither do any crowds
seem to gather about Jesus, who indeed kept Himself
aloof from any public display. He spent, His time in
teaching His disciples and such persons as came to Him,
trying to prepare their minds for what was to come, and
to fit them for their future work. A peaceful, happy few
weeks for Mary, who had her Son again beside her for a
little while ; yet her heart would sink often as she heard
His sayings, and began to see with a mother’s fearful eye
that no throne awaited Him in the city of David.
It seems to have been His last sojourn in Capernaum,
128 The Wonderful Life.
a quiet breathing time, in which He could taste once
more the peace and rest of ahome. Children were about
Him ; and besides His mother, the women who were His
friends and disciples, and whose greatest gladness was to
minister to Him. We may suppose that some of the
apostles would resume for the time their fishing on the
lake, and that James and John would dwell again
under their father’s roof, When they gathered together in
the cool of the evening Jesus taught them the mysteries
of the kingdom of God, not in parables, as He taught
others. Now He put into precept and commandment
that which He had set before them by His example.
They were to tread in His steps, to go about doing good ;
to find it more blessed to give than to receive ; to forgive
- their enemies ; to be perfect even as their Father in heaven
was perfect. Hard lessons! Yet the seed fell upon good
ground, and, hidden there for some months, finally
brought forth fruit a hundred-fold.
Before long, however, the peace of this short truce
with His foes was disturbed by the approach of the
autumnal Feast of Tabernacles. It was that joyous feast,
after harvest and before the rains of winter, which at-
tracted so many of the country folks up to Jerusalem, to
dwell in booths for a week; when each worshipper carried
to the Temple branches of citron and myrtle, willow and
palm, in his hands; and each day a glad procession
attended a priest to fetch water from the pool of Siloam
in a golden pitcher, to be afterwards poured at the base
At Home Once More. 129
of the altar. Even the nights were made jubilant with
services in the Temple, the lights in which lit up the
house-tops of Jerusalem, with their booths of thick
branches, and shone afar off in the darkness ; whilst the
sound of song, and the music of harps and lutes, cymbals’
and trumpets, echoed far and near in the stillness of the
night. ,
The cousins of our Lord, who would naturally be
more impatient even than His other disciples for a public
assertion of His claims, now began to urge Him to go up
to the feast, which they were about to attend. We cannot
suppose that they did not believe in Him at all ; they
knew Him to be mighty in works and in words; and
they desired ambitiously that He should display His
power to His disciples in Judea, though they could not
have been ignorant of the danger He must run. But
as yet they did not believe Him to be the Son of God.
They could not understand His conduct, in claiming so
much, yet refusing to be made a king, or at least the
leader of a popular party against the Romans. Possibly
they may have thought that if Jesus joined the caravan of
pilgrims starting for the feast, He would not be able to
withdraw Himself from their enthusiasm, and would be
carried forward to Jerusalem as their Messiah, when mul-
titudes, who hated the Roman yoke, would rise to join
Him, and He would be forced to assume the position
they wished for Him to take.
But Jesus, discerning their motives, bade them go up to
K
130 The Wonderful Life.
the feast alone; whilst He remained behind in Galilee,
until after the caravan, with its ever-increasing band of
enthusiastic pilgrims, had gone on. Then, with His own
little band of faithful friends, He set out for Jerusalem
through Samaria, the nearest and least frequented route.
In fact, no other pilgrims were likely to choose this way ;
for when Jesus.Himself sent forward some messengers to
a village in Samaria, to make ready for them, the in-
habitants would not supply them with any necessaries,
would not even receive them into the village, because
their journey was towards Jerusalem. But when James
and John asked if they should not copy the example of
Elijah, and call down fire from heaven to consume them,
Jesus rebuked them, uttering one of the sayings which
all His life through had been His motto, ‘The Son of
man is not come to destroy men’s lives, but to save
them.’ And they went to another village less bigoted,
where, perhaps, He was known as the prophet.who had
passed by that way early in the year.
At the feast there was a good deal of argument and
discussion about Jesus. He was sought for in the Temple,
amid the worshippers with their palm branches, but He
was not to be found. Quietly all the people were talking
about Him, some saying, ‘He is a good man;’ others,
‘Nay, but He deceiveth the people.’ The Pharisees had
already widely spread their opinion that He was an im-
postor, and His miracles deceptions, by which the people .
were misled. But no one spoke openly of Him for fear.
At Home Once More. 131
of the Sanhedrim, who possessed the dreaded power of
casting an offender out of the synagogue, a punishment
similar to that of excommunication.
In the midst of the feast, however, Jesus appeared in
the Temple, not quietly either, but openly in His office as
teacher and prophet. The people were amazed at His
boldness, and equally amazed at the inactivity of the
Sanhedrim, who seemed reluctant to interfere with Him at -
the first. They were in truth privately planning how to
take Him ; but the feasts were so often the occasion of
riot and confusion that they sought rather to lay hands on
Him in secret, so as to avoid any open disturbance. This
the constant presence of His disciples and friends from
Galilee made impossible during the week of the feast. On
the last day, that great day of the feast, when the priests
marched seven times round the altar, singing Hosannah,
and the leaves were shaken off the willow boughs in the
hands of the worshippers, and the water from Siloam was
poured for the last time on the altar, then Jesus stood
forth, before the crowded congregation and cried, ‘If any
man thirst, let him come unto Me and drink.’
Many of the people upon hearing this saying, and
feeling the awful courage of any prophet standing thus in
their midst, and crying aloud words of such meaning,
could not but believe that He was of a truth the Christ.
Others asked, ‘Shall Christ come out of Galilee?’ And
there was a division among them, some being even
willing to take Him; but no man laid hands on Him.
132 The Wonderful Life
The Temple officers, who had been sent by the Sanhe-
drim to arrest Him, and bring Him before them, were
so impressed by His words and manner of speaking, that
they dared not touch Him, but chose rather to return to
their masters, and own that never man spake like. Him.
The Pharisees answered sharply that they, too, were de-
ceived, though none of the rulers or Pharisees had
believed on Him; none but the common people, who
were too ignorant to know the law. Nicodemus, who
was His disciple, though secretly, now ventured to remon-
strate, but met with a sharp and sneering reply. After
which every man went home; and Nicodemus probably
took care that Jesus should be warned of the plots of
the Pharisees.
( 133 )
CHAPTER XIV.
THE LAST AUTUMN.
From that time Jesus appears to have spent His nights
out of Jerusalem, only venturing to appear there in the
daytime, when. His friends were about Him. On the
eastern slope of the Mount of Olives, about two miles
from Jerusalem, was a small village, called Bethany.
This low mountain was henceforth to be His favourite
haunt, and this village His most frequent home. There
lived in it a family of friends whom He loved dearly, with
a marked and special friendship. They were people of
some importance, and were well known in Jerusalem ;
and it was now probably that they often received Him
into their house as their beloved guest.
Early on the first Sabbath day, after the Feast of
Tabernacles, Jesus came to the Temple, and sat down
to teach in the treasury, which was a colonnade sur- “
rounding the court of women, the usual place for worship.
Here, of course, most of the congregation could both see
and hear Him ; and especially those who paused to cast
134 The Wonderful Life.
in their gifts into the trumpet-shaped chests which stood
against the wall. His teaching was interrupted by the
questions and remarks of the Pharisees, who grew more
and more malicious, until at length, after calling Him a
Samaritan, and telling Him He had a devil, they madly
gathered up the stones which were lying by to be used in
repairing part of the building, and would have stoned
Him to death in the courts of the Temple itself, had He
not hid Himself from them, and passed by through their
midst. No riot ensued, for now the feast was over the
great mass of people were dispersed ; and this probably
gave them the courage to attack Him thus suddenly and
openly.
But no danger to Himself could hinder Him from a
work of mercy. As He was passing from the Temple
His disciples called His attention to a blind man, who
was, pethaps, begging at the gate by which they left the
Temple.
From this gate, which was at the north-west of the
Temple enclosure, there ran a causeway down into the
Lower City, where the poorer classes, to whom the blind
beggar belonged, had their shops and houses. The
disciples asked Him which had sinned, the man or his
parents, that he should be born blind. Jesus answered
them this blindness was no effect of sin either in himself
or his parents ; and, repeating the words with which He
had begun His sermon in the Temple—‘I am the light.
of the world’—He anointed the poor man’s eyes with
The Last Autumn. 135
clay, and bade him go to wash in the pool of Siloam.
Siloam lay south of the Temple mount, and many a
joyous procession had gone down to it for water during
the feast. The blind beggar had to make his way
through the busiest streets of the Lower ‘City, his eyes
smeared with the clay. He must have been very well
known in this poor neighbourhood, and when he came
back from Siloam, with his sight restored, there was a
great excitement. Some among them disputed whether
he was the blind beggar or no. They gathered about
him, asking how his eyes had been opened, and he told
them frankly all he knew. This Jesus, who was spoken
of as one of those impostors who deceived the people of
Galilee by false miracles, was He who had restored sight
to him, although he had been born blind.
The escape of Jesus from their sudden attack must
have left the Pharisees in a state of irritated dissappoint-
ment; and their vexation was certainly not lessened when
a throng of people from the Lower City brought to them
aman upon whom such a wonderful miracle had been
wrought at the very moment of His escape. They had
been carefully fostering the opinion that Jesus was an
impostor, and here was: direct proof to the contrary.
They could seize only upon the one point which might
be made to bear an evil aspect—‘ This man is not of
God, because He keepeth not the Sabbath-day.’ But
some of the Pharisees themselves objected to this, asking,
‘How can a man that is a sinner do such miracles?
¢
136 Lhe Wonderful Life.
There was a division amongst them. They even referred
to the beggar, asking him what he said of the man who
had opened his eyes. ‘He is a prophet, he answered,
unhesitatingly.
Upon this they professed not to believe that the man
had been blind, and they sent for his parents, both father
and mother. They were timid people, poor, of course,
in circumstances, and therefore the more afraid of being
turned out of the synagogue, and so of losing their
livelihood. They could not afford to be bold in behalf,
of their son, ‘He is of age, said the poor trembling
parents ; ‘we know he is our son, and that he was born
blind, but we do not know anything else. He shall
speak for himself’? It may have been, it probably was,
the first time the man’s eyes had seen his father and
mother ; he knew their voices, but their faces he now
looked upon with his new power of sight, marvelling, no
doubt, at the strange world at once opened to him, and
unable to read as we do the expression of those about
us. The frowns of the Pharisees, the downcast timidity
of his parents, the eager gaze of his old neighbours, were
a strange language to him,
The Pharisees questioned and cross-questioned the
poor beggar, but he was a man of shrewd common sense,
and of great courage, perhaps the courage of ignorance.
He maintained firmly, that one thing he did know, whereas
he was blind, now he could see. The blue heavens
above, the splendour of the Temple, the smoke rising
The Last Autumn. 137
from the altar, all those things of which he had heard so -
often, he could now see. At length, after being badgered
into what seemed an outbreak of insolence from so mean
a person, he cried, ‘Why, herein is a marvellous thing,
that ye know not from whence He is, and yet He hath
opened mine eyes. Now, we know that God heareth not
sinners: but if any man be a worshipper of God, and
doeth His will, him He heareth. Since the world began
was it not heard that any man opened the eyes of one
that was born blind. If this man were not of God, He
could do nothing.’ _Not long before the Pharisees had
said to Jesus, ‘Thou art a Samaritan, and hast a devil !’
These last words of the beggar so exasperated them that
they immediately pronounced against him the sentence
of excommunication, which, besides depriving him of his
right as a Jew, would make him an alien and outcast in
his father’s house, amongst those kinsmen whose faces he
had never yet beheld, but who would now turn away
from him with shame and terror. Better for him if he
had been left a blind beggar sitting at the gate of the
Temple.
But Jesus, who had bestowed upon him this blessing,
now turned by the bigotry of the Pharisees into a curse,
no sooner heard that he had been cast out of his syna-
gogue, than He sought for him in his loneliness and
misery. The blind man had boldly maintained that
Jesus of Nazareth was a prophet come from God, in the
face of those who were striving to put Him to death. So
138 The Wonderful Life.
when Jesus found him, stript of love and religious rights,
without father or mother in the world, and shut out from
the Temple and its sacrifices.for sin, he revealed Himself
to the wretched man as being not a prophet merely, but
the Son of God, that God from whom the sentence of
excommunication seemed to cut him off. ‘There was no
need of the Temple and the sacrifices for him, if he would
but believe in the Son of God, who was greater than the
Temple. ‘Lord, I believe!’ cried the man, as he wor-
shipped Him who had opened his eyes. And now,
probably, as he was cast out of all other fellowship, he
would be admitted into the circle of the disciples,
who were willing to brave any penalties threatened by
the Pharisees, and who already formed a little society of
their own.
From amongst the disciples who had been with Him
at the Feast of Tabernacles, Jesus had chosen seventy,
and sent them by two and two on a similar missionary
tour to that short journey of the twelve apostles, which
had been made in Galilee in the spring. The Jewish
tradition was that God had ordained seventy nations to
inhabit the earth, and Jesus may have chosen this number
to indicate that His mission was not to the Jews only, but
to all the world. The seventy were directed to visit
certain villages, whither Christ intended to go Himself,
chiefly in Judea, where he appears to have remained until
about the middle of December.
Judea had little of the beauty which made Galilee so
The Last Autumn. oy 139,
dear to Jesus ; and it possessed none of those early asso-
ciations, which makes all men cling to the place of their
early childhood. The hills of Judea are bleak and bare ;
the season was that of the sad and waning autumn, whén
the drought of summer was not repaired by the winter’s
rains. The people, though more polished, were less
trustworthy and less independent than the Galileans.
" Society was more corrupt and artificial ; and Jesus mourn-
fully likened the religious leaders to whited sepulchres,
full of dead men’s bones, and declared that they made
their proselytes tenfold more the children of hell than
themselves. The political condition of the country was
even worse than in Galilee, where there was at least a
Jewish tetrarch, Judea was under a Roman ruler, and
its fortresses were filled with Roman soldiers. Riots
against Pontius Pilate were frequent. Robbers infested
the roads ; and even between Jerusalem and Jericho, a
highway between two chief cities, it was no uncommon
occurrence to fall among thieves.
How Jesus avoided the snare of His enemies during
these two months we are not told. But we must recollect
they had no legal power to put Him to death; they had
failed in crushing Him by a sudden outbreak in the
Temple : and the number and faithfulness of His followers
preserved Him from secret assassination. He passed
from village to village, always dogged by the Pharisees,
who hoped to catch something out of His mouth, that
they might accuse Him to Pilate, who, though he did not
140 The Wonderful Life.
trouble himself to interfere with a Jewish prophet, would
speedily put an end to any political agitator. There was
constantly some danger of Jesus appearing to him in this
character, from the innumerable multitudes which gathered
about Him wherever He appeared; always a perilous
sign when a country is ripe, as Judea was, for rebellion.
It was during this time that Jesus probably made that
visit to Bethany when Martha is first mentioned as
receiving Him into her house, and being so much cum-
bered about much serving as to speak somewhat sharply
to Him, though He was both her Lord and her guest.
‘Lord, dost thou not care that my sister hath left me to
serve alone?’ she asked. ‘Bid her therefore that she
help me†No doubt He had seen all this house-pride
and hospitable impatience before, when His cousins in
Nazareth had made feasts for their friends ; and we can
fancy Him smiling at the hurried and weary woman.
‘Martha, Martha,’ He answered, gently, ‘thou art careful
and troubled about many things; but one thing is need-
ful: and Mary has chosen that better part, which shall
not be taken away from her.’
Onceagain, during these twomonths, the old blasphemy
revived, that He was casting out devils by the prince of
devils. The old accusation of breaking the Sabbath was.
also renewed. He was in some village synagogue, where
he saw a poor woman bowed together so that she could -
not lift up herself, He did not wait for her to ask for
help, but called her to Him, and laid His hands upon
The Last Autumn. 141
her, and immediately she was made straight. The ruler
of the synagogue was very indignant, and addressing the
people forbade them to come to be healed on the Sabbath
day. ‘Hypocrite !’ cried the Lord ; ‘doth not each of
you on the Sabbath loose his ox or his ass from the stall,
and lead him away to watering? And ought not this
woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan hath
bound, lo, these eighteen years, be loosed from this bond
on the Sabbath day?’ For once all His adversaries were
ashamed ; and all the people rejoiced for the glorious
things that He had done.
The winter was now come, and with it the Feast of
the Dedication of the Temple. This feast, like that of
Purim, was not one appointed by the law of Moses, and
therefore it was not generally kept by the Galileans, or
the Jews living far from Jerusalem. It was celebrated in
honour of the reconsecration of the Temple after a
terrible and shameful pollution of it a hundred and sixty-
six years before Christ. Comparatively a modern festival,
it was however a time of great mirth and gladness; and
it was called the Feast of Lights, from the custom of
illuminating the city during its celebration. Once more
Jesus resolved to show Himself openly amidst His
deadliest foes. There was a colonnade running round
the court of the Gentiles, called Solomon’s porch, which
afforded shelter from the cold winds of winter. Here He
chose to walk to and fro, teaching, as was His custom,
those who crowded about Him to learn. The Pharisees
r
142 The Wonderful Life.
surrounded Him in this place, asking Him to say plainly
if He were the Christ, or Messiah, probably with the hope
that He would claim this kingly title, and so lay Himself
open to an accusation before Pilate. The Lord’s reply
afforded them no such ground, but He uttered words
which excited their fiercest anger. Again they took up
stones to stone Him; but He escaped out of their hands,
and left Jerusalem to enter it but once more.
Jesus now withdrew altogether from Judea, into the
place beyond Jordan, where John had at first baptized.
It was in the same valley, beside the same river, where
He had spent the first summer of His public life, whilst
John was still alive, and teaching and baptizing not far
from Him. Only twelve months had passed since He had
left that quiet retreat, to enter upon a career full of
change, of wanderings, of increasing difficulties and
dangers. His enemies had laid wait for Him ; had never
wearied of hunting Him from place to place; had three
times attempted His life at the feasts. His own kinsmen
did not fully believe in Him ; His numerous friends were
bewildered and disatisfied ; and His disciples, though
still faithful to Him, were disappointed, and looked
anxiously into the future. It was wintry weather ; the
sky was heavy with clouds, and storms swept across the
land. The summer seemed also to have faded out of
His life; all that gladness with which His God had
crowned Him above His fellows. Poor, homeless, and
an exile; rich only in the friendship of a few fisherman
The Last Autumn. 143
and peasants who made themselves. homeless and exiles
for His sake: with a traitor always at His side, and a
host of deadly foes conspiring against Him: thus Jesus
passed the last winter of His life.
Whilst He was in Perea many people came to Him,
who remembered what John the Baptist had said of Him.
John had not yet been dead twelve months, and the
anger of the people against Herod had not died away.
Many of them believed on Jesus, as He went about,
according to His custom, from village to village, teaching,
in homely parables, which took firm hold of the minds
and memories of His hearers. Very possibly the
Pharisees sought to get Herod to arrest Him; but this
he dared not do, so unpopular had he become by the
murder of John. They tried, therefore, to frighten Jesus
back into Judea, and they came to Him with a warning.
‘Get thee out, and depart hence,’ they said, ‘for Herod
will kill thee.’ But Jesus had certain work to do in that
country, and He was not to be driven from it by their
cunning or Herod’s. One of the miracles He wrought
at this time in Perea was in the house of one of the chief
Pharisees of that neighbourhood, where He had been
invited, that they might watch Him. It was the Sabbath
day, and a man was set before Him afflicted with dropsy.
As usual, Jesus did not hesitate to heal him, the lawyers
and Pharisees finding nothing to say against His doing
so. After this He gave both to the guests and to His
‘host certain rules concerning feasts, which were very
144 The Wonderful Life.
different from those usually observed. To this period .
also belong the parables of the Great Supper, the Lost
Sheep, the Lost Coin, the Prodigal Son, the Unjust
Steward, and the Rich Man and Lazarus.
( 145)
CHAPTER XV.
LAZARUS.
LAZARUS, that name which Jesus had given to the poor
beggar carried by the angels into Abraham’s bosom, was
also the name of a friend whom He loved dearly, and of
whom His mind was at this moment full. About the
same time that the Pharisees had come to Him with their
cunning stratagem to drive Him into Judea, there had
reached Him a message from the home in Bethany:
‘Lord, behold, he whom Thou lovest is sick.’ Martha
and Mary, the sisters of Lazarus, did not,. because they
could not, urge their Lord to come to them. The peril
was great. Nay, if He had gone at once He would have
fallen into the very snare His enemies had laid for Him.
He stayed, therefore, two days where He was, teaching
the people as usual, and betraying no design of leaving
that place. But on the third day, when the danger
was somewhat passed by, though His disciples still
remonstrated with Him for venturing again to Judea,
He set out for Bethany. Thomas, the most timid and
u
146 The Wonderful Life.
doubtful of the disciples, said to his companions, in a
despair which proves the strength of his attachment to
his master, ‘Let us also go, that we may die with
Him,’
It was a toilsome journey, hurriedly and secretly
taken. The disciples, like other men in a country of
foes, must have been anxious and uneasy, not altogether
seeing the necessity of this new peril. The Lord Himself
was probably troubled and sorrowful, for He knew that
Lazarus was dead, and He sympathized with the grief of
his sisters, On the fourth day after his death He reached
the village, but did not enter it, only sending a message to
the sisters that He had come. The house was filled
with Jews from Jerusalem, which was only two miles
away, and Martha, as soon as she heard that Jesus was
near, rose up, and went out to meet Him, lest He should
be unaware of the risk He was running. But Mary was
too deeply sunk in sorrow even to hear that He who
loved them was so close at hand, It was not until He
sent Martha to her, who told her secretly, ‘The Master is
come, and calleth for thee,’ that she knew He was there.
Mary did not possess Martha’s characteristic caution
and prudence. She rose up quickly, and hurried to seek
Jesus outside the town where He was staying, without
attempting to conceal her movements, A number of the
Jews followed her, thinking she was going to her brother’s
grave to weep there. The whole company, weeping and
mourning, came to the place where Jesus was waiting for
Lazarus. 147
Mary, in the midst of His anxious disciples. But the
grief of the two sisters, and His own tears, saved Him
at this moment. They even wept with them, and ex-
claimed, ‘Behold, how He loved him!’ In a sacred
brotherhood of grief they led Him to the cave where His
friend had been lying for four days.
Some of them, who had known of the miracle per-
formed on the blind beggar, asked among themselves if
He could not have saved Lazarus from dying. But it
was too late now. Here was the grave, with the stone
laid upon it, beneath which the dead body had been
decaying these four days. Even Martha objected to
having the stone taken away. It may be that some
among them had heard how the widow’s son, at Nain, had
appeared to come to life again when he was about to be
buried ; but how different that was to the case of a man
so well known, who had been dead so long! Close by
Jerusalem, too, where the rulers were seeking to put
Jesus to death as an impostor!
But the stone was taken away, and all stood silent,
looking on with awe. Did Jesus wish to see once again
the form of His friend, now conquered by the last enemy,
Death? He did not enter into the cave, but crying with
a loud voice, which rang through the silence of the crowd
and the stillness of the grave, He said, ‘ Lazarus, come
forth !’
How every heart must have throbbed! Was it
possible that the dead ear could catch the sound, and the
148 The Wonderful Life.
dead form move? Did they press round the cave, or
shrink away in fear? We cannot tell; but the moment
of suspense was short. They could hear a stir and
movement within the sepulchre; and Lazarus, bound
hand and foot with grave-clothes, and his face hidden
from them by a napkin, appeared in the doorway on
which all eyes were fastened. The deathly pallor of his
face had vanished, and his eyes were bright again with
life, before they could take away the cloth that hid it;
and the limbs that had been bound in grave-clothes for
four days were strong enough to carry him home to his
house, across whose door-sill they had borne him in the
stillness and helplessness of death.
Many of the people from Jerusalem who saw this
‘miracle believed in Jesus. We may confidently suppose
that for this night at least He was secure from all attempts
to arrest Him ; and that He could safely stay with the
friends He had so marvellously blessed. But some of
the bystanders went their way at once to the Pharisees
to tell them what had been done. The time was at last
come when the chief priests began to take a more active
interest in crushing this prophet from Nazareth. They
were mostly Sadducees ; Caiaphas the high priest, and
Annas, his father-in-law, a most powerful man, being at
the head of the Sadducees. Hitherto they had regarded
Jesus with contempt, as one beneath their notice. But
one of their leading tenets was the denial of the resurrec-
- tion; and this strange story from Bethany could not but
Lazarus. 149
be exceedingly repulsive and alarming to them. They
took counsel together with the Pharisees to put Him
to death; and as they, the aristocracy of the Temple,
had much more political power than the middle-class
Pharisees, their antagonism greatly increased the peril of
Jesus. Caiaphas, the high priest, was exceedingly em-
phatic upon the necessity of destroying Him, saying
sharply to the counsel, ‘ Ye know nothing at all, nor con-
sider that it is expedient for us, that one man should die
for the people, and that the whole nation perish not.’
Jesus had two friends among these counsellors thus
plotting His death, Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea ;
and possibly they gave Him instant warning of His ,
increasing danger, for He left Bethany immediately, and
that home which He had made so happy, to withdraw to
Ephraim, a town on the borders of Samaria, where at any
hour He could cross the frontier and place Himself
beyond the reach of both Sadducees and Pharisees. He
stayed there not many weeks, and then began His
last farewell circuit through Samaria and Galilee, as it
would seem rather for the purpose of visiting these places
once more, than of teaching or of healing. It was
now the early spring, and the corn-fields of Samaria and
Galilee would be already springing into life under the
ripening sun ; half-opened leaf-buds were green upon the
trees; and the grassy turf was strewn with daisies, and
lilies, and anemones of all colours. Probably He crossed
the plain of Esdraelon, over which He had so often
150 The Wonderful Life.
gazed from the hills of Nazareth. But we do not find
that He ventured into any of the familiar villages; but
rather, like one hunted as a partridge upon the mountains,
the wandering Son of Man turned aside out of Galilee,
and descending into the deep valley of the Jordan, waited ~
on the eastern bank of the river for His hour to come;
that hour which was very soon to strike.
But even here He was not left alone in peace with His
disciples. The spies, with whom He was always sur-
rounded, came to Him as usual with perplexing and
difficult questions. ‘Is it lawful fora man to put away
his wife for every cause?’ they asked. Herod, as we
know, had put away his wife to marry Herodias, much to
the displeasure of his people, who regarded it as a scan-
dalous act. This question of divorce was one angrily
disputed among the people, and especially among the
Pharisees. It could scarcely be answered without giving
deep offence to large numbers of persons. For once
Jesus took the side of the bitter and bigoted Pharisees of
the school of Shammai; and by so doing gave occasion
to His own disciples to venture upon a remonstrance to
Him, saying the case of the man -was hard. But the
women, who were the real sufferers under the law, were
gréatly pleased ; and immediately upon His answer, so
wise and just, becoming known, they brought to Him
their little children, both girls and boys, that He might
pray for them. The disciples somewhat bitterly rebuked
their enthusiasm, and would have sent them away, had
Lazarus. 151
not Jesus interfered, being much displeased. He had
come to raise woman to her proper position, and to make
little children the care of all who would enter the king-
dom of God. He ordered them, therefore, to be brought
to Him, and having laid His hands upon their heads, and
blessed them, He left the place ;- probably lest the enthu-
siasm of the women should create too great a commotion.
Not long after this there came to Him a rich young
man, a ruler of a synagogue, who had kept the law from
his youth up, and wanted some good thing yet to do.
Quickly, Jesus put him to the test. ‘If thou wilt be
perfect,’ He answered, ‘go and sell all that thou hast, and
give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven ;
and come, follow Me.’ He was exceedingly grieved at
this reply, and went away sorrowful. Jesus, who, when
He saw him, loved him, exclaimed mournfully, ‘How
hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom
of God!’ Upon that, Peter began to contrast himself
and his fellow-disciples with this rich ruler, saying, ‘ Lo,
we have left all to follow Thee!’ It was true; and Jesus
must have felt deeply the faithfulness of His simple-minded
followers. He promised them that they should receive the
reward the young ruler had been seeking to obtain, even
eternal life. But, as though He must check the vain
hopes always at work in their hearts, He told them many
that were first should be last, and the last first.
152 The Wonderful Life.
CHAPTER XVI.
THE LAST SABBATH.
LINGERING on the eastern banks of Jordan till a few days
before the passover, Jesus was there no doubt joined by
His mother, His kinsmen, and the women from Galilee,
who had so often ministered to Him, as they went up to
Jerusalem for the feast. Numbers of pilgrims had already
gone up before the feast-day to purify themselves ; and
both the chief priests and Pharisees had given command-
ment that if any man knew where He was, he should tell
it. They wished to take Him quietly, before the great
masses of the people were gathered together in the Holy
City ; but they began to fear that He would stay away, as
He had done the year before. They asked one another
in the Temple, ‘ What think ye, that He will not come to
the feast ?’ =
Already Jesus was on His way, and was pressing on-
ward, His face set towards Jerusalem. He went before
His bewildered and troubled disciples, as though eager
to get to His jourmey’s end. The disciples were often
The Last Sabbath. 153
depressed by His incomprehensible warnings, but still
oftener they seem to have been dazzled by visions of some
approaching splendour. Amongst the women who had
joined them from Galilee was Salome, the mother of
James and John. She came to beg a boon from Him—
that her sons might sit on His right hand and on His left
in His kingdom. ‘Though the rest were much displeased
with James and John because of this petition, they had
frequently discussed among themselves which should be
the greatest ; and possibly Judas, who kept the common
purse, felt himself of more importance than the others,
and at least certain of being treasurer in the coming
kingdom. Jesus called them to Him, and after telling
them that whosoever among them would be the chiefest
must be the servant of all, He added the beautiful saying,
‘For even the Son of Mantame not to be ministered
unto, but to minister, and to give His life a ransom for
many.’
But what did His mother think of this kingdom of
her son’s? We do not know. She was now once more
with Him, treading the familiar, yearly pilgrimage which
they had taken together for so many happy spring-tides.
Probably, she partook more fully of the mood and spirit
of Christ than His other friends; and though now and
then there might be a flutter of timid hope in her mother’s
heart, His grave, sad face, and solemn warnings, must
have prepared her for the darkness, not the splendour, of
the coming hour,
154 The Wonderful Life.
The city of Jericho was a few miles from the Jordan,
on the way to Jerusalem, standing in a magnificent grove
of palm-trees, and amid gardens of balsam. Jesus was
passing through the city, surrounded by a multitude of
followers and curious spectators, when the chief of the
tax-gatherers, a rich man, who was desirous to see Him,
ran before, and climbed into a tree; for he was little of
stature, and, in spite of his wealth, possessed no favour or
influence with his fellow-country men, that they should
make way for him in the press. Jesus, coming to the
place, looked up, and called him by name. ‘Zaccheus,
make haste, and come down,’ He said; ‘for to-day I
must abide at thy house.’ Joyfully he descended from
among the branches, and led the way to his dwelling-
place. But at this all who saw it murmured. The man
was a notorious sinner, one who had enriched himself
by unfair means, besides engaging in an infamous trade.
But Jesus had not called him without knowing his nature,
and what influence He could exercise over him. A day
or two before, when the rich young ruler had come to
ask what more good things he should do, having kept
the law from his youth up, Jesus had proposed to him
as a test that he should sell all that he had, and give
to the poor. We know how he shrank from giving up
his riches. This very test Zaccheus adopted of his own
choice. He stood up in the midst of his accusing fellow-
citizens, and said, ‘Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I
give to the poor; and if I have taken anything from any
The Last Sabbath. 155
man by false accusation, I restore him fourfold.’ If the
cheating of Zaccheus in his tax-gathering had been on any
large scale, this restitution would leave him a poor man
indeed. Jesus, knowing how hard it was fora rich man to
enter into the kingdom of heaven, said to him, ‘ This day
is salvation come to this house, forasmuch as he also is a
son of Abraham ;’ and He finished by perhaps His most
beautiful and most characteristic saying, ‘For the Son of
man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.’
Probably Jesus stayed that night in the house of
Zaccheus, and set out the next morning for Bethany.. A
numerous body of friends and pilgrims as usual gathered
around Him to accompany Him up the steep and rocky
road, which led to the Mount of Olives, under the brow
of which stood the little village where Lazarus lived.
The day before, as He entered into Jericho, a blind
man had heard Him passing by, and asked who it was
coming thus surrounded by a crowd. Now this blind
man, with a comrade in the same plight, sat by the
wayside, waiting for His approach. No sooner did they
hear that Jesus of Nazareth was nigh, than they began
to cry out to Him, a shrill, piercing cry, which reached
His ear, even amid the babble of the crowd. It was
a strange cry in Judea. ‘Jesus, thou Son of David,
have mercy on us!’ ‘Son of David!’ All who heard it
knew what it meant: and many amongst them must have
been offended. They rebuked the blind men, and
charged them to hold their peace. One of them was a
156 The Wonderful Life.
‘well-known beggar, blind Bartimeus; but he was the
loudest in his petition, crying out a great deal the more in
spite of their displeasure, ‘Son of David, have mercy on
me!’ Jesus stood. still, and called the blind men to Him,
having compassion on them; and they, receiving their
sight, followed Him up the steep ascent to Bethany, glori-
fying God.
It was probably Friday when Jesus entered Bethany ;
and one quiet Sabbath day He spent there with His
friends, Lazarus and his sisters. No doubt they had been
forewarned of His arrival, and Martha, as once before, had
been cumbered with household cares in His honour.. For
they made Him a feast, in the house of Simon, a leper
who had been restored to health by the Lord; and
Martha served at this supper. It was only a few weeks
since Lazarus had been called back from the grave ;
and this was the first opportunity they had had of giving
Him public honour and thanksgiving. ‘The Sabbath was
always a day of feasting and rejoicing among the Jews;
and no doubt a large company was invited on this
occasion—so large, perhaps, that Simon’s house was
chosen as being more commodious than their own. It
is specially noticed that Lazarus sat at the table with
Jesus ; and that much people of the Jews knew that the
Lord was there, and came out to see not Him only, but
Lazarus, whom He had raised from the dead.
Mary, wishful to show her love and devotion as well
as Martha, who was waiting upon their Master, and
The Last Sabbath. 157
counting nothing too costly to be spent for such a pur-
pose, brought an alabaster box of very precious ointment,
and breaking the box, anointed both His head and His
feet with it, caring not to save a drop of the rare perfume
for any other use. ‘The fragrance of it filled the whole
house where they were assembled. Some of the dis-
ciples, specially Judas Iscariot, felt indignant at this ex-
travagance. For they were poor men, unaccustomed to
luxury, and naturally intolerant of expensive whims, such
as this act of Mary’s seemed to them.
‘Why was this waste of ointment made?’ they asked.
Judas calculated how much it was worth, and said it
might have been sold for three hundred pence, and given
to the poor. These murmurs troubled Mary, who had
thought of nothing but how she could best show her
love to the Master. ‘ Let her alone,’ said Jesus ; ‘against
the day of My burying hath she. kept this. For the poor
always ye have with you, but Me ye have not always.’
They were mournful words for Mary to hear. Was she
indeed anointing her Lord beforehand, as if already
death had laid its hand secretly upon Him? Was it for
this she had saved her precious ointment? She had kept
it carefully to be used on some rare occasion, and now
that she had poured it all without stint upon His head
and feet, He said it was for His burial! But to take
away if possible the sting of His sad words, Jesus said
tenderly, ‘Wheresoever the gospel shall be preached in
the whole world, this shall be told as a memorial of her.’
158 The Wonderful Life.
This feast, given so publicly to Jesus, aroused the
anger of the chief priests against Lazarus. The miracle
had been so manifest, and so difficult, if not impossible,
to gainsay, that by reason of him many of the people
in Jerusalem believed in Jesus. That Lazarus also must
be put to death was the decision arrived at by the chief
priests; though the Pharisees do not seem to have had
anything to do with this resolve. He was too well known
at Jerusalem for him to be left as a witness to the -
miraculous powers of Jesus of Nazareth.
BOOK III.
VICTIM AND VICTOR.
( 161 )
CHAPTER Tf.
THE SON OF DAVID.
THE pilgrims who had left Jestis at Bethany, and gone
on to Jerusalem, carried with them the news of His arrival,
and excited considerable interest in the city.. On the
next day many people, hearing that He was on the road
from Bethany, went out to meet Him, and as they passed
through the cool groves and gardens of Olivet, they
plucked branches of palms and olives, and wove them
together as they climbed the hill. Soon they saw Him
coming round the brow of the mountain along the road
thronged by the bands of pilgrims, amongst a crowd
of them, though easily discerned, as He was no longer
on foot, but riding on the colt of an ass, upon which
the disciples had cast their garments, At the sight of
Him they broke into a shout, which might readily have
been heard in the Temple courts. They shouted
‘Hosannah !’ and the cry was taken up by the crowd
surrounding Jesus, and echoed far in the clear atmos-
phere. ‘Hosannah to the Son of David! Blessed is
162 The Wonderful Life.
the King of Israel, that cometh in the name of the
Lord ! The road was quickly strewn with mats of palm
branches, and with the garments of the excited throng.
The disciples, hearing the shout of the Messiah, the
battle-cry of the nation, must have felt that at last the
kingdom was truly nigh at hand, and that their Master
was about to take to Himself His throne and sceptre,
and to fulfil His promise to them that they should sit
upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.
But neither joy nor triumph was seen on the face
of Jesus. As they wound slowly round the mount, a
sudden turn of the road brought them in sight of
Jerusalem, with its palaces and Temple in all their glory
of marble and gold. It was a city worthy of being the
capital of a great nation, beautiful for situation, the per-
fection of beauty in Jewish eyes; but when He beheld
it thus lying before Him, He wept over it. He foresaw
the Roman legions casting a trench about it, besieging
it straitly, and leaving not one stone upon another, and
the day of salvation was past, the things which belonged
' to its peace were now hidden. His mother, and those
nearest Him, heard the lamentation He uttered, and saw
His tears falling, but the great crowd swept on, shouting
and singing, down into the valley, and up again to Bas
gate of Jerusalem.
All the city was by this time in a stir, asking, ‘ Who
is this?’ The Galileans, proud of their prophet, were
the most eager in their reply. ‘This is Jesus, the Prophet
The Son of David. 163
‘of Nazareth in Galilee, they answered, as the procession
threaded the narrow streets and thousands of people
gazed down upon it from the house-tops, whilst the
question ran along from house to house, ‘Who is this
that cometh?’ No marvel that shortly afterwards we
find Greeks going to Philip, and saying to him, ‘Sir, we
would see Jesus.’
Soon the Temple courts were flooded by the crowd.
The children, always difficult to silence, did not cease to
shout for any dread of the priests, or awe of the sacred
place. They continued to cry, ‘Hosanna to the Son of
David!’ Some of the Pharisees had asked Him to rebuke
His disciples on their way from Bethany, but now the
powerful chief priests and scribes of the Temple came
to Him in sore displeasure. ‘Hearest thou what these
say?’ they asked. ‘Yea,’ answered Christ, ‘have ye
never read, Out of the mouths of babes and sucklings
thou hast perfected praise?’ He would neither forbid
them, nor refuse to receive the title of Son of David, that
cry which displeased His enemies so greatly. But as
evening was near, and it was not safe for Him to stay in
the city during the night, He left the Temple and re-
turned to Bethany.
Probably, to avoid a repetition of these exciting occur-
rences, Jesus returned to the city very early the next
morning. He had never omitted any opportunity ‘of
warning His disciples against hypocrisy ; and this day, by
a singular and symbolic act, He impressed His lessons
164 The Wonderful Life.
on their memory. Being hungry on the way, and seeing
a fig-tree in leaf, He turned aside to see if there were figs
upon it; for the fruit of this tree precedes the opening of
the leaf There was nothing but leaves only—a fit
emblem of the nation which, alone among all nations,
professed the service of the one true God. ‘Let no
fruit grow upon thee from henceforth for ever !’ He cried;
and the next time they passed by, the disciples saw the
fig-tree withered away.
Upon reaching the Temple, once again He drove out
the merchants and money-changers from the outer court.
He had done this the last time He had come to the
passover, two years before, saying, ‘Make not My
Father’s house a house of merchandise.’ Now, in bolder
language, He told them that they were making it a den of
thieves. By the time the court was cleared, it was known
throughout the city that Jesus was in the Temple, and the
blind and the lame came to Him to be healed in the
sight of those deadly foes who represented Him as an im-
postor. It was in vain they sought to seize Him. The
multitudes ever about Him made it impossible to take
Him openly and by day. The chief priests were as much
baffled as the less powerful Pharisees, for an uproar in the
Temple would inevitably bring down the Roman garrison
dwelling in the tower of Antonia close by. At night they
did not know where to find Him; and soon it became
plain that they must seek for a traitor among His most
trusted followers,
The Son of David. 165
The next day (Tuesday) Jesus again appeared very
early in the Temple; the people also hastened thither,
eager and very attentive to hear Him. He began to teach
them, but He was soon interrupted by a party from the
Great Sanhedrim, the highest legal and religious court of
the nation, demanding by what authority He did such
things, and who gave Him this authority. Jesus replied,
‘T will also ask you a question. The baptism of John, was
it from heaven, or of men?’ It was their special province
to decide such a matter, but they dared not answer
according to their judgment, for they feared the people,
who held John as a prophet. When they said, ‘We cannot
tell,’ Jesus declined to answer their question concerning
His authority. But in their hearing He uttered the ter-
rible parable of the wicked husbandman, and the parable
of the marriage of the king’s son. They knew that He
spoke of them, and their enmity grew, if possible, more
vehement. But they stayed to listen no longer. They
could not cope with such a speaker: His wisdom and
skill in weaving parables turned the scale against them.
The mass of the people might not catch the deeper
meaning of His words, but there were many there who
could not fail to see how meen they were driven home
against them,
The Pharisees, upon this discomfiture of the Sanhe-
drim, took counsel how they might entangle Him in His
talk. They sent some spies, feigning themselves to be
honest, anxious-minded men, troubled with a scruple of
166 The Wonderful Life.
conscience. Ought they to pay tribute to the Roman
Emperor? Jesus, who cared for no man, but taught the
way of God truly, should decide for them. It was a
clever, cunning question. Many really devout Jews were
not easy in their minds about this paying of taxes to a
foreign power. The Galileans especially, among whom
were His supporters, had risen again and again in rebellion
on this very point. The kinsmen of those Galileans who
had perished in these insurrections were at that moment
among His hearers, ready to take fire at any judgment
adverse to their martyred friends. The disciples them-
selves must have been listening eagerly for His reply.
All, except Judas Iscariot, belonged to Galilee; and
one of them, Simon the Zealot, appears to have once
belonged to a fierce and cruel party, sworn both to slay
and to die in defence of the law. Was it lawful to pay
tribute to a foreign king?
Jesus Himself was in a singular position. He had per-
mitted the Galileans to carry Him in triumph into Jeru-
salem, amid the significant shouts of ‘Hosanna. to the Son
of David!’ He had spent two long days openly in the
Temple, teaching and working miracles in the face of His
powerful enemies, who appeared paralysed in their efforts
to check or arrest Him. His followers could not fail to
see in these things that at last He claimed the Messiah.
ship. Had He then resolved to gird His sword upon His
thigh, and ride forth prosperously, with sharp arrows in
the hearts of His adversaries? Was that right hand, which
The Son of David. 167
had been laid upon so many sufferers with a tender touch,
about to learn terrible things? They dared not yet
answer ‘Yes’ to these questions, but they longed to do
so. Yet the escape every evening from the city and
their Master’s solemn prophecies answered ‘No.’ Now
He was asked, in the presence of foes, friends, and fol-
lowers, ‘Is it lawful to give tribute to Ceesar ?’
His reply disappointed them all, and served to diminish
His popularity, though not to any dangerous extent. No
uproar followed it. He bade them bring to Him the
tribute money, and they showed Him a Roman coin,
which was in common use in the country ; a sign of their
subjection to a foreign power. ‘This subjection had been
permitted by their King, Jehovah, who was still ruling
them, as well as all the nations upon earth. If they had
been more careful to render unto God the things that
were God’s, they might not now have to pay tribute to
Cesar. It had become their duty to render unto Ceesar
the things that belonged to Cesar.
There was nothing in this answer which could be
made a ground of complaint to Pilate. The Pharisees and
Herodians found themselves baffled. But now the courtly
and polished Sadducees came forward, seeking to put into
an absurd light the doctrine of the resurrection, one of the
points upon which He most insisted. Very likely Lazarus
was standing near Jesus, the object of much interest and
curiosity. The Sadducees, with the tact of men of the
world, knew that nothing damages a cause as ridicule
168 The Wonderful Life.
does. Jesus answered them solemnly, unveiling a little
the mystery that enshrouds the state of the dead. They
can die no more, neither marry. But they are equal to
the angels, and are the children of God. Then referring
~ them to their own Scriptures, and their lawgiver, Moses,
whose authority they were bound to receive, He pointed
out that when God spoke to him from the burning bush,
He said, ‘I am the God of Abraham.’ ‘He is not a God
of the dead,’ added Jesus, ‘but of the living : for all live
unto Him.’ ‘The multitude were astonished at this
answer; and certain of the scribes, who were standing
by, whose lives had been spent in poring over the sacred
books, cried out, ‘Master, Thou hast well said !’
The Pharisees enjoyed hearing the Sadducees thus
silenced ; and one of them, a scribe, thought this a good
opportunity for asking Jesus a question vehemently dis-
puted among them : Which was the chief commandment?
©All the law and the prophets hang on two command-
ments,’ replied Jesus, ‘and these two are alike. “Thou
shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with
all thy soul, and with all thy mind: and thou shalt love
thy neighbour as thyself.â€â€™? The scribe listened to this
answer with the approval of an honest man; and the
Lord said to him, ‘ Thou art not far from the kingdom of
God,’
It is probable that it was-on this day that a party of
Pharisees dragged before Him in the Temple a miserable
woman, detected in adultery. They set her in the midst,
The Son of David. 169
and called upon Him to pass judgment on her. The law
of Moses commanded that she should be stoned ; but this
law had fallen into complete disuse, and to revive it would
shock the whole nation. Yet if He, as a prophet, set
Himself against Moses, they would have some ground for
accusing Him. He seems to have been filled with shame
at the way this case was brought before Him ; and stoop-
ing down, Hewrote with His finger upon the ground, giving
no answer until they continued asking Him. Then,
lifting up Himself for a moment, He said, ‘He that is
without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her,’
The hardened consciences of these men, even of the
eldest, convicted them so poignantly of sin, that they stole
away one by one, leaving the unhappy woman alone with
Him. When in the silence He lifted up Himself a second
time, He said to her, ‘Woman, where are those thine
accusers? Hath no man condemned thee?’ ‘No man,
Lord,’ she answered. ‘ Neither do I condemn thee,’ He
added, ‘ go and sin no more.’
This was the last effort of His enemies to tempt Him ;
and they durst ask Him no more questions. Jesus, some
time during this day, put a question to them, which must
have made His followers’ hearts beat high. ‘What think
ye of Christ P’ Heasked. ‘Whose Son is He?’ An ex-
traordinary question! He knew very well that by all,
except a few, He was looked upon as the Son of Joseph,
the carpenter of Nazareth. His question drew attention
to one of the most striking flaws in His own claim to the
170 The Wonderful Life.
title of Messiah. ‘The Son of David,’ answered the
Pharisees promptly. Surely Mary, and those who knew
the mystery of His birth, now expect Him to proclaim it.
Simeon and Anna were dead; but there might still be
persons about the Temple, who would bear testimony to
their prophecies when the child Jesus was brought to be
presented to the Lord. But no; this was not the point
Jesus had in view. He showed the scribes how David in
the spirit called Christ his Lord, and intimated that there
was some meaning in the words which they had not
fathomed. He said no more ; and they could not answer
Him ; but the common people heard Him gladly.
At length, moved to the utmost indignation against
the Pharisees, who, as the most religious class, ruled over
and deceived the nation, He broke out into a vehement
and unrestrained rebuke of their hypocrisy in the hearing
of all the people. It was in the Temple itself; and the
day was far spent. Presently He was about to quit it, to
seek shelter and safety out of the city, and He was never
again to visit His Father’s house. He rebuked them
passionately, and ended His protest by lamenting once
more over Jerusalem. ‘Behold, your house’—no longer
calling it His Father’s house—‘is left unto you desolate !
For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till
ye shall say, Blessed is He that cometh in the name of theâ€
Lord.’
And now Jesus departed from the Temple, never more
to tread its courts, As He went out, His disciples, who
The Son of David. [71
were all amazed at hearing Him say that house should be
made desolate, pointed out to Him the goodly stones and
gifts, and enormously strong masonry of the walls. It
was, in fact, a fortress all but impregnable ; the defence
of the city on the eastern side, where it stood on the
brow of a precipitous rock. ‘The stones of which the
fortifications were built were of an extraordinary size.
‘Look, Master,’ they cried, ‘what manner of stones, and
what buildings are here!’ ‘Seest Thou these great build-
ings?’ He answered mournfully, ‘There shall not be
left one stone upon another that shall not be cast down,’
ie The Wonderful Life.
CHAPTER II.
THE TRAITOR.
QuiTTING the city, Jesus went up the slope of the Mount
of Olives, and sat down there over against the Temple,
looking across upon its marble walls and golden pin-
nacles. It was evening; and the setting sun touched it
with level rays, whilst the valley beneath lay in deep
shadow and gloom. It seems as if He could not turn
away from it, though He had left it for ever. It was
now a den of thieves, the house of hypocrisy, not His
Father's house. The disciples sat apart from Him,
distressed and discouraged. It had been altogether an
agitating day. Their Master had had opportunities again
and again of proclaiming His Messiahship, and had
neglected or avoided them.. His last vehement denun-
ciation of the scribes and Pharisees had probably given
as much offence to the people of Judea as His answer
about the tribute money had done to the Galileans. .He
seemed bent upon alienating His followers, and upon
thrusting back the greatness offered to Him,
The Trattor. 173
* At length Peter and Andrew, with James and John,
came to Him privately to ask when these things that He
had spoken of should come to pass. He spoke to them
in terms so clear of the immediate future that they could
no longer hope to see Him ascend an earthly throne, such
as they had been dreaming of. He foretold sorrows such
as had not been from the beginning of the creation. But
He distinctly declared Himself to be that Judge and
King before whom all nations should be finally gathered
for judgment and for separation. As He finished His
long and sorrowful discourse He said to these four
favourite disciples, ‘Ye know that after two days is the
feast of the passover, and the Son of man is betrayed to
be crucified.’
This was probably the first word they had heard of
treachery, and it could not but have shocked and troubled
them greatly. Who among His friends, those who were
trusted with the secret of His hiding-places, could be base
enough to turn traitor? It was a terrible thought. A
spy was among them who was about to betray their Lord.
Who could it be? MHastily they would run over the list
of His nearest and most trusted followers, but they could
not fix upon any one. Yet from that moment there was
no rest for them from suspicion and dread of the un-
known betrayer, from whom their Master could not be
secured.
The next day, Wednesday, and most of Thursday,
seems to have been a time of rest and peaceful retirement
174 | The Wonderful Life.
for Jesus. Probably He passed the hours chiefly with His
disciples and His mother, in quiet conversation, or in
silent thought, concerning all He had done and taught,
and all they were to do when He was gone. Somewhere
on the Mount of Olives, perhaps in the house of Lazarus,
the solemn hours glided by, neither wholly sorrowful, nor
wholly glad. Their Lord was still with them, and it was
hard to believe that days of mourning were about to
dawn. They could not see the coming sorrow, whilst
their eyes still caught the light of His tender smile.
They could not hear the murmur of the gathering storm,
whilst they were listening to His gracious words. A
happy, sorrowful, solemn time, such as never was so spent
on earth, before or since. His loved ones were around
Him, those whom His Father had given to Him, and
none of them were lost, save one.
That lost one was not with them the whole of the
day. Judas, the purse-bearer, had business to do in
Jerusalem; so he left. the friends and the Master, with
whom he had ate and drunk and wandered to and fro for
twelve months, knowing them more intimately than many
a man knows his brothers. He was weary of it all, and
yesterday he had seen every vision of wealth fade away
into a too certain prospect of persecution as a follower of
the Prophet of Nazareth. The purse at his side felt
empty; it would always be empty unless he took care to
fill it for himself. Probably, on his way to the city, he_
had to pass by a field he had set his mind on, and which
The Traitor. 175
he had perhaps partly purchased. It was not his yet,
and it did not seem likely it would ever become his
whilst he served his present Master. He entered Jerusa-
lem with his mind made up. He knew one way by
which he could get money to buy that field.
A council of the Great Sanhedrim was being held in
the palace of the high-priest. The important question
laid before the seventy-one chief men of the nation was
how Jesus might be taken by craft and killed. Not on
the feast day, lest there should be an uproar among the
people: it must be done by subtlety, in the absence of
the multitude. But when was Jesus alone? Where did
He conceal Himself when He left the city at nightfall?
There were thousands of tents and booths erected round
the city by the pilgrims, who could find no lodging-place
within the walls ; and it would be impossible to find Him.
They needed some one to betray Him.
This need was met in Judas. They had not even to
seek him, for he came voluntarily to bargain with them
how much they should give him for delivering his Master
to them, They were glad, and promised to give him
thirty pieces of silver, to be paid when they had their
prey in their hands. Possibly, Judas felt in a measure
justified. by his knowledge of the miraculous powers of
Christ, if He only chose to use them for escaping from His
enemies, or even for destroying them. He, who could
call Lazarus from the dead, had but to speak the word,
and no foe could stand before Him. And if Jesus were
176 The Wonderful Life.
bent upon death, it was but prudent to secure himself,
and make some provision for the dreary future, in place
of that which he had forsaken to follow Him.
Did Judas go back in the fall of the evening to the
tranquil company on Olivet, and take his place among
them, with a smile upon his face, and news from the city
on his lips? Did he sit down with them to their simple,
homely supper, listening to catch up what arrangements
had been made for the night; where his Master should
sleep, and who would be nearest to Him, within hearing?
Did he see the worn, anxious face of Mary, smiling only
when she met the eyes of her son, who had lived with
her so many peaceful years under their lowly roof at
Nazareth? Did he join in the evening hymn sung before
they separated for the night, the last they would thus
spend together? We must suppose that he did some-
thing like this; that he was still their comrade and
fellow-apostle, Judas; and that none guessed the business
that had taken him to Jerusalem, nor the bargain he had
_made there.
CHAPTER III.
THE PASCHAL SUPPER,’
ALL the next day Judas was seeking a convenient oppor-
tunity to betray Christ. He soon discovered that it was
his Master’s purpose to eat the Paschal supper in Jeru-
salem ; for there, and there only,:could it be eaten. No
doubt Mary, with that band of timid and faithful women,
now gathered about Him, would urge Him to forego His
determination, so great was the danget of venturing into
the city and passing a night there. But with a strong
desire had He desired to eat that passover with His
disciples ; the first and only one they could celebrate
with Him. He called Peter and John to Him, and bade
them go and prepare the passover. . At last, then, Judas
was satisfied that He would be caught in the double
snare of the city and the feast.
It was the day on which the passover must be killed.
At noon all work was laid aside, and all leaven destroyed,
unleavened bread alone being lawful food for the next eight
days. In the Temple the evening sacrifice was offered
N
178 The Wonderful Life..
an hour earlier than on other days, for the number of
passover lambs to be slain before nightfall was immense.
During this week the whole company of the priests was
on duty; and the courts of the Temple were crowded
with the multitudes of Jews who had come up to the city
to keep the passover, ‘and brought their lambs to slay for
the Paschal supper, which had to be eaten that night;
the first day of the passover beginning as soon as the
stars became visible in the sky.
Peter and John, not Judas the purse-bearer, had been
sent by Jesus to prepare the feast. They had to choose
and buy a suitable lamb, carry it up to the Temple, and
see that it was roasted for supper. They had asked where
they were to prepare it. Their Master had friends in
Jerusalem ; but some prudence was needed in the choice
of the house where He would celebrate the feast. He
probably choose the house of some old friend, where
perhaps He had in former times eaten many a joyous
passover with His mother and cousins; for in solemn
hours we choose rather to be in familiar places than
strange ones. ‘The good man of the house,’ He said,
‘will show you a large upper room, furnished and pre-
pared; there make ready.’
On this day the evening sacrifice was offered about
half-past two, immediately after which the slaying of the
passover began. Probably the disciples were in the first :
division of those who brought their lambs ; for at the fall
of evening, as soon as the stars shone in the sky, the feast
The Paschal Supper. 179
was ready. Christ had been lingering on Olivet, where
the hymns and hallelujahs from the Temple might reach
His ear, with the blast of the silver trumpets which told
that the Paschal lamb was slain. But as the evening
drew on, He descended the Mount with His disciples,
and entered the city unobserved in the twilight. Most
likely Judas did not know till then at what house the
passover was to be eaten, and he had not yet found the
convenient season he was seeking.
The preoccupation of the people freed the little
group of men from observation, as well as the twilight,
which was darkening the streets. Every Jew must eat
the passover that night, in his best and festive garments.
Many of those who had been latest in the Temple were
hurrying homewards with the lamb that had yet.to be
roasted for the supper. All of them were too much en-
grossed in the celebration of the feast to give more than
a passing thought to the band of Galileans, but dimly
seen, who were following the prophet of Nazareth
through the streets. None were with Him save the
twelve apostles. Lazarus, whom He had called from the
dead; Mary, His mother; His kinsmen from Nazareth,
were not there. In some other guest-chamber, under
another roof, they would keep the feast that night ; they
had seen Him for the last time, until they saw Him again
next morning on the way to Calvary.
It was still early in the evening when they reached
the large upper chamber, where the feast was prepared
180 The Wonderful Life.
for them. It was enjoined that the Paschal supper
should not be eaten standing, as slaves eat their food;
but that all, even the poorest, must sit down, leaning, as
free men, who have time to feast. Again, four cups of
wine must be drunk, though money must be had out
of the poor-box for its purchase. No one was allowed
to eat after the evening sacrifice until this meal was
ready, that all might come to it with a hearty appetite.
It was a festival for gladness; a solemn day of joy;
and hymns of praises were to be sung.
Jesus was the head of this company, and He took
the first cup of wine into His hand, and gave thanks
over it; then passing it to His disciples, He said, ‘Take
this, and divide it among yourselves ; for I say unto you,
I will not drink of the fruit of the vine, until the king-
dom of God shall come.’ This was the beginning of the
feast. After it all were enjoined to wash their hands,
before the Paschal meal of bitter herbs, unleavened
bread, and the passover lamb was eaten. It was now
that the Lord rose from the supper, and laid aside the
white, festive robe He was wearing, and pouring water
into a basin, washed and wiped the feet of His disciples.
There had been a strife amongst them again as to which
should be the greatest ; or, probably, which should have
the chief places at the table. To see Him rise, and thus
minister to them, filled them with shame; but Peter
alone ventured to protest against it. ‘Thou shalt never
wash my feet !? he cried impulsively. But when Christ
The Paschal Supper. 181
said, ‘If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with Me,’ he
prayed, ‘Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and
my head!’ ‘He that is washed needeth not save to
wash his feet,’ answered Jesus ; ‘and ye are clean, but not
all’ It was the first word of heaviness at the thought
of the traitor, whose feet He had washed with the rest.
Sitting down again to the table, He bade them do as He
had done to them, and remember that the servant is not
greater than his Lord; neither he that is sent greater than
he that sent him. ‘I speak not of you all,’ He added:
‘I know whom I have chosen. The scripture must be
fulfilled, He that eateth bread with Me hath lifted up
his heel against Me.’
This heart-heaviness deepened as the feast went on;
the voice of Judas mingling in the hymns of praise—for
he dared not be silent—must have jarred upon the ear of
Jesus. He broke one of the cakes of unleavened bread,
and distributed it, with the bitter herbs, to His disciples,
saying plainly to them, ‘One of you shall betray Me. -
At last, then, they knew that the traitor was amongst the
twelve. This filled them with surprise and exceeding
sorrow; and they not only began to inquire among them-
selves who it should be, but every one of them, even
Judas, said to Him, ‘ Lord, is it I?’ Jesus was Himself
greatly troubled in spirit, and the joyousness which
should have marked the feast fled, and was succeeded
by a heavy gloom. The youngest of the disciples, John,
was reclining next to his beloved Master, near enough to
182 The Wonderful Life.
whisper to Him unheard by the others. Peter beckoned
to Him to ask who the traitor was, and Jesus said, ‘He
to whom I shall give this sop, when I have dipped it.’
He was then dipping portions of the unleavened cake
_ into a preparation of raisins and dates, mixed with
vinegar, and distributing them to the apostles. He gave
it to Judas, who just then was asking Him, ‘ Master, is it
I?’ There was nothing in the action to call attention
to the guilty man; but John knew certainly, and Peter
guessed, that it was he who was about to betray his
Lord.
The supper was only just beginning ; and Judas con-
sidered the present opportunity to be too good to be lost,
even though he should miss the Paschal meal. Jesus
was within the walls of the city, with none but His little
band of apostles around Him. Moreover, he now felt
sure that his treachery was suspected, if not known ; and
he must succeed at once, if he wished to succeed at all.
_ He rose from the table whilst they were still in excite-
ment as to who was the traitor among them. Such a
movement, so suspicious and unaccountable, must have
increased their excitement, and probably have caused an
attempt at interfering with him, if Jesus had not said to
him, ‘That thou doest, do quickly.†They supposed
something had been forgotten that was necessary for the
feast, or that there was some poor person who depended
upon their assistance to celebrate it;. and that Judas
would return in time to partake of the Paschal lamb.
Lhe Paschal Supper. 183
‘Do it quickly,’ Jesus said. No doubt the guilty and
miserable man hurried along the streets, now dark, but
with the ringing notes of the Hallelujah sounding from
every house as he passed by, the only Jew in the city
who did not eat the passover that night.
The moment the traitor was gone Jesus recovered
His serene composure. He spoke to His disciples
tenderly ; though when Peter boasted that he would lay
down his life for Him, He forewarned him that he would
that very night deny Him thrice. The supper was almost
over, the lamb was eaten, when Jesus, taking into His
hands the third cup of wine,-called the cup of blessing,
said, ‘Drink ye all of it. This is My blood of the new
testament, which is shed for many for the remission of
sins. This do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance
‘of Me.’ He did not partake of it Himself, and He
repeated what He had said at the beginning of the
feast, that He would drink no more of the fruit of the
vine until they drank it with Him in His Father’s king-
dom.
He then addressed to them words of surpassing ten-
.derness, beginning with, ‘ Let not your heart be troubled:
ye believe in God, believe also in Me.’ Thomas put ina
doubtful question ; Philip, who had been so long with
Him, asked Him to show to them the Father of whom He
spoke ; and Judas, his cousin, once more inquired why
He did not manifest Himself to the world; but for each
He had only a gentle reproof that could not grieve them.
184 The Wonderful Life.
He promised them all a Comforter, who should never
leave them, as He was leaving them. ‘There was not now
much time for Him to talk with them. The prince of
this world was coming, ‘ Arise,’ He said, as though He
would not have Judas find Him lingering in the guest-
chamber ; ‘let us go hence.’
But still, as though reluctant to break up that loving
circle, He lingered amongst them, to speak more comfort-
ing words, calling them no longer His disciples, but His
friends. Possibly He shrank from quitting that quiet
upper room for the scene of the mysterious agony that
was coming. His work was almost finished ; there was
nothing for Him now to do, save to suffer. No more
blind eyes would He open; no more deaf ears unstop.
The leper would not come to Him for cleansing, nor the
lame and palsy-stricken crowd about Him to be healed.
Neither would He teach any more by parables. The
next crowd of faces surrounding Him would not be those
of eager listeners or faithful friends. How bitter the
next few hours would be, He knew already. He lifted up
His eyes, and prayed ; yet not for Himself, but for those
whom His Father had given Him out of the world. ;
The last cup of the passover was now taken by the
disciples, and the last hymn sung. Then they went down
into the streets, echoing with the songs of those who kept
the feast. The full moon flooded them with light ; and
the little company, feeling safer perhaps as they left the
city walls behind them, crossed the brook Kedron, and
Lhe Paschal Supper. _ 18
passed on into the garden of Gethsemane, where their
Master was wont to lead them often. They were on
Olivet again, near their places of refuge ; and their hearts
were lighter than whilst they were within the city. There
was not much danger here.
186 The Wonderful Life.
CHAPTER IV.
GETHSEMANE.
But what had hindered Judas all this time? Jesus had
not hastened from the guest-chamber to escape from his
treachery. It was no great distance to the high priest’s
palace, or to the Temple, where there were guards on
duty. But all were occupied in celebrating the passover,
and none could sit down to it earlier than the Lord seems
to have done. They must keep the feast first; the
murder must be committed afterwards.
As soon, however, as the feast was over, the Temple
guards hurried to their task. Possibly Judas may have
discovered before they started that Jesus had left the city
already, and it became necessary to procure a detachment
of Roman soldiers from the Tower of Antonia, overlook-
ing the Temple. The plea that they were about to arrest
a dangerous leader, popular with the multitude, who
must be taken by night, readily secured their aid. As
the soldiers and the Temple guard passed through the
streets, a number of fanatical Pharisees, armed with
Gethsemane. 187
swords and staves, joined them; a few even of the chief
priests and elders were there. Judas probably counselled
them to carry also torches and lanterns; for, though the
moon was at the full, there were dark and gloomy shades
in the garden, where Jesus might escape from their
search.
In the mean while Jesus, having left most of His dis-
ciples in the open part of the garden, had taken with Him
Peter, and James, and John, and withdrawn into the
more distant and darker glades, as Judas had foreseen.
‘Tarry ye here, he said to his favourite friends, ‘ whilst
I go and pray yonder.’ It was no solitary mountain by
the Lake of Galilee, such as had been His place of prayer
the last passover night. But He must be alone; no one
must be too near to Him in that hour of agony. A mys-
terious anguish, a sorrow like no other sorrow, was crush-
ing Him down. A degrading and painful doom was at
hand: but first His soul must be poured out unto death.
He had been despised and rejected of men: but now He
was to be bruised for the iniquities of the world, wounded
for its transgressions, put to grief by God. Even He
began to be sore amazed at the profound gloom spreading
over His soul. ‘My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even
unto death,’ He said to His disciples.
Withdrawing from them about a stone’s cast, He fell
on the ground, and prayed that if it were possible, this
hour might pass from Him. ‘Abba, Father,’ he cried,
‘all things are possible to thee ; take away this cup from
188 ‘ The Wonderful Life.
Me: nevertheless, not what I will, but what Thou wilt.’
But, restless in His great anguish, Jesus returned to His
three friends, whom He had left sitting under the trees, |
and found them sleeping. He said to Peter, ‘Simon,
sleepest thou? couldst thou not watch with Me one
hour?’ Then He added, gently, ‘The spirit indese is
willing, but the flesh is weak.’
Back into the solitude and gloom He went again to '
suffer alone the unutterable agony. None could help Him
to bear that burden. He prayed more earnestly. ‘Oh,
my Father, if this cup may not pass from Me, except I
drink it, Thy will be done.’ Then, returning to seek
some sympathy with His disciples, He found them again
asleep, and they knew not what to say, except that their
eyes were heavy. Now utterly alone, conscious that
these, His dearest friends, could take no part in His
sorrow, He went away the third time, and prayed, saying
the same words. At last one angel, one alone of all the
heavenly host that sang at His birth, appeared to Him,
strengthening Him to cadure that anguish worse than
death.
Strong enough now to meet the bitter end, Jesus came
the last time to His sleeping disciples. Waking them, He
said, ‘The hour is come. Lo, he that betrayeth Me is
at hand? Even as He spoke, before they had time to
shake off their drowsiness and bewilderment, they heard
the tramp of many feet coming near, and saw the glim-
mering of torches among the trees. Jesus went forward
Gethsemane. 189
to meet the band of soldiers, asking, ‘ Whom seek ye ??
‘Jesus of Nazareth, they answered. ‘I am He,’ He
said, calmly. There was something in His manner which
so overawed them that they shrank back from Him, and
recoiling upon the crowd that pressed behind, cast some
of them tothe ground, But as they recovered themselves
Judas came to the front, and too familiar to be swayed as
they had been. by the hidden majesty and the sacred
dignity of great sorrow in his Lord, he stepped forth and
kissed Him, saying, ‘Master, Master !’ It was the sign
he had given to those who were come to arrest Jesus.
‘Whomsoever I shall kiss, that same is He: hold Him
fast, and take Him away safely.†‘Judas,’ asked his
Master, marvelling at the depth of his villany, ‘betrayest
thou the Son of man with a kiss?’
Still the Temple guards hesitated to seize Him. They
had heard His teachings, and seen His miracles in the
Temple, and possibly they were afraid lest He should
work by His miraculous power against them. There was
something terrible about a man who could make the dead
obey, or could convey Himself away unseen amid a throng
of foes. They were reluctant to lay hands upon Jesus,
though the traitor, who had kissed Him, still stood before
them unhurt. ‘Whom seek ye?’ He asked, again.
‘Jesus of Nazareth,’ they repeated. ‘I have told ye that
I am He,’ He answered ; ‘if therefore ye seek Me, let
these go their way.’ His three disciples were probably
hemmed in by the multitude, and the rest were looking
190 The Wonderful Life.
on, terrified, from behind. Peter, with reckless despera-
tion, drew a sword, and striking wildly, smote a servant
of the high priest, and cut off his ear. Jesus rebuked
him, and healed the man; His last miracle wrought upon
an enemy at the moment He was betrayed into their
hands. He was yet free to do good: but now the captain
and the Temple guard laid hold of Him and bound Him. -
‘Are ye come out as against a thief?’ He asked indig-
nantly, yet patiently. ‘I was daily with you in the
Temple, and ye took Me not. But this is your hour, and
the power of darkness.’ Seeing that He suffered Himself
to be bound, and that.no legion of angels came to
deliver Him, all the disciples, even Peter, even John,
forsook Him, and fled.. None of His twelve apostles
remained near to Him but Judas.
Scattered were the disciples, every man fleeing where
his fears led him. Some, perhaps, sought a secret and
safe retreat.among the farmhouses on Olivet; some
returned to the city tremblingly, to convey the bitter news
to the other friends of Christ. Mary, His mother, with
her sister, and many other women from Galilee, were
lodging in Jerusalem during the feast, and would quickly
hear what had come to pass. His cousins, who had been
so long in believing on Him; His secret disciples, such
as Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea; all must have
felt that no common danger, no slight catastrophe, was
at hand. There was one hope still in His favour. The
Jews had not the powei io put Him to death legally ; and
Gethsemane. IQ!
even if they had, their traditions laid it down as a law,
that whenever a criminal was condemned to die, he
should not be executed on the same day as that when the
verdict was passed, and that the judgment should be
reconsidered by the Great Sanhedrim on the day follow-
ing. Jesus could not in any case be put to death before
the first day of the week : and in the mean time heaven
and earth must be moved to deliver Him out of the hands
of, His adversaries. He had a powerful party in His
favour: and it was never difficult to stir up a popular
agitation during the feasts. The dark hours of the night
passed by too rapidly as they consulted together con-
cerning what must be done.
192 The Wonderful Life.
CHAPTER V.
THE HIGH PRIEST’S PALACE,
ALONE, save for Judas, bound, followed by a rabble of
scoffing partisans of the chief priests and elders, Jesus was
led away from the garden of Gethsemane. The guards
took Him first to the house of Annas, the father-in-law of
the high priest, a haughty and powerful man. The chief
offices of the Temple were filled by members of his
family, who were all Sadducees, and had not been
vehemently opposed to Christ until His influence with
the people began to threaten their own, and to endanger
the revenues of the Temple, fram which they drew their
wealth. “Annas, who was an old man, probably did not
trouble himself to see the prisoner at that hour of the
night, but sent Him on to the palace of Caiaphas, the high
priest, where the Great Sanhedrim would assemble as soon
‘as they could be summoned from their various homes.
By this time Peter and John had fallen in with one
another ; and. recovering somewhat from the panic that
had seized them, they followed their Master to the high
The High Priest’s Palace. 193
priest’s house. John knew Caiaphas so well as to find
easy admittance into his palace, and he went in with
Jesus, as near to Him as he could get, that He might see
that His beloved disciple had not altogether forsaken
Him. But Peter had been unable to get in, and after
awhile John went and spoke for him to the woman who
kept the door, and brought him into the open court of
_ the palace.
The chief priests and elders, who had gone out to
Gethsemane with the officers and soldiers, now formed
themselves into a preliminary council to examine Jesus,
before the Great Sanhedrim could meet. Caiaphas was
at the head of it, and asked Him of His disciples and
doctrine. As to His disciples Jesus said nothing, but
about His doctrine He answered, ‘I spoke openly to the
world ; I ever taught in.the synagogue and the Temple,
whither the Jews always resort; and in secret have I said
nothing. Why askest thou Me? ask them which heard
Me.’ Most of those who were present had heard Him in
the Temple; the guards had once said, ‘ Never man spake
like this man.’ But now one of them struck Him for
answering the high priest so. Jt was yet an hour or two
before daybreak, at which time the Sanhedrim was to
assemble, and it would seem that Caiaphas at this time
left Christ. to the wicked cruelties. of his servants.
Probably they led Him from the hall, where this. brief
examinatign had taken place, into the open court, when
they blindfolded Him, and striking Him on the face,
°
194 The Wonderful Life.
cried mockingly, ‘ Prophesy, who is it that smote Thee?’
Other insults they heaped upon Him, with the rude
brutality of men who knew that they should not offend
their masters by such misconduct.
It was a chilly night, and the servants had kindled a.
fire in the court, Peter standing with them to warm him-
self Before his Master was brought out to be mocked
and insulted, one of the maids of the high priest, looking
at him, said, ‘Thou also wert with Jesus of Nazareth.’
He was instantly and naturally filled with fear, and denied
it at once, saying, ‘I do not understand what thou sayest.
I am not one of His disciples.’ He felt it to be wisest to
withdraw from the circle round the fire, and retreated
into the darkness of the porch. It was already drawing
near to daybreak, for a cock crew as he stood in the
gateway. Then the woman who kept the door asked him
again, ‘ Art thou not one of this man’s disciples?’ ‘I am
not,’ he replied shortly. Once more, feeling nowhere safe,
yet reluctant to quit the palace, he returned into the
court, where, it may be, his Lord was now standing,
bearing in silence the cruelties of the servants. A
kinsman of Malchus, whose ear he had cut off in Geth-
semane, soon asked him, ‘Did not I see thee in the
garden with Him?’ They that stood by said con-
fidently, ‘Surely thou art one of them, for thou art a
Galilean, and thy speech betrayeth thee.’ Then Peter
began to curse and to swear, ‘I know not this man of
whom ye speak,’ His Lord, who heard his oaths,
The High Priest’s Palace. 195
turned, and looked upon him, and he remembered the
word He had spoken, ‘ Before the cock crow twice, thou
shalt deny Me thrice.’ He had not believed himself so
cowardly and disloyal. Even now he dared not stand
forth and own himself a disciple of the mocked and
despised prophet of Nazareth; but creeping away from
the palace, with that last look of his Master haunting him,
he went out into the dawning of the day, and wept
bitterly. Worse than the insults of the servants must
have been the vehement denials of His disciple, and Peter
could not fail to remember the awful saying, ‘Whosoever
shall be ashamed of Me, and of My words, in this
adulterous and sinful generation, of him shall the Son of
man be ashamed, when He cometh in the glory of His
Father, with the holy angels.’
By daybreak the Sanhedrim were assembled, and Jesus
was brought before them. They had all been seeking
witnesses against Him, but none could be found whose
witness agreed. It was necessary that at least two should
agree. After a while there came forward two men, one
of whom testified he had heard Him say, ‘I will destroy
this temple, that is made with hands, and within three
days I will build another made without hands.’ The
accusation took a more doubtful form with the other
witness, ‘I am able to destroy this temple of God, and to
build it in three days.’ Even this testimony did not
agree “sufficiently. Neither the high priest, nor the
-Sanhedrim, eager as they were to convict Him, could be
196 The Wonderful Life.
satisfied to do so on such paltry evidence. Jesus was
standing before them, questioning nothing, answering
nothing ; giving them no chance of fastening upon any
indiscreet words. The scene altogether must have been
unutterably painful to Him, apart from His own position.
The great religious body of the nation, the most learned
in the law, the most irreproachable in character, the men
presumed to be the wisest and best of the nation, were
shamelessly seeking evidence by which they might
condemn to death a prophet, of whom no man knew
any evil.
At last Caiaphas stood up in the midst, in his office as
high priest, and adjured Christ by the living God to tell
them whether He was the Messiah, the Son of God.
‘I am,’ He replied; ‘and ye shall see the Son of Man
on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of
heaven.’ There was no further need of perjured wit-
nesses. All had heard the awful words. Caiaphas rent
his clothes, crying, ‘He hath spoken blasphemy! What
think ye?’ With one voice they all declared Him to
be worthy of death.
Jesus knew when He uttered these words that He
was pronouncing His own sentence. Until that question
was asked Him He*had been dumb, opening not His
mouth, But the form in which the question was put left
Him no choice but to answer. The moment in which
He most distinctly claimed to be the Christ, the Son
of God, was the moment when such a claim was His
The [igh Priest’s Patace. 197
death-knell. Until now He had left His works to speak
for Him. Even with His disciples He had seldom
insisted on being the Messiah; He had never held
Himself aloof from them in kingly state. With them He
was the Son of man, their brother ; before the Sanhedrim
He called Himself the Son of God, their Judge.
198 The Wonderful Life.
CHAPTER VI.
PILATE’S JUDGMENT HALL.
STRAIGHTWAY, in the light of the rising sun, the whole
multitude of them arose, and led Jesus away to Pilate’s
judgment hall. It was early, and the city would hardly be
astir after the feast last night. ‘The friends of Jesus were
still buoyed up with the thought that, at the earliest, the
crime of His death could not be committed until after
the Sabbath was ended. . The haste of the Sanhedrim was
not only indecent, but it was illegal, according to their
own traditions. They had taken no time to reconsider
their verdict. The judges had not fasted for a whole day,
as they were bound to do after sentencing a man to death
before he was led away to execution. The death of
Christ was a judicial murder of the blackest dye.
But at the threshold of Pilate’s judgment hall a diffi-
culty presented itself. If they entered it they would be
defiled, and could not partake of the feast of that day.
On this day the Chagigah was offered, which was strictly
a peace-offering, and symbolized their unbroken and
Pilates Fudgment Hall. 199
undimmed communion with God. A portion of the
offering was burnt upon the altar, and a portion eaten as
a feast in the Temple itself, or, at least, within the walls
of Jerusalem. Probably the Great Sanhedrim kept this
feast in some stately chamber of the Temple; for did ot
they stand nearer to God than any other of the people?
But if they went into Pilate’s judgment hall with. their
prisoner they would be defiled, and rendered unfit for its
celebration.
Pilate had had many a serious conflict with the Jews
on subjects of their religion, which he despised and mis-
understood ; yet jhe now yielded so far as to go out to
these wealthy and noble citizens. ‘ What accusation
bring ye against this man?’ he asked. They did not wish
to make any definite accusation, and they answered
sharply, that if He had not been an evil-doer, they would
not have taken the trouble to deliver Him up to him, |
‘Take Him yourselves,’ said Pilate, ‘and judge Him
according to your law.’ ‘It is not lawful for us to put
any man to death,’ they said.
No doubt Pilate knew already something of Jesus, the
prophet of Nazareth, who had entered the city in what
appeared to him a mock, triumph only five days before.
This reply of the Sanhedrim showed him at once what
they wanted. The prophet must be put to death, and he
must bear the blame of it. But upon what grounds was
he to crucify this man? The Sanhedrim were not at a
loss, though they could say nothing here of the charge of
200 he Wonderful Life.
blasphemy. ‘We found Him,’ said these religious
rulers of the country, ‘we found this fellow perverting
the nation, and forbidding to give tribute to Cesar,
saying that He is Christ, a King.’ All there must have
known how Jesus had disappointed His followers by
bidding them render unto Ceesar the things that were
Cesar’s. Pilate returned to the judgment hall, and
looked upon the weary frame and worn face of Him
who all night long had been passing through agony after
agony. He still wore the festive robes in which He had
eaten of the Paschal supper; but even these were only
the clothing of a poor man, a man of the people, not
those of any kingly pretender. ‘Art thou the King of
the Jews?’ he asked. The Roman governor seems to
have felt kindly towards. Him, as a harmless fanatic,
whose vague language had brought Him into danger.
Jesus told him He had indeed a kingdom, but it was not
of this world. True men alone could hear His voice.
‘What is truth?’ asked Pilate, mockingly. He had not
found it among the Romans; and certainly it did not
exist among the Jews. He could not but suspect the
whole charge against Jesus to be a skilfully-framed false-
hood. But he was prepossessed in His favour, and more ©
than willing to disappoint his accusers. He left Jesus,
and went out again to the pavement, or terrace, before
his palace. By this time a rabble of citizens had gathered,
among whom the partisans of the Sanhedrim were scat-
tered, artfully exciting them against Jesus, as one who
Pilate’s Fudoment Hall. 201
had deceived the people and threatened to destroy the
Temple. Probably a small number of His friends were
also among the crowd, bewildered and shocked to find
their Master handed over to the Roman power. But
when’ Pilate was seen all were still; a few in breathless
hope, the many in silent hatred.
‘I find in Him no fault at all,’ said the governor. A
thrill of great joy must have run through the heart of
John, who had followed his Lord faithfully. But a fierce
clamour began; and the chief priests would not suber
their accusation to fall to the ground.
‘He stirreth up the people,’ they cried, ‘teaching
throughout all Jewry, beginning from Galilee, even to this
place.’
Here was a loop-hole for Pilate to escape from his
difficulty. If Jesus came from Galilee, He belonged
to Herod’s jurisdiction. Herod was come up to the
passover; and Pilate would pay him a compliment by
referring the case tohim. They were not friends at this
moment, probably because of those Galileans whom
Pilate had slain during one of the riots at some feast ; but
the Roman governor was anxious to be at peace with
him. He therefore sent Jesus to Herod, who had for a
long time wished to see the famous prophet of his own
country, whose miracles were noised abroad so much,
The priests and scribes violently accused Him before
Herod; but Jesus spoke not a word. He had never
before seen the face of the man who had murdered John
202 The Wonderful Life.
the Baptist in prison ; and none of his questions would He
answer, though He answered Pilate’s. But even Herod
dared not condemn Him to death on charges so frivolous
and false as those urged against Him. He had already
exasperated his people by John’s assassination, and he
could not venture to return to Galilee stained with the
blood of Jesus. Yet he would not offend the Sanhedrim
by releasing the prisoner ; and he determined to send
Him again to Pilate. But to gratify his own paltry pique
and disappointment, and to cast ridicule upon Christ,
he arrayed Him in a gorgeous robe, and joined with his
men of war in mocking Him, before sending Him back.
Pilate was troubled by the return of the prisoner and
His accusers. He knew that the leading men of the
nation were unfriendly to him. They had already suc-
ceeded in bringing him into difficulties with his emperor,
and they were eager to have him disgraced and removed.
Yet he shrank from the injustice of putting Jesus to death.
There was one chance left in an appeal to the people,
who had so lately assisted in His triumphal entry in
Jerusalem. He called them together, with the chief
priests and elders, and said, ‘Ye have brought this man
unto me, as one that perverteth the people, and, behold,
I, having examined Hin, find no fault in Him at all,
concerning those things whereof ye accuse Him ; no, nor
yet Herod, for I sent you to him, and lo, nothing worthy
of death is found in Him, I will therefore chastise Him
and let Him go.’
Pilate’s Fudgment Hall. 203
It had of late years been the custom of the governor
to allow the people at this feast to choose a prisoner,
whom they would, who was immediately set free. There
was a notorious man lying in prison at this time, guilty of
robbery, sedition, and murder. The chief priests sug-
gested to them that they should choose Barabbas. A
loud uproar was made, all crying out at once, ‘ Away with
this man, and release unto us Barabbas.’ But Pilate,
still willing to save Jesus, yet desirous to sneer at the
accusations made by the Sanhedrim, asked. them, ‘ Will ye
that I release unto you the King of the Jews?’ The
taunt irritated the mob, and they shouted, ‘ Crucify Him;
crucify Him.’ ‘Why, what evil hath He done?’ pleaded
Pilate. But they cried out the more exceedingly, with
loud voices, ‘ Crucify Him.’
Yet still Pilate seems to have had a lingering hope
that the punishment of scourging, which was at once
most painful and degrading, might satisfy their enmity.
"He delivered Christ to His soldiers, who platted a crown
of thorns, and put areed into His hand asa sceptre; He
was still wearing the gorgeous robe in which Herod had
sent Him back to Pilate, and thus, after He had been
scourged, He was brought forth for the mob to see Him.
‘Behold the man,’ said Pilate. It was He whom they
had seen‘healing the lame and blind in the Temple, and
to whom they had listened gladly not long ago; for it
was amongst the poorest and most wretched of the people
that His mighty works had been wrought. But at the
204 The Wonderful Life.
sight of Him a maddened yell arose, ‘Away with Him !
away with Him! crucify Him! crucify Him!’ | Their
violence prevailed. But Pilate still shrank from taking
upon himself the guilt of such a crime against justice.
He had just received a message from his wife: ‘ Have
thou nothing to do with that just man; for I have suffered
many things this day in a dream because of Him.’ He
may not have been superstitious, but he felt it would be
painful to return to her stained with the blood of an
innocent man for whom she had interceded, with no other
excuse than that the people of Jerusalem were too strong
for him. ‘Take ye Him, and crucify Him, for I find no
fault in Him,’ he said.
This did not suit the priestly party at all. Their law
did not permit of crucifixion, and they were bent upon
this degrading punishment. Neither did they wish to
incur the odium of bloodshed, though they did not shrink
from the guilt of it. In their anxiety to urge Pilate on,
they forgot for a moment their political charge against
Jesus, and returned to their religious accusation. ‘He
made Himself the Son of God,’ they cried, ‘and by our
law He ought to die.’ Upon this Pilate returned into
the judgment-hall, and had Jesus brought again to Him, ©
‘Whence art thou?’ he asked. But He was silent; and
Pilate, astonished and somewhat indignant at His silence,
reminded Him that he had power to release Him or to
crucify Him. This was no longer true. He had lost
his power by not exerting it at once, and he felt it He
Pilate’s Fudgment Hall. 205
could not let Jesus go now, without stirring up a riot of a
desperate character in Jerusalem. Jesus answered him
in words almost of sympathy, that he could have no
power at all against Him, unless it had been permitted ;
and that His sin was small compared with that of the
Sanhedrim.
Again Pilate sought to release Him. But the
people cried out, ‘If thou let this man go, thou art
not Czesar’s friend: whosoever maketh himself a king,
speaketh against Cesar.’ This cry at once sealed the
doom of Christ. Pilate ordered his judgment-seat to be
set on the pavement before the judgment-hall. When
Jesus came forth again, he said, ‘Behold your King?†A
wilder shout than ever rang in the ears of Christ: the
shouts of those for whom He had spent His life. ‘What,
shall I crucify your King?’ asked Pilate. ‘We have
no king but Cesar,’ answered the chief priests.
Then fearing, and seeing that he could not prevail
against fanatics who could utter such an answer, Pilate
took water, and washed his hands before the multitude.
¢T am innocent of the blood of this just person,’ he
said; ‘see ye to it.’
‘His blood be on us, and on our children,’ answered
all the people.
206 The Wonderful Life.
CHAPTER VIL
CALVARY.
No time was lost between the passing of the verdict and
the execution of it. The cross was ready; and two
thieves were only waiting for this trial to close before
they met their punishment. Calvary was not far from
Pilate’s palace; it was only just beyond the city walls,
near the highway leading from one of the gates. Christ
was in the hands of the Roman soldiers ; but the chief
priests and elders- could not trust them to do their work
unwatched. The cross was laid upon Him, but He was
too feeble and worn-out to bear it; and when He sank
under it, the soldiers seized upon a man, coming in from
the country, and him they compelled to carry the cross to
Calvary. Whether the man was a disciple or not, we are
not told: but no doubt there were many disciples by this
time mingling with the crowd,-who would willingly have
borne the cross after Jesus. There were many women
among the people, who bewailed and lamented Him’
openly ;. daughters of Jerusalem, who had not turned .
Calvary 207
against Him as the fickle mob had done. Possibly it was
when He sank under the weight of His cross that their
lamentation broke out most loudly ; and Jesus turned to
them, and said, ‘Weep not for Me, but weep for your-
selves, and for your children.’ The fate of the guilty city
was heavier to Him than His cross. It was still early in
the day ; about the hour when the morning sacrifice was
offered. He was nailed upon the cross; and as it was
lifted and let fall into the hole prepared for it, a moment
of extreme torture, He cried, ‘Father, forgive them ;
- they know not what they do.’ After this was done, the
four soldiers, whose duty it was to watch under the cross
until the person upon it was dead, began their usual
custom of dividing the clothing among them. A title
also was brought to be put over the head of the criminal,
giving his name and crime. Pilate had sent for the cross
of Christ, written in Hebrew, and Greek, and Latin, so
that all should be able to read it, this title, ‘ Jesus ‘of
Nazareth, the King of the Jews.’ It irritated and
offended the chief priests; but Pilate would not have it
altered into ‘ He said, I am the King of the Jews.’
The haste with which the trial and the execution had
been hurried on makes it probable that not many of the
Galileans knew of the arrest of their prophet. Some of
them possibly knew nothing of it until they heard that
He.was dead. But as the terrible tidings ran through
the city, those who heard it would speed to Calvary with
despair in their hearts, to find. Him whom they loved and
208 The Wonderful Life.
trusted in hanging upon a cross between two. thieves,
with a circle of enemies around Him, éven of chief priests
and elders, mocking at Him and jibing Him. The
soldiers at the foot casting lots over that priestly robe of
His, which His mother had woven without seam; and
the title over his head, ‘Jesus of Nazareth, King of the
Jews :’ the unclouded sun, growing hotter and hotter
every minute, shining down upon all the fearful scene, as
it was shining on their own beloved lake and hills of
Galilee.
John had been near Him all the time. Now three
women forced their way through the circle of mocking
priests : Mary, His mother, Mary Cleophas, her sister, and
Mary of Magdalene. Other women from Galilee stood
afar off, watching through the weary hours. Peter,
perhaps, was somewhere on the outskirts of the crowd,
seeing, though not daring to go near Him, whom he had
denied thrice. Possibly Judas himself was drawn thither,
against his will, to look once more on Him whom he had
betrayed with a kiss.
The sun shone hot and clear. When they brought
Jesus to the place of execution, they had offered to Him
a drugged draught, which was given to criminals to dull
‘their sense of pain ; but having tasted thereof, He would
not drink. He could see, and hear, and feel as keenly as
when He had been in His quiet home in Nazareth. The
mocking faces of the chief priests ; the unconcerned faces -
of the soldiers; the soul-stricken face of His mother ;
Calvary. 209
His eyes rested upon, as they looked up to Him from
below. His ears heard the jeering of the people as they
went to and fro along the highway, reviling Him, and
saying, ‘Ah! thou that destroyest the Temple!’ Now
and then the blast of the silver trumpets and the voice of
song from the Temple reached Him. After a while the
first pangs of bodily pain had dulled a little; and He
could again show His compassion and tenderness for
others. The thieves hanging, where James and John had
wished to sit, the one on His right hand, the other on His
left, had reviled Him as well as His enemies. ‘If Thou
be the Christ, save Thyself and us,’ they cried. But one
of them, lifting up his dim eyes to the face of Christ,
and to the title above His head, saw that it was Jesus of
Nazareth who was suffering death with them. ‘ Dost thou
not fear God?’ he cried to his fellow thief, ‘seeing thou
art inthe same condemnation. And we indeed justly, for
we receive the due reward of our deeds; but this man
hath done nothing amiss.’ Jesus of Nazareth, King of the
Jews! There was one, even here, ready to own Him
King. ‘Lord,’ said the dying thief, ‘remember me when
Thou comest into Thy kingdom.’ ‘Verily I say unto thee,
to-day shalt thou be with Me in Paradise,’ answered
Jesus. Before the sun, which was now beating upon the
shameful crosses where they hung, had gone down into
the western sea, both of them would be in Paradise! His
mother heard Him say it as she stood beneath His cross.
But Jesus knew His worst anguish was yet to come,
P
210 The Wonderful Life.
worse than the pain He felt in His’ body, or the bitterness
of the contempt poured upon Him, and He would not
have His mother witness it. She had borne much, and
perhaps could riot bear more, and live. We can well
believe no other being on earth was so dear to Him.
None had shared His whole life as she had done; none
could understand Him, and His purpose, so well. Did
He not remember their home in Nazareth, where the
peaceful, monotonous days followed one another so
quietly that she had almost forgotten whose son He was ?
All was over between them now: there was but one more
duty for Him to discharge: one more look for her to
take of her son Jesus. John stood near to her: His
youngest and best beloved disciple. Looking down upon
them, with His matchless tenderness, He said to her,
‘Woman, behold thy son.’ ‘Behold thy mother!’ He
said to John. She looked up to Him as His failing,
loving voice fell upon her ear: and she understood Him,
and His love, better than she had ever done before. The
look that passed between them was their farewell. John
led her away from the cross to his own dwelling-place -
and the last earthly care was gone from the heart of
Jesus.
About noon a strange gloom spread over those skies, .
usually so blue and cloudless. There was darkness over
all the land until the hour for the evening sacrifice.
Probably the crowd melted away in fear of a coming
‘tempest, or in dread of the inexplicable obscurity; and
Calvary, — 211
we do nat find that the chief priests lingered longer on
Calvary. An extraordinary anguish, a mysterious dark-
ness, as of despair, filled the heart and mind of Christ.
His soul, which in Gethsemane had been sorrowful even
unto death, was now poured out unto death, He had
borne the mockery of the people, had seen them stare
upon Him with cruel eyes, and heard their roaring against
Him. But now God seemed to hide His face from Him,
and to hearken no longer to His cry. This: He could
not bear; His heart was breaking under this sorrow. He
cried with a loud voice, which rang mournfully through
the darkness, ‘My God, my God, why hast Thou forsaken
Me?’ There were still about the cross some Jews who
could make jest of this awful cry. They knew Elias was
to come to prepare the way for the Messiah, and they
said, ‘Behold, He calleth Elias!’ Jesus, whose last
moment was at hand, and whose throat was parched,
cried, ‘I thirst†One of them, touched with pity, ran
and took a sponge, and, filling it with vinegar, lifted it to
His mouth on a reed. But the rest cried, ‘Let Him be;
let us see whether Elias will come to save Him, and to
take Him down.’
It was now the hour of the evening sacrifice. Once
again Christ was heard to say, ‘It is finished.’ Then
with a loud voice, He cried, ‘Father, into Thy hands I
commend My spirit.’ He bowed His head and died.
He gave up His spirit, bruised and tormented, and poured
out unto death, into His Father’s hands.
212 The Wonderful Life.
CHAPTER VIII.
IN THE GRAVE.
Ar the third hour, when Jesus was dying on Calvary, the
priest was offering up incense in the holy place of the
Temple. All the congregation, and the sacrificing priest
in the outer court, were waiting for him to reappear.
Suddenly an earthquake shook both the Temple mount
and the whole city of Jerusalem. The veil, which
separated the holy place from the holiest of holies, was
rent in two, from the top to the bottom, laying open the
sacred spot, which none ever entered except the high
priest on the Day of Atonement.
On Calvary, those who had gathered to see the sight
were at last terrified, and returned to the city, smiting
upon their breasts. The centurion in command of the
Roman soldiers, who had probably watched and listened
to the dying prophet with interest, was struck with fear,
and said, ‘Truly this was the Son of God!’
But before sunset, the Pharisees, always very scru-
pulous not to break the law, came to Pilate, and besought
In the Grave. 213
him that all three of those who were being crucified
should be put to death at once, because the next day
was a Sabbath, and their bodies ought not to be hanging
on the crosses on the Sabbath day. The soldiers were
ordered to dispatch the dying men by breaking their
legs ; but when they came to Jesus, and found that He
was dead already, they refrained from mutilating His
body; yet, lest any spark of life lingered which might
be fanned into a flame, one of them pierced His side
with a spear. Thus they made sure that He was dead.
In the mean time another applicant had gone to
Pilate. This was Joseph of Arimathea, a well-known
man, rich, honourable, and good, one of the Sanhedrim
itself, though he had not consented to the death of
Christ. He was a timid man, and a secret disciple ;
but shocked by the deeds of his fellow-councillors, he
went boldly in to Pilate, and begged that he might take
away the body of Jesus. Pilate marvelled whether He
were yet dead, and called the centurion to ask him it it
were so. He then willingly granted the body to Joseph,
who had already provided himself with fine linen for
the entombment. When he returned to Calvary, Nico-
demus accompanied him, bringing a large quantity of
spices, The women from Galilee were lingering about the
place; and now, in the cool and gloom of the evening,
they took the body down from the cross, and wrapped
it, with the spices scattered amid the folds, in the linen
cloth, Close by was a garden belonging to Joseph,
214 The Wonderful Life.
and in it a new tomb, which he had hewn for himself
in the midst of his garden. No man had ever lain in
it; no taint of death polluted it. Here they buried
their Lord hastily, for the Sabbath was near. Mary
Cleophas and Mary Magdalene sat close by, watching,
but perhaps too overcome with grief to: give any active
assistance. The women from Galilee also saw the sepul-
chre, and how His body was lain, Then all of them
returned to the city, to prepare spices and ointments for
the embalming of the corpse as soon as the Sabbath was
over.
The enemies of Christ had not been prepared for
this honourable burial of their victim. If Joseph of
Arimathea had not interfered, His body would have been
carried away from Calvary, with those of the thieves, and
carelessly laid in a common grave, where criminals, who
had died a shameful death, were flung together. The
followers of Jesus, poor obscure Galileans, could not
have had influence enough to save the corpse from
this degrading fate. But the Sanhedrim found that two
of their own chief men, startled by their fierceness and
injustice into open discipleship, had interposed promptly
to claim the body of their Lord, and to lay it in the new
tomb of a rich man, amidst the cool and quiet fragrance
of a garden, where those who loved Him might visit His
resting-place unnoticed and unmolested.
The Sabbath was come; a high day. The Sabbath
of the.passover was no doubt the most important of all
In the Grave. 215
the weekly Sabbaths in the year. The immense mul-
titudes that thronged Jerusalem, and dwelt even in tents
outside the walls, because there was not room enough
in the city, filled the Temple courts, and crowded into -
the synagogues. Sabbath days were especially days of
feasting and rejoicing with the Jews; friends met to-
gether ; no work at all was done; both men and women
were dressed in their best apparel, and desired to see
and to be seen. Probably, too, this Sabbath fell upon
the day for waving the first-fruits before Jehovah. At
the hour when Christ was buried a sheaf of standing
corn had been reaped with special rites for the purpose
in a field near Jerusalem ; and possibly this ceremony had
been one reason why Joseph and Nicodemus had been
left undisturbed in their burial of the body.
How the friends of Jesus passed this mournful day
we can only faintly imagine. Whether there was any
brighter hope, or more perfect understanding, in Mary’s
mind of what was to follow, we do not know. But the rest
were insensible to every consolation; they forgot alto-
gether the words Jesus had ‘spoken to them about rising
again. They had so long refused to believe that He
would give Hiniself up to death that now they were too
stunned to remember that He had promised to return to
them.
But Christ’s enemies did not forget this. Towards
the close of the Sabbath the chief priests and leading
Pharisees came together to Pilate. One tremor had
216 The Wonderful Life.
seized upon them in their hour of triumph. ‘Sir, we
remember,’ they said, ‘that that deceiver said, while He
was yet alive, After three days I will rise again. Com-
mand, therefore, that the sepulchre be made sure until
the third day, lest His disciples come by night and steal
Him away, and say unto the people, He is risen from the
dead: so the last error shall be worse than the first.’
Pilate cared little for any error, but he could not afford
to offend the chief priests. ‘Ye have a watch, he an-
swered, ‘go your way, make it as sure as ye can.’ The
watch consisted of Roman soldiers, not of the Temple
guard, who as Jews could not touch a sepulchre without
being defiled. The soldiers made the sepulchre sure,
sealing the stone; and when the watch was set the priests
and Pharisees went their way, satisfied that no second
error could arise to deceive the people. It was the
Sabbath, and therefore it was unlawful to touch the
dead, or they might have removed the body to the
common grave of executed criminals.
No doubt there must have been much discussion that
day throughout Jerusalem. None of these things which
had come to pass were done in a corner, in some remote
place in Galilee ; but in the Holy City itself, during the
passover week. Jesus was well known as a prophet of
the most blameless life. Every one had heard before, or
heard then, of Lazarus, who was probably hiding from
the malice of the chief priests and Pharisees. Rumours
would run along, from one to another, of the indecent
In the Grave. 217
haste with which the execution had been hurried on. The
bargain with the traitor would be whispered about ; the
midnight arrest in Gethsemane; the meeting of the Sanhe-
drim, not in the Temple, but in the high priest’s palace:
the early and hasty trial before Pilate, and the swift exe-
cution of the sentence: all these would be discussed
passionately in favour of, or against, Christ, during the
leisure of that Sabbath. Thousands among them were
disappointed. Those who were not the professed fol-
lowers of Jesus had been ready to follow Him, if He
would but make Himself intelligible to them. They
were longing for a Messiah ; and if He had been such a
Messiah as they expected, and could understand, they
would have joyfully flocked under His banner, and fought
for His kingdom, But He, who might have been dwell-
ing in regal splendour under the roof of the royal palace,
had been hung upon a shameful cross between two
thieves. ‘They had seen the end of Jesus of Nazareth—a
bitter, ignominious death. Was He not then, what the
chief rulers of the people called Him, a deceiver ?
218 The Wonderful Life.
CHAPTER IX.
THE SEPULCHRE.
Ow Friday evening, while Joseph and Nicodemus were
laying the body of the Lord in the grave, His aunt, Mary
Cleophas, and Mary of Magdala were sitting over against
the sepulchre, watching. The other women from Galilee
also saw the place where He was laid. Probably they
all returned to the city together, to buy spices and oint-
ments for the embalming; and before they separated
made arrangements for meeting again early, after the
Sabbath was ended. As nothing could be done before
daybreak, we may easily conjecture that they agreed to
meet soon after the dawn, either in the garden itself, or
by the city gate nearest to it.
But upon Sunday morning, whilst it was yet dark,
over-early: or before the appointed time, Mary Magdalene
and Mary Cleophas, restless in their sorrow, started off to
see the sepulchre beforehand. On their way they were
joined by Salome, the mother of John, who was probably
staying in the same house as Mary, the mother of Jesus.
The Sepulchre. 219
They had bought sweet spices, but the other women
were to bring them to the sepulchre. No light yet shone
in the sky, except the first faint grey of the morning in
the east. But possibly they may have seen a sudden
light gleaming in the direction of the garden, and felt the
shock of an earthquake, like that which had rent the
rocks on Friday. If so, they would naturally pause for a
while terrified ; yet when all was calm again, and the
quiet dawn grew stronger, waking up the birds, whose
twittering was the only sound to be heard, they would go
on, though troubled and trembling, to the sepulchre.
But what had caused the shock of earthquake? The
Roman guard, possibly the same that had watched under
the cross, and divided the Lord’s garments among them,
were already looking forward to being relieved from their
watch, when they saw an angel, whose face was like
lightning, descend from the dark heavens above them,
and they felt the earth quake and tremble beneath their
feet. He rolled back the stone from the sepulchre they
were guarding : and for fear of him they became as dead
men. They saw nothing else than the bright, awful face
and the glistening whiteness of the form that sat on the
stone ‘near them. . They did not see Christ quit His
tomb.
By the time the two Marys and Salome reached the
garden, the dawn was light enough for them to see objects
at some distance. They do not seem to have known of
the guard being set to watch the grave; for their talk was
220 The Wonderful Life.
only of the difficulty of removing the large stone which
filled the opening of the cave. Probably their special
purpose in coming to view the sepulchre was to ascertain
whether the women alone could roll it away, and effect
an entrance without aid. On Friday evening, in the twi-
light, and overwhelmed, as they were, with grief, they had
not sufficiently noticed this difficulty. Now, as they drew
near, what was their amazement and dismay to see the
stone already removed, and the cave open !
Their fears sprang to one conclusion, and only one.
The beloved body of their Lord had been violently taken
away—stolen by His implacable enemies—-during the
night. It had been still further degraded and dishon-
oured by being cast into the common grave of criminals.
Mary Magdalene, leaving the other Mary and Salome, fled
back into the city, to seek Peter and John, and arouse
them to help, if help were not too late. Very probably
these two disciples were lodging in the same house ; for
at the time of the feasts every dwelling in Jerusalem was
crowded with guests. ‘They have taken away the Lord,’
cried Mary, when she found them, ‘and we know not
where they have laid Him.’
In the mean time Mary Cleophas and Salome went on
to the sepulchre. They were women past middle life,
with the calmness and passiveness of years and sorrows,
and they did not shrink from entering into the sepulchre.
They had set out, indeed, with the intention of preparing
. the body for a second burial. But there was no lifeless
The Sepulchre. 221
corpse there. They were affrighted, however, by seeing
an angel, clothed in white, sitting on the right side.
‘Fear not,’ he said to them, ‘for I know that ye seek
Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; He is arisen.
Come, see the place where the Lord lay. And go
quickly, and tell His disciples and Peter that He is risen
from the dead; and behold, He goeth before you into
Galilee ; there shall ye see Him, as He said unto you.
Lo, I have told you.’ Salome and Mary Cleophas fled
from the sepulchre trembling and amazed ; and probably
passing by John and Peter in their bewilderment, they
said nothing to them about what they had seen, but went
on into the city, in fear and great joy, to bring the dis-
ciples word.
Now, when they were going, some, but not all, of the
Roman guard hastened to the chief priests, and told them
what had come to pass. A council was immediately
summoned; and, after much discussion, they seem to
have persuaded themselves that the soldiers had been
sleeping, and that as they slept the disciples had stolen
away the body. The guard owned to having been like
dead men from fright: and none of them professed to
have seen Jesus leave the grave. The council gave
them large sums of money to spread about this report,
which they did so successfully, that those who thought
better of the testimony of two or three heathen soldiers
than of that of hundreds of their own countrymen, who
had nothing to gain but everything to lose by their testi-
222 The Wonderful Life.
mony, believed the saying, and commonly reported it as
a fact.
Very shortly after Salome and Mary Cleophas left the
grave, John and Peter reached it. John had outrun
Peter, but, with the sensitive shrinking of a young nature,
unused to death, he did not goin. Stooping down, he
saw the linen clothes, that fine linen Joseph had prepared,
lying on the floor of the cave. It was quite evident his
Master was not there. But Peter, coming up, stepped at
once into the sepulchre, to look round it. There was no
sign of haste or violence, as there must have been if a band
of rough foes had trampled in to steal away the body.
The fair linen cloth was unsoiled, and the napkin that
had been bound about the worn and anguished face had’
been wrapped together, as if His mother’s gentle hands
had folded it up tenderly, and laid it aside by itself. -
There was nothing terrifying about the quiet, empty tomb;
and John, with all his sensitive love for his Lord, might
enter and feel no shock. He also went in, and looking
round, felt a gleam of faith, like the dawn of a new and
splendid day, breaking upon him. But they could not
linger in the empty grave. Mary, the mother of Jesus,
ought to hear these strange tidings ; and they went away
to tell her.
Now, Mary Magdalene stood without, at the door of
the cave, weeping. Like John, she did not venture to go
in. She was alone; Peter and John were gone, and the
other women were not yet come. The garden was a
The Sepulchre. 523
solitude. Nothing had occurred to deliver her from her
agonizing fears. To her it was her Lord, not His body
merely, that they had taken away. The hurried departure
of Peter and John, and the absence of Salome and Mary
Cleophas, must have confirmed her suspicions. She
stooped down, as John had done, to look at the place
where He had lain. There was the spot where His
thorn-crowned head had been pillowed, and His pierced
feet had rested. But the grave was no longer empty.
At the feet, and the head, where the body of Jesus had
lain, sat two angels, bending over the place, as if still
watching Him, just as she would have sat and watched
Him if she might but have stayed beside Him, even in
the sepulchre. The angels neither astonished nor
affrighted her: she was too engrossed in her sorrow.
‘Woman, why weepcest thou?’ they asked. She answered
them without fear—the only human being who has
spoken to angels with no tremor—‘ Because they have’
taken ‘away my Lord, and I know not where they have
laid Him.’ She even turned away from them, as from
those who could give her no comfort, while her Lord was
lost. Dimly through her tears she saw some one standing
near her, and heard the same question, ‘Woman, why
weepest thou? Whom seekest thou?’ These last words
gave her the idea that it must be the gardener, who
would know all that had taken place in the garden under
his care. ‘Sir,’ she cried, ‘if thou have borne Him hence,
tell me where thou hast laid Him, that I may take Him
224 The Wonderful Life.
away.’ She had but one thought in her mind: where
was her Lord ?
‘Mary,’ said the voice behind her—a familiar voice ;
and she turned quickly, crying gladly, passionately,
*Rabboni!’ He called her from the abyss of despair to
a rapture of joy, beyond words. She sprang towards Him
to touch Him, to make sure that it was He Himself
whom she had seen die upon the cross. In a moment
she was back again to the happy hours in Galilee, when
she had ministered unto Him, before all this agony came.
As before, one thought alone possessed her soul. Here
was her Master, He who had saved her in the old bad
days.
But Christ was not the same. A solemn change had ©
passed over Him, which must alter all His relations with
His old friends. She was too excited to feel this; but
His first words arrested her. ‘Touch Me not,’ He said,
possibly meaning, ‘Stay not to touch Me now, for I am
not yet ascending unto My Father; but go to my brethren,
and say unto them, I ascend unto My Father, and your
Father ; unto My God, and your God.’ He was their
elder brother, who could remain with them but a little
while, and then they would see Him no more, but He
would represent them in the Father’s house, where He
was going to prepare a place for them. Mary knew she
also should see Him again; and when He vanished out
of her sight she stayed not a moment longer at the
sepulchre, but went to tell them she had seen the Lord.
The Sepulchre. 225
All these circumstances had followed one another
rapidly: and it may be that the women who were to
bring the spices and ointments had been delayed, or
perhaps had waited some little time for Salome and the
two Marys at the appointed place of meeting. Joanna,
the wife of Herod’s steward, was the chief person among
them, as the woman of greatest wealth and rank. They
were not at all surprised at finding the stone rolled
back from the door of the sepulchre, supposing that
it had been done on purpose for them. But they
found the body they had come to embalm taken away.
This very much perplexed them; though they were not
afraid until they saw two men standing by them, in
shining garments. So terrified were they, that they bowed
their faces to the earth before them. ‘The angels said to
them, as if marvelling at these repeated visits to the
grave, ‘Why seek ye the living among the dead? He is
not here, but is risen ; remember how He spake unto you
when He was yet in Galilee, saying, The Son of man
must. be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and
be crucified, and the third day rise again.? Then the
women remembered these words, wondering at their own
forgetfulness. They returned at once to the city; and as
they were not likely to single out Peter or John, as Mary
Magdalene had done, to be the first hearers of their
tidings, they went quickly to some common place of
meeting among the disciples, and there found a large
party assembled, which had been probably called together
Q
226 The Wonderful Life.
by Peter, to hear that the body of the Lord was gone no
one knew whither. The women told the vision they had
seen; but the disciples could not believe them, and their
words seemed as idle tales. Peter, however, hearing of
the appearance of angels, arose, and ran again to the
sepulchre for the second time; but stooping down, he
saw no such vision, only the linen clothes laid as he had
seen them before. He returned to the assembly of the
disciples, full of wonder at what had come to pass. .
It is natural to suppose that Mary Magdalene, who had
hastened to John’s house when she knew the grave was
open, would also go there after she had seen - Christ.
Mary, His mother, would thus hear first of the appearance
of her son. Finding there that Peter and John had left
to call together the disciples at some appointed place,
Mary Magdalene followed them; and soon after Joanna,
and the women from Galilee had told of their vision of
angels, she entered to relate the appearance of the Lord
Himself to her in the garden. She had even a message
to deliver to them. But the mcredulous and bewildered
disciples could not believe her, and probably said among
themselves that grief had distracted her mind. When
Peter returned from the sepulchre, having seen nothing,
this conviction would naturally be deepened.
But presently Mary Cleophas and Salome, the aunt of
Jesus, and the mother of James and John, women not
likely to be deceived, or to mistake a stranger for their
Lord, came in with another account of having seen Him,
The Sepulchre. pay!
and of receiving a message from Him for His brethren.
But still the incredulous disciples refused to believe.
Mary Magdalene owned that she had not touched Jesus,
had indeed been forbidden to touch Him; but these two
women declared that they had not only met Him, but
that when they heard His greeting, they had fallen down
‘to worship Him, being afraid, and had held Him by His
feet. ‘Be not afraid,’ He had said ; ‘go, tell My brethren
that they go into Galilee, and there shall they see Me’
There was this excuse for the unbelief of the disciples
that as yet the only manifestations, either of angels or of
the Lord Himself, had been to women, who are always
more excited, and more open to superstitious fancies, in
hours of sorrow, than men are. The simple facts, as
known to the disciples, were, that the sepulchre was open
at daybreak, and the body of their Master missing. Who
had broken open the grave they could not tell ; but their
suspicion must have been that some-enemy had done it.
The news spread rapidly throughout Jerusalem, and
no doubt crowds of curious spectators flocked to the
garden to see the open tomb. Amongst them the
partisans'of the Sanhedrim diligently spread the report
that the body was stolen away by the disciples, while the
guard slept. It would be no longer prudent for the well-
known followers of Jesus to be seen near Calvary and
Gethsemane ; but those who were less marked among His
friends probably mingled with the throng, and from time
to time brought tidings to the assembly of disciples of
228 The Wonderful Life.
what was going on. The hours wore away, and still they
were in perplexity and unbelief. Three women only had
seen Him: one of these had not touched Him, and the
other two had been so bewildered and amazed, as to
have kept their interview with Him to themselves, until
after Mary Magdalene had given her account,
(229 )
CHAPTER X.
EMMAUS,
Wen the disciples were first called together by Peter
and John, there were among them two friends, one of
whom was named Cleophas, not the husband of Mary,
but probably a native of Emmaus, a village about nine
miles from the city. They were present when the party
of Galilean women, with Joanna, came to tell of seeing
two angels in the sepulchre. Possibly they went with
Peter, when he ran a second time to the grave ; but they
did not return with him, as they did not hear the
statement of Mary Magdalene, or of Salome and Mary
Cleophas. Very likely they lingered about the garden
amongst the crowd, listening to the various guesses and
rumours concerning the strange event, until it was time to
start on their long walk homewards. Calvary lay north
or north-east of the city walls, and Emmaus to the east;
there was no need therefore for them to return through
the busy streets, where they might have heard that their
risen Lord had appeared to, not one, but three of the
"230 The Wonderful Life.
women, who had loved Him so faithfully, and ministered
to Him so long. Sad, though it was a feast time when
joyousness was a duty, these men might well be.
It is a toilsome road, and the afternoon sun beat hot
upon them. But they heeded neither the heat of the
sun nor the roughness of the road. They were reasoning
and pondering over the events that had followed quickly
upon one another, since they had entered Jerusalem to
eat the feast of the passover. There had been the
betrayal, the arrest, the mock trial before the Sanhedrim,
the real trial before Pilate, the scourging, the crucifixion,
the darkness at noon-day, and earthquake, all hurried one
upon another. They might well be sad and downcast as
they communed about these things. 5
Presently a stranger, journeying the same toilsome
road, drew near and asked them how it was they could be
thus sorrowful during the feast. Cleophas answered him,
‘Art thou only a stranger in Jerusalem, and hast not
known the things that are come'to pass there in these
days?’ All Jerusalem was busy about them, and this
stranger, who seemed to be coming from the city, might
surely guess what they were talking about. Yet he said,
‘What things?’ And now Cleophas, concluding that he
was indeed a stranger, told him of Jesus of Nazareth, the
mighty prophet, who had been condemned to death by
the Great Sanhedrim, their rulers. ‘But we trusted,’ he
went on, sorrowfully, ‘that it had been He that should
have redeemed Israel.’ Then he narrated how certain
Emmaus. 231
women ‘had astonished them that morning, who did not
find His body in the sepulchre, but came saying they had
seen a vision of angels, who said that He was alive.
‘But Him they saw not,’ added Cleophas to the stranger
walking at his side. ,
‘O foolish men!’ he answered gently, ‘and slow of
heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken!
Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to
enter into His glory?’ They, like all other Jews, were
well versed in the writings of Moses and the prophets;
but as this stranger explained to them passages perfectly
familiar to them, they stood out in a new light, with
deeper meaning than any they had had before. Their
hearts, slow to believe, burned within them. Was it, then;
true that Jesus was that Holy One whose soul should not
be left in hell, nor His flesh see corruption? The long
road seemed short; the rocky path no longer rugged to
their feet ; the heat of the sun was unfelt. How fast the
time fled! How quickly Emmaus was seen on its hill
before them! Who could this stranger be, so wise and
gracious, whom they loved already, and could listen to
unweariedly, almost as if He were the Lord Himself ?
They were close to the village now, and He made as
though He would have gone farther ; but they could not
part with Him yet, stranger though He was. It was get-
ting on for evening, and the day was far spent. ‘Abide
with us,’ said both of them ; and He went in to tarry with
them, as they hoped, until the morning. He had charmed
232 The Wonderful Life.
away their sadness, and taught them what they had never
known before. How gladly would they minister to this
new friend! When they sat down to supper they set Him
in the most honourable place, to preside over their even-
ing meal. He took bread, blessing and breaking it with
some words or gesture peculiar to Christ, and gave it to
them, as He had been wont to do when He sat at meat
with His disciples. Now their eyes were no longer
holden that they should not know Him. It was He
Himself: their crucified and risen Lord. For one brief,
glad moment they saw His beloved face, and the pierced
hands, which had given to them the bread. Then He
vanished out of their sight ; but this was yet another proof
to them that it was indeed the Lord.
At once they rose up to return to Jerusalem, thinking
nothing of the long walk and the coming night, when they
had such tidings to carry to the disciples, and the mother
and kinsmen of Christ. It must have been late when
they reached the city, but they found ten of the apostles,
with a number of the disciples, gathered together, though
with closed doors, and precautions taken, for fear of the
Pharisees. Who was there? The women probably,
Lazarus from Bethany, Nicodemus, perhaps, and Joseph
of Arimathea, whose garden had been trampled by so
many feet that day. There was great agitation among
them still, Had the body of Jesus been stolen away from
the grave? Was it not His spirit only which had been
-seen by the women? Even Peter, who had also now
Emmaus. | 233
seen the Lord, the apostle who denied Him being the
first to whom He revealed Himself; Peter could hardly
believe that it was his Master, and not a spirit. Yet
when the two disciples from Emmaus entered, they were
met by the cry,.‘The Lord has arisen indeed, and ap-
peared unto Simon.’ But Cleophas and his companion
had something more to tell of than a mere brief appear-
ance. They described the stranger joining them, and
walking mile after mile with them, conversing all the while
familiarly ; how He went in to tarry with them, and sat
down to meat, and was known to them in the breaking of
bread. This the disciples could not believe. Cleophas
and his friend do not seem to have been very renowned
followers of Jesus, and the other disciples were hard of
belief. Those among them who had seen Him had
caught but brief glimpses of Him. Mary Magdalene had
not been allowed to touch Him; Salome and His aunt
Mary had only held His feet ; to Peter He had appeared
certainly, but not in this homely manner as a fellow-
traveller along the same rough way.
They were still speaking incredulously about these
new tidings, when suddenly, with no opening of the
fastened doors, and no sound of entering, they saw Jesus
Himself standing in the midst of them, and heard His
voice, saying, ‘Peace be unto you.’ But they were
terrified and affrighted, supposing that they saw a spirit.
There was none bold enough to try to touch Him, and
no one dared to speak. With great gentleness and ten-
234 The Wonderful Life.
derness He reproached them. ‘Behold My hands and
My feet,’ He said, showing them the print of the nails ;
‘handle Me, and see. It is I myself. A spirit hath not
flesh and bones, as ye see Me have.’ Their terror and
trouble were pacified, but still they were not calm enough
for faith, They could not now believe for joy. But to
give them time to collect themselves, He asked for food,
as once before He had commanded something to eat to
be given to the ruler’s little daughter, when He called
her back from the grave. He ate before them, a con-
vincing proof that He was no spirit; and then He was
seen no more by them. - But there was no room for
unbelief among them-now. The load upon their hearts,
like the great stone of the sepulchre, was rolled away for
ever. Their Lord was arisen indeed,
( 235 )
CHAPTER XI.
IT IS THE LORD.
Tuoucu the chief priests and Pharisees carefully reported
that the disciples had stolen the body of Jesus of
Nazareth, they took no steps to.prove the fact, or to
punish the violators of the grave. The whole number
of the disciples remained in Jerusalem during the feast,
and the Sabbath following the feast. Even on the first
day of the week after it, when the bulk of the Galileans
had started homewards, the eleven apostles still lingered
in the city. Thomas, who had vehemently refused to
believe in the resurrection of his Master because he had
not seen Him, had passed the week in alternate mourning
and disputing with those who vainly sought to convince
him. He saw Mary, the mother of Christ, comforted,
and full of gladness; his fellow-disciples rejoicing and
exultant; yet to all they urged he answered, ‘Except I
shall see in His hands the print of the nails, and put my
finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand
into His side, I will not believe.’ It was a miserable
236 The Wonderful Life.
week for him, for he was deeply attached to his crucified
Master, and timid and despondent as he was, he had
once said, ‘Let us also go, that we may-die with Him.’
But he could not be persuaded that He had risen from
the dead.
Eight days had passed since Jesus had been seen;
and the eleven apostles were sitting together, the doors
being shut for fear of the Pharisees, as on the week
before, when once more He stood in their midst, with no
sign or sound of coming, and said, ‘Peace be unto you.’
Then turning to Thomas, and speaking directly to him,
He added, ‘ Reach hither thy finger, and behold My hands,
and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into My side,
and be not faithless, but believing.’ But he did not now
need the evidence he had demanded; it was enough to
see his Master, and hear Him speak. Jesus wished to
prove to him he was the very Son of man, who had died
upon the cross. Thomas cried, ‘My Lord and my
God !’
The apostles no longer lingered in Jerusalem. They
were needed in their homes in Galilee, and it was safer
for them to assemble together there, where the chief
priests had less power than in Judea. Moreover, there
would be many arrangements to make for their families,
before they could set out on those missionary journeys
which soon scattered them into far countries. They
scarcely yet knew what their Lord would have them to
do, but for a short time longer they were sent to dwell
Lt 2s the Lord. o3F
in their own homes, among their own people, following
their old trades amid familiar scenes.
Seven of them were dwelling near Capernaum, on the
shores of the lake, where they had earned their livelihood
by fishing. Peter said to his comrades, one evening after
their return from Jerusalem, ‘I go a fishing.’ Thomas
and Nathanael, James and John, with two others, joined
him, and, entering into a boat, launched out upon the
dark waters, and toiled all night, but came back to the
land with empty nets. In the cold grey of the morning
they were going ashore, disappointed and hungry men,
when they saw on the dim beach a man standing to watch
them. It was still too dark for them to see clearly.
‘Children, have ye any meat?’ His voice called across
the water. There is nothing unusual in such a question
from a bystander, who has been looking on while men
aré fishing. ‘No,’ they shouted back ; for they were still
some distance from the land. ‘Cast the net on the right
side of the boat, and ye shall find,’ was the advice given.
He might see signs of fish, which had escaped them ; and
they obeyed, feeling that though their toil had been in
vain all night, one chance cast of the net might atone for
their want of success. If not, they could but return
“empty, as they were now doing.
While they cast their net the light grew stronger, and
the morning shone upon the lake and shore, upon the dis-
ciples in their boat, and the solitary stranger looking on.
But soon the net was so full of fish, that they could not
238 The Wonderful Life.
draw it; and quickly there flashed through the mind of
John the memory of that morning, when Jesus had called
them to leave their nets, and follow Him. ‘It is the
Lord,’ he said to Peter. There He stood in the morning
light at the edge of the waters where they were fishing.
Possibly, nay probably, there was already shining about
Him a transfiguring glory, such as they had witnessed on
the mountain, when His face was as the sun, and His
raiment as white as the glistering snow. Peter at once
threw himself into the lake, that he might the sooner
reach the Master he had once denied; and the rest
followed in their boat, dragging their net with them.
Just such a reception met them as may have welcomed
them often in the old days, when, though disciples, they
still had to earn their bread. No doubt their Lord had often
ministered to them before He washed their feet at the
Last Supper. There was a fire. already kindled on the
beach, lit for them whilst they were toiling, hungry and
weary, in the darkness ; and fish was broiling on it, and
cakes of bread were baking in the hot ashes. It was a
homely, simple welcome, such as one of themselves might
have prepared for his comrades. They and their - Master
had often eaten their meals together thus in the open air,
beside a little fireeon the ground. ‘Bring of the fish
which ye have now caught,’ said Jesus to them; and
Peter ran and drew the net to land, counting the fish
as he took them out of the unbroken meshes, Presently
Jesus said to them, ‘Come and dine†But none of them
Lt ts the Lord. 239
durst say, ‘Who art thou?’ They were silent in happy
awe.
The meal was ready, and they hungry with their night’s
toil. They were at home, on the shores of their own lake.
Every hill, every village, every landmark about them,
lying clear in the early light, was as familiar to them as
the faces of old friends. The freshness of the morning
air brought to them the scent of flowers such as they had
plucked when children. The little waves of the lake
rippled up against the margin, chiming as it had done to
them when they were boys. The larks sang overhead,
and the waterfowl cried across the water. How different
was this from that upper chamber in Jerusalem, when
their Master’s soul was troubled, and exceedingly sorrow-
ful, as He said there was a traitor among them. There
was no traitor now, no agony in Gethsemane, no cruel
foes, no cross. All these were for ever past.
Once again Jesus took bread, and, breaking it, He
gave it tothem. In silence, blissful, yet reverent, they
took their food from His hand, and satisfied their hunger.
They knew that it was the Lord, and that was
‘enough. When the meal was over, three times Christ
asked of Peter the question, ‘ Lovest thou Me?’ until at
the third time Peter was aggrieved. ‘Lord,’ he cried,
‘Thou knowest all things; Thou knowest that I love
thee.’ Jesus bade him feed His lambs and His sheep ;
and signified to him what death he should die for His
sake. By this time the morning had advanced, and the
240 The Wonderful Life.
people were waking up to their day’s work in the fields,
or upon the lake, and Jesus withdrew from His disciples,
saying to Peter, ‘Follow Me.’ All of them were about to
enter upon the life He had quitted; they would be per-
secuted, cast out of the synagogue, and put to death as
He had been. The servant could not be above his
Master, nor the disciple above his Lord. They must all,
even Peter, who had denied Him, follow Him through
shame and suffering to a bitter end. Peter understood
Christ’s words literally, and rose up to follow Him ; John
also could not stay behind if he might but be with his
Lord in that mysterious solitude whither He was about to
vanish, and whence He came so suddenly among them.
But here they could not follow Him. Peter asked a
question. as to what John should do in the perilous future
they were about to enter; but Jesus checked his curiosity
by a vague, indefinite answer before passing out of their
sight. This was the third time that Jesus showed Him-
self to His disciples after He was risen from the dead,
( 241 )
CHAPTER XII.
HIS FRIENDS,
Twice had the Lord been seen by the women who minis-
tered unto Him ; three times by the apostles. But a still
larger assembly were to have proof that He had indeed
risen from the dead. Whilst Jesus was yet in Galilee,
before His crucifixion, He had told not only His twelve
apostles, but the mass of His disciples, that He should be
crucified, and rise again on the third day. He had also
fixed upon a mountain where He would appear unto
them after this resurrection, probably a mountain in some
central point, where all could assemble to meet Him.
More than five hundred disciples flocked to this appointed
place, men and women, those whom He had delivered
from blindness, sickness, sorrow, even from evil spirits.
None would be absent who could possibly reach the quiet
mountain, where their crucified Lord would meet them in
His own person ; no spirit; no illusion. A few even yet
doubted ; but the rest worshipped Him. Speaking to
them all, not to the apostles merely, He bade them teach
R
242 The Wonderful Life.
all nations to observe whatsoever He had commanded.
Each disciple was to be a messenger of the good tidings
for Him; though only a chosen few were to forsake all to
become His ambassadors to distant lands.
There was one of the Lord’s disciples, who had been
His companion, not for a few months only, nor for two or
three years, but during His whole life. They had been
boys together, dwelt in the same village, climbed the
‘hills side by side, learned from the. same schoolmaster,
gone together to the synagogue Sabbath after Sabbath ;
perhaps worked at the same carpenter’s bench. This was
James, the son of His aunt Mary Cleophas, of whom
tradition says he closely resembled the Lord in his per-
sonal appearance. Jesus appeared alone to him, in some
quiet, unknown hour, which would have remained a secret
from us if James had not himself told it to Paul some
years afterwards. Jesus had not ceased to love those
whom He had loved in His early life; and it may be He
appeared to James to satisfy some passionate yearning
of His cousin’s heart, for one more hour of such com-
munion as those they had had together on the hills
round Nazareth.
For forty days after His resurrection Christ remained
upon earth, showing Himself alive by many infallible
proofs, eating and drinking with His disciples ; being seen
of them, and touched by them; teaching them, and
speaking to them things pertaining to the kingdom of
God, which they were to preach. He had said, ‘I will
fTis Friends. 243
see you again, and your heart shall rejoice: and your joy
no man taketh from you.’ His words were fulfilled. The
joy of His resurrection had made them strong to face the
perils they had once dreaded ; and by many a proof He
made this joy unspeakable, and full of glory. No king,
no high priest, no emperor, not all the powers and prin-
cipalities of the whole world, could take this joy from
them. Now the time was come when Christ could trust
His message with them, and leave them to go to the
Father.
The mission of the apostles was to begin at Jerusalem
—the city of His crucifixion. There, some days before
the Feast of Pentecost, they were once more gathered
together, with Mary, the mother of Jesus, and other
women, and His kinsmen, waiting for His last revelation
of Himself. Jesus came to them, and led them out as
far as Bethany, on the Mount of Olives; but whether all
were there, or His apostles only, we cannot tell. Seen
and heard by them, but invisible to’ eyes that had no love
for Him, He passed along that road, down which the
thronging multitudes had swept in glad procession, waving
palm branches, and shouting, ‘Hosanna to the Son of
David !? Once more He looked upon the doomed city,
over which He had wept, and which was now crowned by
its blackest sin. ‘Begin at Jerusalem,’ He said. Even
yet the apostles did not fully understand Him. ‘Lord,’
they asked, ‘wilt Thou at this time restore the kingdom
to Israel?’ They beheld their beautiful city, with its mag-
244 The Wonderful Life.
nificent temple and gorgeous palaces, and still thought it,
blood-stained as it was, a fitting throne for their risen
Lord. Again, as once before, He told them they were
not to know the times and seasons which the Father had
kept in His own power.
Past the home at Bethany, which He had loved so
much, and blessed so wondrously, Jesus led His disciples
to some solitary spot on the mountain, where Jerusalem,
the guilty city, with Calvary at her gates, was hidden from
their view. Lifting up His pierced hands, He blessed
them, His friends who had been with Him in His tribu-
lation; but whilst He was yet speaking a cloud came
down to overshadow them, as they had been overshadowed
in the Mount of Transfiguration. Their loving hands
could clasp Him no longer; they could hear Him no
more, but falling down, they worshipped Him, as He was
thus carried away from them. Even when all was lost to
their sight, that bright chariot of cloud in which He was
ascending on high amidst thousands of angels, and lead-
ing captivity captive, when that had faded in the deep
blue of the heavens, they stood gazing steadfastly toward
the point where it had vanished, until two men in white
apparel spoke to them, saying, ‘Ye men of Galilee, why
stand ye gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, which
is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come again in
like manner as ye have seen Him go into heaven.’
In great joy they returned to Jerusalem, along the
well-known road, with Gethsemane not far off, and Cal-
Fits Friends. 245,
vary in sight. With one accord they, with the women,
and Mary, and all the kinsmen of the Lord, continued
together in prayer and supplication, going up constantly
to the Temple to praise and bless God.
R3
246 The Wonderful Life.
CHAPTER XIII.
HIS FOES.
Bur what of the enemies of Christ? the traitor, the
priestly persecutors, the unjust judge, the cowardly te-:
trarch, nay the city itself, which could suffer such crimes ?
A few years after the crucifixion, Herod Antipas, the
murderer of John the Baptist, was goaded on by Hero-
dias to solicit the rank and title of king from the Roman
emperor. Her brother, Herod Agrippa, had been
made king of those provinces which had been governed
by Philip the tetrarch; and he arrived in Palestine,
A.D. 38. His kingly state excited the ambition and
jealousy of Herodias, who at last succeeded in carry-
ing Herod Antipas to Rome to supplant Agrippa in
the favour of the emperor. But Agrippa’s influence
proved stronger than theirs; and instead of being
allowed to return to Palestine, Herod Antipas was
banished, and from that time till his death dragged out ©
the life of an exile in Gaul and Spain. Herodias did
fits Foes. 247
not forsake him; the only good thing we know of that
wicked woman.
Pilate had sacrificed Christ to his fears of being mis-
represented to the emperor. The very fate he dreaded
befell him ; for riots becoming more and more frequent
under his.rule, both in Judea and Samaria, his superior,
the prefect of Syria, sent him to Rome for trial. He
arrived there just after the death of Tiberius, who had
been his friend and patron; and Caligula, his successor,
banished him also to Gaul, where, it is said, he died by
his own hand, unable to bear his disgrace and exile.
After the departure of Pilate, the prefect of Syria
visited Jerusalem, and removed Caiaphas from his office
as high priest. But a son cf Annas was put in his place,
and the chief power of the priesthood remained in the
family for a long period. Annas himself died in extreme
old age, and was considered by his countrymen one of
the happiest men of his time and nation.
For a brief space under Herod Agrippa, who was
made king of Judea and Samaria, as well as of the
provinces east of the Jordan, Jerusalem enjoyed pros-
perity, whilst the early Christians suffered many persecu-
tions, Herod putting James, the brother of John, to death,
to please the Jews. But immediately after this, upon the
death of Herod, A.D. 45, a severe famine, lasting two
years, befell Judea. Soon afterwards, at the feast of the
passover, many thousands of the people perished in a
248 The Wonderful Life.
tumult caused by the intrusion cf the Roman soldiers
into the Temple. A set of fanatics and assassins began
to infest Jerusalem and its neighbourhood, some of whom
slew the high priest, a son of Annas, whilst sacrificing.
Riots and massacres became more and more common.
False Messiahs sprang up. Rival high priests headed
different parties, each bent upon plunder. At last the
Jews broke out into open insurrection against the Roman
power; brit they were also divided among themselves, and
separated into many factions, at deadly enmity with one
another. The Roman army besieged Jerusalem, A.D. 70,
when it was crowded with strangers and pilgrims come
up to keep the passover. Thousands perished in battle,
thousands more by famine and murder within the walls,
.and when the city was taken, the old and sickly were
massacred, children under seventeen years of age were
sold into slavery, and the rest were sent in multitudes
to make up gladiatorial shows in the amphitheatres of
Rome and the provinces. ‘The whole of the city was
so thoroughly levelled and dug up, that no one visiting
it would believe it had ever been inhabited.’ It is said
that not one of the Christians perished in the siege, as they
fled from the doomed city before it was surrounded by
the Roman army.
But a far swifter and more direct destruction befell
the man, who knew, and knew distinctly, what he was
doing when he betrayed his Lord into the hands of His
fits Foes. yKe)
enemies. Judas was not ignorant of the purposes of the
Sanhedrim ; he was no stfanger to Jesus. He had even
been one of His familiar friends, in whom He trusted. He
had been an eye-witness, like the other apostles, of the
wondrous life of Jesus from the beginning. He had
himself preached the gospel, and done works of mercy
in the name of his Master. Yet he clearly understood
that the bribe for which he bargained to betray Him was
but the price of His blood. For he had been with Christ
when He was hiding from His enemies, who sought to
kill Him by any means, by private assassination, or by
sudden tumult. To sell Jesus to the chief priests, he
knew, was to betray innocent blood.
We are led to suppose that Judas accompanied the
band which carried Jesus from Gethsemane to the palace of -
the high priest, a dark-spirited, anxious, skulking villain,
already hearing a low whisper of that storm of remorse
which was soon to drive him to despair. The wages of his
sin were promptly paid to him ; yet still he seems to have
lingered about the spot where his Master was, watching how
things went on. It was night, and he was friendless. All
his old comrades would now turn from him in terror.
He was not a stupid man; he could feel keenly. There
was but one spark of comfort—his purse was no longer
empty, and the little field he coveted could now be
his. As soon as the day dawned he would go and see
about it.
250 The Wonderful Life.
Possibly there was a faint, lingering hope that Jesus
might deliver Himself. Once before He had passed in-
visibly through the midst of His foes, when they took up
stones to kill Him. Perhaps he had heard Jesus say to
Peter, ‘Thinkest thou that I cannot now pray to My
Father, and He shall presently give Me more than twelve
legions of angels?’ But the faint hope died away as the
cruel hours sped on; and when Jesus suffered them to
lead Him away, bound, before Pilate, Judas knew He
would not save Himself He ought to have known it
before.
Wildly he fled to the Temple, where the priests, his
tempters, were already preparing to celebrate their solemn
day of peace-offering for the nation. He forced his way
into the inner portions of the sacred place, probably into
the hall of the Sanhedrim, where the priests assembled
early every morning to cast lots for the services of the
day. He flung down the thirty pieces of silver, crying,
‘I have sinned, in that I have betrayed the innocent
blood!’ The priests heard, and answered him with a
sneer. ‘What is that to us?’ they asked; ‘see thou to
that!’ Judas left the money, the price of his Lord, and
departed for ever from the Temple.
It may be he lingered through the terrible morning
of the crucifixion, until after the awful crime in which he
had had a chief share was completed. Then, seeking
out the field he had coveted, and which was all but
flis Foes. 251
purchased, he put an end to his miserable life. Not
without warning had this bitter end come, a merciful
warning from his Lord, who had said, whilst there was
yet time for him to repent, ‘The Son of man goeth as it
is written of Him: but woe unto that man by whom the
Son of man is betrayed! it had been good for that man
if he had not been born.’
THE END.
Caxton Printing Works, Beccles.
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November 1874.
Pooks FOR THE younc
AND FOR LENDING LIBRARIES
SELECTED FROM
Messrs. HENRY S. KING & Co.’S CATALOGUE.
NEW WORKS BY HESBA STRETTON.
The Wonderful Life.
With a Map and Illuminated Frontispiece. Fep. 8vo price 2s, 6d.
[Preparing.
This slight and brief sketch is merely the story of the life and death of our
Lord. It has been written for those who have not the leisure, or the books,
needed for threading together the fragmentary and scattered incidents recorded in the
four Gospels. Of late years these records have been searched diligently for the
smallest links which might serve to complete the chain of those years of a life passed
amongst us as Jesus of Nazareth, the Carpenter, the Prophet, and the Messiah.
This little book is intended only to present the result of these close investigations
made by many learned men, in a plain continuous narrative, suitable for unlearned
readers,
Cassy. /
A New Story, by Hesba Stretton. Square crown 8vo. Illus-
trated, uniform with ‘Lost Gip.’? Twenty-fourth Thousand. Price
Is, 6d,
The King’s Servants.
By Hesba Stretton, Author of ‘Lost Gip.? Square crown
8vo. uniform with ‘Lost Gip.’? Twenty-ninth Thousand. Light
Illustrations. Price 15, 6d.
Part I.—FAITHFUL IN LITTLE.
Part II.—UNFAITHFUL.
Part III.—FAITHFUL IN MUCH.
Lost Gip.
By Hesba Stretton, Author of ‘Little Meg,’ ‘ Alone,in
London.’ Square.crown 8vo. Thirty-eighth Thousand. Six
Illustrations. Price 1s. 6d.
*,% A HANDSOMELY BOUND EDITION, WITH TWELVE
ILLUSTRATIONS, PRICE HALF-A-CROWN.
2 Books FOR THE YOUNG, ETC.—continued.
Daddys Pet.
By Mrs, Ellen Ross (NELSIE BRoox). Square crown 8vo.
uniform with ‘Lost Gip.’? Six Tllustrations. Price 15.
‘We have been more than pleased with this simple bit of writing.—
Christian World.
‘Full of deep feeling and true and noble sentiment.’—Brighton Gazette.
Seeking His Fortune, and other Stories.
Crown 8vo. Four Illustrations. Price 35. 6d.
CONTENTS.
SEEKING HIS FORTUNE, WHAT’S IN A NAME?
OLUF AND STEPHANOFF. CONTRAST.
ONESTA.
‘They are romantic, entertaining, and decidedly inculcate a sound and
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‘These are plain, straightforward stories told in the precise, detailed
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THREE WORKS BY MARTHA FARQUHARSON.
Each Story is independent and complete in itself. They are published
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trated.
I, ELSIE DINSMORE. Crown 8vo. 3. 6d.
II, ELSIE'’S GIRLHOOD. Crown 8vo. 3s. 6d.
Wl, ELSIE’S HOLIDAYS AT ROSELANDS. Crown 8vo. 35. 6d.
The African Cruiser.
A Midshipman’s Adventures on the West Coast. A Book for
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Vavasour.’ Illustrations. Third Edition. Crown 8vo, 35. 6d.
*A capital story of youthful adventure....Sea-loving boys will find few
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*Sea yarns have always been in favour with boys, but this, written in a
brisk style by a thorough sailor, is crammed full of adventures.’— Times.
Books FOR THE YOUNG, ETC.—continued, 3
The Little Wonder-Horn.
By Jean Ingelow. A Second Series of ‘Stories told to a
Child.’ Fifteen Illustrations. Cloth gilt. 35. 6d.
‘We like all the contents of the ‘ Little Wonder-Horn†very much.’—
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‘We recommend it with confidence.’—Pall Mall Gazette.
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Brave Men’s Footsteps.
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Four Illustrations. By C. Doyle. 35. 6d.
* A readable and instructive volume.’—E xaminer.
‘The little volume is precisely of the stamp to win the favour of those
who, in choosing a gift for a boy, would consult his moral development as
well as his temporary pleasure.’—Daily Telegraph.
Plucky Fellows.
A Book for Boys. By Stephen J. Mac Kenna, With Six
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‘This is one of the very best “Books for Boys†which have been issued
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‘A thorough .book for boys....written throughout in a manly, straight-
ee manner that is sure to win the hearts of the children.’—London
ociety.
Gutta-Percha Wilke, the Working Genius.
By George Macdonald. With [Illustrations by Arthur
Hughes. Crown 8vo. Second Edition. 3s. 6d.
‘The cleverest child we know assures us she hasread this story through
five times. Mr. Macdonald will, we are convinced, accept that verdict
upon his little work as final.’—Sgectator.
4
The
The
The
Books FOR THE YOUNG, ETC.—continued.
Travelling Menagerte.
By Charles Camden, Author of ‘Hoity Toity.’ Tlustrated
by J. Mahoney. Crown 8vo. 3s. 6d.
‘A capital little book....deserves a wide circulation among our boys and
girls.’—Hour.
‘Avery attractive story.’—Public Opinion.
Desert Pastor, Fean Farousseau.
Translated from the French of Eugene Pelletan. By Colonel
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piece. New Edition. Price 3s. 6a.
‘A touching record of the struggles in the cause of religious liberty of a
real man.’—Graphic.
‘There isa poetical simplicity and picturesqueness ; the noblest heroism ;
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Deserted Ship.
A Real Story of the Atlantic. By Cupples Howe, Master
Mariner. Illustrated by Townley Green. Crown 8vo. 35. 6d.
* Curious adventures with bears, seals and other Arctic animals, and with
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story deals, and will much interest boys who havea spice of romance in their
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FfLoity Totty, the Good Little Fellow.
By Charles Camden. [llustrated. Crown 8vo. 35. 6d.
‘Relates very pleasantly the history ofa charming little fellow who meddles
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little story.’—Pudblic Opinion.
Aunt Marys Bran Pre.
By the Author of ‘When I was a Little Girl’ &c. Crown 8vo.
Tllustrated. 35. 6d,
Books FOR THE YOUNG, ETC.—continued. 5
The Boy Slave in Bokhara:
A Tale of Central Asia. By David Ker, Author of ‘On the
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Waking and Working;
Or, from Girlhood to Womanhood. By Mrs, G. 8. Reaney.
Crown 8vo. With a Frontispiece. 55.
Slavonic Fairy Tales.
Translated from the Russian, Polish, Servian, and Bohemian.
By J. 'T. Naaké, of the British Museum. Crown 8vo. Illus-
trated. Price 55.
*A most choice and charming selection......The tales have an original
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‘English readers now have an opportunity of becoming acquainted with
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they are translated with a fidelity which deserves cordial praise...... Before
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‘
At School with an Old Dragoon.
By Stephen J. Mac Kenna. With Six Illustrations. Crown
8vo. 55.
‘Consisting almost entirely of startling stories of military adventure....
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‘These yarns give some very spirited and interesting descriptions of
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‘Mr. Mac Kenna’s former work, “ Plucky Fellows,†is already a general
favourite, and those who read the stories of the Old Dragoon will find that
he has still plenty of materials at hand for pleasant tales, and has lost none
of his power in telling them well.’—Standard.
Books FOR THE YOUNG, ETC.—continued.
Fantastic Stories.
Translated from the German of Richard Leander, by Paulina
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by M. E. Fraser-Tytler. Price 5s.
‘Short, quaint, and as they are fitly called, fantastic ; they deal with all
manner of subjects. ’_Guardian.
‘Fantastic †is certainly the right epithet to apply to some of these
strange tales.’ —Z.xaminer.
Third Edition.
Stories in Precious Stones.
The
By Helen Zimmern. With Six Illustrations. Crown 8vo. 5s.
‘A pretty little book which fanciful young persons will appreciate, and
which will remind its readers of many a legend, and many an imaginary
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‘A series of pretty tales which are half fantastic, half natural, and
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Great Dutch Admirals.
By Jacob de Liefde. Crown 8vo. [Illustrated. Price 5s.
‘May be recommended as a wholesome present for boys. They will find
in it numerous tales of adventure.’—A cheneum.
‘A really good book.’—Staxdard.
‘A really excellent book.’—Sfectator.
Phantasmion.
A Fairy Romance. By Sara Coleridge. With an Introduc-
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8. Mary. A new edition. Crown 8vo. Price 7s. 6d.
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‘ This delightful work...... We would gladly have read it were it twice the
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A beautiful conception of a rarely gifted mind.’—Z.xaminer.
Books FOR THE YOUNG, ETC.—continucd. 4
Lays of a Knight Errant in Many Lands.
By Major-General Sir Vincent Eyre, C.B., G.C.S.I., &c.
Square crown 8vo. Six Illustrations. Price 7s. 6d.
PHARAOH LAND. WONDER LAND.
HOME LAND. RHINE LAND,
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Beatrice Aylmer, and other Tales.
By the Author of ‘Brompton Rectory.’ Crown 8vo. Price 6s.
‘These tales possess considerable merit.’"—Court Fournal.
°A neat and chatty little volume.’—our.
Lhe Tasmanian Lily.
By James Bonwick. Crown 8vo, [Illustrated. Price 55.
An interesting and useful work.’—Hour.
he characters of the story are capitally conceived, and are full of those
touches which give them a natural appearance.’—Pudblic Opinion.
Mike Howe, the Bushranger of Van Diemen’s
Land,
By James Bonwick, Author of ‘The Tasmanian Lily’ &c.
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Preity Lessons in Verse for Good Children.
With some Lessons in Latin, in Easy Rhyme. By Sara Cole-
ridge. A New Edition. Illustrated.
Seven Autumn Leaves from Fairy Land.
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8 Books FOR THE YOUNG, ETC.—continued.
FOUR ELEGANT POETICAL GIFT BOOKS.
Lyrics of Love.
Selected and arranged from Shakspeare to Tennyson, by
W. Davenport Adams. Fcp. 8vo. price 3s. 6d.
‘We cannot too highly commend this work, delightful in its contents and
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William Cullen Bryant's Poems.
Red-line Edition, Handsomely bound. With Illustrations and
Portrait of the Author. Price 7s. 6¢ A Cheaper Edition is
also published. Price 3s. 6d.
These ave the only complete English Editions sanctioned by the Author.
English Sonnets.
Collected and Arranged by John Dennis. Small crown 8vo.
Elegantly bound, price 3s. 6d.
“An exquisite selection, a selection which every lover of poetry will consult
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‘Mr. Dennis has shown great judgment in this selection.’—Saturday
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fTome-Songs for Quiet Hours.
By the Rev. Canon R. H. Baynes, Editor of ‘ English Lyrics’
and ‘Lyra Anglicana,’ Handsomely printed and bound, price
35. 6a.
*% The above can also be had bound in morocco.
Henry S. Kine & Co.
VY) 65 Cornhill and 12 Paternoster Row, London,
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