The Great Gospel of John
Volume 2
Jesus' Precepts and Deeds through His Three Years of Teaching
Second Journey of the Lord: Nazareth - Cave at Bethabara (First Feeding of the People) - Mountain of Prayer - Walking on the Sea of Galilee (Peter's test of faith) - By ship to Genneseret in the bay with the same name
- Chapter 125 -
Three documents
Here I called all the people together, consisting partly of the present recovered and partly of the many residents of the city who were celebrating the Sabbath-eve with a holiday.
2
When the people were gathered together and the hall nearly filled, I said to the people: "Hearken and hear and hear Me well! (Matt. 15:10) That which enter through the mouth does not defile a man, but which comes out man's mouth defiles him. (Matt. 15:11) To eat bread with unwashed hands defiles no man. This I say unto you all, and therewith abolish everlastingly such manmade ordinance!" - Here the people started to jubilate, praising Me.
3
The disciples stepped over to Me nevertheless, asking: "Did You notice the Pharisees' fury on hearing You speak such words?" (Matt. 15:12)
4
Say I to the disciples loudly: "All plants not planted by My Father in Heaven shall be weeded out. (Matt. 15:13) Let them go! They are blind leaders of the blind. But where one blind leads another there surely both fall into the ditch (Matt. 15:14) These can rage as they like, for their father is one other than ours; our Father is above - and theirs below!"
5
On hearing such, the Pharisees turned yellow, green and fiery red with rage, with the Chief saying, trembling voice notwithstanding: "We have now heard all we need to! He has blasphemed God and us! Now we know with whom we are dealing and who this Jesus of Nazareth is! Hence let us get going and loudly proclaim to the High Priest what kind of person this Jesus is!"
6
Says the Centurion: "One can indeed get into a city as you did, by your own will; but getting out again rest with the city's authority! It is easy to say, 'let's get away!', but here the authority steps up and says: 'You're staying'. - The latter was voiced thunderously.
7
To these words the Pharisees paled earthen with fear, statring to quake and to be incapable of uttering another word.
8
On seeing the murderous effect of his words, the Captain continued. Before letting you depart, you and I shall have much to discuss, and you shall yet issue me a couple of documents signed by your hand and witnessed by the people, both upon life or death, the contracts and te testimony! Well understood! For should I find out through my sharp-hearing spies that you did not keep even one point in the contract then you are dead on the same day, were you to hide behind a thousand temples!"
9
The Captain had writing utensils brought to him at once, writing the following: "Contract No. 1: Should any one of you dare to say even one derogatory word about Jesus of Nazareth, either among yourselves or to a stranger, which shall transpire instantly, - shall undergo trial and death - Contract No. 2: Whoever among you drops a single hint of what has taken place and been spoken here, either in Jerusalem or in the Temple, giving Jesus adverse testimony, whether in the Temple or another house, shall be subjected to the harshest trial, followed by the most torturous death! And none should comfort themselves with: 'it surely will not come to this. As already said, the same moment you mention even a syllable of what you are commanded in the two contracts to keep silent, my spies shall find out and you shall fare as threatened in these contracts!"
10
Whereupon the Centurion wrote the following testimony: "We are and all certify in our handwriting to the truth pro memorial eternal (in eternal memoriam) that we committed the notorious robbery of the imperial tax-moneys and treasures from the Pontus and Asia Minor, having relieved the transmitters thereof with the most shameless cunning, as disclosed on their transportation to Jerusalem in Kis through the mediation, if not verbally by Jesus of Nazareth. We would have been once and all condemned by the magistrate Faustus. - but Jesus of Nazareth intervened on our behalf, and we escaped unscathed. -This is the full truth, vouched for by our lives.
11
After finishing the writing of these three pieces, the Centurion read them out quietly to the Pharisees and Scribes; their faces grew longer with every line, and only after hearing the testimony read out to them did they clasp their hands above their heads, shouting: "What! This we are to sign?!"
12
Says the Centurion: "Yes, it is the pure truth! If however you are not willing, then over there the bailiffs stand ready with the whips, scourges and sharp axes. - Here the Pharisees turned around, seeing the terrible men. Without further argument they demanded writing utensils. The Centurion nevertheless reminded them to sign their real names, or a false name brings death to anyone. Whereupon they signed their real names, and who ever among the people was literate had to sign as witness.
13
Said the Captain, after the three documents were thus completed: "Now I got out of you what I've been wanting for a long time, and you know what I posses. What you need to observe you also know, and thus we have finished. Now you are free to go wherever you please! You shall be given safe conduct to the border!"
14
Thereupon these Pharisees and Scribes packed everything together and in hardly a half hour they had Genezareth behind them, quietly and without a word.