The Great Gospel of John
Volume 1
Jesus' Precepts and Deeds through His Three Years of Teaching
In Jesaira
- Chapter 184 -
The people work the Pharisees over, cornering them.
Getting over to Baram's house, they take in the big crowd, which is still quite shocked and perturbed at the great instant healing. Not having witnessed the great healing, the Pharisees are assuming the people to be still astonished at yesterday's healing of the possessed, as these continue to exclaim as they did yesterday, "Glory be to David's Son! This truly is the Son of David!"
2
Hearing this, the old Pharisees get annoyed, saying to the people, 'Why are you wondering all that much? We know better than you how this took place. He, this magician, drives out the devils by means no other than Beelzebub, the devil's chief, (Matt. 2:24) - and you would praise him as David's Son!' - Here some of the more feeble became hesitant, asking the Pharisees to clarify this, and how this is possible; and whether the devils' chief can on occasion also accomplish godly deeds.
3
Not bargaining for this question, the old foxes did not know how to reply. But since the inquirers sensed the Pharisees to be out of their depth, due to the interminable lull, they said, 'Why do you give us no advice upon our very reasonable question, that we might get to the bottom of how this purported magician drives out the devils, and how Beelzebub can work also godly deeds? It is relatively easy to accuse a person, regardless of exceptional procedures, to be a servant of the devil, thereby making him suspect, but it is quite another thing to provide proof! Why do you keep silent if you are sure of yourselves?'
4
Say the Pharisees, 'We keep quiet because, enlightened by God's Spirit, we are always aware of what man needs to know, and when therefore to speak. It is not because we should not know this - but because we must not and hence don't want to give you verifiable proof. Your business is to just believe everything we teach and not to probe on your own, for God has placed us for this reason - to probe the innermost substance of all things, keeping secrets to ourselves and telling people only as much as is good for them. Do you understand us?!'
5
Say the people, 'Oh yeah, we have understood you quite well, and having understood you thus for a long time, we have, following such vivid understanding, gone over to the Greeks, with whom there is no such mystery-junk! There we have an Aristotle, a Pythagoras, a Plato, a Socrates; and these writings are clear and true. But with yourselves all is constantly wrapped in the deepest fog-night, to the extent of no visibility by even a span forward or backward.
6
Why do you try to cast suspicion on this emissary Saviour to us from God?! He has done good to us and healed all our sick, and for this you denounce him a servant of Satan?!
7
What then are you, who have never yet done us a favour ever so small?! When have you, with your inane devices or pretended prayer, healed anyone?'
8
Say the Pharisees, 'Have we perhaps no credentials?!'
9
Say the people, 'That you have, of course, from the Temple, and highly boastful ones at that; but where are the deeds, which according to your qualifications, you are supposed to be capable of performing? Of these, nothing has seen daylight yet!
10
Yet yonder one came to us without credentials, but accomplishes deeds the like of which, one can quite properly say, man has not accomplished since the world's existence! We can see quite clearly as to why you want to make this godly human suspect to us, in spite of your refusal to tell us the reason. Hearken, we take it upon ourselves to rub it into your noses, and the reason is the following:
11
This divine human carries out deeds in all actual, wondrous reality, which according to your Temple credentials, you are supposed to be capable of; yet up to date you have come up with no deed, for the thirty years you have been with us.
12
How much of the best money and other costly things did you not obtain from us, so that you would act in our behalf; where are the effects? You indeed took our gold and silver, but we received nothing but empty promises, which never were fulfilled. When we asked you when they shall be fulfilled, you pointed to the rich harvests and, praise god, our healthy herds. We however referred you to the even richer harvests and healthier herds of the Greeks, who are cursed by you seven times every Sabbath before sunrise. There you said, "This abundance is effected by Satan; and that the bread from such harvests and the meat from such herds serves not for life but damnation!' But you nevertheless did not scorn the yearly tithes which the Greeks rendered you by way of all kinds of grain. Tell us therefore what you actually did with this wheat, blessed by Satan according to you?'
13
Say the Pharisees, brimming with bitter fury by now, 'We sold it to heathens, such as the Romans and Greeks, for them to receive that much more damnation on judgment day!'
14
Say the people, 'How very nice! It is said that the devil is stupid enough and his lies thick enough for grasping with the hand; yet you are ten times more stupid, - your lies can be grasped with heavily shod feet! Was it not us who carted your sundry grains to the Jerusalem market, with our oxen and asses, and we surely will know to whom we sold it!? And you have the hide to tell us that you sold the Greek grain to the heathens for their greater damnation! If you have to whitewash yourselves with lies, then lie more smartly and not make us even more stupid than yourselves, buying black for white and white for black without further ado - Any, such lying-atrocity! Such has not been heard yet!'
15
Say the Pharisees, 'You know nothing and understand nothing! Do you not know that a Pharisee is incapable of lying?! For Temple-law states for all who are ordained into God's service that they are not able to lie even if they desired it; for in their mouth, even the thickest lie turns into the most luminescent Truth!'
16
Here the people start laughing, saying jokingly, 'Indeed, indeed, we too are aware of the Temple-law you quoted, where it also is supposed to say, 'Where a Pharisee puts excrement in his mouth, it instantly turns into gold.'