The Great Gospel of John
Volume 7
Jesus' Precepts and Deeds through His Three Years of Teaching
The Lord on the Mount of Olives. (cont.) Gospel of John, Chapter 8
- Chapter 136 -
The Lord speaks with Nicodemus about the poor people.
Now also Nicodemus and his friend Joseph of Arimathea saw us, and they were in a hurry to meet us.
2
Coming to Me, they greeted Me very friendly, and Nicodemus said: "O Lord, what a blessing for this place that You are visiting it. I already had such a feeling that You would come to this place today, and look, my presumption came true. O Lord, may I invite You into my house to take lunch with me?"
3
I said: "Friend, we are many, and in your house there would be hardly enough space. Besides, this afternoon you will again receive the visit of a couple of Pharisees who I prefer not to meet, and therefore I will stay in the large inn that also belongs to you. You can go there also with your friend Joseph of Arimathea, together with the old righteous rabbi, as well as your wife and children, so that they also can see the salvation of the world. The two Romans are already living in their own house close to the inn anyway, and they certainly will also come to Me because most of all I came to this place for their sake."
4
Nicodemus said: "O Lord, You are completely right, but I also would like to see when You will step into my house with Your holy feet, so that it would be blessed by Your footsteps."
5
I said: "Your house will not be more blessed like that. And if you would believe that, then it is a superstition of no value. Nevertheless, I also will come into your house, but only after the Pharisees have gone back this afternoon. But now we must wait for those who still will come, so that they will know where I will stay today."
6
Nicodemus asked whom those were that still had to come.
7
I said: "Besides the tax collectors who also were present on the Mount of Olives the day before yesterday, all the others that you saw there. Lazarus and Raphael with all the slave children will also soon be here, but coming from another way. And so within 1 hour several hundred people will be here in Emmaus who could not so easily be put together in your house, but in this inn of yours that largely has enough space for a couple of 1,000 people, they can. Therefore, let it be so."
8
After that, Nicodemus took information about the family that was with us, and I said to Nicodemus: "Friend, this family would have the right to bitterly complain about the people of Emmaus, because you could not fail to see that for sure many times naked and of hunger crying children here and around the city were begging the people for bread. So you could have inquired to know from where these children came and what the reason was why these children were all alone, wandering around. But this you have not done, and this is truly not very honorable nor praiseworthy to Me. It is true that you are less guilty of it because most of the time you are staying in the city, as well as your friend Joseph of Arimathea. But there are enough citizens here who are not poor and who very easily could take care of a poor family. However, this they did not do and therefore I also will do nothing for them, although there are many here who very well could need My help.
9
You surely know the old decaying sheep-hut out there, of a certain Barabe who lives in Jerusalem. Well, in this hut I found this family really in the greatest misery. Man and woman were sitting sick with gout on the humid ground and could of course not earn anything anymore. Only the 7 children, being naked were begging for bread to the unmerciful people of Emmaus. During the last 2 days they also did not receive any more bread, and moreover today the rich Barabe let them know that they had to leave the old hut. If I did not come here and help them, then I am asking you what this family had to do because of your hardheartedness? Now certainly they have been helped forever, but the unmerciful people in Emmaus will therefore not be helped. Now you know what is going on with this family."
10
Nicodemus became very sad and said: "O Lord, if I only had known this, I gladly would have taken care of this family immediately. But I am now willing to do everything for them in order to repair somehow the mistake."
11
I said: "You do not have to repair a mistake because in fact you did not commit one. And these people have already been taken care of and they never will bother someone from Emmaus anymore. But later if you want to give instructions to investigate, then you will find here in the vicinity and also from Jerusalem a lot of families who surely will welcome your help. But now there is something else:
12
How are the two Romans who are living here? If you have the opportunity to let them know that the Roman Agricola is here and that also his companions will arrive very soon, then do it. Tell them also that the man from Upper-Egypt, with whom they were dealing at his dwelling-place, will also arrive within 1 hour. But do not tell them anything yet about Me and My identity, because I have My secret reason for that, which will later on become clear to you by itself. Now make it so that the two Romans will come to us immediately because I first want to discuss something with them very openly.
13
Today will be for you a day of great unsuspected revelations. Go therefore now and make everything ready."
14
Now our Nicodemus went quickly to the Romans to inform them of everything that I had told him and the two Romans went with Nicodemus and came to us as fast as possible.