The Great Gospel of John
Volume 1
Jesus' Precepts and Deeds through His Three Years of Teaching
Second day in Sychar
- Chapter 95 -
Thomas and Judas. Judas' nature and Thomas' prediction. Judas' blasphemy.
There Thomas stepped over to Judas Iscariot, reproaching him for daring to come to Me with his foolish money-ideas, since I am Jehovah Himself in Spirit and work deeds possible only to God!
2
Says Judas to him, 'You still are as stupid as you have always been! Because you believe either every old wives' tale, or, when you feel like it, nothing at all! Not seldom when taking fish to the market you sell the small like the big, the buyers laughing in your face! But you still are as you always were, neither thinking nor speculating, living foolishly into the day by habit.
3
I have been here only a few hours in the company of this great prophet and it is my sacred duty to probe Him as much as possible in His attitude and the thrust of His mandate! You have been around Him already for about a half year and would have to therefore know Him better then I! Ought I however, just because you know Him already, make no effort to get to know Him at least as well as you know Him by now?!'
4
Says Thomas, 'Surely you are not thinking of going back home again tomorrow, since you are trying to find out everything today?! Just as well the Lord has started at last to move again, otherwise you would not have been in the clear about your foolish money even by tomorrow! The Lord is right; cursed money will be the death of you, since you see such glory in it! The Lord surely has made it clear to you what there is to money and how much it can be to the detriment of man's spiritual life; but you have long been wiser than God Himself and hence put on your crown of wisdom right in front of God! But be careful not to suffocate in wisdom once!
5
But what have you to say about my fish sales! Was I not always the first to sell all my fish, whereas you with all your clever talk had to still carry half of yours home! I sold the ten big as well as the ten little ones for twopence each and could have always sold five times that many, had I brought that many to market! And here my reckoning was evidently better than yours, thinking yourself wiser than God, yet a miser seeking your salvation in money! I pay no penny for such wisdom!'
6
Judas says, somewhat non-plussed, 'All speak the way they understand it! - Says Thomas, 'That's right, you understand this with your foolishness and hence speak accordingly! - But, take a look over where that destitute is squatting! Give him your purse and for once in your life you shall have acted wisely!'
7
Says Judas, 'That I shall leave well alone, no one having ever actually given me anything in the real sense of the word; and hence I shall give no one a thing!'
8
Says Thomas, 'This is a most commendable code, fit for condemnation on the dot! You'll get really far with our Saviour and Master with these principles, I can vouch for you! He in Himself is the highest generosity - and you a miser without equal! A good match!'
9
Says Judas, 'Once I shall have worked Him over and He sees how one has to live in the world, He shall come down from His generosity somewhat! Besides it is not all that hard to live generously at the expense of those who have something and prepare good meals for one's disciples! Listen, if I come across fools like this young host, then I too shall be as generous at his expense as anyone shall ever be! But let this Jesus, Who was penniless from birth, sustain and maintain His many disciples from His own means; then we shall see how generous He is going to be and whether He won't soon be getting rid of all these followers!'
10
Says Thomas, 'I say to you nothing other than that you are of the devil; because only the devil can talk the way you just did! It may sound as though it had some sense in it, but it isn't so and quite otherwise and your talk is the most shameless in the world. It grieves me to have shown you the way over here. At Sychar there were so many hundreds, yet all were fed from the heavens! And in a few moments He rebuilt Irhael's house to the most luxurious in town! And you man of uttermost terrestrial stupidity, in the manner of one pinnacularly wise, want to as it were demonstrate to me, who have with my physical eyes seen the heavens open, with countless myriads of angels of God ascending and descending, that Jesus is a poor devil who is enjoying Himself at the expense of others!? Oh you poor beggar, you! He to Whom belong heaven and earth, because He has founded them with His all might, should have need of your or my treasures, to enable Him to live on this world, on which He makes the fruit to grow and ripen?! Oh you blind fool! Go to Sychar to convince yourself and we shall see whether you will still blubber that way!'
11
Here Judas gets dirty, saying sarcastically, 'You actually saw this with your eyes? Or did you by chance borrow some oxen and donkey eyes, giving you such extraordinary sights and overviews? - I am glad, by the way, that the Nazarene-wise also got to know beautiful Irhael, who, I heard just recently, is supposed to be living with her sixth man already, because the other five died, of her body as it were! There, with that fair one, heaven standing nicely open for you! Sure, sure, Irhael has transferred quite a few to heaven; why should she make an exception with you?! But I shall nevertheless not be going to Sychar for her, because I keep Moses' statutes and shall have nothing to do with such sinful stuff!'