The Great Gospel of John
Volume 2
Jesus' Precepts and Deeds through His Three Years of Teaching
First journey of the Lord: Kis - landing place at Sibarah - Nazareth
- Chapter 17 -
The Lord reveals a text from Isaiah.
When I entered the school there were about ten Nazarene elders, together with several Pharisees and Scribes seated at a large table discussing verses from Isaiah reading as follows [Isaiah 1:16-24]: (16.) Wash yourselves, make yourselves clean; put away the evil of your doings from before Mine eyes; cease to do evil. (17.) Learn to do well; seek justice, relieve the oppressed, give rights to the orphans, plead for the widow. (18.) Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool. (19.) If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the Land. (20.) But if ye refuse and rebel, ye shall be devoured with the sword; for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it. (21.) How is the faithful city become an harlot! It was full of judgement; righteousness lodged in it, but now murderers. (22.) Thy silver has become dross, thy wine mixed with water. (23.) Thy princes are rebellious, and companions of thieves; every one loveth gifts, and followeth after rewards; they judge not the fatherless, neither doth the cause of the widow come unto them. (24.) Therefore, saith the Lord, the Lord of hosts, the Mighty One of Israel, Ah, I will rid Myself of Mine adversaries, and avenge Myself of Mine enemies: They were discussing the meaning of such verses and could not be in the clear.
2
I stepped forward, saying to them: "What are you pondering about something that stands as clearly revealed before you factually as the sun at midday? Look at your orphans, your widows! What is their state? Instead of taking care of them you even take from them what they have, whilst the poor orphans you take to the heathens as slaves, just as a few days ago you attempted to carry out such secretly and would have carried it out, had not the tax-collector Kisjonah mightily prevented you.
3
The Lord indeed speaks: "Come now, and let us reason together! Though your sins be blood-red, it shall be white as snow, and though it be crimson, it shall be as white!" - but I ask when and under what condition! How is it with you and the devout city which is also called "The city of God"? What multitudes of the most abominable sins crying to heaven have already been committed therein, and what multitudes are still being committed!?
4
"Wash and clean yourselves, and put away your evil nature from before Mine eyes" spoke Jehovah through the mouth of the prophet. You wash your body seven times a day indeed, cleaning your garments and whitewashing the graves of your dead two or three times a year; but your hearts remain obstinate and are full of obscenity, wherefore you resemble your whitewashed graves, which indeed appear adorned and cleaned on the outside but are inwardly pestilential, full of dead bones and stinking rot!
5
The prophet spoke of the cleansing of your hearts, reminding you to put away your sins before the all-seeing eye of God; but this sense you have never taken into your heart, hence cleaning only your skin whilst letting your heart sink into all hellish filth! Oh, you hellish generation, who has taught you thus!?
6
Indeed you say: "The he-goat that Moses and Aaron commanded, has right up till now been yearly laden with all Israel's sins, killed and thrown into the Jordan"! Oh you blind ones! How is it the he-goat's fault that you continue to sin on and on, not bettering yourselves in your hearts?
7
This function was only a sign from which you should have learned long ago that the he-goat only represents your evil, worldly lusts, such as your arrogance which like the he-goat is kicking and stinking beyond all measure, and your fornication and filthiness in all things, your meanness, envy and hypocrisy! With the destruction of the scapegoat you ought to have forever annihilated your heart-goat, thus fulfilling Moses" and Aaron's commandment in a living way and thus reaping their blessings unfailingly. Failing this, you have indeed killed the rams, which could be of no use to you, but your sinful hearts have remained with you. Wherefore Jehovah has carried out His threat and shall further do so when your evil measure is full.
8
A nice thing it is that the heathens have now to maintain justice for the people and to care for the widows and orphans! But hence it also is true what the prophet speaks: "I shall be comforted through Mine enemies, the heathens, and be avenged through them"! To where has your power gone, and where spent your strength? A small flock of heathens is ruling God's mighty people of yours! Ugh! For the everlasting disgrace and shame! The children of the serpent are wiser and more upright than the children of light.
9
Wherefore it shall soon come to pass that this holy land shall be handed over to the heathens, and you shall henceforth have neither land and even less a king, but shall serve strange tyrants as slaves, and your noble daughters shall sleep with the heathens and the servants of heathens, and their fruit hated like a generation of serpents and vipers!
10
You are here discussing from the prophet who wrote for your heart, as to how you could make idle ceremony more splendid through the practice of the trivial washing and cleaning of your bodies, clothing and sepulchres so that the sacrament would yield you more offerings, yet you are not capable of discerning that which alone would be pleasing to God! Oh you evil devil-servants! It is him you serve with your ceremony - and hence shall also once reap his wages in the mire, as you have also fully deserved it always.
11
One cleans the body once, twice or three times a day if desirable, and one cleans clothing when it is dirty; for this Moses has commanded for the health of the body. Thus one also covers the sepulchres with a span of clay, and then covers such clay with several coats of good lime, so that the covering would not develop cracks through which particularly in the first few years of decomposition, harmful fumes would not escape, causing all kinds of dangerous sickness to man, animal and plant.
12
Behold, that is the reason for ordering the whitewashing of graves, which can be grasped with the hands! How could you make this into a divine service? Oh you absurd ones, you fools! What can this do for the soul of the departed?!"