Part 3

“But the way of death is this. First of all, it is evil and full of curse; murders, adulteries, lusts, fornications, thefts, idolatries, witchcrafts, sorceries, robberies, false‐witnessings, hypocrisies, double‐heartedness, deceit, pride, wickedness, self‐will, covetousness, filthy talking, jealousy, presumption, haughtiness, flattery.

“Persecutors of the good, hating truth, loving a lie, not knowing the reward of righteousness, not cleaving to that which is good nor to righteous judgment, watching not for the good but for the evil, far from whom is meekness and patience, loving vain things, seeking after reward, not pitying the poor, not toiling with him who is vexed with toil, not knowing Him that made them, murderers of children, destroyers of the image of God, turning away from him that is in need, vexing him that is afflicted, advocates of the rich, lawless judges of the poor, wholly sinful.

“Take heed that no one make thee to err from this way of teaching, since he teacheth thee not according to God.”

V. THE WOMAN TAKEN IN ADULTERY. THE RICH YOUNG MAN.

It must have been many months after I had heard him discourse in the Galilæan synagogue that I again saw Jesus the Nazarene. We in Jerusalem had our own concerns to think of.

At this time the long monopoly of rule by the Sadducees was gradually being broken. Of the three divisions of the Sanhedrim, that of the ordinary Israelites had become almost entirely composed of the Pharisees; I myself had been elected as one of that party, and even in the other two sections of the Priests and of the Levites, many, especially among the latter, held with the Pharisees. Nor was this without influence upon the political issues of the times. The Sadducees, being the sacerdotal party, had no cause why they should be dissatisfied with the position they held in the State under the Romans; but we of the Pharisees felt far otherwise about the national hopes for deliverance. Since my days the influence of the Pharisees has become predominant in the nation, and I foresee that the struggle between us and the Romans cannot be delayed for long. At the time of which I am writing, the hegemony had not yet passed over to the Pharisees, and it was of import for us all to know whether any man of influence was on our side, or on that of the Sadducees, or whether he cared for neither, and cast in his lot with the smaller sects.

Now, it happened about this time that I was attending my place in the Sanhedrim of Israelites, to judge of a case of adultery. But in this matter our Sages, and especially those of the Pharisaic tradition, had made great changes in the Law as laid down for us by Moses; for he, as thou knowest, commands that a woman taken in adultery shall be stoned to death. Now, for a long time among us there has been an increasing horror of inflicting the death penalty. If a Sanhedrim inflicts capital punishment more than once in seven years, it is called a Sanhedrim of murderers. Yet the Law of Moses declared that whosoever was guilty of adultery would be put to death. What, then, was to be done? It is against the principle of justice that any should be punished for an offence of which he is ignorant. Hence, in capital offences, our Sages, to mercy inclined, have laid it down that a man must be assumed to be ignorant of the guilt of the offence, unless it be proved that he had been solemnly warned of its gravity; and in our Law proof can only be given by two simultaneous witnesses. Hence it is impossible to obtain conviction for a woman who hath committed adultery, unless proof is given that she hath been previously warned by two persons at once. This can scarcely ever be. No Jewish woman in my time has ever been stoned as the Law commands for this sin. Some think that this is too great a leniency, and of evil result for the morality of the folk.

When I arrived at the hall of polished stones near the Temple, in which the Sanhedrim holds its sittings, the trial had nearly come to a conclusion. The inquiry had been made if any two credible witnesses had given the woman the preliminary caution, and none answering to the call, it remained only for the _Ab Beth Din_, the president of the court, to dismiss the prisoner with the words of caution and advice which are customary on such occasions: “My daughter, perhaps thou wert led into sin by too much wine, or by thoughtlessness, or perhaps by thy youth; perchance it was mixing in crowds, or wicked companions that led thee to sin: go, and for the sake of the great Name, do not bring it to pass that thou must be destroyed by the water of jealousy.” And with these words the court was dismissed, and several of us were appointed to take the woman to her home, and induce the man, her husband, to take her to him once again. Now, as we were passing through the courts of the Temple, we saw Jesus the Nazarene in one of the smaller courts, seated, teaching the people, some of whom sat at his feet. But it seemed to some of us a favorable opportunity to test what he would say as regards the Law of Moses relating to adultery: for if he would declare that the Law must be carried out in all its rigor, that would show that our Sages were more merciful than he; if, on the other hand, he adopted the opinion of our Sages, that would in so far commit him to support their attitude towards the Law in general. In any case, it seemed a suitable occasion to test his power of dealing with the Law, and it is customary among us to put such test cases before the younger Sages.

We therefore turned aside and entered into the smaller court, and all rose to do honor to the Sanhedrim. Then one of us said to him, “Rabbi, this woman was taken in adultery, in the very act. Now, Moses in the Law hath commanded that such should be stoned: what sayest thou?” Now, when the man told him that the woman had been taken in the very act of adultery, a deep blush passed over his face, and he turned his eyes downwards. Then he bent down to the ground, hiding his face altogether from us, and writing, as it were, something on the sand of the floor. Now, at first, I thought of the cry of the money‐changers that I had heard, and felt ashamed in my soul that such a question should be brought before this man, of all men: for our Sages have said, “The greatest of sins is this—to bring a blush upon thy neighbor’s face in public.” But the others thought not of this, but once more they asked him, “Rabbi, what sayest thou shall be done in this case?” Then, without raising his head, Jesus said in a low tone, “Let him among you that is without sin cast the first stone.” Then we saw that his shame had been for us, and for our want of feeling in putting such a question in the very presence of her who had sinned. And in this matter we hold that sin can be in thought as well as in act, and which of us could say that we were without sin even in thought? So, in very shame, we turned and went, and left Jesus alone with the woman.

Yet, after we had come away from him, Matathias ben Meshullam said, “That is well,—we are rightly rebuked; but yet, dost thou not see that this man hath not answered our question, nor do we know, as we wished, what attitude he takes towards the carrying out of the Law? I hear that each morning he preaches to the people in the Temple. Let us now tomorrow put such questions to him that he cannot evade, and find out to which of our parties he belongs; for this is a man that is getting great weight with the people, and it imports us to know where he stands with regard to us.” So it was determined among us that the next morning a Sadducee and a Pharisee should put to him queries which should determine what views he held on the great questions which distinguished the two great parties of the State.

But that very afternoon I was to learn that this Jesus had to deal with questions with which none of our parties concerned themselves. For, as I was coming near to Gethsemane, I met Jesus with a band of men and women going out towards Bethany, and I passed them with the salutation of “Peace.” But as I passed, a young man whom I knew, that had recently come into great possessions upon the death of his father, came up and asked, “Who is that man whom thou hast just greeted?” and I said, “Jesus the Nazarene.” Then, suddenly, he set off running to catch them up, and being curious, I turned and followed him. When I reached them I found the young man kneeling before Jesus, gazing up to him, and he said, “Good Master, I have inherited great possessions; what shall I do that I may inherit the life everlasting?” Jesus said to him, “Call not me ‘Good;’ none is good but the One. If thou wouldest enter into life, do the commandments.” The young man asked, “Which?” Jesus said, using the doctrine of “The Two Ways,” “Do not kill, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not bear false witness, do not defraud, honor thy father and thy mother, and love thy neighbor as thyself.” Then the young man said, “All these things have I kept from my youth up: what lack I yet?” Then Jesus said, “One thing thou lackest: go thy way, sell all thou hast, and give unto the poor, and thou shalt have heavenly treasures: come then and follow me.” The young man began to scratch his head, and seemed in doubt. Then Jesus said unto him, “How is it thou canst say, ‘I have done the Law and the Prophets,’ since it is written in the Law, ‘Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself’? Behold, many of thy brothers, sons of Abraham, are clothed but in dung, and die for hunger, while thy house is full of many goods, and there goeth not forth aught from it unto them.” But the young man rose, and went away in sorrow and confusion. Then Jesus looked round upon those who were there, and said, “How hard it is for them that trust in riches to enter into the kingdom of God! It is easier for an elephant to go through a needle’s eye, as the saying is, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.” Then a murmur arose among all those present, and they began to move on, and I left them. And I said to myself, “This man is neither Pharisee, nor Sadducee, nor Herodian; these be the thoughts of the Ebionim.”

VI. THE TESTINGS IN THE TEMPLE.

Now, on the morrow, many of us who had agreed together to test the opinions of this Jesus went to the Temple and found Jesus walking in the corridors. Then he that was of most authority among us said unto Jesus, “Rabbi, we would ask certain questions of thee;” and Jesus answered, “Ask, and it shall be answered unto thee.”

Thou must know that among us Jews there be two chief schools of thought, or rather thou mightest say, parties of the State. The one holds with the High Priest and the rulers, and is mainly made up of those whom ye Hellenes call the Best, and their retainers. These be known as the Sadducees, for their leaders are mainly of the family of the High Priest Sadduk. Now, the other party is in some sort the party of the Demos, in that they seek to lessen the power of the High Priests and their families. But with us, as thou knowest, all things turn upon religion, and this second party differ chiefly from the Sadducees, for that they are more in earnest with the matters of the Law, and chiefly they fear the influence of thy nation, Aglaophonos, in drawing the Israelite away from the Law. Therefore have they increased precept upon precept, so as to make, as they say, a fence round the Law. And as they would separate themselves from the heathen by this fence, they call themselves Pharisees, that is, Separatists.

Now, it was nowise easy to learn whether a man was of the one party or the other. For he might be eager for the Law, and so be Pharisaic in color, and yet approve of the dominion of the priests, and thus be a Sadducee. Yet in one chief matter of thought they went asunder contrariwise, and that was concerning the resurrection of the dead. Now, with regard to that, the Sadducees held that naught was said in the Law of Moses, and therefore no son of Israel need concern himself with it. But the Pharisees, on the other hand, laid great weight upon this. So here was a touchstone by which to learn whether this Jesus followed the one or the other of the two great divisions of our nation.

Then, as was agreed upon, Kamithos the Sadducee came forward to ask him the question which should determine whether he held with them that there was no resurrection from the dead, or with the rest of the nation. He said, “Rabbi, it is written in the Torah, if brethren dwell together, and one of them die and have no son, the wife of the dead one shall not marry without, unto a stranger; her husband’s brother shall take her to him to wife, and raise up seed unto his brother. Suppose, now, there are seven brethren, and the first takes a wife, and dying leaves no son; and the second takes her, as is our custom, and dies without leaving any seed; and the third likewise, and so on, till the whole seven had married her, and yet had no son; then the woman dies also: when they shall rise from the dead together, whose wife shall she be of them? for all seven had her to wife.” And Jesus answered and said, “Ye are at fault, and know not the Scriptures, nor the power of God; for in the resurrection they neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are even as the angels which are in heaven. And as an indication from Scripture that the dead rise, is it not written in the book of Moses, when God spake to him from the bush, saying, ‘I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? He is not the God of the dead, but the God of the living: therefore are ye in error.”

And we were surprised at the subtlety of the man; and chiefly men marvelled at the wisdom of this man in finding what we call a support, that is, a text of Scripture on which to hang the doctrine of the life after death, which many believe to have grown up among us since the sacred Scriptures were written: for in them little, if anything, was said of the world to come. Now, Jesus in his answer had happened upon a text which said that Abraham and Isaac and Jacob were living when they were dead to this world, and the people marvelled greatly thereat.

Now, it had been agreed upon, that after the Sadducees had asked their question and been answered, I should stand forth and test this man Jesus on behalf of the Pharisees. Now, one of our Sages hath said, “Be as careful of a little precept as of a great one;” whereas our great master Hillel had, as I have told thee, summed up the whole Law in one precept, “Love thy neighbor as thyself.” Therefore, we of the Pharisees wished to know whether this Jesus agreed with the one sage or the other; so I spake unto him and said, “Rabbi, which is the first commandment, by doing which I shall inherit the life everlasting?” But at first he answered me not directly, but said, “How readest thou?” Then I remembered me the words of the “Catechism of the Two Ways,” and answered, “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind, and thy neighbor as thyself: whatsoever thou wouldest not for thyself, do not to another.” And he said unto me, “Thou hast answered right; and the first of the commandments is the _Shema_: ‘Hear, O Israel; the Lord thy God is one God.’ And the second is like, namely this: ‘Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.’ There is none other commandment greater than these. This do, and thou shalt live.” Then I was rejoiced, and said unto him, “Well, Rabbi, thou hast said the truth: there is one God, and there is none other but him; and to love him with all the heart, and with all the understanding, and with all the soul, and all the strength, and to love one’s neighbor as one’s self, is more than all the burnt offerings and sacrifices.” Then Jesus became gracious unto me, and said, “Thou art not far from the kingdom of God.”

But then I would learn further from this man who spake so well, and ask him the question which is current in our schools on this subject, and I said to him, “But, Rabbi, who is my neighbor?” and he answered with a _mashal_, or parable, and said, “To what is the matter like? A certain man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho; and he fell among robbers, which both stripped him and beat him, and departed, leaving him half dead. And by chance a certain priest was going down that way: and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. And in like manner a Levite also, when he came to the place, and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a certain Israelite,(8) as he journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he was moved with compassion, and came to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring on them oil and wine; and he set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him. And on the morrow he took out two pence, and gave them to the host, and said, ‘Take care of him; and whatsoever thou spendest more, I, when I come back again, will repay thee.’ Which of these three, thinkest thou, proved neighbor unto him that fell among the robbers?” Then I said, “Not the priest, nor the Levite, though they held office in Israel, but the simple Israelite who showed mercy upon him.” Then Jesus said unto me, “Go and do thou likewise;” and at this moment we were all summoned to the mid‐day sacrifice in the Temple.

When Jesus had departed, after the sacrifice, we all met together and discussed his answers, which had stamped him in our minds as a master in the art of question and answer, which is with us as favorable a trial of skill as oratory or poetry with you Hellenes. Now, as regards the question of the Sadducees, men thought he had spoken more openly; for though he had evaded a direct answer to the question of the seven brothers and their wife, he had yet implied that they all would have a part in the life to come. Some regretted that the question had not been put differently, and the problem set—if a son had been born through the seventh brother: for this might have thrown light upon the question of the schools, whether the brother’s widow was to be still regarded as his wife if seed had been raised to him after his death. But as to the support which Jesus had taken from Scripture for the life everlasting, though here again he had answered question by question, it was decided that he was against the Sadducees on this point.

But on the questions which I had put to him, all had agreed that he had answered as a Pharisee, even as Hillel might have answered, for he had yea‐said the doctrine which I had cited from the beginning of “The Two Ways” in which the doctrine of Hillel is summed up; and even as to my further question, as to who is the _chaber_, or neighbor, though opinions were divided, most thought that he had spoken as a Pharisee might have spoken: for thou knowest, Aglaophonos, that our nation is divided into three great classes—the _Cohanim_, or Priests; the Levites; and the common Israelites. Now, of these, the two former are the officials of the Temple, and most if not all of the Sadducees are from this class. And, in declaring himself on the side of the third class of simple Israelites, Jesus had, we all thought, declared himself on the side of the Pharisees.

VII. THE SECOND SERMON.

I cannot clearly remember at what season of the year it was that I next saw Jesus; indeed, I am surprised to think that, after the lapse of nearly five‐and‐twenty years, I can still remember almost all that passed on the various occasions when I was in his presence. Yet I think it was about the time of the feast which we hold in memory of the rededication of the Temple under the Maccabæans that I again saw and heard the Galilæan stranger; for I mind me that I had just been taking the eight‐branch candlestick which we use in the ceremonials of this feast to Petachayah the silversmith to be mended, when on my return I saw a throng collected round the synagogue of the Galilæans, and entering in, found that Jesus was to preach that day. The same ceremonial was gone through as I have already described to thee: the Law was taken from the ark with rejoicing; priest and Levite and four ordinary Israelites were summoned to hear it read, and again the crier called, “Let Rabbi Joshua, the son of Rabbi Joseph, arise.” Now, it chanced that this time, I, as a member of the Sanhedrim, was summoned to the reading of the Law immediately after Jesus, and for a time, as is customary, we stood together upon the _bema_. I observed that, as the reading of the Law proceeded, the eyes of the Nazarene became fixed upon the ark, and a veil of mysterious tenderness seemed to come over them, as if he were in communion with the _Shechinah_, or Glory, itself. It seemed to me that afterwards, when he read the _Haphtara_ from the prophets, and when he preached, something remained in him of this mystical communion.

Perhaps it was for this that we seemed to miss that sense of individual address which we had before observed in his eyes. No longer did these speak to us other and deeper thoughts than the words of the preacher; they seemed to dream of divine things, and so caused us also to be rapt in mystic musings. I cannot on this account recall for you all or even many of the words which he uttered on this occasion. He began with some plain teaching about practice. Soon he went on to speak of himself in a marvellous way, as if he would imply that communion with him and with the Most High were one and the same, and then in his last words he seemed to speak of the Last Things. And here again his words seemed as if he identified himself with the great Judge.

Now, this is not so strange to our mode of thinking in Israel as thou mightest think. Almost all our prophets speak the oracles of God as if they were using the very words of the Lord. Thou canst read in the Greek translation of the Seventy many passages of the prophets in which the very words of the Lord are given. Yet in most, if not all, cases the prophet beginneth, “Thus saith the Lord,” or endeth, “This is the word of the Lord.” But with this Jesus it was otherwise. He spoke as the ancient prophets do, but whether from his rapt intentness in the message he was delivering, or because he felt his spirit for the time merged in the divine, he spoke as if the message was his. And as he spoke, I saw looks of amazement pass between many in the synagogue, and one old graybeard rose as if to protest, and then, shaking his withered hands above his head, went out of the synagogue.

I will here set down for thee as many of the words that fell from Jesus’ lips on this occasion as I can remember. They are but few, but many of them are weighty, and I have told thee above the general lines of thought which seemed to run through his discourse; and these are the words as far as I remember them.(9)

“Cultivate faith and hope, through which is born that love of God and man which gives the eternal life. Those are the sons of God who walk in the spirit of God. What you preach before the folk, do in deed before every one. Accept not anything from any man, and possess not anything in this world. For the Father wisheth to be given to each man from his own gifts. Cleave unto the saints: for they that cleave unto them shall be sanctified. Yet shall there be schisms and heresies: for there is a shame which leadeth to death, as there is a shame which leadeth to life. Is it not enough for the disciples to be as the Master? If in a little you are not faithful, who shall give unto you what is much? Seek the great, and the little will be added to you; seek the heavenly, and the things of earth will be superadded.