The Great Gospel of John
Volume 7
Jesus' Precepts and Deeds through His Three Years of Teaching
From the Lord's years of youth
- Chapter 211 -
Meeting Cyrenius again.
When Cyrenius came to the shore, he said to the highly ranked persons who were congratulating him: 'I thank you for your sincere sympathy with the accident that I certainly would have experienced, but it is extremely amazing how the terrible raging storm calmed down so suddenly. This made me completely think of a similar incident in Ostracine in Egypt. During that time there was a wonderful Child of a Jewish family who escaped to that place. He also was able to calm down the storm so suddenly while reversed He also could call up a storm. That must be about 20 years ago. I tried everything to find out where that family is staying, but until now all this was useless. I also have not thought about that family now for a long time, but the sudden stopping of this storm has brought this similar phenomenon - which I, as I just said, had experienced before - again into my memory.
2
It is really highly remarkable. When such a storm begins to rage here, it takes several days before the great sea will calm down, so that no one dares to go out with a ship on sea, and look now how calm the whole sea has become, without any beat of a wave. What was also surprisingly strange to me is how my ship was quickly coming near to the shore as if it was pulled by a secret power. I tell you: this did not happen in a natural way.'
3
A highly ranked person said to Cyrenius: 'Just look at that spot that is protruding freely into the sea. There you still can see those 4 people. A Man of about 20 years old stretched out His arms to calm down the sea, and the storm kept quiet. We do not know who He is, but in the first place we think that He is a prophet of the Jews, because He is a Jew according to His clothes. If He really calmed down the storm by His word of power we dare not say for sure, but it remains remarkable that the storm was lying down precisely at the moment when He loudly spoke out His command. It would be worthwhile to search out what and who this Man is.'
4
Cyrenius said: 'Wait a minute, it is dawning on me now. It is quite possible that this Man would now be precisely that wonderful son of that family of whom I was talking about just now. I have to speak with Him myself.'
5
Then Cyrenius was hurrying to the place where the four of us were still standing and from where we were watching the calm sea with its manifold phenomena, as well as the most different kinds of sea fish and all other animals that, compelled by My will, had to show themselves.
6
When Cyrenius came to us, he asked Joseph, whom he still remembered very well: 'Friend, are you not the same Jew who about 20 years ago, because of the persecution of the old Herod, had to escape with my help to Egypt, more precisely to Ostracine? And if it is you, then tell me also what has become of that little wonderful boy whom I considered to be a God.'
7
Joseph bowed down deeply and said: 'Honorable one, it is a too great honor for us, poor carpenters from Nazareth, to come to us yourself, while you only could command that we should come to you. But now that you are already here, I say to you with my heart full of gratitude for all the goodness that - indeed about 20 years ago - you have given to me and my family already here and later on also in Egypt, that I am really the same carpenter Joseph, and also that this grown-up Man is exactly that carpenter whom then as a wonderful Boy, you had come to know.'
8
When Cyrenius heard that, his face was really shining from joy.
9
He hugged Joseph and kissed him many times and turned then to Me and said: 'O Lord, am I, great sinner, really worthy in Your eyes to kiss You also?'
10
I said: 'Hail to you and to all gentiles, that you in your sins are recognizing Me much sooner than the Jews in their light. Therefore, the light of life will be taken away from the Jews and be given to you gentiles. Just come and kiss Me. Because whoever comes to Me with a love like yours - even if there were clinging as many sins to his soul as there is grass on the whole Earth and sand in the great sea - I will not reject him but take him up like a father would take up his son, who was indeed lost but who has been found again.'
11
When Cyrenius heard such words out of My mouth he was moved to tears and came to Me, hugged Me and kissed Me without ceasing. Only after that, he thanked Me for the wonderful salvation from the great danger of life. At the same time he invited us to go to his residence where he wanted to be our host and where we had to tell him everything what had happened to us during all that time.
12
I said however: 'Dear Cyrenius, tonight we surely will respond to your wish, but tomorrow early we have to be at the place of this Greek who lives more than 7 hours away from here, because there we have to build a new house and a new pigs stall.'
13
Cyrenius said: 'Good, my godly Friend. I myself will escort you to that place, and because I do not have to work now for some time, I will stay a few days with you. Because, now that I fully have found you back, I do not want to lose you so easily out of my sight.'
14
I said: 'All this is very good, best and nice from you, and we also will respond to your invitation, but now we still would like to stay here for awhile, because I want to show my brother James and also this honest Greek Anastocles the different animals of the sea, and we surely will need a couple of hours for that.'
15
Cyrenius said: 'O Lord, that I also would like to see, and for sure also the others over there who are waiting for me in that little harbor.'
16
I said: 'Very well, let them all come here because this is the best place for it.'
17
Then Cyrenius let all the others come to him. There were almost 70 people. They stood along the edge of the raised protruding spot, and soon they were extremely amazed when on the surface that was as smooth as a mirror they saw animals swimming by, which they had never seen before.
18
Full of amazement Cyrenius said: 'O endless great fantasy of the only true God. What an endless great fullness of embodied thoughts of God. What an endless diversity. What enormously great see monsters are coming to this place, attracted by an invisible creating power. This procession is already lasting for 1 hour and by far we still cannot see the end. We do not even know 1.000 part of it by name, and You, o Lord, You certainly call them in Your will to Your wisdom by their name, and all animals are following Your almighty call. Oh, all who are here must watch carefully, because now you can see that which the eye of any mortal man has never seen before.'
19
A highly ranked person asked Cyrenius if I was the One who made all this to happen.
20
Cyrenius said: 'Who else? We certainly not.'
21
The highly ranked person said: 'If this Man is capable of such things, then without question He must be a God, and then we surely must show Him godly honor by our priests.'
22
Cyrenius said: 'Do not do that, because I know Him already for a long time and know best what He wants and what is pleasing to Him. With a priest we only would drive Him away from us.'
23
When our Cyrenius had said that to the highly ranked person, he did not pronounce the word priest anymore.
24
Now the most seldom shellfishes and crustaceans were swimming by and Cyrenius spoke out the wish that he gladly would like to possess as souvenir of this wonderful day some of those beautiful shells and horns.
25
I said to him: 'Then you can tell one of your servants to come here with a vessel on the water. Then I will show him from there which specimens that are already grown-up and he should take out of the water.'
26
This happened immediately. Within a few moments 3 considerable vessels were rowing under the protruding pointy rock, and the skilful fishermen picked out of the water all the beautiful specimen that I was pointing out and they filled their boats with it.
27
Then I said to Cyrenius: 'Let them be placed tonight in lime water. Take every specimen carefully out tomorrow and cleanse the beautiful shell by removing the fleshly content, dry it well and rub the inside with a little nard oil. Then you can preserve them in your treasure room as souvenir.'
28
Also this was carefully executed and so Cyrenius came into possession of a treasure that was worth a few thousands of pounds of gold.
29
After 2 hours the procession that passed over, came to an end, and we prepared ourselves to leave our place.