The Great Gospel of John
Volume 1
Jesus' Precepts and Deeds through His Three Years of Teaching
Second day in Sychar
- Chapter 96 -
The Lord quietens down Thomas, counselling forgiveness, for inner freedom. Thomas tells of Judas' arguments with John the Baptist and of his spiritual conceit. The Lord's hints about Judas. Arrival at Capernaum.
Thomas gets quite beside himself with rage at these Judas' caustic remarks and is about to heave into Judas with all energy. But, nearly half-way towards Capernaum, I step up to Thomas and say, 'Brother, so long as you still see Me calm and collected, remain the way you can see Me, if only you will keep looking My way. Certainly if you once see Me start hitting out, then you can by all means jump in and hit with all you've got! But now there is no need of it by a long shot. Come what may, right stays right and Judas stays Judas! He is by no means condemned to this the way night is, being the earth's natural shadow; but if he wants to remain Judas, let him; but we remain what we are! Yet time will tell how far he shall get with his Judas spirit!'
2
Says Thomas, 'But this much You could do, Lord, that You get him away from Yourself, otherwise he shall be a lot of trouble to us; because he has a swinish and evil mouth!'
3
Say I, 'I did not tell him to come and hence will not tell him to go; but if he wants to go whither he came, we shall not be weeping for him! But keep away from him, because you two shall not be getting along. But forgive him as I forgive him and your heart shall be free!'
4
Says Thomas, 'When it comes to forgiveness on my part there is no problem, for I never bore him a grudge, even though I have always known him as one human not easy to get along with, - not even the prophet John, with whom he frequently quarrelled! But I would honestly be much happier if he didn't belong to our company!
5
When I was home recently I related quite a few of Your deeds to my acquaintances, who could not have been more amazed. This came to Judas' ears and who could have made up their minds more quickly to become Your disciple than Judas?! For John's teaching did not satisfy him, because the former preached nothing but the most profound repentance, proclaiming God's strictest judgment to all who did not truly repent; - the cause of the repeated quarrelling between him and John.
6
John was all repentance and Judas the extremist opposite! He kept telling John to his face that so-called repentance in sackcloth and ashes was the greatest silliness in human life and man should reform in deed and not sackcloth and ashes.
7
John did not really make true repentance dependent on sackcloth and ashes, presenting it only so metaphorically in his sermons, so to say; but the seemingly more understanding Judas would have none of this, saying that teachings of such grave import to humanity should be in clear, understandable words!
8
According to him, the prophets all were donkeys talking in images which could be interpreted in any old way; none other than they had ruined the priests, kings and entire nations therewith! In short, all were donkeys high or low if not thinking and acting as did he; that's why I think he won't fit in with us'.
9
Say I, 'My dear Thomas! What you told Me I have known for a long time; yet I say to you, if he wants to go, let him and if he wants to stay, let him! I know much more about him yet and even what he shall shortly do to Me; nevertheless, if he wants to, let him stay! Because his soul is a devil desiring to learn wisdom from God; but this bent shall yield this soul a wretched gain. But now no more about it! Only too soon we shall have occasion to get unto him! - With this we have also arrived at Capernaum's walls and I see a Roman centurion rush towards us through the gates, accompanied by the chief commander Cornelius and the nobleman; here there is another sick to heal.'