LIBRARY 
 
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 LAZARUS 
 
 A TALE OF THE 
 WORLD'S GREAT 
 MIRACLE , 
 
 ./ 
 
 LUCAS CLEEVE 
 
 
 
 " Now a certain man was sick, named 
 Lazarus, of Bethany." ST. JOHN xi. i. 
 
 " Now Jesus loved Martha, and her 
 sister, and Lazarus." ST. JOHN xi. 5. 
 
 " Then said Jesus unto them plainly, 
 Lazarus is dead." ST. JOHN xi. 14. 
 
 " He cried with a loud voice, Lazarus, 
 come forth." ST. JOHN xi. 43. 
 
 NEW YORK 
 E. P. BUTTON & COMPANY 
 
 31 WEST TWENTY-THIRD STREET 
 1897
 
 L3 
 
 COPYRIGHT 
 
 E. P. DUTTON & CO. 
 1897 
 
 Ube "Knickerbocker (res0,
 
 LAZARUS
 
 " When mourning o'er this stone I bend 
 Which covers him that was my friend, 
 From his hand, his voice, his smile, 
 I am divided for a while. 
 Saviour, mark the tears I shed, 
 For Thou didst weep o'er Lazarus dead."
 
 LAZARUS. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 THE faint red lights of Jerusalem were twinkling 
 in the distance. The sun had vanished, leav- 
 ing that strange ruddy glow behind it that, in the 
 East, usurps the place of twilight. On the rose- 
 pink flushings of the sky, tiny, pale yellow stars 
 appeared at every moment, like primroses springing 
 up on a clover field, and, with their appearance, the 
 sky grew a greener blue, to form a fitter setting. 
 The palm trees looked almost black against these 
 jewel tints, and the blue olive trees grew grey, as if 
 about to die, and everywhere was silence, except for 
 distant croaking of frogs, or barking of wild dogs. 
 
 Alone, along the road of Jericho that led to Beth- 
 any, walked Lazarus, the youngest ruler of the Syna- 
 gogue, the son of Simon the Leper. 
 
 Poetic and dreamy always, to-night he walked 
 more wrapped in thought than usual, for his heart 
 was full of a great unrest. One of the closest ob- 
 servers of the Mosaic Law, as Lazarus was, some- 
 thing to-day had stirred his thoughts with a clashing 
 dissonance he could not account for. A poor Jew 
 had been brought before Caiaphas for failing to pay
 
 2 LAZARUS. 
 
 a money changer. The man's story had been a 
 piteous one of sickness and bad crops, and a terrible 
 overcharge on the part of the usurer; yet Caiaphas 
 had but shrugged his shoulders at the tale. 
 
 " Thou hast thy remedy," he had said to the 
 creditor. " He has houses and fields, he owes thee 
 money; take them. Why come to me ? " 
 
 Something, he knew not what, in the High Priest's 
 tone, had fallen on his ear like a wrong note in a 
 tune. Was this justice ? For justice is ever man's 
 measure-tape of right. To Lazarus the words of 
 Moses came back: " If thou lend money to any of 
 My people that is poor by thee, thou shalt not be to 
 him as an usurer, neither shalt thou lay upon him 
 usury." 
 
 Something in the man's despairing voice and look 
 had seemed to open out new thoughts of grief to 
 Lazarus. What was bitterness, where was healing 
 for its sting ? What was life ? Why was life ? 
 What was he, Lazarus, doing, walking along that 
 road ? Who was he ? 
 
 Suddenly earth appeared to him as but a hillock, 
 and men mere creeping insects hurrying up and 
 down it. Yet the ancients said that man's soul was 
 immortal. God had appeared to Abraham and 
 Moses. Would He appear again ? 
 
 Surely David and all the prophets had sung of a 
 Messiah. Surely there must be an ending some- 
 where to grief and trouble, such as that of the poor 
 man he had seen that morning. Surely there was 
 somewhere a justice not based on human moods, or 
 swayed by human caprice. 
 
 Yes, like a flash of lightning on a darksome night,
 
 LAZARUS. 3 
 
 or the sudden blaze from a log that falls from its 
 place, there sprang up for him a strange new mean- 
 ing in life. So much did the reflection move him, 
 that he paused by the low wall, and looked back 
 towards Jerusalem, a dark mass, now lying like a 
 gaunt shadow with weird shape across the valley, a 
 faint radiance showing only where the roof of the 
 Temple lay. Absolute Justice! Absolute Truth! 
 Right, real Right, independent of creature. Could 
 they be found ? 
 
 Yes, it was possible; he felt it, and as he turned 
 his face upwards toward the sky, and as the cool 
 night air fanned with soothing gentleness his lips, a 
 voice seemed to whisper to his soul: " Seek! 
 Seek!" 
 
 Presently, at the turning of the road, from the 
 gloom emerged another figure, and a voice cried out : 
 " Hail, friend Lazarus. I come to sup with thee." 
 
 The voice was young and fresh, and vigorous as 
 Lazarus's own, but with a serious vibration in it that 
 spoke of constant introspection. 
 
 " No friend I would more gladly see this night," 
 said Lazarus, with truth in every accent ; for Nico- 
 demus had been from childhood ever his greatest 
 and most valued friend, and, like himself, was a 
 young and promising ruler of the Synagogue. 
 
 " Whence comest thou, Nicodemus ? Thou wast 
 not at the Sanhedrim at all to-day. ' ' 
 
 " Nay, but if I tell thee, thou wilt laugh," said 
 Nicodemus. 
 
 " Methinks 't would do me good to laugh, for my 
 thoughts were sad while thou didst come this way. 
 
 Then, lowering his voice and coming close to
 
 4 LAZARUS. 
 
 Lazarus, Nicodemus whispered: " I went to hear 
 speak this strange Man, after whom the people have 
 gone mad, and I can assure thee, noble Lazarus, that 
 His preaching is no mean thing. Verily never heard 
 I man speak like this Man." 
 
 " I, too, have heard rumours of His preaching. 
 'T is some poor fellow that hath followed in the 
 doctrines of John the Baptist," answered Lazarus. 
 "What preacheth He ? " 
 
 " Baptism and Repentance of Sins," answered 
 Nicodemus; " and yet more, He speaketh of For- 
 giveness." 
 
 " Who shall forgive sins but God only ?" ques- 
 tioned Lazarus. 
 
 " Methinks verily 't is some prophet from God," 
 said Nicodemus, " and it surpriseth me that neither 
 Annas nor any other of the priests doth take notice 
 of this matter, for seemingly, 't is one of vast im- 
 portance. About the manner of this Man's birth 
 there are marvellous accounts, and even as a child 
 He did say and do most wondrous things ; and His 
 face, I cannot tell thee, Lazarus, how beautiful it is. 
 It hath an expression of mingled purity and power, 
 and it troubleth one strangely to look upon it." 
 
 " I will one day come with thee to hear Him," 
 answered Lazarus. " Even but now did my 
 thoughts dwell sadly on the present state of govern- 
 ment. It seemeth to me that the old laws of Moses 
 are perverted sadly, and that the world groweth 
 strangely bad, as at the time of Noah." 
 
 ' Yea, worse ; for where were now the righteous 
 man to place within the Ark ? " asked Nicodemus. 
 ' Yet we have kept the laws of Moses from our
 
 LAZARUS. 5 
 
 childhood upwards," said Lazarus, unable still to 
 break away from the teachings of his youth. 
 
 Nicodemus was silent for a few moments. Then 
 he began again, with the air of a man who wishes, 
 while persuading others, to persuade himself: " Yet, 
 Lazarus, it seemeth to me that within the heart there 
 is yet a deeper philosophy of right than the law of 
 Moses teacheth. There is ever an inward burning 
 longing for rest and peace and happiness, as if 
 somewhere the soul could rest eternally." 
 
 " So will it be in the resurrection," answered 
 Lazarus. 
 
 " Yet that is far off," said Nicodemus. " Me- 
 thinks that, even in this life, there might be an in- 
 ward peace with hope, such as this Nazarene doth 
 speak of." Then he stood still, and, gazing down 
 the valley, waved his hand toward the dark outline 
 of Jerusalem. " Mindest thou the words of the 
 prophet, Lazarus ? ' Woe to Ariel, to Ariel, the 
 city where David dwelt ! The Lord hath poured out 
 upon you the spirit of sleep, and hath closed your 
 eyes: the prophets and your rulers, the seers, hath 
 He covered. And the vision of all is become unto 
 you as the words of a book that is sealed, which men 
 deliver to one that is learned, saying, Read this, I 
 pray thee : and he saith, I cannot ; for it is sealed : 
 and the book is delivered to him that is not learned, 
 saying, Read this, I pray thee: and he saith, I am 
 not learned ! ' What thinkest thou, Lazarus ? Is 
 not Jerusalem even so ? Are we not all in heaviness 
 and asleep ? Rulers and poor alike ? Yet I feel that 
 in us everything is possible. Think of the great 
 strength of a man the great understanding, the great
 
 6 LAZARUS. 
 
 wisdom of men such as Solomon and David. How 
 the heart doth leap with joy, and then doth faint 
 with grief ! To what end is all this ? For death 
 alone ? Nay, I cannot think so, Lazarus. 
 
 " The Romans say a man's life is given him but 
 to teach him how to die," said Lazarus. ' Think, 
 too, Nicodemus, how powerless a thing is man when 
 death approacheth ; he is no more than the grass of 
 the field, green to-day, faded to-morrow. What, 
 then, of all his heart-beatings ? ' ' 
 
 " Aye, truly death, death of this fleshly body; 
 but there is another life within. I know it, I feel it, 
 Lazarus." 
 
 Nicodemus seemed carried away by his own argu- 
 ment, as though he had himself been preaching and 
 were fired by his own reasoning. ' Mindest thou 
 not the words of Job ? ' The Spirit of God hath 
 made me and the breath of the Almighty hath given 
 me life.' Surely the breath of God can never die, 
 but will return to Him laden with the praise and wor- 
 ship of them that love Him." 
 
 More moved than he would have it to appear, for 
 he was not a demonstrative man, Lazarus walked on 
 in silence till they reached the gates of his house at 
 Bethany. Here they were met by the ever anxious 
 Martha, who feared some accident to her beloved 
 brother. 
 
 ' What fearest thou ever ? " said Lazarus, smiling 
 at her anxiety. 
 
 ' I know not ; but the night is dark, and ever since 
 Barabbas did waylay the Pharisee, I fear me for thee 
 on the lonely road, lest maybe some robber, such as 
 he, should fall upon thee and take thy jewels."
 
 LAZARUS. 7 
 
 " Surely 't were better far to be the sister of some 
 poor man," said Nicodemus, smiling, " than to be 
 so troubled." 
 
 Then, when they entered the house, Mary ad- 
 vanced to meet them. 
 
 " We heard a wondrous story to-day from Cana," 
 she said to the two men. " We cannot credit it, 
 but our kinsman, Nathaniel of Arimathaea, the 
 cousin of Joseph the Counsellor, doth write how 
 that they were all at the wedding of a friend, and 
 Mary was there with her amazing son, this strange 
 Man of whom all speak; and, when they entered, 
 Mary did say to the servants, ' Whatever He saith 
 unto ye, do it. ' And there were set there six water- 
 pots of stone, containing water; and this Jesus said 
 unto them, ' Fill the waterpots with water ' ; and 
 they rilled them to the brim ; then He said unto them 
 again, ' Draw out now and bear unto the governor 
 of the feast. ' And when they did so, behold it was 
 all wine, and of such choice flavour as Nathaniel 
 saith he never before did taste, for he too was there ; 
 and all were full of wonder at this thing, which they 
 do term a miracle. What think ye, noble rulers, 
 can this thing be true ? " 
 
 But the two men, full of new, strange thoughts, 
 half formed and wholly inexpressible, looked at each 
 other in surprise, and Nicodemus answered: " If 't 
 is true, 't is surely a God who hath come among us." 
 
 And, all that evening, they talked much of the 
 Nazarene, and of the strange acts of Annas, and of 
 the new High Priest Caiaphas.
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 THE Jewish Passover was at hand, and the 
 Nazarene was in Jerusalem. 
 
 A few evenings after His arrival, Nicodemus, full 
 of excitement, sought out Lazarus once more. 
 
 " Hast thou heard the strange news, Lazarus ? " 
 
 " Nay, I was weary and went not into Jerusalem 
 this morn," replied his friend. 
 
 " Surely the thing was strange indeed that hap- 
 pened. This Nazarene, who, since His arrival, doth 
 seem to drive mad all Jerusalem, did make a scourge 
 of cords, and chased from the Temple all those that 
 sold oxen and sheep and doves, and poured out the 
 changers' money and overthrew the tables; and His 
 face, they say, did glow with wrath that kindled as 
 if with fire; yet none withstood Him, and none 
 durst speak. Thou wouldst have laughed, Lazarus, 
 to see the frightened little usurers, sprawling on the 
 floor to grasp the coins that fell hither and thither, 
 and how they quarrelled when one took the other's 
 money, or several darted at the same coin. Oh, their 
 oaths were awful to hear; yet, for all, they durst not 
 stay, so mightily He scourged them. ' Take these 
 hence, take these things hence,' He cried. ' Make 
 not My Father's house an house of merchandise.' 
 Then He said again: ' It is written, My house shall 
 be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it 
 
 8
 
 LAZARUS. 9 
 
 a den of thieves.' And mindest thou, Lazarus, how 
 the prophets Jeremiah and Isaiah do so say ? " 
 
 Like one awaking from a dream, Lazarus gazed at 
 Nicodemus. " Surely I mind it, Nicodemus; 'tis 
 truly a wonderful thing. And what said the people ? ' ' 
 
 " The children cried out: 'Hosanna to the Son of 
 David ' ; and some even say the elders raised their 
 voices saying: ' Verily He is the Son of God ! ' But 
 the chief priests and scribes who were in the Temple 
 were very wroth, and they came round this Jesus 
 and protested : ' Hearest Thou what these say ? 
 They call Thee Christ and Lord and the Son of God, 
 and Thou contradictest them not ? Verily Thou 
 blasphemest by Thy silence.' But He looked with 
 wondrous mien upon them and answered only: 
 ' Have ye never read, " Out of the mouth of babes 
 and sucklings Thou hast perfected praise" ?' 
 Which, if thou callest to memory, is so written in 
 the Psalms ; for the marvel of this Man is that He 
 speaketh never a word but that which is written al- 
 ready in the Scriptures. And while they would have 
 answered Him, yet could not, and sought for words 
 to say, there came round Him such crowds of lame 
 and blind and sick, that surely there was no room any 
 longer for priest or scribe ; and when he healed one 
 after the other, and they left the Temple whole and 
 with sight restored, the dumb singing aloud in praise 
 to God, the priests did fly forth from the Temple 
 with fear and fury, and hasted to tell Caiaphas the 
 marvels they had seen and heard. And they say 
 that Caiaphas is so wroth that he can neither eat nor 
 drink ; nor can he write, but sendeth message after 
 message to Pilate to give order that they lay hands
 
 IO LAZARUS. 
 
 on Jesus; but Pilate, it seemeth, doth but laugh and 
 say: 'Let this madman alone. He doeth no harm, 
 but rather good, seeing that ye high priests can 
 neither give eyes to the blind nor make the lame 
 to walk.' " 
 
 Softly as they spoke, Mary came across the springy 
 grass, and stood close listening; then, when Nico- 
 demus had finished speaking, she exclaimed with 
 fervour: " 'T is indeed the Messiah who hath come. 
 Nathaniel wrote truly of the miracle in Cana. It is 
 the Lord." 
 
 " How knowest thou, sister ? " answered Lazarus, 
 amazed at the earnestness of her words, which yet 
 seemed an echo of his own thoughts. 
 
 " An inward voice doth speak to me day and 
 night, day and night, saying: ' This is the Lord, 
 hear Him, hear Him ' ; and when I look upon His 
 face in the Temple, and then around on this vast 
 crowd, methinks that only He who made the flowers 
 and birds and sunshine could have made a man 
 so fair, for His look is like a sunbeam lying over 
 a peaceful lake; and the thought within me doth 
 grow and grow and grow; and, with the Magda- 
 lene, I have read and re-read the Scriptures, and 
 every word doth testify how this Christ would 
 come ; and it grieveth me now that ever we spoke 
 slightingly of His mother, or could dream it possi- 
 ble that she had sinned, for the prophet Isaiah saith : 
 ' Therefore the Lord Himself shall give you a sign, 
 Behold a virgin shall conceive and bear a son.' 
 Had I but minded me of these words, I had first cut 
 out my tongue ere I had breathed a word against her 
 purity."
 
 LAZARUS. 1 1 
 
 " Surely thou speakest strangely," answered Laz- 
 arus, " and we must beware of blasphemy. I, too, 
 would see this Man, yet I fear me greatly ; for, if He 
 have such power, maybe I, too, would think Him the 
 Son of God and fall in worship at His feet ; and then 
 if 't were not after all the Messiah that shall come ? " 
 
 " If thou wouldst but see Him," urged Mary, 
 " thou couldst ask Him, and thou wouldst not 
 doubt." 
 
 Then Martha's voice was heard calling them to 
 the evening meal, which, in the ardour of their con- 
 versation, they had forgotten. Darkness was falling 
 quickly; only over Jerusalem still hung a lurid glow, 
 that made the houses stand out vividly against the 
 background of the darkening trees, and lighted up 
 with steely gleamings the rivulet of Kedron, that lay 
 like some great serpent waiting to seize upon the 
 heart of Jerusalem. Then, suddenly, a distant 
 sound of voices rose. 
 
 " Hosanna, Hosanna! " cried children's voices 
 on the stilly air, and they seemed to pierce the dark- 
 ness and fall like notes of holy music into the hearts 
 of the little group. 
 
 " Martha," said Nicodemus, leaning over the low 
 wall of the terrace, " hearest thou how they salute 
 the Nazarene ? " 
 
 Then Lazarus, too, stood up and listened, and, as 
 the cry came nearer, something strange and hard 
 seemed giving way within his heart. He saw, as in 
 a vision, earth and sea and sky all rolled away, and 
 crowds falling to the ground in worship and fear and 
 adoration ; and a great, white light that paled the 
 glory of the sun ; and notes, in power and harmony
 
 12 LAZARUS. 
 
 undreamt of, gave forth, in unearthly cadence of 
 swelling triumph, the news that the Messiah had 
 come indeed, that the kingdom of God was close at 
 hand. 
 
 In that one moment, while the voices drew ever 
 nearer, grew ever louder, and, in the darkness, a still 
 darker line of approaching crowds of men was 
 streaked, Lazarus seemed able to measure his own 
 stature, and to grasp its nothingness against the 
 boundless stretches of creation. One man among so 
 many, one tiny atom at the feet of mountains! 
 
 And, as the vision faded, the centre piece of its 
 glory approached along the road. Only a strange 
 luminous whiteness, not to be accounted for by dy- 
 ing sun or rising moon, showed that this Man was 
 not as other men. 
 
 " 'T is the Lord, let us go forth to meet Him," 
 murmured Mary, with nervous awe and adoration in 
 her tone; and, regardless of Martha's voice, rising 
 querulous now from the house door, regardless of 
 the opinion of the Jewish world, regardless of all in- 
 ward doubt; as if compelled by some magnetic, 
 supernatural power, the three sallied forth from the 
 gate and, meeting the Christ when He reached the 
 summit of the hill, fell down in worship at His feet. 
 While Lazarus, hardly knowing what he did or said, 
 mindful only that he stood in a majestic presence, 
 from which to win one look he would barter life and 
 power and all his worldly possessions, exclaimed 
 with mingled Jewish courtesy and human awe : 
 
 4 Enter in, O Lord, enter in; all I have I offer 
 Thee, for all is Thine." 
 
 And the great look fell, with love and gratitude 
 and endless blessing, on the head of Lazarus.
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 IT had been a bold stroke on his part this bringing 
 the Nazarene straight into the house ; for Mar- 
 tha's was a ruling, decided spirit, and she had set her 
 face against offering hospitality to this Man, inter- 
 ested though she was in all that she had heard of 
 Him. There was danger in being in His company. 
 Already the Jews had sought to stone Him, and His 
 presence in their house might mean their own death, 
 or at least suspicion of complicity in His condemna- 
 tion of the ruling powers, and thus cast a slur upon 
 their house forever. Yet, when the Man of Sorrows 
 stood by the gate, when those eyes, overflowing with 
 grief at the sins of nations, fell upon her, she felt 
 herself reduced to nothingness; even the inmost 
 thought of cowardice and treachery seemed revealed, 
 and the consciousness was born in her that she was, 
 if not in the presence of God Himself, in that, in- 
 deed, of one of His most powerful prophets. 
 
 Pale and doubting and hesitating at His reception, 
 Jesus stood at the gate, wondering how He would 
 be received; as He has stood at the gate of each 
 human heart, pleading piteously for hospitality, for 
 entrance into the affections, for rest in the souls of 
 men; yet pleading, so often, alas! in vain. There 
 was something so pathetic in His glory and in His 
 silent waiting for admission, that Martha felt over- 
 is
 
 14 LAZARUS. 
 
 whelmed. Supposing, after all, that this were indeed 
 the God ; how terrible every moment that was not 
 pressed into His service ; how unforgivable the sin 
 of hesitation; yet how impossible to receive Him as 
 befitted Him! Bewildered and flustered, she made 
 obeisance to Him, then led the way to the inner 
 hall. It was of tesselated marble, roofed overhead, 
 its walls pierced all round with apertures, that let in 
 light and air. A side door, supported by columns 
 of porphyry, and opening on stairs of Shittim wood, 
 gave access to the garden ; for Lazarus was wealthy, 
 and Simon his father, when he had fallen ill with 
 leprosy, had given up to his children almost all that 
 he possessed. The lovely house in Bethany and all 
 his gold and silver and jewels were theirs, and they 
 gloried in them. 
 
 As those holy feet stepped noiselessly across the 
 chamber, Martha now was convinced that it was no 
 ordinary man who had entered their dwelling. All 
 the beautiful things she and Lazarus had amassed or 
 inherited seemed shadowy and unreal in the presence 
 of the lowly carpenter. Yet, for all that, she could 
 not sever her mind from the conventional hospitali- 
 ties of life. She hurried away, while Mary came 
 and cast herself at Jesus' feet, and, far away in inner 
 halls and passages, she could be heard summoning 
 her maidens to bring forth their best, to set before 
 the Lord. But Lazarus and Mary remained by His 
 side, realising how precious was every moment in 
 which their Christ was with them; conscious that 
 He, who could command that the stones be made 
 bread, required no serving, no preparations; only 
 the worship and living passion of adoring hearts.
 
 LAZARUS. 15 
 
 Presently, Martha, wearied with the task of gather- 
 ing her maidens together and of hastily preparing 
 what seemed fitting for such a guest, returned ; and, 
 finding Mary sitting in silent worship at His feet, 
 cried almost querulously: " Lord, dost Thou not 
 care that my sister hath left me to serve alone ? bid 
 her therefore that she help me." 
 
 Oh, how the sensitive Mary winced at her sister's 
 words; to speak thus to Jesus, the Christ ! How all 
 Martha's want of spirituality, of enthusiasm, of re- 
 ligious fire, echoed in those words ! The world, the 
 world and its silly self-imposed routine, its futile, 
 paltry laws built up by the narrow brains of men to 
 appease their limited demands; the self-seeking 
 satisfactions required by man, who deems himself 
 the ruler of this world, whose little span of life seems 
 to himself a nation's. To those who believed, as 
 Lazarus and Mary now did, what mattered wine 
 or garment or surroundings ? One thing only was 
 needful, the Bread of Life such as fell from the lips 
 of Jesus; and to Jesus, what must Martha's words 
 have seemed ? To Him, to whom worlds and time 
 and space and life and death were as nothing to the 
 " I am " of Eternity! 
 
 How must her words have sounded to such an 
 One ? Yet the Christ, in His deep sympathy, 
 pitied the fretfulness her cry disclosed. This wo- 
 man's eyes were not yet opened. How then could 
 she fathom the depth and length and breadth the 
 majesty of the personality that stood before her ? 
 But He saw in all its fulness what we fail to see, the 
 weary anxiety of the woman, the doubting of His 
 justice, if He could see one woman toil thus while
 
 1 6 LAZARUS. 
 
 another idled. With gentleness and love He an- 
 swered : " Thou art careful and troubled about many 
 things: but one thing is needful: and Mary hath 
 chosen that good part, which shall not be taken 
 away from her." 
 
 And Mary, in adoring wonder, kissed His feet once 
 more and murmured: " One thing have I desired of 
 the Lord, that will I seek after, that I may dwell in 
 the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to be- 
 hold the beauty of the Lord and to inquire in His 
 Temple. Thou hast redeemed me, O Lord God of 
 Truth."
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 r I^HE light came in in streaks through the cur- 
 I tained windows of the highest, most gorgeous 
 apartment in the house of Caiaphas, lighting up the 
 costly silks which hung above the couches, and the 
 amber-coloured robe of his handsome daughter, the 
 dark-eyed Rebekah. After the Magdalene, with 
 whom, of course, she was never mentioned in the 
 same breath, she was the loveliest woman in Judaea. 
 The Jewish nose had halted midway down the face 
 in Grecian fashion, and the olive skin, protected 
 from almost every ray of sun, had grown of an 
 opaque creamy whiteness, faintly stained as though 
 by some sweet pink flower ; and the eyes no one had 
 ever quite known what was their colour ; for, though 
 they looked almost black and were fringed with the 
 long, curling Jewish lash, still some declared that, if 
 she looked upwards, they were blue as sapphire, yet 
 that, when she was angry, they flashed ruby red. 
 The beautiful face, the rounded chin of youth, the 
 sweet, smiling mouth, like early barley in a coral 
 pod, betrayed not yet the heritage of soul, for all the 
 pride of a long line of priests, the subtlety of the 
 Pharisees and Sadducees, and the crafty cunning of 
 Annas mingled in the stream that coursed through 
 those blue veins. 
 
 Of an intriguing spirit and brought up amongst 
 
 a I?
 
 1 8 LAZARUS. 
 
 the politicians and great rulers of the day, she had 
 become a personage of some importance in Jeru- 
 salem, and young lawyers and rulers, anxious to 
 ingratiate themselves with Caiaphas, and young 
 Romans, and even Greeks, were included in the no 
 small group of her admirers. 
 
 Her mother, Annas's daughter, was an invalid, a 
 poor weak woman, whom dread of Caiaphas' s out- 
 bursts of bad temper had reduced almost to im- 
 becility. 
 
 Rebekah was no mean linguist, too; she could 
 converse in Greek and Latin, and was often of great 
 assistance to her father ; but this was more from the 
 pleasure of the importance she derived from it than 
 from any wish to help, for Rebekah loved no one 
 like herself. 
 
 To-day she lay across her couch, gazing moodily 
 from the window, while her maidens played to her 
 on the cithern, an instrument the Greeks had lately 
 introduced. But its notes seemed but to irritate her. 
 
 "Stop, stop, stop!" she cried. 'Ye do play 
 such mournful tunes, 't is like the wailing at a burial. 
 Come tell me, when ye passed the market place, were 
 there great multitudes listening to this this car- 
 penter. Saw ye any rulers there ? " she asked, with 
 scathing irony; " or did only the foul, the blind, the 
 beggars, and the leprous assemble ? For I hear this 
 Man doth, above all, love sinners, and the beautiful 
 Magdalene they say hath become a saint. Oh, the 
 world must be upside down when the Magdalene 
 doth become a penitent. ' ' And while she spoke and 
 laughed there was something fraught with scorn 
 and malice that reminded one of Caiaphas. " But
 
 LAZARUS. 19 
 
 tell me, maidens, saw ye any comely young men in 
 the crowd ? " 
 
 " Verily we saw Lazarus and Nicodemus and 
 several wealthy rulers, listening so intently that they 
 saw us not when we passed by." 
 
 " Oh, Nicodemus," she said scornfully, " that 
 causeth me no surprise; but Lazarus!" She rose 
 from the couch and went to the window and looked 
 out, while she conjured up the beautiful, stern face 
 of Lazarus. That was the man she had singled out 
 in all Judaea to be the idol of her heart. On the 
 few occasions of her seeing him, he had done no 
 more than give her courteous recognition. Once, at 
 the bidding of Caiaphas, Lazarus had come to the 
 house, but he had barely addressed her. How well 
 the young ruler remembered, when he had left her 
 presence, how she had barred the doorway, and look- 
 ing him in the eyes had said: " Why hatest thou 
 me, Lazarus ? " And how well she remembered the 
 scorn in his eyes at her unmaidenly assurance, and 
 yet the gentle courtesy of his voice, while he had 
 answered: " Lady, I hate no one." And with a 
 proud gesture she had moved aside and let him pass. 
 
 Then in that dark heart had sprung up a love that 
 was so jealous and so fierce that it was almost hate. 
 " He shall love me, or he shall die," she had often 
 murmured to herself. 
 
 But Lazarus came no more ; and if, perchance, she 
 saw him at some public gathering, he greeted her 
 but distantly. 
 
 No alliance would have been more agreeable to 
 Caiaphas than would this. Lazarus was wealthy, 
 Lazarus was clever, and his life was such an one as
 
 20 LAZARUS. 
 
 Caiaphas would have desired for his daughter, though 
 he himself could not have lived it. 
 
 Besides, he recognised in Lazarus a spirit of meek- 
 ness that he fancied might make the mouldings of a 
 creature in his hands ; and Lazarus, by the side of 
 Rebekah, with ambition and craft, would be a 
 powerful colleague in the council chamber. 
 
 " He is spoilt by his own goodness," Caiaphas 
 would tell himself." 
 
 Long did Rebekah muse. Then, turning to her 
 maidens, said: " Thinkest thou that Lazarus doth 
 believe in this Nazarene ? " 
 
 " 'T is so said," one of them made reply, not 
 wholly without malice. It was a satisfaction to 
 see one who made others suffer suffer a little in 
 return. ' They say that Mary and Martha and 
 Lazarus do receive the Nazarene in their house at 
 Bethany, and that they believe He is the Christ." 
 
 A scowl came over Rebekah's handsome face. 
 ' Tush! 'T is foolishness! He would not be so 
 great a fool," she retorted scathingly. " He know- 
 eth that, at most, 't is but a prophet. Yet I hear 
 that this Nazarene hath so much persuasion that 
 even wiser men than Lazarus are bewitched. Even 
 my father doth say so much," she added with the 
 vehemence that, with her, always ended argument. 
 Then, changing suddenly her tone, she said softly, 
 so as barely to be heard, and coming to where the 
 maidens were still seated on their cushions: " Come, 
 listen, I have somewhat to tell ye." 
 
 Then, when they rose, she came close and whis- 
 pered so that both could hear: " Methinks I, too, 
 would like to hear this Man. How can this be
 
 LAZARUS. 21 
 
 brought about ? It could but be at night," she 
 went on slowly, like one making a plan while speak- 
 ing " could but be at night, when my father writ- 
 eth and my mother hath gone to sleep. We will 
 robe ourselves like poor women, and carry baskets 
 on our heads, and mingle with the crowd." 
 
 The two girls' faces expressed such horror that 
 Rebekah burst out laughing. 
 
 " Oh, ye two poor frightened things ! Can ye not 
 go where the High Priest's daughter can ? Then 
 stay at home, and I will go alone." 
 
 " Nay, but it is thou, lady," they exclaimed in 
 one voice. " How canst thou, the daughter of 
 Caiaphas, go out at night to mingle with the crowd ? 
 If Caiaphas hear ? " 
 
 " If Caiaphas hear, if Caiaphas hear, well, Caia- 
 phas will laugh," she answered mischievously. 
 
 " Nay, he might laugh with thee, but with us he 
 would be very wroth," said one. 
 
 " Well then, Caiaphas shall not know. This very 
 night shall we go. Find out where he preacheth, 
 and leave to me the rest." 
 
 Half anxious, yet enjoying the prospect of this es- 
 capade, the two girls vanished at her order, while she 
 paced the room, the long, orange-tinted robe, which 
 reached her feet, looking now green, now golden, 
 according as it passed through the sun's rays or 
 through the shadow. Nervously she played with the 
 beads of a girdle of amber she wore round her waist. 
 
 " Indeed," she muttered, " 't is not the Nazarene 
 that I would seek; but, if to get sight of Lazarus I 
 must needs find the Nazarene, then go I must." 
 
 Proud Rebekah, what hath come to thee, that
 
 22 LAZARUS. 
 
 thou, whom, hitherto, all men have sought, dost 
 follow now one man ? What is love, that strange, 
 subtle fire that eateth out the heart and bringeth the 
 mighty low ? " Oh, I would that Lazarus did feel 
 for me as I for him ! That stern, sweet face, how 
 beauteous must it look when melting into love ! O 
 Lazarus, Lazarus! " 
 
 The afternoon wore on.' The streets grew silent, 
 and day slid back, as it were, from the gaze of men. 
 Yet still dreamed on the maiden of the man who 
 cared not for her, pondering, the while, how she 
 could bring him to her feet. 
 
 " He shall be mine. He shall," she said at last. 
 " Women are stronger far than men, and I am beau- 
 tiful." She held a mirror to her face. " Oh, I am 
 very beautiful," she murmured. 
 
 ' Yet, if this Nazarene should bewitch him ? If 
 he should take the vows of a Nazarite and follow 
 ever after good ! Oh, that would be dreadful ! No, 
 no, it shall not be that the Nazarene shall come be- 
 tween Lazarus and me. I will not suffer it, I will 
 not suffer it." Then she clapped her hands, that the 
 attendants might bring lights, and left the room to 
 begin her preparations for the night's adventure. 
 
 It was almost dark when the three girls issued 
 from the house. They had arranged to go first into 
 the garden at the back, and thence to pass on to the 
 Jericho road, which led to Bethany. 
 
 Rebekah looked anxious, and every now and then 
 she bit her lips. Her maidens had learned that the 
 Nazarene would preach that evening from the top of 
 a mountain. The multitude would probably be very 
 great, because, as yet, the novelty of His presence
 
 LAZARUS. 23 
 
 had not worn off. Miracles had only just begun to 
 strike the people with awe and wonder, and, so far, 
 the authorities had feared to check enthusiasm, lest 
 thus to fan the embers of sedition. It would be easy 
 enough to mingle with the listening crowd, but 
 would it be so easy to meet or single out Lazarus ? 
 Would the object of this night sortie be attained ? 
 Their sole chance was that, by walking on the road 
 to Bethany, they would meet the crowd coming to- 
 wards the town and perchance fall in with Lazarus 
 and Mary. 
 
 Few suspected in the darkly attired women, with 
 veiled faces, who walked up the hill to Bethany, the 
 proud daughter of Caiaphas and her attendants. 
 Here and there some woman greeted them, or some 
 man called out, but the girls were silent and strolled 
 along. 
 
 The maidens guessed easily whom she sought, for 
 it had long been common talk that Rebekah loved 
 Lazarus, but that the proud, stern young ruler would 
 have naught to say to any woman. 
 
 Fortune favoured her; she had got not far when 
 a dancing, shrieking, clamouring crowd proclaimed 
 that the Nazarene was coming that way. Rebekah 
 stood against the wall to let them pass, and motioned 
 to her women to do the same ; then her eyes searched 
 anxiously in the crowd for the face which to her 
 meant day or night life or death. But, as yet, she 
 saw it not. 
 
 The centre piece of that seething mass of human- 
 ity was the Nazarene. The Messiah walked along 
 the dreary, dirty road, talking little, but, by a strange 
 set earnestness, led men on to follow Him.
 
 24 LAZARUS. 
 
 What was it that riveted her gaze and made her 
 tremble ? This Man, who knew her not, seemed to 
 unearth the secrets of her soul, and as He passed, 
 for an instant, she saw herself as she was, a brazen, 
 flaunting hypocrite, joining with a believing, enthu- 
 siastic crowd, not to worship or to learn, but to seek 
 out a man who cared not for her, and who, in moral 
 worth, was as far removed from her as were the stars. 
 Then, while she looked, she saw the face she sought, 
 pure, pale, and passionless, gazing either at his Mas- 
 ter or at heaven, but thinking not of her. 
 
 " Lazarus!" The voice that called was full of 
 tenderness and piteous appeal, but it had a sensuous, 
 luring tone which filled him to whom it was ad- 
 dressed with terror. He fell from his grand musings 
 on things of heaven, as one who catches his foot 
 upon a stone falls down a mountain side. An im- 
 patient: " Woman, what have I to do with thee ? " 
 was on his lips; but, as he turned, his gaze met two 
 deep, unfathomable eyes that searched his in the 
 darkness. His heart beat quickly. 'T was as 
 though an enemy had caught hold of him and 
 would not let him follow Christ. 
 
 " Lazarus, 't is I, the daughter of Caiaphas, the 
 High Priest." 
 
 ' What wouldst thou ? " he asked impatiently. 
 " What seekest thou ?" 
 
 'T is thee I seek," rose all but to her lips, in 
 her mad frenzy to be wooed and loved by the young 
 ruler; but something in his face, something solemn 
 in the surroundings, a purified, restraining atmo- 
 sphere, something she could not account for, checked 
 the words that were on her lips, and rapidly, as an
 
 LAZARUS. 25 
 
 empty basin refills itself with water at a fountain, so 
 wily, crafty thoughts poured in. 
 
 " I would hear the Nazarene," she said. " Wilt 
 take me with thee ? " 
 
 Her voice was soft and low, and he could not de- 
 tect the false ring in it. What new wonder was 
 this ? What if the proud Rebekah should believe, 
 and, by believing, bring her father also to the feet 
 of Jesus ? It seemed incredible, but stranger things 
 than that had come to pass ; and so poor Lazarus 
 was duped, as so many sympathetic souls are duped 
 who do not recognise the livery of Satan when his 
 servants wear it. 
 
 " I will take thee, noble maiden," he said, with 
 gentle voice; " and as thou hearest, so mayst thou 
 believe." The sermon was over, a sermon such as 
 no man on earth had ever heard before, or would 
 ever hear again. Interested, despite herself, carried 
 away by the persuasive power of the voice, the divine 
 beauty of the Nazarene ; clever enough to grasp the 
 purport and to interpret the subtle meanings of each 
 allusion ; surprised at the fluent speech of one reputed 
 to be an humble and illiterate man ; amazed at doc- 
 trines, that were the complement rather than the 
 upheaval of the Mosaic Law, Rebekah almost forgot 
 the subject of her errand, the enslavement of the 
 affections of the man she loved. It could not be, 
 with the words ringing in her ears, " Seek ye first 
 the kingdom of God and His righteousness," and 
 " Blessed are the pure in heart," that she should 
 broach the question of earthly love. Lazarus's face, 
 the faces of Martha and Mary in the distance, the 
 silence of the adoring multitude, all struck her with
 
 26 LAZARUS. 
 
 a sudden, paralysing shock, as if an ice wind had 
 blown across her cunning heart. An overpowering 
 terror seized her. Was this indeed the Christ, or 
 was He a devil ? What spirit of folly had led her 
 forth that night to listen to such things ? Truly 
 't was a moral earthquake to hear this Man speak. 
 
 From very terror, she seized Lazarus's arm and 
 gasped: " Who is this Man ? Who is this Man ? " 
 
 " Surely 't is the Son of God," said Lazarus. 
 For one instant both hearts were locked in a com- 
 mon interest, while he, believing in her, breathed a 
 prayer to God to open the heart of Rebekah, and, 
 through her, that harder one of Caiaphas. 
 
 But the Christ was moving on and the multitude 
 was following Him. The pale moon floated gently 
 above the blue-grey olive trees, giving a weird, sub- 
 dued colouring to the scene ; while on in front the 
 white robe of the Nazarene seemed to glow with a 
 supernatural luminosity that guided the crowd along 
 the mountain path. 
 
 Then, in dismay, Rebekah looked round for her 
 attendant maidens; but they were nowhere to be 
 found. They, too, were seeking her, but, in such 
 a crowd, 't would be no easy task to find her in her 
 disguise. 
 
 " I know not what I shall do! " she cried. " I 
 cannot see my maidens! " 
 
 Unnerved by the words of the Nazarene, and filled 
 with terror at her loneliness and at the growing dark- 
 ness, her voice trembled with no feigned concern. 
 
 " Doubtless we shall find them," answered Laz- 
 arus consolingly; " but if we find them not, I will 
 accompany thee to thine house."
 
 LAZARUS. 27 
 
 Then, while she thanked him, Satan, with a sar- 
 donic grin, closed up once more and followed in 
 their wake. 
 
 With the comfort of Lazarus's presence came a 
 sense of safety, and terror flew away. Gradually the 
 words of the Saviour lost their hold on the sandy 
 soil on which they had fallen. Love and the pres- 
 ence of the loved one, two forces stronger than life 
 or death, even than eternity to some, regained their 
 sway, and the beautiful Rebekah's good angel fled 
 forever. And Lazarus ? Lazarus began to feel the 
 magnetic influence of her presence. The power of 
 evil he knew was close, appealing to him in the form 
 of a lovely woman, whose soul he longed to save. 
 Chained to his post by the claims of courtesy and 
 chivalry, he could still cry out to the white-robed 
 figure descending the hill, " Lord, save me, Lord, 
 save me." Words that Rebekah's lips had never 
 learned. "Take no thought for the morrow, take 
 no thought for the morrow." 
 
 Surely 't was Satan who thus misused the injunc- 
 tions of the Messiah. Why did they ring thus ? 
 Why, why should he, a ruler of the Synagogue, in 
 the vigour of his manhood, surrounded by wealth, 
 sighed after by the most beautiful woman in Judaea 
 why should he wander footsore and tired, hurry- 
 ing hither and thither after a man who preached im- 
 possible doctrines, surrounded by a vociferating 
 crowd of illiterate, uneducated fanatics ? and for 
 what ? To attain a crown, of whose value he knew 
 nothing, to enter a kingdom, of whose existence, 
 even, he was not sure. Earthly life, what joyous, 
 moving excitements it presented to one young and
 
 28 LAZARUS. 
 
 influential as himself ! A leader of the people, surely 
 that were better than to follow in such a crowd, 
 seeking after what ? 
 
 For one instant, this horrible temptation seized 
 him, or, rather, it was photographed on his brain, 
 for there was no wavering in the man himself. He 
 was like a man betwixt two flashes of lightning, each 
 one of which lights up a different piece of scenery. 
 They had walked quickly, they were almost along- 
 side the Christ. 
 
 "Lazarus!" He knew not whether the name 
 had been breathed to him or not, but he met the 
 yearning look of infinite pity, infinite love. In that 
 look he saw the great height attainable by the soul ; 
 and indistinctly he could discern the rungs of a lad- 
 der that went ever upwards to an altitude of infinite 
 variety and limitless possibility. His soul, his will, 
 his very being, grasped once for all Eternal Life, 
 and he lost it never again. 
 
 And Jesus and the multitude passed on. 
 
 Two eyes in the crowd followed with sadness the 
 figures of Lazarus and Rebekah ; those of the Mag- 
 dalene. There was no jealousy in that look; on the 
 contrary, there was gentle resignation. It was part 
 of the Crucifixion of Joy that she knew had been 
 allotted as the expiation of her former sins. Oh. 
 how vividly the past rushed back, paying her out, as 
 is ever the case with sinners even in this world. She 
 was reaping now, reaping bitterly, wearily, in the 
 noonday sun, the fruits of her own sowing; but, as 
 she had told the mother of Jesus, the very grief 
 seemed to give birth to a new joy ; the joy of suffer- 
 ing for her dear Lord's sake. As her eyes followed
 
 LAZARUS. 29 
 
 the two dark figures that now barely emerged from 
 the gloom around, her heart seemed to die within 
 her, and, by its death-throes, to give birth to a new 
 ambition of her soul. 
 
 Love, human love, companionship, friendship, 
 were passing away. Humanly speaking, she was 
 alone. Dark shadows seemed to be rising up, a great 
 wall shutting her out from all the brightness of this 
 world. The conviction of man's solitude here on 
 earth was forced upon her, and with it came the re- 
 membrance that there was One who never failed in 
 His companionship and solace. 
 
 Yet what right had she to be pained if Lazarus 
 cared for some other woman ? What claim had she, 
 the harlot,* on the heart of any man ? The wealthy 
 ruler's least of all. It was all right and as it 
 should be ; yet, at her heart, lay a dull thickening 
 of grief. 
 
 Lazarus was certainly not prepared for the scene 
 that awaited him on his arrival at the house of Caia- 
 phas. He was about to conduct Rebekah to the 
 presence of the High Priest; but she, laying her 
 hand on his arm when they reached the wall of the 
 garden, bade him be silent. 
 
 " My father knoweth not that I went to hear 
 the Nazarene," she whispered. " Come into our 
 garden, and I will tell thee." 
 
 What could he do but follow ? He could not 
 leave her at that hour in the street, yet he much dis- 
 liked the situation. 
 
 * The author has adopted the popular view of Mary Magdalene's 
 mode of life before she had repented and been forgiven by the 
 Messiah.
 
 3O LAZARUS. 
 
 The moon was high in the heavens now, lighting 
 up almost with brilliancy the walls of Caiaphas's 
 house and the grass around their feet. The garden 
 was laid out in Roman fashion, with paths and laby- 
 rinths and stiffly cut yews ; the leaves of the dark fig 
 trees glistened in the moonlight, while the cedars 
 rose like ghosts from the dark corners, their weird 
 branches spreading out from them like great curtains 
 of velvet; and everywhere was that deep night 
 silence that raises thoughts of death except far 
 away in the town quarters of the city, where distant 
 music floated upwards and wild dogs barked. 
 
 The hour, the strange silence, the moonlight, the 
 weird beauty of the haughty woman in her new 
 appealing meekness, all these were not without 
 effect on Lazarus's mystic temperament. The man 
 who loved things beautiful around him could not 
 but appreciate the artistic poetry of the situation, or 
 fail to admire the unusual beauty of the daughter of 
 Caiaphas. 
 
 As he pushed open the iron gate of the garden let 
 into the wall, she turned her head towards him. 
 
 " I would speak with thee, Lazarus," she said, a 
 faint touch of the domineering, despotic spirit re- 
 turning; it was the voice of one who brooked no 
 opposition. 
 
 ' The hour is late, and my sisters will be waiting 
 for me; maybe too, the Lord hath returned with 
 them. If thou art safe within these walls, noble 
 lady, I would return." 
 
 Rebekah winced at his words, but, in her frenzied 
 love, there was no room for pride. Now Lazarus 
 must be caught, if caught he could be by deepest
 
 LAZARUS. 31 
 
 wiles of feigned meekness, by despair, by appealing 
 love. To him the daughter of Caiaphas was at pres- 
 ent naught, and this she knew ; to be loved by Laz- 
 arus one must be lovable, true, pure. Oh, she knew 
 well, this wily daughter of the wiliest of Jews of 
 whom no nation is more wily that she was none of 
 the things she would appear to be, yet that she must 
 needs seem all to win him. She felt, too, that now 
 was her final chance. If Lazarus Lazarus, en- 
 chained so far and kept in her presence by the claims 
 of courtesy, should leave her now, never again would 
 she have such a chance in such a place at such an 
 hour. Her lips paused only to give her brain time 
 to revolve the best means of winning him to stay. 
 For one moment, whose madness later made her 
 shiver, she thought of using the weapons that with 
 others would have been so powerful. Could he re- 
 sist, she wondered, the softness of her arms entwining 
 round his neck, the sweet intensity of her soft lips, 
 the clinging appeal in her silvery voice, the crystal 
 tears in those speaking eyes ? No, though she knew 
 full well that Rebekah brought low in meek subjec- 
 tion to love, the haughty daughter of Caiaphas tell- 
 ing her tale of seductive passion in that secluded 
 garden on a summer's night, would have driven most 
 hearts in Jerusalem mad, from very love and won- 
 derment, still to Lazarus it would be no temptation ; 
 the very boldness of it would disgust him. " Yet 
 he must have a heart," she murmured to herself; 
 then added, " Whereof I have not the key." Then 
 aloud, fearful lest he should suddenly depart, she 
 said: " I would talk to thee one moment and ask 
 thee more of this Nazarene."
 
 32 LAZARUS. 
 
 Oh, lowest wile of woman, to take the World's 
 Salvation as her bait to gain so base an end ! 
 
 " Perchance this woman seeketh to believe," he 
 said to himself, and suffered her to lead him across 
 the dewy grass to a marble seat beneath a palm that 
 waved gently hither and thither in the evening 
 breeze. 
 
 Then, with one hand on the back of the marble 
 seat and the other resting on her knee, she turned 
 towards him. ' Thinkest thou, noble Lazarus, that 
 this is indeed the Christ ? For if thou dost, me- 
 thinks I must needs think so too, for thou art 
 learned and well versed in His sayings." 
 
 " Oh, if thou wouldst but believe! " said Lazarus, 
 in his intense wish to instil into her some of his own 
 faith turning and looking straight at her, his face 
 burning with heavenly fire. 
 
 " Look not at me thus, Lazarus," she said. 
 
 " Forgive me, I thought of naught but of how 
 deeply I would that thou didst believe," he an- 
 swered somewhat brusquely. 
 
 ' What matters it to thee whether I believe or 
 not ? " she retorted bitterly. 
 
 " It mattereth to Him," he answered, " for with- 
 out His knowledge not one sparrow falleth to the 
 ground. It mattereth to me, because I would win 
 all souls to Him for their own sakes." 
 
 " And to win my soul what wouldst thou do, 
 most noble Lazarus ? " And she looked searchingly 
 into his face with her great eyes. 
 
 Her deep voice stirred Lazarus strangely, her 
 words seemed to cut the clear air and throb there, as 
 if with expectation.
 
 LAZARUS. 33 
 
 " What wouldst thou do ? What then is my soul 
 worth, thinkest thou, Lazarus ?" 
 
 " What is thy soul worth to thyself ?" he an- 
 swered. " What thinkest thou of Eternity ? " 
 
 " Methinks," replied Rebekah, " that Eternity 
 with thee were well spent, whether in Heaven or 
 Hell." 
 
 He turned and fixed his eyes upon her sternly. 
 
 " Dost know that which thou sayest, noble maid- 
 en ?" he asked her solemnly. 
 
 " Yea, I know well that I do love thee, Lazarus, 
 and that, if thou wouldst but love me in return, I, 
 too, for thy dear sake, would love the Nazarene ; 
 but if so be that thou dost spurn my love, then care 
 I not whether Satan have me or not, or whether, as 
 the Sadducees say, there be resurrection or another 
 world at all ; for where Lazarus is not I would not 
 live." 
 
 ' Thou art mad," said Lazarus, rising from the 
 seat and pacing up and down the path in front of 
 her. Then he came and stood in front of her. 
 ' Thy words have moved me strangely, maiden," 
 he resumed hoarsely, " and I would ask thee to let 
 me go, for this conversation becometh neither thee 
 nor me. The hour hath bewitched thee, and thy 
 mind is overwrought with listening to the Christ's 
 words, and the long journey hath wearied thee. 
 To-morrow thou wilt have forgotten thy words, and 
 so shall I." 
 
 Then Rebekah rose, and, with a despairing ges- 
 ture, wailed bitterly: " Thou mayst forget, but I 
 shall not, for night and day I think of thee, and 
 long but for thy heart only in all Judaea. If thou
 
 34 LAZARUS. 
 
 hadst loved me, I would have tried to believe in this 
 mad carpenter, for what thou believest I could not 
 do otherwise than believe; and, if He promised thee 
 Eternal Life, I too must needs have that Eternal 
 Life ; thus should I not leave thee either in life or 
 death." 
 
 But here her voice grew shrill and angry, remind- 
 ing Lazarus of those extraordinary fits of rage to 
 which Caiaphas occasionally gave way. 
 
 " But if thou wilt not of me, then will I curse and 
 curse and curse the Nazarene, because He and His 
 strange doctrines have taken thy heart away from 
 me; and my soul shall be upon thee, and, maybe, 
 my life, for I cannot live without thee." 
 
 Kind-hearted as Lazarus was, his heart ached for 
 this impetuous girl. 
 
 " Thou talkest foolishness," he said to her, trying 
 even to smile away her excitement. " There are 
 many noble rulers who are more worthy of the 
 hand of Caiaphas's daughter than am I, who am so 
 wrapt up in this one great conception of salva- 
 tion." 
 
 " And what are great rulers to me, if they be not 
 Lazarus ? " she went on impatiently. 
 
 " Nay but, maiden, listen; Lazarus would be but 
 a sorry husband for thee, with his heart given to the 
 Christ. Maybe, one day the Christ will be con- 
 demned to death ; for it is written that for the sins 
 of the world He must yield His life; then they too 
 will be condemned who loved Him, and thou and I, 
 Rebekah, perchance would die a terrible death." 
 
 4 What matter that, if I were with thee and thou 
 wert with me ? ' ' she asked passionately, her glow-
 
 LAZARUS. 35 
 
 ing face upturned to heaven, the while she spoke, 
 a faint hope illuminating her brow. 
 
 For one moment Lazarus paused for words that 
 might repulse and yet not wound. 
 
 " Noble lady," he said, " farewell; thou art not 
 thyself to-night, and to listen to thee were wrong ; 
 for thou thyself wouldst weep if thou didst know the 
 words which thou hast said. I thank thee for the 
 love thou offerest, but 't would be but sorry love I 
 gave thee, for my heart and soul are given to the 
 Nazarene ; henceforth in life and death I belong to 
 Him, and of naught else can I think ; and if I cause 
 thee pain, sweet lady, forgive me, for I would not ; 
 but, if thou hast a sorrow for a while, turn thee to 
 the Nazarene who doth assuage all sorrow. So shall 
 we be united, thee and I, in one common heavenly 
 love, that will wipe out all earthly yearning." 
 
 But his words fell upon unresponsive ears. A 
 dull rage curdled in her heart that she, the proud 
 daughter of Caiaphas, should thus have lowered her- 
 self to sue for love, and sue in vain. Far-reaching 
 plans of hate and vengeance were begotten in her 
 raging soul. If Lazarus would have none of her, 
 then she would scheme and plot against the Naza- 
 rene, until her father should condemn Him to the 
 death He merited. She would brook no opposition. 
 No man or woman should live who should come be- 
 tween her love and her. Her heart had grievously 
 been wrung by Lazarus ; she would wring the heart 
 of Lazarus in return, and let him feel the full weight 
 of her hand, the full strength of her hate. 
 
 " Farewell," she said coldly; then passionately, 
 "Go, heartless mummy, and may thy ill-spent love
 
 36 LAZARUS. 
 
 come back to thee with usury. May eternal life not 
 fail thee, after all ; and mayst thou yet reap all the 
 joys that thou hast spurned ; but if, perchance, thy 
 dust shall fail to rise again in all the glory that thou 
 covetest, and if the delusive promises of the Nazarene 
 leave thee but one atom of remembering heart and 
 brain, recall to thyself that Rebekah offered thee one 
 certain thing for all this doubtful wealth, the love 
 and passion of the proudest, loveliest woman in all 
 Judcea." 
 
 " Nay, but it is not doubtful," answered Lazarus; 
 " nor will I wait till I be risen to think of thee, for 
 every day my prayer shall rise for thee, that thou 
 too mayst love the Nazarene, and believe that He is 
 sent of God." 
 
 " 'T will be a thankless, weary task," she retorted 
 scornfully, as he raised her white hand to his lips. 
 " Farewell, thou heartless, thou bewitched, mis- 
 guided ruler." 
 
 With head erect, she stood motionless in the 
 moonlight ; and the heart within her seemed to die 
 when Lazarus swung open the gate and passed out 
 into the street. Like one in a dream she listened to 
 his departing footsteps till they died away. This 
 was the end, the bitter, bitter end ; Lazarus would 
 never belong to her. That one short hour in the 
 fragrant, silent garden had brought him closer than 
 ever he would be again. On that sweet memory she 
 must feed till ages should have rolled away, while 
 swathed in grave clothes of finest embroidered linen, 
 the High Priest's daughter would be lying in her 
 granite sepulchre. 
 
 Who would bring ointments and rare spices ?
 
 LAZARUS. 37 
 
 Would Lazarus sometimes come and see her grave 
 and think of her ? 
 
 But between now and then there was life, life; 
 long years of life, with all its possibilities of happi- 
 ness, with all its whisperings of love; there were 
 thousands of days to dawn, and thousands of silent 
 nights to come and go, and they must be lived and 
 lived without Lazarus. And Rebekah, the proud 
 Rebekah, sank to the ground and bowed her head, 
 and swayed backwards and forwards in her grief, till 
 the cry of the watchman at the corner of the street 
 reminded her of the hour. Then with a step weary 
 as if with sudden age, and weeping passionately, she 
 crept into the house ; while the watchman cried out 
 again to the sleeping world : 
 
 " Babylon is fallen, Babylon is fallen, and all the 
 graven images of her gods He hath broken unto the 
 ground. Babylon is fallen, Babylon is fallen! 
 Fall-en."
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 FOR a long while, almost from the moment when 
 the Messiah had first entered his door, Lazarus 
 had been ailing. His illness seemed to baffle his 
 physician ; for it yielded to none of the simple reme- 
 dies he prescribed. Gradually, almost imperceptibly, 
 Lazarus grew weaker, but, as day by day his body 
 became more feeble, his faith seemed to strengthen. 
 Never was man tended with more devotion, Martha 
 seeing to his bodily wants, while Mary sat and read 
 to him, or prayed with him in his moments of de- 
 spondency. Moreover, during the first stages of his 
 illness he had been daily cheered by the presence of 
 the Nazarene; but this was before the Jews had 
 grown so virulent in their persecutions. Who can 
 imagine a more peaceful family circle than that little 
 one assembled around Lazarus's sick-bed the two 
 devoted women, refreshed at intervals by the pres- 
 ence of the Saviour ? Who can describe the purity 
 of the spiritual and moral atmosphere the Christ 
 diffused around Him ? And Lazarus, lying on his 
 couch by the window and gazing on the setting sun 
 sinking behind the mountains and tinging the olive 
 grove and fig trees of Bethany, would wonder why 
 death held no horrors for him beyond the pain of 
 separation ; for that he would die of his illness he 
 felt certain. It could not but be that the little band 
 
 38
 
 LAZARUS. 39 
 
 of believers should sometimes ask the question of 
 their heart, why Jesus, who had snatched so many 
 who were strangers to Him from the jaws of death, 
 should daily see this man he loved convulsed with 
 pain, saddened by the prospect of separation, and 
 yet doing nothing to relieve him. 
 
 " He hath but to say the word," Martha would 
 sometimes say; " yet He speaketh it not." Once, 
 even, she cast herself at the feet of Jesus and en- 
 treated Him to save her brother. But the words of 
 the Lord were but scant comfort at such a moment : 
 
 " Thy brother shall rise again." 
 
 " I know," said Martha, with that querulous im- 
 patience, that common-sense which so many good 
 people, who are devoid of charm and gentleness of 
 character, possess " I know that he shall rise again 
 in the resurrection at the last day. 
 
 Then, floating on the waves of unbelief, pardon- 
 able perhaps at such a moment, rose the words: "I 
 am the resurrection, and the life he that believeth on 
 Me, though he were dead, yet shall he live." And 
 at the words the sick man's face would light up with 
 a trusting confidence and joy that made the by- 
 standers to wonder. It was as if a little glory had 
 alighted from the Christ on to the man who loved 
 Him so. 
 
 Then, when Lazarus was alone with Martha, he 
 would say: " Entreat not the Lord, for who know- 
 eth what glory will yet be revealed ? His will be 
 done on earth." 
 
 Thus the loving faith and trust of Lazarus never 
 wavered. 
 
 Perhaps one of the hardest trials of all was the
 
 4O LAZARUS. 
 
 scoffing and mocking of the Jews; for Joanna, the 
 wife of Chuza, who often came to see Lazarus and 
 to bring gifts of fruit, never failed, with the garrulity 
 of her class, to recount the gossip gathered in the 
 market-place, if not to the family of Lazarus, at least 
 to Rachel their handmaiden. 
 
 ' What say the Jews of our master Lazarus ? " 
 the latter inquired one day. " Do they say that the 
 Lord will restore him or that he shall die ? " 
 
 '* They say, ' Could not this Man, which opened 
 the eyes of the blind, have caused that even this man 
 should not have died ? ' 
 
 ' Yet he is not dead. Methinks the Lord doth it 
 to try the heart of my dear mistresses," said Rachel, 
 who shared her master's belief in the Messiah. 
 
 Once more it was evening, and Mary had escaped 
 from the heart-rending surroundings of the sick- 
 chamber while Lazarus slept ; he was looking paler 
 and more wan than he had ever looked before. It 
 was about the hour that the Nazarene was wont to 
 return, for, while preaching to the multitudes He 
 seemed to find relief in the solitudes of the country, 
 and to like to shun the noise and tumult of great 
 cities. Sadly she stood on the terrace that looked 
 down upon that valley, in which she had once striven 
 to comfort her poor brother. How doubly pathetic 
 was that memory now ! Loving and trusting as she 
 was, she could not help joining in the strange won- 
 der of those days. Death, with its attendant terror, 
 had seemed so far while Christ was near. To be 
 sure, in the far distance, death was looming on them 
 all, for they knew the Lord must die ; and it seemed 
 a certain thing that, after His death, the Jews would
 
 LAZARUS. 41 
 
 seek to destroy all those who had believed in Him 
 and followed Him, or who testified of Him by word 
 or pen. Indeed, it had been common talk amongst 
 the disciples and the followers of Christ that they 
 were ready to die with Him, if needs be. Thomas, 
 who was ever wont to see the darker side of things, 
 had even stated openly that to be a follower of Jesus 
 meant certain death ; and certainly the terrible end 
 of John the Baptist justified this assertion. Then, 
 out of these very thoughts, that rose from the 
 gloomy mists, not so much of doubt as of amaze- 
 ment, there came to Mary an illumined fancy, big 
 with consoling possibilities, glorious in its awakening 
 of faith. What if this approaching death were one 
 of mercy ? What if Lazarus were being taken from 
 the wrath to come from terrible temptation, from 
 loss of faith, or from a violent and awful death ? 
 
 ' The ways of the Lord are past finding out," she 
 murmured to herself, " but who shall gainsay 
 them ?" 
 
 Then, as the darkness began to fall, she fell to 
 speculating, as we have so often speculated in gazing 
 on the lifeless features of those we love " What 
 then is death ? This strange, brief moment when 
 all is over ? " 
 
 " I will ask the Lord," she murmured to herself; 
 but even while she spoke she heard the gate of the 
 garden being shaken, and a voice calling her. A 
 quick pain shot through her heart. ' The Lord 
 cometh not," she said to herself; for the Holy One 
 of Israel needed no opening of gates, and was wont 
 to appear to them suddenly and unexpectedly. But 
 it was night now, and, for fear of the Jews, it was
 
 42 LAZARUS. 
 
 not the Christ's custom to journey after dark. Her 
 heart, prone now to constant shocks and dreads, beat 
 violently ; yet with no physical fear she approached 
 the gate. 
 
 " Who is without ?" 
 
 " 'T is I, Mary Magdalene. I come with a mes- 
 sage." 
 
 Mary unfastened the gate quickly. 
 
 " Welcome, all they that come in the name of the 
 Lord," she said. 
 
 " I will not detain thee but for a few moments, 
 for Martha doth not willingly see me here, ' ' said the 
 Magdalene sadly. 
 
 ' This grief about our brother Lazarus hath soft- 
 ened much the heart of Martha," answered Mary 
 gently, taking the Magdalene's hand in hers; " but 
 why comest thou ? " 
 
 The two women walked along the path together 
 till they reached the marble seat on which Lazarus 
 had given way to despair so dire. It was so dark 
 now that neither could see the other's face. 
 
 'T was James and John that bid me come, Mary, 
 to tell thee that Caiaphas sought this day to lay 
 hands upon the Lord." 
 
 A cry rose from the lips of Mary, but the Magda- 
 lene interrupted her. 
 
 " Nay, fear not, Mary; His hour hath not yet 
 come. They have not taken Him." Then she 
 went on: ' 'T was a wondrous sight, the brethren 
 told me. The Lord stood in the porch of Solomon, 
 and great multitudes were assembled. And on the 
 terrace of his dwelling stood Caiaphas, the High 
 Priest himself, and listened ; and Nicodemus with
 
 LAZARUS. 43 
 
 him; and all the Jews believed that Nicodemus 
 (who, it is known, loveth the Lord) had persuaded 
 him to hear His words. He had just finished the 
 words: ' Though ye believe not Me, believe the 
 works; that ye may know and believe that the 
 Father is in Me and I in Him.' Then, as He spoke 
 these words, the multitude raised a mighty voice; 
 *t was, some said, as if it thundered : ' Works what 
 works ? Heal Lazarus, and we will believe.' ' 
 'T is verily a marvel," murmured Mary. 
 
 But the Magdalene went on: " Then, when the 
 crowd grew even more angry and came nearer, as 
 though to strike the Christ, the wily Caiaphas did 
 choose that moment to send forth soldiers; and a 
 centurion rushed into their midst followed by ten 
 soldiers. 'Seize ye Him,' he cried ; and all the 
 multitude with one voice shouted, 'Seize Him, cru- 
 cify Him, for He blasphemeth ' ; and every now and 
 then a voice cried out, ' Show us Lazarus whole,' 
 and all the time Caiaphas stood and watched to see 
 them seize the Lord. The soldiers were upon Him. 
 James doth tell me that the Roman centurion's 
 brown hand did rest upon the white garments of the 
 Nazarene, when suddenly he fell back as one that 
 had seen a vision, and, while he stood with gaping 
 mouth and wide-open eyes, the Nazarene did dis- 
 appear. 
 
 " And now where is he ? " asked Mary, after a 
 brief pause. 
 
 ;< He hath gone again to Jordan, and will tarry 
 many days," rejoined the Magdalene. 
 
 ' Then Lazarus my brother will die," wailed 
 Mary, and, giving way at last to the human grief,
 
 44 LAZARUS. 
 
 which, in the absence of the Lord, had gained the 
 mastery, laid her head on the Magdalene's shoulder, 
 while every now and then she moaned: " Lazarus 
 will die and my Lord is away." 
 
 And the Magdalene, whose deep grief none but 
 the mother of Jesus had divined, joined her tears 
 with those of the other Mary, and cried as though 
 her heart would break; yet, to give courage to her- 
 self, she sobbed: "He will live again, he will live 
 again. ' ' 
 
 At that moment the door of the house was opened, 
 and a woman came out of the porch and looked 
 around; then a querulous voice exclaimed : " Mary, 
 Mary, where art thou ? " 
 
 Mary rose to answer her sister's call, but the 
 Magdalene made as if she would depart. 
 
 " Nay, stay; thou wouldst see Lazarus," said the 
 kindly Mary, " and thou hast walked many miles; 
 thou must rest and be refreshed." 
 
 But the Magdalene answered: " Nay, nay; anger 
 not Martha, for she hath much to trouble her." 
 
 They turned their footsteps towards the house, 
 and Martha came to meet them. 
 
 ' This is a fitting time, forsooth, when thy brother 
 lieth sick, to wander in the garden. Thinkest thou 
 I have naught to do that thou leavest me to serve 
 alone ? " 
 
 Mary had scarce murmured a meek, " Forgive me, 
 sister," when the eyes of Martha fell on the Mag- 
 dalene. 
 
 ' What dost thou here ? " she asked sternly; for 
 she had been brought up in the sternest principles 
 of morality, and with all the Pharisaical hatred of
 
 LAZARUS. 45 
 
 acknowledged sinners. She could not overcome her 
 dislike of the Magdalene, although she had tried to 
 modify it of late. 
 
 Ever striving to keep peace, Mary said gently to 
 her sister : " She hath brought a message from James 
 and John, to bid us not tarry for the Lord, for that 
 He cometh not ; and she is weary and footsore with 
 the long journey." 
 
 The Jewish hospitality filled the gap of loving 
 friendliness in Martha's heart, and she bid her wel- 
 come. 
 
 " Woe is me, that the Lord still tarrieth," she 
 said, " for our brother is very weak, and but now 
 he sent me forth to see whether the Master cometh. 
 ' I cannot die without the Lord,' he said." 
 
 " Methought I would take the Magdalene to him, 
 if so be he is awake," said Mary presently, glancing 
 nervously at her sister, as though fearing she would 
 not allow this visit. " Peradventure the night will 
 seem shorter if the Magdalene tell him what hath 
 happened to our Lord." 
 
 Martha's face hardened, but she said neither yea 
 nor nay. ' The night is far spent, the day is at 
 hand," she murmured enigmatically as she re-en- 
 tered the house. Mary conducted the Magdalene 
 across the tesselated pavement to the gorgeous room, 
 in which was a couch hung with costly silks. With 
 his face turned in patient watchfulness towards the 
 door lay the dying Lazarus, longing for his Lord. 
 
 But the sight of his poor thin face, the eager ex- 
 pectation in his eyes, that died out when the two 
 women entered, was too much for the Magdalene, 
 who had loved him so truly and so long ; ever since,
 
 46 LAZARUS. 
 
 as a proud young ruler (proud in the rectitude of his 
 immaculate life), he had passed her with disdain as 
 she sat at the Virgin's Well and chatted with the 
 passer-by. Wounded and stung by his indifference 
 as she had been, it had yet been the first means of 
 leading her to more serious thoughts. Since then her 
 heart had filled with admiration and respect for this 
 rich young ruler, who could resist the charms of 
 what she knew herself to be the most beautiful 
 woman in Jerusalem, and one who for several years 
 had been courted by all the greatest men. Then, 
 from that admiration, had grown an adoring, wor- 
 shipping, respectful love, the shadow, as it were, of 
 the purified love she now felt for the Saviour; and 
 when, united by the common bond of devotion, they 
 had met at the Lord's feet, she had been content to 
 think that in religious thought, at least, they were 
 as one. But Lazarus had known nothing of what 
 she thought. 
 
 It was as if suddenly, with approaching death, a 
 far-seeing second sight had come to him ; as if scales 
 had fallen from his eyes, and it were given to him to 
 read the hidden thoughts of men. He said pityingly 
 to the Magdalene, who had thrown herself on her 
 knees beside his couch, and was shedding silent tears 
 behind her hands: " Weep not for me, Mary, weep 
 not for me." Then, while her frame shook with 
 suppressed sobs, he laid his wasted fingers with rev- 
 erence on her golden tresses, and stroking them ten- 
 derly, murmured: "Who knoweth yet what the 
 Lord will do ? " Then, when human strength gave 
 way, spiritual weakness seemed to strengthen. 
 " Would I could see the Lord! Would I could see
 
 LAZARUS. 47 
 
 the Lord ! My God, my God, hast Thou forsaken 
 me?" 
 
 This was indeed a bitter time ol trial and tempta- 
 tion to these poor women and to the dying Lazarus. 
 To the dying man it seemed as if demons of despair 
 were dancing around his bed, as if Satan himself 
 grinned at him and hissed: "Where is now thy 
 God ? Where is now thy God ? " 
 
 Once he shrieked out, as though in answer to their 
 gibings: "Yet I will still believe, I will believe. 
 Depart from me in the name of Jesus. Yea, 
 though I die, I know that my Redeemer liveth and 
 that He will take me unto Himself." 
 
 And angels unseen and unheard, except of Laz- 
 arus, echoed in glorious cadence of softest heavenly 
 music: " I know that my Redeemer liveth." 
 
 But the two poor women were torn with grief. 
 They felt now that the Lord durst not appear in 
 person; but they knew that, if He were to speak the 
 word, their brother would live. It needed all their 
 teaching of many months to believe still, in the face 
 of this seeming desertion by the Christ. They had 
 sent messenger after messenger on horseback to 
 Him, to where He sojourned near the river Jordan ; 
 but all He had answered them had been: " This 
 sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, 
 that the Son of God might be glorified thereby." 
 
 His words had given them a little hope, but when 
 day succeeded day and Lazarus grew weaker, each 
 hour seeming to make his breath more laboured, it 
 seemed as if the very words of the Lord Himself for 
 once lacked truth. The " If " of life entered the 
 soul of Martha.
 
 48 LAZARUS. 
 
 If, after all, this man were an Antichrist, a de- 
 luder of souls, a fanatic who but fancied Himself the 
 Son of God ; a semi-illuminated prophet who under- 
 stood the Truth, who knew the worth of righteous- 
 ness but who had no power from above ? Then 
 again, if this doubting were but a temptation of the 
 Evil One ? Or again, what if God were trying and 
 wringing the heart of Christ, as when He had allowed 
 Him to be tempted by the devil on the Mount? What 
 if Christ's prayers to His Father were unanswered ? 
 What if He too were enveloped in gloom and 
 loneliness ? Oh, what a mystery was life and death ! 
 And into the core of Martha's soul there crept once 
 more the question, Why had this world been created? 
 Why had each creature been born into a world of 
 mystery and darkness ? But, all the time, the two 
 Marys clasped the hands of Lazarus, as if by press- 
 ing they could instil their courage into his deaden- 
 ing veins. What if, at the last moment, he were 
 wrested from them eternally by a flickering out of 
 faith ? 
 
 No, to the end, be the future what it might, if the 
 sisters were to live on to face disillusion and a crush- 
 ing out of all their hopes till the fatal knock of 
 death should be heard against the window, the flame 
 of faith must be kept alive. 
 
 The silent chamber, dimly lighted by the Roman 
 lamp, such as had now become the fashion in Judaea, 
 grew even stiller and more gloomy, the three wo- 
 men's figures more immobile, the expectant eyes of 
 Lazarus more dim ; his breath came and went more 
 painfully, and his body seemed torn by a spirit that 
 was struggling to escape. Only the faint sound of
 
 LAZARUS. 49 
 
 croaking frogs and the far-off barking of dogs dis- 
 turbed the silence. 
 
 Presently Lazarus murmured faintly: " Sing to 
 me, Mary." It was as if he had bridged over years 
 of suffering and trial and gone back to the time when 
 he was a little child and Mary had sung him off to 
 sleep. 
 
 Steadying her voice and wiping away her tears, 
 Mary raised her voice on the silent night, singing to 
 a lovely Hebrew chant the words of the Psalmist 
 David words that seemed written in answer to their 
 doubtings: " The Lord is righteous in all His ways, 
 and holy in all His works. The Lord is nigh unto 
 all them that call upon Him. He will fulfil the de- 
 sire of them that fear Him : He also will bear them 
 up and will save them. The Lord preserveth all them 
 that love Him: Refuge failed me; I cried unto 
 Thee, O Lord ; I said Thou art my refuge and my 
 portion in the land of the living. Attend unto my 
 cry, for I am brought very low. Bring my soul out 
 of prison, that I may praise Thy name." 
 
 Then, when her voice faltered, the Magdalene took 
 up the strain and sang : ' ' Yea, though I walk through 
 the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, 
 for Thou art with me ; Thy rod and Thy staff, they 
 comfort me." 
 
 As the words died away on her quivering lips, the 
 expiring eyes of Lazarus met hers with a smile of 
 deepest love and gratitude. Then the jaw relaxed, 
 the hand that lay in Mary's twitched convulsively, 
 and the last hope of those trusting women died 
 when Lazarus fell back dead. And into their souls 
 there crept a dull stagnation ; something seemed to
 
 50 LAZARUS. 
 
 die within them, or to flee away with the spirit of 
 their brother. The living flame of faith flickered 
 lower and lower, and over the prostrate body of 
 Lazarus bent but soulless images that could only 
 weep and weep and weep.
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 THE morning after Lazarus's death, Jerusalem's 
 streets were thronged with people hurrying to 
 and fro. Groups of Pharisees, looking joyous and 
 triumphant, formed themselves in the market place 
 and outside the Temple and the principal buildings, 
 and occasionally a Sadducee would stop and make 
 some derisive observation, to which the others would 
 respond with shouts of laughter. 
 
 Nor were the higher authorities less preoccupied ; 
 now and then, pressing his horse forward till it 
 pranced almost on to the heads of the crowd, rode 
 a centurion with a message from Pontius Pilate or 
 from Caiaphas, summoning a chief ruler or a leading 
 priest, as the case might be. Occasionally some 
 great rabbi would arrest his course to ask news of 
 him ; and the soldier would either shake his head, or 
 laughingly make some such answer as the following : 
 " His own friend hath done for him. Lazarus is 
 dead ; if the Nazarene could have saved any one He 
 would have saved His beloved Lazarus. But Laz- 
 arus is dead, and though the two women, Martha 
 and Mary, sent to Him many times, He would not 
 go." 
 
 " I hear," said another, " that He even said to 
 their messengers that Lazarus would not die : ' This 
 sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, 
 
 51
 
 52 LAZARUS. 
 
 that the Son of God might be glorified thereby.' 
 How is He glorified ? " 
 
 " No, Jesus hath failed," joined in another. " I 
 own that, for a time, I almost believed in Him my- 
 self; His presence is certainly a most majestic one, 
 and He is some great prophet without a doubt. 
 But Lazarus's death proveth that He is not the Son 
 of God; still, we cannot forget His miracles, for 
 already twenty-eight have been recorded of Him. 
 We cannot, because one man hath died, ignore the 
 marvellous feeding of the five thousand, the restoring 
 of the withered hand, and the healing of the lunatic 
 child." 
 
 " Ah," answered another, " thou, Nicodemus, 
 wert ever a believer in the supernatural ; I hear that 
 thou hast even visited this Jesus by night, thereby 
 putting thy life in danger, for, if Caiaphas should 
 suspect treachery in thee, a ruler of the Synagogue, 
 before nightfall thou wouldst be in Barabbas's place, 
 or chained beside him. Or, wouldst thou escape by 
 saying that thou wast in love with Martha or with 
 Mary ? " 
 
 Said another voice, scornfully: " If so, Nico- 
 demus, thou hast but a sorry chance, for both 
 women have, I hear, devoted themselves to the 
 service of this Jesus; and naught but a marriage 
 such as, it is rumoured, was his mother's, will com- 
 mend itself to them. I fancy thou wouldst not care 
 to be a second Joseph." 
 
 But Nicodemus made no answer. His eyes, up- 
 lifted towards the hills above Jerusalem, shone with a 
 light of rapture and devotion, as though he strove to 
 pierce the skies and gain enlightenment in its deep
 
 LAZARUS. 53 
 
 blue expanse. He heeded not the mocking words 
 around him. He was lost, as one in a dream. He 
 had just come from the presence of the Nazarene. 
 There still rang in his ears the words: " I am the 
 light of the world. He that followeth Me shall not 
 walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life." 
 
 Oh, for light, more light, to understand ! It had 
 all seemed so clear to Nicodemus. He had followed, 
 disguised, it is true, Jesus of Nazareth, ever since 
 the first miracle of the turning of water into wine. 
 He had sought Him out at night, either in the dark 
 silence of the shore of Galilee or in the house of 
 Lazarus at Bethany. He had tried, oh, so hard, to 
 believe. In bewildered wonder he had crept to 
 Jesus' feet and had poured out his doubts, his end- 
 less questionings and earthly arguments, that yet 
 had taught him nothing. 
 
 " Rabbi," he had said, " we know that Thou art 
 a teacher come from God, for no man can do these 
 miracles that Thou doest, except God be with him ; 
 yet, if Thou art the Son of God, why art Thou here 
 in the guise of a poor carpenter ? Why doth not 
 the very earth quake beneath Thy feet in obeisance 
 to its Creator ? Why is it not filled with angels 
 ministering to Thee ? Why, oh, why, cannot I, 
 who have read much and studied deeply, under- 
 stand ? ' ' 
 
 Oh, how well he remembered those words, uttered 
 in reply, in solemn, tender pity, for man's want of 
 faith, for his inability of accepting that which he 
 cannot prove by human argument, or by nature's 
 law. It was as though the voice that had answered 
 were full of tears.
 
 54 LAZARUS. 
 
 " Verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born 
 again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." And, 
 despairing at his impotence to understand, Nico- 
 demus, wrathful at himself, at his own helplessness, 
 impatient almost with the Saviour for speaking to 
 him in parables; bitterly, cynically, yet half grasp- 
 ing Jesus' meaning, had exclaimed: " How can a 
 man be born when he is old ; can he enter the second 
 time into his mother's womb and be born ? " 
 
 Then the Divine voice had rung out in explana- 
 tion of His marvellous saying; had shown him that 
 it was no natural birth that He had meant ; for all 
 that, a birth not less miraculous, a birth of water and 
 of the spirit, without which no man could enter into 
 the kingdom of God. 
 
 Then, wondering and despairing still, mad with 
 his own blindness, as a blinded animal would dash 
 its head against the wall in its impotence and want 
 of comprehension at what had happened to it, so 
 Nicodemus had wailed: "Lord, Lord, how can 
 these things be ? I cannot grasp them ; they are 
 too wonderful for me." 
 
 At which, with a touch almost of irony, the ap- 
 pealing voice had answered: " Art thou a master of 
 Israel and knowest not these things ? " 
 
 " A master of Israel "; yes, he, Nicodemus, had 
 set himself up as a teacher and ruler of Israel, he 
 who could not even understand the teaching of this 
 carpenter. How poor, how mean he had felt in the 
 presence of this Man, clad in coarse attire and stand- 
 ing barefoot on the shore of the lake ! No moon 
 had illumined the dark night around, and the gloom 
 had seemed to Nicodemus an apt setting to the
 
 LAZARUS. 55 
 
 blindness of his brain and soul. Yet around the 
 Lord there had seemed to hover a faint shimmer as 
 of glory emanating from His presence. With infin- 
 ite tenderness and pity He had gazed on the Jewish 
 rabbi, so mortified and abased ; then, sadly and with 
 deep persuasiveness, the voice had risen once more 
 out of the darkness and rolled in waves across the 
 still water of the lake, like strains of floating music : 
 
 " If I have told you earthly things and ye believed 
 not, how shall ye believe if I tell you of heavenly 
 things ? " 
 
 Then, gazing full at Nicodemus, Jesus had pro- 
 nounced words which neither he nor any other man, 
 having once heard them, could forget: " God so 
 loved the world, that He gave His only begotten 
 Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not 
 perish, but have everlasting life. God sent not his 
 Son into the world to condemn the world ; but that 
 the world through Him might be saved. He 
 that believeth not is condemned already, because 
 he hath not believed in the name of the only begot- 
 ten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, 
 that light is come into the world, and men loved 
 darkness rather than light, because their deeds were 
 evil. For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, 
 neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be 
 reproved. But he that doeth truth cometh to the 
 light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that 
 they are wrought in God." 
 
 Each word had stung Nicodemus's soul as with a 
 lash ; he, too, had loved darkness. Fear, physical 
 fear of derision first and of death afterwards had kept 
 him from openly confessing his belief in Jesus as the
 
 56 LAZARUS. 
 
 Son of God. He, too, was one of those who had 
 feared the light, who had stolen stealthily by night 
 to glean salvation from the teachings of the Naza- 
 rene. What a coward he had felt himself, how he 
 had despised himself, and yet he had muttered to 
 himself, when he had left the Lord: " If, after all, 
 His teachings are but the outpourings of a madman 
 or a wilful deluder if, after all, He is a blasphemer, 
 calling Himself the Son of God, and being but a 
 poor human being like myself, where, then, would 
 the honoured Nicodemus, the mighty ruler, be, if 
 he believed Him? Deprived of power in this world, 
 scoffed at and derided, perchance doomed even to a 
 shameful death. That would be his portion in this 
 world ; in the next to be condemned by the real God 
 for having believed and acted on the ravings of a 
 blasphemer." 
 
 So, in the darkness, stumbling at every step of the 
 homeward way, sorrowful and puzzled at the words 
 of salvation that still rang in his ears, Nicodemus, 
 the great ruler, had taken the road outside Jerusa- 
 lem and reached his home by one of the terraces that 
 lay beyond the walls, lest his attendants should hear 
 him enter at that hour of the night. Then, once 
 within his own walls, he had cast himself on his bed, 
 seeking in vain for sleep, and starting up at almost 
 every watch of the night, to call out in mental 
 agony, " Truly, truly, this is the Son of God." 
 
 And now just when the germs of belief seemed 
 about to start into being in his heart, just when 
 miracle after miracle was striking terror to his soul, 
 in the intensity of its wonder, and just when the 
 words of the Nazarene, with their sad persuasiveness
 
 LAZARUS. 57 
 
 and their clear, truthful intonations, were beginning 
 to unfold to his heart what can only be realised 
 through revelation, but never evolved from man's 
 philosophy; just when his flitting thoughts and 
 wavering heart seemed to be catching hold of truths 
 that had seemed impossibilities before ; just at this 
 moment Jesus appeared to have lost the power of 
 working miracles. How easy it would have been, 
 argued this human brain, to prove to the world that 
 He was all that He professed Himself! One little 
 word, even from a distance, if all was true that the 
 disciples said, would have sufficed. The Jews them- 
 selves were looking for this miracle, the chief priests 
 dreading it. With the death of Lazarus seemed 
 buried the hopes of all the believing world. His 
 resurrection would be the death warrant of Jesus 
 of Nazareth. How often already had Caiaphas 
 foretold His death, either through the gift of proph- 
 ecy, or because, as High Priest, he knew that he 
 himself would bring about the doom of Him who 
 drew so many to Him! There was no room for 
 Caiaphas, no room for any High Priest, either if 
 Jesus were the Son of God, or, if not being so, the 
 people believed in and followed Him as such. 
 
 Already the attitude of the Jewish people was be- 
 coming dangerous. They were divided into many 
 parties, some calling Jesus a prophet, others per- 
 suaded that He was the Christ indeed, and selling 
 all they had to follow Him. Already some of the 
 leading rabbis had issued orders that He was to be 
 captured and brought before them; but the order 
 had been but a half-hearted one, and the soldiers 
 who were sent to execute it knew the spirit of the
 
 $8 LAZARUS. 
 
 populace so well, that they feared them more, if 
 they should lay hands on Christ, than the rulers, if 
 they should fail to take Him. Indeed, although 
 they did not dare speak openly about it, yet it 
 was a matter of great wonder that the preaching of 
 Jesus was allowed. 
 
 " So He speaketh boldly, and they say nothing to 
 Him. Do the rulers know indeed that this is the 
 very Christ ? " It was rumoured in Jerusalem that 
 both Caiaphas and Pontius Pilate believed in the 
 Nazarene, both as the Son of God and as the King 
 of the Jews ; or, at all events, that they did not dare 
 deny it. It became a matter of superstition amongst 
 the poorer people that he who should first lay hands 
 on Him would die a terrible death. This fear com- 
 municated itself to the very soldiers who were sent 
 out to fetch Him. To the question: " Why have 
 ye not brought Him ? " they would answer: " Never 
 man spake like this Man." Yet all the Pharisees 
 durst answer was: " Are ye also deceived ? Have 
 any of the rulers of the Pharisees believed on Him ? 
 but this people, who knoweth not the law, are cursed, 
 and they alone believe."
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 NO wonder, then, that a party shrinking beneath 
 the terror lest power and affluence should de- 
 part from them for ever, should rejoice at the turn 
 events had taken. The expected miracle of Laz- 
 arus's resurrection had not occurred. The Naza- 
 rene's want of sympathy, or, perhaps, His fear of 
 the threats to take His life, which was believed to 
 be the cause of His not returning to the house of the 
 sorrowing sisters, had changed for the moment the 
 current of popular favour. Several lukewarm be- 
 lievers fell back into the ranks of the sceptical, while 
 others, like Nicodemus, struggled hard to believe 
 that there was some good reason for Jesus' apparent 
 indifference to the grief of those He was known to 
 have loved so well. Of course, the base attributed 
 it to the most cowardly of all motives, fear. It 
 seemed clear enough to Caiaphas that Jesus, know- 
 ing that the miracle was expected, would be con- 
 scious that the home of Mary and Martha would be 
 a likely place for His capture. This was what Caia- 
 phas tried to persuade himself to believe ; yet it did 
 not coincide with the fearless attitude of the Christ 
 till then, nor with the fearlessness of His words. In 
 any case, this was an opportunity which, as a poli- 
 tician and a ruler of men, he must take advantage of. 
 It was such an one as, perhaps, he would never 
 
 59
 
 60 LAZARUS. 
 
 have again. Now the Nazarene must be put an end 
 to; His seditious preaching hushed for ever; His 
 bold denouncing of the Pharisees and the scribes 
 avenged. But it would be a difficult task, he knew. 
 Pontius Pilate was under the influence of his wife, 
 who, it was known, favoured the belief in the Naza- 
 rene, if not as the Son of God, at least as a great 
 prophet and a good man come from God. Pilate 
 was difficult to approach upon the subject. Then 
 about Nicodemus, one of the most powerful rulers 
 of the Synagogue, there were strange rumours. 
 How could he, Caiaphas, get at him by stealth ? 
 To make use of Nicodemus himself, nay more, to 
 approach the Nazarene, unseen, and to hear His 
 blasphemous words, and out of His own mouth con- 
 vict Him, making Nicodemus a party to the destruc- 
 tion of this Man who dared to set Himself up in 
 defiance of the High Priest; oh, it would be a mas- 
 ter-stroke, one that his base, intriguing soul would 
 glory in. It whetted his thirst for vengeance, while, 
 at the same time, it intoxicated him to foresee that 
 proud soul abased, that majestic presence on the 
 cross, blood flowing from the fair side, and all the 
 humiliations of an ignominious death heaped on the 
 shoulders of the Man whom even Caiaphas, deep 
 down in his heart, admired, at the same time that he 
 feared Him as a supernatural being. For had He 
 not held His own, unsupported either by wealth or 
 position, by party or by followers ? How could 
 Caiaphas have played that part ? No, the wily High 
 Priest knew full well that his own position was main- 
 tained only by his arrogance, and that it was by the 
 fear of himself he had built up his successes on the
 
 LAZARUS. 6 1 
 
 ignorance of a down-trodden race ; that, were he but 
 a lowly carpenter, with all the world's powers and 
 dignitaries against him ; did he but loosen the reins 
 of despotism for one moment, or, by preaching what 
 he knew to be the truth, open out the path of liberty 
 that of the spirit, as opposed to the letter of the 
 law, he, Caiaphas, before whom all men now bowed, 
 would be hurled both morally and physically from 
 his high place and become of no account. He knew 
 he would be powerless to emulate the Nazarene he 
 affected to despise, the carpenter who conquered 
 souls by His sublime meekness, His unshrinking 
 truth, and His awful purity. 
 
 Yes, side by side with his dread lest the Jewish 
 people should escape him ; side by side with his 
 hatred of the Nazarene, and fear of the possible 
 overthrow of his power and place, were a sullen jeal- 
 ousy and an envious rage, that one by birth so meek 
 and lowly, should be so much the greater man than 
 was he, Caiaphas. How he hated, Pontius Pilate, 
 too, and Claudia, his proud, domineering wife! 
 How, of late, she had set him at defiance ! What a 
 slap in the face it would be to Pontius Pilate should 
 he be forced to condemn the Nazarene to death ! 
 
 Alone in his chamber, this priest, who had been 
 ordained to bring true religion and peace to the 
 Jewish people, revolved in his mind how he should 
 destroy this Man who stood, in the grandeur of His 
 simplicity, between him and power. To acknow- 
 ledge Him as the Son of God were to destroy 
 the power, not only of Caiaphas, but of all the high 
 priests and Pharisees forever. For one moment 
 (for Caiaphas was not without intelligence enough to
 
 62 LAZARUS. 
 
 look at both sides of the question), he had asked 
 himself what would be the result should he himself 
 recognise the power of the Christ and join the ranks 
 of the believers. No man versed in the prophets, 
 as Caiaphas was, could well disbelieve that, even if 
 the Nazarene were not the Christ Himself, He was 
 an emissary from heaven whose coming had been 
 predicted. Absently, as if to persuade himself for 
 one moment, Caiaphas turned the pages of the book 
 of the prophets that lay close to his elbow. He 
 almost started at the words that seemed to give the 
 answer to his unuttered question, for he was a super- 
 stitious man: " Who hath believed our report ? and 
 to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed ? He is 
 despised and rejected of men : a man of sorrows and 
 acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our 
 faces from Him ; He was despised, and we esteemed 
 Him not." 
 
 Caiaphas with breathless interest re-read the words 
 He had so often read before. The stillness outside, 
 the gloom within, the strange similitude of the pict- 
 ure drawn by Isaiah to the person of the Nazarene ; 
 for one brief moment all this impressed the man, 
 who was shrewd enough to understand the prophecy, 
 yet not to recognise the Saviour it foretold. Chap- 
 ter after chapter he devoured in the hope that he 
 would, at last, light on some passage that would 
 justify the condemnation of the Man who called 
 Himself the Christ, and was not; but the prophet 
 was against him. Again his eyes fell on the book, 
 and they lighted on the words: " Seek ye the Lord, 
 while He may be found, call ye upon Him while He 
 is near."
 
 LAZARUS. 63 
 
 Caiaphas pushed the book impatiently away from 
 him, and paced the room with rapid strides. The 
 long sleeves of his robe waved backwards and for- 
 wards in the air, and now and then he clutched at 
 them impatiently, as if their very stirring added to 
 his irritation. What if, after all, this Nazarene were 
 the Christ, and he, Caiaphas, should condemn Him 
 to a felon's death ? Surely no eternal punishment 
 would be great enough for such an one ; and for an 
 instant the great Caiaphas trembled. Then he 
 crossed the room and leaned on the window-sill, and 
 looked out on the silent night. All was dark and 
 still; a few stars only gave just sufficient light to 
 bring out in vague relief the outline of the white 
 walls of the houses of Jerusalem. 
 
 Presently he started at steps he heard that passed 
 beneath the window. He leaned forward, and in 
 clear tones called out: " Watchman, what of the 
 night ? " but his voice had not carried far enough, 
 and instead of making answer, the watchman, mind- 
 ful, perhaps, that he was outside the house of Caia- 
 phas the High Priest, sang out in a clear, deep voice: 
 "Break forth into joy, sing together, ye waste 
 places of Jerusalem, for the Lord hath comforted 
 His people, He hath redeemed Jerusalem." 
 
 Caiaphas drew back. " He too," he muttered to 
 himself. " Surely the world hath gone mad about 
 this one Man ; but it shall not be said that Caiaphas 
 was thus led hither and thither, swayed by the voice 
 of an ignorant people, lashed into fanaticism by the 
 words of an impostor, who tries to cajole them by 
 honeyed words and feigned humility. No, Caiaphas 
 the High Priest shall still retain his power, and if this
 
 64 LAZARUS. 
 
 Man is after all the Christ " here he broke off into 
 a horrible, unmirthful laugh " if Caiaphas is wrong 
 then let His blood be upon me and upon my house, 
 and let me be damned for ever and ever. Yes, I 
 would barter even my soul, rather than let that 
 proud Claudia and that self-sufficient, prating Roman 
 fool, the Procurator, triumph over me. I have borne 
 enough; the Nazarene shall die, and that speedily." 
 And, even ere these words had passed his lips, a 
 flash of summer lightning illumed the room, and, to 
 the overwrought brain of Caiaphas, it seemed as if, 
 within that light, the figure of the Nazarene, in 
 dazzling white, appeared to him ; and the sad, 
 speaking eyes were turned on him reproachfully, 
 and a voice, whose music haunted him till his dying 
 day, in gentle accents murmured : ' Why go ye 
 about to kill Me ? "
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 PALE dawn stole in at the window of Rebekah's 
 chamber and found her sleeping still a restless, 
 feverish sleep that had overtaken her towards early 
 morn. The beautiful white arms lay motionless 
 outside the coverlet. The long lashes touched lov- 
 ingly her pale sad cheeks, as though they would 
 caress them. 
 
 Silently her maidens entered and, with noiseless 
 footsteps, moved about the room. Then one sat by 
 her side and watched her while day crept nearer and 
 nearer, big with the tidings that would so distress 
 her. 
 
 'T will be a sorrowful awakening," said one to 
 her companion. 
 
 " Methinks I have no strength to tell her the sad 
 news," rejoined the other. But even their light 
 whispering had stirred the girl, whose whole being 
 was indeed awake and alive with uncertainty and 
 with dread. 
 
 She started up from her couch into a sitting 
 posture. 
 
 ' What news have ye of Lazarus ? " she cried, her 
 voice framing the words her brain, as yet, had scarce 
 conceived. 
 
 The maidens looked from one to the other and an- 
 swered not ; so, with a furious look and a voice of 
 s 65
 
 66 LAZARUS. 
 
 thunder, Rebekah burst out with: " Speak, I com- 
 mand ye. Have ye then not sent a messenger to 
 Bethany ? ' ' 
 
 " Lazarus is dead," said one. 
 
 " He died ere dawn," the other added. 
 
 " Oh, oh! " 'T was a groan and shriek and bitter, 
 bitter cry that rent her very heart ; and the proud 
 Rebekah buried her face in the pillow and moaned 
 and sobbed continuously, " Lazarus, Lazarus! " 
 
 So this was the end ; the end of her fond delusion 
 that, while Lazarus lived, by the power of her strong 
 will he might still be hers. The end of life, the end 
 of vengeance. All her plotting and scheming had 
 come to naught. Death had baffled her. Lazarus 
 had escaped her. Oh, 't was the Nazarene who had 
 wrenched him from her by some trickery. 
 
 " For hatred of my father hath He done this 
 thing," she cried. " But, perchance he is not dead, 
 and they have stolen him away, that they might seem 
 to bring him back to life. He is not dead, he is not 
 dead," she moaned in frenzied accents. 
 
 " Yea, the messenger did see him on his couch, and 
 many stood around and wept," said one; " but thou 
 shouldst not mourn, for this man loved thee not ; he 
 was altogether gone mad after this Nazarene." 
 
 " He loved me not, but I loved him," replied 
 Rebekah; "and now I need do naught but die, for 
 wherefore shall I live." 
 
 There are other rulers, fairer still," the maidens 
 answered her, " and wealthier, and who do love 
 thee." 
 
 " I tell thee I cannot live if Lazarus be dead," she 
 cried, and beat her silken cushions in her despair.
 
 LAZARUS. 67 
 
 " They say the Nazarene will yet bring him back 
 to life," said one maiden, at her wits' ends how to 
 comfort the impetuous Rebekah in her grief. 
 
 Rebekah raised her head and gazed at them with 
 eyes all red and swollen beyond recognition. 
 
 " What say ye ?" 
 
 " They say the Nazarene hath the power even to 
 raise the dead," replied the maiden; " and that He 
 will raise up Lazarus, for He greatly loved him." 
 
 " Thinkest thou this ? " said Rebekah, sitting up, 
 for the moment oblivious of her grief. 
 
 " We cannot tell, but 't is so rumoured among the 
 multitude." 
 
 " If Lazarus be raised, then I, too, will believe," 
 she muttered; "but I fear me it is not to be. No, 
 death hath been stronger than Cataphas's daughter. 
 There are yet some things I understand not, though 
 for a woman I have learned overmuch ; one is, why 
 Lazarus loved me not, the other, what is death ? If 
 the Nazarene doth conquer death, then surely is He, 
 as 't is said He claimeth to be, the Son of God. But I 
 must know for sure that Lazarus is dead ; for in these 
 days none speaketh the truth, and ye do but give 
 me rumours, that themselves were gossip retailed 
 from mouth to mouth by gabbling servants ; I would 
 see, therefore, for myself whether Lazarus is dead. 
 Bring hither my cloak, and habit me, that I may go to 
 Bethany ; order my mule to be in readiness at once." 
 
 It was indeed an unexpected guest that forced her 
 way through the gates into the very room where 
 Lazarus lay, oblivious of the presence of the inquir- 
 ing crowd. Various nationalities and creeds were 
 represented there, haters of the Pharisees and open
 
 68 LAZARUS. 
 
 enemies of her father. She cast herself on her knees 
 beside the bed and seized his hand in hers. 
 
 " Dead! dead!" she wailed, " verily and truly 
 dead. 'T is no jugglery nor fooling. He is dead 
 indeed." Then excitedly she turned to the assem- 
 bled crowd. ' Where, then, is this wonder-working 
 Nazarene, this performer of miracles ?" she asked 
 scornfully, trying to disguise by haughty and dis- 
 dainful tone the burning excitement she felt within. 
 ' Why is He not here ? Where is the friendship 
 that hath been spoken of so much, if He cometh not 
 to the sick-bed of His friend ? Go fetch Him, one of 
 you. Tell Him that Caiaphas's daughter doth com- 
 mand His presence, and would witness a miracle." 
 She talked excitedly, almost madly; but none 
 stirred, only looked at her in wonder. " Can ye not 
 move ? " she shrieked. " Will none obey my bid- 
 ding ? Or do ye know that He, too, cannot con- 
 quer death ? That He is no Christ, but only some 
 poor, juggling carpenter, that doth bewitch the peo- 
 ple ?" Then Martha, fearing a disturbance, went 
 up to the girl and drew her gently away. 
 
 " Noble maiden," she said softly, " didst thou 
 then love Lazarus, that his death doth grieve thee 
 so ?" 
 
 All Rebekah's haughtiness returned at the direct- 
 ness of this question. 
 
 " Who art thou, woman, that dost presume to 
 question me ? What is it to thee whether I loved 
 Lazarus or not ? " 
 
 "To me 't is very much," said Martha, with a 
 gentle impressiveness that was not without effect 
 upon Rebekah; " for all who loved Lazarus I love."
 
 LAZARUS. 69 
 
 For one instant, the proud daughter of Caiaphas 
 felt constrained to open her heart to this gentle wo- 
 man, who spoke and looked like Lazarus. 
 
 " Yea, I did love Lazarus, yet he loved not me," 
 she answered scornfully; " but I would have him 
 live, because I cannot live if he be dead." 
 
 " He will rise again," said Martha. 
 
 "What meanest thou ? " inquired Rebekah; 
 " that he will rise now, or in the Judgment Day ? 
 If thou sayest now, I could understand thee; but 
 hereafter that is too far off a thing for my vain 
 mind to grasp." 
 
 " Methinks the Lord will raise him yet," said 
 Martha, musingly; " but whether now, or at the 
 Resurrection Day, my brother will rise again." 
 
 " But canst not send for this Nazarene ? Ye speak 
 of all His power and love, and yet, when death doth 
 carry off your brother, ye do stand gaping and wail- 
 ing and doing nothing." 
 
 She stamped her foot impatiently. " Will none 
 stir ? " she cried again. 
 
 " Peace, hush thee, maiden," answered Martha, 
 in a tone half gentle, half authoritative. " We have 
 sent many times, and He cometh not. We sent 
 when he was sick, and now we have sent to tell Him 
 he is dead, and, if He cometh not, 't is that He hath 
 good reason or His hour is not yet come." 
 
 A look of mingled frenzy and despair stole over 
 the features of Rebekah. 
 
 He is afraid to come," she said with scorn; 
 " for He knoweth that He cannot raise the dead." 
 
 Then, overcome with excitement and fatigue, the 
 proud soul unbent, and casting herself by the bed,
 
 70 LAZARUS. 
 
 whereon lay Lazarus, she sobbed as though her heart 
 would break. 
 
 " We will leave her to weep awhile," said Martha, 
 making a sign to all in the room to leave. Then the 
 girl, whose prayers till now had been but empty 
 words, poured out her aching heart to the dead 
 body of the man she loved. 
 
 " O Lazarus, wherefore didst thou leave me 
 thus ? Where is now thy scorn and pride ? Wilt 
 thou still have none of me, even in death ? for in 
 the silent tomb I would lie near thee, if thou wouldst, 
 so I might be with thee. O Lazarus, speak ; tell me 
 where I shall meet with thee again ; whether there is 
 Eternal Life, and what it is ; and how to find thy 
 God, if God there is." 
 
 Long the maiden mourned and wept. At last, a 
 gentle voice behind her murmured : " He will surely 
 rise again." 
 
 Rebekah lifted her head. " Ye do all cry that he 
 will rise again. Yet He cometh not who, ye say, 
 can cause it. What manner of friend is this who 
 hasteneth not to raise, if raise He can ? " 
 
 Then, drawing her cloak around her and casting 
 one long, despairing look at the dead body of Laz- 
 arus, she strode from the house, her maidens follow- 
 ing ; and as she passed between the throng they all 
 fell back and did obeisance to the daughter of the 
 dreaded Caiaphas.
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 dawning of a Syrian day was stealing over 
 1 Jerusalem ; dark clouds hung in thick, woolly 
 masses across the sky. The corn, still green by day- 
 light, stood colourless and grey, awaiting the glori- 
 ous revivifying ardour of the sun. Only a pale 
 golden haze over the hills beyond approaching like 
 the feet of swift messengers of glad tidings, or of 
 angels who have been present in the night gave 
 promise of day ; as yet, it was but a watch-signal of 
 the coming morning. The air was still cool, the 
 birds had not yet begun to twitter in their nests ; 
 there was a hush, as though nature were listening to 
 the farewell of night, or, awe-struck, to the com- 
 mands of God, ere this day dawned that was teem- 
 ing with such import to individuals, to nations, to 
 the whole world, though it knew it not. It was as 
 if the word of God were being uttered behind the 
 dark veil of those massive clouds: " Arise, shine, for 
 thy Light is come and the glory of the Lord is risen 
 upon thee. " 
 
 But as yet all was darkness still, and the city of 
 Jerusalem slept, wrapt in that stagnation of soul and 
 body, that apathy in which it had been enveloped 
 for so many years; that folding of the hands to 
 sleep, that paralysis of the brain, that had shut out 
 from the world (as the blindness of the eye shutteth 
 
 71
 
 72 LAZARUS. 
 
 out God's light) the many revelations that had been 
 made to it, and kept back the knowledge of the ex- 
 traordinary events that from time to time had there 
 occurred. 
 
 If a God were to be born to us to-day, and to live 
 and die amongst us, how many would know Him 
 for a God ? So the earth slept while Jesus trod it, 
 as it slept before His advent, as it has slept often 
 since, forgetful that salvation was walking along the 
 highway, powerless to cry out, " Lord, save me." 
 And all the while, tear-worn, dusty, and travel- 
 stained, the Eternal One was passing by and on, 
 through the gates of death, and back within the 
 portals of eternity. 
 
 But day was now stealing across the sky, ripping 
 up right and left, backwards and forwards, the dark 
 clouds, seaming the heavens with shafts of light, 
 slashing each cloud with radiancy, unfolding one by 
 one the glories of morning; till at last the sun, like 
 a golden ball hurled on earth by a boisterous god, 
 or leaping like a giant upon the world, burst forth 
 with light and warmth, a messenger, though that 
 world knew it not. 
 
 " Lift up thine eyes, look round about and see," 
 it said; but the world slept, and Jerusalem slept, 
 oblivious that that day the God of Eternity would 
 weep. 
 
 While flushing day crept quickly across the sky, 
 a woman left the house of Lazarus to take the road 
 from Bethany to Jerusalem. Weary as she was with 
 a night of watching, the cool air seemed to revive 
 her scorching eyelids, yet she hesitated. Outside 
 her house she cast her eyes across the glorious hori-
 
 LAZARUS. 73 
 
 zon, half doubtful ; while from within could be heard 
 the faint murmur of wailing from many voices. 
 
 ' The harvest is past, the summer is ended, and 
 we are not saved. Woe is me for my hurt! My 
 wound is grievous : but I said, Truly this is a grief, 
 and I must bear it. There is none to stretch forth 
 my tent any more, and to set up my curtains." 
 
 The voices wailed alternately; then suddenly a 
 woman's tuneful voice sang out: " Righteous art 
 Thou, O Lord, when I plead with Thee. How long 
 shall we mourn ? Yea, blessed is the man that trust- 
 eth in the Lord and whose hope the Lord is." 
 
 Mary, Mary! " The voice was low but stern. 
 The song ceased and a beautiful woman with long, 
 flowing hair, which, in the sun, had a reddish tinge 
 turned suddenly ; then rose from her knees and came 
 in meek obedience to her sister. 
 
 ' Wilt thou not then come with me to entreat the 
 Lord ? Yet thou sayest that He can restore him 
 even now. If we wait till they have laid him in the 
 grave it will be too late." The tone of the elder 
 woman was almost hasty. 
 
 " My sister, I need not to leave his side to entreat 
 my Lord. Hath not Nicodemus taken Him the 
 news of our brother's sickness ? Had He wished to 
 restore him, He could have done so from Jerusalem. 
 The city is but fifteen furlongs off. He would have 
 sent over one of the twelve with the message of life, 
 or He would have willed him to live from a distance 
 and he would have lived. Lazarus is dead, but were 
 he living, he would not wish to live if his Lord did 
 not so will it ; and, except to our mortal eyes, he is 
 not dead, for thou knowest that our Lord hath said
 
 74 LAZARUS. 
 
 that those who believe on Him shall never die. Oh, 
 Martha, trouble not thyself, but kneel with us and 
 pray." 
 
 ' What should I pray for now, seeing that he is 
 dead ?" replied Martha almost impatiently. Then, 
 with a sudden resolve, she raised her head, and, 
 drawing her cloak around her, stepped out into the 
 cool morning air, and hurried down the road to 
 Jerusalem. 
 
 Many were the thoughts revolving in her brain 
 when she walked forth, a brave, strong-minded wo- 
 man, to entreat the Lord, whom she failed to under- 
 stand. Of an energetic, indomitable spirit, full of 
 self-reliance, she had a horror alike of mystification 
 and of sentiment, with a full belief in the power of 
 coercing events. To sit down and wait for the work- 
 ings of God to take effect would have been beyond 
 her. She was always fretting lest she had left some 
 machinating stone unturned. She was imbued with 
 the idea that there was power in a multitude of 
 prayers, and that one moment's inaction would reap 
 its reward of infruition. She had been a careful 
 housewife, and much responsibility had devolved on 
 her, for the three had been left without a mother at 
 an early age. She, Martha, had had to be mother and 
 father to the two younger ones, Lazarus and Mary. 
 This had given her an irritability of temperament 
 and a certain domineering manner which, to her 
 credit be it said, she strove hard to master. 
 
 For a long time she had shut ears and heart 
 against the strange rumours that were bruited 
 abroad respecting Jesus of Nazareth ; she had dis- 
 believed the reports about His birth and had even
 
 LAZARUS. 75 
 
 spoken disparagingly of His mother. She had 
 looked upon Joseph of Nazareth with scorn. Caia- 
 phas, too, who was a relative of theirs and now High 
 Priest, would never definitely speak of Jesus. 
 
 But they were strange times in which the Jews 
 lived then. John the Baptist had greatly stirred the 
 Jewish world, and indeed the Roman and the Syrian 
 world as well, by preaching a gospel of repentance 
 and baptism, and many of the Pharisees and Saddu- 
 cees had gone over to his doctrines; and yet when 
 He had been baptised by John, it seemed difficult to 
 believe that Jesus could be greater than he, though 
 the Baptist had himself averred it. 
 
 ' Thinkest thou, Lazarus, that the Son of God 
 would be baptised of a wild fanatic such as John ? 
 For that John is mad is common knowledge, and 
 that he hath bewitched the people." 
 
 Thus Martha spoke. But this had been before 
 the family at Bethany had been honoured by the 
 presence of the Messiah under their own roof. 
 Since then, Lazarus had followed the Lord, followed 
 as a hungry man wanders till he finds bread. By 
 the Sea of Galilee, into the mountains where Christ 
 prayed and preached, Lazarus had followed ; fol- 
 lowed, thirsting for the stream of truth that flowed 
 on to life. What strange new doctrines were these 
 to one who had been brought up in the old Hebrew 
 law, fed on the vengeful tenets of the Psalms! "An 
 eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, ' ' had been the 
 old religion. " Resist not evil, but whosoever shall 
 smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other 
 also," was the new. And, " Give to him that ask- 
 eth thee, and from him that would borrow of thee
 
 76 LAZARUS. 
 
 turn them not away! " Love, blessing, forgiveness, 
 what strange new doctrine was this ? It never be- 
 fore had been so seen in Israel. No wonder that a 
 keen observer, a studious, spiritual-minded man, like 
 Lazarus, should feel mystified and puzzled, yet in- 
 spired by doctrines at once so pathetic and so power- 
 ful. With Mary he could talk of all these things ; 
 she had always been of a gentle, sympathetic spirit, 
 ardent and enthusiastic in her worship and affections, 
 deeply religious, and yet with a strain of mysticism 
 that permitted the seemingly impossible to find a 
 place in her too willing heart. 
 
 She, too, to Martha's dismay, had often joined 
 the crowds that followed Jesus of Nazareth along 
 the roadside, listening to His incomparable sermons, 
 witnessing miracle after miracle; wonders that filled 
 the priests with dismay and doubt, and awed the 
 Tetrarch, yet failed to persuade the multitude that 
 He was the living God. 
 
 Often and often she had tried to get Martha to 
 accompany them. 
 
 " If thou wouldst but listen once to Him, Martha, 
 thou wouldst feel all the troubles of this world re- 
 moved from off thy shoulders, and perfect peace 
 would fill thy soul. His words are like the softest 
 music, and yet they sound deep like the waters of 
 the sea, and they are so true, so real, thou canst 
 not but believe them. They are indeed the words 
 of a God, for never man spake like this Man. It 
 is the Messiah who is here ; I know it, I feel it, 
 Martha. If thou wouldst but once accompany me 
 and follow Him, for most times He speaketh to the 
 multitude! "
 
 LAZARUS. 77 
 
 But Martha had made answer: " Thinkest thou, 
 Mary, that the Messiah would come as a poor car- 
 penter and in poorest attire, with naught else but a 
 chiton and a tunic ? Thinkest thou not that the 
 heavens would rend themselves, and the very thun- 
 der-clouds be in waiting on the Lord ? Thou art 
 easily carried away, Mary, for thou dreamest much, 
 and Mary Magdalene hath filled thee with these 
 foolish fancies." 
 
 "Ah! poor Magdalene. Would I could indeed 
 instil into her life a little joy, and stay the sorrow at 
 her heart! Yet see, even to her He hath been full 
 of pity and love ; to her who was aforetime jeered at 
 by the multitude, despised by men and women, who 
 wept daily in the wilderness, conscious of her sins, 
 yet not knowing whence to learn the way to a better 
 life. He hath spoken to her words of sympathy and 
 heavenly love, and now she is a devout, pious wo- 
 man, having naught to do with any, save only the 
 praying to this Jesus, whom she calls her Lord." 
 
 " He can be no God who speaketh to harlots and 
 goeth about with sinners," Martha had replied; for 
 the very mention of Magdalene, the harlot, closed 
 her heart. " The Messiah is not yet come, for, 
 when He cometh, the world will be overwhelmed 
 with the glory and the shame. He will walk 
 through the sea with His horses and scatter the 
 sinners as a whirlwind. Mountains will quake and 
 the valleys be laid low, and every man will know 
 that He is the Lord. There will be no doubting, 
 and all shall know that the Lord He is the God. 
 We must not be blinded by false prophets." 
 
 Then, in despair, Mary had exclaimed: " When
 
 78 LAZARUS. 
 
 Christ cometh, will He do more miracles than those 
 which this Man hath done ? " 
 
 But Martha had hardened her heart, for she had 
 seen no miracles, and would believe in nothing that 
 she had heard. 
 
 " He is a prophet," she had replied, " but He is 
 not a God."
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 Temple had been all day the scene of throng- 
 1 ing crowds. The people in and round about 
 Jerusalem had gathered there to hear the Nazarene 
 preach; some from curiosity and some to scoff, but 
 the greater part to listen to those wondrous words, 
 which, while upsetting all past teaching, brought 
 peace and comfort to the heart, and visions of un- 
 ending happiness in the future. How simple was 
 that teaching! No burnt-offerings, no more sacri- 
 fices, only water to the thirsty and food to the 
 hungry ; forgiveness and salvation offered to all who 
 would accept it. The tone of the Nazarene that day 
 had been almost broken-hearted ; His appeals to the 
 hearts of men more pathetic and more powerful than 
 usual in their pleading earnestness. Who on earth 
 can ever fathom the grief of the Man of Sorrows at 
 the hardness of heart of people who daily saw His 
 miracles and heard His words, yet would not be- 
 lieve ? 
 
 ' Why do ye not understand My speech ? Be- 
 cause I tell ye the truth, ye believe Me not." 
 
 Incensed, the crowd had hurled invectives and 
 abuse against the meek testifier of the truth. 
 
 " Now we know that Thou hast a devil," cried 
 some. 
 
 ' Who art Thou ? " cried others. 
 79
 
 80 LAZARUS. 
 
 ' Where is Thy Father ? ' ' cried others derisively. 
 
 And, in meek solemnity, with eyes that turned 
 to Heaven in mute appeal for forgiveness for those 
 around Him, the voice, that had so often kept the 
 Jewish crowd in check, replied: " Ye neither know 
 Me nor My Father; if ye had known Me, ye would 
 have known My Father also." 
 
 Goaded on by the Pharisees, the crowd had yelled 
 and roared and taunted, till, at last, grown furious 
 at the continued meekness of the Preacher, they had 
 even taken up stones and cast them at Him. A 
 terrible cry arose when the Nazarene's fair flesh was 
 struck again and again by the stones hurled at Him. 
 It was the voice of a woman who stood in the crowd : 
 
 " My son, my Lord, they have hurt Him. Oh, are 
 they mad that they know Him not ? Oh, foolish 
 generation, who hath bewitched you ? " 
 
 But, even while she had cried, the tender eyes of 
 the Nazarene had fallen upon the mother whom He 
 loved. Perhaps to spare her pain or to prevent fur- 
 ther sin, or because His hour was not yet come, He 
 had ceased speaking, and walked without shrinking 
 towards the crowd. ' Terrified by His temerity, per- 
 haps, or cowed by some invisible power that held 
 them spell-bound, the crowd had stopped molesting 
 Him and had fallen back to let Him pass ; and, turn- 
 ing to each other, had murmured, in strange con- 
 trast to their late behaviour, " This is the Christ," 
 while others had said, "Or, of a truth, the Prophet." 
 
 And so Jesus had passed out of the Temple in 
 safety. But now evening had come, and with it the 
 faint chilliness that in Southern climates takes the 
 place of frost at the approach of the cold season.
 
 LAZARUS. 8 1 
 
 The cloudless sky had turned from deepest blue to 
 palest green, and the dying sun had, as it were, spilt 
 its blood across the west, leaving a gold-red haze be- 
 hind the waving palm trees that stood against the 
 skies in dark defined relief, showing the pattern of 
 each leaf. Here and there a star opened a twinkling 
 eye and glimmered faintly, and the roads that looked 
 so white in the midday sun grew greyer every mo- 
 ment. Olive and cypress trees, leafless vineyards, 
 houses and walls and hills were every moment 
 shrouded more and more in the mantle of darkness 
 that was falling silently over the earth. Every now 
 and then a bat, whirring out from a neighbouring 
 tree, or a pariah dog howling outside the walls, was 
 the only sound that broke the stillness. Along the 
 road to Bethany a woman was hastening with cloak 
 tightly drawn around her. At that very moment 
 Martha was also speeding her way from Bethany to 
 Bethsaida to beseech the Lord. 
 
 It was Mary Magdalene, who was hastening to 
 Bethany to join her tears to those of the other 
 Mary. No darkness frightened her, no journey 
 seemed too long for her to hasten where she knew 
 her Lord would be. 
 
 While she hurried along the road her thoughts 
 turned to Jesus, as they were now ever wont to turn ; 
 the loving, penitent heart, broken with disillusions, 
 sickened with the nausea of unholiness, emptied of 
 all earthly love, but restored and comforted by the 
 divine, had room for naught else now but the Naza- 
 rene. Every now and then a strange misgiving 
 overcame her. How was it that Jesus had allowed 
 Lazarus, whom He so loved, to die ? Was it
 
 82 LAZARUS. 
 
 that He had been captured and imprisoned ; or, 
 worse, put to death ? For all those who really be- 
 lieved in Him were imbued with the foreboding of 
 His approaching death. The Nazarene Himself had 
 prepared them for it, and, as each day dawned, each 
 one of His true followers in turn rejoiced that He 
 was still with them, but dreaded what might befall 
 before the night. 
 
 " I go My way and ye shall seek Me; whither I 
 go, ye cannot come." 
 
 Poor Magdalene ! How she trembled, thinking of 
 the moment when He who had brought salvation 
 and forgiveness to her poor worn-out soul would de- 
 part, leaving her desolate in the world, that world 
 which had been cruel alike in its adulation and its 
 judgment! Would she have the strength, despised 
 and scoffed at by women, persecuted on account of 
 her great beauty by the worst type of men, would 
 she be able to weather the storm alone ? Poor, 
 weak, loving creature, would she have the strength? 
 She had no more faith in herself, no courage left; 
 only a growing remorse that had kindled into a de- 
 vouring flame, and then been quenched by the love 
 of the Saviour, who had brought words of consola- 
 tion to the sinner: 
 
 " Neither do I condemn thee; go, and sin no 
 more." 
 
 How well He had understood, this pure and spot- 
 less Jesus, the terrible lurings of sin, the horrible 
 temptations of a loving, clinging soul; and how 
 poor, erring sinners were goaded to further sin by 
 the harshness of the world's judgment ; plunged into 
 still lower depths by the powerful and the hypo-
 
 LAZARUS. 83 
 
 crites, who pointed the finger of scorn at others in 
 the hope of blinding their fellows to their own far 
 greater sins. 
 
 Yes, it had been new life, a new, strange comfort, 
 this theory of faith, repentance, and forgiveness; 
 this wiping out of the past her soul had longed for. 
 She who had seen the worst of human nature, who 
 had learned to look with loathing upon man and all 
 his selfishness; tortured with remorse; trembling 
 over loss of self-respect; weeping at her forfeited 
 good fame ; longing for relief, like the thirsty flower 
 for the refreshing rain, and dying bird for the rays 
 of the glowing sun had fallen down in worship at 
 the feet of the perfect Man, who brought salvation 
 to trusting women instead of ruin ; who crowned all 
 manhood by His pure humanity, and conferred un- 
 dying honour on all womanhood by the manner of 
 His birth. 
 
 But she had grown humble and diffident, this 
 poor, worn woman. 
 
 Away from Jesus, she dreaded life. If her Lord 
 should die, she prayed that she might also die. 
 Then, in the grey twilight of that Eastern night, 
 thoughts stirred her deeply, as oft they do when we 
 are alone, and, most of all, alone with nature, and 
 the words of the Nazarene came back to her, when 
 He had likened Himself to a good shepherd, and all 
 that that implied. 
 
 Oh, how wonderful it was, this change in her! 
 How her heart glowed with gratitude and love! 
 Then midway in her journey and in the silent dark- 
 ness, the Magdalene fell down on the soft grass by 
 the roadside in deep humility, and bowed her head
 
 84 LAZARUS. 
 
 and prayed to God to grant her once more to see the 
 face of Jesus and to keep her from again falling into 
 sin. 
 
 So absorbed was she in her prayer, that she failed, 
 at first, to hear footsteps coming along the road. 
 For a moment she was overcome with womanly fear 
 at being alone on the highroad at such an hour. 
 She, least of all, should thus be seen ; for, since her 
 awakening, she had remained almost nightly within 
 doors, or in the company of the mother of her Lord, 
 who had been all sympathy and love to her. Of late 
 her only pleasure in life had been in following the 
 crowds to hear the preaching of the Nazarene, either 
 in the Temple courts or in the open air. 
 
 The night was dark, so rising quickly from her 
 knees she slid behind an olive tree. The two men 
 approached, talking in tones that in the night air 
 sounded loud and clear. 
 
 The Magdalene started. She knew one voice 
 well ; she had heard it many times speaking to 
 crowds, and also in the Temple cursing and de- 
 nouncing sinners like herself. Surely it was the 
 voice of Caiaphas. Those harsh, dictatorial accents, 
 full of self-assurance, could belong to no other man. 
 What brought Caiaphas along this road so late ? A 
 sharp pain struck her heart, as though she had been 
 stabbed. If it were Caiaphas hastening to the house 
 of Martha, it must surely be to lay hands on Jesus. 
 Perchance He was already taken. Oh that she were 
 there to throw herself between the captor and the 
 captured, to tear the former limb from limb ! Surely 
 God would give her strength to save His glorified 
 Son. Then she whispered softly to herself, " But
 
 LAZARUS. 85 
 
 He would not let me. If His hour had come He 
 would bid me be silent and watch for the workings 
 of the Lord." 
 
 Then there came a great longing over her to hurry 
 on and warn them of their danger, for where Caiaphas 
 went there mischief must for sure be brewing. She 
 knew a short cut through the olive groves, if only it 
 was not too dark. But who was the other man ? 
 She strained her ears to listen. They were close to 
 her now. They halted and seemed engaged on 
 some hot argument, for they paused to catch their 
 breath. Truly to marvels there was no end. The 
 man with Caiaphas was Nicodemus. For one instant 
 there floated through her mind the thought that 
 Nicodemus had persuaded Caiaphas to go and wit- 
 ness the expected miracle, the bringing back of 
 Lazarus to life. For one moment her heart beat 
 with joy. Oh, if Caiaphas also should believe ! 
 
 The kingdom of God would be established, and 
 Jesus would reign for ever. Then her sudden joy 
 expired ; it was not to be ; she knew it well from 
 Jesus' lips that He must die. Then mischief must 
 be abroad ; either Nicodemus was a traitor, or Caia- 
 phas had laid a plot. They were on their way to 
 Martha's house, but with no good intent, and her 
 heart ached for the poor women left alone at such a 
 moment. She must hasten to warn them ; but how? 
 The only road by which she could reach Bethany 
 sooner than Caiaphas and Nicodemus was one beset 
 with dangers; through dark olive groves, that often 
 at night were infested with evil-doers. To the for- 
 given Magdalene, the newly awakened, purified 
 Magdalene, fear came in a new form. Her former
 
 86 LAZARUS. 
 
 ill-fame created terrors for her she had never felt be- 
 fore ; but, full of new-bidden strength and faith, she 
 raised her heart in prayer, and drawing her veil 
 around her face, she started at a running pace across 
 the soft herbage of the by-path. 
 
 " Mary, Mary Magdalene, whither goest thou ? " 
 a soft voice called after her. She half paused to lis- 
 ten; then, with redoubled energy, began to run 
 again. Then she became conscious of a presence 
 near her; she durst not turn her head, but her heart 
 breathed a prayer for help. 
 
 A sudden light brought her movements to a full 
 stop ; a flashing light that diffused a strange, inex- 
 plicable glow, illumining the grey-green olive trees 
 and enveloping the path and bushes with a curious, 
 iridescent halo, that, while giving light, showed 
 neither flame nor fire. It was like a fairy web of 
 gold hanging on tree and bush. 
 
 A great terror seized upon the Magdalene. It 
 was not physical fear, but the dread of being 
 brought face to face with the supernatural. While 
 she gazed, with dilated eyes and parted lips, the 
 glory seemed blurred by a shadow. It was as 
 though the centre of the glowing light were forming 
 itself into a little cloud. Her heart beat so violently 
 that in its throbbing it seemed to make to vibrate 
 every nerve and fibre of her body. With one hand 
 she held tightly across her bosom the blue veil which 
 was worn by all the women of Jerusalem in that day. 
 With the other she smoothed back her lovely gol- 
 den tresses, straining her eyes to bursting to pierce 
 the glory that hung from tree to tree. Then, with 
 a sudden thought, she fell on her knees, and bowing
 
 LAZARUS. 87 
 
 her head to the ground, in words of deepest humility 
 and a voice weak with agony, she murmured : 
 " Oh, my Lord, my Lord, they have slain Thee! 
 Jesus, Thou Saviour, in pity Thou hast visited 
 me! " and faint with gratitude and adoration, and 
 torn with anguish, she almost swooned away. 
 
 Then a voice she knew, but which was not that of 
 the Christ (whose voice was like to none on earth), 
 called out again: " Mary, Mary Magdalene, bow 
 not thyself before me, for I am the least of all men. 
 Rise up and listen. I am not the Christ, but 
 Lazarus. 
 
 Kneeling still, and struggling with emotion, the 
 Magdalene raised her beautiful face, half dazed still 
 from the agony she had undergone; and some of 
 the glory that shone around her touched her lips and 
 hair; and, while she looked, the shadows seemed to 
 grow more and more distinct; till, finally, the form 
 and features of Lazarus seemed to stand in very life 
 before her, but with a strange spiritual light upon 
 them, such as she had seen occasionally on the face 
 of the Nazarene. 
 
 " Thou, Lazarus ? " she murmured inquiringly in 
 awe-struck tones. ' Thou here ? But I saw thee 
 die, and, even now, I was hastening to Mary to warn 
 her that Caiaphas and Nicodemus are on their way 
 to Bethany ; and they will have gained upon me on 
 the highroad." 
 
 ' ' Fear not, ' ' replied Lazarus. ' ' I have come to tell 
 thee that our Lord is not yet come to Bethany, nor 
 will He be for three days more. Thou hast naught 
 to fear, even if Caiaphas and Nicodemus go to Mar- 
 tha's house. They will find only Mary, for Martha
 
 88 LAZARUS. 
 
 hath gone to entreat the Lord, and He cometh not 
 yet to restore to me my life." 
 
 " And art thou, in truth, dead, Lazarus ? How 
 then speakest thou to me ? " asked Mary Magdalene. 
 ' Whosoever believeth on the Christ shall never 
 die," Lazarus replied solemnly. 
 
 ' Yet thou art dead, Lazarus, thy grave clothes 
 are yet about thee ; thou sayest that thy body lieth 
 in the grave. Tell me, then, what is it to die ? " 
 
 ' To die, Magdalene, is but to begin to live; to 
 begin to understand, to begin to know how great 
 God is, how small we are. ' ' 
 
 ' Truly this is strange, that thou shouldst be 
 dead but speaking still to me," replied the Magda- 
 lene. 
 
 " They that sleep in the Lord are ever near those 
 they love," said Lazarus. " If thou couldst but see 
 with purified eyes, as I now do, thou wouldst per- 
 ceive that the world is peopled with the spirits of 
 those who have died, as they of this world call it, 
 but who, in verity, have but begun to live. They 
 are about me while I speak to thee." 
 
 Mary paused, as if to give herself courage to reply. 
 
 "Dost thou know all things?" presently she 
 asked. " Dost thou know wherefore was the world 
 created and why death came into it, why it was per- 
 mitted by our Lord Jesus that thou shouldst die, if 
 in truth God be His Father and He hath power to 
 save ? " 
 
 " Be silent, woman," replied Lazarus severely. 
 " None of these things do I know yet. All that has 
 come to me in death is the certainty that all this is 
 for right; but I understand it not. I know only
 
 LAZARUS. 89 
 
 that to understand it fully is impossible. I would 
 fain explain away what to me becometh daily more 
 inexplicable, yet more certain. Oh, Magdalene, if 
 thou couldst but travel in the spirit world, as I am 
 doing, thou couldst not but believe. I have seen 
 Jesus, and He hath charged me to bid thee tell His 
 mother that three days hence she come to the house 
 of Martha to see Him raise my body from the grave, 
 where it now lieth ; for the glory of the living God 
 will this thing be done." 
 
 But, argumentative still, as women are, longing to 
 convince herself by further questioning of the reality 
 of what she saw and heard, she murmured: " Hast 
 thou, then, been to heaven ? " 
 
 " Nay," he answered, " not to the heaven where 
 God doth reign, for no man can see His glory till 
 the Messiah be ascended ; but it is heaven to me to 
 know that eternity existeth, and that from such 
 glories and wonders, as neither thou nor I can under- 
 stand, Jesus hath come down to save mortals, such 
 as we. Oh, if the world could but understand or, 
 not understanding, be content to believe and pray!" 
 
 The first faint streaks of dawn were trembling in 
 the sky, a blue, cold light began to play lightly on 
 the olive branches, and already the golden haze of 
 glory seemed to be melting almost imperceptibly. 
 Lazarus's face was growing indistinct. The air 
 seemed filled with the rustling of wings ; a noise, as 
 a flight of birds, sounded in Mary's ears, mingled 
 with the music of strings of countless harps in uni- 
 son ; and then a chorus of voices burst forth in such 
 a chant of exultant praise and harmony, as it had 
 never yet been given to man or woman to hear.
 
 90 LAZARUS. 
 
 Entranced, and faint with wonder and emotion, 
 the Magdalene watched the fading of the beloved 
 form ; then, as the voices grew more distant and the 
 face more indistinct, a regret that pierced came over 
 her, in that she had failed to ask for guidance how 
 to gain eternal life. 
 
 " Lazarus, Lazarus, rabbi," she exclaimed, " tell 
 me before thou goest how must I die that I may die 
 in Christ ? " But he made no answer. Then faintly, 
 from the distance came the voices chanting: " Truth 
 and love. Truth and love." 
 
 And, overcome with all she had gone through, full 
 of penitence, remorse, and wonder and devotion, the 
 Magdalene fell upon her face, caring nothing that 
 her beautiful hair caught in the roots and branches 
 and tanglewood beneath her; conscious only that 
 Jesus loved her, and that for her sins His life was to 
 be yielded up, that to wash away her stains, His 
 blood, the blood of the Innocent, the Perfect One, 
 must flow.
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 news that Lazarus was dead spread with the 
 1 rapidity of lightning. His illness, and the 
 probability or the improbability of his being saved 
 from death, or restored to life, had for so many 
 weeks been a common topic that it was no wonder 
 that his death filled the believers with dismay, and 
 the Pharisees, and, still more, the Sadducees, with 
 
 joy- 
 Joanna's tongue had not been silent, nor yet had 
 Rachel's, and when some messenger had come from 
 Jerusalem with some delicacy ordered by Martha, in 
 the hope of tempting the slender appetite of the in- 
 valid, he had found himself surrounded, on re-enter- 
 ing the outskirts of the town, by a vociferating, 
 clamouring crowd of inquiring gossips. 
 
 There was still greater significance in this death 
 for the chief priests ; it renewed their power over the 
 Jews, while it also renewed the controversy between 
 Caiaphas and Pilate as to the expediency of laying 
 hands on the Messiah. 
 
 The apparent failure of the expected miracle ren- 
 dered the Nazarene a less dangerous opponent. 
 
 Some anxiety was felt by Caiaphas when he heard 
 of the continued absence of the Nazarene from the 
 house of Martha and Mary. It seemed to him, in 
 his insensate craving for revenge, that his Victim 
 
 91
 
 92 LAZARUS. 
 
 was escaping him ; while Pontius Pilate was secretly 
 glad, both at the disappearance of the Christ and 
 the discomfiture of the wily Caiaphas. 
 
 ' Where is now the courage of thy Nazarene ? " 
 Caiaphas had asked the Procurator at the Sanhe- 
 drim; and, in the same taunting tone, Pilate had 
 answered : 
 
 " Where is now thy Victim ? " 
 
 The hours were few in which Mary and Martha 
 were allowed to sit and mourn their dead in peace. 
 Of a noble and respected family, as the wealthy 
 ruler had been, it was impossible that his death 
 should not cause some stir, for all that his recent 
 leaning towards the tenets of the Nazarene had 
 caused him to be looked upon of late with some 
 suspicion. Accordingly great interest was taken in 
 the promised presence at the funeral of several rep- 
 resentatives of the different sects who suspected or 
 dreaded that Lazarus might not be really dead ; and 
 Caiaphas had prevailed on the jackal Annas to be 
 present. 
 
 ' We can trust none," he had said, " and this 
 Nazarene may so bewitch the people that they may 
 fear to tell us the truth. It must be thou or I, for I 
 would trust to no man's eyes or ears or tongue in 
 this affair; and it would look better that he that was 
 High Priest were there than that he that is ; for thou 
 wouldst be deserting no office and wasting no time 
 if, peradventure, thou wert walking in the olive 
 groves by Bethany at eventide, when the funeral 
 procession was approaching." 
 
 Caiaphas had not seen fit to tell his father-in-law 
 of his midnight journey to Bethany with Nicodemus,
 
 LAZARUS. 93 
 
 when he had hoped, if not to lay hands on Jesus, to 
 get tidings of His movements ; when he had also seen 
 the body of Lazarus. 
 
 An endless multitude of people thronged all day 
 the road from Jericho ; great rabbis, followed by their 
 retinue, mules laden with spices and myrrh, oint- 
 ment and spikenard. The room in which Lazarus 
 lay, now bound in grave clothes by the tender hands 
 of Martha and Mary, was like an ever-moving pano- 
 rama. According to Jewish custom, all the friends 
 and relatives came to bid farewell to the corpse and 
 to mourn with the sisters ; and the ever-active Mar- 
 tha forgot some of the poignancy of her grief in the 
 dispensing of hospitality and in attending to the 
 comfort of the thronging crowd. Nicodemus was 
 there, in attendance on Annas, glad to have so good 
 an excuse for coming to the house at Bethany, with- 
 out appearing to be attracted by curiosity or devo- 
 tion. The two men were allowed the first access to 
 the corpse ; and, while Annas let his eyes wander 
 curiously around him, as if he dreaded some jug- 
 gling or chicanery, Nicodemus looked across the 
 corpse at him and said: " Methinks he is dead in 
 very truth." 
 
 But the wily father-in-law of Caiaphas would risk 
 no answer, lest, perchance for all words of Nico- 
 demus seemed borne out by facts he still might be 
 the dupe of circumstances. 
 
 Then others thrust themselves within the room, 
 some curious, some interested, but all, with ready 
 Eastern sympathy, eager to comfort the bereaved 
 women. Those belonging to the nobler grades of 
 Jewish social life were doubtless struck with the in-
 
 94 LAZARUS. 
 
 congruities of the surroundings: the superb hang- 
 ings and costly adornments of the house, and the 
 humble, mean attire of many of the mourners. 
 Last, but not least, their dignity was offended by 
 the presence of the Magdalene. 
 
 ' What doth this sinner here ? " said one or two, 
 albeit with bated breath, not to wound the suscepti- 
 bilities of the owners of the house. 
 
 " She loved Lazarus," said one. 
 
 " Methinks the ruler had good taste," put in 
 another with a jeering laugh, suppressed at the 
 remembrance that a corpse lay in the adjacent 
 chamber; " for she is the comeliest woman in 
 Judaea." 
 
 " Methought the righteous Lazarus took no heed 
 to any woman," said a third. 
 
 ' Tush," said Nicodemus. 'T is not as ye do 
 think, ye foul-hearted, foul-mouthed generation. 
 This woman was purified by the Nazarene. He 
 cast forth seven devils from her, and Mary, the sis- 
 ter of Lazarus, who is ever kind, doth help her much 
 to lead a better life." 
 
 This statement was met with a shrugging of the 
 shoulders and an upraising of the eyebrows; and one 
 bolder than the rest remarked: " Perchance, if Laz- 
 arus had lived, he would have taken her to wife. 
 The followers of the Nazarene do strange things, 
 I 'm told." 
 
 But the conversation was interrupted by the voice 
 of a servant crying out: " Make way, make way. 
 Simon the Leper doth come this way." 
 
 As though one smitten with the plague came in 
 their midst, the whole crowd dispersed, jostling and
 
 LAZARUS. 95 
 
 pushing each other this way and that, in their hurry 
 to avoid contact with the afflicted one ; and soon, as 
 if by magic, the chambers were emptied of their hu- 
 man throng, to let the wasted vision of diseased 
 mortality pass in. 
 
 One or two beckoned to Mary and Martha, but 
 they shook their heads, and Mary whispered softly : 
 ' We fear nothing; he is our father." 
 
 However strict the Jewish laws, none could at 
 such a moment refuse the father access to the body 
 of his son. Simon, like his daughters, had retained 
 a lingering hope that the Nazarene would save Laz- 
 arus from death, and so had put off his visit from 
 day to day, till he had been too late to bid his son 
 farewell. Great tears coursed down the cheeks of 
 the poor old man. It was the overflowing of a sor- 
 rowful cup, filled to the brim with life's bitterness. 
 Though he was compelled by the Jewish law to live 
 apart from the rest of the world, his son had been 
 the hope of his old age ; he had watched his career 
 with all the love and pride of a father, who feels that, 
 but for some untoward accident, he might have been 
 great himself. 
 
 Lazarus had been his second self a second self, 
 but free from his affliction. The rectitude of his son's 
 life had been his joy ; his high position, his pride ; his 
 kindness to his sisters, a burden lifted from his own 
 shoulders. It was through his son that he had 
 learned to know the Nazarene ; yea, who knew 
 what hopes of recovery Simon had fostered in the 
 presence of the Christ ? Yet both father and son 
 had been disappointed in their hope of being healed 
 of their disorders by the Nazarene. For all that, it
 
 96 LAZARUS. 
 
 was characteristic of the members of this family, 
 plucked, as it were, like brands from the burning, 
 that they never wavered in their faith. Perhaps it 
 was the intensity and unity of their trust that com- 
 pelled the miracle that followed. 
 
 Hideous in his horrible disease, the poor old man 
 stood gazing at the lifeless features of his son. 
 
 Then he looked at Mary, who was still kneeling by 
 the bedside, and shaking his head sadly, he repeated : 
 " He is, in truth, dead. He is, in truth, dead." 
 
 Then, fearing the return of the mourning friends, 
 or perhaps that by his presence he was keeping them 
 away, the old man, unattended and lonely, as he 
 had come, tottered away, leaning a little more 
 heavily than his wont upon his staff of olive 
 wood. 
 
 " Thou and I, thou and I," he muttered. Then, 
 as if to keep his faith alive by the sound of his 
 voice, he cried out as he passed as rapidly as he 
 could across the garden, where the crowds had taken 
 refuge during his visit to the body of his son: 
 " Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within 
 me bless His holy name." And here and there a 
 voice, pitying or scoffing, according to the nature of 
 the heart from which it emanated, cried out: "Who 
 healeth all thy diseases! Why then hath He not 
 healed thine?" Again: "Thou art grateful for 
 little, poor Simon." Then, as if given a sudden in- 
 spiration of conviction, Simon turned round on the 
 scoffing crowd, and, with a mighty voice, cried out : 
 "My son will yet rise again." 
 
 And while the Jews questioned among themselves 
 "What meaneth he ? Now or at the resurrection? " 
 the poor old man took his solitary way down the
 
 LAZARUS. 97 
 
 road that led on to Jerusalem, a sharp pang seizing 
 his heart as, every now and then, a child or an older 
 passer-by darted across the road, lest they should 
 touch him, exclaiming in horror ill-suppressed: 
 " 'T is Simon the Leper." 
 
 " Who knoweth what trickery they have con- 
 trived in yonder chamber ? " said the ever-suspicious 
 Annas to a bystander, dreading even now a miracle 
 at the last moment, and neglecting no opportunity 
 of instilling disbelief in its reality, should it appar- 
 ently take place. 
 
 The sad day was over, with its bereavement and 
 its disillusions, its horrible disappointments, its fruit- 
 less yearning for the glorious Presence which would 
 have so revived their drooping spirits. Lazarus had 
 been laid in his grave amid the chants and wailing 
 of nearly all Jerusalem. The air around the grave 
 was heavy with the perfumes that had been brought 
 as gifts. One by one the mourners had departed, 
 leaving a little group of intimates behind. Yet still 
 Annas lingered, half in awe and half suspicious. 
 Then, while the women continued to kneel beside 
 the grave, he approached Martha and addressed her 
 courteously enough. 
 
 " Lady," he said, " wouldst permit that these, 
 :ny soldiers, roll a stone upon the grave ? ' ' 
 
 ' Wherefore ? ' ' asked Martha, eying the wily 
 Jew with some distrust. 
 
 With shifting glance, he yet tried to look her 
 steadfastly in the face. " I fear some trickery," he 
 said ; and the accent of truth rang out in the greasy 
 voice. 
 
 "Art not ashamed to say such things?" asked 
 Martha testily. Then, drawing herself up to her full
 
 98 LAZARUS. 
 
 height, she added proudly: " Yea, if thou fearest 
 aught." With unutterable scorn the word " fear- 
 est" was pronounced. " If thou fearest aught from 
 heaven or earth, do what thou wilt. Set thy soldiers 
 to roll a stone before his grave." 
 
 Then the scheming Annas realised that he had 
 taken a false step, for, if miracle there were, then 
 it would assuredly be said, " Yet Annas placed a 
 stone against the door " ; giving double strength to 
 what might otherwise have been passed off as a trick. 
 Accordingly, hastily he replied: " Still, if thou will 
 it not, 't is all one; for there will be no miracle." 
 
 But Martha, justly angered, raised her head 
 proudly and made answer: " Nay, but I will now 
 that thou have this stone rolled on my brother's 
 grave ; and, if thou wilt but bid thy soldiers do it in 
 the presence of these who linger still and can bear 
 witness to it, I will myself send message to my kins- 
 man Caiaphas, or, if needs be, go to Pontius Pilate 
 to tell him of thy words." 
 
 Annas started, stung by her tone and words ; then 
 laughed an angry laugh. " Methinks that He who 
 can raise one so dead as Lazarus can also roll away 
 the stone." 
 
 ' Thou speakest well, thou treacherous Annas," 
 replied Martha, with some heat ; "for, if my brother 
 rise, it will be at the bidding of Jesus, the Son of 
 God, with whom all things are possible." 
 
 With these words she signed to the soldiers to roll 
 a stone against the tomb, stifling the wish to cast one 
 last long look at her brother, lest Annas should make 
 it an excuse for delaying to fulfil her wish. 
 
 Then the soldiers, partly to annoy Annas, whom
 
 LAZARUS. 99 
 
 they hated for a crafty Jew, and partly from Roman 
 courtesy to the two sorrowing women, rolled a huge 
 stone against the mouth of the tomb. But Annas 
 had already proceeded down the hill, as though re- 
 fusing to be witness to the act that he himself had 
 first suggested. 
 
 Nicodemus lingered for one moment to bid fare- 
 well to the two he knew and loved so well, and to 
 ask the question he had already longed to put : 
 " Thinkest thou still the Lord will come ? " 
 
 " He will come, He will come," wailed Martha; 
 " but my brother is dead; my brother will rise no 
 more." 
 
 "But at the resurrection," chimed in Mary softly. 
 And then, while Nicodemus hurried on to catch up 
 with Annas, the two women, with arms entwined, 
 wandered back to their solitary home, bereft for the 
 future of all its joy and sunlight and the chief in- 
 terest of their lives. Behind them walked a little 
 band of old and trusted friends, wailing and bemoan- 
 ing according to Jewish custom. On the clear even- 
 ing air their voices sounded like a celestial chorus. 
 
 " I will weep bitterly. Labour not to comfort 
 me. For it is a day of trouble, and of treading 
 down, and of perplexity by the Lord God of Hosts 
 in the valley of vision. Look away from me, look 
 away from me : I will weep bitterly. ' ' 
 
 Then a woman's voice alone took up the verse 
 from the Song of Solomon. 
 
 ' Where is thy beloved gone ? Whither is thy 
 beloved turned aside ? that we may seek him with 
 thee." 
 
 Then they all joined in once more: " Look away
 
 IOO LAZARUS. 
 
 from me, look away from me, for I will weep 
 bitterly." 
 
 Mary heard the words, that rose in tearful strains 
 behind her, and, turning, saw the Magdalene's white, 
 sorrowing face close to her own, trying to frame the 
 words of wailing, while the great tear-drops fell from 
 those lustrous eyes that had driven men mad afore- 
 time. 
 
 " Who knoweth how thy aching heart doth suffer, 
 my poor Magdalene ?" she murmured soothingly, 
 and stretching out her hand to her. 
 
 Then once more the mournful voices chanted: "I 
 said, O my God, take me not away in the midst of 
 my days. As for man, his days are as grass : as a 
 flower of the field, so he flourisheth. For the wind 
 passeth over it, and it is gone ; and the place thereof 
 shall know it no more. Look away from me, look 
 away from me, for I will weep bitterly I will weep 
 bit ter ly." 
 
 The voices rose and fell and there seemed no com- 
 fort anywhere. Now that the cherished body was 
 no longer there, the house seemed more desolate 
 than ever, and a great night was in their hearts; 
 deeper even than the gloom now falling silently, 
 though the moon was veiled and the stars shone not 
 out. And, as the last lamp flickered out in the 
 house of Bethany, all hope in the hearts of those 
 who were bereaved died with it, for there was no 
 message from the Lord. Brother and friend and 
 God, all had gone from them at once. But there 
 was no wavering of their faith. 
 
 " For the glory of God is this thing done," said 
 Mary. " We must tread the winepress alone."
 
 LAZARUS. IOI 
 
 But Martha, in the petulance of her fatigue and 
 grief, exclaimed: " If the Lord had been here, our 
 brother had not died " ; and in her revolting heart, 
 she cursed the Jews and all unbelievers and them 
 who sought His life and thus had kept Him away. 
 Great as was her faith, it was not so great that she 
 could believe that, if He had so willed it, He could 
 have raised Lazarus from afar. 
 
 Then, wearied out with physical fatigue and the 
 effort of brain and heart that tried in vain to pierce 
 the veil of the incomprehensible and remain stead- 
 fast, despite assailing doubts, the two women sought 
 repose and fell asleep from sheer exhaustion. But 
 in the chamber below, as outside in the garden, the 
 mourners still wailed: " Look away from me, look 
 away from me, for I will weep bitterly, I will weep 
 bitterly." 
 
 And so that saddest of all nights rolled away into 
 the tide of eternity, till at the Judgment Day the 
 Almighty should bid its waves leap upwards to the 
 steps of His throne and unfold on its swelling crests 
 the innermost secrets of its annals.
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 IT was winter and a little group of disciples clus- 
 tered round a fire of wood. These were won- 
 drous times, when none who believed sought rest, 
 or, if compelled to, allowed themselves but little 
 sleep. 
 
 Believing Jerusalem was convulsed, disbelieving 
 Jerusalem triumphant, that the expected miracle 
 the raising of Lazarus had not taken place. During 
 the absence of the Lord the disciples themselves 
 were debating it with wonder. One gave as a rea- 
 son that " He feared the publicity," another that 
 He durst not do this miracle on account of His 
 friendship with Mary and Martha. 
 
 " If they have not believed hitherto, will they be- 
 lieve because He raise up Lazarus ? " asked Peter. 
 
 " Nevertheless, for very love, methinks He will 
 yet do it." 
 
 " What said He unto thee when thou didst give 
 Him the message of Simon the Leper ? " 
 
 " He said, ' Let us go unto Judaea again.' ' 
 
 " And I," said John, " brought to His remem- 
 brance that the Jews sought to stone Him, and 
 't were not wise to go thither again." 
 
 " And what answered the Lord ?" inquired an- 
 other. 
 
 " He answered, 'Are there not twelve hours in the 
 
 IO2
 
 LAZARUS. 103 
 
 day ? If any man walketh in the day, he stumbleth 
 not, because he seeth the light of the world ; but if 
 a man walk in the night, he stumbleth, because 
 there is no light in him.' ' 
 
 " And how interpreted thou this saying ? " asked 
 another. 
 
 Then John, leaning forward, said: "Who can 
 fathom the words and doing of our Lord ? Yet, it 
 seemeth to me that He spake that the time was not 
 yet fitting; that, when the hour should come, then 
 the Jews would seek Him out, for He hath told us 
 further 'Our friend Lazarus sleepeth ; but I go that 
 I may awake him out of sleep.' ' 
 
 " If he sleep, he shall do well," said one. 
 ' Yet one hath been from Bethany to-day saying 
 that they have laid him in his grave. Have the 
 physicians so far erred that they take sleep for 
 death ? Luke, thou art a doctor, tell us, can such 
 things be ? " 
 
 " It hath been known that those in a trance have 
 been laid in their grave, and, after many days, have 
 been raised again. But my heart telleth me it is 
 not so in this case. For the glory of God hath it 
 been that our Master was not there ; else they that 
 seek to slay Him, or to entangle Him in His talk, 
 would speak of some bedazzlement or trickery. So 
 much the Lord doth love Lazarus that, had He seen 
 him sick, for very love He would have restored him, 
 but now that he hath lain in the grave three days, 
 surely the world will believe, if He do bring him 
 back to life." 
 
 'T is difficult to believe," said Thomas; " for 
 study hath given to each argument an answer."
 
 104 LAZARUS. 
 
 " Study hath given no answer for bringing back 
 the dead," said Peter, cynically; " yet I would my 
 Lord did not return to Bethany, for I fear the Jews: 
 This death of Lazarus the ruler doth make them 
 bold, and Nicodemus was ever an unstable reed, 
 drawn hither and thither by divers doctrines." 
 
 At that moment one of the disciples threw an- 
 other log on the fire, and a flame leapt up, making 
 visible the dark foliage of the fig trees, and lighting 
 with a thousand glancings the damp rocks behind. 
 
 There, in the midst of them, illumined by other 
 lights than earthly ones, stood motionless the Naza- 
 rene; and, as if in answer to their wonderments, He 
 murmured, in His sweet, sad voice: " Lazarus is 
 dead." 
 
 ' He hath seen Martha," said one, " for I was 
 told that she was near here this eve." 
 
 ' Tut, the Lord needeth none to tell Him," said 
 another. 
 
 Then the sweet, murmuring voice went on : "And 
 I am glad for your sakes that I was not there, to the 
 intent ye may believe. Nevertheless, let us go to 
 him." 
 
 All sprang to their feet at the Lord's command. 
 Doubtless He would start on His way at night, in 
 order to reach Bethany before daybreak ; and 
 Thomas, believing in His power to restore, but not 
 in His power to save them, yet full of undying love, 
 turned to his fellow-disciples and addressed them. 
 
 " Let us also go, that we may die with Him," he 
 counselled. 
 
 Then, falling down at Jesus' feet, they murmured : 
 "We will follow Thee wheresoever Thou goest, and 
 we will die with Thee."
 
 LAZARUS. 105 
 
 And the earnest, loving voice made answer: 
 " Greater love hath no man than this, that a man 
 lay down his life for his friends. ' ' 
 
 It had been happy, that home at Bethany, on 
 which such grief had fallen. Separated from their 
 father, Simon, by the laws of the country, by reason 
 of his leprosy, they yet nurtured great affection for 
 him, and often visited him. 
 
 Martha and Mary, united by the common grief of 
 widowhood, had agreed to share the house in Beth- 
 any, and to make a home for their younger brother, 
 Lazarus, a man whose learning and integrity had 
 earned for him the place of youngest ruler of the 
 Synagogue. They represented in the Jewish people 
 a type of persons that, before and since, has been 
 found in every place, in every country namely, a 
 quiet, God-fearing family, who, from the very dis- 
 cretion of their acts, brought no comment and no 
 interference on themselves. 
 
 From their earliest youth they had been trained 
 to follow, not so much the laws of the High Priest 
 as the ancient commandments of Moses; and, till 
 their father had been struck with sudden leprosy for 
 having, in a fit of drunkenness, blasphemed, they had 
 merely led moral, orthodox lives according to the 
 Jewish tenets, without concerning themselves with 
 any special sect or doctrine. It was only when this 
 swift visitation came upon them, with its awful cer- 
 tainty and rapid judgment, followed by the com- 
 pulsory alienation from the home, and later, when 
 the sorrow of widowhood was added, that their 
 thoughts, pressed back into the purifying furnaces of
 
 106 LAZARUS. 
 
 grief and solitude, began to turn to things divine. 
 Rigidly brought up in strict morality, devoted to 
 their parents, they had to witness the death of their 
 mother, through grief at the disgrace wrought in the 
 family by the plight of Simon. A horror of sin, if 
 such were its results, had terrified them into submis- 
 sion to the divine will ; but to Mary alone had been 
 vouchsafed the revelation of the possibility of an in- 
 ner life of love and devotion that depended neither 
 on necessity nor fear that true philosophy that 
 comes of faith, that choosing of a good part which 
 should not be taken away from her. Who can tell 
 when her heart first burned within her ? Perhaps 
 abuses of the Jewish law had excited in her revolt at 
 all that was not true. Perhaps the narrow-minded- 
 ness of Martha's views, or the love of luxury in which 
 Lazarus had indulged ; or, perhaps, the favour of 
 the Lord. Who can tell what gave to Mary the 
 loving heart of a little child who seeks but to be with 
 the object loved, that trustfulness which Jesus had 
 so often upheld in contrast to the self-righteousness 
 of the self-seeking Pharisees ? Doubtless it was in 
 great measure due to the chastening influence of the 
 griefs that she, in common with her brother and her 
 sister, had endured ; sorrow had drawn them to the 
 Man of Sorrows. Who can apportion the quota of 
 humanity in the Christ, or say how far He was con- 
 strained by cords of human sympathy and bands of 
 human love ? Sure, if the best emotions of humanity 
 did not move Him as powerfully as they move man- 
 kind yea, far more so this Godhead were of none 
 avail; for the will to love, to comfort, to redeem, 
 could only come with absolute knowledge of man's
 
 LAZARUS. IO7 
 
 feebleness. A Man of Sorrow and acquainted with 
 grief surely in that lies our greatest comfort, 
 who felt more keenly than all others and had more 
 often to suffer the bitterness of desertion. 
 
 " Couldst thou not watch with Me one hour ? " 
 and the bursting soul, thirsting for human sympathy, 
 not for the sake of comfort for none but the Divine 
 could comfort Him, yearning for loving converse 
 and companionship; longing to win souls to God; 
 turned for refreshment to a family who, if still igno- 
 rant, desired to learn the truth. Little wonder if, 
 in that time of superstition and disbelief among a 
 priest-ridden populace, a family that sought to un- 
 derstand, and welcomed the Saviour of mankind, 
 should find favour in the eyes of God and be hon- 
 oured with the greatest miracle the world has ever 
 known. Little wonder, too, that if they shared the 
 privilege of His friendship, the participation of His 
 mysteries, the comfort of His divine assurances, the 
 manifestation of His power, they should also, later, 
 share His humiliations, His scorn nay, the threats 
 of death, the persecutions that He had undergone. 
 For when our Lord should have died and risen; 
 when the thirst of vengeance of the priests and Phari- 
 sees should still remain unsatisfied, whetted, rather, 
 by the lingerings of belief in the breasts of the Jews, 
 who than Lazarus could be better fitted to carry on 
 the witness of tradition ; who be a better buffet for 
 the faults of others ; who more feared or more de- 
 tested by the lovers of power than he who, by his 
 very presence and his experience of death, could 
 transmit to the world living proof of the power of 
 the crucified Messiah ?
 
 108 LAZARUS. 
 
 For his fleshly body to rise again would not be un- 
 mixed happiness. It would mean to have suffered 
 the pains of death without entering into rest or peace 
 or joy. It would mean the being made the witness 
 of Christ's work on earth. It would mean a repeti- 
 tion of his sufferings, and, later, a second dissolution 
 of the body ; perhaps, also, a prolonging of existence 
 beyond the ordinary span of life, and, therefore, 
 extra suffering. It would mean, further, life made 
 more intolerable by the knowledge of eternity and 
 the impossibility of persuading men of what he 
 knew. Above all, it would mean a greater responsi- 
 bility as regards the daily actions of life to him 
 that seeth is the greater sin. 
 
 There must have been something infinitely sweet 
 in the appearance of Lazarus; for when the Lord 
 looked on him He loved him. The Nazarene, weary 
 with infidelity, worn out by disbelief, distressed, per- 
 haps (who knows ?), that most of His followers were 
 of the lower class, uneducated, and therefore the 
 more obstinate in their superstitions, in their under- 
 standing the more obtuse ; overwrought with the in- 
 tricate controversies that the Pharisees had forced up- 
 on Him, hoping to entangle Him, had turned in very 
 weariness towards the little children who stood about 
 as though inspired with added hope by the fresh 
 eagerness of their faces ; as if to illustrate, by their 
 meek trustingness, the only possible means of peace. 
 
 " Suffer the little children to come unto Me, and 
 forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of 
 Heaven." Who can tell the weariness of trying to 
 force by controversy and argument the acceptance 
 of a proposition that was so simple ? "Verily I say
 
 LAZARUS. 109 
 
 unto you, whosoever shall not receive the kingdom 
 of God as a little child, he shall not enter therein." 
 
 And He had taken them up in His arms and laid 
 His hands upon them and blessed them. 
 
 Lazarus had stood near when the preceding words 
 left the Saviour's lips. For months he had been 
 following the Nazarene from place to place, thirsting 
 for knowledge; yet for all he was a lawyer and a 
 ruler of the Synagogue, unable to recognise the 
 teaching of the Christ, unable to grasp the startling 
 doctrines, to reconcile them with the teachings of 
 his childhood and the surroundings of his daily life. 
 He had heard the Nazarene pray, and he had 
 prayed, but there had seemed a pall of unbelief upon 
 his heart. Arguments, such as he had learnt in his 
 legal profession (for almost every man that made any 
 claim to position in those days was a lawyer), seemed 
 ever to crop up. If this Man could save to the ut- 
 termost why did He not do so ? If He really was 
 all-powerful, what need to suffer and to toil and to 
 preach ? All the quibbles of unbelief, the torment 
 of uncertainty, which is the world's greatest curse, 
 which, since the world began, has raised its beguil- 
 ing voice, like the voice of a siren, to lure men from 
 the path of life ; all the demons of despair, had torn 
 at the heart of Lazarus ever since he had heard the 
 preaching of the Nazarene; but the answer to his 
 prayer had been coming, though he knew it not, 
 coming, as it always does, by inward revelation, not 
 as the result of argument. He had heard the chirp- 
 ing voices of the Jewish boys and girls as they clus- 
 tered round the Christ, and he had approached to 
 learn how Jesus spoke to the young.
 
 1 10 LAZARUS. 
 
 With the suddenness of a flash of lightning from 
 above, and with infinite peace and infinite gratitude, 
 his eyes had been opened ; for the first time he had 
 seen. For the first time in his life's dark gropings 
 there had shone a little light. 
 
 " Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of 
 God as a little child, he shall not enter therein." 
 
 Children, who argue not, who understand not, and 
 yet who believe. At that moment he had realised 
 the wondrous truth. 
 
 Christ's kingdom is not the creature of inductive 
 reasoning ; its being cannot be proved by argument. 
 
 Much that we see and hear is cruel, unjust, un- 
 true. Nature alone is the witness of God, revelation 
 alone that of the power of Christ. Miracles, prophe- 
 cies, the law, the letter what were these to un- 
 questioning obedience, to devoted love, to trust in 
 Christ ? The one had nothing to do with the other. 
 Theology was but a science built up on contradic- 
 tions. If there was an all-powerful God, why were 
 sin and misery and illness and injustice ? Why were 
 suffering millions only, after a short span, to die ? 
 Why did animals groan with the burdens of men ? 
 Why did He not reveal Himself in such a way as to 
 exclude all unbelief and make eternity of damnation 
 impossible ? That is, that will be, to the world's end, 
 the constant question, and only nature can give the 
 answer. Since there is a world, and there are trees 
 and flowers and times and seasons, for which thou 
 canst not account for canst thou bind the sweet 
 influence of Pleiades or loose the bands of Orion ? 
 since thou thyself art but helpless organism, albeit a 
 being with a brain and a throbbing heart, that hath
 
 LAZARUS. Ill 
 
 not love, nor mercy, nor understanding, stand un- 
 doubting and contemplate the works of a Creator. 
 Thou canst but acknowledge Him; and if, in His 
 mercy, He reveal to thee eternity, instead of leaving 
 thee for endless years in gloom, in doubt, in trouble 
 for thy future, welcome that revelation, and believe, 
 as thou canst not but believe, for all thou canst not 
 understand, and fall down and worship with thy soul 
 and body that Being thou wilt never comprehend. 
 For only God can comprehend God's nature. To 
 grasp eternity thou must be eternal ; to plumb the 
 depth of sin thou must be spotless ; to fathom love 
 thou must be Christ ; and since thou canst be none 
 of these, be content to trust, to worship, to love that 
 human God who hath placed Himself within thy 
 grasp. 
 
 Such thoughts had come to Lazarus, and salvation 
 had seemed, as it often seems to us, for a few mo- 
 ments a simple thing. But as the voices of the chil- 
 dren had grown more faint and the Lord's image less 
 distinct along the road, only a white gleam in the 
 growing dusk of evening seeming to speak of the 
 glory that was going by, it had seemed to him as if 
 a spirit walked beside him muttering, the while, 
 words of mistrust and doubt: " What if it should 
 not be true ? What if it is all a lie ? " 
 
 The voice had sounded so distinct that Lazarus 
 had turned quickly to see whether any one was 
 there. Then, in his troubled vision, it had seemed 
 as if two black wings had rustled away ; but it might 
 have been but the effect of clouds, or quivering 
 evening shadows ; yet, in very fear of losing the new 
 faith, the young ruler of the Synagogue had mur-
 
 1 1 2 LAZARUS. 
 
 mured: " Satan, Satan, trouble me not, for I seek 
 the Lord." 
 
 Then, filled with the terrors of the vision, if vision it 
 were, and lest the Lord should disappear, he had cried 
 out appealingly : " Lord, help me ! Lord, help me ! " 
 
 That is a cry that hath ever reached the Holy 
 One. Full of His own meditations, sad and troubled 
 as they were, the Lord had checked His steps. In 
 the glowing gloom His white garments had seemed 
 to gleam and His eyes to blaze like two burning 
 coals ; and as the glow in the western skies had illu- 
 mined his features with its dying rays, Lazarus had 
 thought he had never seen anything so radiantly 
 glorious yet so solemn. Then, as the Lord had 
 stretched out His arms towards him, His shadow 
 had made a faint cross on the red sand behind. 
 Then, as human sympathy springs into being one 
 knows not how, Jesus, in whom it was as strong as 
 His divinity, deigned to be drawn to the young ruler 
 who thirsted so for knowledge, and who was so near 
 to the truth ; who, by his own effort, had thus pre- 
 pared himself for revelation. 
 
 Seeing the young ruler approach, the disciples, 
 who from respect to their Lord were walking apart 
 from Him, lest they should raise the dust upon their 
 Master, had moved on, as though to leave the two 
 alone. 
 
 Then, kneeling down before that glorious image 
 of a perfect Man who, without the added glory of 
 angels or pomps or kingdoms, could, by the power 
 of His own purity, force men into obeisance, Laz- 
 arus had cried out: " Good Master, what shall I do 
 that I may inherit eternal life ? "
 
 LAZARUS. 113 
 
 And, floating on the evening air, interwoven with 
 the scent of flowers and cedar wood, had come the 
 question: " Why callest thou Me good? there is 
 none good but one, that is, God." 
 
 It was as if the voice had said, " Thou givest Me 
 the attribute of God, yet believest not that I am 
 He." 
 
 Then, knowing that He spoke to one well versed 
 in the Mosaic Law, the Nazarene had gone on in a 
 tone of pity, mingled with a little scorn as though 
 implying, "Hast thou not enough in thy religion to 
 save thee that thou comest to Me ? ' ' ' ' Thou 
 knowest the commandments, Do not commit adul- 
 tery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false 
 witness, Defraud not, Honour thy father and thy 
 mother." 
 
 And then Lazarus, with tears almost in his voice, 
 as though he feared the guidance to eternal life were 
 not forthcoming, had replied: " Master, all these 
 things have I observed from my youth." 
 
 Then Jesus had perceived that in this man there 
 lacked one thing only. The love of Christ was in 
 him. The wish to know the religion He came to 
 preach, the sighing and longing after righteousness, 
 the yearning for salvation, all these were his, but he 
 was hampered by the luxury that incites to indo- 
 lence, the love of comfort that fetters action. He was 
 a philosophic dreamer only, and as so many are, be- 
 lieving, trusting, hoping, but hanging back, for fear 
 of what he might lose of temporal wealth and earthly 
 pleasures, perhaps of social position. And Jesus 
 had known all this, and in His heart there had come 
 a longing that this yearning soul should be one of
 
 1 14 LAZARUS. 
 
 those who followed Him. Beholding him, He had 
 loved him, and with infinite pity and tenderness 
 had made answer: " One thing thou lackest : go thy 
 way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, 
 and thou shalt have treasure in heaven : and come, 
 take up the cross, and follow Me." 
 
 A look of disappointment had come over the face 
 of Lazarus. This was not what he had expected. 
 He had expected some mystic word that would 
 direct him straight to the eternal throne. He had 
 known that he had led such a life, in regard to purity 
 and uprightness, as the Nazarene preached ; but this, 
 to give up his possessions for Lazarus was a rich 
 man this would mean ceasing to be a ruler of the 
 Synagogue, a lawyer, and a great man in Bethany 
 and Jerusalem. Was this then the spirit of a little 
 child, to be the possessor of nothing, to look to the 
 Father for everything ? 
 
 Surely this thing was not so easy. A life of be- 
 lieving and uprightness, yes; but poverty ? pitiful 
 poverty, to a man who had worn purple robes and 
 been greeted in the market place with the cry of 
 Rabbi, Rabbi ! Verily they said truly that this Man 
 was but the God of the poor and of sinners and, 
 grieving at the Messiah's words, wishing inwardly 
 that the test of love had not been so severe, he had 
 gone on his way, followed by the sad, sweet eyes of 
 the Nazarene, yet with the words of Jesus deeply 
 rooted in his mind. In the garden of the house, the 
 garden in which his soul delighted, and which the 
 Lord would have him to give up, he had seen Martha 
 and Mary walking with arms entwined, watching the 
 beauty of the dying day, while they waited for their
 
 LAZARUS. 1 1 5 
 
 brother's return before partaking of the evening 
 meal. He had called out to them, and there had 
 been that in his weary, anxious tone which had 
 struck sadly on Mary's sympathetic ear. 
 
 Martha, at sight of her brother, had hurried into 
 the house to see that all was in readiness for him, 
 for she prided herself on naught so much as the well 
 ordering of her household. But Mary had come to 
 greet him, and, kissing him, had bade him come and 
 be seated on the terrace. Although it was winter, 
 the air was warm enough, the very slight chilliness 
 only making it the clearer and adding ruddy gor- 
 geousness to the flame-washed sky. From the ter- 
 race, which hung high above Jerusalem, was a lovely 
 view of the city, and beneath lay the valley of the 
 Jordan with the tall cypresses and cedar trees of the 
 Wood of Ephraim filling in the gap. Here and 
 there a star was beginning to twinkle ; opal and 
 pearly tints, then grey, like the breast of the turtle 
 dove bathed in sapphire, were stealing slowly over 
 primrose and carmine ; the pale new moon was 
 rising steadily, looking almost white, then turning 
 golden with departing day. ' Verily it is like 
 twilight and dawn meeting together," had said 
 Mary. Then, linking her arm in his, she had mur- 
 mured gently: " Hast thou seen the Lord to-day ? " 
 Then, at sight of the pained look on his face, she 
 had murmured softly: " Art tired, Lazarus ? Rest 
 thee and speak not." 
 
 Surely this woman was beloved by the Lord, for 
 she represented the very essence of sympathy, which, 
 only in that house, He had found in its veriest per- 
 fection. And Lazarus had answered wearily: " I
 
 Il6 LAZARUS. 
 
 have seen Him, Mary, I have entreated Him this 
 day, but He hath asked too much of me. Mary, I 
 cannot do as He would have me." 
 
 And overwrought with weariness of soul and body, 
 already attacked by the fever which was soon to 
 bring about his death, Lazarus had laid his head on 
 the marble supports of the seat and sobbed like a 
 little child. And Mary, wondering truly, but loath 
 to ask, had clasped him to her bosom and let him 
 sob out his heart there in the solitude and darkness 
 of the garden he was so soon to leave. Then, in 
 the growing darkness, she had raised her eyes inquir- 
 ingly to the pale lamps of heaven and, with tears 
 pouring down her cheeks, had sought for words 
 with which to calm the troubled soul of the dear 
 brother; and softly, like one who soothes an ailing 
 child, she had murmured the words that had come 
 uppermost : " Seek the Lord, and ye shall find Him. 
 Knock, and it shall be opened unto you." And, as 
 if in answer to her words and to the unuttered pray- 
 ers that struggled in the heart of each, a voice had 
 called with yearning, " Lazarus, Lazarus! " 
 
 And from the deepening shadows, standing with 
 feet that gleamed brightly on the dew-bathed turf, 
 had appeared the form divine of the Nazarene.
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 NO wonder that when dawn began to steal across 
 the sky and to struggle through the curtained 
 windows of the High Priest's dwelling, it should 
 find him still awake, perturbed and irritable, and 
 pacing his room, as was his wont when greatly 
 moved. It was a terrible face, this face of Caiaphas, 
 when freed from the look of unctuous pomposity 
 he strove to make impressive to the crowd. He, 
 Caiaphas, had taken a false step ; nay, more, he had 
 exposed himself to Nicodemus, a powerful colleague. 
 For once the great deliverer of the law had erred ; 
 erred in his assumption, erred in the plot he had 
 concocted, and in the means he had resorted to for 
 its achievement. What now, if Nicodemus should 
 expose him to Pontius Pilate ? Worse still, if Caesar 
 should hear of the midnight flitting of the great High 
 Priest to the house of Martha ? Had his plan suc- 
 ceeded, he would have turned towards Nicodemus 
 and twitted him with having been his tool. He had 
 intended to try to entangle the Christ in His talk, to 
 lead Him to speak of Himself; nay, more, to ask 
 Him again the question that the Majestic God-Man 
 had already so often meekly answered, yet with 'a 
 power and emphasis none could fail to recognise as 
 something more than human ; the ' Who art 
 Thou ? " which had echoed from every lip during 
 
 "7
 
 Il8 LAZARUS. 
 
 the ministry of Christ on earth. He had felt sure 
 that Jesus would be with those He loved at the 
 news that sorrow and death had overtaken them; 
 and down in his heart he felt that the answer to his 
 question would be bold and true: " I am the Son of 
 God." Oh, then, what delight to condemn the 
 Nazarene out of His own mouth, and what a refine- 
 ment of revenge to make Nicodemus a party to the 
 condemnation ! 
 
 Perhaps far down in his own breast had lain a 
 doubt whether, after all, the Christ could restore 
 Lazarus to life. If He did, it would be useless to 
 resist the populace or to try to persuade them either 
 that the Nazarene was but a man like other men, or 
 that He had a devil. But nothing had turned out 
 as he had expected. Caiaphas the great lawgiver 
 had made a mistake, as even the greatest do some- 
 times. Why had he not, he asked himself, sent 
 messengers first to Bethany to find out whether the 
 Nazarene was there? 
 
 ' The wily Galilean, some spirit doth assist Him 
 surely. It seemeth as if He had known that I would 
 come." He went to his window, musing while 
 murmuring these words, and looked out on to the 
 white walls of Jerusalem, just beginning to glow in 
 the light of morning. 
 
 He had found Mary alone, praying by the body 
 of Lazarus. Martha even was not there. She had 
 barely raised herself at the great priest's entrance. 
 
 " Hast thou come to bless him ere he die ? It is 
 too late," she had said. 
 
 Her question had seemed for one moment to show 
 Caiaphas the vileness of his own intent ; but, quick
 
 LAZARUS. 1 19 
 
 to seize on an advantage, he had replied: " I came, 
 as kinsman, to condole with thee and Martha." 
 
 Mary had looked up at Caiaphas for one moment. 
 Something in the tone of Caiaphas had filled her 
 with surprise. It was not like Caiaphas to recognise 
 the kinship, or to do aught from kindness; nay, 
 more, for many months they had been under a curse 
 from him for harbouring the Nazarene. 
 
 As if to dispel her wonder, Nicodemus had taken 
 the opportunity, while Caiaphas had walked towards 
 the body of Lazarus, to whisper to her: " Me- 
 thinks he came expecting to see Jesus raise Lazarus 
 from the dead." 
 
 Mary had shaken her head sadly. ' We too had 
 hoped so much," she had answered. ' We sent to 
 tell the Lord, and the Lord did make reply that 
 this sickness was not unto death, but for the glory 
 of God. Yet now the physicians all declare that this 
 is no trance, but that our brother is dead indeed, 
 and to-night we bury him." 
 
 Breathless, Nicodemus had asked: " Dost thou 
 still believe, Mary, that Jesus is the Son of God, 
 and hath power to raise the dead ? " 
 
 Slowly, but with proud head and trustful eyes up- 
 raised to heaven, she had replied: " I believe that 
 Jesus is the Son of God." 
 
 At her words, Caiaphas had turned round sud- 
 denly; then, shrugging his shoulders, he had re- 
 plied: "Ye are all gone mad together. If thy 
 Christ had raised thy brother Lazarus, I too would 
 have believed ; but now " 
 
 " He will raise him in the resurrection," she had 
 replied with gentle sadness, fretting, as those do
 
 120 LAZARUS. 
 
 who cannot prove their words. " Yet He is the 
 Lord," she had added with simple trust. 
 
 Signing to Nicodemus to follow, Caiaphas had 
 turned to go. 
 
 ' Thou blasphemest without knowing it. God 
 forgive thee," he had said. And, with uplifted 
 head and pompous step, he had left the house, stop- 
 ping at the threshold to shake the dust from off his 
 feet. 
 
 One gleam of satisfaction alone had relieved the 
 gloom of his nocturnal visit. If he had missed the 
 Christ, he had satisfied himself that Lazarus was 
 really dead. No trickery could bring him back to 
 life. The sunken eyes and protruding brow, the 
 white fingers, the cold, cold feet ; all had been taken 
 in by Caiaphas's eagle glance. If he had betrayed 
 himself to Nicodemus, it mattered little, for no man 
 henceforth would follow the Christ. All Judaea had 
 expected the resurrection of Lazarus. All Judaea 
 had been disappointed, and a disappointed people 
 would be facile to gather back into the fold of the 
 great High Priest. The triumph was to be short- 
 lived, though he knew it not but it was a triumph, 
 nevertheless. The absence of the Nazarene, the 
 two poor women alone and sorrowing, Lazarus, the 
 friend of the Galilean, dead like any ordinary Jew 
 dog, as Caiaphas expressed it, all these failures 
 lent themselves to the accomplishment of the High 
 Priest's prophecy that Jesus would die that year. 
 With spies and soldiers everywhere, Caiaphas ex- 
 pected soon to learn where Jesus was, and what 
 kept Him away from the house of Martha. 
 
 " 'T is fear, fear lest amongst the multitudes, or
 
 LAZARUS. 121 
 
 amidst the uproar, I or Annas should lay hands on 
 Him." So thought Caiaphas aloud; so, later, he 
 expressed himself ; but, deep down in his heart, he 
 knew that the Man who boldly in the Temple had 
 denounced the scribes and Pharisees, even the very 
 ruler of Israel himself, and called them hypocrites 
 and whitened sepulchres, could have no fear. Yes, 
 he had noted in the eyes of the Messiah, the only 
 time he had seen Him in the multitude, a look that 
 could goad a man only to untempered penitence, or 
 to deepest hellish hate. That look had pierced 
 Caiaphas to his inmost being. It had seemed to 
 read the secret of his heart, with pity and with scorn 
 that one so learned could be so ignorant, or that, 
 knowing, could so wilfully withhold his knowledge 
 from the nation, and try to cheat his God. That 
 look had ranked Caiaphas with the devils, and surely 
 the sin of Caiaphas was one with that of Satan, who 
 pitted his strength against his God, and tried, poor 
 puny atom of evil, to strive with the Creator and 
 Director of the Universe. 
 
 Wearied with his ceaseless pacings to and fro, 
 Caiaphas threw himself upon his couch. His tri- 
 umph, the triumph of the law, was close at hand. 
 With the failure of Jesus (for what could it be but 
 failure, if Jesus was afraid to save His friend for fear 
 of the multitude ?) would begin again the power of 
 the Pharisees, only it would be a thousand times 
 more strong and more despotic. Like wayward 
 children, the people would return. Like one re- 
 pulsed, they would fall back beneath the sway of 
 Caiaphas. He could hear himself denouncing from 
 the altar their temporary infidelity.
 
 122 LAZARUS. 
 
 ' Did I not tell ye from the beginning that it 
 would be so ?" he thought he heard himself saying. 
 " Did I not tell ye so ? Ye would not believe. But 
 ye have set at naught all my counsel and would 
 none of my reproof. I also will laugh at your 
 calamity. I will mock when your fear cometh." 
 Oh, how delicious would be the return of that fawn- 
 ing, cringing people ! What sacrifices and oblations 
 he would exact ; what tyrannies he would enact to 
 punish them for daring to oppose their will to that 
 of Caiaphas ! It was a consoling dream of vengeance 
 and triumph and requital. The great priest leaned 
 his head against the wall and smiled to himself a 
 cold, triumphant smile that had a diabolical imprint 
 upon it. 
 
 The door was flung open and a servant announced 
 Nicodemus. 
 
 " Methinks he takes too much upon himself in 
 seeking me thus early, and all because last night I 
 walked some paces with him," said Caiaphas to him- 
 self; but, when Nicodemus entered, his face assumed 
 a pleasanter expression. 
 
 " Welcome, Nicodemus. Hast thou forgiven 
 me ?" 
 
 ' Forgiven thee ?" The simple Nicodemus re- 
 garded the High Priest with wonder. 
 
 With that fascinating Jewish familiarity that had 
 bewitched so many, Caiaphas rose from his couch 
 and placed his hand on Nicodemus's shoulder. 
 
 " Now, friend Nicodemus, I will tell thee the 
 truth, but thou must not be angry. Last night I 
 fooled thee ; I hoped to catch the Messiah, as ye call 
 Him. Ha ! ha ! The Messiah indeed ! And I
 
 LAZARUS. 123 
 
 feared me that, if I had thee not with me, thou 
 wouldst warn Him, and so I should lose my prey. 
 Therefore I behaved to thee as if I too were a be- 
 liever in this blasphemer." 
 
 But Nicodemus answered nothing, and Caiaphas 
 with a little less certainty in his manner went on : 
 " But He fooled us, this Nazarene; for where I, 
 Caiaphas, expected to find Him, He was not; so 
 our night errand was a wasted one, and thou mayst 
 mock Caiaphas and point thy finger at him for a fool. 
 What sayest thou now, Nicodemus ? Did I not 
 feign well ? " 
 
 " Not better than could be expected of the High 
 Priest," replied Nicodemus in a tone of asperity 
 and cynicism, of which Caiaphas had not thought 
 him capable, and which might hide meaning he 
 would not relish. 
 
 Yet he continued: " I knew thou wouldst be 
 angry, for no man likes to be fooled by another; but, 
 last night, we were both fools, for thou fooledst me 
 and the blasphemous Nazarene fooled us both." 
 Here he laughed harshly. " But at any rate we 
 have done with Him ; He hath disappointed the 
 people. His power, 't is evident, cannot always be 
 put forth, or He would have spared His friend Laza- 
 rus the pains of death." Then, reseating himself, 
 Caiaphas continued unctuously: " So it is that all 
 that is not true cometh to an end. At one time it 
 seemed truly, from what the people said, that this 
 Galilean did participate in some way of the divine ; 
 but praise be to God (here Caiaphas rolled his eyes 
 upward toward the ceiling), who doth not let the 
 wicked flourish for ever. This wavering of the
 
 124 LAZARUS. 
 
 people hath been cut short. The bewitchment is 
 over, and their souls will return unto the law of 
 Moses. They will have learned much that is true 
 and noble from this fanatic; they will return in 
 strengthened faith to their own rulers, and Judaea 
 will be more quiet than before." 
 
 Nicodemus, bewildered, yet half doubting, was 
 about to reply ; but, even while he opened his lips, 
 there was a great noise below as of tramping feet, 
 and presently cries and shrieks rose on the air with 
 bewildering clamour and confusion. The voices of 
 men and women and children were joined in a song 
 of praise, and cry after cry went up, " Hosanna! 
 Hosanna! " Then a chorus of young voices broke 
 out spontaneously in the beautiful words of the 
 Psalmist, chanted to the tune of a melodious Hebrew 
 hymn: " Surely His salvation is nigh them that 
 fear Him ; that glory may dwell in our land. Mercy 
 and truth are met together : and righteousness shall 
 look down from heaven. O Lord, how great are 
 Thy works! Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all 
 ye lands. Know ye that the Lord He is God. 
 Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all the earth : 
 make a loud noise, and rejoice, and sing praise. 
 Praise ye the Lord. Praise ye the Lord." 
 
 As the noise approached the house of Caiaphas 
 the High Priest could hear, during an occasional 
 lull, hisses and groans. Then, now and then, a 
 voice shrieked out: " Where is Lazarus ? Give us 
 Lazarus. ' ' 
 
 Caiaphas sat silent, clasping the sides of his cedar- 
 wood chair, and bit his lips, affecting to have no 
 curiosity. Nicodemus, however, had rushed to the
 
 LAZARUS. 125 
 
 window-seat with spontaneous eagerness to see what 
 the clamour might portend. 
 
 But it could not be that Caiaphas, the restless, 
 arrogant, wrath-eaten Caiaphas, would long be silent. 
 
 With a deep, harsh, derisive laugh he called out to 
 Nicodemus impatiently: " What seest thou ? Is it, 
 perchance, Lazarus restored by the Son of God ? " 
 
 Nicodemus turned his head for one moment in an- 
 swer. " I see naught but a vociferating crowd as- 
 sembled round a beggar man." Then, stretching 
 farther out of the window, he called to one of the 
 soldiers who always stood at the entrance of Caia- 
 phas's door: " Wherefore all this tumult ? " 
 
 "It is the beggar Rabneh, who hath returned from 
 the Pool of Siloam," replied the soldier. " They 
 say it is he that was blind and whose sight was 
 restored by the Nazarene. ' ' 
 
 " Is it in truth so ? Is it he ?" asked Nicodemus, 
 as softly as the distance would permit, lest Caiaphas 
 should hear; but no whisper escaped the alert ears 
 of the suspicious High Priest. 
 
 " Peace, thou fool! " he roared. "How can it be 
 he?" 
 
 But Nicodemus paid no heed. The crowd had 
 assembled beneath the window, gabbling furiously, 
 quarrelling, vociferating, howling with praise, or 
 shrieking in derision, and thronging around a poorly 
 clad man, some shouting: " How were thine eyes 
 opened ?" others crying out: "It is not he, it is 
 another like him, it is not he." 
 
 " Where, then, is the beggar we have often seen 
 on the wayside, begging, and ofttimes entreating 
 the Christ ; where is he, if this be not the man ? ' '
 
 126 LAZARUS. 
 
 " Go and fetch him ! " cried a voice. But, even 
 whilst the voice was lost in the tumult of disputings, 
 two old people of the poorest class, leaning on sticks, 
 approached, and the Jewish crowd, courteous in all 
 its laws and ways, fell back to let age pass by un- 
 molested. 
 
 " Here are his parents; mayhap they will know 
 if he be their son," cried a scornful voice. 
 
 ' ' Give ear, give ear, ' ' cried the people ; and then 
 a dead silence ensued, while one of the Pharisees 
 stepped up to the old couple. 
 
 " Speak," said he, with a tone of authority. " Is 
 this your son who, ye say, was born blind ? How, 
 then, doth he now see ? " 
 
 The crowd seemed electrified into silence, and a 
 great hush fell on all while they waited for the an- 
 swer. So sudden was the silence that Caiaphas could 
 contain his curiosity no longer, but strode to the 
 window and, laying a powerful hand on Nicodemus's 
 shoulder, drew him back to make room for his own 
 portly figure. 
 
 Too excited to resent this insult, Nicodemus ex- 
 plained the situation to the High Priest. 
 
 " See, there are the parents of the blind man, but 
 they are so old and full of fear that they are slow to 
 answer." 
 
 Then, in a voice he strove hard to make steady, 
 the old man answered: " We know that this is our 
 son, and that he was born blind, but by what means 
 he seeth, we know not ; he is of age ; ask him ; he 
 shall speak for himself." 
 
 Then, turning to the man again, the crowd shouted 
 as with one voice: "How were thine eyes opened ?
 
 LAZARUS. 127 
 
 Tell us, or we will kill thee as a blasphemer and a 
 liar. ' ' 
 
 Then the beggar spoke: " A man that is called 
 Jesus made clay, and anointed mine eyes, and said 
 unto me, 'Go to the Pool of Siloam, and wash ' ; and 
 I went and washed, and I received sight." 
 
 " Dost thou say, then, that He is the Christ ? " 
 asked one of the Pharisees again ; for he knew that 
 if the man would but say that Jesus was the Christ 
 they would cast him out of the Synagogue. For 
 the unbelieving Jews had already agreed that this 
 was to be the penalty of those who acknowledged 
 the Nazarene to be the Christ. 
 
 But the beggar, fearing entanglement, was silent. 
 
 Then the Pharisee spoke again : " Give God the 
 praise. We know that this man is a sinner." 
 
 Fearing the multitude, the man did not cry out, 
 "He is the Christ, He is the Son of God " ; but, full 
 of gratitude for his new-found sight, he could not 
 let the Pharisee's words remain unanswered. 
 
 ' Whether he be a sinner or no, I know not," he 
 replied; "but one thing I know, that, whereas I was 
 blind, now I see." 
 
 Then said they to him again, hoping to confound 
 him out of his own mouth: " What did He to 
 thee ? How opened He thine eyes ? " 
 
 Then, still fearing the crowd, but growing stronger 
 in faith and loyalty, the beggar answered: "I have 
 told ye already, and ye did not hear; wherefore 
 would ye hear it again ? will ye also be His dis- 
 ciples ? ' ' 
 
 Then they reviled him, and said: "Thou art His 
 disciple; but we are Moses' disciples."
 
 128 LAZARUS. 
 
 " Well spoken, well spoken," muttered Caiaphas, 
 and the voices went on speaking: " We know that 
 God spake unto Moses ; as for this fellow, we know 
 not from whence He is." 
 
 Then, oblivious of all danger, and conscious only 
 of a great love and gratitude to the compassionate 
 Jesus who had opened his eyes, the beggar spoke 
 again: " Why, herein is a marvellous thing, that ye 
 know not from whence He is, and yet He hath 
 opened mine eyes. Now we know that God heareth 
 not sinners, but, if any man be a worshipper of God, 
 and doeth His will, him He heareth." 
 
 " He argueth well, this beggar," muttered Caia- 
 phas, carried away against his will by the man's 
 words. 
 
 The beggar continued: " Since the world began 
 was it not heard that any man opened the eyes of 
 one that was born blind. If this Man were not of 
 God, He could do nothing." 
 
 Then the multitude divided amongst themselves, 
 some believing, and some reviling; yet, united in 
 wonder and curiosity, they shouted: "What sayest 
 thou of Him that hath opened thine eyes ? " 
 
 And the beggar, fearing the while that he would 
 be torn to pieces, replied, with faltering faith: " He 
 is a prophet." 
 
 ' Thou sayest so now, but thou almost said but a 
 moment ago that He is of God; where is He then, 
 that He may witness of thy sayings ? " 
 
 " I know not," replied the beggar. 
 
 "No, thou knowest not for thine own ends. He, 
 too, hideth Himself for fear of the people," cried 
 some of the crowd. " He feared even to be at His
 
 LAZARUS. 129 
 
 friend's death-bed, lest the sister should revile Him, 
 or the Jews take Him." 
 
 And the crowd began to lay hands on the beggar 
 to smite him, and push him about, gibing him the 
 while and taunting him with coarse speech; while 
 Caiaphas, standing back from the window, lest he 
 should be noticed by the crowd, muttered ominously : 
 " Well done, well done, my people."
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 OUDDENLY, like a mist or cloud formed from 
 O the sun's effulgence into a mass of golden atoms 
 held together by their own glory, a figure clad in 
 white, that seemed to irradiate its own shimmering 
 purity with dazzling lustre, and to set at naught the 
 brilliancy of the sun itself the figure of the Naza- 
 rene stood in the midst of them. The crowd fell 
 back in awe, and all looked upwards, as though they 
 thought He had descended from the heavens; for 
 none had noticed His approach, or could tell whence 
 He had come. Caiaphas started backward with a 
 curse. " How long shall this man trouble us ? " he 
 muttered. Then, turning to a messenger for one 
 stood always at the entrance to his chamber he 
 commanded: " Go, tell the soldiers that stand be- 
 low to hold themselves in readiness to lay hands 
 upon this Jesus, and to bring Him hither when I 
 give the word. Dost hear, fool?" he exclaimed 
 sharply, when the man seemed to hesitate. 
 
 " "T will be no easy task," replied the soldier; 
 " for though the people revile those who say He is 
 the Christ, yet, when they see Him they fall down 
 and worship Him, and easily would tear to pieces 
 those who seek to slay Him or lay hands on Him." 
 
 With cynicism and contempt, the High Priest re- 
 plied: " It will perhaps make thy task the easier, 
 
 130
 
 LAZARUS. 131 
 
 coward, if thou tellest the soldiers that, unless my 
 word be obeyed and the Nazarene brought here at 
 my bidding, they shall forthwith be cast into prison 
 and, maybe, crucified. Though they be Romans, 
 Pontius Pilate hath agreed that, in all things, those 
 who are in my service shall be tried by Jewish law. 
 Speed thee now, or thou, too, shalt fear the power 
 of the law." 
 
 Caiaphas could have put forward no two stronger 
 incentives to action than the calling of a Roman sub- 
 ject a coward and threatening him with the humilia- 
 tion of a Jewish punishment. 
 
 " This man is beyond forbearance," muttered 
 the man, as he hurried down the stairs to obey Caia- 
 phas's behest. 
 
 Then, with cruel delight, seeing that Nicodemus 
 quivered and winced at his words, Caiaphas turned 
 to him and said : " What thinkest thou, Nicodemus ? 
 Have I not done well ? Is it not time this mum- 
 mery had an end ? ' ' 
 
 Distraught with rage and impotence, yet not 
 courageous enough to throw himself upon Caiaphas, 
 Nicodemus answered: " Doth our law judge any 
 man before it hear him and know what he hath 
 done ?" 
 
 Caiaphas laughed. ' Thou, too, art gone mad, 
 Nicodemus. Art thou also of Galilee ? Search and 
 look, for out of Galilee doth arise no prophet." 
 
 But Nicodemus answered: " Methinks it was of 
 Galilee the prophet Isaiah spoke in the words: 'The 
 people that walked in darkness have seen a great 
 light : they that dwell in the land of the shadow of 
 death, upon them hath the light shined. ' Now I re-
 
 132 LAZARUS. 
 
 call that thou thyself didst once preach in the Syna- 
 gogue that this people was by way of the sea beyond 
 Jordan in Galilee of the nations." 
 
 Caiaphas scowled. ' Verily thou hast good mem- 
 ory, Nicodemus. 'T will be well that Caesar and 
 Herod learn that Nicodemus, the great ruler of the 
 Synagogue, believeth that this Jesus is the Son of 
 God." 
 
 Then, fearing lest he had said too much, he re- 
 sumed the playful, half-patronising, half-deprecating, 
 persuasiveness with which he had won over so many 
 enemies. " Nay, heed me not, good Nicodemus," 
 he went on; " thou hast a right to thine own 
 thoughts ; but thou art wrong, this Man is not the 
 Christ. Nevertheless, let us step out on to the roof 
 and listen, for He hath good flow of language, this 
 Nazarene, and He interested! me greatly." 
 
 Half sullenly, and half incredulously, yet wonder- 
 ing at the sudden change of mood of the cunning 
 priest, Nicodemus followed him on to the flat roof. 
 
 As they stepped out, they heard the voice of the 
 Nazarene speaking to the beggar; and Caiaphas 
 leaned forward to listen. 
 
 " Dost thou believe in the Son of God ? " asked 
 the gently entreating voice; and the words thrilled 
 Caiaphas against his will. 
 
 " Who is He, Lord ? " replied the beggar, looking 
 with doubting wonder, yet with love and gratitude, 
 at the Perfect Man before him, His face marred only 
 by the lines of suffering and pity drawn on it. 
 
 Breathless, the two rulers listened for the answer 
 that Caiaphas had gone to Bethany to hear. It 
 seemed as if, in answer to the questionings of their
 
 LAZARUS. 133 
 
 hearts, the Nazarene raised His eyes towards them, 
 rather than to the beggar; as if, also, the message 
 concerned both the individual and the world collec- 
 tively, a vital truth addressed to every soul through- 
 out the universe: " Thou hast both seen Him, and 
 it is He that talketh with thee." 
 
 Caiaphas rose excitedly. " Dost hear this blas- 
 phemy, Nicodemus ? " he almost shouted; but his 
 voice was drowned in the uproar of the people ; some 
 crying: "It is the Lord, hear ye Him. The Messiah 
 hath indeed come down." Others crying out : "He 
 hath a devil." 
 
 But the beggar, as if struck suddenly with a reve- 
 lation of the truth, cried out, in a voice that seemed 
 to rend the skies: "Lord, I believe, Lord, I be- 
 lieve. ' ' 
 
 A smile, so heavenly as to be beyond the power 
 of man's description, illumined the Messiah's face. 
 His eyes were raised to heaven, as if in prayer and 
 thankfulness for giving Him this one soul, at least, 
 in all that multitude. 
 
 Caiaphas, meanwhile, was marching up and down 
 the terrace, oblivious of the crowd, which, if it had 
 not been so absorbed by the presence of the Naza- 
 rene would have espied him. 
 
 " This time I tell thee, Nicodemus, I will not de- 
 lay. Even now will I give the order to arrest Him. 
 This man bewitcheth the people with a devil." 
 
 " Nay, forbear," cried Nicodemus hastily. " Lis- 
 ten yet awhile. He goeth to Solomon's porch to 
 preach to the multitude. If thou wilt slay Him it 
 will be the last speech He maketh, and I would hear 
 Him yet this once."
 
 134 LAZARUS. 
 
 " As thou wilt; but it is the last time; my mind 
 is made up," answered Caiaphas. And, while he 
 spoke, he clenched his fists, and his features hardened 
 into an expression that was diabolical. 
 
 " Yea, 't will surely be the last time," said Nico- 
 demus to himself. But already the divine voice had 
 begun to speak, and the crowd was silent, sitting, 
 standing, kneeling around, while the little children 
 clustered around the knees of the Nazarene, and 
 looked boldly up into the face they loved and feared 
 not. 
 
 His subject was that on which He had enlarged 
 aforetime; that of the shepherd, the hireling, and 
 the sheep. 
 
 When He paused, the cry went up, " What mean- 
 est Thou ? Thou speakest in parables. Who is the 
 shepherd, who are the sheep ? Thinkest Thou that 
 we are blind also, or fools like sheep, that these 
 parables for children are for such as we ? We are 
 not beggars, we are not blind." 
 
 Caiaphas heard, and murmured in approval : "The 
 Nazarene hath overreached Himself. The Jewish 
 people love plain-speaking." 
 
 Then, in answer to the crowd, the voice of the 
 Messiah rose again: " If ye were blind, ye should 
 have no sin ; but now ye say, we see ; therefore your 
 sin remaineth. ' ' 
 
 Then He proceeded to unfold the meaning of His 
 parable. 
 
 When He ceased speaking, the Jews began discuss- 
 ing among themselves. Here and there a voice was 
 heard crying out: " Show us Lazarus, and we will 
 believe."
 
 LAZARUS. 135 
 
 " They are no fools, the Jewish people," mut- 
 tered Caiaphas; " they are a fair and reasonable 
 people. ' ' 
 
 When the name of Lazarus was repeated by the 
 crowd, a great sadness overspread the face of Jesus; 
 this the people misread for trouble at His impotence, 
 or at their detection of it. Fiercely and half mad 
 with excitement, they gathered round the Nazarene. 
 
 " How long dost Thou make us to doubt ? " said 
 one. " Tell us plainly if Thou be the Christ." 
 
 Then once more Jesus answered them : "I told ye 
 and ye believed not; the works that I do in My 
 Father's name, they bear witness of Me. But ye 
 believe not, because ye are not of My sheep. My 
 sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they 
 follow Me. And I give unto them eternal life, and 
 they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck 
 them out of My hand." 
 
 A scoffing voice called out: " Nevetheless they 
 have plucked Lazarus from out Thy hand." A 
 mocking laugh went up from the crowd, and Caia- 
 phas joined in it. Then the voice of Jesus rose 
 once more : 
 
 ' ' My Father, which gave them Me is greater than 
 all, and no man is able to pluck them out of My 
 Father's hand." 
 
 "He maketh out that Lazarus is with the 
 Father," cried one. 
 
 " I and My Father are one," went on the calm, 
 impressive voice. 
 
 Then some of the Jews took stones and hurled 
 them at Him; but fearlessly, and with an indiffer- 
 ence that brought a shout of admiration from the
 
 136 LAZARUS. 
 
 Roman soldiers standing round in waiting for Caia- 
 phas's message to arrest Him, the Nazarene con- 
 tinued : 
 
 Many good works have I showed ye from My 
 Father; for which of these good works do ye now 
 stone Me ? " 
 
 Then the Jews cried out: " For a good work we 
 stone Thee not, but for blasphemy, and because that 
 Thou, being a man, makest Thyself God." 
 
 Once more the stones flew round the golden head 
 of the Messiah. One of the disciples stepped for- 
 ward, as if to shelter Him, but the Messiah raised 
 His hand and went on : 
 
 " If I do not the works of My Father, believe Me 
 not ; but if I do, though ye believe not Me, believe 
 the works, that ye may know and believe that the 
 Father is in Me and I in Him." 
 
 Then, exasperated by His calmness, the Jews rose 
 up and approached Him menacingly. Luke, who 
 was standing just behind Jesus, stepped forward and 
 took two of the children by the hand ; then, raising 
 them in his arms, handed them to their mothers, 
 who stretched forward to receive them over the 
 heads of the multitude. 
 
 Then, like a lion who has awaited his prey only to 
 make its seizure more assured, Caiaphas thundered 
 forth these words: " Quick, Gilner, hie thee to the 
 soldiers. Bid them bring this Jesus to me here a 
 captive." Then, with an after-thought, he added: 
 " But no violence, mind ye." 
 
 The messenger, mindful of the High Priest's for- 
 mer threats, precipitated himself into the street, and 
 Nicodemus, fearing the scene that was about to en-
 
 LAZARUS. 137 
 
 sue, and yet not brave enough to try to defend the 
 Nazarene; fearing also that he would at last be 
 goaded into giving vent to the rage that seemed to 
 suffocate him, bade a hasty farewell to Caiaphas, and 
 took his leave. 
 
 Caiaphas remained alone, his head so bent that his 
 chin rested on his breast. It all depended upon him 
 now, the death or the life of the Nazarene. It all 
 lay in his hands, the hands of Caiaphas. If but it 
 was too ridiculous to speculate upon if this was the 
 Son of God, even then Caiaphas would try to op- 
 pose, rather than descend from his place of power 
 for what was a high priest, after all, but a fore- 
 shadow of the future, ordained to keep alive in the 
 hearts of men the promise of God to send the world 
 a Saviour ? When the Saviour should come, priest 
 and ordinance would cease to be ; this he knew well. 
 Alone Caiaphas reasoned with himself. Shortly 
 they would bring Jesus before him ; surely, if He 
 were the Son of God, He would give convincing 
 proof of it. Either the great High Priest would be 
 forced into obeisance and submission, or, if the 
 Nazarene were but a fanatical prophet, a defier of 
 the law, a blasphemer, a devil let loose to betray the 
 people, Caiaphas, the great Caiaphas, would find it 
 out. But deep, deep down in his heart that was 
 gradually closing eveiy door to faith, hardening each 
 plastic fibre with ambition, lust, and greed, echoed 
 still the words, " I am the good shepherd." 
 
 Yes, if he would but own it to himself, Caiaphas 
 knew that there was something in the words of the 
 Nazarene that had in it the ring of truth ; that, like 
 true coin, could never pass for false.
 
 138 LAZARUS. 
 
 Too clever, too learned, was Caiaphas not to know 
 the fast hold the Pharisees had on the people, not to 
 be conscious that this enthralling power of lawyer, 
 scribe, and Pharisee musts needs be broken through 
 before the people could be set free to worship the 
 living God. 
 
 Oh, he knew it well, this great High Priest ; but a 
 certainty of power in this world was more to him 
 than a shadowy, uncertain place in God's eternity. 
 Ambition, the love of power, the greatest tempta- 
 tions that can assail a man, were too strong for 
 Caiaphas. 
 
 The day wore on, and, so absorbed was Caiaphas 
 in his dreams, that he forgot his midday meal and 
 his usual visit to the Synagogue. 
 
 The men were long in returning. Hour succeeded 
 hour, and Caiaphas sat wondering why the soldiers 
 came not with the Nazarene. He waited before 
 sending other messengers, for he had given injunc- 
 tions that no violence was to be used ; maybe the 
 Jews, or, at least, the followers of the Nazarene, the 
 twelve who had declared themselves forever on His 
 side, had offered some resistance. Yet it was 
 strange that none came with a message, that there 
 was no uproar, no tumult in the streets. Once he 
 stepped out on to the terrace, and sheltering with 
 his hands his eyes, he scanned Jerusalem, its roofs, 
 its winding streets, the distant groves of palms ; but 
 nowhere were crowds, or even groups in sight. 
 
 " Perhaps they have killed Him in their zeal," he 
 murmured to himself. As the afternoon wore on, 
 and the glowing Eastern twilight fell almost sud- 
 denly, he began to marvel that none had come to
 
 LAZARUS. 139 
 
 him, and the thought oppressed him. It was 
 strange indeed for Caiaphas to be thus unvisited 
 and unattended. Now and then a waterman 
 walked down the road with his goat skin slung 
 across him, crying out mournfully, " Ho, any one 
 that thirsteth." 
 
 Here and there a woman came out from her door 
 with a pitcher to be filled ; but the gloom of evening 
 gathered quickly, for winter was beginning, and the 
 Feast of Dedication was then at hand. He could 
 see the priests closing the doors of the Temple, and 
 on distant roofs a few praying with their faces to- 
 wards the East. The night stretched across the sky 
 like a veil of crape, and still the Nazarene came not, 
 nor did the Roman soldiers return ; and Caiaphas 
 had to own himself defeated. Deeper and deeper 
 fell the darkness on Jerusalem, and at last the city 
 slept, as she will sleep " until the day break and the 
 shadows flee away."
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 THE same night that Caiaphas was pacing his 
 terrace raging madly, like a wild beast de- 
 prived of its prey ; baffled in his ambitious schemes, 
 cheated of his dreams of vengeance, growing each 
 moment more infuriated, more malevolent, more 
 determined a middle-aged woman was kneeling on 
 the stone floor of a poor cottage at Nazareth. The 
 whole room was dimly lighted by a candle standing 
 on a stone shelf built into the wall. 
 
 The face was beautiful, more from expression 
 than from feature. The brow, especially, impressed 
 one by its whiteness, but the eyes turned up towards 
 heaven were full of tears, and the corners of the lips, 
 that prayed so fervently and met each moment in 
 such reverence but to form words of piety and de- 
 votion, were drawn downwards, as if in agony. Yet 
 there was no despair, no passionate vehemence on 
 the face or in the prayer, only a meek, submissive 
 pleading for resignation ; and as, every now and 
 then, a salt tear rolled down the gentle, fragile 
 cheeks, it was swallowed meekly, as though such 
 tears were symbols of a revolt to be subdued. 
 
 A soft footfall moved close up to the door ; then 
 a light hand rapped gently on it. Mary rose like 
 one returning from a trance. She held her hand to 
 her heart one moment, not in physical fear, but with 
 
 140
 
 LAZARUS. 141 
 
 a foreboding of some dread news, to bear which 
 would tax all her fortitude. Then she listened ; it 
 could not be Jesus, her Son-God, for He needed no 
 opening of doors to appear to her. No, it must be 
 a messenger, or, perchance, Joseph returned from 
 Bethany; but the step was light for Joseph, who 
 was no longer young. 
 
 Then, when the rapping came again, she stepped 
 to the door and opened it. 
 
 The moon was high in the heavens and its rays 
 entered the cottage in a long streak of bluish white. 
 The virgin mother's golden hair looked silver beneath 
 its radiance, and the pale face grew paler still. A 
 woman stood without, but, with her back to the 
 moon's glory, her features were undistinguishable. 
 
 'T is I, Mary Magdalene, the sinner," said a 
 voice faint with penitence and meekness. 
 
 " No longer a sinner, since thou art forgiven," 
 said the elder woman, drawing her in lovingly. 
 " But what dost thou here at night ? ' T is not safe 
 for thee, Magdalene, with thy beauty, to come thus 
 late at night; for, till men's eyes be opened to 
 understand, they do not honour women as one day 
 they will." 
 
 " Yet, for thy sake, all women henceforth will be 
 honoured," exclaimed the emotional, loving Mag- 
 dalene; and kneeling at the elder woman's feet, she 
 raised the hem of her garment and kissed it rev- 
 erently. 
 
 " Nay, do not do so," said the other hastily; 
 " worship me not, for I am only human like thyself. 
 'T is of God's mercy that He has chosen me to be 
 the mother of our Lord."
 
 142 LAZARUS. 
 
 " In the far future many will worship thee, in that 
 thou wast so chosen," replied the Magdalene. 
 " But I must not tarry with my news that will 
 soothe thy aching heart: I have seen Lazarus." 
 
 " Is it even so ? " said the virgin mother calmly. 
 
 She had seen too many miracles, been too closely 
 bound to the Messiah to be surprised at the news 
 that Lazarus had risen; or, indeed, at any miracle 
 performed by the God-Man. Then she went on : 
 44 What said Martha and Mary at the miracle ? Did 
 many believe ? " 
 
 44 Nay, but it is no miracle, mother of the Christ," 
 replied the Magdalene. " It was his spirit only 
 that I saw in the olive groves, and he bade me tell 
 thee that thy Lord was not at Bethany yet, but safe 
 with the brethren." 
 
 Over the sweet face there came a quieter, more 
 peaceful look, as of one who had received a respite 
 from some dreadful danger. 
 
 44 Will He not then restore him ?" asked the 
 gentle voice. 
 
 14 I know not," answered Mary Magdalene sadly, 
 lifting her veil from her face and seating herself on a 
 stool. 
 
 " Poor Magdalene! Thou dost love Lazarus," 
 said the mother of Christ, " and they who love must 
 suffer." 
 
 The eyes of the Magdalene filled with tears ; then, 
 laying her hands timidly on the Virgin's knees, as 
 though to touch so lovely a woman were to defile 
 her, she replied: " Lazarus I have ever loved. But 
 how should a ruler of Israel call a harlot wife ? Yet, 
 in his very scorn of me I love him ; and, now that I
 
 LAZARUS. 143 
 
 know Jesus, the joy that I can feel so deep a grief 
 for my great sins is as strong as is my love ; and so 
 my grief hath become a joy, in like manner as my 
 joy is the offspring of my grief. 'T is a strange 
 mystery, this love of Christ, that maketh all things 
 bearable; but, mother of Jesus, is it not a wondrous 
 thing that Lazarus, who in life was wont to pass me 
 on the other side and forbid his sisters to have 
 speech with me, should after death appear to me a 
 sinner ? " 
 
 The virgin mother, borne down with grief, yet 
 ever quick to sympathise, smiled her sweet, pathetic 
 smile. 
 
 " Perchance, Magdalene, the dead know all," she 
 answered ; "he knoweth that thy heart is right 
 with the Lord. Dost but remember His words : 
 ' To her much is forgiven, for she loved much ' ? " 
 
 " Those words are written forever on my heart, 
 O mother of the Lord. For when the Lord spake 
 them they were life to me. Oh, it is marvellous, 
 this new life of love, and yet of mystery, for we 
 know nothing, do we ? Yet, when He speaketh, 
 one's heart burneth within one and one knoweth 
 that every word He saith is true. Methinks it is 
 not a thing that comes by learning," went on the 
 Magdalene. 
 
 " It is a gift of God that Jesus hath brought on 
 earth," replied the mother. " It is a problem none 
 can solve. The wind bloweth where it listeth, and 
 thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell 
 whence it cometh nor whither it goeth. So are they 
 who are born of God." 
 
 " May I bide with thee this night ? " asked the
 
 144 LAZARUS. 
 
 Magdalene presently. " It is late to return to my 
 dwelling; and thou, thou canst not sleep for think- 
 ing of thy Son. We will talk and pray together till 
 the morning. Methinks that, when near to thee, I 
 am closer to the Lord." 
 
 Then, in tones of deepest reverence, and stroking 
 the thin, fair hands of the mother of Jesus down to 
 the pointed finger tips, she murmured : " His 
 mother, His mother, the mother of the Lord. The 
 living witness of the greatness of the Lord, who hath 
 visited His handmaiden to bring glory and salvation 
 into the world." 
 
 As she spoke, the Virgin raised her face instinct- 
 ively towards heaven. 
 
 ' When thou dost gaze upwards thus, thou dost 
 bring to my remembrance a lily looking towards the 
 dying sun, expectant of the dews of heaven," said 
 the Magdalene, and once more, with deep devotion, 
 she kissed the Virgin's hands. Then, taking a clean 
 napkin from the table, she proceeded to pour water 
 into a basin. 
 
 " Be seated," she said in tenderest voice, " and I 
 will wash thy feet, thou holy one ! It will rest and 
 refresh thee during the night watch." The virgin 
 mother raised a hand in deprecation. 
 
 " Call me not holy, Mary; none is holy, save God 
 alone. Who am I that thou shouldst wash my feet ? 
 Even a poor sinner, like thyself." 
 
 " Thou hast no sin," replied the Magdalene; 
 " and to wash each other's feet, in deep humility, is 
 the commandment of our Lord." 
 
 At her words, meekly and modestly, with depre- 
 cating gesture, as if not desiring such attention, the
 
 LAZARUS. 145 
 
 Virgin allowed Mary to wash first one foot and then 
 the other. 
 
 With tender reverence, Mary laved each slender 
 foot, kissing it when she had finished. Then she 
 cast from her the cloth that she had bound around 
 her waist. 
 
 " Nay, naught wrought with human hands shall 
 touch thee, mother of my Lord"; and, catching 
 hold of her own luxuriant golden tresses, she wiped 
 the Virgin's feet till they were dry. Then, touched 
 by strong emotion, she fell to the ground at 
 Mary's feet and cried out: " Oh, would that I were 
 pure and holy as thou, thou queen amongst women. 
 Woe is me that I have sinned. Would that I were 
 pure, would that I were pure! " And, with face 
 bent down, she wept as though her heart would 
 break. At sight of her abandonment, the Virgin 
 lifted her heart heavenwards and prayed silently 
 that comfort might be sent to the poor patient soul. 
 
 Then, as if in answer to her prayer (for whose 
 prayer would be answered, if that of Mary were not?) 
 a moonbeam shot straight through the window, 
 lighting up the opposite wall; and, in dark relief, 
 the shadow of the window frames stood out, its 
 form a cross; and a voice of sweetest music mur- 
 mured: " Let not your heart be troubled, neither 
 let it be afraid." 
 
 At that moment, the clatter of horses' hoofs rang 
 on the silent night, sounding hollow and resonant 
 on the stony street. 
 
 The Magdalene sat up, and pushing her hair from 
 her eyes with one hand, held out the other to clasp 
 the Virgin's.
 
 146 LAZARUS. 
 
 In constant apprehension of the death of their 
 dear Lord, the followers of Christ were ever ready to 
 scent danger, ever steeling themselves for the dread- 
 ful moment when their Saviour would be taken from 
 them. He had warned them, in His tenderness, 
 that the support and comfort of His presence, the 
 sweet companionship, would not last forever. Yes, 
 all this they knew, but the agony of separation had 
 yet to come. The sight of the suffering of their Be- 
 loved One was soon to wring their hearts, and, as 
 love grew stronger, their coming grief became more 
 sure. Each unwonted sound brought terror to their 
 hearts. 
 
 The two listened. 
 
 'T is some message from Caiaphas or Pontius 
 Pilate ; or, perchance a fire hath broken out in some 
 ruler's house," the Magdalene suggested to reassure 
 the Virgin's heart. 
 
 ' ' Peace ! cheat me not, ' ' replied the Virgin sternly ; 
 " they halt at this very door. They think to find 
 Him here, but His hour is not yet come." 
 
 The horses drew up at the door, and one could 
 hear them pawing the ground, and a man's voice 
 giving orders. Farther down the street some dogs 
 began to bark. 
 
 The Virgin rose and stood with mild dignity in 
 the chamber, hard by the door. Half fearful, yet 
 half eager, the Magdalene pressed behind her, her 
 long tresses falling almost to the ground. 
 
 A loud, hasty knock, and the door was opened. 
 At sight of the Virgin, standing ethereal and lovely 
 in her beautiful simplicity, faintly outlined by the 
 streaks of early dawn, now striving to get the better 
 of the waning moon, the soldier started.
 
 LAZARUS. 147 
 
 " Surely this is some angel," he muttered to him- 
 self; then, making his gruff voice as gentle as he 
 could, he said: " Good woman, the High Priest, 
 Caiaphas, hath commanded me to search this cot- 
 tage, lest the Nazarene be hidden here, and, if I find 
 Him, to bring Him to him." 
 
 " Sir, do as thou wilt," replied the Virgin. ' The 
 Lord is not here, but, if He were, ye could do no- 
 thing unless it were given ye from on high. Seek 
 ye Him." 
 
 The men searched, but without much ardour. 
 They were not anxious to find the Nazarene, nor 
 had they imagined that He would be there, for it 
 was well known that He dwelt not now at Nazareth. 
 
 " Mother of the Nazarene," said the soldier, after 
 he and his men had searched the house, " I have yet 
 an ugly message to convey to thee. Caiaphas hath 
 commanded that, if we found not the Nazarene, we 
 should bring to him all within this house." While 
 he was speaking his eyes fell on the Magdalene. 
 
 'Thou here?" he exclaimed. Then his lips 
 parted with a coarse, rude smile, ready to speak 
 some prurient jest. A look from the mother of the 
 Christ arrested him, but the Magdalene had seen 
 and understood the look, and bent her head humbly 
 to the ground. That henceforward would be the 
 cross she would have to bear. The moral crucifixion 
 of the world's opinion had begun. No nails could 
 pierce more sharply, no spear strike more deeply, no 
 burden be bitterer or harder to bear than would the 
 judgment of the world on sins that she had done 
 with. For God forgives more quickly than does 
 man. It would never be wiped out, that past of 
 Mary Magdalene's; daily, hourly, the familiarity of
 
 148 LAZARUS. 
 
 men, the taunts and coldness of women, no better, 
 nay, worse than herself, would remind the Magda- 
 lene of that thoughtless past of wantonness and pas- 
 sion. Years of endless writhing torture lay before 
 her, a weary battling against man's proffered love 
 and woman's jealousy and hardness, till welcome 
 death should come to free the hunted being. 
 
 ' This is the Magdalene, my friend," said the 
 Virgin's gentle voice; a voice that came from one 
 who knew that the Magdalene's fame could not be 
 damaged by the friendship of one whose love par- 
 took of the divine, and, like that of Jesus clung to 
 the one loved alike through good report and evil. 
 
 With rough courtesy, the soldier bowed before the 
 majestic form of purity incarnate. 
 
 " One to whom the immaculate Mary of Nazareth 
 hath given shelter is safe from all men." 
 
 With infinite sweetness the Virgin answered the 
 rough soldier: " I thank thee, proud Roman, for 
 thy kindly words ; may it be so done unto thee and 
 more." Then wrapping her cloak around her, so as 
 almost to cover her face, she again addressed him : 
 " If thy orders are to convey us to Caiaphas we 
 must obey." 
 
 Then, in the cold, grey light of dawn, the two 
 women were conveyed outside. But, when the sol- 
 dier was about to assist the Virgin to mount the 
 horse that was to convey her, the Magdalene 
 stepped forward. 
 
 " Forgive me, brave soldier," she interprosed, 
 " but no man hath ever laid hands on this woman of 
 all women. Wilt permit me to help her on the 
 horse ?"
 
 LAZARUS. 149 
 
 " Methinks 'twixt thee and me there is not much 
 to choose," the soldier muttered; " but as thou 
 wilt." 
 
 At his word, the Magdalene lifted the frail figure 
 of the Virgin, with almost a man's vigour, yet with 
 all a woman's tenderness, on to the horse. 
 
 ' Thou art not so fearful for thyself, ' ' the Ro'man 
 went on coarsely, as he placed the Magdalene on the 
 horse and shook her fallen tresses around her. 
 
 The Magdalene blushed; then, with the appeal- 
 ing, trustful manner that had been her charm and 
 her perdition in days gone by, " Friend," she said, 
 " speak no more to me in words of jest. Magdalene, 
 the sinner, is no more. We are two lone, sorrowful 
 women who look to thy manliness for protection." 
 
 Her sweet seriousness touched the Roman soldier, 
 and, beckoning to his comrade to lead on the horse, 
 he took the reins and led his own behind. For 
 nearly an hour the strange cavalcade proceeded thus 
 in the lightening darkness through the streets of 
 Jerusalem, and the sun was up and the shadows 
 were sharp and well defined when they halted at the 
 house of Caiaphas. 
 
 As to Caiaphas, he hardly knew himself why he 
 had commanded the soldiers to bring the mother of 
 the Nazarene to him. Furious at having been foiled 
 in capturing the Christ, and with a growing convic- 
 tion that he was being treacherously dealt with by 
 those in his employ ; full of suspicion as those are 
 who are themselves unworthy and enraged at any 
 obstruction to his arrogance, any crossing of his will, 
 he had been prompted in his action partly by the 
 wish to lay hands on all or any connected with the
 
 1 5O LAZARUS. 
 
 Nazarene he could ; and partly by curiosity to see 
 this woman so many talked of, and to hear her ver- 
 sion of the circumstances of her Son's birth. These 
 times were too uncommon, too unsettled, by the 
 teachings of the lowly carpenter, for even Caiaphas 
 to be able to close his eyes to the fact that the Naz- 
 arene was no ordinary man. To justify himself, 
 nay, more, to enjoy the full flavour of his vengeance, 
 he must know all concerning Him that he could 
 glean from those who had conversed with Him. 
 From the first he had feigned ignorance of the 
 preachings in the Temple, the assemblies by the 
 seashore, the miracles, the strange doings and sayings 
 of this young madman, as he had named the Christ ; 
 but the day had come when, if Caiaphas had made 
 up his mind to crucify the Man, he must know 
 enough to give good reasons for His condemnation 
 to Herod and to Pontius Pilate; even to Caesar, 
 should he demand it ; nay, more, he must have an 
 excuse to give himself. 
 
 Two rulers of the Synagogue, Nicodemus and 
 Lazarus, had gone over to this Man. Lazarus, in- 
 deed, was now dead, but Pontius Pilate himself, 
 urged on by his wife, this Claudia Procula whom 
 Caiaphas hated, was beginning to speak in tones of 
 no disfavour, even of admiration, of the Nazarene. 
 Surely, therefore, it was time to tremble and to act. 
 But he was not prepared for the presence of the 
 Magdalene. Her beauty troubled him, for he was 
 as licentious as he was hypocritical ; nay, more, he 
 owed her a grudge, in that she, a sinner, had re- 
 pulsed his advances when, disguised as a peasant, he 
 had mingled more than once in the crowd that
 
 LAZARUS. 151 
 
 chatted with the maidens at eventide by the well of 
 Samaria. 
 
 " Thou art too ugly," she had ofttimes cried to 
 him before them all, "and thou hast a priestly face." 
 And the maidens would shriek with laughter, for 
 they knew full well that he was Caiaphas. But that 
 was in the days gone by, before the Magdalene had 
 become a follower of Christ. She had almost hoped 
 that they would not bring her before Caiaphas, and, 
 but for her affection for the Virgin, she would have 
 asked to remain in the outer chamber. 
 
 While they were being ushered into the presence 
 of the High Priest she drew her veil closer over her 
 face ; but Caiaphas, fearful always of treachery, bade 
 her lower it. When she did so, her long, golden 
 tresses fell about her, and, changed though her face 
 was with grief and weeping, he knew that there was 
 but one woman in Jerusalem with tresses such as 
 those. 
 
 " Thou art in questionable company, Mary of 
 Nazareth," said Caiaphas, laughing coarsely. "Me- 
 thinks that, for one reported so immaculate, thou 
 choosest strange associates." 
 
 Both women were silent. 
 
 " Hast naught to say, woman ? Dost thou fully 
 understand that the life or death of this Nazarene 
 doth lie with me ? " 
 
 Then, raising her pure eyes steadily to Caiaphas, 
 the Virgin answered: " Thou couldst do naught at 
 all were it not that power were given thee from 
 above. He hath escaped thee many times, for His 
 hour was not yet come ; but He knoweth that He 
 must die to save the world from sin."
 
 152 LAZARUS. 
 
 Uneasy at her words, Caiaphas turned to another 
 subject: " It seemeth thy Son did not raise Laz- 
 arus ? " 
 
 " He will be raised up," replied the Virgin. 
 
 " At the resurrection, forsooth," said Caiaphas, 
 shrugging his shoulders. 
 
 Then the Magdalene, who had been silent, burst 
 forth with a gleam of triumphant daring: " Yet I 
 spake with Lazarus yesterday." 
 
 The brows of Caiaphas flushed crimson, and he 
 clenched his fists. Terrified almost, he leaned for- 
 ward, and forgetful of all else, he gasped: " Thou 
 hast talked with Lazarus ? " Then, shaking his head 
 and rising from his chair: "Thou art mad, woman. 
 Thy penitence hath turned thy brain. But now 
 they brought me tidings that he hath lain in his 
 grave two days." With strange agitation he rose 
 and paced the room. ' The soldiers, too, must be 
 bewitched, since they fear to tell me what hath hap- 
 pened." 
 
 Then the voice of the Virgin rose distinct and 
 clear: " 'T was but his spirit Mary saw." 
 
 " Ha! thou shouldst not speak in parables, Mag- 
 dalene, for they ill become thy lips, which are made 
 rather for man's kisses than for the telling of grave 
 matters. His spirit forsooth! Thou lovest Lazarus, 
 and in thy dreams he visited thee. Poor fond, fool- 
 ish woman, he is no more on earth." Then, turn- 
 ing from her, he addressed the Virgin: " There are 
 strange things spoken of thy Son's birth. Is He in 
 truth not the Son of thine husband ? Then whose 
 Son is He ? These incredible reports work harm ; 
 they but unsettle the minds of men and entangle
 
 LAZARUS. 153 
 
 the thoughts of the populace. No virgin yet hath 
 borne a son, yet methinks, with eyes like thine, 
 thou couldst not tell a lie. Whose Son is He ? 
 
 Proudly, and with head thrown back, the Virgin 
 answered: " He is the Son of God." And, even 
 while she spoke, there gathered round her head a 
 filmy radiance of glory, that even Caiaphas could 
 see. 
 
 He staggered back; then, pointing with a finger 
 towards the Virgin, cried: " What is that light ? " 
 And Magdalene, conscious that the glory of the 
 Lord was nigh, fell down in solemn worship at the 
 Virgin's knee. 
 
 Then, for a moment terrified, Caiaphas cried out, 
 " Woman of Nazareth, who art thou ? What art 
 thou ? Speak, for on thy word dependeth the sal- 
 vation of the world. Speak, and tell us plainly who 
 is thy Son ? Whence is He ? Is He but a poor car- 
 penter, or is He the Son of God ? " 
 
 " He is Very God and Very Man," replied the 
 Virgin; "but the mystery I cannot tell thee, for I 
 know it not. All the learning of the scribes and 
 Pharisees, all the philosophy of this earth cannot ex- 
 plain why I should have been chosen to be the 
 mother of my Lord, nor how He did enter the 
 womb; but I declare unto thee that this Jesus, 
 whom they call my Son, is the Son of God, de- 
 scended from heaven and made man ; but how I 
 know not. Only I know that the Lord hath so re- 
 vealed it to me. But this I say truly, that he who 
 believeth on Him shall be saved from eternal dam- 
 nation." 
 
 " It was never so known," said Caiaphas. " Why
 
 1 54 LAZARUS. 
 
 should the Son of God come thus to judge the 
 world ? " 
 
 "He cometh not for judgment, but to save the 
 world," replied the Virgin, her face still illumined 
 by the wondrous light. " He came to call sinners 
 to repentance. 'T is God that judgeth, and He will 
 come again to judge the world." 
 
 "Why, then, do I not believe?" asked Caia- 
 phas. ' ' 
 
 " Because thou wilt not, Caiaphas," replied the 
 Virgin fearlessly. 
 
 A long silence followed, while Caiaphas mused. 
 Then, as if suddenly remembering that these two 
 women stood still before him, he looked up. 
 
 " Leave me, I pray you, to consider of this thing, 
 for it hath never so been known in Israel." 
 
 Then came to pass a thing which never yet had 
 been. Caiaphas, the great High Priest, escorted the 
 two women through the ante-chambers and past the 
 soldiers to the street.
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 IT was about four o'clock in the morning when 
 Martha was awaked from her sleep by Mary, who 
 stood by her. Weary with the shortness of her rest, 
 she stretched herself heavily ; then, with the recol- 
 lection of the sorrows of the preceding day, that 
 came back to her with a rush, she sat up and, with 
 a bewildered look, brushed back the dark tresses, 
 now streaked with grey, from her forehead. 
 
 " I would not wake thee earlier, Martha," Mary 
 said: " but this night I had a dream that Lazarus 
 our brother was risen and stood by me, and thus 
 spake to me : ' I am risen for the glory of God and 
 to show forth His handiwork. ' 
 
 " Dost waken me for a dream, Mary ?" asked 
 Martha, somewhat fretfully. ' Thou art tired and 
 thy thoughts were full of our brother and of the 
 longing for the miracle of his healing." 
 
 Nay, but I woke thee not for that alone," said 
 Mary; " but because two messengers from the Lord 
 wait below. The Lord cometh nigh to the city." 
 
 Martha stood up at last. This was indeed news 
 calculated to stir her active mind and soothe the anx- 
 ious craving of her restless heart. 
 
 " I will go forth and meet Him," she said, begin- 
 ning to attire herself in haste. " I will go forth and 
 
 155
 
 1 56 LAZARUS. 
 
 entreat Him once more, for He can yet raise our 
 brother." 
 
 " Nay, our brother did say, ' Entreat Him not,' " 
 said Mary. 
 
 " Nevertheless, I will go and meet Him," retorted 
 Martha, averse, as always, to anything that savoured 
 of dictation. ' Wilt not come too ? " 
 
 Nay, I will sit and wait here for the Lord," said 
 Mary, " or, maybe, I will carry flowers and spices to 
 our brother's grave." 
 
 Then Martha rose, and with pale face, and eyes 
 darkened and hollowed with weeping, stepped out 
 amidst the grey shadows of early dawn to meet the 
 Lord. She found Him surrounded by His little 
 band of disciples, as ever the central figure, and on 
 His face there was a look that Martha had never 
 seen before. It expressed anguish, and, at the same 
 time, a measure of exultation. His visage shone 
 with a radiancy not wholly to be accounted for by 
 the reflection of the rising sun, that was struggling 
 feebly through the olive groves. With deepest sym- 
 pathy and love He turned to Martha, and she, at 
 sight of her Lord, strengthened and revived in faith, 
 and realising all she had suffered by His absence, 
 sank weary and humble and abased (as Martha sel- 
 dom was) at His feet, and cried out in bitterness of 
 soul: " Lord, if Thou hadst been here, my brother 
 had not died." 
 
 Peter, incensed at her reproach, exclaimed : "Who 
 art thou, woman, that thy brother should live when 
 all men die ? " 
 
 But she, heedless of the warning words of Mary, 
 heedless of the angry looks of the disciples, and with
 
 LAZARUS. 157 
 
 a return of faith and hope in the presence of the 
 Saviour, went on: " But I know that, even now, 
 whatsoever thou wilt ask of God, God will give it 
 Thee." 
 
 A look of joy came into the eyes of the Nazarene. 
 In the midst of all the unbelief and scoffing and per- 
 secution of the world, the faith of this woman seemed 
 a slight refreshment, a little solace, a little return for 
 all the sacrifice ; and, as if with sudden power from 
 above, in prompt answer to her quickened faith, the 
 voice of Jesus rose with inspiring force on the cool, 
 unbreathed morning air: " Thy brother shall rise 
 again. ' ' 
 
 Then, falling at His feet, fighting with herself to 
 force submission to His will, Martha cried out: " I 
 know, I know that he shall rise again in the resur- 
 rection at the last day." 
 
 Surely she believed and trusted to the fullest ex- 
 tent of the Jewish law and her Pharisaical upbring- 
 ing; but the vision that was hidden from her was 
 Jesus the Nazarene as God, and resurrection on 
 earth. It was too simple to believe. Then, once 
 more, as if to test the faith of this true daughter of the 
 Jews, the Nazarene spoke words which not only fell 
 on those around, but seemed shed, like the fragrance 
 of flowers, on the waves of the air placed in their 
 keeping, to be wafted hither and thither through- 
 out all space, forming into sweetest music, heralding 
 like silver trumpets to the ages and generations yet 
 to come, shaking the hills and making the valleys 
 tremble, crying out through all the centuries of time, 
 echoing and re-echoing from snow-bound mountain 
 peaks, thundering forth across the storm-clouds,
 
 158 LAZARUS. 
 
 murmuring like summer zephyrs, and tossing from 
 star to star, weeping like rain, bubbling forth in 
 mountain torrent, burning in glowing nuclei of fire 
 in the hearts of men the message of life and peace 
 and love eternal: " I am the resurrection and the 
 life ; he that believeth on Me, though he were dead, 
 yet shall he live ; and whosoever liveth and believeth 
 in Me shall never die. Believest thou this ? " 
 
 And in deepest love, the battle with mistrust and 
 doubting over, the longing for the restoration of her 
 brother merged into meek submission to His will, 
 she murmured: " Yea, Lord." Then, not knowing 
 whether she really understood His words, went on : 
 " I believe that Thou art the Christ, the Son of 
 God." 
 
 Then, she still kneeling in oblivious devotion at 
 Jesus' feet, one of the disciples stepped forward, 
 and touching her on the shoulder, said: " Hearest 
 thou not ? The Lord hath need of Mary. Bring 
 her here." 
 
 At these words she rose and retraced her steps 
 quickly along the road. The cool air, laden with 
 the breath of awakening flowers, echoing with the 
 music of the birds, rejoicing in the sun's promise of 
 a glorious day, had given her physical support and 
 courage, as the word of the Lord had soothed the 
 agony of her heart and brought faith and resignation 
 to soothe the torture of bereavement. It was with 
 lightened step and smoother brow, with a smile of 
 restored calm and hope, that she entered the garden 
 Lazarus had loved. Already it and the porch and 
 lower chambers were filled with Jews of all sects and 
 classes, who had assembled once more to mourn
 
 LAZARUS. 159 
 
 with the late ruler's sisters. Some, too, had come 
 from curiosity, to see whether the Nazarene had sent 
 any message ; others, in answer to offered bribes from 
 Caiaphas. 
 
 To-day the wailing and chanting had a less mourn- 
 ful tone, as if to bring comfort to the bereaved ones : 
 " I have eaten ashes like bread, and mingled my 
 drink with weeping. Thou hast lifted me up, and 
 cast me down. My days are like a shadow that de- 
 clineth ; and I am withered like grass. But thou, O 
 Lord, shalt endure for ever; and Thy remembrance 
 unto all generations. Thou shalt arise, and have 
 mercy upon Zion : for the time to favour her, yea, 
 the set time, is come." 
 
 ' Thou shalt arise, Thou shalt arise." What 
 blessed prophetic message was that which greeted 
 Martha on her return, and why did her heart leap 
 within her and burn with strange excitement ? 
 
 She paused at the entrance to the garden. It 
 would not do to arouse the suspicious curiosity of 
 the Jews by telling them that Jesus was waiting out- 
 side the little town. Drawing her veil over her face, 
 and mingling with the crowd, she wended her way 
 through the porch and across the tesselated court, 
 where, out of deference to the dead, the small bub- 
 bling fountains had been stopped. She sought out 
 her sister in her own private chamber. There, in 
 sackcloth and ashes, with bowed head, praying lest 
 her faith should die a moral death, sat Mary. 
 
 She started at Martha's voice calling in subdued 
 hoarse tones: " Mary, Mary, the Master is come 
 and calleth for thee." 
 
 Mary arose with feverish haste. She had expected
 
 l6o LAZARUS. 
 
 this, so the message brought comfort but no 
 wonder. 
 
 " He waiteth for thee just without the gates of 
 the village," resumed Martha. " I know not why 
 He calleth for thee, but there is that in His words 
 and look that is like prophecy. I know not what 
 hath come to me, but this day doth seem full of im- 
 port, and I feel strangely comforted for the death of 
 our dear brother." 
 
 "It is surely because thou hast been with the 
 Lord, and He hath comforted thy soul," said Mary. 
 Then, perceiving that the court was crowded with 
 mourners, she whispered to Martha, nervously: 
 " How shall we keep this crowd from following 
 us?" 
 
 Then, with Eastern disregard for any privacy, 
 with that gloating over horrors which is the charac- 
 teristic of all the lowly classes throughout the world, 
 the crowd of mourners, seeing the two women pass 
 out silently and with veiled faces, murmured : 
 ' They go unto the grave to weep there." And, 
 as if the sisters' grief was theirs, and the necessity 
 of sustaining them with sympathy amounted to a 
 religious law, they followed them. 
 
 Then, when the sisters took the opposite road to 
 that which led to Lazarus's grave, they fell a-mur- 
 muring. Some said: " Their grief hath made them 
 mad." Others, "Whither go they?" And one 
 derisive voice said scoffingly: "Maybe that Lazarus 
 is risen and they go forth to meet him." And so, 
 murmuring, quarrelling, and wailing, the Jewish peo- 
 ple followed the two women ; till, O wonder unex- 
 pected and to be marvelled at indeed, they led them
 
 LAZARUS. l6l 
 
 to the presence of the glorious Jesus ! Impetuous 
 as ever, fearing revenge or treachery, Peter sprang 
 forward, as though to stay the crowd. 
 
 " Are ye mad, ye women ? " he said impulsively, 
 " to bring this crowd of unbelieving fools to the 
 presence of our Lord ? Do ye, too, now seek to 
 slay Him because your brother Lazarus is dead ? " 
 
 But Mary, conscious only that her Lord, the Mes- 
 siah whom she loved, was there, near her once more, 
 after these weeks of watching and waiting, fell down 
 in adoration at His feet, echoing, but not in re- 
 proach, only in tender faith and love, the words of 
 her sister: " Lord, if Thou hadst been here, my 
 brother had not died." 
 
 And, at sight of her great grief and faith, the Jews 
 who stood around wept too, and once more through 
 the olive groves resounded the wail of bitterness: 
 " Look away from me, look away from me, for I 
 will weep bitterly." 
 
 Then, in their half belief, reproaching Him, the 
 Jews cried out: "If Thou hadst raised Lazarus we 
 had believed." 
 
 No earthly pen would dare describe, no human 
 heart can realise the sympathy and mingled grief of 
 the Messiah. Surely never was the union of the 
 Godhead and the Manhood in the person of the 
 Christ more strongly manifested than at the death 
 of Lazarus and the sorrow of his sisters. The grief 
 of separation, the agony at having been absent, the 
 sorrow of the two women He loved ; all this was no 
 less acute because as God He might have avoided it. 
 But to do so would have been to set aside His man- 
 hood, to shirk the responsibilities of earthly life. It
 
 162 LAZARUS. 
 
 was as if the power of God had been for a brief mo- 
 ment laid aside, to let the griefs of manhood have 
 their sway ; nay, more, it was as if Satan had been 
 allowed in these last hours to tempt the Messiah 
 with a temptation that assailed alike His Godhead 
 and His Manhood. What greater temptation to the 
 Man than to use His God-given energy for the sake 
 of human friendship ? What to the God than to as- 
 sert His power by one transcendent act ? What 
 more heartrending task than to wait in meek submis- 
 sion to God's will amidst the taunts of scoffing ene- 
 mies and the tears of those beloved ? 
 
 Jesus wept. Surely all earthly grief and desola- 
 tion, the disillusion of friendship that has failed, the 
 inability of expressing one's tenderness to those one 
 loves, the general impotence of humanity, are for- 
 ever comforted by those divine tears wrung forth 
 from the aching heart of the sorrowing Saviour. 
 Slowly they rolled down those troubled features on 
 to the white garment, crystal drops of mingled 
 purity and love ; but they were not allowed to fall 
 to earth. 
 
 Ever foremost in his devotion, John pressed for- 
 ward and stayed them in their course, as though he 
 would fain be washed in those pure waters. Yet 
 one fell to earth, and, as it fell, a snow-white starry 
 flower with seven points united by a tiny corona 
 sprang into life. 
 
 But while the disciples were exclaiming at this 
 wonder and trying to attract the attention of the by- 
 standers to it, the cry went up: " Behold how He 
 loved him." And others cried again, as so many 
 had cried before: " Could not this Man, which
 
 LAZARUS. 163 
 
 opened the eyes of the blind, have caused that even 
 this man should not have died ? " 
 
 The hour of temptation was fast passing away, 
 the patient submission to God's will was near to its 
 reward. The answer to the prayer of the Messiah 
 was close at hand, His groanings and His trouble 
 were about to have their fruit. 
 
 Gently, in a voice that reached only the two wo- 
 men, the Nazarene murmured: " Where have ye 
 laid him ?" 
 
 And the crowd, hoping and half believing that, at 
 last, it was to see the miracle the nation had been 
 expecting, howled and shrieked: " Show us Lazarus 
 and we will believe. 
 
 Mary, in much humility, entreated the Lord to 
 come and see the tomb where they had laid him. 
 
 Then, when the cry grew ever louder, " Show us 
 Lazarus and it sufficeth us," Thomas approached 
 the crowd and, raising his hand to still the tumult : 
 "Men of Israel," he said, " wherefore call ye for 
 Lazarus ? Do ye not remember how our Lord 
 spake in parables? How the rich man did call to 
 Abraham from hell, and cried and prayed that Laz- 
 arus be sent unto his brothers from the dead, and 
 how Abraham gave answer: " If they hear not 
 Moses and the prophets, neither will they be per- 
 suaded though one rose from the dead ' ? " 
 
 But they cried only the more : " Show us Lazarus, 
 show us Lazarus, ' ' though the shouts were now less 
 boisterous. 
 
 Then Thomas perceived that Jesus was already 
 following the two women towards the tomb of Laza- 
 rus, and that half the crowd were already beginning
 
 164 LAZARUS. 
 
 to go after Him. Many faces he recognised amongst 
 them, among others that of Nicodemus, eager and 
 anxious. Presently he came up to Thomas. 
 
 1 Why asketh He where they have laid Laza- 
 rus ?" he inquired of the disciple. " Surely He 
 knoweth all things ? " 
 
 " Methinks it is lest the Jews should imagine that 
 we have agreed upon some trickery, for they seek 
 daily to destroy the Lord." 
 
 ' Thinkest thou that He will raise Lazarus ? " he 
 continued. 
 
 " I know not; it seemeth like it; but who can 
 tell ? " And so, discussing, arguing, inquiring, bick- 
 ering, the little band of Jews, that was growing 
 every moment thicker as one passer-by after the 
 other swelled its ranks, followed the two bereaved 
 sisters, who showed the way to the Nazarene. 
 
 Who can tell what thoughts filled the soul of the 
 God-Man ? Thoughts of God, thoughts of friend- 
 ship, thoughts of loving sympathy at the joy He was 
 going to restore to the house at Bethany. Thoughts, 
 perhaps, of His own death, which was soon to follow 
 the resurrection of Lazarus. 
 
 They stood opposite to the grave now. It was a 
 cave hewn from one single piece of rock, and at the 
 entrance, hiding the ghastly sight, the corpse, hate- 
 ful to the Jewish eyes as a thing defiled and unclean, 
 stood the stone that Martha had insisted on having 
 rolled in front of it at the words of Annas. From 
 between the apertures came forth the sickly odour 
 of frankincense and myrrh and other spices, with 
 which the body had been embalmed. 
 
 In silent awe, the crowd ceased the cries that were
 
 LAZARUS. 165 
 
 some of taunt and some of praise, and the two 
 women raised their eyes in sorrowing anxiety ; while 
 the Lord, groaning and weeping, stood by the 
 grave, with eyes upturned to heaven. Meanwhile 
 the multitude kept increasing, till half Jerusalem 
 was there to witness the glory of the Lord. 
 
 Closed round the Lord, to keep Him from harm's 
 way, stood the twelve, the traitor, Iscariot, on the 
 outside. A little to the right were Mary and 
 Martha, Mary just in front of Judas ; behind them 
 throngs of Jews, attired in many-coloured garbs of 
 red and blue and white and purple, according to 
 their rank or station. 
 
 The sun beat fiercely on their heads, for the 
 glorious miracle of the world was to be enacted in 
 the full light of day. 
 
 Presently Mary felt a clutching at her sleeve, and 
 starting, half in terror, half in bewilderment at being 
 thus roused from her reflections, she almost touched 
 the hideous face of the traitor Judas, that was peer- 
 ing into hers. 
 
 " Dost not fear that, because of this, the Lord 
 will die?" 
 
 Mystified by his words and still more at the look 
 of mingled greed and craft and despair upon his face, 
 Mary stepped forward to bring herself away from 
 him. But he thrust out his head and hissed: " If 
 Lazarus doth live again, then surely will Jesus die. 
 His blood be upon thee and Martha, and upon thy 
 children and thy children's children." 
 
 Terrified and amazed at this uncalled-for curse, 
 Mary was about to make reply, when, brief and 
 terse, the voice of the Messiah gave command:
 
 1 66 LAZARUS. 
 
 " Take ye away the stone." And He pointed with 
 his finger to the grave. 
 
 The hour was come. But a few moments longer 
 would the veil be stretched between the power of 
 God and the belief of man. The air seemed freighted 
 with portentous marvels, each heart palpitating with 
 suspense. 
 
 The disciples sprang forward to obey; yet, even 
 now, the voice of unbelieving common-sense, of 
 faithlessness, of law-bound argument, sounded from 
 Martha's lips. In horror and no simulated terror, 
 she shrank from the dread sight she feared would 
 meet her eyes. 
 
 " Lord, by this time he stinketh, for he hath been 
 dead four days." 
 
 With a gleam almost of indignation at her want of 
 belief, her worldly clinging to the social rites and 
 conventionalities of Jewish custom, yet able still to 
 tolerate the iron-bound limits of man's narrowness, 
 the Nazarene fixed His full gaze upon her. 
 
 " Said I not unto thee, that, if thou wouldst be- 
 lieve, thou shouldst see the glory of God ? " 
 
 Then, as the breeze chases a faint ripple from 
 wavelet to wavelet, there rose a murmur through 
 the multitude: " Verily He will raise him." 
 
 Then the disciples rolled away the stone, and the 
 restlessness of the crowd increased ; they were ready 
 to burst into shouts of praise or fall in adoring wor- 
 ship; but the impulse was restrained by gestures 
 from the disciples entreating peace. 
 
 In the glorious splendour of that Eastern sun, that 
 glowed with an added brilliancy, as if in expectation 
 of the stupendous miracle that was to be performed,
 
 LAZARUS. 167 
 
 the Saviour stood. Unabashed, unflinching, be- 
 neath its scorching rays, with eyes that seemed to 
 pierce, like eagles, through the circles of blazing 
 light beyond, even to the very throne of truth itself, 
 to the feet of the Eternal I Am, the Christ uplifted 
 His fair head to heaven ; and at that moment forked 
 tongues of fire, silvery and golden, like the sun 
 dancing on waves, or a shower of gold, played round 
 about His head. Then the Saviour of the world 
 upraised His voice in prayer to Heaven, in accents 
 of such certainty of answer, such oneness of com- 
 munion with the Father, as could leave no doubt 
 within the hearts of men ! 
 
 " Father, I thank Thee that Thou hast heard Me. 
 And I knew that Thou hearest Me always : but be- 
 cause of the people which stand by I said it, that 
 they may believe that Thou hast sent Me." 
 
 There was a momentary silence, while the crowd, 
 believing now, without a doubt, that this was indeed 
 the Christ, stood also with eyes upturned to heaven, 
 waiting, expecting, for they knew not what ; each 
 weaving in his own fancy the next act of this 
 colossal drama. Then, in a voice that thundered, 
 as though calling across endless aeons of years and 
 days, and floating across the waves of time and of 
 eternity, beyond the bounds of heaven and hell, 
 Jesus gave forth those words that ranked Him God : 
 " Lazarus, come forth! "
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 AND Lazarus came forth. A faint twitching of 
 the members, a sort of convulsive tremor run- 
 ning from the head to foot, was all the multitude 
 could see, as they pressed forward, a seething mass 
 of tightly packed humanity, to witness this final and 
 gigantic miracle. 
 
 In the doorway of the cave stood Lazarus, scarce 
 able to move for the tight swathing of his grave 
 clothes. His hands were tied close to his sides, and 
 his face was bound about with a napkin. Standing 
 there, he looked like some earth-sodden mummy, 
 taken out of a sarcophagus and stood on end, or like 
 a statue hewn in stone. No features, no colouring 
 of life were visible. Immovable he stqod and 
 waited, while thousands of hearts seemed almost to 
 cease to beat, checked, as it were, by some magic 
 awe-inspiring wand. There are moments when no 
 cry of ecstasy, no shouts of applause, no clamour of 
 approbation, can express the quiverings of admira- 
 tion, wrung from a fanatical crowd, like a hushed 
 silence that dares not utter sound. And so it was 
 on this unmatched occasion. A terrible quiet, as if 
 a destroying angel had struck the bystanders dumb, 
 had fallen on all ; an awful thrill that seemed to lock 
 together by magnetic force in one great manacle the 
 soul of each onlooker; a terrible faintness as of 
 
 1 68
 
 LAZARUS. 169 
 
 death ; a blinding of the eyes, as though the sun's 
 too-scorching rays had struck the eyeballs; and, 
 here and there, a dumb opening of the mouth as if 
 to speak, though utterance could not come. A 
 sickening dread, as if heaven and hell would open 
 wide their gates to them. This, and far more than 
 this, fell on the Jews, and the crowd, that had denied 
 the Christ and clamoured to see Lazarus alive, were 
 satisfied, each doubt laid still, each question an- 
 swered. The power of the Eternal had been 
 shown. 
 
 What could they do but fall down in adoration 
 and belief ? This would come, but meantime the 
 multitude, from sheer excitement, wept. 
 
 One voice alone was raised in doubt. 
 
 " Is it indeed he ? " 
 
 It came from one well known to the Nazarene. It 
 was a voice He loved, as often it is the voice one 
 loves the best that wounds the most. 
 
 It was Thomas the unbeliever who had spoken 
 Thomas, to whom faith came ever hardly, yet who 
 loved the Lord. But the words had lashed the 
 seeming feverishness of silence into a living cry. 
 
 " Is it he ? Is it he, or is it another ? Show us 
 thy face! Art thou indeed Lazarus ? " 
 
 " Loose him and let him go," commanded the 
 Messiah, for all answer; but the voice that had 
 spoken with such force to raise the dead man from 
 the grave was weary now, and tired and disap- 
 pointed. Even now, when the great miracle was 
 over, when God Himself had seemed to bow to earth 
 to fashion the triumph of His Son ; when heaven 
 and hell, at His command, had thrown back their
 
 I7O LAZARUS. 
 
 portals to let the spirit enchained of God return to 
 earth; when the great fulfilment of a nation's 
 yearning had come to pass; still they believed not 
 fully. Would they believe when, mounted high on 
 a tree of shame, should hang the Son of God, in 
 proof of boundless love ? Would they believe when 
 He should be seated on a cloud weighted with God's 
 own glory to be worthy to bear the Conqueror of 
 sin to heaven ? No. The answer to His agonised 
 prayer had been accorded; the great experiment, 
 the precursor of the greater love to come, had been 
 completed ; science, suspicion, philosophy, conven- 
 tionality, the laws of this world and the next, all 
 had been overruled ; yet from the voice of His own 
 follower had come the cry of doubt, sprung up again, 
 like some posionous weed that will not be denied its 
 growth. 
 
 The tears of Christ had been shed in vain ; Laza- 
 rus returned but to tread in the same pastures, on 
 the same piercing thorns, to battle once more with 
 the same enemy who had lived in the hearts of men 
 while Lazarus died. 
 
 None at first durst approach the motionless body ; 
 then John, the beloved of the Lord, stepped forward 
 at his Lord's behest. 
 
 One by one John cut with the dagger that hung 
 by his side the cords that bound the hands and feet, 
 leaving to the last the face ; but whether he feared to 
 look on Lazarus, or wished to keep them in sus- 
 pense, not one could tell. Meanwhile the crowd 
 continued silent, almost breathless. At last the 
 napkin fell, and Lazarus stood there in all the beauty 
 of his countenance.
 
 LAZARUS. I/I 
 
 Then rose such an uproar as could be heard almost 
 at Jerusalem. 'T was as if a million lions roared by 
 the shores of a stormy sea. Some prostrated them- 
 selves, women shrieked, some even dropped down 
 dead with wonder; while little children, paralysed 
 with fear, hid their sweet faces in their mothers' 
 robes and howled. 
 
 Soldiers forgot to keep order. In the tumult no 
 voice was granted precedence. All was confusion 
 and astonishment and fear, except where here and 
 there some fell in adoring worship at the Messiah's 
 feet ; others tore down the hill towards Jerusalem to 
 tell the first news to the Pharisees of what the 
 Nazarene had done.
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 " T^HE Magdalene standeth without and asketh 
 1 audience of thee." These were the words 
 that greeted Pontius Pilate immediately on entering 
 the audience chamber. 
 
 " 'T is a strange request," the Procurator mur- 
 mured; " yet methinks it may have somewhat to 
 do with the rumour that hath reached my ears, that 
 Caiaphas did see her yesterday and also the mother 
 of the Nazarene. I was about to look into this, for, 
 even if he go so far in his hate of the Nazarene as 
 to persecute Him, and even slay Him, this frighten- 
 ing of women doth ill become a high priest, and I 
 will have none of it." 
 
 Then, turning to the soldier, he said: " Bid her 
 pass in." 
 
 Weary with her night of watching, pale, yet ever 
 beautiful, the Magdalene came into the presence of 
 the Roman Governor. 
 
 'What wouldst thou, Mary?" asked Pontius 
 Pilate, with that tone of temperate kindliness that 
 showed his wish to give justice and consideration to 
 all. ' Thy request must be made short, for I have 
 much to do this day. By midday I must meet Caia- 
 phas at the Tribunal, where the question of the re- 
 leasing of a captive to the people will be finally 
 decided. Doubtless 't is touching this that thou art 
 
 172
 
 LAZARUS. 173 
 
 come, and to plead for the Nazarene; for I hear 
 that thou art altogether gone over to His teaching. 
 'T is true that He is not yet arrested ; but, doubt- 
 less, thou hast heard that He is being sought for by 
 the soldiers." 
 
 " Nay, most noble Roman, I come not to beg the 
 life of the Christ. For the good of the nation it 
 must needs be that He die. He Himself doth hourly 
 prepare for that great day of grief. I have a mes- 
 sage for thee from Nicodemus." 
 
 Then, glancing round at the two soldiers, who 
 stood one on each side of the doorway, she con- 
 tinued meekly: " But what I have to say is for the 
 ear of Pontius Pilate only." 
 
 Pilate waved his hand to the soldiers to leave the 
 room ; also to the scribe who, with feigned diligence, 
 was writing in a corner of the room, shooting sala- 
 cious glances at the Magdalene, and hopeful that 
 Pontius Pilate would forget his presence. 
 
 " And thou too, thou eavesdropper," said Pontius 
 Pilate with a laugh, noting the direction of the Mag- 
 dalene's eyes. " Thou too canst go, and, if thou 
 wilt listen, listen without the door." 
 
 Then the Magdalene stepped nearer to the table 
 at which the Governor was seated. 
 
 " Will Pontius Pilate pledge his honour to a poor 
 woman," said the Magdalene, " that the words 
 which I shall speak to thee this day no ears but 
 thine shall ever hear ? " 
 
 " I promise thee on my honour as a Roman. I 
 swear to thee on the life of my wife, whom I hold 
 most dear of all that I possess, that no one shall ever 
 hear again the words thou shalt say to me this day."
 
 1/4 LAZARUS. 
 
 " I believe thee, most noble Pontius," said the 
 Magdalene simply. Then, in an awe-struck voice, 
 that had in it a strange impressiveness, she said : 
 " To-morrow Lazarus will be raised from the dead." 
 
 Pilate started. ' Woman, what sayest thou ? 
 How knowest thou?" 
 
 " Verily 't is true, most noble Pilate. Lazarus 
 hath visited me this morn and told me so." 
 
 " Then, if Lazarus came to thee, he is not dead," 
 said Pontius musingly. 
 
 " 'T was but his spirit, noble Roman. His body 
 hath lain in the grave three days. If thou wilt send 
 to see, thou wilt find that he is still there. Indeed, 
 a Roman soldier guardeth it." 
 
 Pilate rose and walked to the window ; then, after 
 a few minutes' silence, he turned to the Magdalene : 
 " Almost I believe thee, woman, for thou speakest 
 in tones of truth. Yet how can I help thee in this 
 matter? Why comest thou to me?" The last 
 words were uttered almost impatiently, as though he 
 disputed the responsibility she would fasten upon 
 him. 
 
 " Ah, noble Pilate, it is well known throughout 
 all Jewry that thou and thy wife Claudia do love the 
 Nazarene. " 
 
 " Love is a strong word, woman," answered Pon- 
 tius Pilate; I do much admire this Nazarene for 
 His power and for His courage, in that He feareth 
 not death, and also doth try to redress the wrongs 
 of the afflicted ; for a redresser of wrong is at all 
 times deemed a madman. My wife, too, hath filled 
 my thoughts with talk of Him of late, for she, like 
 all women, hath a weakness for them who defy the
 
 LAZARUS. 175 
 
 law. Withal I reckon Him not the Christ. " Then, 
 with more earnestness he asked: " Dost thou ? " 
 
 ' Yea, I know it, noble Pilate. He is the Lord, 
 and I am here to implore thee to come and see Him 
 raise Lazarus, for then thou, too, wilt believe." As 
 she said these words, she fell down at the feet of 
 Pilate. " I beseech thee, oh, I beseech thee, O 
 Pilate, come and believe! " 
 
 Pilate frowned, and a great melancholy and a look 
 of doubt came over his face. 
 
 " Thou temptest me sore," he said, " and to 
 refuse so fair a woman doth go against my wish ; 
 but what would all Judaea say; nay, more, what 
 would Caesar say, if he should hear that I had as- 
 sembled myself with the believers in this Nazarene 
 to see His miracles ? " 
 
 ' What matter what they say ? " pleaded the Mag- 
 dalene. " Surely if to follow the Nazarene bring 
 even death, 't were better far to die in Christ than 
 to live denying Him." 
 
 More moved than he durst show, Pontius Pilate 
 answered: "Thou speakest but lightly of death, 
 fair woman. Surely this Nazarene hath wondrous 
 power, for even I, a Roman, quail when I think of 
 death." 
 
 " 'T is no death to die in Christ," rejoined the 
 Magdalene. 'T is but to live again forever." 
 
 ' That is His creed, I know, but I cannot accept 
 it. I dare not come." Then, fearing that she 
 would press him further, he murmured something 
 about the hour. 
 
 Rising to go, the Magdalene shot yet a wistful 
 glance towards him. But his eyes were gazing at
 
 1/6 LAZARUS. 
 
 the deep blue sky or the waving palm that stood 
 against it. The very air seemed heavy with import- 
 ance. Presently, with a swift impulse, Pilate came 
 close to her, and looking at her lovely face, now puri- 
 fied and refined by her new life, he said: " Fare- 
 well, woman, and I thank thee that thou hast 
 thought to save my soul. Pontius Pilate hath many 
 troubles, and the greatest is, that he cannot under- 
 stand. Carry a message to thy brethren that, if I can, 
 I will save the Nazarene ; for, be He the Christ or 
 be He man, He doth deserve to live." 
 
 Sadly the Magdalene turned to go. 
 
 " Mary, one word more," called Pilate after her. 
 " If thou shouldst have speech with the Nazarene, 
 tell Him I fain would save Him if I could." 
 
 ' The Lord knoweth what is in the hearts of all 
 men," said the Magdalene. " We will pray that 
 thou mayst believe." And so, sad at the failure of 
 her mission, she departed. 
 
 When the door had closed behind her, Pilate rang 
 a bell that was on his table. When the centurion 
 appeared he had been wondering at the long inter- 
 view with the Magdalene he said : " Bid a man ride 
 at once to Bethany and bring me word where the 
 body of Lazarus lies. But mind, not a word to any 
 else, or it will be chains instead of women's arms 
 around his neck this night. Bid him ride quickly." 
 
 But Pilate sat gazing out into space, with a sort of 
 vague surprise that the world still looked as it had 
 looked the day before, and musing on the imper- 
 fection of man's understanding. Surely, if this 
 were the God, we should all know it. 
 
 At the Sanhedrim he met Caiaphas. The meet-
 
 LAZARUS. 177 
 
 ing between the two was not a friendly one. It was 
 impossible for a fearless, straightforward man like 
 Pilate to have much in common with the wily Jew 
 whose intriguing seemed to be how to intrigue still 
 more. The attitude, till now, of Pontius Pilate 
 towards him had been that of a man who stands on 
 his own unquestioned power, and yet acknowledges 
 what another has attained by cunning. Surely 
 these Jews were highly gifted. Yes, it pleased 
 Pilate to draw out the High Priest, to appeal to his 
 pride, to his learning, his high position and then 
 to mock him. There was nothing noble in the soul 
 of Caiaphas. He would have descended to any 
 depth of cringing, provided he were certain of his 
 company. With Pilate, whom he feared, he did not 
 cringe, but put on an assumed indifference he was far 
 from feeling. Pilate had once said with curious 
 truth that the beginning and ending of Caiaphas was 
 himself. 
 
 To-day both were troubled by the same cause. 
 The humble Carpenter, the Nazarene, the despised 
 and rejected of men, had yet had power to wring 
 the withers of the two chief governors of Israel ; but 
 the difference of the two men was this Pilate longed 
 to believe. If he could have believed, power and 
 wealth would have been laid aside. Caiaphas did 
 believe, but as the devils, we are told, believe and 
 tremble. He was closing up each corner of his 
 heart, stopping, like the deaf adder, his ears, for fear 
 that true belief should come and force submission, 
 and thus wrest from him power and temporal glory. 
 Better the substance than the shadow. Better 
 Caiaphas worshipped by the populace, bowed down
 
 178 LAZARUS. 
 
 to, besought and feared, than a humble doorkeeper, 
 perhaps, in the house of the Lord. 
 
 In these days Caiaphas rarely read the prophets, 
 lest some text of his own choosing should confound 
 him. The man he least desired to see was Pilate. 
 The man Pilate most desired to see was Caiaphas. 
 No Roman could fail to know that Judaea was ruled 
 by the letter of the law. A legal education was con- 
 sidered the most important in the schools, a strict 
 adherence to the Mosaic ordinances enforced by 
 severest penalty at the earliest age. As enlighten- 
 ment brought wider range of ideas, so the law of the 
 Sabbath grew more rigid, the noose of the Mosaic 
 Law was drawn the tighter round the people's necks. 
 No one coming from an outside world, and an inde- 
 pendent one, like that of Rome, could fail to see 
 that the law of Moses was but wielded as a sceptre 
 of despotism over a lawyer-ridden country. The 
 day would come when Rome itself would take some 
 hints and terrify its own people by the tyranny of 
 an enforced religion that brooked no resistance, that 
 made even argument a sin, that made absolute the 
 dominion of the law. 
 
 It was easy to see, thought Pilate, why the chief 
 priests feared the Nazarene, for by His miracles He 
 completed prophecy, and by His actions enforced 
 the commandments of the Mosaic Law; thus con- 
 founding the tyranny of perverted argument exer- 
 cised by the Pharisees and priests for their own ends 
 and crushing out by such fulfilments the slanderous 
 assertions disseminated by His enemies that His 
 doctrines were opposed to the teaching of the Scrip- 
 tures or the ordinances of the Jewish law.
 
 LAZARUS. 179 
 
 When Pilate descended the steps of the Tribunal, 
 where, half from absence of mind and half from a 
 great half-formed uncertainty, he had tempered jus- 
 tice with no unsparing hand, he saw Caiaphas hurry- 
 ing on in front. 
 
 " Art loath to meet me, Caiaphas ? " he said to 
 himself. Then, turning to a centurion, he bid 
 him follow the High Priest and ask him whether he 
 could have speech with him in the ante-chamber or 
 at his dwelling. " 'T is one to me," he said, " so I 
 have speech with him." 
 
 More feelings than one made Caiaphas avoid a 
 meeting with the Procurator. Anger and fear con- 
 tended in his heart, and the two are ill-matched com- 
 panions. He was angry with Pilate for letting go 
 free the two Roman soldiers whom he had sent up 
 for trial for not obeying his orders to lay hands on 
 the Nazarene. Indeed, they had played a double 
 game, for, instead of returning to own themselves 
 defeated, they had appealed to Pilate, and thus 
 forestalled Caiaphas's complaint of them. 
 
 " Everything leadeth me to believe that this man 
 thinketh the Nazarene to be the Christ," he mut- 
 tered to himself. Then he feared a little what 
 Pilate would say at his having dared to attempt to 
 lay hands on the Nazarene, without first asking his 
 permission. Further, if it had come to Pilate's ears 
 that he had visited Bethany in the company of Nico- 
 demus and sent for the two Marys to inquire of 
 them, then indeed Pilate could scoff with reason. 
 
 " Tell the illustrious Governor that I have much 
 to write this morning," was the message he returned 
 to Pilate, hoping that his insolence might so offend
 
 ISO LAZARUS. 
 
 him that he would stay away ; but the proud Roman 
 would brook no such messages. 
 
 ' Tell the High Priest that his writing must needs 
 wait until to-morrow, for that I must have speech 
 with him, and that I am even now upon my road. 
 Ye Jewish people have yet to learn courtesy of 
 speech," he muttered to himself; but, on the road, 
 his strange musings returned to him, and, weary 
 with the searchings of his heart, he forgot his anger 
 and impatience. 
 
 For one moment there was an awkward silence, 
 the two men reclining on couches drawn close 
 together, a custom the Romans had introduced. 
 
 Caiaphas was puzzled to know what had brought 
 Pilate there ; and Pilate was debating how to begin 
 his questionings without exhibiting too great an in- 
 terest in the Nazarene. 
 
 " I have much to discuss with thee, Caiaphas," he 
 began. ' The Feast of the Passover is at hand, and 
 the question of whom we shall release is not to be 
 lightly settled. The people do expect that one 
 shall be delivered unto them. Who sayest thou, 
 then, should be released ? " 
 
 The wily Jew joined his finger-tips and appeared 
 to muse awhile ; though, in reality, he was watching 
 Pilate's face from the corner of his eye. Pilate, too, 
 looked away to hide the anxiety that was gnawing 
 at his heart, lest another name than the Nazarene's 
 should cross the lips of the priest he had begun to 
 hate. For he knew that Caiaphas would lay hands 
 on Jesus; and, in such case, Pilate desired to set 
 Him free. Both men were silent, while each tried 
 to cheat the other. Brain against brain was pitted,
 
 LAZARUS. l8l 
 
 each anxious to use his ingenuity for his own ends, 
 each reluctant to breathe, either in favour or dis- 
 favour, the name that lay nearest to the lips of both. 
 
 " Methinks Barabbas hath a great claim," said 
 Caiaphas presently. " He hath lain long in prison, 
 and for not so grievous a fault ; for, though he slew 
 the Pharisee, methinks he slew him but in self- 
 defence." 
 
 " Thou growest merciful," said Pilate scornfully, 
 irritated, he scarce knew why. 
 
 " 'T is ever a priest's place to be merciful, inas- 
 much as he expecteth mercy," replied Caiaphas, in 
 his dissembling unctuousness. 
 
 A flush of anger came over Pilate's face, and the 
 words of the Nazarene recurred to him : " Woe unto 
 ye, Pharisees, hypocrites." Then, pushing into the 
 thickness of his own mental conflict, he went on : 
 " What saith Annas ? Doth he, too, recommend 
 Barabbas ? " He knew full well he had given Caia- 
 phas the opening he desired, and had speeded the 
 conversation in the turn he would fain have it take. 
 
 " Well, since thou askest me, noble Pilate," re- 
 plied the priest, striving to make his voice indifferent 
 as well as temperate, " Annas is not content only 
 with the releasing of Barabbas ; he would have fur- 
 ther the Nazarene condemned at the Feast of the 
 Passover." 
 
 " Does he, too, fear Him ?" asked Pilate with 
 increasing scorn. 
 
 " None fear Him," replied Caiaphas, pretending 
 to ignore the caustic remark. " None fear Him; 
 but it is a law of the Jews that, if one call himself 
 the Son of God, he shall die the death."
 
 1 82 LAZARUS. 
 
 Then, with strange passion, and a vehemence too 
 powerful to be repressed, Pilate shot out the words : 
 " And if He be the Son of God, what then, most 
 noble Caiaphas ? " 
 
 This was a question too wide for Caiaphas to deal 
 with unconsidered, too unexpected to be readily re- 
 plied to ; but, ever an adept at cunning, Caiaphas 
 rejoined with subtlety: " Dost think He is ? " 
 
 Then Pilate remembered all the risks he would 
 run, should he side openly with the Nazarene ; nor 
 was he assured enough in his own mind to answer 
 with full confidence. 
 
 " I ask thee a question, and thou answerest me 
 with another," he said impatiently. " Give me thy 
 answer, for thou art great in argument and in the 
 knowledge of the law, and I would argue with thee, 
 as we do in the Tribunal ; for argument hath that 
 good about it that oft two lies do form a truth ; and, 
 when one doth controvert the other, he that contra- 
 dicteth contradicteth what he himself doth think to 
 make the other in his turn contradict again; thus, 
 much is learned, and the truth is often come at ; for 
 both sides are openly discussed, and the judge hath 
 means thereby to form his judgment. 
 
 " Say, if this were the Son of God and we should 
 condemn Him, how would it be in the Judgment 
 Day ? What say the prophets will be done of him 
 that destroyeth the Son of God ? " 
 
 " If He were the Son of God," rejoined Caiaphas, 
 guarded in his answer, yet interested in the argu- 
 ment, " He could not be destroyed by human 
 hands." 
 
 " Then I will ask thee yet another question, Caia-
 
 LAZARUS. 183 
 
 phas, for I am in the mood to prove thy learning and 
 my own. Dost believe that a Messiah will come ? " 
 
 " Most assuredly," said Caiaphas. " All the 
 prophets say so." 
 
 " I accept thy answer," rejoined Pilate, with an 
 elated look. " Then, if the Messiah hath yet to 
 come, how thinkest thou that He will come, and 
 whence, and when ? " 
 
 " Such momentous problems, noble Procurator, 
 take much time and thought to solve. Methinks it 
 would be better to choose an occasion when business 
 presseth less." 
 
 " Nay, nay, my friend," replied Pontius Pilate 
 hastily; " where a man's life is in the balance mat- 
 ters surely press; and, if this man be a Messiah, for 
 sure there is no more urgent matter to you and to 
 me and to the whole world ; but answer me, Caia- 
 phas : How thinkest thou the real Messiah will come? 
 How is it written ? " 
 
 Caiaphas hesitated, from no ignorance, but that 
 he was revolving in his mind how far he would be 
 compromised if he should quote the prophets; and, 
 betwixt fear of seeming ignorant and dread of com- 
 promising himself, he was sorely troubled. Then 
 he replied: " Zechariah hath said, 'Behold, thy 
 King cometh unto thee: He is just, and having sal- 
 vation ; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a 
 colt the foal of an ass.' ' 
 
 The words seemed to come reluctantly from his 
 lips, as though he were the unwilling mouthpiece of 
 the prophecy. Then, as if to conceal their full sig- 
 nificance, he added: "But there are many other 
 things that hath not yet come to pass. It saith
 
 1 84 LAZARUS. 
 
 again : ' And it shall come to pass in that day that 
 light shall not be clear nor dark. But it shall be 
 one day which shall be known to the Lord, not day, 
 nor night : but it shall come to pass, at evening time 
 it shall be light.' Then again it saith (here the High 
 Priest raised his voice to an even, monotonous pitch, 
 as though prophesying in the Synagogue) in another 
 place that ' the mountains shall be removed.' But 
 all these signs are not yet come. ' ' 
 
 Then, with curling lip, Pontius Pilate asked in a 
 tone of assumed indifference: " Dost remember a 
 passage (for I too at times do read the prophets) 
 in the prophet Malachi ? ' And now, O priests, this 
 commandment is for you. If ye will not hear, and 
 if ye will not lay it to heart, to give glory unto My 
 name, saith the Lord of Hosts, I will even send a 
 curse upon you, and I will curse your blessings : yea, 
 I have cursed them already, because ye do not lay 
 it to heart. For the priests' lips should keep know- 
 ledge, and they should seek the law at His mouth: 
 for He is the messenger of the Lord of Hosts.' ' 
 
 Caiaphas flushed a deep crimson, and his lips grew 
 white at the words of Pilate. 
 
 In a bitter tone he answered : " Thou speakest in 
 parables, noble Procurator; I understand thee not." 
 
 " My meaning was," said Pilate, smiling to him- 
 self, " to ask thee whether thou hast no fear, sup- 
 posing that, after all, this were the Christ, that thou 
 thyself mayst meet with eternal death, if so be thou 
 hast wrongly understood the message of the Lord." 
 
 "Eternal life, eternal death, who knoweth of these 
 things?" asked Caiaphas impatiently, yet with a 
 troubled look.
 
 LAZARUS. 185 
 
 " Thou art, then, verily a Sadducee, like Annas 
 thy father-in-law, and thy wife his daughter. Verily 
 women have great power in this our day. ' ' 
 
 And his thoughts went back to his own wife, 
 Claudia, who had stated her belief in Jesus and who 
 dreamed so strangely. 
 
 ' Yet I would ask thee further, noble Caiaphas, 
 for of all our speech no certain thing hath come ; nei- 
 ther whether this be the Christ, nor whom we shall 
 release at the Feast of Passover. Answer me ; if, as 
 ye Sadducees believe, there be no resurrection, what 
 profiteth a man to do good or evil? And why, then, 
 fast ye ? Surely 't is loss of time to be sad, if there 
 be no ensuing good. If 't is true, let us waste no 
 time; let us make merry, Caiaphas, let us eat and 
 drink, for to-morrow we die." 
 
 Pilate laughed at his own words, in which there 
 was a scornful ring. Then, lowering his voice, went 
 on: "In truth, Caiaphas, hath it not a little truth, 
 this saying of the Nazarene that hath upset thee so 
 That ye shut up the kingdom of Heaven against 
 men, and ye neither go in yourselves nor suffer them 
 that are entering to go in ? " 
 
 " I am no Pharisee," said the High Priest an- 
 grily. 
 
 " How then art thou a ruler of Israel ? " asked 
 Pontius Pilate laughing; " for they were mostly 
 chosen of the Pharisees ; but methinks the world is 
 upside down, for Judaea hath strange intruders that 
 yet do rule her. We have the Idumsean Antipas and 
 Philo and other Alexandrian Jews, and even Greeks ; 
 yet the Greeks and their influence are hated of the 
 Jews. Thou art here to preach salvation to the peo-
 
 1 86 LAZARUS. 
 
 pie, and thou believest not in that salvation. Surely, 
 't is a strange assemblage, and every man's hand is 
 against another's. Each hath a creed of his own, 
 and he that ruleth the larger portion is but he that 
 is the strongest. It seemeth to me that this Naza- 
 rene doth restore the right, for He declaimeth 
 against what is evil, and showeth the whole nation 
 the way to God. I know not whether He be the 
 Christ or even a prophet ; but this I know, that if 
 we would observe His teaching good only would en- 
 sue. He wisheth neither to rob nor to destroy, nor 
 to take the place of any man. He preacheth such a 
 doctrine that, I feel sure, were Moses here, he would 
 himself pronounce it better than his own. Listen 
 what sweet philosophy is this : ' I will have mercy 
 and not sacrifice, for I came not to call the righteous, 
 but sinners to repentance ' ; and again, that philoso- 
 phy of forgiveness was ever philosophy so great ? 
 ' Resist not evil ; but whosoever shall smite thee on 
 thy right cheek, turn to him the other also. Love 
 your enemies; bless them that curse you/ ' Then, 
 when Caiaphas would have interrupted him, he went 
 on: "Listen yet to this strange argument: ' If ye 
 salute your brethren, what do ye more than others ? 
 Do not even the publicans so ? ' 
 
 He is a dreamer " rejoined Caiaphas, shrugging 
 his shoulders; " such things cannot be." 
 
 ' True," said Pilate, " if such things were, you and 
 I would no more be needed, for there would be no 
 tribunal and no law." 
 
 And he laughed lightly. 
 
 Caiaphas, pleased at the turn of the conversation, 
 laughed too.
 
 . LAZARUS. 187 
 
 "Methinks that thou wouldst make this man King 
 of the Jews and then come and conquer Him," he 
 rejoined, half jokingly, yet glancing furtively at the 
 Procurator. 
 
 " Nay, Caiaphas, I swear to thee it is not so; I 
 know not whence He cometh, nor what or who He 
 is ; but this I do maintain, that I see no sin in Him 
 deserving death." 
 
 ' He hath said that He is God; therefore He is a 
 blasphemer, and, according to our law, He ought to 
 die," said Caiaphas. 
 
 " Your law, your law," retorted Pilate pettishly; 
 " it is with thee the beginning and the end of all 
 things ; yet ye know it can be upset at will. What 
 sayest thou about that robber whom thou forgavest 
 all his sins, because he brought thee a basket of orto- 
 lans overladen with fat and buried in vine leaves as 
 sacrifice ? ' ' 
 
 " He that dwelleth about the altar must feed by 
 the altar," said the High Priest unctuously. 
 
 " Mayhap, Caiaphas," answered Pontius Pilate, 
 roaring with merriment ; " but 't was in fasting time, 
 't was in fasting time. Thou seest, Caiaphas, that 
 I hear overmuch. Oh, Tiberius did laugh when I 
 did narrate the tale! " 
 
 " Didst thou tell Tiberius ?" The words were 
 rushed out almost with dismay. 
 
 " No harm is done, I assure thee, my good Caia- 
 phas. Tiberius laughed a long space ; then he said, 
 ' Had I known, I would have sent him a bottle of 
 Falernian to wash them down.' ' 
 
 " 'T is some vile falsehood invented in the market 
 place," said Caiaphas angrily. " I wonder, great
 
 1 88 LAZARUS. 
 
 Pilate, that a man in so high a position as thyself 
 should listen thus to servants' tattling." 
 
 ' Trouble not thyself, good Caiaphas," laughed 
 Pilate. ' Thou shouldst have bidden me to share 
 it with thee. But, to return to this question of the 
 Passover, what sayest thou ? Shall we execute 
 Barabbas, if needs be that one must die to satisfy 
 the people ? " 
 
 Caiaphas was silent ; then, diplomatically, he an- 
 swered : "Shall I consult with Annas, and send thee 
 word ? ' ' 
 
 " Nay, nay," said the outspoken Roman, laugh- 
 ing, " we want not the opinion of deposed high 
 priests, nor of the fathers of our wives ! I shall con- 
 sult no father-in-law, nor shalt thou. Speak, whom 
 shall we release unto the people ? " 
 
 Then, looking shiftily at Pilate, Caiaphas an- 
 swered : " Myself, I would release Barabbas, for he 
 hath lain long in prison." 
 
 A spasm, as of pain or grief, shot across the face 
 of Pilate, and there was a moment's silence, in which 
 the two men seemed to be measuring their moral 
 strength, like two duellists with their swords. The 
 Roman was the weaker, for, in a disappointed voice, 
 already feeling the battle partly lost, yet still re- 
 solved to make a fight of it before he yielded, Pilate 
 said: " And whom wouldst thou sacrifice for the 
 people ? " 
 
 And Caiaphas, knowing that he was the stronger, 
 with devilish intention, answered: "The Nazarene. " 
 
 Oh, what a multitude of reflections coursed 
 through the brain of Pontius Pilate, as he once more 
 looked forth from the window on to the shining
 
 LAZARUS. 189 
 
 roofs and turrets of Jerusalem, rather than meet the 
 gaze of the man who, he knew, hated him even as 
 he hated the Nazarene, and even now took pleasure 
 in the grief he was inflicting. Even while he gazed 
 upwards toward the sky, he wondered why it did 
 not open and give a sign that this was the Son of 
 God, if such He was. Then, feeling that the ques- 
 tion must be settled, he turned to Caiaphas. 
 
 " Tell me again, Caiaphas, on what charge shall 
 we then try Him and condemn Him. Hath He in- 
 deed guilt at all, or is it but to satisfy the proud 
 Caiaphas, to make his words of prophecy come 
 true ? " 
 
 " He hath blasphemed, I tell thee," answered 
 Caiaphas sharply, beginning to lose his temper, " in 
 that He hath called Himself the Son of God." 
 
 " To call Himself the Son of God is not a sin," 
 retorted Pilate, righting yet, though he felt the weak- 
 ness of his argument; " for we are all the children 
 of God. Thou thyself in thy prophecy dost say 
 that ' Jesus should die for this nation, and not for 
 this nation only, but that also He should gather to- 
 gether all the children of God which were scattered 
 abroad.' Who, then, meanest thou by the children 
 of God ?" 
 
 Doubtless, in his subtlety, the High Priest could 
 have found some pungent answer with which to ex- 
 plain away his words, but, at that moment, a noise 
 of many voices raised in excited talk, and the tramp- 
 ing of many feet outside, drowned the last words of 
 Pilate; and ere Caiaphas could reply a centurion 
 entered hurriedly. 
 
 " Pardon, rabbis," he began, " but it seemed to
 
 190 LAZARUS. 
 
 me my message justified my speedy entrance. Laz- 
 arus is raised from the dead. I have it from one 
 who saw him leave the grave. He waiteth outside 
 to give thee further news, if thou wilt see him." 
 
 While the man was speaking, Pilate rose and held 
 on with one hand to the couch, while he turned his 
 head with terror-stricken look over his shoulder 
 towards the soldier. 
 
 " Dost believe 't is true ? " he asked. 
 ' True, how can it be true ? What fool's folly is 
 this ? " interrupted Caiaphas, stamping his feet, and 
 with one arm clasping his elbow while he bowed his 
 chin upon his hand. 'T is some foul trick, some 
 chicanery of this Nazarene and His company. 
 Maybe they have taken away the body of Lazarus, 
 and this is some other man." Then, turning to 
 Pilate, he continued: "With all thy arguments and 
 unwillingness, we are too late to stop the people 
 now. They will altogether go after this juggling 
 Nazarene. Hadst thou but heard me, the quieting 
 of Judaea had been an easy task. Now who will say 
 how it will end, for this unlearned people will believe 
 that this is a miracle from God. All Jewry hath 
 waited for this day and wondered why it came not. 
 Four days had this schemer left the people to grow 
 heated with endless uproar ; and now He bringeth 
 His pretended miracles to a frenzied people, who 
 know not whether they dream or not." 
 
 But Pilate answered nothing to his recriminations. 
 
 " Bring us hither thy messenger," said he, turn- 
 ing to the soldier. 
 
 " It is Chuza who hath come." 
 
 "And who is Chuza?" asked Caiaphas, with
 
 LAZARUS. 191 
 
 scathing scorn, " that his word is to have weight 
 with the two rulers of Judaea ? " 
 
 Peace, Caiaphas; I would but hear the rumour 
 from his lips," said Pilate, and he signed to the sol- 
 dier to bring the man. 
 
 A moment later there was announced a little man 
 whose black ringlets and piercing eyes proclaimed 
 him a Jew, while his dress was that worn by the 
 house stewards of the time. 
 
 He came in, making low obeisance, but with a 
 troubled look, as if recent events had overwhelmed 
 him. 
 
 ' Who art thou ? " asked Caiaphas with scorn. 
 
 " May it please thee, High Caiaphas, I am now 
 the steward of Antipas ; but I was the steward of 
 Herod, and so well did I rule his household for him, 
 that Antipas did bid me stay." 
 
 Caiaphas became less cynical. 
 
 The steward in the house of the Tetrarch was a 
 man at least deserving of consideration. 
 
 " And dost thou know the Nazarene ? " 
 
 " May it please thee, High Caiaphas, I have a wife 
 Joanna, who for many years suffered from the dis- 
 ease of madness ; and, at the seasons of the moon, 
 she would throw herself into the fire or tear her 
 clothing. She had seen many physicians, but they 
 had availed her nothing, and much money had been 
 spent, which I could ill afford." 
 
 " Albeit thou robbest the Tetrarch not a little," 
 put in Caiaphas, with a sneering laugh. 
 
 " Let him tell his tale," said Pontius Pilate with 
 impatience. " Proceed, Chuza." 
 
 Then the man went on: " But when my wife did
 
 192 LAZARUS. 
 
 hear through her sister, Susanna, who is married to 
 a tanner near to Bethany, that this Man did work 
 such miracles, she too went and besought Him. 
 And He turned to her in the crowd and said to her: 
 ' Woman, thy sins are forgiven thee ' ; and straight- 
 way she was cured, and returned unto me whole." 
 
 "What said Antipas to this miracle?" asked 
 Caiaphas, with the same self-satisfied, scornful smile. 
 " Is he not wroth that thy wife doth thus run after 
 the Nazarene ? " 
 
 " He said only, ' 'T was a pity that she had been 
 cured, for else, perchance, she had not returned,' ' 
 said Chuza, simply, at which both Caiaphas and 
 Pilate laughed. 
 
 " But touching Lazarus ? 'T is of him that we 
 would hear," said Pilate. Then, remembering that 
 he would be on dangerous ground should any remark 
 of his be carried back to Antipas, he went on with 
 assumed indifference, that Caiaphas did not fail to 
 note, and, later, profit by. " What tales are told ? " 
 
 " Nay, they are no tales, my lords," replied the 
 Jew, his whole face changing when his thoughts re- 
 verted to the strange phenomenon of that night. 
 " 'T is even so. When Joanna, my wife, heard that 
 Lazarus was dead, she entreated me to accompany 
 her to the house of Martha of Bethany, but my mas- 
 ter Antipas hath had two great feasts at his house, 
 and I could not take her thither for four days. But 
 late last night we travelled the fifteen furlongs' jour- 
 ney to comfort Mary and Martha/and to carry spices 
 to anoint Lazarus. Then when we reached the 
 dwelling a great multitude stood around, and we 
 feared lest something had happened to the Nazarene.
 
 LAZARUS. 193 
 
 But Mary came out to us and whispered that, if 
 we would follow the multitude to the tomb, we 
 would see the glory of the Lord. So we followed 
 to the tomb of Lazarus, and there the Nazarene 
 called out in a loud voice : ' Lazarus, come forth ! ' 
 
 " Well, well," Pilate broke in impatiently, when 
 the man stopped for breath. 
 
 He went on : "And immediately he that was dead 
 came forth, bound hand and foot with grave clothes, 
 and his face was bound about with a napkin. And 
 Jesus said unto them, ' Loose him, and let him 
 
 go/ " 
 
 Then when Pilate said nothing, but remained 
 wrapped in silence, musing over Chuza's words, 
 Caiaphas broke in impatiently: "And the people, 
 what said the people ? " 
 
 Somewhat maliciously, eying the High Priest 
 narrowly while he spoke, Chuza answered: "Many 
 of the Jews believed when they saw the things which 
 Jesus did ; others went their way to tell the Phari- 
 sees the things which they had seen." 
 
 ' Enough, thou mayst go," said Pilate, handing 
 the man a few coins. " Thou hast well told thy 
 tale." 
 
 " Indeed 't is no tale," protested Chuza. 
 
 " Silence, and begone, fool ! " thundered Caiaphas. 
 
 The man hastened away, and at first no v/ord was 
 spoken by the two remaining in the chamber. The 
 hour was late, and the time for Pilate's midday meal 
 had passed. But he recked not of food, this hardy 
 Roman. Since their discussion had begun, this sud- 
 den news had weighed the balance on his side. He 
 
 knew that the fact that Lazarus had not been raised 
 13
 
 194 LAZARUS. 
 
 had been the strong point of the Pharisees and Sad- 
 ducees ; but, now that the miracle had been accom- 
 plished, his arguments had been greatly strength- 
 ened, while those of the disbelieving Jews and of 
 the scribes and Pharisees had been proportionately 
 weakened. 
 
 Caiaphas was now eager to be rid of his guest, 
 that he might think over this event in silence, and 
 form alone his schemes of tyranny and vengeance. 
 He could not but be conscious that this raising of 
 Lazarus, whether a real miracle, or some trickery, 
 had changed the aspect of affairs, and would lessen 
 his hold upon the people. He started, for in his 
 musings he had forgotten Pilate's presence. 
 ' What thinkest thou now ? " asked Pilate. 
 
 " Now, now; why should I think differently ?" 
 answered Caiaphas. ' I think the people are gone 
 mad, and that the Nazarene hath a devil." His 
 voice and tone were sore and irritable. 
 
 Pilate rose to go. ' Thou wilt not be persuaded, 
 Caiaphas. Yet I hold Him free from all sin. I will 
 go farther into this affair and, mayhap, will see 
 privily the Nazarene," said Pilate; " and if I find 
 no guile in Him I will let Him go, shouldst thou lay 
 hands on Him, and will condemn Barabbas." 
 
 The tone was defiant and abrupt, and he left with 
 a blunt farewell, to return to the Palace of Herod, 
 where the Roman Procurators were wont to stay at 
 the time of feasts, in order to keep order in Jerusa- 
 lem. In his heart he wondered what Claudia would 
 say at this fresh news. 
 
 Caiaphas shrugged his shoulders. Then, when 
 Pilate's departing footsteps were no longer audible,
 
 LAZARUS. 195 
 
 he muttered: " We shall see, Pilate, who is the 
 stronger, thou or I. We shall see." And over his 
 face there gathered such a glance of hellish hate 
 and malice, mingled with scorn and craft, that surely 
 no such face would ever shine with virtue more.
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 THE Sanhedrim had been called together; and 
 more, it was not without disquietude that 
 Caiaphas had appeared in the midst of the assembly. 
 Jerusalem was convulsed by the events of the pre- 
 ceding day. Lazarus was alive again to swell the 
 ranks of Christ's supporters and the High Priest's 
 opponents. 
 
 " Our enemies are multiplied," Caiaphas had said 
 unctuously to Nicodemus, and the latter had an- 
 swered with significance : ' ' Yea, methinks they are 
 too strong for us." 
 
 In the privacy of his own chamber, with none but 
 Annas to hear his asseverations of what he meant to 
 do, the infuriated accents of his oaths, the mingled 
 scorn and terror of his remarks, Caiaphas gave up all 
 pretence of being actuated by religious fervour or 
 noble impulses. 
 
 " Yes, if I be eternally damned, if Satan claim me 
 for his own, if this be the Christ, the very Son of 
 God, yet He shall perish, for that He hath striven 
 to contend with me, to pervert the nation, to insult 
 the teachers of the law, of whom I am chief. Dost 
 not fear, Annas, thou who art the father of many 
 priests, that if this Man once gain the mastery all 
 priesthood shall be ended ? What need of priests, 
 if a common carpenter can come and teach in our 
 
 196
 
 LAZARUS. 197 
 
 synagogues and flout us ? Thou and I, Annas, may 
 go and live in some mean cottage in Nazareth, for 
 it seemeth that out of that village cometh greatness. 
 Thinkest with me, Annas ? " 
 
 " I think," said Annas, talking for once without 
 prevarication and without affectation, but with the 
 experience of age and many years in a position of 
 responsibility, " that, in thy hate of the Nazarene 
 thou dost make too much of this thing." 
 
 " Hate ? Thou hast well said hate, Annas," re- 
 torted Caiaphas, in his anger forgetting all but his 
 own malevolence. " I hate Him for His presump- 
 tuous teachings, for His scheming and pretended 
 simple ways that do entangle this foolish Jewish 
 people. Doth He think, because He cajoleth fools 
 and beggars with His quackeries, that I, great 
 Caiaphas, can be deceived ? Ah ! He shall see yet 
 who is the stronger. He shall yet learn that those 
 who cross the path of the High Priest are but 
 brushed aside." 
 
 And Caiaphas made a gesture as though he raised 
 and tossed aside some obstacle from his path. No 
 offended elephant waiting to tusk his enemy, then 
 seize him in his trunk and hurl him into the air, 
 could have presented a more terrible aspect of rage 
 and fury. Annas's heart recoiled within him at the 
 remembrance that this man was the husband of his 
 daughter. 
 
 " Poor Rebekah, methinks she too must suffer," 
 he murmured. 
 
 Then, while the two men were preparing to leave 
 the room, gathering up parchments, placing others 
 aside, there rose on the air once more the cries of :
 
 198 LAZARUS. 
 
 " Lazarus is risen, Lazarus is risen!" which all 
 through the night had whipped Caiaphas's blood 
 into foaming waves of fury. 
 
 " It seemeth to me that if thou dost murder one 
 the other will still remain," said Annas, shrugging 
 his shoulders; " for, whether Lazarus was really 
 dead or not, I know not; but now he liveth. Of 
 that there is no doubt." 
 
 " Call it not murder," answered Caiaphas, " be- 
 cause a blasphemer shall meet His just reward. 
 Wouldst thou, too, be a believer?" he added 
 scoffingly. 
 
 " I believe not that He is the Christ," replied 
 Annas seriously; " but I do believe that 't is a man 
 of hidden power. We know not how or whence; 
 perhaps of Satan, or who knoweth ? And I think 
 that we must use caution, lest some hidden danger 
 spring upon us." 
 
 Caiaphas looked at him for one moment, as if de- 
 bating whether he had gone mad ; for the voice of 
 Annas was the only one he ever listened to, the 
 advice of Annas the sole advice he ever followed. 
 Perhaps no man in Jerusalem was so much the 
 counterpart of his own vileness. 
 
 " What thinkest thou then, Annas ? " he said im- 
 patiently. 
 
 " I hardly know," replied the older man. " If 
 thou wouldst have me tell thee what I would have 
 done had I still remained High Priest, and such 
 strange event befallen in my reign," here he low- 
 ered his voice, " I would have had Him caught by 
 stealth and murdered, for to make a sacrifice of a 
 man is ever to make him a martyr. To make a pub-
 
 LAZARUS. 199 
 
 lie function of an execution is ever to run danger of 
 division amongst the people; and with one who 
 could raise Lazarus, be it by chicanery or not I 
 know not, and whether Lazarus were dead or not, I 
 know not, nor will know yet, methinks the man 
 must needs have power who can do this thing, 
 whether by God's assistance or Satan's magic; and, 
 since there is such stir about the death of Lazarus, 
 a lesser ruler of the Synagogue, surely there will be 
 threefold over the death of one who calleth Himself 
 the Son of God." 
 
 Caiaphas was silent. It seemed as though these 
 wise words of Annas carried conviction to him, but 
 that ambition forbade such secret dismissal of the 
 man he hated. The people had believed in Him. 
 The people should see who was the more powerful. 
 The man who had publicly denounced the law should 
 perish by the law. A public example should be 
 made, and Judaea should for ever be rid of the possi- 
 bility of a reappearance of such fanatics. The world 
 must be freed from all such mischief-makers. 
 
 ' Thou wouldst have them say that I, Caiaphas, 
 am afraid ? " he asked, shrugging his shoulders. 
 " No, it is the people's voice, the voice of them who 
 seemed to follow Him, that shall condemn," he went 
 on, growing fiercer and more sullen. "If He be the 
 Son of God, let His God save Him! " Then sud- 
 denly clutching the old man by the arm and placing 
 his coarse lips close to his slowly deafening ears, 
 he said: " I will not be dictated to by Pontius 
 Pilate." 
 
 Here indeed he struck home, for it was through 
 Pontius Pilate that Annas had been bereft of his
 
 20O LAZARUS. 
 
 High Priestship. " His mumbling words reach not 
 the people's ears," Pilate had said in rough jocose- 
 ness to Tiberius ; and so Annas had been deposed, 
 and, to blunt the edge of his disappointment, his 
 kinsman appointed in his place. 
 
 The two hurried along the street to the council 
 chamber, already packed with all the rulers of the 
 Synagogue, and all the chief priests and high 
 officials. 
 
 While the two were walking through the crowd, 
 the people pointed and hooted at them, and hoarse 
 cries of : " Lazarus, Lazarus! " continually reached 
 their ears. 
 
 Pontius Pilate, contrary, to his usual custom, was 
 not present, a fact that gave great satisfaction to 
 Caiaphas. A heated discussion at once began. It 
 was evident that, in the face of such a miracle, two 
 courses alone were open. One, the impossible one 
 to the law-eaten, power-seeking Pharisees, that of 
 acknowledging the God-given power of a good man, 
 if not the divinity of the Son of God ; the other, to 
 lose no further time in putting Him to death. Nay, 
 more, the Sadducees went so far as to say that Laz- 
 arus must also be destroyed. 
 
 ' He is a living witness of this thing," said one; 
 and Caiaphas shrugged his shoulders in impatience. 
 
 " Ye do speak as if this were indeed a miracle and 
 Lazarus had been dead," he said. 
 
 " Nevertheless, this Man doeth many miracles." 
 
 " What shall we do ? " said another. 
 
 Then Nicodemus, resolving to make one last at- 
 tempt to use his high position for the service of the 
 Lord, rose up and said: " Surely ye would not slay
 
 LAZARUS. 201 
 
 Lazarus. Yet, if the Nazarene be slain, will not all 
 the people and Lazarus tell still of His great deeds? " 
 
 Caiaphas shot a glance of wrath at him. 
 
 But Nicodemus continued speaking: ' What 
 harm doeth He ? Let us leave Him alone. Surely 
 the State hath nations that do war against her, and 
 many enemies ; she needeth not to war against one 
 man. Let Him alone." 
 
 Then, while no one uttered aught, as though his 
 words were taking effect, the voice of Annas rose on 
 the silence, for there must needs be silence to hear 
 the old man's voice. 
 
 " If we let Him thus alone, all men will believe 
 in Him, and the Romans shall come and take away 
 both our place and nation." 
 
 Caiaphas shot a look of approval and gratitude at 
 Annas. He recognised the diplomacy of the remark. 
 Annas had profited by Pontius Pilate's absence to 
 cast a slur on the intentions of the governing race. 
 Yet, if Pontius Pilate should come to hear of this, 
 it could not be said that Caiaphas the High Priest 
 had pronounced the words. Annas had spoken well 
 and tersely, and Caiaphas's countenance beamed 
 with sated craft. 
 
 But Pontius Pilate was, in a sense, popular, and 
 there were many in the building who owed place and 
 power to him, and resented the covert attack on the 
 good faith of the Procurator. His absence, too, had 
 filled their minds with uneasiness. Perhaps an open 
 rupture was to come between Caiaphas and the Ro- 
 man Governor ; then woe betide those who had sided 
 against Caesar's viceroy ! These and many other re- 
 flections crossed the minds of the more temperate of
 
 2O2 LAZARUS. 
 
 the Pharisaical party, many of whom were friends of 
 Lazarus and Nicodemus. 
 
 Here and there a voice rose, crying out: "He is 
 not worthy of death." 
 
 Then Caiaphas, with that arrogant impatience 
 which, from its very daring, so often carried the day, 
 exclaimed roughly, insultingly: "Ye know nothing 
 at all. Who are ye to set yourselves against the 
 prophecy of one who is of the lineage of Aaron ? 
 Have I not prophesied to you that it is expedient 
 for one man to die for the people, and that the 
 whole nation perish not ? If this man live, the na- 
 tions of God will run hither and thither to seek after 
 vain preachers; but, if He die, they will gather 
 themselves together in one fold henceforward, in 
 patient obedience to the laws of Moses. To save 
 one man's life will ye sacrifice a nation ? Will ye 
 not rather by one man's death deliver all the chil- 
 dren of God ?" 
 
 Silence, that unwilling silence that might yet be 
 intrepreted as consent, reigned in the building for 
 some moments, while one after another those who 
 were against the condemnation of the Nazarene, yet 
 felt themselves powerless to oppose the will of Caia- 
 phas, rose and left the council, hoping thereby to 
 show their disapproval. Caiaphas followed each 
 with eyes that gleamed with satisfaction. 
 
 "Cowards! " he muttered from his place. "Cow- 
 ards! " despising the very characteristic that yet 
 caused his satisfaction. " They dare not gainsay 
 me." 
 
 The exit of these people was followed by a sud- 
 den buzzing of voices, murmuring, arguing, expos- 
 tulating.
 
 LAZARUS. 203 
 
 Yet all who remained felt that, by doing so, they 
 owned themselves convinced; many indeed were 
 partisans of Caiaphas. 
 
 Then, seeing the moment of his victory come, 
 Caiaphas rose and addressed the council : ' ' Men of 
 Israel, Rulers, Chief Priests, Sadducees; I see that 
 ye are ready to quit you like men and not allow this 
 agitator to provoke the people. Is it, then, agreed 
 that an order go forth to capture this wily Man and 
 to bring Him before Pilate for examination ?" 
 
 Purposely the cunning Caiaphas omitted the word 
 condemnation. To bring the Nazarene before Pon- 
 tius Pilate did not necessarily mean to condemn Him 
 to death; albeit that Caiaphas knew that the one 
 would lead to the other ; but the artful ignoring of 
 the words that would imply the Saviour's sentence 
 carried the day with those he was addressing. 
 
 ' Yes, we are agreed," they shouted. "Let Him 
 have fair hearing before Pilate." And hastily, lest 
 fresh objections should be raised or conditions made, 
 to give no time for the tide of political assent to 
 turn, Caiaphas descended the steps of the Tribunal 
 and hurried away, leaving Annas to conclude the 
 business of the day. 
 
 And that day an order was published throughout 
 Jerusalem and all Judaea, including Galilee, that if 
 any one set eyes on the Nazarene, He should be 
 brought before Pilate.
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 
 IN the cool of the garden the reunited family at 
 Bethany sat once more at evening, watching the 
 sunset over Jerusalem. The strangeness of the situ- 
 ation, the great marvel of the resurrection of Laz- 
 arus, formed the subject of every conversation. 
 
 " Is it indeed thou, Lazarus ?" Martha would say 
 in smiling wonder; and he, smiling in return, would 
 turn his face towards the light and answer: " Dost 
 not know thy brother ? " 
 
 But Mary sat in silent adoration at the wonder of 
 the thing, barely daring to look at her brother, ask- 
 ing no questions, in silent gratitude at this great 
 happiness. All signs of mourning had disappeared. 
 Instead, all through the day, little groups of people 
 gathered outside the gates, clamouring to be allowed 
 to see the risen Lazarus, who, only too glad to be 
 the living witness of the Messiah's power, never 
 wearied in seeing and speaking to the multitude. 
 
 The first to come had been Kishish, the physician. 
 None better than he knew that Lazarus had indeed 
 been dead. All that human skill could do he had 
 done to save the life of this favourite, wealthy 
 patient. Nay, more, he had striven with a purpose, 
 for he knew full well what influence his death would 
 have upon the Jews, and how important it was for 
 the peace of Judaea that things should remain as they 
 
 204
 
 LAZARUS. 205 
 
 then were. He had been absent by the bedside of 
 a sick person at the time of the miracle, and had 
 treated the announcement of Lazarus's resurrection 
 with a scorn and derision not unnatural in the cir- 
 cumstances. Yet, when he saw his patient reclining 
 as usual on his couch, a great amazement seized him. 
 
 " Who, then, is this Man ? " he asked Lazarus 
 breathlessly. 
 
 " A Physician of the Soul," replied Lazarus. 
 " One who for healing needeth no medicine and no 
 herb." 
 
 " Verily 'tis a wondrous thing," said Kishish. 
 But he too was powerless to believe the simplicity 
 of the act. Rather would he believe that he had 
 been wrong in pronouncing that life had fled ; would 
 confess that he had erred, rather than believe. Fal- 
 tering, failing, presumptuous humanity that can ex- 
 plain nothing, yet fails to believe what it cannot 
 understand ! Truly had the Lord pronounced words 
 of verity when He had said: " If they believe not 
 Moses and the prophets, neither will they believe 
 though one came from the dead." 
 
 Yes, the great miracle was over, Lazarus alive, the 
 signs of mourning were wiped away. The wailing 
 had ceased, once more peace and gladness reigned 
 in the home at Bethany, and already it seemed as 
 though all that had happened had been a dream. 
 The brain and heart of man lack the capacity to hold 
 so great a miracle ; and humanity is so prone to ob- 
 stinacy that, even when its right course is pointed 
 out, it soon glides back into its old grooves, its old 
 understandings, its old stagnation, and the divine 
 fire in it smoulders dully or goes out. Occasionally,
 
 206 LAZARUS. 
 
 for a space, the flame of faith springs up. At such 
 times the soul is lit up by its flashes. Dark things 
 stand out defined and clear; comfort and warmth 
 and rest are there. But the flame needs feeding. 
 And, alas! the watcher tires, there is no heaping on 
 of fuel, no stirring of the dead embers, so the light 
 dies out. 
 
 But, in the heart of Lazarus, faith was awake for 
 evermore; faith strengthened by the evidence of 
 things, not unseen, but seen ; to him who had longed 
 to believe had been vouchsafed the greatest blessing 
 of all to know. 
 
 For many days the sisters left him quiet, for there 
 was that in his expression which silenced question- 
 ing. Great deputations came from far and wide to 
 question him. Lawyers, scribes, Pharisees, all 
 flocked to ask him what his sensations had been at 
 the moment of his death and what on his return to 
 life. Had he been to heaven and seen the Living 
 God ? Had he been to Hades and seen the spirits 
 that await the Judgment Day, or had he been to 
 hell and spoken there with Satan ? Each, according 
 to his belief or sect, asked for more knowledge ; but 
 to all Lazarus only shook his head and answered : 
 " If I told you, ye would not believe. Ye would 
 say I had dreamed a dream." 
 
 Then, one evening, Martha exclaimed fretfully : 
 " Methinks there was little gain in thy death and 
 resurrection, if thou hast naught to tell us." 
 
 Naught to show the world ? Lazarus took on a 
 look of unutterable grief at Martha's words. 
 
 " Thou knowest not what thou sayest," he an- 
 swered her; and, while he spoke, his gaze was raised
 
 LAZARUS. 207 
 
 to the vaulted heavens, and rested there in patient 
 musing. 
 
 Yes, so it would be always. No miracles, no 
 words would ever strike home where revelation had 
 not penetrated. No human power, no earthly 
 preaching, no laws, could ever produce that spark of 
 living fire that came from God direct. 
 
 Yes, all know, all understand, where salvation is 
 to be found; 't is a Pool of Siloam awaiting all. 
 And all mean one day to wash in it when they 
 find the time convenient. All intend to be saved, 
 all believe; but there is ample time; and, mean- 
 while, there is much to be done, buying and selling, 
 laughing and making merry, decking and feasting, 
 striving for power and place ; and, when we reach the 
 pool at last, the angel is not there to stir the waters. 
 
 So mused Lazarus, yet it seemed to him that 
 Martha was partly right. Not to tell of his ex- 
 periences during those four days was to keep back 
 much helpful knowledge perhaps, even to oppose 
 God's purpose. Yet he had received no word to 
 tell the world. Those four days seemed to him so 
 sacred, so utterly unconnected with this world, that 
 he had not dared reveal what he had seen. For 
 some days he had been dazed with the marvel of it, 
 and there had been no Christ to help or guide him ; 
 for immediately the miracle was over the Nazarene 
 had departed to Ephraim, both to escape the multi- 
 tude and to prepare for His death, which could not 
 be far distant now. Already Jerusalem was filling 
 fast with the inhabitants of the outskirts and the 
 country round, who gathered there to eat the Pass- 
 over and to purify themselves beforehand.
 
 208 LAZARUS. 
 
 Many wondered whether the Nazarene, in defi- 
 ance of the command for His arrest, would come to 
 Jerusalem for the Passover. The Temple was 
 thronged daily in the hope that either He would ap- 
 pear, or that Lazarus would take His place and 
 preach on the subject of his own resurrection. But 
 a great silence reigned as to the whereabouts and 
 actions of Jesus, some going even so far as to be- 
 lieve that the Messiah had taken the place of Laza- 
 rus in the tomb, misapplying the words: " Greater 
 love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his 
 life for his friend." 
 
 Who can enter into the sadness of His days at 
 Ephraim, with only the society of His rough, un- 
 tutored disciples. He had restored Lazarus, but 
 even the companionship of the family at Bethany 
 was denied to Him ; it would have been dangerous 
 to visit them, for the Jews, who congregated daily 
 to see the restored Lazarus, would doubtless have 
 followed Him, and told Caiaphas of His where- 
 abouts. Those were days of terrible anxiety to the 
 three at Bethany. Filled with undying gratitude 
 and longing to cast themselves in adoring worship 
 at His feet, they yet durst not move from Bethany, 
 or even send a word of love and reverence. 
 
 Once more Martha raised her inquiring, half- 
 doubting voice to Lazarus. 
 
 " If He be the Son of God, why must He die ? 
 Since He could bring thee to life, cannot He save 
 Himself ? " 
 
 The cry was doubtless prompted more by agony 
 at the thought of the Messiah's death than by dis- 
 belief; and in that light Lazarus replied to it.
 
 LAZARUS. 209 
 
 " 'T is because He is the Son of God that He 
 must die." 
 
 " Oh, I would see Him yet again," moaned the 
 loving Mary. " My Saviour, my God, my Christ, 
 my Life, would I could die for Thee! " 
 
 And, now and then, it seemed as though across 
 the night there stole the tender words: " I have 
 loved thee with an everlasting love." 
 
 Oh, to know that the Son of God was there, and 
 that they were powerless ! At these times, Lazarus 
 would go into quiet places and pray, as if his heart 
 would break; and all was gloom and grief within 
 their souls, not for themselves, but for what the 
 Saviour was to endure. 
 
 " To think that I, I, Lazarus, a sinner, should 
 live, and that He should die. Oh, gladly would I 
 give each one of my possessions, that once it would 
 have grieved me to resign, that I might die for Him, 
 or, by following Him, spare Him one brief hour of 
 pain." 
 
 At Jerusalem the commotion of the people kept 
 increasing. Messengers arrived almost daily at the 
 doors of Caiaphas with the news that they could 
 gain no tidings of Him, and the prisons were be- 
 coming thronged with men punished by Caiaphas 
 for not bringing Him. 
 
 Strange were the tales that gained report as, one 
 after another, the messengers returned. Some said 
 that Pilate had forbidden his capture, others that 
 many times they had laid hold on Him, but that He 
 had slipped through their hands and seemed to 
 vanish into air. Caiaphas could not fail to see that 
 the latest miracle had weakened his position ; and,
 
 2IO LAZARUS. 
 
 later, he even meditated the death of Lazarus. He 
 had said truly that all who crossed the path of Caia- 
 phas should be brushed aside. Nicodemus had gone 
 over openly to the Lord. Pilate came no more to 
 the council chamber. Annas was hooted in the 
 streets and pelted with stones. Even threats against 
 the life of Caiaphas had been reported. Several of 
 the Pharisees and rulers of the Synagogue believed 
 in Jesus secretly, while not daring to confess it. 
 Strange stir, forsooth, this Man had made, this car- 
 penter's Son. 
 
 And so the days went by, and Lazarus's death 
 and Lazarus's resurrection became matters of the 
 past, swamped by disturbing doubts and fears about 
 the future. 
 
 Once more the watchman passed by the house of 
 Caiaphas, but the High Priest closed his ears. The 
 time for repentance, for hesitation, for remorse was 
 over. Satan had claimed this man, and he had 
 been given over to him, as if unworthy of a contest. 
 
 " Let the heathen be awakened, let the heathen 
 be awakened," cried the watchman, " for the day of 
 the Lord is near, in the valley of decision, the val- 
 ley of decision! "
 
 CHAPTER XXI. 
 
 T^ETHANY was wrapped in night and silence; 
 ID through the olive groves, grown dark and 
 desolate with approaching winter, not a breath of 
 wind stirred a silver leaf. In their chambers the 
 household of Martha slept. The three alone slept 
 not, but prayed and talked alternately, and all 
 seemed restless. 
 
 " The pain deepeneth at my heart," said Mary. 
 " A great fear cometh over me," chimed in Martha. 
 "If we could but have news of Him, that He 
 liveth." 
 
 " Were He dead, we should have tidings of it," 
 said Lazarus ; but they knew not whether he meant 
 from hearsay, or through supernatural means. 
 
 " Surely He knoweth that we love Him and fain 
 would die with Him," said the loving Mary. " Be 
 still! I hear a knocking at the gate! " she added 
 quickly, ever the alert one, and she raised her hand. 
 All stood up, with looks alternately of hope and 
 dread. " Perchance, 't is He," said Mary. 
 
 " Or soldiers come to seek Him," added Martha, 
 about to clap her hands to call together the attend- 
 ants. 
 
 " Nay, silence," ordered Lazarus. " If 't is the 
 Lord, wake no man, and, if 't is He, let Him not 
 wait." 
 
 211
 
 212 LAZARUS. 
 
 " He is not wont to knock," said Mary, " but 
 doth come in some God-like way we wot not of." 
 
 Then they proceeded to the gate. 
 
 A woman's figure stood there. When she saw 
 them approaching, carrying a swinging Roman lamp, 
 she called out: " 'T is I, the Magdalene." 
 
 " Thou, the Magdalene ? And at this hour ? 
 What brings thee, Mary ? " The voice of Lazarus 
 had a strange vibration while he spoke, and his hand 
 trembled while he tried to undo the bolt. The 
 Magdalene's voice had been the last he had heard 
 ere he had died, its echo had seemed to die and live 
 again with him. Even now the peace her words 
 had given him, the loving but despairing look, the 
 glistening tears of love and agony; all had come 
 back at the sound of the Magdalene's voice. 
 
 " I come once more with a message," she began, 
 looking round tremblingly while she spoke, to see 
 whether she was being followed. " I would come 
 into the house and speak with you, for the enemies 
 of the Lord are abroad to-night; 't was therefore 
 that I came so late. Forgive me, Martha, that I 
 disturb thy rest." 
 
 But Martha laid her hand gently on the Mag- 
 dalene's shoulder, with unwonted tenderness. 
 
 " Rest, Mary ? " she said. " We cannot rest while 
 the fear of the Lord's death is ever before us." 
 
 By this time they reached the house. 
 
 " I have news that will rejoice your hearts," con- 
 tinued Mary Magdalene. " The Lord cometh to 
 Bethany to-morrow." 
 
 ' We will make ready for Him," broke in Martha, 
 and already her housewifely mind flew to a dozen
 
 LAZARUS. 213 
 
 details. Could she get this or that to set before her 
 Lord ? The finest table linen must be brought 
 out, the oldest wine made ready. Jacob, the old 
 servant, must be sent early to the market, to see 
 whether ortolans were to be got ; yet, in her heart, 
 she knew that the Lord would partake only of the 
 simplest fare. 
 
 " He cometh not here," said Magdalene, " lest 
 His enemies should search for Him, but will lodge 
 in the house of Simon, thy father." And, all the 
 while, Magdalene looked not towards Lazarus 
 although she longed to gaze on those much-loved 
 features, to see whether death had changed them 
 lest her gaze should betray the wild joy that filled 
 her heart. 
 
 " Wilt not speak to me ?" said Lazarus to her 
 gently. " Hast forgotten how thou didst see me die 
 and comfort me ? " 
 
 Mary's pale face flushed to the very temples, to 
 where the fair tresses rose in crested wave around 
 her head ; but she answered not. 
 
 Then, half reproachfully and half inquiringly, 
 Lazarus went on : ' Thou didst not see me rise 
 again ? Where didst thou hide ? " 
 
 Magdalene blushed again, but, in the dim light of 
 the lamp, the blush was not observed. None knew 
 better than herself how she had longed to rush and 
 see him, but she had feared two things: to betray 
 her joy, and to leave the Virgin Mary. 
 
 " I did not like to leave the mother of our Lord," 
 she answered; "for she is in daily torment lest the 
 Jews do kill the Christ, and every night she mourn- 
 eth, and every morning dreadeth that that day be 
 come."
 
 214 LAZARUS. 
 
 " And thou dost minister to her ? " asked Lazarus 
 with gentle tenderness. 
 
 " How could I otherwise ? She hath no one but 
 this Son, and Him she dares not claim as hers, in 
 that He is the Son of God. Methinks her state is 
 more piteous than the poor woman's who can hold 
 her children to her breast and know they are her 
 own." 
 
 " Nay, but she is blessed above all women," an- 
 swered Lazarus reverently. " Nations shall worship 
 her and think that, through her, they shall obtain 
 salvation." 
 
 " Is she then as a saint ? " asked Mary innocently. 
 
 " Nay, she is naught but woman like thyself; but 
 she was chosen for her pure simplicity." 
 
 " Like me! " exclaimed the Magdalene. " Like 
 me! Would I were indeed like her, pure and sin- 
 less. To be with her is like sitting in the Temple 
 when they sing psalms." 
 
 But thou art forgiven; and a sinner forgiven is 
 no more a sinner." 
 
 The Magdalene looked at him with gratitude and 
 joy. " Dost know all things now, Lazarus ? Why 
 this earth was made, and why that God did let sin 
 enter, and why the Christ must die ; and didst thou 
 go to heaven and to hell ? And when will the end 
 of all things come ? " 
 
 Woman-like, she asked one question after another 
 without waiting for an answer. Woman-like, she 
 thought that the knowledge of these things was 
 death's requital; the end to be attained by it. 
 
 In breathless silence, as though yet hoping that 
 their brother would tell the secrets that their hearts
 
 LAZARUS. 215 
 
 longed to know, would grant the Magdalene's re- 
 quest, though theirs he had refused, the sisters 
 waited, leaning against the wall. 
 
 " I know nothing at all, nor ever left this earth. 
 Dost not remember, Mary, how I met thee in the 
 olive groves ? " 
 
 " And was it really thou ? Methought after that, 
 perhaps, it was but a vision or a dream. Thou didst 
 give me a message which I took faithfully." 
 
 But Lazarus made no answer ; his eyes were raised 
 to heaven, and his lips moved as if in prayer. " I 
 have asked whether I may tell thee what befell 
 me," he said at last, " and methinks I may for the 
 glory of God. Surely if I die, who will testify of 
 these things, if I speak not ? And do thou Mag- 
 dalene write. Thy father was a scribe, and thou 
 too hast the art. Bring hither thy pen and write 
 what I shall say, that future generations may know 
 what befell Lazarus for God's glory." 
 
 In the stillness of the night, with the dim lamp 
 throwing giant shadows on the wall, and barely 
 lighting up their features, the three women half sat, 
 half reclined, upon the carpets that covered the wide 
 Roman hall, their eyes wide open with expectant 
 wonder, listening while the Magdalene wrote a scroll 
 that, later, would be destroyed ; so that tradition 
 only would echo on the wonders told that night by 
 Lazarus. 
 
 ' There was but one moment when thy song 
 ceased, Magdalene when my faint heart did fail 
 me. It was but the failing of the flesh, the sudden 
 suffocation when the heart doth cease to beat. 
 Then I awoke, as it seemed, from sleep, feeling light
 
 2l6 LAZARUS. 
 
 and well, as if a burden had been cast from me ; and 
 then I saw that I was even in this garden, and a 
 multitude of people, whom I knew well, were as- 
 sembled to see the burial of some great man. I spoke 
 to some, but none did answer me nor looked my way, 
 and methought I was struck dumb. Then I heard 
 one say to the other : ' 'T is the burial of Lazarus. ' 
 
 Then I bethought me I would go back to see 
 whether my body still lay there, for I said, ' If Laza- 
 rus doth still lie here, then indeed the spirit and the 
 body are not one, even as the Lord hath spoken. ' 
 
 ' Then I entered my room and I saw my own 
 body stretched out on the bed, and all ye good 
 women and Joanna and Rachel too did tend me and 
 embalm me. And, while I looked, methought, 
 ' How much of foul greed is in that face, how much 
 of weary thought; yet how little hath that body 
 understood the burden that it carried.' 
 
 I looked at the costly curtains of my room. I 
 smelt the fragrant scents that rose on the air; I 
 noticed the costly cedar-wood carvings and the 
 Ethiopian ivories, and I said: 'Thou fool; and 
 didst thou think all this beautiful and rare, and thy- 
 self great, because thou hadst these things, and 
 versed in love and wisdom because thou hadst read 
 the sayings and doings of other fools as great as 
 thy own self ? ' 
 
 " And then it seemed as though the body mocked 
 me, and while ye were striving to bind one arm in 
 grave clothes, it did rise and seem to point at me 
 with blue, dead fingers, and a voice like mine did 
 seem to say : ' Truly now thou hast escaped me, but 
 in life we were not divided. Who was the stronger,
 
 LAZARUS. 217 
 
 thou or I ? When thou wouldst pray, thine eyes did 
 fall with sleep, and when the Spirit bade thee go and 
 seek the poor, thy feet refused their office, and thou 
 didst leave it for a more convenient day ; and so, all 
 through thy life, 't is comfort and ambition that 
 have been thy creed and thy pursuit, and they are 
 Satan's, and so am I, and so also is all flesh and 
 lust. 'T is all from Satan.' 
 
 " And while he spake I wept to see my body 
 
 thus, that might have been much otherwise had I 
 
 but known the Spirit's power; and to myself I said, 
 
 If I could but live again I would live differently, 
 
 for now I know. ' 
 
 " And the voice near me whispered: ' Trouble 
 not thyself, for thou art forgiven, in that thou 
 believest in the Christ.' ' Nevertheless,' I thought, 
 ' because I do believe, I wish that it had been even 
 so, and that this earthly temple had been kept more 
 beautiful.' 
 
 " Then they raised my body and bore it forth 
 'midst wailing cries, and I would fain have wiped 
 the tears from off your faces, but I could not ; and 
 I followed by the side of mine own body to see 
 where they would lay it, and all that night I wan- 
 dered by the house and sought ye and called ye by 
 your names, but ye could not see me. Then at 
 midnight came another spirit to me, that of an old 
 man, and he took me by the hand and said : ' What 
 doest thou here, Lazarus ? Why dost thou still 
 stay near thy home and thy riches and thy vessels 
 of silver and gold ? Thou hast much to see and 
 hear, for that thou art dead for the glory of God and 
 shalt live again.'
 
 2l8 LAZARUS. 
 
 ' And shall I see Him yet again; Him whom 
 my soul delighteth in ? ' I asked of the old man. 
 ' Shall I see the Christ ? ' 
 
 ' Yea, thou shalt see Him again even on earth, 
 for thou shalt rise again ; but go now, appear to 
 thine whom thou lovest best, and repeat the message 
 that shall be spoken to thee; for, during the first 
 twelve hours that follow death, 't is given to thee to 
 comfort those that thou hast loved, if so be thy love 
 be pure and good, and that they need thee.' 
 
 " And then, sweet Magdalene, I saw in memory 
 thy sad eyes, as they had been at my death-bed, and 
 methought, ' Surely 't is she that needeth me the 
 most.' Yet when I came to thee, I bethought me 
 of what the Lord would have me do, and it came 
 strong upon me to give thee the message of which 
 thou dost wot." 
 
 Here Lazarus looked lovingly at the Magdalene, 
 and her eyes began to fill with tears of mingled joy 
 and wonder. 
 
 " And didst feel that thou wert dead ?" asked 
 Martha. 
 
 " Nay, I felt only a great rest and lightness and 
 that evil thoughts no more oppressed me ; but, for 
 all else, I seemed to be yet myself, and to be yet in 
 the same place. And I said to the old man: ' If 
 this be death, where then are heaven and hell, and 
 where is God and where is Satan ? ' 
 
 " ' Be still,' he said. ' Dost thou that hath but 
 lately left thy fleshly case, with all thy evil thoughts 
 and wrongful understandings, and thy cavilings, 
 and hankerings after thine own goods, dost think 
 that thou art fit to come before the God Eternal ?
 
 LAZARUS. 219 
 
 Thou art still in this world's surroundings. Thou 
 art in Hades, and Hades is the air and space around 
 the earth. See, thou art quite close, so far only art 
 thou risen, as high as yonder tree. ' 
 
 " Then I seized him by the white sleeve of his 
 robe, and in my hands it felt soft like the downy 
 clouds, like wool, yet without substance, and in 
 deepest agony I cried : ' How then can I know 
 whether I be saved ? ' ' Dost believe in Jesus, the 
 Christ ? ' the Spirit asked. ' Verily and indeed I 
 do,' I answered. ' Then the same hope that 
 brought thee here will help thee still.' 
 
 ' Then a great joy filled mine heart, a joy to 
 which no earthly joy can be compared. The joy of 
 certainty and rest, which no man hath on earth. 
 ' Why, then, do men fear death ? ' I asked again. 
 ' They fear what they know not. They believe in 
 a life and a death of their own thinking. They 
 live in dreams of their own making and waken but 
 to die.' ' And who art thou ? ' I asked. ' I am the 
 Spirit of Truth. In the world I cannot live, for 
 Satan seeketh to destroy me, and he is the father of 
 lies. Some I visit may seek for me, but there is no 
 Truth on earth. Here I abide, and, when all dream- 
 ing and scheming and lying and cheating are at an 
 end for any man, I meet the soul that hath loved 
 Truth and I leave it not again. But thou must go 
 back to the earth, and I cannot come with thee. 
 See that thou speak the Truth and love the Truth 
 and live it.' 
 
 " Then I asked him : ' What is Truth ? ' And the 
 old man answered : ' Truth is that which a man 
 heareth in his heart, and observeth not. 'T is the
 
 220 LAZARUS. 
 
 voice of the I AM. And all know what is Truth, 
 but they love it not. Yet the greatest gift of all is 
 Truth, for he who hath it not causeth his brother to 
 err, which is the greatest sin of all. Truth is like a 
 pointed sword held heavenwards so that the light 
 flasheth on both sides. 'T is like a ball of crystal, 
 so suspended in the air that it leaveth no shadow, 
 and all men can see its purity. Truth is like the 
 eyes of the new-born babe that cannot speak. Truth 
 is like white sails on a sea, a light set on a hill ; it is 
 fearless as a hero in a battle ; a head with an iron 
 neck that none can sever. Like a rock that no 
 earthquake can make tremble, so is Truth. Truth 
 echoeth through ages and will not be stilled, and it 
 shineth forth to the generations still to come ; but 
 all in vain.' 
 
 ' Then he took me across the air, over the trees 
 and valleys, and first he pointed out to me Jerusa- 
 lem, and while I looked I saw an angel with black 
 wings flying hither and thither over the heads of the 
 multitudes. I remembered the black wings that had 
 seemed so near me on the road to Jericho, and I 
 bade the old man pause awhile and tell me who was 
 the angel with the sombre wings. ' 'T is Satan,' he 
 made answer, and even while he spoke the angel 
 raised his face, and on it was such a look of blank 
 despair as I have never seen on that of any man. 
 ' What doeth he here ? ' I asked. ' He feareth that 
 the glory of God is nigh at hand. He goeth about 
 making lies ; he striveth yet to harden the hearts of 
 the Pharisees and the scribes against the Christ. 
 Caiaphas and Judas and many others have been 
 given over to him, but he will have more. He
 
 LAZARUS. 221 
 
 fighteth hard for Nicodemus and for Pontius Pilate. 
 He thinketh yet that the divine spark he hath in 
 him of God can fight with God.' ' Will he, then, 
 die ? ' I asked. ' The spirit that God hath made 
 can never die,' replied the Spirit of Truth; ' but, 
 one day, Satan will be given to good works, and that 
 will be his hell; to preach the gospel of Him he 
 hateth, and tend the sick and suffering, for the Spirit 
 of the Almighty will prevail. ' Beware, Lazarus, 
 for he will sift thee as one sifteth wheat, and tenfold 
 more when thou dost return to life. Here he can- 
 not touch thee ; but now that thou hast learned the 
 way to live 't will be harder for thee. But thou art 
 forever the testimony of the power and love of 
 Christ, and the Spirit of Truth will be with thee.' 
 
 " I felt greatly troubled and I said : ' Shall I fail ? 
 Shall I fail ? ' And, like sweet music wafted over 
 great waters that rolled with hollow sound beneath, 
 methought I heard the words : ' Fear not. My grace 
 is sufficient for thee, for My strength is made per- 
 fect in weakness.' 
 
 " Then I saw that other spirits came and went 
 about us, and all looked peaceful and quiet, as 
 though no longer troubled about aught below. And 
 I knew no one face, but all seemed those of friends 
 that I had loved, and, as they flitted past me, they 
 cried out, ' Welcome, welcome.' Then I saw that 
 where I was there was no night nor day, only a 
 strange glow of light ; and of hours, of time, of sleep 
 they were not. Then I said to the Spirit of Truth : 
 ' Is there naught that I can do for the Christ in these 
 four days ? Can I go and comfort the hearts of the 
 desolate or watch beside the sick ? ' ' Thou hadst
 
 222 LAZARUS. 
 
 all life for that,' the Spirit of Truth replied reproach- 
 fully. ' Now it is too late. Thou canst not do it 
 till thou goest back to earth.' Then, thinking of 
 the years I had misspent, how the Lord had bid me 
 leave all and follow Him, I wept. But the Spirit of 
 Truth consoled me. ' Weep not,' he said, ' for 
 thou canst pray. This is denied to no one but 
 Satan ; he may not pray ; oft great troubles, great 
 adversities, and terrors come upon him and he fain 
 would cry out to the Lord; but he knoweth that 
 God heareth him not, and that prayer from him 
 availeth nothing.' 
 
 " So then I knelt like a little child and prayed 
 there where I stood, and, while I prayed, others too 
 came round me and prayed also ; and the sound of 
 our voices rose like music on the air, and it was as 
 if angels' voices, too, joined in with us and sang: 
 ' Tell it to the Lord, tell it to the Lord ! ' 
 
 " And the Spirit of Truth prayed too; and, when 
 we had all risen, he said to me : ' Prayer is the key 
 to heaven, for with prayer there cometh faith, and 
 faith leadeth on to heaven. Remember that when 
 thou comest again on earth, and cease not to pray. ' 
 
 " And I bowed my head, for I seemed not as a 
 ruler ; but the spirit of a little child had come upon 
 me."
 
 CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 " '"PHEN the Spirit of Truth took me by the hand 
 1 and said : ' Come now and I will show thee 
 the earth as it really is ; not as it seemeth to thee. 
 Thou shalt see into the hearts of men. ' 
 
 " And, hand in hand, we flew over the houses of 
 Jerusalem, and over the golden canopy of the 
 Temple, and, as we passed, it was as if the roofs of 
 the houses were removed, and we saw into the 
 houses, and then it seemed as though a veil were 
 torn from the hearts of them that dwelt therein, and 
 we could read their thoughts. First the Spirit took 
 me to the house of Pontius Pilate. His room was 
 dark, but, while we stood at the window, our own 
 radiance seemed to light it up and show us where he 
 lay, tossing on his couch ; and we heard him say : 
 ' This Man hath done no evil by the Roman law. 
 He shall not die.' Then he rose from his couch and 
 paced the room, hi-s fists clenched, and his voice 
 rang out with a bitter cry: ' If I could but know 
 whether He be the Christ ! Is it, oh, is it indeed 
 He?' 
 
 " Then I said to the Spirit of Truth: ' This man 
 would fain believe; why, then, hath he not the 
 power?' And the Spirit of Truth made answer: 
 ' He will not let himself believe, for fear of Caiaphas. 
 He knoweth the Roman law, and the Christ hath 
 
 223
 
 224 LAZARUS. 
 
 done naught against the Roman law, but he feareth 
 Caiaphas; for once Caiaphas did send wo~d to the 
 Emperor about the pictures of his gods he had set 
 up, and, again, about the Corban. Twice hath 
 Pontius Pilate erred, and twice did Caiaphas obtain 
 hearing of the Emperor, so now Pilate feareth to 
 offend him. Thus in this world do men barter great 
 things for little, and eternal salvation for the good 
 opinion of men like unto themselves. Yet the heart 
 of Pilate is such an one as God doth love. 'T is a 
 noble heart that would do right, a kind heart and 
 one that hateth to do injustice. Yet he hath so 
 mystified himself that he knoweth no longer what 
 Truth is.' 
 
 ' Then he took me to the house of Caiaphas, the 
 High Priest, and the heart I witnessed there in all 
 its nakedness made my own heart faint, for on it I 
 could see no white spot at all, only craft, and malice, 
 and vengeance, and defiance. It was as if the spark 
 of the Holy Spirit had been quenched. Greed and 
 hate and suspicion were in that heart. Love could 
 not lodge therein, nor Truth; it was like a garden 
 choked with weeds. ' This man,' said the Spirit, 
 ' is a devil, for he knoweth by the spirit of prophecy 
 that is given to him through Aaron that Jesus of 
 Nazareth is the Christ ; but he hath sold his soul to 
 Satan, rather than have it said that a greater than 
 he is on earth. He knoweth that He whom he 
 persecuteth hath power given Him from above. He 
 knoweth that the vengeance of God will come upon 
 him, and, though he knoweth not for a surety that 
 there is a future life, yet he feareth it, and that he 
 will be eternally consumed. All this he knoweth,
 
 LAZARUS. 225 
 
 and therefore doth he sin wilfully ; and wilful sin is 
 the worst of all, and cometh rarely. For most men 
 sin because they think not, or are too busy, or too 
 careless, or are choked with the cares of this world ; 
 nearly all would fain believe, but cannot ; but this 
 man doth believe and will not.' 
 
 " Then Truth held a mirror before my eyes, and 
 in that mirror I saw a vision. I saw Caiaphas strug- 
 gling with a man in armour, and the man's armour 
 flashed forth blue lights like tongues of dying fire, 
 and he upheld his sword. Then he thrust his sword 
 into the side of Caiaphas, and the blood spurted forth 
 in jet-black streams, as if the heart of him had been 
 corrupt. And, hovering over the High Priest's 
 body, I saw once more the black-winged angel 
 whom the Spirit of Truth did call Satan, and he 
 cried exultingly : ' Thou art mine, Caiaphas, thou 
 art mine forever ! ' 
 
 " And while he spoke, the look of despair I had 
 seen on Satan's face o'erspread the countenance of 
 Caiaphas, filling me with such horror and such dread 
 that I longed to see somewhere a pure heart, or a 
 ray of sunlight to relieve my soul of this darkness 
 and desolation. Then turned I to the Spirit and I 
 said : ' I can look no longer at this vision, for the 
 despair doth penetrate my heart. ' 
 
 " Then he took the mirror from me. ' Look now 
 at no vision, but the Truth,' he said. And, even 
 while he spoke, I saw that Caiaphas paced the room 
 impatiently, and looked ever towards the door. 
 And presently I saw it opened and a man enter 
 crouching and ashamed, like one who thinketh him- 
 self too vile to live ; and, as he approached Caiaphas,
 
 226 LAZARUS. 
 
 I could see his face upturned, and lo, it was the face 
 of him that is called Iscariot, and I started when I 
 saw him, for methought he had been the follower 
 of Christ." 
 
 Here Lazarus paused, as though fearing to impart 
 a secret that was not his own ; but Martha, looking 
 at him, said: " I have ever had a strange mistrust 
 of Judas." 
 
 " Yet we must not speak of this," said Lazarus, 
 " for 't was but as the vision of a dream." 
 
 But the women's eager faces seemed to impel him 
 to proceed. Another day was dawning, and now, 
 one by one, the members of the household came in 
 silently to the hall, marvelling to find their master 
 there at this early hour. They ranged themselves 
 in rapt attention to hear the words that fell from 
 him. 
 
 " And when I looked on Judas," continued Laz- 
 arus, " I saw he had the same despairing look that 
 I had noted in the face of Caiaphas. Withal there 
 was not that hatred in him, and I pitied him, for I 
 saw that his was a weak, timid heart, and that he 
 feared this Caiaphas. When Judas entered, Caiaphas 
 looked sternly at him and his voice came angrily. 
 ' What wouldst thou with me, Judas ? Have I not 
 done with thee ? Didst thou not covenant for thirty 
 pieces of silver to sell the Nazarene ? Wherefore 
 troublest thou me ? ' ' I come to crave thy pardon, 
 noble Caiaphas, and to beg thee to release me from 
 my promise, for I wot not what I said. Methinks I 
 was drunk with wine to say I would betray the Lord 
 for thirty pieces of silver. ' ' Dost want more ? ' 
 asked Caiaphas, eying him with doubt. ' Nay, I
 
 LAZARUS. 227 
 
 want none at all/ said Judas, ' only to be freed from 
 this my promise. I cannot betray the Lord.' 
 ' Fool ! ' roared Caiaphas, beyond himself with rage. 
 Then, seizing Iscariot by the sleeve, he took him to 
 the window and pointed to the pale mists of dawn 
 that hovered in tenuous masses above the earth. 
 ' Seest thou that sun just showing above yon moun- 
 tain ? ' he asked the wretched man, whose despairing 
 eyes were barely lifted and whose head was bent 
 painfully beneath the iron grasp of Caiaphas. ' Be- 
 fore that sun shall rise again thou wilt be lying with 
 thy eyes glazed in death, unless thou keep thy 
 promise to betray this Jesus.' ' 
 
 " Oh, poor Judas! " exclaimed the tender-hearted 
 Mary. " Could we not help him to escape this 
 man ? " 
 
 " He hath the Lord," said Martha sternly. 
 
 But Lazarus continued: " And even while Caia- 
 phas was speaking, methought I saw the frame of 
 Judas shrink into an image half its own size; yet 
 still I hoped that he would say : ' I will die, I will 
 die gladly rather than betray my Lord.' But in- 
 stead, as though greatly fearing Caiaphas, he turned 
 and fled ; and as he fled, Caiaphas laughed a laugh 
 so full of scorn and hate that 't would have more 
 fitly issued from the lips of devils. ' Ha, ha,' he 
 scoffed, ' thou who wouldst betray thy friend for 
 thirty pieces of silver, dost think to cozen Caiaphas ? 
 Like all traitors, thou fearest death, and 't is death 
 I will hold over thee, thou red-haired poltroon ! ' 
 And I wept to think that I could not go to Jesus 
 and warn Him of His foe ; but the Spirit of Truth 
 had read my thoughts. He smiled and said : ' Poor
 
 228 LAZARUS. 
 
 fool, and who art thou to think thou canst inform 
 thy Lord of aught ? All that thou hast but now 
 perceived hath been known to Him since Time 
 began aye, before Time was. ' Then, sick at heart 
 at the sight of all this treachery, I turned me to the 
 Spirit of Truth and said : ' Canst thou not show me 
 some pure hearts to raise my drooping spirits ? Are 
 there no good upon the earth ? ' And Truth an- 
 swered : ' There are few ; none are wholly good, but 
 some have trust.' 
 
 ' Then he took me through palaces of the Jews 
 and of the Romans and into the houses of great 
 merchants ; but nowhere saw I one heart that thirsted 
 for knowledge of the Christ. The women were 
 content to deck themselves with jewels and to scold 
 their serving-maids, and each spake ill of another's 
 beauty or her virtue. Here and there I saw little 
 children who looked to heaven and asked their 
 parents : ' Who liveth beyond the clouds ? ' But 
 their parents only answered : ' Torment me not with 
 questionings ' ; or, ' When thou art a grown man 
 thou wilt know.' And therewith the child must 
 needs be satisfied. It is thus that ignorance and 
 darkness are continued from one generation to 
 another. 
 
 " Then the Spirit took me into the houses of the 
 rulers of the Synagogue, the governors of the 
 people and the lawyers, and, looking into their 
 hearts, I saw that there was but little knowledge in 
 them, only such as was required to cozen other 
 men. They cared not for their country's good, nor 
 for the glory of the Lord. In their hearts was only 
 love of money and great power, and they craved
 
 LAZARUS. 229 
 
 strength but to crush the lowly, not to oppose the 
 foe. They laid tithes and taxes on the people, to 
 fill their own coffers, not for the grandeur of the 
 land; and of all there scarce one spoke the truth, 
 and of the lawyers none ; but all they strove for was 
 to entangle men in their talk and to make them bear 
 false witness. And all I saw were hypocrites and 
 liars, and it seemed to me that no man could be 
 saved on the face of the whole earth, and I mar- 
 velled that God consumed them not with fire. 
 
 " Then the Spirit of Truth spake yet again and 
 said : ' Now will I show to thee the sweetest, great- 
 est spirit of all women that are upon the earth.' 
 And he took me far across fields and villages and 
 hills till he came to a house in Nazareth, and I said : 
 ' This I know is where dwelleth the mother of the 
 Lord.' And the Spirit of Truth said: 'She is 
 blessed above all women, and many nations will 
 worship her. Nevertheless, she is not divine, for all 
 she hath been chosen to give earthly life to the Son 
 of God. But priests of many countries will seek to 
 make her so, in that they may catch the souls of 
 women ; for 't is ever women whom Satan first en- 
 tangleth.' 
 
 " Then said I : ' Who then is Satan ? and if God 
 hath so great power, why doth He leave this man 
 to buffet and seduce the world ? ' 
 
 " Then the Spirit of Truth spoke sternly to me: 
 ' Be silent, and inquire not into the things of God ! 
 I, too, know not whence is Satan, nor wherefore. 
 He was before the world was made. Of that know- 
 eth only God. Canst tell how the lights do hang in 
 heaven and how the seas do rise and fall, yet go no
 
 230 LAZARUS. 
 
 farther ? Dost know how the leaf of the flower un- 
 foldeth, or the child is gendered in the womb ? 
 These things first find out, and when thou hast in- 
 formed thyself of all earthly things what whiteneth 
 the snow, and whence the rivers rush to reach the 
 sea; when thou hast learned how forms the fish 
 within the shell, and why the mountains quake 
 then thou canst ask of God, if thou art bold enough, 
 wherefore He did create thee, and whence is Satan. 
 Wouldst be a scholar, wouldst learn philosophy, ere 
 thou canst read ; wouldst fight a battle ere thou 
 canst buckle on the sword ? Be content, and ask 
 not, but for the spirit of a little child, and to be born 
 again in faith and love.' 
 
 " And, thus rebuked, my eyes fell in confusion, 
 and once more they sought the earth, and I saw the 
 virgin mother kneeling on her floor. Never shall I 
 forget the purity of that enraptured gaze, that 
 seemed mutely to appeal to Heaven to ask the 
 meaning of this grief that had befallen her; why she, 
 who had preserved ever her virginity, and married 
 Joseph of Nazareth but for a companion and protec- 
 tion, should have had a child, and further should 
 have suffered the scorn of the world and the sus- 
 picion of her husband for so many months. She was 
 dressed in a simple woollen gown that fell from 
 neck to feet, and her hair, yellow as wheat that doth 
 await the reaper, did shimmer in the sun, contrast- 
 ing strangely with her dark pencilled eyebrows, but 
 harmonising with the liquid lustre of her deep blue 
 eyes. And, looking at this small, frail woman, I 
 marvelled how she could endure so much and live ; 
 and I inquired of the Spirit of Truth: ' Doth this 
 woman pray always ? '
 
 LAZARUS. 231 
 
 ' ' And he answered : ' Always ; and with prayer 
 she hath achieved many things. When Joseph 
 found that she was with child, he would have given 
 her a bill of divorcement, and all her friends did 
 scoff at her. " Wherefore didst thou marry Joseph? " 
 inquired they of her. " To be the father of thy 
 child ?" 
 
 " ' And, greatly troubled, Joseph did entreat her 
 to advertise him whence was this child ; and, loath 
 to hold her up to public scorn, he said : " I will put 
 thee privily away, if thou wilt tell me ; I will neither 
 stone thee, nor give thee a writing of divorcement ; 
 I will be as though I were the father of the child." 
 
 ' ' ' But she could do naught but cry : ' ' I know not. ' ' 
 And none would credit her, and all her kindred 
 came about her murmuring and saying: " Why hath 
 this reproach of the enemy come upon us in this 
 day, and on the lineage of the House of David, that 
 a virgin should be found with child ? " 
 
 " ' But Mary could only weep and say, " I know 
 not, I know not " ; and she shut herself up and denied 
 herself to all, for the reviling of her enemies over- 
 whelmed her. But, in her heart, she knew that the 
 child was of the Lord ; for the angel Gabriel had ap- 
 peared to her, the same who had appeared also to 
 Elisabeth her cousin before the birth of John the 
 Baptist; and the two women talked much together 
 of these things and were filled with the Holy Spirit, 
 which is from the beginning given to all whose 
 hearts are gentle and as little children's. But none 
 could understand this thing, or believe that it was 
 the doing of the Lord. For all that, Mary prayed 
 on in patience that, even if all the world would not
 
 232 LAZARUS. 
 
 believe it, Joseph might receive assurance that she 
 was a pure woman, true and faitHful. And then 
 one night her prayer was answered, for an angel 
 from the Lord appeared to Joseph, and thus he 
 spake: " Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take 
 unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is con- 
 ceived in her is of the Holy Ghost. And she shall 
 bring forth a Son, and thou shalt call His name 
 Jesus : for He shall save His people from their sins. ' ' 
 ' 'And when he woke from sleep, he went to Mary 
 and fell down and worshipped her and said : " Mary, 
 Mary, forgive me ; I have done thee grievous 
 wrong. Blessed art thou amongst women." 
 
 ' 'And Mary, who was ever tender and loving and 
 forgiving, looked at him kneeling at her feet, and 
 said : " How wouldst thou know, Joseph, except the 
 Lord did tell thee ? But forbear to kneel to me, for 
 I am but the Lord's hand-maiden." And then Mary 
 opened her mouth and sang a beauteous song, a 
 song so sweet that the nations will sing it evermore ; 
 and at the Judgment Day shall again be heard the 
 song of this pure, faithful woman. And, as she 
 sang, I heard a chorus of angels join in and sing, 
 
 Praise, praise to God in the highest, and on earth 
 peace." 
 
 " And again Truth handed me the mirror in which 
 to see the vision of the future ; and I saw one with 
 a sword pierce the heart of the Virgin through and 
 through. Again I saw her bowed down with grief 
 and desolate, wandering towards the grave of her 
 slain Son ; and, as she walked, great drops fell from 
 her eyes, and, wherever one did fall, a pure white 
 lily did spring up to mark the place. ' See how
 
 LAZARUS. 233 
 
 even the righteous suffer ! Why is this ? ' I asked. 
 And the Spirit of Truth made answer: ' This too 
 shalt thou know, when all things be made manifest ; 
 but I tell thee that the present suffering is as naught 
 compared with the glory that shall be revealed.' 
 
 ' Then he took me to where I longed to be, to 
 Ephraim ; but when I would fain have spoken to the 
 Lord, he said: ' Thine hour is not yet come.' 
 
 " And I wept to think that I might not go to my 
 Lord. Then the Spirit of Truth went on : 'So weep 
 all in Hades that have loved the Lord. They sigh 
 and long for Him ; but 't is worse for those in hell, 
 for they sigh and long in vain. ' Then I said to the 
 Spirit of Truth: ' I would see hell.' 
 
 " And the Spirit of Truth looked very stern and 
 answered : ' Dost know that by the blood of the 
 Lamb alone thou art saved from hell ? ' ' Verily,' I 
 answered, ' I know that it is by the mercy of God 
 and the love of Jesus that I too am not in the inner- 
 most hell.' 
 
 " And even while I spoke the Spirit answered: 
 ' Yea, thou shalt see hell also, for two days are past, 
 and in two days thou shalt see earth once more.' 
 Then I said to the Spirit : ' Must this thing be, that 
 I live again ? ' ' Yea, thou must live again and also 
 die,' the Spirit answered; and my soul did faint 
 within me at these words. 
 
 " Then the Spirit took me hither and thither, and 
 I now saw every man did seek his own, and no 
 other's glory, and how they who believed not sought 
 to fashion their own destiny and straighten their own 
 paths; and then I saw how some great judgment 
 overtook them, such as they had never recked of.
 
 234 LAZARUS. 
 
 The miser's money was taken from him by his 
 enemy ; the lover of the wanton woman found her 
 faithless. The steward of the rich man gave his 
 lord's gains to another, and while the king went 
 forth to conquer other lands an enemy came una- 
 wares and took his country. The husbandman who 
 would reap his grain saw not the rain-clouds gather- 
 ing above, or the thunder thickening behind the 
 mountain; and the sailor who left the harbour in 
 fair weather heard not the distant moaning of the 
 wind that soon would lash the waves into a storm 
 that would engulf him. 
 
 " And I saw, as the preacher saith, that the race 
 is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong; but 
 that victory is only for them who wait patiently for 
 the Lord. And I wept at the remembrance of the 
 years that I had lost, of the houses I had builded, 
 the orchards and the gardens I had planted ; and I 
 saw that all the labour of man is for himself, and 
 that yet withal he is never satisfied."
 
 CHAPTER XXIII. 
 
 ' HPHEN the Spirit took me by the hand and said : 
 1 ' Come back to Hades, and thou shalt de- 
 scend to-night into hell.' And we flew though the 
 air more swiftly than the birds. Then said I to the 
 Spirit : ' I feel so strong, like to a young eagle ; yet 
 on earth I was ever weary and footsore. ' And he 
 made answer: ' It was the body chained thee. 
 When the spirit is delivered from the body, at that 
 moment it feels lifted up and is capable of all things. 
 The spirit is of God and therefore perfect. The 
 will and the flesh belong to man, and war ever with 
 the spirit. Thy thoughts now are pure, being by 
 the body undefiled. Thou seest clearly with the 
 eyes of the spirit; thou hearest keenly with the 
 spirit's ear. Thine heart can love the Lord because 
 it hath no fleshy taint, being wholly of the spirit. 
 So it is that thou feelest perfect joy and rest, for 
 thou hast no weariness of the flesh. ' 
 
 " ' Then, if the spirit be of God,' I asked, 
 ' whence are the evil spirits ? ' ' Ask me not, ' said 
 the Spirit of Truth. ' The Spirit of Evil and the 
 flesh are one. At the Judgment Day all shall stand 
 reunited to their fleshly bodies, as thou wilt shortly 
 be ; but the righteous join their mortal bodies but 
 for the hour of the Judgment, and, when they enter 
 
 235
 
 236 LAZARUS. 
 
 into eternal glory these bodies will return to dust. 
 But the wicked are reunited to their bodies for ever- 
 more. They can never again be free of them. And 
 henceforth they have but the nature of the flesh. 
 There is nothing spiritual left to them, with which 
 to lessen the heaviness of their flesh. All that the 
 flesh lusteth for, they attain; and then, when the 
 flesh wearieth of that which it attaineth, their lust is 
 turned to nausea; and one of hell's chief torments 
 is to have known the delights of being in the spirit 
 and then to return to the flesh. ' 
 
 ' And the eternal flames, ' I asked, ' are they real 
 flames, that burn and scorch the body ? ' ' They 
 are the inward flames of eternal desire without hope 
 of satisfaction.' Then on my head he placed a hel- 
 met. ' This,' he said, ' is the helmet of Salvation, 
 which I place on thy head, lest the flames should 
 scorch thee. ' 
 
 ' Then I knew that I was saved by the love of 
 Jesus, and that I should descend to hell only to see 
 the woe I had escaped ; and I fell to the ground and 
 thanked the Lord that, of His mercy, He had re- 
 deemed me ; and I vowed a vow that, when I should 
 return to the body, I would give all that I possessed, 
 and follow Jesus, for that naught else availed in this 
 world. Then I took his hand, and he led me 
 through the air, and my heart was filled with a 
 grievous dread of that which I should see. 
 
 " ' Now thou shalt know what is real sin,' said the 
 Spirit to me. ' Many indeed already think they 
 know; but the ways of the Lord are different from 
 those of man, and many who thought that they were 
 righteous groan now in hell.'
 
 LAZARUS. 237 
 
 " And now we no longer flew, but hovered, as if 
 'twixt heaven and earth ; then fell, and fell, and fell ; 
 and, while we fell, methought I heard the noise of 
 rocks that crashed and crumbled, and the great light 
 of Hades became ever dimmer, and there came a 
 gloaming as of eventide, and then dusk. Then we 
 came to a dreary field, with no corn, or flowers, or 
 green leaves therein; only a desolate, grey waste. 
 And figures sat about in groups with bent heads 
 supported on their hands, and waiting, yet without 
 hope ; and I asked the Spirit : ' Who are these ? ' And 
 the Spirit answered : ' These are they who in their 
 lives have done neither right nor wrong; who have 
 risen, and slept, and eaten, and drunk, and harmed 
 no man. These are they who, having talents, bur- 
 ied them, and have come to the Lord with empty 
 hands ; and, as they lived on earth, so will they live 
 through all eternity, doing nothing, learning noth- 
 ing, reaping nothing, for there is naught in this 
 field to reap.' 
 
 " ' Are they not gladdened even at the sight of 
 us ? ' I asked. ' They can never any more be glad 
 or sorry,' replied the Spirit. ' They laugh not, nei- 
 ther do they weep.' 
 
 ' Then we looked across the field to where was a 
 long stone building, and here it was darker still ; and 
 the Spirit unlocked the door, and all was silent, and 
 so dark, that I could not perceive whether there 
 were people there or not ; yet presently could I hear 
 faint sighing ; and soon a little light arose from the 
 open door; then I saw figures groping about and 
 clutching each other, as if to make sure that others 
 were also there ; and great blocks of rock lay across
 
 238 LAZARUS. 
 
 the passage, yet so dim it was that they could not 
 see whether it was rock or forms of beasts. 
 
 " And, as I wondered, the Spirit said: ' These 
 are they who have been silent when they should 
 have spoken, who shrank from all responsibility, who 
 helped not one another, who witnessed neither for 
 good nor evil, who accused not the wicked nor held 
 up the oppressed, who would be neither hot nor 
 cold. These are they who heed not, neither give, 
 saying, " Perchance this man deserveth it not"; 
 who say to the one who asketh for advice and com- 
 fort: " I cannot tell; see thou to that." Of these 
 is Pontius Pilate, and hither will he come ; but only 
 for a season, for he will suffer much on earth at the 
 hands of his own country. All these will through 
 eternity continue in this twilight. There will be no 
 night in which to rest, and no day in which to see 
 what is around them, for they would not see the 
 straight path, they would not guide the helpless, 
 nor oppose the evil; so now they know not what 
 lieth close, whether it be danger, friend or foe, wild 
 beast or falling rock ; and they sit motionless for fear 
 of what they know not, daring not to go forth and 
 face what is before them, as in life they lacked cour- 
 age to stand by the righteous and the oppressed. 
 The more part of these are of noble blood, who 
 feared to bring reproach to their name or to soil 
 their garments; who would not sit at meat with 
 sinners, yet who did shut their eyes if their own 
 familiar friend did sin, and reproached him not. 
 These are great sinners, but, seeing that they have 
 not judged others, nor harmed any, but by silence, 
 they go not into the nethermost hell,'
 
 LAZARUS. 239 
 
 " ' What is the worst sin of all ? ' I asked. 
 ' There is one sin we may not speak of, that even 
 the angels wot not of; and we know not whether 
 any man hath committed it, nor where the hell is. 
 Of that knoweth only God. But one of the great- 
 est sinners is he who never forgiveth ; for this cause 
 he too is never forgiven. ' 
 
 ' Then we passed through a long, dark building, 
 like to a sepulchre; and, as we passed out, I felt a 
 cold air come against me, as if the north wind blew 
 over mountains of ice and snow; and figures that 
 were unclothed ran hither and thither, crying out 
 for garments and for fire ; praying that even scorch- 
 ing fire might come upon them, rather than this 
 cold. And the Spirit of Truth said : ' These are 
 they who have no mercy ; who have loved neither 
 father nor mother, nor husband, nor friend, nor 
 children ; who have not cared if others suffered or 
 needed help, nor listened to those that loved them, 
 nor drawn with love the hearts of those that erred. 
 Here they freeze and freeze, yet die not, and no 
 warmth cometh to them ever. ' 
 
 " Then I saw that most of these were women 
 whose hearts were cold ; and, as we passed, one ran 
 after me and seized me, and she said : ' Give me of 
 thy warmth, give me of thy warmth. ' 
 
 " But, even while she spoke, she fainted from 
 very cold ; and I said to the Spirit : ' Who is this 
 woman, for methinks I have seen her picture when 
 on earth ? ' And he answered : ' That is Jezebel.' 
 
 ' Then we hurried on, for the night was well-nigh 
 spent, and the Spirit of Truth did tell me that I 
 must needs make speed, for that the next day the
 
 240 LAZARUS. 
 
 Lord would need me for the glory of His name; 
 and, in deep thankfulness, I thanked God that I, so 
 great a sinner, should have been chosen to testify to 
 His power. And as I hastened along, I looked from 
 side to side, lest, haply, any that I loved was in this 
 hell ; but none saw I that I had loved, though many 
 that I had known on earth and had thought right- 
 eous, and most were Pharisees ; and many that I had 
 thought to have seen were not there. 
 
 " Then I said: ' If time be short, show me the 
 nethermost hells, that I may know of the greatest 
 sins. ' 
 
 "And while I spoke, the ground on which I stood 
 gave way, and we fell still lower ; and Truth said : 
 4 Look around and see the confusion of this hell, for 
 in it God hath put no check, and the lack of it hath 
 made them as if mad.' 
 
 " And I saw men and women running hither and 
 thither in haste, yet doing nothing, save quarrelling 
 and tearing each other to pieces ; yet death would 
 not release them. 
 
 " ' Who are these ? ' I said. ' These be schemers 
 and plotters and lawyers,' said the Spirit of Truth. 
 ' They ran to and fro on earth and laid snares for 
 men; and they still do so, but now they fall into 
 their own toils; and to the makers of laws none 
 hearken, for none careth for the law, for he hath 
 naught to gain who keepeth it, nor hath he aught to 
 lose who transgresseth it. ' 
 
 And, looking on their faces, I saw such fury as 
 I had thought that no man could wear, for they 
 seemed to place no bounds upon their rage and 
 envyings, for they had lost all power of self-restraint,
 
 LAZARUS. 241 
 
 and no longer could direct or bind their thoughts. 
 And their mouths were full of cursing; such words 
 proceeding from their mouths that, though I could 
 not understand them, I felt were cries of hellish hate 
 and foulest loathing, such as were never known on 
 earth. Women and men cursed equally, cursed 
 each other, and God for making them, and Satan 
 for bringing them hither; yet their revilings brought 
 them no relief, their foul words no content, and 
 each tore hither and thither like one possessed. 
 
 ' Then I said, ' Surely there are none worse than 
 these.' 
 
 " But the Spirit took me past this pit of horror 
 where men crept in and out like worms beneath a 
 corpse, and I saw another hell, and at one end of it 
 an iron gate with spikes. And in this hell was a 
 great concourse of men and women. And one hav- 
 ing the appearance of an angel, and bearing a lan- 
 tern in his hand, did run along between the crowds 
 of men and women ; and, when he reached the gate, 
 he sprang thereon and cried : ' Behold the gate that 
 leadeth out of hell.' And all followed him, but, 
 when they strove to clamber over it for none could 
 open it, it being strongly barred the spikes did 
 enter their flesh and tear them. Then they returned 
 and told their brethren, to entreat their help ; but it 
 availed nothing. And every time the angel ran 
 anew, so ran others ; yet all failed to pass beyond 
 the gate. 
 
 " And the Spirit of Truth said to me: ' These be 
 they who have corrupted youth and childhood, and 
 the pure-minded among men, and have beguiled 
 them, so that they have strayed. Just as in their 
 
 16
 
 242 LAZARUS. 
 
 lives they led believing souls to the gates of know- 
 ledge, and then left them to be wounded by their 
 sin, so now they themselves are led, for they fancy 
 ever that at last they will escape ; but the spikes 
 do tear them and will in no wise let them pass." 
 
 "Then I looked and saw that many of these were 
 women ; at which, marvelling, I said : ' Do women 
 lead the innocent to their undoing ? ' And the Spirit 
 answered : ' Yea, more ofttimes than men. It never 
 satisfieth a woman till she hath caught a young man 
 in her toils. Then she leaveth him ; and he, taught 
 by her, betrayeth other women; but for one man 
 that betrayeth a woman there are twenty women 
 who betray men, and these are oft the mothers of 
 children.' 
 
 " And I marvelled that women had been created. 
 Then I looked up, and on a high mountain peak I 
 saw a woman of exceeding beauty poised. And her 
 eyes were turned on hell ; and I asked Truth : ' Who 
 is she ? ' And he answered : ' That same is Eve, 
 the mother of all mankind. She sitteth on the high- 
 est mountain peak of hell and looketh down and 
 seeth the grief that she hath brought upon the world 
 by disobedience ; and she weepeth always and pray- 
 eth without ceasing; and her grief of repentance is 
 so great that it is to her even as hell ; and it shall 
 be counted to her for righteousness, for she hath 
 believed and repented and suffered much, and, one 
 day, she shall be forgiven ; but not till she hath seen 
 the victory over sin, not till she hath seen even the 
 Holy One in hell.' 
 
 " Then I asked the Spirit : ' Will the Christ come 
 to this hell ? Wherefore ? ' And the Spirit of
 
 LAZARUS. 243 
 
 Truth answered : ' That I know not, but methinks 
 that 't is to give hope to them who were not on 
 earth at His appearance ; that, when they see Him, 
 they may believe and tremble, and repent. ' 
 
 " Then I saw a crowd assembled, and high places 
 raised, like thrones, and men in long robes ascending 
 them, as if to preach ; and, as each rose in the high 
 place, another came and tore him down and cried : 
 ' Who art thou to call thyself a priest ? ' or, ' Who 
 art thou to call thyself a ruler ? I will be priest, I 
 will be ruler.' And, so soon as the one that did 
 pull the other down did reach the throne, he too 
 was dragged down and buffeted. 
 
 " And the Spirit of Truth explained: ' These are 
 they whom ambition hath consumed. They sought 
 high places and some gained them. Then these 
 were puffed up with pride; then others came and 
 took their place, and they were stricken to the dust. ' 
 
 " Then I heard peals of laughter, the like to 
 which I had never heard before. Methinks Satan 
 must laugh so. And I looked around and saw no 
 man near, save them who rose and fell in the high 
 places ; and the Spirit of Truth spake thus concern- 
 ing them : ' These who hear this laughter are they 
 who scoffed and derided at religion, and at them 
 who tried to act aright ; and they who made afraid 
 the timid hearts. Now they hear ever this laughter 
 around them, and seek to find whence it proceedeth ; 
 but they seek in vain ; and the laugh continueth day 
 and night, and ever it seemeth to them that none 
 standeth near ; till at last they go well-nigh mad for 
 very horror, yet the laughter ceaseth not, and will 
 never cease. '
 
 244 LAZARUS. 
 
 ' Then we came to almost the nethermost hell of 
 all, and the smell was foul, as of a putrefying, stag- 
 nant pool, heavy with fever-laden mists; and the 
 rocks grew closer, as though they would crush out 
 all light. ' Here dwell the greatest sinners of any 
 thou hast seen,' said the Spirit of Truth; ' the re- 
 ligious hypocrites and the priests who pervert the 
 people. They who make weak women confess their 
 sins, that they may listen to uncleanly tales, and 
 hold the secrets of the fearsome, like daggers, over 
 their heads. Of these Caiaphas will be and his day 
 is close at hand.' 
 
 " And I looked and saw that the place was 
 crowded with long-robed priests with folded hands, 
 which they could not unlock; the women came and 
 cursed them, and their sons and daughters came 
 and cursed them, and cried out : ' Who then was 
 our father ? ' 
 
 " And, while I looked I saw that they were struck 
 with blindness, and there was none to lead them as 
 they walked ; thus they struck their feet against the 
 stones and rocks, and ofttimes fell to the ground. 
 
 "And the Spirit of Truth said : 'In life these men 
 knew the truth and hid it from the people, beguil- 
 ing them with rumours and tradition ; and now they 
 themselves are struck with blindness, and ofttimes 
 the crowd doth rend them, and they cannot help 
 themselves.' 
 
 " Then remembered I the words of the Nazarene: 
 ' Woe unto ye, ye blind guides, which say, " Who- 
 soever shall swear by the Temple it is nothing, but 
 whosoever shall swear by the gold of the Temple he 
 is a debtor ! " '
 
 LAZARUS. 245 
 
 " Then I saw that this was the greatest punishment 
 of all, to be blind and in hell, and to know that this 
 blindness is forever and ever. Yet could I not pity 
 them as I did the others, for I thought of all the 
 rulers and high priests that I had known, and could 
 call none to mind that spake the truth or taught it ; 
 and I considered how the laws of Moses had been 
 perverted by these hypocrites, and that their sayings 
 and writings would remain written for generations ; 
 and I wondered not that the worst punishment of 
 eternal blindness should be theirs. 
 
 ' Then we came to a field which was fair to see, 
 with fruit and flowers that hung in bounteous pro- 
 fusion everywhere ; and I said : ' This can be no 
 hell ! ' 
 
 " But the Spirit shook his head and made reply: 
 'This is the garden of hell, where the women wander 
 for one hour in every day. This blessing is accorded 
 them because of the mother of the Lord. 'T is 
 only since the birth of the Christ on earth that it hath 
 been planted. For her sake, and for the sake of 
 their suffering on earth, women are given one hour 
 that they may rest them from the torture of hell. 
 But not all women are allowed to enter here. 'T is 
 like unto the Garden of Eden, in which the Lord 
 placed Adam and Eve ; for, each evening, an angel 
 with a flaming sword doth chase them from the gar- 
 den, even as Eve was chased, and crieth out : "De- 
 part, depart, ye sinful." 
 
 " And as I gazed, I saw that many women of ex- 
 ceeding fairness wandered in the cool shade of the 
 garden, and for one hour their eyes did shine and 
 their smile was sweet. And even while I looked,
 
 246 LAZARUS. 
 
 the angel with the flaming sword which turned each 
 way appeared and cried, as Truth had advertised 
 me : ' Depart, depart, ye sinful. ' Then, with deep 
 wailing and moaning and tearing of hair, the crowd 
 of women rushed down the alleys, looking neither 
 to the right nor to the left. 
 
 " And I asked : ' How have these women sinned ? ' 
 ' These are unfaithful, haters of children, envi- 
 ous, loving luxury, driving men to sin and theft by 
 their desire for sumptuous living, backbiters, liars, 
 bearers of false witness against other women, tat- 
 tlers; and the worst of all are they who marry with- 
 out love, and they who force their children to barter 
 themselves for gold.' 
 
 " Next we came to a freezing lake, which stank 
 of brimstone and other noisome things. And, as we 
 looked, behold blue lights illumed the lake, and over 
 it was ice. And a vast concourse approached from 
 the farther side, making as though they would cross 
 over; but midway, the ice did break and they fell 
 in ; and great blue flames burst forth and scorched 
 them as they plunged into the lake. 
 
 " ' This,' said the Spirit of Truth, ' is the Lake 
 of Liars. The blue lights are like their words that 
 have misguided men. The ice is like their promises 
 that they have broken ; and now they are plunged 
 into the scorching flames of hell. ' 
 
 " Then Truth came near the lake, and the spirits 
 cried: 'Approach not, come not near, for we hate 
 thee, Truth.' 
 
 " And I looked and saw that the lake did stretch 
 farther than the eye could reach, and in it were 
 countless souls, with the appearance of wriggling
 
 LAZARUS. 247 
 
 eels and serpents fighting, hustling, holding on to 
 each other, trying to lift themselves out of the mire. 
 
 " And I said to the Spirit of Truth: ' Why are 
 these so many ? Surely they do outnumber all 
 others in hell.' And the Spirit answered : ' Because 
 all men are liars. Some lie to each other, and some 
 to God, and some to themselves ; but all are liars, 
 and none speak the truth. Some indeed know not 
 what truth is.' 
 
 " Then I said: ' Tell me what others dwell in 
 hell.' And Truth replied: 'There are the mischief- 
 makers. Their hell is like unto the liars', save that 
 an eternal wind doth blow on their ears ; and there 
 are the traitors ; they too are in a bottomless pit, and 
 are divided thus : traitors to their country, traitors 
 to their Lord, traitors to their friends, traitors to 
 their kinsmen. These last are worst of all ; for, if a 
 man honour not his own flesh and blood, whom 
 then will he honour ? Besides, these are they who 
 weary souls by much reproving, and they who 
 judge. They who judge are weighed in balances; 
 day and night are they weighed, and ever are they 
 found wanting; and the weighing ceaseth never and 
 every evil thought they have had towards others is 
 returned into their own bosom.' 
 
 ' Then I inquired : ' Wherefore still remaineth so 
 much room in hell ? ' And Truth answered : ' For 
 the generations to come, there are many races and 
 many generations yet to come, and each that cometh 
 after will be judged more hardly, because it hath 
 known the truth and hath suffered lighter persecu- 
 tion. Last of all will come the judgment of them of 
 the West, who make profession of belief in Jesus ;
 
 248 LAZARUS. 
 
 but many of these will not believe, though belief 
 encompass them around, and though all the works 
 of Christ lay open before them.' Then the Spirit 
 added : ' This is thy last night in Hades, and we must 
 return, for thou must pray ere thou rejoin thy body.' 
 
 " Then meekly I took him by the hand, and we 
 rose once more straight through the air, like arrows 
 shot upward from a bow ; and while we rose thus 
 swiftly, yet could we hear the wailing and the 
 gnashing of teeth and the howling of those be- 
 neath ; and I said : ' I would the Christ saw not 
 such sights.' But he answered: ' He will spare 
 Himself no suffering, but drink the cup of bitter- 
 ness to the dregs.' 
 
 " And after that the Spirit of Truth bade me de- 
 part ; and at his words I wept, for a great fear came 
 upon me ; I feared to live again after that which I 
 had seen. I clung to the Spirit of Truth and I 
 said : 'Leave me not alone, I pray thee, in the valley 
 of the shadow of death.' And it seemed to me, 
 Mary, that thy voice sang to me the words that 
 thou didst sing when I was at the point of death : 
 ' Yea, though I walk through the valley of the 
 shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for Thou art 
 with me ; Thy rod and Thy staff do comfort me. ' 
 And a great peace came over me and I fell asleep. 
 
 " When I awoke I was once more outside the road 
 of Jericho near to Bethany beneath the olive groves; 
 and I saw the face of Jesus and the disciples, and I 
 saw thee and Martha and the Jews who came to wail 
 and mourn. And at the sight of Jesus' face my 
 strength returned, and I said inwardly: ' If Thou 
 canst die for me, then I can live for Thee. '
 
 LAZARUS. 249 
 
 " And I saw that Jesus wept for the love He bore 
 me and the love He bore Jerusalem, and for its un- 
 belief ; and I knew that He would I had not died, 
 and that, having died, I should not live again to die 
 a second death. Yet would I live and die daily, if 
 I could serve the Lord forever ; for I know that, be- 
 yond here and Hades, there are things reserved for 
 them which love the Lord that pass man's under- 
 standing. Then I prayed as I had never prayed 
 before, for I knew for a very certainty that Jesus 
 was' the Christ, and that men with their vain imagi- 
 nations are but as worms before the Lord, and are 
 without understanding. At last, when night was 
 past, I heard the voice of Jesus calling me, as it 
 were, across great waters; and my spirit hastened 
 to the voice of God, and I stood inside the sepul- 
 chre ye had prepared for me ; and I saw a body ly- 
 ing there, and I shuddered at the thought of that 
 which was before me, and of the power of the flesh ; 
 and I would indeed that it were not so that I must 
 live again. Yet I longed to see the face of the Christ 
 once more, and to show forth His glory to all men, 
 for I thought that then, indeed, all could not but 
 believe. So I laid me down once more on the body 
 that had pained me so in life, and I cried, ' Not my 
 will, but Thine, be done on earth, O Lord ! ' Then 
 I heard the voice of the Christ that sounded like 
 silver trumpets on the mountain tops mingling with 
 summer fountains cry out : ' Lazarus, come forth ! ' 
 And at those words of Jesus I stood once more on 
 my feet. Yet still the people believed not in 
 Him."
 
 CHAPTER XXIV. 
 
 WHEN Lazarus ceased speaking, morning, 
 striking right and left with her flaming 
 wand of truth, lighting up each secret corner of the 
 world, burst in through the open casement, and 
 forced herself in ardent streams of light beneath the 
 doors and through every crevice of the house in 
 Bethany. 
 
 She lit up faces weary with their vigil, worn with 
 the excitement of this wondrous narrative and their 
 eagerness to grasp the full purpose of this revelation. 
 
 When the Magdalene had finished writing, she fell 
 upon her knees in prayer. None knew what she 
 prayed for, whether in appeal, or thankfulness, but 
 Lazarus looking at her, his gaze softened and a 
 great resolve showed in his eyes. 
 
 Then, one by one, they rose from their posture 
 on the ground, to go and bathe and set about the 
 duties of the day. But Martha was less restless and 
 solicitous. 
 
 Lazarus's tale had roused her interest ; nay, more, 
 had filled her with a vague dread and wondering 
 that one so great as Jesus could condescend to sup 
 with them that night; and, in a moment, as one 
 sees things in a flash, it came to her how futile must 
 every effort be to make things worthy of such a 
 guest. Then, while her sister marvelled at her quiet 
 
 250
 
 LAZARUS. 251 
 
 spirit, she turned to the Magdalene and said : 
 " Thou wilt go with us, Mary, to serve the Lord at 
 supper." 
 
 And the despised Magdalene flushed with pleas- 
 ure, forMartha's courtesies had the attribute of rarity. 
 
 But, although the disciples had striven to preserve 
 the secret of Jesus' return to Bethany, yet, either 
 through servants or by the treachery of Judas, it 
 had been noised about that, not only the Nazarene, 
 but also the risen Lazarus was to be at the feast ; 
 and all that day the people thronged outside the 
 door of the leper, fearing to enter on account of the 
 strict Jewish law, yet anxious to see him when he 
 should leave his house. Great trouble rilled the 
 heart of the four at Bethany, for, in the midst of 
 their joy at the prospect of seeing the Lord again, 
 there rose the dread of what might follow. Fear 
 for Lazarus was added now to their grief and terror 
 for the Messiah, for he had become to the people 
 the testimony of the Christ's actuality and power. 
 
 Beneath the double sway of the high priests and 
 the Romans, the Jewish people were beginning to 
 think more for themselves and to act with greater 
 independence. They would inquire into this matter 
 and learn for themselves the truth. 
 
 So it came about that, when Lazarus and the 
 three women, followed by the servants bearing the 
 dishes they had made ready for the Lord, sallied 
 forth from the gates, they found a crowd assembled 
 who, with that daring which even now characterises 
 an Eastern throng, followed them along the road, 
 calling out to them, asking questions, gabbling, 
 quarrelling, gesticulating.
 
 2$2 LAZARUS. 
 
 "Art thou indeed Lazarus ? " cried they. " Wert 
 really dead ? " 
 
 And with these and like inquiries were mingled 
 ribaldry and jeers ; for when the common people 
 congregate, there are always those who think to 
 show their humour with obscene and scoffing oaths. 
 
 " Wast so fond of earth thou couldst not stay 
 away ? ' ' 
 
 Then, when the crowd continued to vociferate 
 and clamour, Lazarus quickly mounted a little hill- 
 ock on the roadside, and, facing them, cried out in 
 the deep voice that had been wont to stir men in the 
 Sanhedrim: " Men of Israel, hear ye me; if I tell 
 ye the truth will ye believe me ? " 
 
 Cries rose from the multitude: " We will believe, 
 we will believe." 
 
 " Nay, I ask yet more; will ye believe that Jesus 
 is the Christ ? for I am here to-day to testify of 
 Him." 
 
 Cries rose again : " Art thou indeed Lazarus ? " 
 
 " How can I convince ye ? " answered Lazarus in 
 tones despondent at his inability to prove his per- 
 sonality, if his simple presence should not suffice. 
 
 ' Ye have known me from my childhood upwards. 
 Many are here to-day with whom I went to school. 
 Behold yonder the sons of Zebedee ; they will bear 
 witness that I am the same Lazarus. Simon the 
 Leper, to whom I now go, is my father, and these 
 two noble ladies are my sisters. Thou knowest 
 them well, for they have tended many of the sick 
 and poor in Bethany. What more can I tell ye to 
 make ye believe that I am the Lazarus ye have 
 known ? Behold my hands and the features of my
 
 LAZARUS. 253 
 
 countenance. If I be not that same Lazarus, where 
 then is he ? " 
 
 Then one, a lawyer, came up to him. 
 
 " Noble ruler," he began, " I will speak for this 
 multitude. We believe verily that thou art Lazarus, 
 but we would hear whether thou wert really dead, 
 and if so be, how thou didst return to life ? " 
 
 " How can I persuade ye, my brethren ? " replied 
 Lazarus, tears rising to his eyes in the intensity of 
 his emotion. " I was indeed dead. Ask the phy- 
 sician Kishish; ask them who embalmed me, and 
 them who bore me to the tomb. In truth, I was 
 dead, and if I be alive again, 't is by the power of 
 Jesus the Christ, whom ye call the Nazarene." 
 
 Some seemed willing to believe, others shrugged 
 their shoulders, but none molested Lazarus or those 
 with him any more. But some amongst the crowd 
 cried out: " He is bewitched, or he dreameth, and 
 knoweth not what he saith. Maybe he was in a 
 trance." 
 
 Their supper in the house of Simon was a happy 
 meeting. Though all were troubled by forebodings 
 of sad events to come, there was in each a spirit of 
 patience and resignation that enabled them to enjoy 
 the present. 
 
 Although supper had been laid for all the family 
 of Simon, only one couch had been provided, all 
 having intended to wait on Jesus ; but, with gracious 
 condescension, as though what Lazarus had gone 
 through gave him a higher claim to His friendship, 
 Jesus bade him be seated at the same table. With 
 what zeal and tenderness those loving women waited 
 on the two they loved best in the world, though
 
 254 LAZARUS. 
 
 each with a widely different love; but now even 
 their love for Lazarus was tinged with the divine 
 reverence they had for the Nazarene. 
 
 Presently, with a burst of that living tenderness 
 which vainly strove to give full expression to itself, 
 the Magdalene took a vessel of ointment of spike- 
 nard of the most costly kind, that she had brought 
 with her, and poured it over the Messiah's feet. To 
 the careful Jew, such an offering was one for great 
 occasions only, but to Mary it seemed but a poor 
 expression of her devotion. As the rich fragrance 
 was wafted on the air, filling the chamber with vague 
 memories of hedgerows and Grecian gardens of roses, 
 the Nazarene's eyes fell with love and gratitude on 
 the kneeling figure at His feet. He saw, beyond 
 the impulsive gift, the warmth of love and reverence 
 that had dictated it. The best of everything must 
 be her Lord's. Yet more, He saw a thought dis- 
 tinct. It might be that the loving Mary feared that 
 she would not be near Him when He died, to fulfil 
 the last earthly office, the embalming of His body. 
 It might be that cruel soldiers would tear away the 
 body of one she loved so much. Therefore, to-night, 
 He should be anointed with the rarest perfumes of 
 Judaea. With these thoughts in her mind, her tears 
 fell in drops like rain on the holy feet ; and, as they 
 fell, she wiped them with her hair, lest they should 
 defile the members she so reverently handled. 
 
 At the feet of the Lord ; that had been ever the 
 favourite posture of the Magdalene! Would she 
 ever again be privileged to take it ? While the dis- 
 ciples whispered among themselves and listened to 
 the Nazarene, her thoughts flew back with the agony
 
 LAZARUS. 255 
 
 of remorse the remembrance of happy intervals in 
 the midst of pains, than which the poet tells us there 
 is no greater grief to those peaceful days before 
 Lazarus had died. Oh that it could have remained 
 thus! But the merciless generation was pressing 
 them on to unsought destinies. They were like 
 people forced into pathways they wished not to 
 pursue, with separation, persecution, insult, death 
 before them ; and to support them through all these, 
 having only that staff of faith, and a vague hope, 
 whose brightness would be dimmed when the One 
 who had implanted it should have vanished from 
 their sight. 
 
 Then Judas Iscariot, who was a half-brother of 
 Lazarus, and had always hated his father's children 
 and been jealous of the Lord's intimacy with them, 
 glad of an opportunity of wounding them or of hold- 
 ing them up to blame in the eyes of Jesus, exclaimed : 
 ' What waste is here! Why was not this oint- 
 ment sold for three hundred pence and given to the 
 poor ? " 
 
 Before the Lord could answer, Martha cried hotly, 
 mindful of what Lazarus had disclosed to them: 
 " Thou traitor, much thou carest for the poor. 
 Wouldst put it in the bag with thy thirty pieces of 
 silver?" 
 
 Iscariot's face blanched to the grey whiteness of 
 an iceberg from which the sun had fled. 
 
 Was then his secret known ? His eyes sought 
 those of Jesus shiftingly ; while Lazarus raised his 
 hand in disapproval of Martha's hasty speech. But 
 the Messiah's gentle voice made answer pleadingly: 
 " Let her alone ; against the day of My burying hath
 
 256 LAZARUS. 
 
 she kept this. For the poor ye have always with 
 you; but Me ye have not always." 
 
 And when He had so spoken, Mary could restrain 
 her tears no longer, and cried out: " My Lord, my 
 Lord, I beseech Thee, leave us not." 
 
 Then, leaning towards her in infinite pity for the 
 great sorrow in her heart, the Saviour murmured: 
 " Let not your heart be troubled." 
 
 And while He spoke, there were heard outside 
 sounds of voices shouting, " Hosanna! Hosanna! " 
 
 A few moments later, the whole house was crowded 
 with a glorifying multitude, who would not be re- 
 strained from seeing the great sight of the Son of 
 God on earth, sitting in the house of Simon the 
 Leper, and, by His side, Lazarus, who had been 
 raised from the dead. 
 
 And, in the midst of the clamour and confusion, 
 Judas Iscariot made his way out to warn the Phari- 
 sees that his secret was known, and that they must 
 needs make haste if they would lay hands on the 
 Nazarene.
 
 CHAPTER XXV. 
 
 ONCE more Jerusalem was the scene of wild ex- 
 citement, and once more Caiaphas and his 
 colleagues were seized with the dread of whether, 
 after all, power was not going to be wrenched from 
 them. If, in truth, this was the Son of God, if really 
 Lazarus had died and been restored to life, what was 
 to prevent more miracles, and might it not be that 
 Caiaphas would ultimately be torn to pieces by the 
 followers of the Nazarene ? These were the High 
 Priest's inward thoughts; but, outwardly, he and his 
 supporters admitted only that, if such trickery as 
 the removal of the body of Lazarus could take place, 
 there was no knowing what dupes might yet be 
 made. At a private meeting of the heads of the 
 Synagogue at the house of Caiaphas, a meeting from 
 which all who did not share the High Priest's views 
 had been excluded, they had come to the unanimous 
 conclusion that the execution of the Nazarene, 
 unless accompanied by that of Lazarus, would be 
 useless bloodshed. 
 
 For Lazarus will be, to all intents, a second 
 Galilean," said one, " and who knoweth but that, 
 having been a ruler and one learned in the law of 
 Moses, he will still more pervert the people by his 
 wisdom, so that, perchance, even the rich will follow 
 him ? For this Nazarene hath that good in Him 
 
 '7 257
 
 2$8 LAZARUS. 
 
 that He appealeth but to the sinners and the poor, 
 so that His following is not a powerful one. But, 
 in that He hath raised this Lazarus, it seemeth to 
 me that the danger doth spread higher." 
 
 " Yet I know not how we shall take Him," said 
 another; " for the people look upon Him as a God, 
 and He hath ever people around Him." 
 
 " 'T will be difficult, but not impossible," said 
 Caiaphas with his cruel, self-sufficient laugh. Had 
 I but known last night that both sat in the house 
 of Simon, he that is the leper, I would have 
 caught the two birds with one net; but that dog, 
 Iscariot, did not dare come till dark, and, when I 
 sent to take them, the house and wayside were 
 thronged with the multitude of perverted fools, and 
 the soldiers feared that to capture them might cause 
 disturbance ; for naught desire we less than to fan 
 this fanaticism into a civil war. This also know the 
 Romans. Yet sometimes methinks that Pilate doth, 
 for some purpose, assist the Nazarene to escape, that 
 so a sedition may arise and the Romans may take 
 away our country." 
 
 An indignant murmur ran through the little gath- 
 ering of Pharisees. 
 
 " And I hear further from Rome," the High 
 Priest continued pompously, anxious to impress his 
 audience with his superior information and his inti- 
 macy with Tiberius, " that they are discussing before 
 the Senate whether to add this Nazarene to their 
 twelve gods and thus have thirteen." 
 
 A derisive laugh rose from the assembled council ; 
 laughter that might have been aimed either at the 
 Nazarene's claim to be regarded as a God, or at the
 
 LAZARUS. 259 
 
 facile religion of the Romans, who could thus lightly 
 add to their list of deities. 
 
 " Yet methinks," went on another, " that there 
 must be sedition in the air ; else why hath the Naza- 
 rene chosen this time of the Passover, when Jerusa- 
 lem is full of all nations, Greeks and Gentiles, to 
 come into the city and incite the people ? " 
 
 " Thinkest thou that He will come ? " asked the 
 High Priest doubtfully. ' ' Iscariot brought me word 
 yesterday that the plot was known ; yea, more, that 
 Martha, the sister of Lazarus, had reviled him about 
 the thirty pieces of silver. How thinkest thou they 
 know ? For even Pilate knew not of this thing." 
 
 ' They have amongst themselves, I am told," said 
 one, " some spirit of divination or sooth-saying, 
 such as was used by Saul; for they all seem to 
 know whatsoever every man doth think, and have 
 Satan to assist them." Then, to himself, he mut- 
 tered, " Nay, but He will not come, He dare not 
 come to Jerusalem." 
 
 But, even while he spoke, there rose loud cries on 
 the clear, cold air; shrieks that seemed to rend the 
 skies and pierce to the very heart of Caiaphas. 
 
 " Hosanna! Hosanna! Blessed is the King of 
 Israel, that cometh in the name of the Lord." 
 
 Like men possessed, drawn by some magnetic 
 power they were unable to resist, the little gathering 
 of Pharisees and scribes moved to the open windows 
 and to the balconies and terraces. But Caiaphas 
 seemed to shrink up in his seat, with lowered, scowl- 
 ing brow and clenched fists, which he beat every 
 now and then against the couch with fury ; and his 
 countenance was filled with menace ; while the cry,
 
 260 LAZARUS. 
 
 " King of Israel! King of Israel!" arose in one 
 grand sound heavy with united voices. 
 
 " What meaneth this strange cry ? " he asked, 
 alarmed, and he turned his head towards the group 
 of excited Pharisees. 
 
 " We can see naught yet," one made answer hur- 
 riedly; " only the people, who do cry furiously and 
 throw branches and palms upon the ground." 
 
 Like one about to be seized with a fit, or one 
 towards whom a stroke of paralysis is creeping 
 stealthily, Caiaphas sat holding on to his seat, trying 
 to assume indifference ; but, all the while, every nerve 
 and muscle was strained to hear whether that cry 
 would come again : " King of Israel ! King of Israel ! " 
 
 Presently, unable to contain himself, he bawled : 
 " Can ye not speak, ye fools ? How cometh He ? " 
 
 There was a moment's silence, while some strained 
 their necks to see farther up the road. Then one 
 turned to Caiaphas again: " He cometh, the Naza- 
 rene, and He rideth on an ass, yea, a small ass; it 
 seemeth but a colt." 
 
 For a moment, blood seemed to surge into the 
 very eyes of Caiaphas. He felt faint and dizzy ; for 
 one instant the roof of his house seemed torn away ; 
 for one instant, in the back chambers of his dark- 
 ened brain and soul, there flashed the image of a 
 cross; for one instant, Caiaphas, the proud High 
 Priest, believed, and almost swooned from the be- 
 lieving. 
 
 " Thou liest," he said at last, in a voice thick and 
 charged with the hoarseness caused by his emotions. 
 
 In surprise, the group looked back. What then 
 had come to Caiaphas ?
 
 LAZARUS. 26l 
 
 One young scribe even ran to him. " Art ill, 
 most noble Caiaphas ? Shall I bring thee water ? " 
 
 " Nay, nay, leave me, thou fool," he said impa- 
 tiently ; and then, while the young man drew back 
 terrified, he burst into a peal of horrible laughter, 
 and all looked anxiously one at the other and whis- 
 pered: " Methinks that Caiaphas hath gone mad 
 from hatred of the Nazarene. ' ' 
 
 Then they returned to watch the gathering, press- 
 ing concourse, all crying, screaming, singing, shout- 
 ing in honour of the Messiah. 
 
 'T was never so seen in Jerusalem," they mur- 
 mured. 
 
 Then Caiaphas rose and went to the door and 
 called his soldiers, to bid them close the windows 
 and keep out the distracting noise. But in vain; 
 they, too, had fled, and left the ante-chamber empty. 
 But not for long. With loud-sounding, hasty step, 
 the Procurator entered, a scornful smile upon his 
 lips, a strange exultation in his eyes. Without a 
 word, he seized the High Priest by the arm, and 
 with sheer force, dragged him to the balcony. 
 
 " Dost remember thine own words ? " he asked 
 rapidly in a voice such as Caiaphas before had never 
 heard. ' Thou dost say it is written in Zechariah : 
 ' Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion ; shout, O 
 daughter of Jerusalem : behold, thy King cometh 
 unto thee : he is just, and having salvation ; lowly, 
 and riding upon a colt, the foal of an ass.' ' 
 
 The rest kept silence while he spoke. Meantime 
 Caiaphas was searching in the dark corners of his re- 
 tentive brain for some subtle answer to this con- 
 founding verse ; while they around who were versed
 
 262 LAZARUS. 
 
 in the prophets and the law threw back their 
 memories till they remembered where indeed those 
 words were written, and the circumstance that had 
 inspired the prophet. 
 
 And while they all stood silent, the Nazarene 
 passed by on His lowly steed, the embodiment of 
 appealing meekness and submission, yet with a 
 majesty that seemed to enfold in one the Past, the 
 Present, and Eternity; and, as He passed, some 
 strange thrill hushed the crowd, which prostrated 
 itself to the earth in silent ecstasy of adoration. 
 And, almost as if forced to the ground by some un- 
 seen compelling power, Pilate and the little group 
 of Pharisees fell down upon their knees. Caiaphas 
 alone remained erect, with lowering glance and 
 folded hands, looking over the heads of that infatu- 
 ated little gathering of great men, following with 
 steely eyes, that shone with hellish light, the image 
 of the Messiah, who passed by slowly, the colt's 
 hoofs pattering on the cobble stones with short, 
 sharp thuds. 
 
 His last chance had come and gone. The memory 
 of his own prophecy had sought to probe his heart, 
 to wrench away the thick coating of pride and un- 
 belief in which it was enveloped. The Messiah had 
 passed by, and Caiaphas had rejected Him ; and 
 Satan, scared from the streets of Jerusalem, had yet 
 found shelter in one soul. 
 
 Still the populace cried out: " Hosanna! Ho- 
 sanna! Blessed is the King of Israel." 
 
 And the Pharisees who had met that morning to 
 sign the condemnation of the Nazarene and issue an 
 order for Lazarus's capture, rose from their knees
 
 LAZARUS. 263 
 
 and shook their heads, and one to the other said: 
 ' ' Perceive ye how we prevail nothing ? Behold the 
 world is gone after Him." 
 
 Then, headed by Pontius Pilate, they filed out 
 one by one, leaving Caiaphas still standing at the 
 window, looking after the people that had deserted 
 him, and turning over within his heart schemes for 
 the achievement of his revenge ; for vengeance 
 would be to him henceforth the sole pursuit of his 
 earthly life, and the basis of his life eternal. The 
 sweetness of life to him now would be when the 
 cry "Hosanna!" should be changed to that of 
 Crucify!"
 
 CHAPTER XXVI. 
 
 ONCE more the multitude pressed round the 
 Nazarene, keener than ever to hear the words 
 of one who had performed the great miracle they 
 had all been longing for. All the circumstances too 
 the fact that the body of Lazarus had lain four 
 days in the grave, and the publicity of his resurrec- 
 tion, had impressed their minds with an assurance in 
 the Messiah's power that seemed unshakable. But 
 to those who believed, each word was fraught with 
 the approaching grief of separation ; to His disciples 
 and a few besides, each phrase that fell from Him 
 thus held for them an added tenderness and pathos 
 and would be treasured with the greater care. In a 
 short time they would have to live their lives with- 
 out the sweet presence that had sustained and guided 
 them. His words would be their only guide through 
 this world and, through death, to life eternal. There 
 were tiny children, too, who were growing up, whom 
 Jesus loved. The message would have to be handed 
 on to them in all its purity and all its hope. 
 
 The crowd was waiting. The Nazarene stood 
 ready to deliver once more the message from the 
 Father; never wearying of His mission, ever appeal- 
 ing to them to lay hold of true happiness in this 
 world and their salvation in the next. Then two 
 disciples advanced with reverence, and, plucking at 
 
 264
 
 LAZARUS. 265 
 
 His sleeve, they murmured something in His ear. 
 And when the Lord turned round, a group of Greeks 
 was seen approaching. 
 
 ' They would have speech with Thee," said 
 Philip. 
 
 He greeted them, as He did every one, with 
 divine courtesy and love, yet a spasm of pain passed 
 for a moment across His brow, as He answered His 
 disciple: " The hour is come that the Son of God 
 shall be glorified ? " 
 
 " What meaneth He ?" asketh one of another; 
 and Mary, anxious at the look of pain that con- 
 tracted the Saviour's brow, bent close to Lazarus, 
 and, in terror-stricken accents, gasped: " Surely 
 they come to take the Lord ? " 
 
 But Lazarus reassured her. " Be not troubled, 
 sister," he replied assuringly, " they are but Greeks, 
 who seek to learn the truth." 
 
 " God be praised," said Mary; " but why, then, 
 doth the Master say: ' The hour is come ' ? " 
 
 Then, with sadness inexpressible, Lazarus an- 
 swered : " The hour is indeed near at hand, and the 
 coming of these Greeks doth signify its nearness ; 
 for all nations shall bow down and worship Him 
 together. As Caiaphas hath prophesied, so shall it 
 be; God shall gather together all the children of 
 God into one place, and all divisions shall be ended. 
 The middle wall of partition shall be broken down, 
 and all nations linked together in one common faith. 
 Surely the coming of these Greeks is the first sign 
 that the death of the Master is at hand." 
 
 Great tears welled to Mary's eyes. She under- 
 stood now the grief that rested like a shadow on
 
 266 LAZARUS. 
 
 His face ; and, while she listened to His words, that 
 one after another struck her heart with the certain 
 aim of arrows shot from one who had the cunning 
 of the bow at his finger ends, yet her thoughts dwelt 
 anxiously on the future, with a thousand pon- 
 derings. 
 
 But suddenly Lazarus ceased to speak, for the 
 thrilling voice of the Nazarene arose in words that 
 were addressed to all multitudes and all nations; 
 words that to those who understood them set forth 
 the great news of His impending death. 
 
 Surely the poor, wan face, the lips that never 
 laughed, told their own tale of the secret griefs and 
 temptations of the Man of Sorrows ; griefs and temp- 
 tations more gigantic than could be conceived by 
 mortal man, the temptation to use His power to set 
 aside grief and sorrow, to reject death, while yet ac- 
 cepting them. 
 
 At last He cried: "And what shall I say? 
 Father, save Me from this hour. But for this cause 
 came I unto this hour." 
 
 Then, as if to defy fate and unbelief, temptation, 
 fear, insult, torment, He raised His face, sublime in 
 its gentle gravity, towards heaven, and, with a voice 
 that breathed with faith and love, He cried: 
 " Father, glorify Thy name." 
 
 Then, although the day was fine and bright, and 
 no cloud hung across the heavens, was heard a thun- 
 der-clap, then another; yet to some it sounded not 
 wholly like a thunder-clap, so that those standing 
 nearest to Jesus said, " An angel spake to Him; I 
 heard the voice. Methought I heard the word 
 glory." And Lazarus and John and several others
 
 LAZARUS. 267 
 
 affirmed that a voice had called out from heaven, "I 
 have both glorified it, and will glorify it again." 
 
 At the words of His Father an expression of radi- 
 ant gratitude came over the visage of the Nazarene ; 
 and, to leave no doubt in their terrified minds as to 
 whether it was thunder or the voice of God that 
 spoke, He said: "The voice came not because of 
 Me, but for your sakes. Now is the judgment of 
 this world : now shall the prince of this world be 
 cast out. And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, 
 will draw all men unto Me." 
 
 These words, mystic and ambiguous to many, 
 filled the soul of Lazarus with dismay. How could 
 he live this new life without his Master ? His own 
 death and resurrection seemed to have done little 
 towards making people believe. The prospect of 
 his renewed life without the supporting presence of 
 the Christ, to be ended, in all likelihood, by an 
 agonising death, seemed almost more than he could 
 bear. 
 
 Then some of the Pharisees and chief rulers, who 
 believed but durst not confess it, lest they should be 
 cast out of the Synagogue, approached Him with 
 the questions that were their endless stumbling- 
 stones ; questions of that law which had so wound 
 itself round their hearts and brains that it seemed to 
 stifle spiritual life. 
 
 ' We have heard out of the law that Christ abideth 
 forever; and how sayest Thou that the Son of man 
 must be lifted up ? Who is this Son of man ? " 
 
 Did the world then mean to spin out its years to 
 the end of time without ever coming any nearer to 
 its God, that the presence of the Son of man was so
 
 268 LAZARUS. 
 
 difficult to grasp ? Could they understand a Christ, 
 but not a perfect man, not a suffering, tempted, sym- 
 pathising sorrower ? 
 
 And Jesus answered almost with a cry, one last 
 appeal to them to try to believe while yet they lived. 
 
 Was it all to be of no avail, this mission upon 
 earth ? The wearying thirty years ? The miracles, 
 the awful death ? All wasted, all poured out for 
 naught ? Was the sacrifice of the Creator for His 
 own creation to be in vain ? 
 
 " Yet a little while is the light with you. Walk 
 while ye have the light, lest the darkness come upon 
 you : for he that walketh in darkness knoweth not 
 whither he goeth. While ye have the light, believe in 
 the light, that ye may be the children of the light." 
 
 Then, wearied and disappointed, His heart heavy 
 at the future of horror these people were preparing 
 for themselves, the Nazarene walked through the 
 crowd, and, as if by magic, disappeared. 
 
 " Surely He hath been caught up," said some, 
 " for, though we look down the road, we cannot see 
 aught of Him. Therefore said He, ' If I be lifted 
 up from the earth.' ' 
 
 But, notwithstanding this fresh miracle, notwith- 
 standing the voice from heaven, still very few be- 
 lieved in Him as the Christ that should have come. 
 It was as Esaias the prophet had said, " He hath 
 blinded their eyes, and hardened their heart; that 
 they should not see with their eyes, nor understand 
 with their heart, and be converted, and that I should 
 heal them." 
 
 Then, while the wondering crowd was debating, 
 squabbling, pondering, scoffing, musing, working
 
 LAZARUS. 269 
 
 itself up into violent dissensions such as religious 
 matters ever breed about the Messiah's disappear- 
 ance, the voice that so vibrated with truth and sua- 
 sion, the intensity of whose reality no man could 
 fathom ; the voice, that those who had once heard 
 it would never forget, rose in a long and bitter cry, 
 like the dying warning of an eternal farewell : 
 
 " He that believeth in Me, believeth not in Me, 
 but in Him that sent Me. I am come a light unto 
 the world, that whosoever believeth in Me should 
 not abide in darkness. And if any man hear My 
 words, and believe not, I judge him not : for I came 
 not to judge the world, but to save the world. He 
 that rejecteth Me, and receiveth not My words, hath 
 one that judgeth him : the word that I have spoken, 
 the same shall judge him in the last day. For I have 
 not spoken of Myself; but the Father which sent 
 Me, He gave Me commandment, what I should say, 
 and what I should speak. And I know that His 
 commandment is life everlasting : whatsoever I speak, 
 therefore, even as the Father said unto Me, even so 
 I speak." 
 
 Clear, distinct, like drops of tinkling water fell 
 the words, piercing as nails, leaving no doubt, no 
 want of emphasis behind them, enhanced by all the 
 mystery of an unseen voice ; but they fell as water 
 falls on rocks, but to splash up again and glance off. 
 An unmoved nation passed silently along the road, 
 unconscious of the priceless value of the light that 
 was gradually flitting away, and of the darkness that 
 would soon envelop them eternally with a gloomy 
 mantle damp with the sweating of horror of a peo- 
 ple re-awakened all too late.
 
 CHAPTER XXVII. 
 
 IV TOTWITHSTANDING all the stirring events 
 1 N and anxieties of that period, notwithstanding 
 the frequent threatenings that were directed at the 
 Nazarene and Lazarus, life in the house at Bethany 
 had resumed its usual aspect, and, to all appearance, 
 ran its ordinary course. 
 
 One there was, however, whose whole life had 
 undergone a change. Sins in others, that he had 
 before regarded as intolerable, were spoken of with 
 leniency and made only the subject of prayer by 
 Lazarus. High place, his position in the Sanhedrim 
 and as a ruler, not only ceased to have any value in 
 his eyes, but aroused in him a faint sense of wonder 
 that he should ever have desired them ; while, some- 
 what to Martha's dismay, large sums were daily dis- 
 tributed in secret to the poor. 
 
 " Thou wilt have nothing left at last," she said to 
 Lazarus one day. 
 
 " He hath said that I should give to the poor all 
 I possessed and follow Him," replied Lazarus sim- 
 ply. " When all shall have been given, the Lord 
 will provide more. '' 
 
 And Martha would go away, shrugging her shoul- 
 ders, but not arguing, as she would have done in the 
 olden days. 
 
 But one there was who watched the face of Lazarus 
 270
 
 LAZARUS. 271 
 
 with an increasing intensity of love that sharpened 
 observation, and who saw upon it a restless expres- 
 sion, as of some inward doubt ; and this was his sis- 
 ter Mary. 
 
 " Hast any troubles, Lazarus ?" she asked him 
 about two days after the entry into Jerusalem. 
 
 " I scarce know whether 't is trouble or not," he 
 answered ; " or whether the tempting of some sin to 
 be resisted; and, if it be, whether I should have 
 courage to resist it. ' ' 
 
 4 ' I know, ' ' said Mary half playfully. ' ' I guessed 
 it long ago. Thou dost love the Magdalene." 
 
 Lazarus looked at her in wonder at her discern- 
 ment. 
 
 " And she too loveth thee well, I know," went 
 on his sister. 4 Yet I know not what would be said 
 in Israel if thou didst marry the sinner." 
 
 " I care not what they say in Israel," answered 
 Lazarus. " Henceforth I am a free man, held no 
 more in bondage by the letter, but only by the spirit ; 
 and if methought I could raise the Magdalene once 
 more in the eyes of those around us, I would do 
 it gladly. Yet there is more in all this than can 
 be readily thought out. I know not whether the 
 Lord would have me do this thing; for when He 
 said, ' Leave all and follow Me,' 't was, perchance, 
 that He requireth all my service, all my heart. 
 Then again, I fear that when our dear Master shall 
 be dead, we too shall be seized and condemned to 
 death, for that we loved Him and can bear witness 
 to His great glory. Thus I know not whether 't 
 were better to link my life with the Magdalene 
 or not. ' '
 
 2/2 LAZARUS. 
 
 " What will the proud Rebekah say?" asked 
 Mary, leaving her brother's arguments unanswered, 
 while she followed her own thoughts into other chan- 
 nels; " for I hear that, since thy resurrection, she is 
 like one mad with joy. Thinkest thou she will be- 
 lieve, for she did say, ' If He raiseth Lazarus, I too 
 will believe ' ?" 
 
 " God will it so," said Lazarus, musingly, and 
 somewhat doubtfully. " I would not judge her; 
 but I fear she would believe only if I did love 
 her; yet, if I should wed the Magdalene, methinks 
 she would strain every nerve to get our Master and 
 ourselves into the power of Caiaphas. Still we know 
 not." 
 
 ;< Hast spoken to the Magdalene of thy love ? " 
 
 " Nay, I will say naught to that loving heart till 
 I know what the Lord wisheth me to do. This is 
 no time for marrying or giving in marriage ; yet, if 
 I could protect the Magdalene from the world's 
 taunts, I would gladly do it. To-night we sup with 
 the Master, and my heart is in great heaviness; for 
 thereafter He will be betrayed, and then, who know- 
 eth all the grief that will come to pass ? Oh that 
 Jerusalem would believe," he went on, wearily, his 
 mind passing to more serious things. ' That surely 
 is the greatest doubt of all, that He doth not make 
 them to believe." 
 
 " Because they will not. Each one hath had his 
 chance. Aye, a thousand-fold, and they will not, 
 they will not." 
 
 A few hours later, the little band of disciples met 
 once more. All were sad to-night, for all felt a ter- 
 rible catastrophe impending. Mary and Martha had
 
 LAZARUS. 273 
 
 stayed away, for they would have been the only 
 women present. All the disciples were to be there, 
 besides Lazarus, Nicodemus, and others who had 
 been around Him throughout His ministry. 
 
 John had told them that, after this, he feared 
 there would be no meeting-place, for that the ter- 
 rible hour was close at hand. It would be at the 
 Passover that the fate of the Lord would be de- 
 cided, for they could not doubt that He would be 
 arrested the moment He set foot in Jerusalem, 
 whether He was to be released or condemned ; and 
 all knew that, if Caiaphas's will could turn the 
 scale, the Messiah would not be released; nay, 
 more, He had told them that it would be so. Per- 
 haps they still hoped for some great miracle direct 
 from God to save their dear Lord ; for hope lingers 
 in the human heart till the very moment at which 
 death comes and bears away our loved ones. 
 
 To-night the Nazarene had prepared a bond of re- 
 membrance between them that He would establish 
 forever; a bond that would last through all the 
 ages; that would serve for ever to bring back to 
 them the memory of His ministry and His words 
 and His stupendous sacrifice. 
 
 To-night would be Judas Iscariot's last chance of 
 redemption. How would He live on after the Lord 
 should have shown him that He knew what was in 
 his heart ? The tortuous path of that darkened soul 
 will always remain inscrutable, unknown to mortals, 
 till heaven and earth shall pass away ; perhaps even 
 throughout the immeasurable aeons of eternity.
 
 CHAPTER XXVIII. 
 
 IT was the day of the Paschal Feast, and all night 
 Martha had been busy preparing with her house- 
 hold the lamb and other dishes for the feast, includ- 
 ing the thin Passover cakes which it was the custom 
 to dip into the wine, or any other beverage, and send 
 round in the cup. 
 
 While she worked, the Nazarene, watched by Laz- 
 arus, slept or prayed. A great misgiving was in the 
 hearts of all. Everyone who came from Jerusalem 
 brought different news, but all based on one great 
 fact, the wrath of the Pharisees and rulers in gen- 
 eral, and of Caiaphas in particular, at the reception 
 of the Messiah on His late entry into Jerusalem. 
 It was fear, both physical and moral, that actuated 
 Caiaphas now. As a frightened dog snaps and flies 
 at those around him, each in turn, so Caiaphas 
 tried to hide his own trepidation beneath a sem- 
 blance of attack. 
 
 Yet these rumours filled with dismay the hearts 
 of those who loved the Lord. 
 
 ' I fear me; I fear me greatly," Lazarus said. 
 " He will eat the Passover at Jerusalem, according 
 to the law of Moses, yet surely they will there sur- 
 prise Him." 
 
 ' How can it be," asked Martha, " that Judas, 
 who doth follow Him day and night, doth compass 
 
 274
 
 LAZARUS. 275 
 
 to betray Him ? Methinks that even Satan himself 
 would not act thus." 
 
 " Nay, Satan doth make others to sin for him," 
 answered Lazarus; " but 't is greed with Judas, the 
 love of money that is the curse of all our nation ; 
 that doth even overwhelm the world. Surely the 
 wrath of Caiaphas is not that the Master doth call 
 Himself the Son of God, but that the tables of the 
 money-changers and of the sellers of doves were 
 overturned. The spaces, too, in the Temple court, 
 't is well known that a Pharisee doth give a high 
 price to Caiaphas to have the right to sell there." 
 
 " But to sell the Lord for thirty pieces of silver! 
 the price of the meanest slave! " 
 
 " Dost not mind the prophet Zechariah, how he 
 saith, ' So they weighed for my price thirty pieces 
 of silver ' ? " 
 
 " But the Lord, the Lord! " said Martha, while 
 tears rose to her eyes. 
 
 At that moment Mary entered the room. " The 
 Lord hath need of Peter and John, to send them to 
 Jerusalem." 
 
 " Still will He sup with them at Jerusalem ?" 
 asked Lazarus, as he went to do as he had been bid. 
 
 Then the Nazarene gave this order to the dis- 
 ciples: " Go ye into the city, and there shall meet 
 ye a man bearing a pitcher of water: follow him. 
 And wheresoever he shall go in, say ye to the good- 
 man of the house, The Master saith, Where is the 
 guest-chamber, where I shall eat the passover with 
 My disciples ? And he will show you a large upper 
 room furnished and prepared : there make ready for 
 us."
 
 2/6 LAZARUS. 
 
 " Surely 't is a wonderful thing," said Lazarus to 
 his sisters, " this union of the man and God; for, 
 when He willeth, He can command angels for signs 
 and wonders, and He knoweth all things ; yet by His 
 power will He escape none of the troubles of this 
 world ; for, methinks, if now He did but command 
 a legion of angels to defend Him from the High 
 Priest, they would descend." 
 
 ' Verily, verily thou speakest truth," said Mary. 
 
 'T is marvellous that this God, for love of us, 
 should deign to suffer sorrow, as though He were 
 but man." 
 
 Evening had come, and Jesus, accompanied by 
 Lazarus and the twelve apostles, started for the 
 Passover Feast. The two women watched them go 
 with tightening hearts. 
 
 "Who knoweth," said Martha, "whether they 
 will ever return ? My heart misgiveth me, and 
 Jerusalem doth fill my soul with terror." 
 
 But Mary said nothing; only raised an inward 
 prayer that if they should be taken that night they 
 might not suffer long. 
 
 And then the two women turned back to their 
 solitary house, from which all sunshine seemed to 
 have departed, as it had when Lazarus had died. 
 
 " Mark thee," said Martha to her sister, " there 
 are terrible days in store for us; for if Jerusalem 
 do this wicked thing, to slay the Son of God, surely 
 the curse of God will be upon her, and the nations 
 will trample upon her and slay her people." 
 
 " Pray God that our faith fail not," murmured 
 Mary. 
 
 Presently, Mary Magdalene, whom they had bid-
 
 LAZARUS. 277 
 
 den to the Feast of the Passover, and a few other 
 God-fearing women, came, and in sadness and 
 prayer the evening passed. 
 
 In Jerusalem more stirring events were taking 
 place. The Feast of the Passover had begun ; the 
 low tables stood ready covered with the dishes pre- 
 pared by Martha's loving hands, and carried by Peter 
 and John to the chamber provided for the Nazarene. 
 The cushions or couches were arranged, the mats 
 spread out, and one by one they took their seats, the 
 Messiah taking the chief place, and John reclining 
 on the couch on the right of Jesus, so that his head 
 was brought close to the Christ's right arm. They 
 were dusty with their journey, and when Lazarus 
 stooped and unfastened the latchets of the Messiah's 
 sandals, he wished that he could wash those beloved 
 feet; but there were no slaves present to fetch 
 water, so in silence he took his seat. 
 
 Some instinct made him seat himself next Judas. 
 If any treason were abroad he would be ready to de- 
 fend the Christ. 
 
 The supper began gloomily. Too many mournful 
 feelings were wafted hither and thither, anticipations 
 were too sombre and too terrible. 
 
 To Lazarus, who believed that Judas Iscariot was 
 about to betray the Lord, the presence of the traitor 
 seemed unbearable. All were paralysed with won- 
 der, expectant of something, yet they knew not 
 what. How could they tell that evening, that re- 
 pentance and eternal life would be offered to a soul 
 so cramped by greed and avarice that it would reject 
 heaven for hell, and all for thirty pieces of silver ? 
 Surely a sorry price for such a crime !
 
 2/8 LAZARUS. 
 
 Then, when Jesus saw that none performed the 
 kindly office of washing of the feet, He rose from 
 the table and sent one of the disciples to fetch water. 
 The lessons would be few that He would teach them 
 now; after to-morrow, the Son of God would be a 
 prisoner. To-night the teachings, that would last 
 through all the ages of the earth, must be set forth ; 
 and to the patient, loving Teacher it seemed that no 
 word must be left unsaid that might make the bitter 
 lessons of the future easier. 
 
 With amaze they watched Him take off his upper 
 garment and gird a towel round his loins, then pour 
 water into a large copper basin that stood by. 
 
 In silence they regarded Him, while He knelt at 
 the feet of one after another of His disciples, and 
 dipped His shapely hands, hands that worked only 
 for the good of many, into the limpid water. None 
 spoke, or offered to relieve Him of the task, lest they 
 should seem to think that He performed only a 
 menial act, when, in truth, they looked upon it as a 
 symbol of some great teaching; yet each was dis- 
 tressed to see his Lord thus meekly kneeling. 
 
 " Surely this is the greatest lesson of all," said 
 Lazarus. 
 
 When Jesus came to Peter, the apostle could con- 
 tain himself no longer. 
 
 " Thou shalt never wash my feet," he said, stand- 
 ing up, and, with two hands, pressing away the 
 basin. 
 
 But, with quiet insistence, the Nazarene replied : 
 " If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with Me." 
 
 Then Peter understood that this was some great 
 ceremonial, to complete the bonds of love and ten-
 
 LAZARUS. 2/9 
 
 derness between the chosen few and their Messiah ; 
 and, humble as a little child, he answered: " Lord, 
 not my feet only, but also my hands and my head." 
 
 But Jesus proceeded to wash his feet, saying the 
 while: "He that is washed needeth not but to wash 
 his feet, and is clean every whit, and ye are clean." 
 Then, turning His full gaze upon Iscariot, He said, 
 with a deep yearning in His voice: " But not all." 
 
 Then all watched with wonder to see whether 
 Jesus would wash the feet of Judas too. 
 
 But even Judas was not omitted from His loving 
 hands. There was breathless silence while he 
 washed the feet of the man whom all suspected now 
 to be the traitor. And, while He did so, Jesus 
 raised His mournful eyes to those of Judas and 
 gazed at him repoachfully. 
 
 ' Wilt thou too not be clean ? " the look seemed 
 to say. ' There is yet time to draw back; it must 
 be that I die, but it needs not be through thee. 
 Thou hast planned thy scheme, they are waiting for 
 thee without; thou knowest My plans, and art to 
 tell them whither I go this night ; but go not. Let 
 Me draw thee to Me by the bonds of love. Let Me 
 cleanse thy soul of all its filth. Return to Me ; I am 
 still here waiting, waiting. Time is passing quickly, 
 a life's remorse awaits thee in this world, a dreadful 
 death ; in the next an eternity of pain. Draw back. ' ' 
 
 All that it seemed to say; but Judas shifted un- 
 easily on his seat, as though the touch of Jesus 
 scorched his nerves, and he kept his eyes down, as 
 though searching the water in the copper basin, that 
 in the light of the lamp shone more ruddily than his 
 own red hair.
 
 280 LAZARUS. 
 
 And Lazarus, in grief and wonder, murmured to 
 himself: " His own familiar friend, His own familiar 
 friend. ' ' 
 
 Then, when Jesus sat down again, a look of pain 
 and grief passed over Him. It was as though He 
 had lost something, or had missed a face from the 
 throng He would one day see again. And, while 
 He explained to them the meaning of His service of 
 humility, a great gloom settled on them all. 
 
 " If I, then, your Lord and Master, have washed 
 your feet, ye also ought to wash one another's feet. 
 For I have given you an example that ye should do 
 as I have done unto you." 
 
 There was a tone of weariness, almost of despond- 
 ency, in the tender voice. 
 
 He was filled with horror at the duplicity of the 
 man who sat at the table with Him ; with sorrow at 
 the greed and hardness of his heart ; at the awful 
 future he was preparing for himself. Perhaps, too, 
 in all reverence be it said, there was in the human 
 essence of His Person a shrinking from the trial 
 that lay before Him, and the faintest glimmer of a 
 doubt whether the stupendous sacrifice He contem- 
 plated was not in excess of the result to be obtained. 
 Who, in a humbler way, has not felt, after some 
 action of self-sacrifice or self-denial has been per- 
 formed, " What good has it done after all? I might 
 have spared myself "? 
 
 The nerves of the little band were strung to the 
 highest pitch. Encased in bonds of human igno- 
 rance and incapacity, they were daily in presence of 
 divine outpourings their understanding failed to 
 hold. The peace and comfort that were to be the
 
 LAZARUS. 28l 
 
 parting gifts of the Messiah had not yet come. 
 Their hearts were torn with grief, their brains weary 
 with fruitless speculation, their bodies suffering from 
 the fatigue of many watchings and a long day's walk. 
 Besides all this, was the foreboding of their approach- 
 ing separation from Him who was the centre-piece of 
 their soul's refreshment, the fountain of revivifica- 
 tion. It was as though the demon of despair was 
 sifting them as wheat, as though great dark wings of 
 horror were folding gradually about them. Their 
 emotions held them dumb. Then, in the general sil- 
 ence, the Messiah broke forth with the cry : " Verily, 
 verily, I say unto you, that one of you shall betray 
 Me. ' The mask of hypocrisy was to be torn away, the 
 awe-charged atmosphere that hung about them was 
 to explode with a flash of revelation. The unerring, 
 penetrating bolt of Truth was to crash through the 
 outwork of hypocrisy and expose to view the citadel 
 of greed and unbelief and envy. To-night it should 
 be proclaimed that one sat there a traitor to his friend 
 and to his God ; the righteous efforts of the little 
 band of believers should no longer be paralysed and 
 polluted by the presence of one who should for ever- 
 more be damned. The vile, corrupted thing should 
 be rooted out, as a cancer is plucked out from the 
 body. On this last night of His living, loving min- 
 istry the Christ would exert His right to have about 
 Him only those who loved Him. Only to them 
 would that great commission of love and peace be 
 given. No longer should the words of a God fall 
 on the ears of Satan's emissary. 
 
 It seemed to the disciples, at His words, as though 
 the wrath of God had been let loose at last. In hor-
 
 282 LAZARUS. 
 
 ror lest, by some mischance, it might be he, mindful 
 that sin was ever near, each one cried out : " Is it I ? 
 Is it I ?" 
 
 Had they by any negligence, by any accident, by 
 any careless guarding of their tongues, betrayed 
 the Lord ? God forbid ; and a silent prayer went 
 up from all, save Judas: " Lord, save us from this 
 thing." 
 
 Then, with a hypocritical smile, trying still, as so 
 many have tried, to brazen out a lie, Judas leaned 
 forward and asked: " Rabbi, is it I ? " 
 
 And Jesus, looking at him with deepest pity in 
 His eyes, made answer: " Thou hast said." And, 
 with the words, He dipped a piece of the Passover 
 cake into a cup of wine and handed it to Judas. 
 
 Maybe, even now He hoped by this great act of 
 condescension to win him over. It was as though 
 He said : " Although it is thou, yet I still love thee; 
 I still offer thee the salvation that is offered to 
 others. Wilt thou not take it ? " 
 
 For one instant, Judas recoiled before his deed; 
 for one instant he hesitated. Then, as if to defy 
 them all, he dipped his ringers in the cup and took 
 the divine offering. A murmur rose from the little 
 body. 
 
 One leaned over to the other and said : " Shall we 
 smite him ? Shall we slay him ? " 
 
 But Peter, with a voice thick with passion, cried 
 out: " Seest thou the red drops of wine upon thy 
 fingers ? So shall the blood of Jesus be upon thee 
 forever and ever." 
 
 Then, when violence seemed imminent, for each 
 rose from his seat and approached Judas menacingly,
 
 LAZARUS. 283 
 
 the Messiah made a sign to him to disappear, before 
 he should be torn to pieces. 
 
 " What thou doest, do quickly," He commanded. 
 And the man whom, since the beginning of His min- 
 istry, He had loved and counselled, arose and left 
 the room, followed by the sad eyes of the Messiah. 
 
 Then, to cheer His sorrowing disciples, the Lord 
 raised His voice almost to a chant, and cried : " Now 
 is the Son of man glorified, and God is glorified in 
 Him." 
 
 Then, once more, He poured out wine ; but when 
 they pressed Him, too, to drink, He pushed the cup 
 away, with the words: " I will not drink henceforth 
 of this fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink 
 it new with you in My Father's kingdom." 
 
 The supper had come to an end, and all stood up 
 and sang a Hebrew hymn. Then, one after another, 
 they followed their Lord out into the moonlight, to 
 make their way with Him to the Mount of Olives 
 and thence to the Garden of Gethsemane ; that gar- 
 den holy for evermore, because watered by the tears 
 of agony of the Son of God.
 
 CHAPTER XXIX. 
 
 WHEN Judas rose to go, fearful for his own 
 life, and obeying a behest he durst not dis- 
 obey, he did not go immediately to the Pharisees 
 who awaited him, but made his way by tortuous 
 pathways to the back of Caiaphas's house. The 
 door opened at once on his arrival, as if some one 
 waited, and he was admitted. 
 
 ' Thou hast been long. What news hast thou ? " 
 asked Rebekah breathlessly. 
 
 ' They sit there yet, and if thou wilt follow now, 
 I can get speech of Him for thee; but thou must 
 hasten, for they will not tarry long, and I must to 
 the Pharisees to instruct them of their movements." 
 
 " Thou wilt do no such thing, till I command 
 thee." 
 
 ' Yet, if I tell them not, I shall lose my money." 
 
 " Oh, thou narrow-brained fool, is thirty pieces of 
 silver such riches to thee that it hath turned thy 
 brain ? They give thee thirty pieces of silver to be- 
 tray thy Friend, and I offer thee sixty not to do so ; 
 so thou dost earn double money, and betrayest not 
 thy Friend." 
 
 ' Yet, if after all Lazarus will not hearken unto 
 thee, and thou givest me not the sixty pieces, per- 
 chance I shall be too late to warn thy father; thus 
 will I lose the thirty and the sixty." 
 
 284
 
 LAZARUS. 285 
 
 " Lead the way," said the haughty Rebekah, 
 scorning to answer such base reasoning, hating to 
 place herself in the hands of so mean a man, yet 
 maddened by her insane desire to obtain speech of 
 Lazarus. 
 
 They walked along in silence, Judas full of subtle 
 thoughts, partly remorse, partly hate, but chiefly 
 fear. What if the disciples should turn upon him 
 and slay him ? What if Jesus were indeed the Son 
 of God ? 
 
 So swift and silent was their course through the 
 deserted, moonlit streets that less than twenty min- 
 utes brought them to the door of the house in which 
 the supper had been held. Here a man from Caia- 
 phas waited for news from Judas. Both drew back 
 into the darkness when the white, majestic form 
 came out, and the pure, impassioned face of the 
 Nazarene was raised sadly to the moon. So serenely 
 beautiful was He that both could but catch their 
 breath at sight of Him. Lazarus was following the 
 little throng by the backways of Jerusalem when a 
 man suddenly plucked him by the sleeve and mur- 
 mured : "One thou knowest would have speech with 
 thee; follow me." 
 
 Lazarus hesitated, swayed by many doubts. He 
 was loath to separate himself from the little band 
 that accompanied the Christ. To lose Him that 
 night was perhaps never again to see Him alive, or 
 perchance, to miss the legacy of some last word of 
 recommendation ; for Lazarus knew that, however 
 devoted were His disciples, they were but illiterate 
 fishermen, most of them; and that it would be he 
 himself, as a ruler and a man of position, besides
 
 286 LAZARUS. 
 
 being the living evidence of His greatest miracle, 
 who would bear the brunt of persecution. 
 
 Then again, this might be a trap set for his de- 
 struction ; he felt that at any moment he might be 
 seized and killed or put away, lest his presence 
 should influence the populace. He did not fear 
 death, but it was important that he should live, lest 
 the Nazarene should need him, and also to protect 
 the women who belonged to him. Faintly the im- 
 age of the Magdalene flitted across his brain. 
 
 4 'Who seeketh me ? " he asked the speaker, doubt- 
 fully. But, even while he spoke, a written message 
 was thrust into his hands. 
 
 " If thou wouldst save the Nazarene, speak with 
 me at once. Rebekah. " 
 
 Still he hesitated. ' ' Save the Nazarene ! ' ' What 
 did it mean, to save the Nazarene ? Was it possi- 
 ble ? Was He not destined to die and by His death 
 to save ? What new problem was this ? His pure 
 mind had put away, since that day when they had 
 met, all thought of Rebekah's sensual love; he had 
 striven to believe that she was impressed by the 
 preaching of the Nazarene and sought salvation 
 through Him. 
 
 He erred, as so many true, good people err, by 
 wilfully ignoring evil when they see it. 
 
 Should he go ? Then, even while he hesitated, 
 the little band crossed over the street, and Rebekah 
 sprang forward and seized him by the arm; while 
 Judas, fearful lest his victim should escape him, ran 
 off in the darkness to warn the authorities of the 
 Messiah's movements. 
 
 " But capture Him not, till I come again," he 
 said.
 
 LAZARUS. 287 
 
 "Dost wish s'peech of me?" asked Lazarus 
 sternly. " Then prithee, lady, be brief; for the 
 Master is already on His way, and I must follow 
 Him." 
 
 " Listen, then," she answered quickly; " I will 
 strike a bargain with thee. If thou wilt love me and 
 take me to be thy wife, then will I go to my father 
 and entreat of him the life of the Nazarene; nay 
 more, I will see to it that an order be sent through- 
 out the country that any who shall lay hands on Him 
 or on His followers shall be condemned ; but, if thou 
 shouldst deny me this, ere this bright moon doth 
 unveil herself again, the Nazarene shall hang upon 
 the cross on yonder mount ; and mayhap thou too 
 wilt die." 
 
 ' The cross ? The sign of shame ? " gasped Laz- 
 arus, laying his hand on her arm, forgetful of all else 
 but that the death they planned for his Master was 
 a shameful and degrading one. 
 
 'The cross!" Rebekah said again, "and thy 
 great Friend, thy Nazarene, thy Christ, will hang 
 affixed with cruel nails from hour to hour, and all 
 the multitude will revile and scoff at Him." 
 
 " Hold thy peace, woman," cried Lazarus 
 sharply, shading with his hand his eyes as if to shut 
 out the dreadful picture from his mind. " Peace, 
 be still ! Hast thou no heart, that thou canst pierce 
 mine so deeply ? " 
 
 " Hast thou not pierced mine ?" returned Re- 
 bekah. 
 
 " O woman, canst thou not understand that that 
 short grief of thine, that fancy of thy maddening 
 brain, is naught, naught compared with this world's 
 sin, if it should crucify the Lord ? "
 
 288 LAZARUS. 
 
 " Then if the pain of mine heart be naught, and 
 the sin of crucifying this Man so great, canst thou 
 not give a few years of thy life to save Him ? Am 
 I then so unbeautiful, so despised a thing that thou 
 wouldst rather let die the Nazarene than wed me ? " 
 
 Then, turning upon her the full expression of his 
 earnestness, he spoke once more. 
 
 " Noble lady, if thou canst save the Nazarene, 
 thou wilt do it for the love of God. Thou couldst 
 not bear to live if thou hadst helped to crucify the 
 Christ." 
 
 " Thou dost not know the daughter of Caiaphas," 
 she answered wildly. " There is naught, naught, 
 naught, I will not do if thou dost spurn me. For 
 thy sake have I come here to-night, for thy sake will 
 I endure my father's wrath and the scorn of all the 
 rulers of the Synagogue, for they will say for love of 
 Lazarus the Nazarene was spared." 
 
 " And thinkest thou that, if He would be saved, 
 He could not command legions of angels, and even 
 now slay Caiaphas and all the high priests in the 
 world ?" 
 
 " Should He do this, perchance we would be- 
 lieve," she answered scoffingly. 
 
 " Maiden," said Lazarus impressively, " when I 
 lay dead thou didst come to me and thou saidst : 
 4 If Lazarus do come again to life I will believe.' 
 And every day thou earnest to my sepulchre and 
 didst watch to see they stole me not away. And 
 when thou sawest me rise, didst thou believe ? " 
 
 " And thou art really that same Lazarus ? " said 
 Rebekah musingly. 
 
 " Hast given, then, thine heart to two ? " asked
 
 LAZARUS. 289 
 
 Lazarus scornfully. " Out of thine heart thou art 
 confounded. Thine own heart doth witness of the 
 Christ, for, if thou lovest me still, I must be Laza- 
 rus, and if not, why art thou here to-night ? Nay, 
 maiden, I will not wed thee, nor can I barter my 
 Lord's freedom for all thy promises of love. Fare- 
 well!" 
 
 " So much dost thou love the Nazarene that, 
 rather than spend thy life with me, thou wouldst see 
 Him die. How thou must hate me! " 
 
 But Lazarus had already hurried after the others. 
 For one instant he had hesitated, debating whether 
 it were possible to influence this perverse daughter 
 of Israel, and, by influencing her, to bring about 
 the safety of his Lord. But he knew that it was 
 not to be. The present safety of the Nazarene 
 would mean the holding of Him back from eternal 
 glory, eternal rest; the delaying of His return to 
 the Father who had sent Him, the prolonging of 
 the agony of the earthly ministry. 
 
 " What thou doest, do quickly," the Lord had 
 said. It would be best now that all should be 
 quickly over; yes, though his heart fainted within 
 him when he reflected on the Saviour's sufferings, it 
 were better that these sufferings, which had to be, 
 should once for all be undergone, than remain hang- 
 ing over the head of that gentle Saviour, like thun- 
 der clouds about to burst. 
 
 It was necessary that He should die ; Lazarus, who 
 had been in Hades, knew it better than did all other 
 men. 
 
 Besides, he had a question to ask the Lord, if a 
 
 fitting moment could be found. He must hurry on, 
 19
 
 290 LAZARUS. 
 
 and he did so, this time oblivious of courtesy or 
 chivalry to Rebekah, absorbed in the one great fear 
 that he might miss the Lord. 
 
 So, in the moonlit night, he tore along the narrow 
 streets as he had torn along the broad road follow- 
 ing the Christ all the way to the Mount of Olives 
 and into the very Garden of Gethsemane. 
 
 When Lazarus gained the side of Jesus, the an- 
 swer to the question in his mind was given without 
 his seeking it. 
 
 " A new commandment I give unto you, that ye 
 love one another." Lazarus started; the eyes of 
 Jesus seemed to fall on him, enveloping him with 
 the tenderness of infinite love, a love wide enough 
 to enfold the world. 
 
 Then, in the dark, Iscariot crept up to Rebekah, 
 who was leaning faint and powerless against the 
 porch that stood out from the house, her figure cast- 
 ing a great black shadow on the wall, which was al- 
 most white in the moon's silvery light. 
 
 " Shall I, then, save the Nazarene ? " he asked. 
 
 "Nay, slay Him, slay Him quickly; go earn thy 
 thirty pieces of silver, and, for aught I care," she 
 added furiously, " slay Lazarus too." 
 
 And, with a hideous cry, the traitor fled ; and the 
 haughty, vengeful maiden wended her way home- 
 wards through the silent streets, the hot blood surg- 
 ing to her ears and brow, and oblivious of place and 
 hour and danger and of all, save that Lazarus was 
 gone from her forever and that she hated the Naza- 
 rene with an undying hatred.
 
 CHAPTER XXX. 
 
 BUT, when Lazarus joined the little band of dis- 
 ciples, the image of Rebekah, yes, even of the 
 Magdalene, forsook his mind. The Lord, the Mas- 
 ter, reigned supreme. Everything to-night must be 
 pressed into His service. These last hours were 
 His, and His alone. Knowing the character of the 
 disciples, how, notwistanding their protestations, 
 they were yet ignorant men, whose only strength lay 
 in the fact of their having obeyed the Christ in the 
 spirit of a little child ; conscious of the impetuous, 
 changeable, easily panic-stricken character of the 
 dwellers in the East, Lazarus felt that it behoved 
 him specially to follow Jesus. It might be that that 
 night He would be betrayed. All His words tended 
 to make them think so. It might be that all would 
 be cut down with Him. If so, what greater proof 
 of love could he give the Christ than to die with 
 Him ? It might be, though Lazarus would not 
 harbour the thought, that they would flee: some of 
 them, Peter and Thomas, were too impulsive to be 
 relied upon ; John and James a shade too presump- 
 tuous. He must follow now. " Leave all that thou 
 hast and follow Me," had been the command; he 
 would indeed follow. All he possessed, each rare 
 garment and costly jewel, had been laid aside, and 
 Lazarus even now was clad in the simple white gar- 
 
 291
 
 2Q2 LAZARUS. 
 
 ments worn by the poorer classes. All he possessed? 
 His dearest possession was the heart of the Magda- 
 lene. That, too, must be resigned, his love, his 
 sacrifice must be complete; and so, sorrowfully and 
 with head bent, he followed the little band. 
 
 The night was heavy with the air of tragedy, 
 the earth alive with anticipation. Their hearts were 
 sick with untold dread as they passed out of the city 
 gates, that in the bright moonlight stood sheer and 
 white, and down the steep ravine of the Kedron, a 
 river here, a brook only where it ran through the 
 Garden of Gethsemane. All was bathed in moon- 
 light, the river, the soft grass, the olive trees. 
 Everywhere were soft, silvery radiance and dark 
 shadow, emblems of the glory and the cross. At 
 every step, in subdued accents lest they should be 
 heard by watching traitors or solitary passers-by, 
 Jesus comforted their souls. 'Verily, verily I say 
 unto you, that ye shall weep and lament, but the 
 world shall rejoice: and ye shall be sorrowful, but 
 your sorrow shall be turned into joy. And ye now 
 therefore have sorrow ; but I will see you again, and 
 your heart shall rejoice, and your joy no man taketh 
 from you. I go away and come again unto you. If 
 ye love Me ye would rejoice, because I said I go 
 unto My Father." Then, as they wept, He turned 
 and said : " Peace I leave with you, My peace I give 
 unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither 
 let it be afraid." 
 
 Each word He spoke weighed heavily on Lazarus's 
 soul. The very beauty and unselfishness of the 
 Christ enhanced the horror of not being able to save 
 Him pain Him, so thoughtful for others, even in
 
 LAZARUS. 293 
 
 this terrible moment. No, it was not life that 
 Lazarus desired for Him ; no one having once cast 
 off the flesh could ever wish that again for any 
 whom he loved. It was not, therefore, the Mes- 
 siah's life that he would save; but he would save 
 Him, if he could, from the insults, the smarting 
 taunts, that lay before Him. Lazarus knew them, 
 these vulgar self-sufficient Orientals, who fawned on 
 those in power, and crushed into the mud those who 
 failed or seemed to fail. Every item of the Jewish 
 character was familiar to him, its extraordinary en- 
 thusiasm, its worship of " the rising sun," its brutal, 
 illimitable cruelty to the down-trodden, its contempt 
 of the weak. No depth of horror, no abyss of 
 shame, no stretch of coarse invective, no extremity 
 of pain would be spared the Son of God if He should 
 fall into the hands of Caiaphas. The triumph would 
 drive the Pharisees mad. Already the multitudes 
 were deserting Him. They held aloof for fear of 
 future loss of position, should the Nazarene be con- 
 demned. For himself Lazarus thought nothing; 
 how can one live and die and live again, and count 
 life or death as aught ? 
 
 The distant murmur of Jerusalem was fading into 
 a faint hum of nightly stirrings. Only the leaves 
 rustled. A great despondency seized their hearts, 
 a horrible foretaste of loneliness at the departure of 
 the Christ. How could they live alone, these men 
 whose rising and down-sitting had been spent with 
 Him ! To go back into the cold, callous, Jewish 
 life, to be taunted with the reproach of failure, and 
 unable to refute it ! To be asked for living truths, 
 and have naught to give in reply but memories that
 
 294 LAZARUS. 
 
 would daily fade, until they should become a 
 dream ! What would remain of all this teaching ? 
 A tale of some miracles, the story of a shameful 
 death, a few trusting hearts. What sign that salva- 
 tion had come to the world ? Christ would have 
 spoken in vain. How could they hope to persuade 
 the world when He had failed ? The very miracles 
 would be jeered at, either as lies, or, if they did 
 occur, as the result of witchcraft. What would sur- 
 vive, or how could they make gift of the inward 
 burnings of their hearts ? As if the Christ had heard 
 the searching of their hearts He paused on the 
 greensward and spoke : 
 
 " I will pray to the Father, and He shall give you 
 another Comforter, that He may abide with you for- 
 ever; and He shall bring all things to your remem- 
 brance, whatsoever I have said. I will not leave you 
 comfortless: I will come to you." 
 
 And, while the disciples wondered amongst them- 
 selves, one said to another: " He meaneth Lazarus, 
 He meaneth Lazarus." 
 
 But Lazarus denied it vehemently. ' Who am 
 I ?" he asked. " 'T is the Spirit of Truth that 
 will come, which the world cannot receive." 
 
 But the mournful journey was nearly at an end. 
 At each step they would have halted gladly, to hold 
 back the future, to live again but for a few short 
 minutes those precious moments they were conscious 
 now they had too little valued. 
 
 A God had come and was passing hence, and they 
 had only now begun to know Him. How doubly 
 treasured would be the memory of those days, now 
 that their tale was almost ended !
 
 LAZARUS. 295 
 
 Then, with the thought that the grief He was to 
 bring upon them added yet another sorrow to His 
 own, the Nazarene stood still near the entrance to 
 Gethsemane and, turning to them in the shadow of 
 the trees, He said: " All ye shall be offended be- 
 cause of Me this night ; for it is written, I will smite 
 the Shepherd, and the sheep of the flock shall be 
 scattered abroad." 
 
 ' What meaneth this ? " said one. 
 
 " He is our Shepherd, and when they take Him 
 prisoner this night, maybe He thinketh we shall 
 flee," said the desponding Thomas. 
 
 Then Peter rushed towards Him crying out : 
 ' Though all men shall be offended because of Thee, 
 yet will I never be offended." 
 
 ' Verily I say unto thee, that this night, before 
 the cock crow, thou shalt deny Me thrice," was the 
 sad reply. He believed in no promises, now the end 
 had come. 
 
 But Peter cast himself at His feet. ' Why sayest 
 Thou this, Lord ? Though I should die with Thee, 
 yet will I not deny Thee." 
 
 And all the disciples, raising their hands to 
 heaven, as if to call the moon, the whole creation 
 nay, more, God the Father, to witness what they 
 promised, cried: "We will die with Thee! We 
 will die with Thee! " 
 
 " Be still," said Lazarus. " Raise not your voices, 
 lest the enemy should hear you." 
 
 His warning, breathed on the stillness of the night, 
 fell on their ears with startling force. The hour was 
 indeed close at hand. Anxiously they peered be- 
 tween the olive trees, some even dividing the
 
 296 LAZARUS. 
 
 branches of the fig trees and the pomegranates lest 
 a traitor should be lurking there. How awe-inspir- 
 ing and mysterious were the surroundings, how 
 pregnant with agony was each moment that came 
 and went ! 
 
 At the gate of Gethsemane Jesus paused for a 
 moment and gave His last command. 
 
 Bear witness because ye have been with Me from 
 the beginning." Then, while they stood round 
 weeping, He added, to leave a little glimmering of 
 comfort in their souls' dark night: " After I am 
 risen, I will go before you into Galilee." 
 
 So this was the end, the end of the familiar friend- 
 ship, the inspiring presence, the miraculous words 
 of teaching and of help. It seemed impossible that 
 one so great could pass away so simply. 
 
 Then, when they tried to follow Him, He turned 
 and said : ' ' Sit ye here while I go and pray yonder. 
 
 But they made an impetuous movement to follow 
 Him. Then Lazarus said: " We must needs watch, 
 or, maybe, He will not even have time to pray." 
 
 Then, when Jesus saw the distress of the warm- 
 hearted Peter and James and John, He bade them 
 come with Him; and, with one human cry for 
 sympathy, He said: " My soul is exceeding sorrow- 
 ful, even unto death : tarry ye here, and watch with 
 Me." 
 
 Who can dare to dwell on that great agony and 
 live. The agony of God brought low. The haunt- 
 ing fear of His humanity that at the last His strength 
 might fail! Oh, ye who scoff at this one moment 
 of weakness and in those two cries " My God, My 
 God, why hast Thou forsaken Me ? " and, " Father,
 
 LAZARUS. 297 
 
 if it be possible, let this cup pass from Me " and 
 would see in it the proof that He was not the Christ, 
 have ye ever thought that in this cry was all the 
 glory ? Very man of very man, a man to hope, a 
 man to fear, a man to pray, a man weighted with 
 the sins, not of Himself, but of the world. To die, 
 not like a warrior on the battle-field, but an igno- 
 minious death of abiding torture, a death so unde- 
 served, that it might well wring out the piteous cry 
 that seemed to pierce the heavens and penetrate the 
 radiant hills beyond, and onward to the throne of 
 God. A prayer that the power of sin might be sus- 
 pended without this awful sacrifice ; that the sword 
 of Satan might be sheathed before it slew, before 
 the last foul crime of His death should stamp the 
 world with infamy for ever. 
 
 Then, as though His agony were such that prayer 
 could no longer pass His lips, He sought His three 
 disciples. 
 
 Asleep, asleep, His own familiar friends. The 
 one, too, who had promised so much asleep, dream- 
 ing contentedly, in calm unconsciousness of the 
 anguished soul-throbs of the Christ who knelt in 
 agony with head bowed to the ground, breathing 
 entreaties in blood-washed murmurs to the sky. 
 Who can even picture to himself such solitude a 
 man alone a God deserted! 
 
 Yet, at His approach they sprang to their feet, 
 confused still, knowing not whether it was their 
 Lord who called, or that an enemy was near. 
 
 "Could ye not watch with Me one hour?" 
 Strange fortitude this, with which to face the world 
 hereafter! " Watch/ and pray, that ye enter not
 
 298 LAZARUS. 
 
 into temptation : the spirit indeed is willing, but the 
 flesh is weak. 
 
 No word of His own agony. What matter who 
 saw or saw not, if it behoved the Christ to die ? 
 But for them, how could they withstand with such 
 short-lived ardour ? 
 
 But His own heart was full of heaviness, and no 
 comfort came. Was this perchance the answer ? 
 As they slept, oblivious, callous, so heaven seemed 
 for one moment motionless, unanswering. 
 
 Alone, alone, in that great garden of solitude, 
 treading the winepress alone, quaffing the fiery cup 
 to the last scalding drop, the cup that none else 
 would taste, yet that He must drain to the very 
 dregs. No way out, no way out, but through that 
 cross, if men were to be saved, and apparently how 
 little they were worth the saving. The silence and 
 the night only seemed to answer: " Thou must 
 drink it and alone." And, bowing His sacred head 
 once more, He prayed in meek obedience: " If this 
 cup may not pass away from Me, except I drink it, 
 Thy will be done." 
 
 And once more He came to see whether any 
 watched with Him; and once more He found them 
 fast asleep. 
 
 Still silence only for an answer. 
 
 " None will drink it for Thee, none will help. 
 Thou must drink it and alone; " and once more He 
 prayed: " Thy will be done." And as He bowed 
 His head to the ground, His forehead struck a stone 
 and drops of blood fell from His forehead. 
 
 Then He came to them again and gazed with pity 
 on their sleeping faces.
 
 LAZARUS. 299 
 
 " Sleep on now, and take your rest: behold, the 
 hour is at hand, and the Son of man is betrayed into 
 the hands of sinners." 
 
 The moment in which humanity had cried out for 
 sympathy had passed, when human sympathy, 
 human gratitude, might have solaced anguish, when 
 united prayer might have brought consolation. The 
 temptation was over ; the temptation to escape by 
 the power of His Godhead a degrading death. Their 
 silence had been His answer. Henceforth there 
 would be no hesitation, the flesh was conquered, 
 now 't was His joy to die. The insults and jeers of 
 high priests and publicans alike, the taunts and 
 gibes of a whole nation would never again make 
 manifest that bleeding of the soul. No pain, no 
 thirst, no glaring noon-day sun, no prison chains, 
 or smitings of dirty, sin-stained hands would bring 
 one cry. Like a sheep before its shearers He would 
 be dumb. 
 
 The new prayer would be, " Let not this cup pass 
 from Me. Fill it to the brim, if so be Thy will, O 
 God, that the salvation of this people be full and 
 free and perfect, wide as the rivers, high as the 
 mountains. The fulness of the sacrifice shall be 
 perfect. Humanity is dead for ever in Me. I live 
 now but to die." 
 
 There was no flinching in His next words, no fear, 
 no echo of His awful agony. " He is at hand that 
 doth betray Me." 
 
 For some time the disciples at the gate had 
 watched with uneasiness a little line of uneven 
 lights, that twinkled hither and thither on the road, 
 along which they had come but two hours before.
 
 300 LAZARUS. 
 
 Yet surely so many would not come to seize so 
 gentle a prisoner. Was it not rather, Lazarus 
 hoped, the little company of believing Jews, who 
 came to seek their Lord ? 
 
 ' Judas ! " The name was more hissed than 
 spoken by the little band. 
 
 Judas, Judas leading a mixed band of soldiers, 
 borrowed from the precincts of the Temple, of Jews 
 and Sadducees, of servants and centurions! The 
 clanking of swords, the steady tread of men dis- 
 ciplined to march in unison, lights, suppressed 
 words of command, and the red glare of Roman 
 lanterns paling in the blue radiance of the moon ; all 
 these approached. What, then, did Judas dread 
 that he should bring so many demons with him ? 
 Surely a legion of devils ? The moments now were 
 precipitating themselves one upon another. The 
 air seemed peopled with spiritual elements, that 
 warred, yet remained unseen. A strange light, 
 brighter than the moon, seemed to irradiate from 
 the Messiah, and to make His figure the centre-piece 
 of the glorious picture. 
 
 Then hurriedly, as though possessed with a demon 
 of haste that spurred him on to his destruction, 
 Judas bent forward and kissed on His pure brow the 
 Friend, the Man, the God. 
 
 " Hail, Master ! " 
 
 Forgetful of Himself, forgetful of those around 
 Him, even then the gentle Saviour sought to breathe 
 into this man, whom He had loved, some remorse 
 that would bring about repentance. 
 
 " Friend," He said, raising His pure eyes in 
 deepest grief and pity " Friend, wherefore art thou
 
 LAZARUS. 301 
 
 come ? Betrayest thou the Son of man with a 
 kiss ?" 
 
 It was as though He said: " Thou wast My 
 friend, thou who comest for a crime, canst thou yet 
 kiss Me ? Of a truth such treachery is past concep- 
 tion. Ah, surely, 't is only the Son of man thou 
 thinkest to deceive. Thou canst not hope thus to 
 cheat thy God." 
 
 But the traitor's work was over, the work that 
 seemed but the spawn of madness now. All that 
 he had undertaken he had accomplished, and he fell 
 back into the darkness; his brain reeled, and his 
 heart seemed to swell within him as though bursting 
 with the sudden revelation of that which he had 
 done. 
 
 He had betrayed the Lord, betrayed his Christ, 
 his Friend for what ? For thirty pieces of silver! 
 But thirty thousand could not bring back for him 
 eternal life ! Eternal death, that was all that loomed 
 before him. Oh, why, why had they urged him on 
 to perpetrate this awful deed ? Of a truth they had 
 been keen in intuition who thus had singled out the 
 vilest, weakest heart in all Judaea to do this thing. 
 
 Lost, lost, lost, in this world and the next! 
 Through greed and avarice, the leading instinct and 
 the most cursed attribute of the Jews ; that love of 
 gain that swamps all noble thoughts, sucking as it 
 were into a whirlpool of fetid water all that is great 
 and good, stifling each exalted aspiration. 
 
 Meekly, with that noble gait with which none 
 other could compare, with quiet dignity and with no 
 trace of fear, Jesus stepped forward. 
 
 " Whom seek ye ? " He asked of the commander
 
 302 LAZARUS. 
 
 of the soldiers, who stood with swords drawn, but 
 turned downwards to the ground. 
 
 ' Jesus of Nazareth," replied their chief. In 
 truth, he knew not what to call this man whom each 
 named differently, and who called Himself the Son 
 of God. 
 
 Far away in their back ranks, the Nazarene could 
 see the face of Judas peering through the gloom. 
 
 " I am He," He said, and, as the words of truth 
 unadorned fell on the chilly stillness, a cry rose from 
 the lips of Judas: 
 
 " 'T is He, 't is He ! " But to the souls of those 
 around him he seemed to say, " 'T is God, 't is 
 God " ; and, like one on whom some sudden, blind- 
 ing light is flashed, the group fell back before the 
 God-like majesty of that fearless presence. 
 
 Iscariot, poor fool, had warned them to come 
 with staves and swords and spears and to use force 
 against Him; but this Man made no attempt either 
 to escape or to oppose them, though all knew full 
 well that He had done nothing worthy of death. 
 
 Then, when the men fell back, one of the disciples 
 cried out: " Let us flee; they are afraid." 
 
 But flight was impossible to the true, brave 
 nature ; the cup was being emptied, slowly and 
 surely; the bitterest dregs were yet to come, but 
 He would drain it. 
 
 Once more He approached the startled band, and 
 His very presence seemed to strike their souls with 
 terror. Again He asked: " Whom seek ye ? " 
 
 And again they answered: " Jesus of Nazareth," 
 and in their hushed voices was a tone that seemed 
 to mean : " We sought a man, we find a God."
 
 LAZARUS. 303 
 
 Then, lest the fulness of their wrath should fall 
 upon the little band of His disciples, He pleaded 
 for their liberty : 
 
 " If therefore ye seek Me, let these go their way." 
 
 The great sinewy hands were laid upon His shoul- 
 ders that had still to bear so much. Fiercely, un- 
 necessarily, they pulled Him hither and thither, 
 shaking and pressing Him who wished but to obey. 
 
 He was their prisoner now. The final act of the 
 world's great tragedy was still to be accomplished; 
 the foulest depths of man's iniquity to be plumbed, 
 and the full measure of the blasphemy to be re- 
 vealed. Their prisoner, He who had been daily 
 amongst them, in the Temple, on the mountains, 
 by the seashore ! 
 
 Then Peter, unable any longer to bear the strain, 
 impetuous, hasty, longing to wipe out his careless- 
 ness and sleep, cried out: " Lord, shall we smite 
 with the sword ? " 
 
 And, without waiting for an answer, he seized his 
 sword, and cut off the ear of Malchus, who, besides 
 being in the service of Caiaphas, was his kinsman. 
 
 As usual, Peter had committed an act that would 
 suffice only to incense still more the party of Caia- 
 phas against the Christ. A spasm of pain crossed the 
 face of Jesus. This was no time for wrath, or cavil- 
 ling, or pitting strength against strength. It was a 
 time when only truth and meekness could prevail, if 
 aught could prevail against the prince of this world 
 and those urged on by him. But He could nullify 
 this foolish action. With infinite gentleness He 
 touched the ear and it was healed. 
 
 " Suffer me thus far," He said. Then, turning
 
 304 LAZARUS. 
 
 to Peter, He continued, " Put up again thy sword 
 into its place : for all they that take the sword shall 
 perish with the sword. Thinkest thou that I cannot 
 now pray to My Father, and He shall presently give 
 Me more than twelve legions of angels ? But how 
 then shall the Scriptures be fulfilled, that thus it 
 must be ? " 
 
 Poor foolish Peter, where, indeed, was thy faith, 
 if thou didst think to protect the King of kings with 
 thy feeble hand ? 
 
 But the hour was wearing on. These miracles and 
 incidents were beginning to influence the little 
 crowd ; the officers must allow no superstitious 
 fears to animate them ; they must perform their 
 duty. This Man needed no binding and no force, 
 but the law must be obeyed ; that grinding millstone 
 that for so many years had pounded and ground 
 down the brains and hearts of man, till they had 
 become but a mingled dust of foulness and evil and 
 severity, a very powder of Satan's own compounding. 
 
 So His sacred hands were bound and tied behind 
 His back, and chains were set round Him who in 
 one brief moment could have burst them all, if so 
 He would. What scorn in the words He addressed 
 to them while their clumsy fingers fumbled with 
 cord and band! Yet in their fear lest He should 
 escape what homage to His power! 
 
 " Are ye come out as against a thief, with swords 
 and staves, for to take Me ? " 
 
 But to their hearts He seemed to say: " Are ye 
 too blind to see the difference between an evil-doer, 
 who would escape death, and one wholly good, who 
 seeks to die ? ' '
 
 LAZARUS. 3O5 
 
 Then, in the darkness they bore Him away, across 
 the little brook and up the hill that, but a few hours 
 before, He had trodden as a free man indeed, though 
 with a sickening agony in His pure heart. Then a 
 little band of friends had been about Him; now 
 when He gazed round the multitude, He caught no 
 responding look, no friendly glance, for all His loved 
 disciples had forsaken Him and fled. Christ, the 
 Son of God, the Saviour, the Messiah, was alone; 
 bereft of friends; for the stern countenances that 
 the winter moon lit up were those of foes. 
 
 Alone ! Alone ! Yet not quite, for one was there 
 who had himself passed through the agony of death, 
 who loved Him with a reverent, enduring love and 
 would never desert Him. Afraid to come near 
 Him, lest the crowd should fear some miracle, or 
 lest by death He should be separated from Jesus at 
 the supreme moment of His yielding up His life, 
 yet with a heart that yearned to comfort, Lazarus 
 mingled with the crowd. But the spirit of persecu- 
 tion was abroad. The stream of man's evil might 
 run its course to-night at will. Cries rose: " 'T is 
 Lazarus ; perchance he followeth to let this Man go. 
 Let him, too, be taken to Annas, for he is a follower 
 of this Man : and, if he hath not fled, 't is that some 
 mischief breweth. Bind him! Bind him! " 
 
 " Slay him ! Slay him ! " cried the multitude, and 
 some of the soldiers crowded round him and tried to 
 take him prisoner. One man even caught hold of 
 his linen robe; but Lazarus, with a twist of his 
 body, slipped downwards out of his garment and 
 fled away in the darkness. Better so, than die while 
 the Lord had need of him. And all the multitude
 
 306 LAZARUS. 
 
 cried out : ' 'T is yet another miracle. This man 
 shall never die." 
 
 And so they entered the gates of Jerusalem, the 
 band of soldiers swollen to a dense mass of followers, 
 so that it seemed that all the city had assembled to 
 see the Saviour die. 
 
 But the divine figure in the midst said never a 
 word, uttered no cry or murmur; and the moon 
 looked on coldly, nor veiled her face. No thunder, 
 no great lights from heaven, no angels ascending 
 and descending, no earthquakes, no falling down of 
 great mountains, no sudden striking of men to death, 
 proclaimed to the world that this Man was different 
 from any other, or that the Son of God would die.
 
 CHAPTER XXXI. 
 
 IT could not be supposed that souls such as those 
 of Caiaphas and Annas, souls that Satan's poison 
 had turned dark and foul forever, could achieve so 
 great a triumph as the capture of the Nazarene, 
 without tasting to the full the sweets of conquest. 
 To taunt, to scoff, to jeer at those who are down, 
 was ever the Jewish character; for, as no minds 
 have greater genius than have those belonging to 
 that race, so no hearts can conceive greater bitter- 
 ness and craft, and wound so cruelly. To Annas 
 first, then to Caiaphas, lastly, before the Sanhedrim, 
 the Saviour would have to go. A threefold agony 
 must surely win a threefold glory. Caiaphas had 
 reasons of his own for not having Him brought 
 straight to him. 
 
 " Whither take ye Him ? " asked one after another 
 of the multitude. 
 
 " To Annas first, and then to Caiaphas," replied 
 the soldier, in a voice that forbade further ques- 
 tioning. 
 
 To Annas, whose link with the Pharisees lay 
 shivered to bits; Annas, who disregarded Sanhe- 
 drim and chief priests alike, but who, through machi- 
 nations and low intrigue, had gained possession of 
 all the secrets of the Jewish world ; who, in his old 
 age, cared neither for deposition from nor accession 
 
 307
 
 308 LAZARUS. 
 
 to power, while he held those vital secrets, like 
 swords, over the heads of half the rulers of Judaea. 
 He had promised to counsel Caiaphas how to pro- 
 ceed with this Nazarene. By base jobbery he had 
 succeeded in turning even political events to his 
 account. By playing upon their greed he had 
 pressed into his service all those who could be bribed 
 and otherwise corrupted, and they were not a few. 
 But, to possess this power, a man must needs have 
 money. Accordingly he levied tithes in secret on 
 all Judaea. 
 
 Usurers, money-changers, sellers of doves, all these 
 privily sent their contributions, that went to swell 
 the bursting hoards of this ex-High Priest. And it 
 was this Nazarene who had inveighed against these 
 men ' Woe unto you, usurers! "who had upset 
 the tables of the money-changers, and opened the 
 cages of them that sold doves to let them soar up- 
 wards to heaven. Needs must that Annas should 
 see this Man, to find out how much He knew; for if 
 He were to come before Pilate and to divulge these 
 things, the reign of Annas and of his viperous brood 
 would surely come quickly to an end. 
 
 The great gates were swung back, while soldiers, 
 holding their lances in front of them, with both 
 hands thrust back the crowd that strove to force 
 itself into the very courts of the High Priest's house. 
 But Peter, only, of the disciples, succeeded in press- 
 ing in. 
 
 ' This is no time, " cried the servants of Annas, 
 " to enter this house; in the morning ye shall see 
 the prisoner at the trial before the Sanhedrim." 
 
 " This is no hour for trial," cried the populace.
 
 LAZARUS. 309 
 
 " The trial will be to-morrow ; no man is con- 
 demned unheard," rejoined the soldiers, obeying 
 orders in speaking thus, and fearing a disturbance. 
 " No man is condemned in Jerusalem unheard," 
 they repeated; " and for mercy's sake we brought 
 Him first to Annas, for perchance he will set Him 
 free." 
 
 " Annas, Annas, 't is indeed the merciful," cried 
 the crowd derisively, making a play on the meaning 
 of his name. Then closing doors pressed out the 
 lingering bystanders, shut out the night and the 
 free, fresh air, and every living witness of the Naza- 
 rene's arrest, for Peter had joined the servants in the 
 offices of the palace. Alone Jesus appeared before 
 Annas, but for the guard that attended Him. 
 
 Perhaps the old man hovering on the confines of 
 life and death, with keener memory of prophecy, 
 with greater crimes upon his head than had any 
 other ruler, face to face at last with the majestic 
 presence he had barely seen as it had wandered 
 through the streets of Jerusalem and up and down 
 the mountains, proclaiming upon earth its mission, 
 felt a slight quivering, a fleeting terror lest events 
 stupendous should befall. The sublime countenance 
 of the Nazarene, that like a sunbeam had shone on 
 earth for thirty years, the lateness of the hour, the 
 silence inside his palace, the dull roar of the voices 
 of the populace without all these had their effect 
 on the old man, who, like all the Jews, was not 
 without his superstitions and belief in the super- 
 natural. He had long desired to interrogate this 
 Man, who, for three years had convulsed Jerusalem 
 with His miracles and teachings; who, till now, had
 
 3IO LAZARUS. 
 
 kept persecutions and condemnation and captivity 
 at bay ; and not by wiles, or power, or interest, but 
 by the intensity of His earnestness, by the manifes- 
 tation of His surpassing love. 
 
 Like bolts of fire launched from the midday sun, 
 the glances flashed from the eyes of Jesus on the 
 little, shrivelled Jew, perished and bent more from 
 his own iniquities than from age. A charred soul 
 stunted and consumed by its own inward fires. 
 What a blissful opportunity was this to spue forth, 
 toad-like, all his venom upon this diamond purity 
 that by its very existence condemned ! 
 
 " Are they all without ? " he asked the guard. 
 
 "All save one," replied the man; " and he is kept 
 in vigilance below, for he did smite the right ear 
 from Malchus. " 
 
 " One of Thy disciples did this thing ? " asked 
 Annas of the Nazarene, glad of an excuse for the 
 malice that was in his heart. 
 
 But Jesus made no answer; yet the patient gaze 
 He turned on the rough soldier appealed to him with 
 all the force of a command to tell Annas the truth 
 of what had happened. 
 
 " Yet," he interposed, " this Man did heal the 
 ear, like as the other, by His touch, while we stood 
 and laid our hands upon Him." 
 
 But the merciful words fell on merciless ears. The 
 old man made as if he had not heard, and, turning 
 to the Christ, who stood there weary with the night's 
 events and agony, he said to Him: "Who art 
 Thou ?" 
 
 But still Jesus answered not a word. 
 
 Taking no note of this silence, Annas went on :
 
 LAZARUS. 311 
 
 " And who are they that follow Thee hither 
 and thither, yet in Thine hour of need desert 
 Thee ?" 
 
 A spasm of grief overshadowed the face for one 
 instant, then passed away. 
 
 The priest asked again: " What are these doc- 
 trines that Thou teachest ; these tales of miracles, 
 this comradeship with poor and sinner ? Where 
 hast Thou learned them ? Whence art Thou ? " 
 
 But still the Nazarene said nothing, gazing up- 
 wards, as though in prayer, for strength to drink the 
 cup. Of what avail to answer with words of truth 
 creatures whose only cleverness lay in planning and 
 detecting lies ? The occasion was too sacred, the 
 minutes for prayer too precious, the attempt to 
 argue would but provoke words of greater sin. 
 
 ' Wilt Thou not speak to me ?" cried Annas, 
 presently, infuriated. ' Wilt Thou defy me by 
 Thy silence, or art Thou afraid ?" 
 
 And one of the soldiers shook Him roughly and 
 said: " Speak, answer the priest or 't will be the 
 worse for Thee." 
 
 Then, lifting His great, angelic eyes, pure as a 
 holy child's, deep with the wisdom and the truth of 
 ages, the Nazarene prepared to raise that voice 
 which would ring for evermore in the old man's ears. 
 With scorn it rang out now, with pity it would re- 
 turn to him on his death-bed ; and in the far, dark 
 distances of hell that voice would ring, in accom- 
 paniment to his despair, the words, " Too late, too 
 late! " 
 
 ' Wilt Thou not speak ? Then, after all, Thou art 
 a coward," snarled Annas, some faint glimmering in
 
 312 LAZARUS. 
 
 his narrow mind teaching him the words to use that 
 most would wound the Man whom all Judaea knew 
 feared nothing. 
 
 But no answering, wrathful cry responded to this 
 taunt. Slowly the Nazarene raised His eyes and let 
 them fall upon the little, cringing priest. 
 
 " I spake only to the world; I even taught in the 
 Synagogue and in the Temple whither the Jews 
 always resort; and in secret have I said nothing. 
 Why askest thou Me ? Ask them which heard Me 
 what I have said unto them ; behold they know what 
 I said." 
 
 Each word lashed the ignominious heart of Annas 
 as with whip-cords. Yes, it was late in the day to 
 ask this young rabbi, after three years of ministry, 
 what were His doctrines. Was it not for those very 
 doctrines that He stood there ? His words un- 
 earthed, as with a pickaxe, and laid bare the schem- 
 ing, lying, malicious stirring of the old priest's 
 heart. He shivered, as he might shiver were his 
 body lying exposed and naked beneath thewinter's 
 moon. 
 
 A blow, a stinging blow, fell on the pale, meek 
 face. Surely it could not be that a man could 
 strike the Lord and live ! The cup was filling 
 quickly, salt and vinegar taking the place of wine. 
 Strength, oh, strength to drink it ; but never a cry 
 or a word. 
 
 " Answerest Thou the High Priest so ? Thou 
 
 Galilean, Thou son of " His words were 
 
 checked, he knew not how or why, but it seemed as 
 though his tongue lay paralysed. 
 
 Once more the gentle voice was raised : "If I have
 
 LAZARUS. 313 
 
 spoken evil, bear witness of the evil; but if well, 
 why smitest thou Me ? " 
 
 It was long past midnight, and Caiaphas was wait- 
 ing ; but Annas was loath to let the Christ depart 
 without having wrung from Him any self-convicting 
 words. This in itself was a defeat to one who knew 
 so well the phases of success. 
 
 'T is useless to sit all night with a dumb, obsti- 
 nate madman," exclaimed Annas. " Lead Him to 
 Caiaphas and tell him from me that he need fear no 
 more that the lying preaching of this Man shall de- 
 ceive the nations, for that His tongue doth now re- 
 fuse its office." 
 
 So once more the weary figure was moved away, 
 still bound ; and all through the night Annas sat on, 
 wondering strangely ; and no man durst come near 
 him to ask him what he thought. And when Jesus 
 passed out into the courtyard to be led to Caiaphas, 
 the people who had remained outside pressed against 
 the gate, and seeing armed men and lanterns and 
 the quiet figure they all knew so well, they cried out 
 with a great cry that reached the ears of Annas in 
 his chamber: " Shall He die ? Shall He die ? "
 
 CHAPTER XXXII. 
 
 ROUND a blazing fire in the big hall leading into 
 the court-yard sat the servants of Annas ; for 
 part of the daily scheme of Annas' s career of hypo- 
 crisy was to be generous to his retainers. There 
 were too many secrets hidden in the dark corners of 
 his house for Annas to be able to neglect or quarrel 
 with his servants. 
 
 ' The good, the merciful Annas." 
 
 Thus spoke the house-servants of the much-hated 
 High Priest. Of his own gold he had built a wall 
 that shone and radiated upon him. 
 
 Round this fire the servants, men and women, 
 hewers of wood, fetchers of water, grass-cutters, 
 workmen, and maidens congregated to discuss what 
 now had become almost the only topic of conversa- 
 tion amongst all classes. The excitement was in- 
 creased by the fact of the propinquity of the subject 
 of their conversation, wonder as to what Annas 
 would do, and what the Nazarene would say. 
 
 While they talked and laughed and jested, one 
 figure sat gloomily alone, warming his hands at the 
 fire, colder at heart than outwardly, cursing himself 
 for his impetuosity, bemoaning his temporary ab- 
 sence from his Master, fearing to speak, lest his 
 tongue should betray the Galilean dialect, and fear- 
 ing still more the vengeance of the man whose ear 
 
 3M
 
 LAZARUS. 315 
 
 he had struck off. While he sat there his thoughts 
 could not do otherwise than wander back to all the 
 words of the Nazarene. 
 
 Why twice had the Christ told him He would deny 
 Him ? Surely it would only be in the face of some 
 terrible temptation. What, then, so awful had yet 
 to come to pass ? Or spake He only of the heart 
 that deceiveth and denieth alway ? His eyes wan- 
 dered out into the darkness. Surely midnight was 
 long past. Yet no cock had crowed. Could it be 
 that Caiaphas and Annas allowed them not within 
 the precincts, looking upon them as unclean birds ? 
 Yet in the Roman quarters, not so far away, there 
 must be some ; and surely they had crowed already. 
 There must be some parable in his Master's speech. 
 Would there ever be an opportunity of asking Him ? 
 
 A serving-woman paused while she began to place 
 the early morning meal on the rough table, and eyed 
 him curiously. 
 
 " Surely thou also wast with Jesus of Galilee ? " 
 
 A blinding of the senses, a terrible panic, a mad- 
 ness of dark terror. " I know not what thou mean- 
 est." And he rose and walked to the porch, fearing 
 that they would recognise him, should they look him 
 in the face. 
 
 Then the maid turned to the others. ' This fellow 
 also was with Jesus of Nazareth; I myself opened 
 the gate to him. Wherefore doth he deny it ? " 
 
 " Well, what matter ? " said one. " Leave him 
 in peace; the end is near at hand." 
 
 " But Annas hath given order that none but this 
 fisherman, whom he knoweth, should enter," said 
 the chief steward, referring to John; and all the
 
 316 LAZARUS. 
 
 little group gathered round the porch and one said : 
 " Surely thou also art one of them, for thy speech 
 betrayeth thee ; a curse on thy lying Galilean 
 tongue." 
 
 " I know not what thou sayest," repeated Peter; 
 and, when all gathered round him curiously, ready 
 with many questions, he continued angrily : " Cursed 
 be ye all, ye questioning, prating fools, I tell ye I 
 know not the Man." 
 
 And, on the chilly air, there rose from the Roman 
 quarter the shrill crow of a cock, announcing the 
 first hour of morning ; and a pang, that was like a 
 death-blast, shot straight to Peter's heart. 
 
 There was a noise of hurried footsteps and clank- 
 ing swords that jangled on the pavement, and the 
 Nazarene passed by, and while the words rose on his 
 lips, " I know not the Man," the Saviour turned 
 His head and, with the agonised gaze of one who 
 heareth his best friend betray him, He looked at 
 Peter. 
 
 One more drop of the cup of bitterness was drunk. 
 
 And Peter, covering his face with his hands, 
 rushed out into the night to weep ; and again the 
 cock crew on the stilly night.
 
 CHAPTER XXXIII. 
 
 METHINKS at last I hold this Man," said 
 Caiaphas, pacing his audience chamber to 
 calm a strange unrest that filled his soul. 
 
 In a corner of the room beside the window, looking 
 out with love-struck eyes, gazed Rebekah, hearing, 
 but scarce heeding, her father's words, for they 
 brought no comfort to her unhinged soul. 
 
 " He is before Annas now, the proud Nazarene, 
 and if there be one who can sift a man as wheat " 
 here Caiaphas made an expressive gesture, turning 
 his hands upwards, as if they were cups in which he 
 sifted flour or grain ' ' 't is thy grandfather Annas. ' ' 
 ' Yet he will find no fault in Him," replied Re- 
 bekah absently and perversely. Why she said the 
 words she knew not, except that in her heart a faint 
 loyalty to Lazarus twinkled. 
 
 ' Why sayest thou this ? ' ' asked Caiaphas ex- 
 citedly; " dost thou believe that He is sent from 
 God ?" 
 
 " I believe nothing; I know nothing," said Re- 
 bekah coldly. 
 
 Caiaphas eyed her anxiously. Woman has, at all 
 times, been the one enigma no man can solve. 
 ' Then why speakest thou ? " 
 A sullen silence ; then steps across the court -yard 
 below, and muttered voices. 
 
 317
 
 318 LAZARUS. 
 
 ' They come," said Caiaphas; but in his eyes was 
 no look of expectant triumph, and all his features 
 seemed contracted with some inexplicable dread. 
 What if after all He were the Son of God ? What 
 if He should strike him dead by some unseen subtle 
 force ? Oh, if that daughter of his in the corner 
 would but break the silence, instead of sitting gazing 
 in vacancy at the moon ! 
 
 So versed was he in hunting for the dark spots of 
 vice in human nature, that the few shining ones of 
 virtue escaped his view; thus he found himself 
 suspecting for an instant that even his own daughter 
 might be plotting to defeat him. 
 ' Jesus of Nazareth." 
 
 Wide open were flung the doors, and, between 
 two soldiers, the Nazarene was ushered in. One 
 more drop of anguish to be drunk, one step nearer 
 to the cross! The High Priest was face to face, at 
 last, with the Man he hated, and, at the same time, 
 dreaded. It was a grim satisfaction to see Him 
 bound. Rebekah, cold-eyed, but curious, looked 
 on without a word. 
 
 Now the chamber was filling; elders, scribes, 
 Sadducees, a few, very few, Pharisees, all the mem- 
 bers of the council, filed in one after another to see 
 the triumph of their High Priest and the degrada- 
 tion of the Christ. Strange men who had been 
 hired to bear false witness, sycophants, liars, usurers, 
 lawyers, a strange medley, jostled each other in the 
 room. Faint and weary, but unflinching still, the 
 Nazarene stood with head erect. But when Caia- 
 phas with loud voice called out, " Ye who do accuse 
 this Man, come forward," none answered to the call,
 
 LAZARUS. 319 
 
 and to the question put forth many times, " What 
 hath this Man done ? " no answer came. 
 
 Then Caiaphas stamped his feet impatiently, and 
 said : " Do ye mock at me ; to bid me condemn this 
 Man, and bring no accusation ? " 
 
 Two wretched men of the lowest type, men who 
 had bought their lives of Caiaphas, as the price of 
 their corruption, came forward and averred: " This 
 fellow said, ' I am able to destroy the Temple of 
 God, and to rebuild it in three days.' ' 
 
 But no words came from the lips of the Nazarene ; 
 only He raised His liquid eyes to the two men in 
 silent wonderment and reproach ; and, abashed, 
 they shrank back into a dark niche in the wall. Then 
 Caiaphas, terrified, awed, baffled, came one step 
 forward. " Answerest Thou nothing?" he said. 
 " What is it which these witness against thee ? " 
 
 Still silence from the Nazarene and a strange 
 hush throughout the crowded room. Then, over- 
 come with a great terror, fearing lest at any moment 
 the crowd itself should be magnetised into obeisance 
 by this strange meekness, the High Priest cried : " I 
 adjure Thee by the living God, that Thou tell us 
 whether Thou be the Christ, the Son of God." 
 
 Adjured by His own self to declare Himself; 
 yielding to an appeal that through all ages will be 
 answered, has been answered by the living God, the 
 living God gave answer: " Thou hast said." 
 
 Then, half in fury, half in fear, the High Priest 
 tore the clothes from off him, beginning at the 
 throat, as though he stifled. One, two, three, the 
 ephod lay in ribbons round his body. Never before 
 had the High Priest been seen in such a state of
 
 32O LAZARUS. 
 
 fury, and his frenzy and confusion gave no little 
 pleasure to the assembled crowd of envious priests. 
 
 Then, as if to give Caiaphas the one last chance 
 that had been offered Judas while eternal salvation 
 hovered around the little crowd, and the High 
 Priest quaked with the fear that some might fall in 
 sudden remorse and awakening at the feet of Jesus 
 He spoke once more: " Hereafter ye shall see the 
 Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and 
 coming in the clouds of heaven." 
 
 It was as if, in His all-embracing mercy, He had 
 said: " Do not think because ye see Me here in 
 bonds, a lonely, weary man, that it will be always 
 thus. Pause, pause and consider that, one day, 
 you will all see Me again in power, and ye will re- 
 member the lowly carpenter who appealed to you 
 in meekness." 
 
 But Caiaphas, perturbed beyond endurance, al- 
 most to madness, paced the room, tearing his clothes 
 and exclaiming excitedly, in order to veil his per- 
 turbation : "He hath spoken blasphemy; what 
 further need have ye of witnesses, behold, now ye 
 have heard His blasphemy." 
 
 And so the words that Caiaphas had yearned to 
 hear had been pronounced at last, and one drop 
 more of the bitter cup had been drunk. 
 
 But something more than the words of the Naza- 
 rene disturbed the equanimity of the High Priest. 
 There was an inexplicable feeling in the air, as 
 though the demons of darkness had been let loose, 
 and the ghosts of supernatural beings came and 
 went ; nor could he decide whether it was fancy or 
 sensation. The hours seemed to have halted in
 
 LAZARUS. 321 
 
 their course, and instead of dawn, a cold twilight 
 seemed to have settled on his heart and brain for- 
 ever. As in a vision, he saw the Son of man de- 
 scending in the clouds with power. It seemed to 
 him that the voice of the God whom he had pre- 
 tended to represent on earth, but had mocked and 
 insulted by his actions, called down a curse on him 
 forever. In the twilight he seemed to see his own 
 figure standing in eternal greyness, groping between 
 rocks, seeking, seeking for a light that once had 
 flashed across his eyes and lain for one instant on 
 his soul. A great doubt rose in his heart when he 
 looked round on those upturned faces, exultant in 
 their petty victory, exultant at their High Priest's 
 hesitation. Then over that heart, all riddled with 
 corruption, there stole a sombre pall, like the cloud 
 that settles over the last pale ray of a struggling sun 
 and ends the day ; and the decision that ranked him 
 as the foulest murderer on earth was made. But, as 
 moral cowards always do, he needed comrades in his 
 crime. 
 
 " What think ye ? " he cried at last to the silent 
 crowd; knowing full well their answer, the only 
 answer they durst give, the only answer his soul 
 craved for. And with one voice rose on the stilly 
 night the words " Ish maveth! Ish maveth! [A 
 man of death.] He is guilty of death." 
 
 And, all the time, Rebekah looked on mute, and 
 thought of Lazarus.
 
 CHAPTER XXXIV. 
 
 OCARCE had the fateful cry died out on the awe- 
 
 charged air, when a scuffle was heard outside, 
 steps rushing hurriedly by, and cries as of a madman 
 broken loose. 
 
 A chill blast struck the heart of Caiaphas. What, 
 if, after all, this Man had followers at His back 
 ready and able to avenge Him ? What if there were 
 a plot abroad, if the little room with its group of 
 rulers and scribes and priests were invaded by the 
 Romans ? 
 
 The door was flung open and, unannounced, almost 
 unrecognisable, with eyes that shifted wildly, as 
 though the nerves had lost all power of keeping 
 them in their place, with hair dishevelled and clothes 
 disordered, and with the grin of madness on his 
 features, Judas Iscariot rushed in, holding aloft a 
 bag. At the sight of the figure of the Nazarene he 
 recoiled, as with a sudden memory of horror, but 
 the mind had given way and with difficulty could 
 unfold the one object of his mission. 
 
 In and out of the crowd he rushed, holding up 
 his bag and crying out : " Where is the High Priest, 
 where is Caiaphas ? I have sinned, I have sinned, 
 
 1 have betrayed the innocent blood. I would find 
 the High Priest and give him back his money. ' ' And 
 he held up his bag piteously to each one of the priests. 
 
 322
 
 LAZARUS. 323 
 
 " What is that to us ? " said one. " See thou to 
 that." 
 
 " Thou hast thy money; go thy way. Thou hast 
 done thy work well and art well paid. Begone!" 
 another said. 
 
 Then, with such lightning rapidity that none could 
 stop him, with fingers trembling with excitement, 
 he undid the mouth of the bag, his hands and 
 fingers shaking so that he could hardly do it ; and, 
 before any could stop him, he had thrown the silver 
 from the window into the courts of the Temple, 
 where it clinked on the tesselated pavement with a 
 sound that seemed to cry out: '" Blood money, 
 blood money." 
 
 At that, a number of the priests ran out tumultu- 
 ously, jostling each other like a herd of blinded 
 cattle, to gather up the money before the people 
 should be admitted to the Temple in the morning. 
 But Caiaphas only shrugged his shoulders and smiled 
 scornfully, as though the thirty pieces of silver and 
 the presence of the madman were no affair of his. 
 
 Only the Nazarene turned an eye of pity on the 
 wretched man; and, when that look of love and 
 mercy fell upon the traitor, he bent his head and 
 shuffled from the room. 
 
 Then, to end the horrible situation, Caiaphas gave 
 a sign to the soldiers to lead the Christ away to the 
 guard-room, where He would remain till early the 
 next morning, when His trial before Pilate would 
 take place. 
 
 Weary with all His drawn-out agony, anguished 
 with the foretaste of a death of torture on the mor- 
 row, the Son of God was not yet allowed to rest.
 
 324 LAZARUS. 
 
 The shapely form was buffeted with the blows of 
 those who guarded Him, the divine face spat upon ; 
 those eyes that held in them the rays of eternal sun- 
 light were blindfolded, for Him to be the sport of 
 the lowest of earth's creatures. 
 
 " Prophesy who it was that smote Thee ? " 
 Blasphemy after blasphemy fell upon ears that 
 quivered in their purity. Taunt and oath and curse 
 echoed round the prison walls ; but the Nazarene 
 neither spoke nor moved, nor asked even for a glass 
 of water in His thirst and faintness. The dregs of 
 the cup were thickening, slowly the drops were 
 being swallowed. It would soon be finished now. 
 The grey streaks of His last dawn on earth before 
 His resurrection, the few bands of white on the 
 walls of the filthy cell lighted the pale face of the 
 Nazarene. A little more pain, a few more taunts, 
 what mattered they ? A little more strength only 
 needed to go through twelve hours more. Ere that 
 same sun should sink blood-red behind the hills, the 
 agony would be over; the earth be bathed In the 
 blood that would surge for ever over men's sins in a 
 tide of endless patience till the Judgment Day; and 
 the stupendous gift of the world's salvation would 
 be offered, for men to take or leave.
 
 CHAPTER XXXV. 
 
 A DARK veil of grief hung over the home of 
 Bethany. Ever since the night before, when 
 Lazarus had returned from the Garden of Geth- 
 semane, they had sat almost paralysed with grief 
 and dread. 
 
 The Lord captured, the Master taken! This in- 
 deed seemed the beginning of the end ; and the at- 
 tempted capture of Lazarus made them fear that 
 peace had for ever left their dwelling. The life of 
 Jesus on earth would find its lowly echo in that of 
 Lazarus. At any moment he might be seized, as 
 their Lord had been, captured, taunted, condemned. 
 There would be no safety for the future in that 
 home ; and yet they regretted nothing. They had 
 put their shoulder to the wheel and never more 
 would they look back, but the vista that stretched 
 before them was dark and drear; trial, fear, trouble, 
 death. At the end a cross, but behind the cross 
 what glory! 
 
 Over and over again Lazarus told them of those 
 bitter moments in Gethsemane, and their tears fell 
 at the recital of the agony of their Lord. 
 
 Over and over again Martha murmured, with all a 
 woman's tenderness: " To be sleeping, to be sleep- 
 ing, while the Lord prayed and wept ! Oh that we 
 Could be with Him! " 
 
 325
 
 326 LAZARUS. 
 
 Then, before dawn, Lazarus had gone to learn the 
 result of the Saviour's interview with Caiaphas, and 
 where He was. 
 
 ' Thy face doth tell me, thy face doth tell me," 
 cried Mary, stretching out her hands in deep distress 
 when Lazarus returned. " He is condemned! He 
 is condemned! " 
 
 " Condemned by Caiaphas," assented Lazarus; 
 " but to-day He is to be taken before Pilate, and the 
 Romans condemn men not so readily." 
 
 "Yet He must surely die," said Mary; "and 
 now, for His dear sake, I would that all were over 
 and He once more with the Father." 
 
 ' Yea, indeed," said Lazarus, a deep depression 
 in his voice. " God grant it may be soon, for I do 
 hear horrors of this night in the prison, how they 
 did taunt and sneer and strike and oh ! I cannot 
 speak of it." He shuddered, while the two women 
 moaned in sympathy at the sufferings of their Lord. 
 
 Then rapidly the three made their plans, which re- 
 quired much thought, for their presence at Jerusalem 
 might excite the populace and effect more harm than 
 good ; might result even in the death of Lazarus. 
 Yet they would not stay away. So it was settled 
 that the two sisters should go to the house of the 
 Magdalene, while Lazarus remained in the outskirts 
 of the city, ready to be sent for should they need 
 him, though he knew well that he could do but little, 
 either to give solace to his Lord or to protect his 
 sisters. The last act of the tragedy, that had begun 
 with the creation of the world, was about to be per- 
 formed. Divine power would not, human could not, 
 bid the actors stay their actions. Each horrible de-
 
 LAZARUS. 327 
 
 tail of ignominy and suffering, of trial and of con- 
 demnation, had been foretold. Naught else would 
 avail if man was to be saved. As man looks round 
 on man, he wonders where the need to save is 
 shown, or what is worth in man to save. 
 
 In the house of the Magdalene they found the 
 virgin mother, who had come from Nazareth for one 
 last look at her God-begotten Son. One by one, 
 believing women added themselves to the little knot 
 of mourners. 
 
 Every now and then a disciple, or some friend, 
 came in with gleanings of news that brought some- 
 times anguish, sometimes comfort, to their souls. 
 At one moment it was a fresh incident of that night's 
 suffering, at another that Pilate would not con- 
 demn. 
 
 " What sayeth the multitude ? " asked the Mag- 
 dalene of Nicodemus, who came for one brief instant. 
 ' The multitude ? What doth the Jewish multi- 
 tude ever to them who are down-trodden ? It 
 treadeth down the more. Every Jew is born thus," 
 replied Nicodemus angrily. " They do cry, ' Crucify 
 Him! Crucify Him! ' and they will that Barabbas 
 be released." 
 
 " Barabbas for the Lord ? " murmured the Mag- 
 dalene. " It seemeth past man's understanding! " 
 
 Towards midday Lazarus came with the news of 
 what had passed before Pontius Pilate. So changed 
 and weary was his face, that Martha and Mary bade 
 him be seated, and refreshed him by bathing his 
 temples in vinegar before they would let him speak ; 
 albeit their hearts were bursting with anxiety and 
 eagerness to hear.
 
 328 LAZARUS. 
 
 " It is all over; they have condemned Him to be 
 crucified," wailed Lazarus; and great, strong man 
 though he was, his voice broke and tears rose to his 
 eyes. " I can scarce tell ye," he added, crying like 
 a woman. ' They scourged Him, scourged our 
 Lord ; Pontius Pilate with his own hands scourged 
 Him, and Caiaphas did laugh, they say, with joy ; 
 but of that I know not ; for I could not stay 
 and not cry out ; and, maybe, for every cry of 
 mine they had scourged Him yet again." At his 
 words the Saviour's mother, with a slight groan and 
 a cry, fell fainting to the ground. " I wot not she 
 was here," said Lazarus. " It seemeth to me that 
 my heart and brain have given way. Hearken unto 
 them." 
 
 And in the distance, like the bellowing of furious 
 bulls, or the thunder of a torrent that has broken 
 loose and sweeps everything before it, came the dull 
 roar of men with souls so dead as to be lost to all 
 conception of the majesty, the mercy, or the truth 
 of God. 
 
 "Crucify Him! Crucify Him!" rose the cry; 
 and strident laughter, and the gibing voices of men, 
 and the shrill shrieks of women combined to form the 
 delirious clamour that rose beneath the midday sun. 
 
 Then Mary Magdalene, no longer able to contain 
 herself, threw herself into the arms of Mary, and 
 cried out bitterly: " And all this for my sins, my 
 sins! " Then, with hearts bursting with such grief 
 as those who live in these later days can scarce con- 
 ceive a grief peculiar to those few to whom it was 
 given to know and love the Saviour when on earth 
 they discussed what should they do.
 
 LAZARUS. 329 
 
 " We cannot, cannot let Him die." the Magdalene 
 sobbed. 
 
 ' We cannot leave Him to die alone," said Laza- 
 rus. And, all the while, they saw not that the 
 Virgin, in silent grief for her senses had re- 
 turned was searching for a covering for her head 
 and was about to sally forth alone. Her Son, her 
 God to die alone ? Never! not if ten thousand 
 swords should oppose her progress to the cross. 
 The loving heart that had effaced itself for thirty 
 years, to let the course of God's will run on untram- 
 melled, would not rebel against the Lord's decree; 
 but no law, either of Jew or Roman, could deny a 
 mother the exquisite agony of seeing her son die. 
 
 Since He had been a little child, He had never 
 wanted her, but the link, however mysterious, had 
 been there ; the link between the human mother and 
 the divine Son. As an infant, although God, He 
 had stretched out His arms to her, and hers had 
 been ever ready; they would be ready now, out- 
 stretched to Him, that He might know that human 
 tenderness was there, side by side with divine sub- 
 mission. Perchance, He might have a message ; or 
 to those tortured limbs she might bring some slight 
 relief ; at least, when dead, that beauteous head should 
 find no harder resting-place than the Virgin's knee. 
 
 " She goeth to Him; we must go too," said 
 Mary. And, silently, they followed the mother of 
 the Lord, whose grief was greater even than theirs; 
 and, while they walked, the Magdalene spoke in low, 
 sweet tones to Lazarus: " Scourged by the hands 
 of Pontius Pilate ! But 't was said he sought to save 
 the Lord."
 
 33O LAZARUS. 
 
 " Methinks that 't was to save the Lord that he 
 did scourge Him," answered Lazarus. " Itseemeth 
 to me that he thought they must needs be satisfied 
 with that, and then would let Him go, for he said, 
 ' I will chastise Him and let Him go.' But 't was 
 the wily Caiaphas and that hell-hound Annas that 
 would not be satisfied, and urged on the people. 
 Oh, had it not been our Lord who stood there, 
 't would have been a brave sight to see ; for all the 
 rulers and their wives and daughters stood round the 
 Judgment Hall to see Him ; and to see Pilate and 
 Caiaphas was like watching two cats fighting over 
 one mouse. Like crossed swords were their words, 
 and Caiaphas gnashed his teeth, as if already in hell, 
 at the words of Pilate ; for Pilate knoweth full well 
 that there is no fault in Him, and that, from very 
 fear, the High Priest did this thing. Such a popu- 
 lace was there, and men in glittering armour, and 
 priests and elders in costly garments; and, when 
 Pontius Pilate came unto the steps of the Tribunal, 
 he looked as pale as our dear Lord, and his glance 
 did strike across to Caiaphas, and he called out aloud, 
 ' Will ye that I release unto you the King of the 
 Jews ? ' Oh, one thought that Caiaphas would die 
 of very wrath at the words of Pilate ; for ofttimes 
 Pilate hath taunted him that he feared the Jews 
 would make our Master king. But that ignorant 
 people did only cry, ' Release unto us Barabbas, re- 
 lease unto us Barabbas ! ' Yet Pontius Pilate spake 
 again to the clamouring crowd ' Behold the Man 
 whom ye would crucify ! ' And all did turn their 
 gaze upon that face, and His eyes did seem to look 
 far off, and His lips were shut; yet I thought I
 
 LAZARUS. 331 
 
 heard Him murmur, ' Abba, Father! ' Then there 
 was silence, and methought, ' Surely one after 
 another will creep away, for none can look upon 
 that face and still condemn Him ' ; and methinks, 
 forsooth, they would have let Him go, albeit I know 
 that He needs must die. But Caiaphas, when he 
 did see that all the multitude did waver, did send 
 his false accusers to stand before the Governor; 
 and one said, ' We found this fellow perverting the 
 nation and forbidding to give tribute to Caesar, say- 
 ing that He Himself is Christ and King.' But, 
 when Pilate heard this, which he well knew was 
 false, he said again to the chief priests and to the 
 people, ' People of Israel and all nations, I find no 
 fault in this Man. ' Then Caiaphas grew yet more 
 fierce, and, fearing lest our Master should escape 
 him, he sent another false accuser to say, ' He stirreth 
 up the people, teaching throughout all Jewry, be- 
 ginning from Galilee to this place. For He is born 
 a Galilean.' And this he said because he knew that, 
 by the law, a Galilean must needs go before Herod, 
 and Herod hateth Pontius Pilate. At this, Pontius 
 Pilate said with a loud voice, ' I wash my hands of 
 this Galilean; take ye Him before Herod.' Then 
 they led Him away, and methought He would have 
 fainted in the crowd that pressed so sore, so weary 
 did He look." 
 
 "My Lord, my Lord," the Magdalene murmured. 
 
 But Lazarus went on: "And Pilate with a loud 
 voice cried out, ' I am glad that Herod is in Jeru- 
 salem at this time, for I see no fault in Him. I 
 cannot condemn Him by the Roman law.' And 
 they do say that for many years hath Herod wished
 
 332 LAZARUS. 
 
 to see the Master. And while Pilate's messenger 
 did go to Herod, the multitude did shout continu- 
 ally, ' He hath blasphemed ! Crucify Him ! Crucify 
 Him ! ' Aye, 't was like beasts waiting to lick warm 
 blood. Then, all of a sudden, a silence fell on all ; 
 then rose a murmur, and a soldier sent by Herod 
 entered, and soon came forth again walking before 
 the Christ and crying out, ' Make way, make way 
 for the King of the Jews ! ' And as all looked to see 
 what this might mean, behold the Master, arrayed 
 in gorgeous robes and with a crown of thorns upon 
 His head, came forth, and the eyes of all were 
 blinded with His glory; and Caiaphas did bend his 
 head forward to his breast, and looked upward with 
 his eyes, as is his wont ; and into his face there came 
 such fear that methought surely Caiaphas hath been 
 defeated and they have in truth proclaimed Him 
 King; but 't was a sorry jest of Herod to Pontius 
 Pilate. Yet Pilate smiled not when his eyes fell on 
 the Christ, but murmured, ' No man saw I ever so 
 like a king. ' ' But the people feared to lose Barab- 
 bas, and cried out, ' Crucify Him ! ' and, the while, 
 Pontius Pilate read the missive from the Tetrarch. 
 Then Pilate stood once more on the steps of the 
 Tribunal, and cried out, ' Chief priests, rulers, and 
 people of Israel, ye have brought this Man unto me 
 as one that perturbeth the people, and, behold, I 
 having examined Him before you, have found no 
 fault in Him, touching those things whereof ye do 
 accuse Him ; no, nor yet hath Herod, for I sent Him 
 unto him ; and lo, nothing worthy of death is done 
 unto Him nor spoken of by Herod. I will therefore 
 chastise Him and release Him.' But, with one
 
 LAZARUS. 333 
 
 voice, they cried out like thunder : ' Away with this 
 Man, and release unto us Barabbas! ' And again 
 and again Pilate spoke and said, ' Why, what evil 
 hath He done ? I have found no cause of death in 
 Him; and I will let Him go.' But they cried more 
 and more, ' Crucify Him ! Crucify Him ! ' At last, 
 when Pilate saw that there would be an uproar with 
 the people, and that some even drew their staves 
 and swords, he cried wearily, ' Take ye Him and 
 crucify Him. Do with Him as ye will, but I find 
 no fault in Him.' And as they led Him away, 
 Pilate followed with his eyes until the Master had 
 left the room ; then he sank down in his chair and 
 covered his face with his hands and would speak to 
 no man ; and Caiaphas did turn to him with such 
 a look of joy and hate and triumph as never saw I 
 mingled in one face before." 
 
 By this time they had joined the vociferating 
 crowd, which, satisfied with its success and weary 
 with the excitement of the day, had not had time to 
 notice the added group to the already swelling mul- 
 titude. 
 
 At sight of the weary face of the Nazarene they 
 could have cried out with anguish. Never was such 
 grief and ignominy beheld before. Thank God, 
 there never will be again! Travel-stained, weary, 
 footsore, bruised and lacerated with the cruel scourge, 
 almost fainting with the weight of the heavy cross 
 in the broiling midday sun, with no covering on His 
 head but the crown of thorns which had torn His 
 brow in bleeding gashes, but which He could not 
 even raise from its position with His bound hands, 
 the world's Saviour staggered on, through taunts
 
 334 LAZARUS. 
 
 and gibes and mocking words of false obeisance: 
 " Hail, King of the Jews! " or, " Why dost not un- 
 bind Thine hands, Thou Maker of Miracles ? " 
 
 Suddenly there was a few moments' halt, while 
 they seized on a Cyrenian going by, to load him 
 with the cross. Then the women Jesus loved drew 
 nearer, hoping, if only by some look, to tell Him 
 how their anguished hearts did throb in sympathy 
 with His. He turned and gazed on them, His eyes 
 enfolding first and foremost the mother He loved so 
 well, and whose whole heart was His. 
 
 " Daughters of Jerusalem," said the loving voice, 
 that had been for so long mute, whose sweet but 
 searching tones would sound so rarely now on earth, 
 " weep not for Me, but weep for yourselves, and for 
 your children." 
 
 But 't was for Him they wept, for their powerless- 
 ness to help Him, and for their sins, that were the 
 cause of all His agony. And the virgin mother wept 
 so grievously that it seemed as if her heart must 
 burst and her eyes shed blood for the greatness of 
 her grief. 
 
 Then all those who loved the Nazarene and be- 
 lieved in Him recalled the prophet's words: "Her 
 soul shall be pierced with a two-edged sword " ; and 
 again, " I gave my back to the smiters, and my 
 cheeks to them that plucked off the hair: I hid not 
 my face from shame and spitting." 
 
 Suddenly a horse, with a Roman soldier on its 
 back, came galloping at full speed through the 
 crowd, scattering to right and left screaming men, 
 women, and children, even knocking some down in 
 his haste. 
 
 " Even now will Pilate save Him," the people
 
 LAZARUS. 335 
 
 murmured. The horse was flecked with foam, and 
 the man's brow dripped with sweat. The clinking 
 chains of the heavy Roman bridle gleamed in the 
 sun, yet shone not brighter than the sleek flanks of 
 the horse or the crest of the soldier's helmet. But 
 it was no respite for the condemned God he brought. 
 
 He cried out: " Lazarus, Lazarus, find Lazarus. 
 The Governor hath need of him." 
 
 No sign of terror blanched the face of Lazarus, 
 when, in reverent imitation of his Master, he stepped 
 forward, saying boldly: " I am he." 
 
 " His hour hath come," said Martha, her stern 
 brow growing even whiter than before, her strong 
 mouth hardening with dull resignation. 
 
 The mute agony in the eyes of the women wrung 
 his heart. So soon ! Before the crowd had slaked 
 their thirst with the blood of one, to demand an- 
 other's! The blow had fallen; both in one day 
 would hang upon the cross. The last act of the 
 drama had begun ; better almost that it should be 
 so than this constant scraping of the heart-strings. 
 
 Gravely, even solemnly, his sisters kissed him. 
 The Magdalene, distracted as she was with grief, 
 could only stretch out her hands and cry: "Laza- 
 rus, my love, my life." And when, with a breaking 
 heart, Lazarus turned to obey the Governor's com- 
 mand, he saw her borne away by helpful arms, her 
 golden hair that was almost trailing in the dust, 
 glowing like a halo of glory round her head. 
 
 And, while he walked by the side of the soldier's 
 horse, the multitude, weary already of witnessing 
 the agony of the Nazarene, cried out : " He too will 
 be crucified this day! " 
 
 No cheerful cry to end a day of mourning.
 
 CHAPTER XXXVI. 
 
 UP and down paced Pilate in his private chamber, 
 while the weary, bleeding figure of the Naza- 
 rene was tottering along the road to Golgotha. 
 Never more while a breath remained in his body 
 would peace be in his heart. Each day doubt 
 would strengthen, till from it should be born con- 
 viction ; when that should come no place on earth 
 could hold him. 
 
 On his return to his house he had dreaded to 
 meet his wife, yet the first person he met was she. 
 
 She had told him of her dreams, she had even 
 sent a message to the Judgment chamber, knowing 
 full well how, to obtain their end, the Jews would 
 press him. She knew Pilate well enough to fear 
 that his frank, intrepid nature would be ill-matched 
 against the crafty subtlety of the law-versed Jews. 
 
 ' Well ? " she asked, without greeting him, in her 
 excitement, " hast thou released Him ? Where is 
 He?" 
 
 " Oh, Claudia, Claudia, blame me not! " he said. 
 " I could not. They would not. They prevailed 
 with me, as those cursed Jews do ever." 
 
 " 'T is not true; it cannot be true!" shrieked 
 Claudia. 
 
 " What is Truth ? What is Truth ? " murmured 
 Pilate. " Would I knew the Truth." 
 
 336
 
 LAZARUS. 337 
 
 " What is Truth ? " repeated Claudia scornfully, 
 her eyes flashing with the wrath that stirred her. 
 " What is Truth is this: thou art a coward, a mean, 
 shrinking coward. The Romans were called ever 
 brave, but in all Judaea there is no such coward as 
 thou. For fear of the multitude thou hast struck 
 at God, if He be indeed the Son of God! " 
 
 Surely his retribution was coming swiftly, dealt by 
 the hand that could wound the most ; for all this man's 
 great love was centred in, and wisely so, his wife. 
 
 " Oh, Claudia, Claudia, blame me not," he said 
 again, in a voice beseeching as a little child's. " He 
 blamed me not, for when I said, ' Speakest Thou 
 not unto me ? knowest Thou not that I have 
 power to crucify Thee, and have power to release 
 Thee ? ' He answered me, ' Thou wouldst have no 
 power at all against Me, except it were given Thee 
 from above: therefore he that delivered Me unto 
 thee hath the greater sin.' Then, when I heard 
 those words, I tried all I could to save Him ; believe 
 me, Claudia, I brought Him forth as a king; I 
 cried, ' Will ye crucify your King ? ' And, when 
 they derided me, I said again, 'Behold your King! ' 
 Yet they cried only the more, ' We have no King 
 but Caesar. Crucify Him! Crucify Him!' Then 
 I sent Him to Herod, but he, too, would not 
 condemn Him; and methinks the people would 
 have listened to Herod, but that hell-hound Caia- 
 phas, that suave-mouthed, leprous-souled High 
 Priest, had paid many of the Jews to cry out ' Cru- 
 cify ! ' and, for fear of an uproar, and lest the mul- 
 titude should tear the Nazarene to pieces, I did let 
 them have Him."
 
 338 LAZARUS. 
 
 ' Thou wert sore-pressed, truly, Pilate," said the 
 just Claudia, " but yet thou hadst power to release 
 this Man ; and now thou wilt see that all our glory 
 will fade away and great misfortunes will befall us, 
 and through endless ages we shall be cursed for this 
 thing which thou hast done ; for a dream this night 
 did tell me that He was the Son of God and that He 
 will come with power again upon the earth. ' ' Then, 
 changing her tone, she shrieked out: " But why 
 converse we here ? There is yet time. He is not 
 dead. Release Him yet. O Pilate, for love of me, 
 the wife of thy bosom, whom thou sayest thou 
 lovest; O Pilate, noble Pilate, release Him, save 
 Him yet! " And she flung herself at his feet, ap- 
 pealing to him by every loving name. 
 
 One faint gleam of almost savage hope flashed up, 
 then flickered feebly in the Roman's eyes. 
 
 ' Ye know not these vile Jews, they thirst for 
 blood ; like dogs, they would lick sores ; they have 
 no mercy. If I release Him now, Caiaphas will ex- 
 cite the people and they will rend Him limb from 
 limb. Leave Him to die, Claudia, for 't is the kind- 
 est thing that thou canst do. Let Him sleep to- 
 night in heaven." 
 
 Awed by his words, Claudia said after him: "In 
 heaven ? Dost thou, too, believe He is the Son of 
 God ?" 
 
 And Pilate stood there silent, while his deep-set 
 eyes gazed far beyond the hills to where he knew a 
 cross was being raised against the sky. 
 
 As in a vision he saw the bleeding body on the 
 cross. He knew the torture, for he had seen many 
 hanging so ; the body, with its weight, tearing the
 
 LAZARUS. 339 
 
 flesh from the nails that pierced the hands; the 
 strain of outstretched arteries and nerves; the one 
 position that never, never could be changed ; the 
 scorching sun beating fierce on eyes and brain, and 
 the maddening thirst ; the swollen flesh, the aching 
 back, the smarting seams inflicted by the scourge ; 
 the taunts, the insults, the abuse ; then the solitude 
 and the silent agony of death. This for a man ; and, 
 for a God, the awful load of foulest, unrepented sins. 
 Better, better, to go and pierce Him with his own 
 hands, than to leave Him to that lingering death. 
 
 " Oh, what is Truth ? Who will explain ? Who 
 is He ? Whence is He ? " 
 
 Then life's business intruded itself upon these 
 awful thoughts ; a soldier came with tablets in his 
 hand. 
 
 ' We would know what thou wouldst have placed 
 above the cross," he said. 
 
 Yes, there was a possibility of avenging the Naza- 
 rene, of insulting the whole Jewish nation, of mad- 
 dening with fury those two high priests. It was the 
 last sweet moment of Pilate's darkened life; he 
 would make the most of it. 
 
 ' Write," he said to the grovelling scribe who 
 stood cringingly awaiting his commands " Write, 
 
 'JESUS OF NAZARETH THE KING OF THE 
 JEWS.' " 
 
 Then, when the emissary of Caiaphas seemed to hes- 
 itate, he said: " Dost hear me ? In Latin and in 
 Greek and in Hebrew shalt thou write, so that all 
 men and nations can read, ' Jesus of Nazareth the 
 King of the Jews.' '
 
 340 LAZARUS. 
 
 And, wondering, the man fled from Pilate's pres- 
 ence to obey. 
 
 The Saviour was now hanging on the cross; the 
 last drops of agony were being drunk ; the cup was 
 nearly empty. But Pilate could do something to 
 curtail His sufferings, and he would. His remorse 
 was maddening. 
 
 " Send me hither," he commanded, " Portius and 
 Tertius, my two most trusted soldiers." 
 
 " Go," he said, " to the cross of the the the 
 Nazarene that is crucified to-day, and let Him not 
 die a lingering death ; but, when the multitude press 
 round, pierce Him with your spears close to the 
 heart, so that He die and hang not long. Even to 
 the condemned we may show mercy." 
 
 Then again he began to pace his chamber, and 
 from his heart, unconsciously, there rose a prayer 
 for light and truth.
 
 CHAPTER XXXVII. 
 
 F)REPARED for his death sentence, yet now no 
 1 longer fearing it, Lazarus was surprised at his 
 reception when ushered into the presence of Pontius 
 Pilate. 
 
 Indeed, so agitated was Pilate, that he motioned 
 with his head to Claudia to ask the burning ques- 
 tions that lay so close to both their lips. 
 
 " Oh, tell us, tell us, noble Lazarus, is He 
 dead ? ' ' she asked. 
 
 " I think that even now they are but nailing 
 Him to the Cross, if so be they lose not time in 
 buffeting Him," said Lazarus, his voice trembling 
 with emotion. 
 
 " Be seated, I pray thee," said Claudia, seeing 
 how pale and tired he looked. Then she continued : 
 " Cannot we yet save Him ? " 
 
 A gleam of hope shot from the eyes of Lazarus, 
 but quickly died. After a pause he said: " Nay, 
 let Him die, fair lady. 'T is but another hour of 
 agony, and then the sweet spirit will have rejoined 
 His Father. Needs must that He should die. He 
 Himself hath said so, and His word is Truth. If thou 
 shouldst release Him now, Caiaphas will by subtlety 
 retake Him. For the salvation of the world He 
 must needs die to bear the sins of all." 
 
 " Thinkest thou, then, that He is the Son of 
 God ?"
 
 342 LAZARUS. 
 
 " Askest thou me, whom the Lord hath raised, 
 whether I believe He is the Son of God ?" said 
 Lazarus. 
 
 " Wast thou really dead ? " asked Pilate. 
 
 " Dead ? Yea," said Lazarus. " Four days in 
 the tomb, and my spirit departed into Hades." 
 
 " Is there, then, another world ?" asked Pilate 
 breathlessly; " a world of life and death ? " 
 
 " Another world in truth," said Lazarus. " A 
 world of light and peace and righteousness and joy 
 for evermore. ' 
 
 "Oh!" Pilate cast himself down before his 
 table and, throwing his hands outstretched across 
 it, placed his head upon them and cried out: "And 
 I have crucified Him! I have crucified Him! " 
 
 At that moment in the distance rose a hideous 
 yell the yell of triumph at sated hate. It fell on 
 Lazarus's ears like sharp-edged stones. He knew 
 it for the death-knell of the Christ. Claudia 
 started, then wrung her hands and cried out: " He 
 is dead ! The Son of God is dead ! " 
 
 Then down on his knees fell Lazarus, and bowed 
 himself to the ground. And now occurred a won- 
 drous thing : the house swayed backwards and for- 
 wards, as though it were like to fall, so fearful was 
 its rocking. 
 
 Claudia stretched out her hands in awe and horror 
 to her husband, but, the while, a darkness, a solid 
 darkness, with no faint glimmerings of struggling 
 light, had fallen between her and him. 
 
 Lazarus!" she cried, " Lazarus, Pilate, what 
 meaneth this ? " 
 
 And Lazarus's voice beside her said : " Fear not,
 
 LAZARUS. 343 
 
 't is but God's earth mourning for the Son of God. 
 Pray, lady, pray that thou and Pilate may yet 
 believe." 
 
 Suddenly the clatter of a horse's hoofs was heard 
 beneath the window. Breathless, a centurion en- 
 tered and, saluting, briefly handed his report to 
 Pilate. 
 
 ' Didst do as I commanded ? " Pilate asked. 
 
 The centurion, unable to restrain himself, threw 
 himself on his knees. 
 
 " Of a truth," he said, " I did as thou didst com- 
 mand ; and forthwith from his heart there flowed 
 two streams, of water and of blood. Further, even 
 if my words displease thee so that thou shouldst 
 slay me, I still will say that I do believe that this 
 was indeed the Son of God." 
 
 Why shouldst thou not believe and live ? " said 
 Pilate gently. " Methinks, as thou dost, that this 
 Man had somewhat of the divine in Him." 
 
 " Not part, but all," said Lazarus reverently. 
 Then approaching Pilate respectfully, he added: 
 " Dost need me further, noble Pilate, for I would go 
 and see my Lord's body and tend my women, who 
 will be bowed with grief ? ' ' 
 
 " Art not afraid," asked Pilate, " that the crowd 
 will rend thee ? ' ' 
 
 " I am afraid of naught," said Lazarus; " and, if 
 they rend me, I count such pain but glory to my 
 God." 
 
 " Thou talkest like a Roman," was Pilate's an- 
 swer. " Yea, go, for to go or stay availeth nothing 
 now. I would that I could help thee, for I fear that 
 thou, too, and all who loved this Man will suffer
 
 344 LAZARUS. 
 
 yet. But, should Caiaphas seek to take thee, or to 
 do thee hurt, and I do hear of it, it shall be the 
 worse for him; for, while I am Governor of Judaea, 
 I will protect thee. In my foolishness, but now I 
 suffered this Sadducee to prevail ; but it shall not be 
 thus again. By my hand no man again shall die un- 
 justly, for this thing was unjust." 
 
 When Lazarus was about to retire, a soldier an- 
 nounced Joseph of Arimathaea, who, on entering, 
 glanced at Lazarus half in astonishment and half in 
 fear that he was a prisoner. 
 
 Pilate greeted him with a friendly smile. 
 
 " Hail, noble counsellor, what wouldst thou of 
 me ?" 
 
 " I would crave of thee the body of Jesus of Naz- 
 areth, the Son of God." 
 
 " Howsayest thou the Son of God," asked Pilate, 
 thirsting for a further understanding of these mys- 
 teries, " since it is reported that He is the Son of 
 Joseph, a carpenter of Nazareth ? " 
 
 "For the glory of God and the salvation of the 
 world was this thing done," said Joseph. " He is 
 no man begotten man for His mother hath known 
 no man ; she is yet a virgin (Blessed be she amongst 
 women!); and He is the Son of God." 
 
 Pilate paused a moment before he made answer. 
 What if all this were a trick ? What if Lazarus had 
 not been dead ? What if they required the body to 
 perform some pretended miracle of resurrection ? 
 
 Doubt, Satan's strongest instrument, that enfold- 
 ing cloak he throws over the heads of those he would 
 ensnare, so that they cannot see nor hear, nor yet 
 cry out for help, seized him again. Then, turning
 
 LAZARUS. 345 
 
 to the centurion, he said: " Dost swear that this 
 Jesus is dead ? " 
 
 "Truly I would I thought it not. But He is dead 
 in very deed, and many will bear witness of it," was 
 the centurion's answer. 
 
 " Wilt thou still doubt," asked Lazarus, " and 
 forget already the darkness and the earthquake ? " 
 
 Then Pilate said: "For my own sake said I this; 
 for, if indeed He rise again, I would be sure that 
 there is no witchery and would have others witness 
 of it." 
 
 Then he gave leave to Joseph to do what he would 
 with the holy body, and the two men left together. 
 
 It was not long before the rumour of Pilate's con- 
 cession reached the ears of Caiaphas, so he sent a 
 deputation of priests and Pharisees to the Governor, 
 to ask whether he did not fear a repetition of the 
 miracle of Lazarus. 
 
 " Sir," they urged, " we remember that this de- 
 ceiver said, while He was yet alive, ' After three 
 days I will rise again.' 
 
 Do ye then so fear the vengeance of this Man 
 whom ye have crucified ? " asked Pilate. " I won- 
 der not that ye fear to see His face again." 
 
 " We would but make certain that His disciples 
 bewitch not the people further," said the cringing 
 group of Pharisees. " We would but have thee 
 command that the sepulchre be made sure until the 
 third day, lest His disciples come by night and steal 
 Him away, and say unto the people, ' He is risen 
 from the dead.' So the last error be worse than 
 the first." 
 
 Then Pilate answered them with scorn : " Ye have
 
 346 LAZARUS. 
 
 a watch; go your way, make it as sure as ye can. 
 And tell Caiaphas that, on the third day, methinks 
 the Nazarene will rise again." 
 
 And, shaking their heads and wondering whether 
 Pilate had in truth gone mad, they hurried back to 
 Caiaphas and bid him seal the sepulchre, for which 
 thing Pilate had given his permission.
 
 CHAPTER XXXVIII. 
 
 LIKE Pilate, Caiaphas also paced his room, but 
 with what different thoughts! Terror, too, 
 was his, but the terror only of some horrible death, 
 some awful retribution that would fall on him, 
 though its form was hidden from him. This morn- 
 ing he had triumphed, he had wrung the heart of 
 Pilate, but his triumph had not been unalloyed. He 
 knew that both Herod and Pilate despised him for 
 the act, and till he had heard that the Nazarene had 
 breathed His last he had felt a lurking dread of what 
 he knew not. Then how would the people take it ? 
 He had seen oft in history that from a national suc- 
 cess had sprung a national hatred. The poor, the 
 maimed, the blind, would they form an alliance and 
 make Lazarus their head ? Two rulers had disap- 
 peared from the council of the Synagogue Nico- 
 demus and Lazarus; two powerful, wealthy men. 
 And they had sent no word to him. What did their 
 silence mean ? For crafty people dread ever silence. 
 They are afraid of secret machinations, of the sud- 
 den outbursts of revolutions, of unlooked-for actions, 
 the outcome of cabals. Every one is in league to 
 intrigue against them, because a life without intrigue 
 appears to them impossible. Every one hates them, 
 for they know that in themselves is nothing lovable. 
 What strange foreboding of horror was this that 
 347
 
 348 LAZARUS. 
 
 haunted him ? What meant this great unrest ? 
 Once more he saw the twilight scene, the rocks, the 
 faint blue light 'twixt morn and night. No loving 
 arms were round him, no sweet voices soothed the 
 lonely horror of his cogitations. Daughter and kin- 
 dred and wife, all were subordinated to that all-ab- 
 sorbing self that had neither ears nor eyes except 
 for the thing desired, the furthering of ambitious 
 schemes, the fulfilment of self-seeking dreams. 
 
 The hours went on, but none brought the joyful 
 news that this Nazarene was crucified. What stir- 
 ring wonders there might yet be betwixt Jerusalem 
 and Golgotha! Spies brought him word that Pilate 
 still kept within his house, apparently much dis- 
 turbed. A messenger had been sent after the pro- 
 cession that followed the cross. Two soldiers had 
 been despatched to Golgotha. Wherefore ? What 
 did it mean ? What hidden plot was gendering in 
 the heart of the proud Governor ? He was capable 
 of acting in defiance alike of king and law. What 
 if he had acquiesced in the crucifixion of the Naza- 
 rene only to release Him afterwards ? What if the 
 Nazarene should come to life again, like Lazarus ? 
 
 The night wore on, and the harrowing meditations 
 of the High Priest ceased only in the morning, when 
 Annas came, and with him other priests, to discuss 
 the question of the disposal of the thirty pieces of 
 silver scattered by Judas in the Temple court, but 
 since collected. No time should be lost in dealing 
 with this sum. 
 
 As if by mutual consent, no one broached the 
 subject that lay next their hearts, the condemning 
 of the Nazarene. Glad of any change that might
 
 LAZARUS. 349 
 
 divert the current of his thoughts, Caiaphas sug- 
 gested an adjournment to the Temple, there to de- 
 bate the point with other Jews ; but in this he did 
 but cheat himself, for all he yearned for was forget- 
 fulness. 
 
 The animated conversation going on amongst the 
 rabbis and the money-changers who hung about the 
 Temple, and their fevered gestures, were ascribed 
 and rightly too by Caiaphas and his companions to 
 the stirring events of the previous day ; and the ob- 
 sequiousness of the greetings he received assured 
 him that the crucifixion of the Nazarene had re- 
 established the dominion he had feared to lose. 
 
 Presently the name of Judas arrested his attention, 
 and he stopped near a little group of gesticulating 
 Jews. 
 
 ' We are here," he said, addressing one he knew, 
 " to discuss the question of this money." 
 
 " Hast heard the news, rabboni ?" replied the 
 man. 
 
 " Aye, what news ? These are strange times in the 
 which news doth follow news so fast that one know- 
 eth not which precedeth," answered Caiaphas, not 
 wishing to show his curiosity, yet trembling with 
 excitement. 
 
 " Iscariot is dead; he was found hanging in the 
 potter's field this morning; and no one knoweth 
 whether he did slay himself, or was slain by the dis- 
 ciples of that Nazarene who, God be praised, can 
 harm us now no more." 
 
 " Dead, Iscariot dead ?" Caiaphas held out his 
 arm and, with feigned indifference, leaned against 
 one of the great pillars of the Temple for support.
 
 350 LAZARUS. 
 
 Dead, Iscariot dead ! He had scarce grasped the 
 fact when lo ! what was this sudden darkness ? 
 Was Caiaphas struck suddenly with blindness, or 
 where were they who had stood around but now ? 
 The chief priests, the scribes, the cages of the doves, 
 the little tables, the altar where were they all ? 
 Was this the end of all ? Was this Nazarene truly 
 God ? 
 
 And, panic-stricken, he smote upon his breast and 
 bowed before the God whose Son he had condemned 
 to death. Then the earth beneath him trembled, 
 and the Temple rocked, and he looked to see it 
 crumble stone from stone. The deepest blackness 
 lasted but a moment, and when the darksome pall 
 had somewhat lifted, and the shivering, crouching 
 Caiaphas dared to raise his eyes, he saw that the veil 
 of the Temple had been torn to pieces. The red, 
 the blue, the purple linen hung in shreds, like a flag 
 that had borne the brunt of battle. The cherubim, 
 too, had been cleft in twain between the wings ; and 
 the altar, with its golden candlesticks and shewbread 
 and burnt offerings, was exposed to the public gaze, 
 for thousands were crowding in terror at the dark- 
 ness, regardless of the High Priest's presence. 
 
 And thus ran the thoughts of Caiaphas: He was 
 dead, the Nazarene, so said the people ; but would 
 His death free him from his shadowy dread, and re- 
 store his peace of mind, his power ? Or was more 
 to come ? Added horror would He return in glory 
 as He had said ? 
 
 With teeth chattering with terror, Caiaphas tried 
 to persuade himself that he had been the victim of 
 some trickery, some illusion. But the shreds of the
 
 LAZARUS. 351 
 
 Temple veil still hung there, mute witnesses of what 
 had been, and the crouching, panic-stricken multi- 
 tude were living ones; moreover, they must have 
 seen his horror and alarm. 
 
 The position was indeed an awful one ; but there 
 was no escaping it : he must face it, and endure the 
 penalty; for, if the Nazarene were indeed the Son 
 of God, and if He should return, Caiaphas would 
 find no mercy. 
 
 Then, one after another, people came with stories 
 of graves open and risen saints, and heart-rending 
 tales of the last hours of Christ tales in which 
 terror had lent strength to their imagination. All 
 was confusion and horror and doubt and consterna- 
 tion. 
 
 But Caiaphas hurried off the scribes and elders to 
 his house, lest in their alarm they should commit 
 themselves. The rending of the veil was no easy 
 matter to explain away; nor was the darkness 
 (earthquakes, forsooth, were plenteous enough). 
 
 ' We must speak no word of this in the Sanhe- 
 drim, nor amongst the people," enjoined Caiaphas. 
 ' Then they will forget, as all else is forgotten. As 
 for those tales of opened graves, I believe them not. 
 Perchance the earthquake did so shake the tombs 
 that, to the terror-stricken people, the clouds of 
 mouldering dust borne upwards by the wind did in 
 the darkness look like shrouded mortals rising to 
 heaven. So must we tell the people, for if the idea 
 of the resurrection do but get abroad 't will be worse 
 even than the preaching of the Nazarene." 
 
 "God forbid!" aspired the elders piously. 
 " Already we have suffered enough through this one
 
 352 LAZARUS. 
 
 Man ; and this blinded people must be allowed no 
 more to think and reason, and meet to preach and 
 pray, for the indolent do love to idle and to gossip, 
 and are readily misled." 
 
 Then, lowering his voice, added another: " Me- 
 thinks that Lazarus, too, must needs be put to 
 death ; else will he follow in the traditions and false 
 doctrines of this Nazarene. Thus peace will be re- 
 stored in Israel once more." 
 
 I know not whether Lazarus be worth the tumult 
 that would ensue. He blasphemeth not, nor calleth 
 himself the Son of God," replied the High Priest 
 unctuously. " It is for blasphemy alone we cruci- 
 fied this Nazarene; for, in all else, He was a right- 
 eous man ; and 't is ever a hard task to condemn a 
 man, except for blasphemy." 
 
 So spoke the High Priest, Caiaphas. He had 
 cheated the Jews, he had sought to cheat his God, 
 but he could not cheat the scribes and rulers, who, 
 with words of farewell and affected homage, then 
 dispersed.
 
 CHAPTER XXXIX. 
 
 SO all was at an end ; the Son of God had come 
 and gone, and few had known Him; salvation 
 had been purchased for the world ; to be the hope 
 in life, and the solace in the hour of death, of count- 
 less thousands yet unborn. The reason for living 
 had been given to humanity. The priceless object 
 of His incarnation had been achieved. The agony 
 of death the martyrdom of life, were over. The 
 great Spirit, released at last, had flown back to its 
 Father. 
 
 Torn as they were with grief, the mourning wo- 
 men could not but rejoice that His long night was 
 ended and, faithful to Him in His death as they had 
 been in His life, they now thought only of how best 
 to honour the divine Body they loved so well. 
 
 Now that the great agony of watching Him was 
 over, their thoughts turned to Lazarus. Was he, 
 too, now in prison, following in the anguished steps 
 of his beloved Master ? With what joy they saw 
 him appear with Joseph, to help them in taking 
 down the body of their Christ ! Nicodemus, grown 
 fearless through remorse, helped too, and soon the 
 sad procession wound round the hillock of Golgotha 
 to the garden in which Joseph had hewn out a tomb. 
 How tenderly they bore that lacerated body to its 
 resting-place, the women ever pressing forward, if 
 "3 353
 
 354 LAZARUS. 
 
 the beloved head rolled from side to side, or one arm 
 hung over ever so little. They would give Him, 
 dead, all the loving care they fain would have lav- 
 ished on Him living. With what love they washed the 
 body, then anointed it with the sweet spices brought 
 by Nicodemus! With what gentle, reverent touch 
 they wound round those sacred limbs the finest linen 
 that could be had ! In death no one disputed Him 
 with them. He had lived as a carpenter, they 
 might bury Him as a King. It was nearly dark 
 when they had finished their solemn task. The two 
 Marys knelt down, intending to spend the night in 
 prayer, while Lazarus and the disciples watched. A 
 great stone had been rolled before the sepulchre by 
 the disciples. 
 
 Meanwhile Martha, ever anxious over household 
 matters and mindful that she had been away from 
 home two days, wended her way to Bethany, both 
 to set matters in order there, and also to prepare 
 fresh spices with which to fill the sepulchre on the 
 Sabbath morning; for they knew not of the guard 
 that Pilate had placed to forbid all access. On her 
 way home in the darkening evening she was joined 
 at intervals by friends, sympathisers, and the curi- 
 ous, all echoing in the cry which consumed her in- 
 wardly : " Dost not fear now for Lazarus also ? " 
 
 Could she, she wondered, bear the loss of the one 
 she held so dear ? Would it not be doubly hard, 
 now that all the world seemed slipping from her 
 with the death of Him who had been her support so 
 many months ? Then suddenly an idea flashed on 
 her, and she turned in at the gates of Jerusalem, in- 
 stead of taking the outer road to Bethany. Through
 
 LAZARUS. 355 
 
 the silent streets she walked, and past the Temple, 
 till she reached the door of the house of Caiaphas. 
 
 Here she asked to be admitted to the presence of 
 Rebekah, little guessing in her ignorance, poor wo- 
 man, the fatal consequences that would follow. 
 
 She found Rebekah standing by the window, her 
 favourite attitude, looking out upon the crimsoning 
 sky. Her face was troubled, yet no remorse was in 
 her gloomy heart; only a wondering that Lazarus 
 should have disdained her, should have preferred 
 even the death of his Friend to making her his wife ; 
 for, in her narrowed vision, she failed to see the 
 world's salvation in the Saviour's death. 
 
 On hearing that Martha wished to see her, she 
 was but slightly moved ; yet who could tell what 
 wonders might still come about ? Fear, that incen- 
 tive so powerful with the Jews, might have driven 
 Lazarus to seek her help. Thus does a small mind 
 measure others by its own dimensions. 
 
 " I would speak with thee," said the somewhat 
 authoritative voice of Martha, for Rebekah had not 
 even heard her entrance. " I would ask a favour 
 for one thou lovest." 
 
 Ah, she had been right! Rebekah turned and 
 frowned. 
 
 " What dost thou crave ? " she rejoined haughtily ; 
 " for I am not one given to kindness." 
 
 " Thou knowest that the Master is dead." 
 
 "The Master? which, whose Master?" inter- 
 rupted Rebekah. " Meanest thou the Nazarene ?" 
 
 " Even so," said Martha. 
 
 " Well, say on." 
 
 " And it is rumoured amongst the Jews," went
 
 356 LAZARUS. 
 
 on Martha, her task becoming more difficult as she 
 became conscious of Rebekah's want of sympathy, 
 " that they will also take my brother Lazarus and 
 crucify him." Here her voice trembled. 
 
 Rebekah thought for a moment ; then she shrugged 
 her shoulders. Yet she had a liking for Martha. 
 
 ' How can I help thee ? What is thy brother to 
 me ? How can I stay the Jews ? " 
 
 " But thou dost love him," urged Martha gently, 
 repeating what to her had become the very essence 
 of truth, that to love much was to overcome every 
 obstacle. 
 
 I did love him," the other answered, shrugging 
 her shoulders, " but, since he doth not love me, it 
 mattereth naught to me whether he be alive or 
 dead." 
 
 ' Yet surely love needeth but to love," urged 
 Martha, little knowing how wide the compass she 
 embraced, imbued as she was with the Messiah's 
 teaching. " Love desireth but to love." 
 
 " That is new teaching which doth savour of the 
 Galilean doctrine," replied Rebekah. " Of such a 
 love I know nothing. But this I know, that, if thy 
 brother will take the proud daughter of Caiaphas to 
 wife, then he need fear nor Jews nor Romans, but 
 be safe always." 
 
 Then Martha spoke the words which though she 
 knew it not were later to return to her with all the 
 bitterness of death. 
 
 " How can he wed thee, maiden, seeing that he 
 loveth another ? " 
 
 Words of truth from one who, through daily con- 
 tact with the Spirit of Truth, could not lie; yet
 
 LAZARUS. 357 
 
 Martha would have recalled them, when she saw the 
 burst of rage and bitterness they called forth. 
 
 " Loves another! " cried Rebekah. " Thy 
 brother Lazarus doth love another ? He who, we 
 thought, did so disdain me because his heart was 
 given to good works ? Dost speak the truth ? Is 
 it for this that I must save him, to give him to some 
 other woman ? By the beard of Aaron, Martha, 
 thou knowest me not, to ask me such a thing. Per- 
 chance I would have given him up to lead a life of 
 purity and sacrifice. If so be that he believeth that 
 this Man is the Son of God, he doeth well to worship 
 Him. But, if the stainless Lazarus can love an 
 earthly woman, then I will be that woman, or he 
 shall die. Dost hear, woman ? Either thy brother 
 Lazarus doth wed me, or he dieth." 
 
 Fear and horror fell on Martha. What horrible 
 perplexity was this ? Would that she had never 
 come ! Of a truth the Lord had said that she was 
 over-troubled about many things. She had sought 
 the proud maiden in order to help her brother, 
 and now it seemed that she had but increased his 
 peril. 
 
 ' Who is this woman that thy brother loveth ? " 
 asked Rebekah scornfully. 
 
 " Nay, but I cannot tell thee that, proud maiden. 
 It seemeth me that I have already told too much. 
 I will go home, for I am very weary, and at dawn I 
 must bring spices to the sepulchre of my Lord, for 
 't is the Sabbath. Farewell, maiden ; methinks that 
 still thy love will triumph over this tempting of the 
 devil. Thou wilt yet think of my poor brother and 
 of his two sisters whose lives are bound up in his,
 
 358 LAZARUS. 
 
 and of her that trusteth him, and, therefore, thou 
 wilt entreat thy father for him." 
 
 " I care not whether thy brother live or die. 
 Henceforward he is naught to me but a perverse and 
 wretched, misguided ruler," said Rebekah angrily. 
 " Now leave me, ere I say that which will grieve 
 thee more." And Martha turned away, and with a 
 heavy heart regained the road to Bethany. 
 
 And, the moment she had left the room, Re- 
 bekah, murmured to herself through clenched teeth : 
 " Would that I knew this woman whom he loveth, 
 that I might slay her! "
 
 CHAPTER XL. 
 
 AT Bethany nearly all the night had been spent 
 in prayer. Not only were they overwhelmed 
 with grief at the crucifixion of the Lord, but they 
 feared also that other terrible events would follow. 
 Lazarus was conscious that, in a humble way, he 
 would have to travel in the footsteps of his Lord, 
 and he was troubled with the thought of how the 
 Master would wish him to proceed. 
 
 A little troop of friends and believers had visited 
 him that night, and laid before him a plan for his 
 escape, should his life be placed in peril; and it 
 seemed to Lazarus that to leave Judaea would be his 
 only way of continuing to testify to the wondrous 
 miracles by which it had been proved beyond dis- 
 pute that the Messiah had indeed visited the earth. 
 Already steps were being taken by Caiaphas and 
 Annas to prevent the scribes from making any records 
 of these events; and, although those of the disciples 
 who could write had assidiously noted day by day 
 each event and word and act, still if, as was to be 
 feared, they should be massacred, who could tell 
 into whose hands their notes might fall, or how they 
 might be altered and corrupted ? To one who had 
 once died, and knew a little of the world beyond the 
 grave, death held fewer horrors than did life ; there- 
 fore to leave his home and his beloved country, with 
 
 359
 
 360 LAZARUS. 
 
 all its tender memories, and thus preserve his life, 
 would be to Lazarus a greater sacrifice than to lay it 
 down. 
 
 With the first cold rays of the rising sun that stole 
 into the room in which the three were seated with 
 some of the disciples, their thoughts turned to the 
 sepulchre, and they fell to reflecting how the sweet 
 face looked after its first night of repose. With 
 eager restlessness, Martha set about putting together 
 the spices and essences she had prepared to take to 
 the sepulchre that morning. 
 
 A hurried step was heard without the door, and 
 the Magdalene, tired and flushed, but with exulta- 
 tion in her eyes, rushed in. 
 
 ' The Lord is risen! " she cried. ' The Lord is 
 risen ! Who then dare deny that He is God ? " 
 
 Then, while the others pressed round to listen to 
 her tale, Lazarus called to Peter and John, and said : 
 " Let us hasten to the sepulchre, for I fearsome 
 artifice of the Romans. Therefore did they set a 
 seal, to rob the Lord of a King's burial." 
 
 And so, still doubting, as even the redeemed will 
 doubt to the end of time, sitting in darkness and 
 straining through the glass that they themselves 
 have dimmed by superstition, by infidelity, by self- 
 raised complications, they hurried down the hill. 
 Yes, Lazarus, who himself had risen, could barely 
 accept the rising of the Lord. 
 
 The Magdalene called after them in vain. " Nay, 
 if they had but stayed to hear my tale, they had not 
 need to fear or hurry so," she said. 
 
 Then, when Mary and Martha and their house- 
 hold questioned her, she told them of her dismay
 
 LAZARUS. 361 
 
 when she had come to the sepulchre and found the 
 body gone, and how, in the semi-darkness, she had 
 not recognised the Lord, till she had heard His voice 
 say: " Mary." 
 
 At the memory of this she fell upon her knees 
 and cried out: " Who am I, who am I, that the 
 Master should thus speak to me and say, ' Woman, 
 why weepest thou ? ' Oh, Martha, where is now 
 the sting of death, or the grave's bitterness ? All 
 life, henceforth, is one great truth, that riseth like a 
 wall of strength against man's scheming wicked- 
 ness." 
 
 And a great silence fell on all around, in the pres- 
 ence of the certainty of resurrection, the proof of a 
 beyond. 
 
 Then, after a few moments, one voice after another 
 clamoured for further details. 
 
 ' What spake He unto thee ? " asked one. 
 " How looked He?" 
 
 " How can I tell thee ?" answered Mary; " for 
 words do fail me when I think of the love and beauty 
 of that face that is always beautiful. I, in my fool- 
 ishness, made as though I would clasp His feet in 
 tenderness and love. But while I did so, He seemed 
 to vanish from my touch, and in gentlest tones He 
 said : ' Touch Me not ; for I am not yet ascended to 
 My Father: but go to My brethren, and say unto 
 them, I ascend unto My Father, and your Father; 
 and to My God, and your God.' And obediently 
 and silently I came hither, according to His word, 
 to tell the great news to the brethren and to the 
 whole world, that the Christ is risen indeed."
 
 CHAPTER XLI. 
 
 PALE-FACED, excited, with dishevelled hair, 
 Claudia rushed to her husband's room, with 
 the news brought to her by the slaves. 
 
 Hast heard ? He is risen! He is risen! " she 
 cried excitedly. 
 
 No need to give name, for Pilate, ever straight- 
 forward, made no pretence of not knowing whom 
 she meant. Yet no terror seized him ; rather a look 
 of triumph lit up his features. 
 
 " Is it even so ? " he questioned calmly. 
 
 " Speakestthou thus?" exclaimed Claudia angrily ; 
 " dost not fear that some evil shall befall us for this 
 thing?" 
 
 ' Nay, I fear naught, for naught that can befall 
 me can be worse than the dull ache which gnaweth 
 at my heart, which will ache for evermore." Then, 
 rising from his bench, he exclaimed in a changed 
 tone: " Yet how knowest thou that this thing is 
 true ? How knowest thou not that either this Man's 
 followers seek once more to bewitch the world, or 
 that Caiaphas hath not some plot of base deceit 
 with which he too would blind the eyes of the Jews ? 
 I will at once to my bath and go myself and see into 
 this thing; and, if it be true, 't is I, Pilate, who will 
 be the first to tell that priest of hell, and mark the 
 grinning infamy of his foul smile of dread. Ah, 
 
 362
 
 LAZARUS. 363 
 
 't will be sweet to me, and such moments will be 
 rare henceforth." 
 
 " 'T is verily true," said Claudia; " for the Mag- 
 dalene and Mary have seen Him, and He hath 
 spoken with them ; and they say that He hath sent 
 a wondrous message to the whole world. ' ' 
 
 Hastily Pilate dressed and left the house without 
 his usual guard. 
 
 For all it was so early, he yet found Caiaphas 
 dressed and busy writing, and he could not but ad- 
 mire the power and energy of the man. A great 
 uneasiness seized the heart of Caiaphas at this early, 
 unexpected visit, for, since the condemnation of 
 Jesus of Nazareth, he had felt ever a great restless- 
 ness and anxiety he could not account for, a dread 
 of some catastrophe whose nature he could not 
 forecast. Yet, when he rose, he sought to hide his 
 fears. 
 
 How may I serve thee ? " he inquired, his face 
 taking on the smile that so exasperated Pilate. 
 
 '" Methought I would be the first to tell thee some 
 strange news," said Pilate, in that taunting tone 
 which in one less noble-hearted would have marked 
 the bully. ' The Nazarene hath risen ! Even now 
 He walketh about Jerusalem, as though thou hadst 
 never hated Him and I had never allowed Him to 
 be condemned. At any moment He may appear to 
 thee and me, and woe betide us both." 
 
 'T is a lie! " gasped Caiaphas hoarsely, clutch- 
 ing at his table, yet failing to find it in his perturba- 
 tion ; his fingers seemed to clasp and unclasp the air 
 behind him. 
 
 " Thou were ever courteous," answered Pilate,
 
 364 LAZARUS. 
 
 14 but we Romans lie not ; we leave that to the Jews, 
 who surpass in that all other nations." 
 
 Unmindful of the taunt, Caiaphas stood silent. 
 Could this that he had just heard be true, or was 
 Pilate mocking him ? Or was it some pretended 
 miracle ? Dismay and fear showed on his counten- 
 ance, for his sense of justice told him that, if God 
 meant vengeance, it would fall heavily on him. 
 
 'T is some witchery in which thou hast helped, ' ' 
 he burst out at last, no longer able to control the 
 torrent of hate and wrath he felt against the Naza- 
 rene, Pilate, the whole world. " It is some witchery 
 of thine own soldiers. Therefore didst thou allow 
 Joseph of Arimathaea to take away the body. Thou 
 art a traitor to thy Emperor. Thou hast ever tried 
 to mock me since thou wert Procurator here, and I 
 will write to Caesar." 
 
 14 See that thou write in Latin, and not in 
 Hebrew," said Pilate, laughing at the priest's petu- 
 lance; " and send it not by a Roman soldier. 
 
 . . Ha! Ha! thou art indeed afraid, poor 
 Caiaphas, of this carpenter's Son." Then, chang- 
 ing his tone, he added: " Thou wouldst not fear 
 Him so, great Caiaphas, were it not that thou 
 knowest He is the stronger. He is stronger than 
 art thou, be He God or not. His heart is pure and 
 noble, and true and wide, wide as the ocean ; and 
 thou, thou art a base, plotting, deceiving little 
 hound of a Jew, with a mind as narrow as that." 
 And with the thumb and forefinger of his right 
 hand he portioned off the tiniest tip of the little 
 finger of his left hand. " And thy soul, if thou 
 hast indeed a soul, is foul, like water into which
 
 LAZARUS. 365 
 
 men have spat ; and them wouldst deceive the whole 
 nation for thy own power's sake, and thou wouldst 
 hound pure-living souls to their destruction, so that 
 thou and thy tool, Annas, may hold in chains each 
 Jewish heart; and, when thou diest as thou must 
 surely die to thee it will not matter whether or not 
 there be a resurrection, for thou wilt never rise again, 
 since neither heaven nor hell could hold so base a 
 soul. So now thou knowest, Caiaphas, what I 
 think of thee, and with that I bid thee farewell. 
 Henceforward, except in the Sanhedrim, we shall 
 meet no more, for Romans like not cowards ; and, if 
 there be a resurrection, all I pray is that thou and I 
 may never meet at it." 
 
 With these words, Pilate left the room, and the 
 little priest, who was huddled up in his seat, and 
 looking more like ape than exasperated man, and 
 so amazed, so swelling with rage and hate, that voice 
 and tongue refused their office. 
 
 And, when Pilate had reached the street, he raised 
 his head and took a long, deep breath, as though he 
 had been inspiring in the High Priest's chamber 
 some foul, death-dealing gas.
 
 CHAPTER XLII. 
 
 AS rapidly as possible Lazarus sent messengers 
 from one disciple to another, bidding them as- 
 semble at a given place in Jerusalem, in case the 
 Lord should appear to them. He had chosen the 
 house of a trusted friend, and, at the given hour, 
 all, except Thomas, who could not be found, as- 
 sembled. They came in singly, at short intervals, 
 lest they should attract attention, and be massacred 
 before they could perform their Lord's command to 
 spread the glad tidings of salvation throughout the 
 world. When all had come, the doors were shut 
 and barred ; then all knelt, and Lazarus raised a 
 prayer that, if it were God's will, it might be granted 
 them to see the Lord once more; also that they 
 might be quickened by the Holy Spirit, which Jesus 
 had promised should be shed upon them. 
 
 And, while he prayed, the room, that had been 
 almost dark, seemed to grow lighter and ever lighter. 
 The lightness was no natural one, for its source was 
 not apparent. It seemed to gather of itself and 
 gradually to form a column of surpassing radiance 
 in the centre of the room. Suddenly, in the midst 
 of it appeared the figure of the Lord. 
 
 So sudden and unexpected was His coming, so 
 dazzling was the brightness of His visage, that they 
 all fell upon their faces, half in worship, half in awe. 
 
 366
 
 LAZARUS. 367 
 
 Then, on the throbbing silence, words arose that 
 were to be treasured up through life and death, till 
 they should be heard once more within the gates 
 of heaven: " Peace be unto you." 
 
 And, while He spoke, He raised His hand, that 
 they might recognise Him by the cruel marks of the 
 nails. 
 
 Then again, with deep solemnity, He said, " Peace 
 be unto you." And with His hand He pointed to 
 His side, the side which Pilate, out of mercy, had 
 ordered to be pierced. " As My Father hath sent 
 Me, even so send I you." 
 
 Then, in the midst of the utter silence, it seemed 
 that He heaved a sigh, and that from those lips 
 there issued some holy essence which, in the semi- 
 darkness, took the image of a golden dove. At the 
 same moment the voice of Jesus rose distinct and 
 clear: " Receive ye the Holy Ghost." 
 
 And, at these words, it was as though lips and 
 heart had been smitten with a lightning flash, and a 
 curtain rolled away from before brain and soul. 
 And then a great peace fell on them softly, like 
 evening dew on moss, and Life and Death and Im- 
 mortality and Faith and Christ had become certain- 
 ties for evermore. And all the earth seemed alive 
 with whirring, rushing sounds of wings that filled 
 the heart with breezy gladness. 
 
 Then, in the gloaming of that spring evening, He 
 led them forth, as heretofore to Bethany, where He 
 had ever loved to be; and, in those last hours of 
 sweet companionship, He unfolded to them many 
 things that they could now the better understand 
 things that before had seemed mysterious and unreal
 
 368 LAZARUS. 
 
 how that each incident of His Passion had been 
 foretold by Moses and the prophets. Then many 
 matters that to them had seemed inexplicable stood 
 out bold and clear before their understanding, amaz- 
 ing them with their simplicity. And then He vested 
 them with power over serpents and evil spirits and 
 to heal disease, and further, to pardon sins and to 
 perform miracles ; and He bid them bear true wit- 
 ness of what they had seen and heard, and to preach 
 repentance and remission of sins. 
 
 Then from before the eyes of Lazarus there 
 seemed to rise a veil, and he saw with unerring 
 vision that as he had once died to witness to the glory 
 of the Lord, so now he was to live to show it forth. 
 
 They reached Lazarus's garden, and there fell in 
 adoring worship at His feet, pouring out their hearts 
 in gratitude for all that He had done for them ; and 
 Mary Magdalene, with faced bowed to the ground, 
 cried out: " For my sins, my Saviour, wast Thou 
 crucified; for my sins, for my sins! " 
 
 Then, in one last great act of love, He stretched 
 forth His hand and blessed them with a blessing 
 that should protect and guide them for evermore, 
 and stamp them with the seal of heaven. 
 
 The faint odours of budding flowers, the gentle 
 breeze that seemed to soften the chill of spring and 
 to waft into it a breath of summer ; the dull glow 
 that was neither light nor darkness; a strange burn- 
 ing of dread and expectancy in their hearts; the 
 hush of nature, as if all living things were listening 
 to the choir of angels waiting to welcome the coming 
 of their Lord all these combined to stamp the 
 scene upon the disciples' minds forever.
 
 LAZARUS. 369 
 
 One last parting look, and a great tearing of the 
 heart-strings ; and then, like a streak of roseate efful- 
 gence borrowed from the dying sunset, the Divine 
 Figure floated upwards ; and as He rose, His hands, 
 uplifted in one last blessing, showed the imprints of 
 the lacerating nails. And while they gazed with up- 
 turned faces to the sky, they sank once more upon 
 their knees, a strange radiance lighting up their 
 faces and shining all around; and a cry went up: 
 " Glory to God, Glory to God on earth! " 
 
 And angel voices echoed : " Glory to God in 
 heaven ! ' ' 
 
 And the stupendous act of man's redemption was 
 accomplished.
 
 CHAPTER XLIII. 
 
 THE Magdalene alone seemed inconsolable at the 
 departure of the Christ. The links between 
 her and the Nazarene had been the strongest that 
 could be forged those that bind a saved soul to its 
 saviour. He had raised the drooping soul, He had 
 sanctified her the Jews called unholy, He had placed 
 her feet on a sure foundation ; and He was associated 
 with the great redeeming joy of her life, the possi- 
 bility of beginning again a chance the world rarely 
 gives. She had few relatives, and those she had 
 had cast her off as an unclean thing. 
 
 Too many events had supervened since the journey 
 to Golgotha to permit Lazarus to give more than a 
 passing thought to that betrayal of her innermost 
 heart when she had feared that he was being drag- 
 ged off to condemnation. But now the intimate 
 life with the human Christ was over, and life must 
 needs fall back into its old routine, but with an 
 added hope, a great comfort, a great promise, that 
 would sustain and sweeten it, and make its burden 
 lighter. A great work lay before all who had be- 
 lieved in the Nazarene, had known Him to be the 
 Christ the work of testifying; and this none so 
 well as Lazarus could perform. And this possibly, 
 nay, almost certainly, would mean death death in 
 its most hideous and torturing form. On one point 
 
 370
 
 LAZARUS. 371 
 
 his mind was irrevocably fixed, all his possessions 
 should be given to the poor ; he would but keep a 
 cottage for his sisters, if so be they would not join 
 him ; all else should go, all that he had so greatly 
 treasured. Then what would remain for him to 
 offer to the Magdalene ? A great personal love and 
 a share in his Christ-work. That would be all. No 
 thought of self must ever enter either heart ; her only 
 temporal reward would be her re-instatement in the 
 eyes of the world. 
 
 Her words appealed to every sentiment of chivalry 
 and romance in him, when, at nightfall, she bade 
 farewell to them. ' Ye have been very good to 
 me, Martha and Mary," she began, while her tears 
 fell fast. ' Ye have suffered me to be with you 
 much, and have loved me for the dear Lord's sake; 
 but I am but a poor sinner and I must come no 
 more. Henceforth I will go about my Saviour's busi- 
 ness. I will seek other sinning women and tell them 
 of the Christ, and I will minister to the mother of 
 the Master." 
 
 Then, with loving tenderness Lazarus took her 
 hand. " Magdalene," he said, " thou wast beloved 
 of the Lord and favoured by Him above all other 
 women ; I too will work with thee, if thou wilt let 
 me. I will sell all I have, and will follow Him with 
 thee. Together we will journey hither and thither, 
 without scrip or purse, and, like our dear Master, 
 we will have nowhere to lay our heads. Every- 
 where we will testify of Him, but together in the 
 Lord. Wilt have me, Mary, for thy husband ? ' ' 
 And in her eyes he saw her answer and the radiant 
 gratitude of her re-awakened soul, that shone like 
 beacons in her lovely eyes.
 
 3/2 LAZARUS. 
 
 " Surely I am blessed above all women! " mur- 
 mured the Magdalene. But, while they spoke, a 
 horse's hoofs resounded on the distant road, echoing 
 freely on the stilly night. 
 
 " A messenger from Pontius Pilate," said the 
 servant ; and instinctively the Magdalene drew nearer 
 to Lazarus. 
 
 " Whom seek ye ? " he inquired. 
 
 " Lazarus, the ruler," replied the man, making 
 obeisance. Then, drawing his arm through the 
 bridle of his horse, he whispered, looking round: 
 ' I would speak with thee privately, for the Gover- 
 nor hath not dared to put this thing on paper. He 
 would warn thee that, ere coming morn, thou do 
 depart ; for the chief priests and the Pharisees have 
 heard how that the Christ hath been seen in nine 
 places since His death ; and Pilate doth fear greatly 
 that if they find thee they will kill thee." 
 
 " Greet the most noble Pilate, and thank him for 
 that he hath warned me ; tell him that we will try 
 to depart, if so be that, after prayer, we are minded 
 that our Master Jesus doth so command. But if so 
 be that death should overtake us, tell him that we 
 fear it not, and that we are ever grateful for his re- 
 membrance, and will pray for him." 
 
 Then, while the soldier was departing, Lazarus 
 turned to the Magdalene. 
 
 " Art thou still so minded," said he, " that thou 
 wouldst have me for thy husband ? The persecution 
 hath already begun, and henceforth there will be no 
 rest or peace for them who serve the Lord. Art not 
 afraid ? " 
 
 With a proud, loving gesture, the Magdalene an-
 
 LAZARUS. 373 
 
 swered : " With thee I fear naught, Lazarus; for the 
 Spirit of God will be with us always, even to the end 
 of the world." 
 
 Then, as the hour was late, she hurried down the 
 hill towards Jerusalem, her heart overflowing with 
 the joy that filled it.
 
 CHAPTER XLIV. 
 
 ENFOLDED in the intoxicating elation of earthly 
 bliss, that did not crowd out her peaceful trust 
 and thankfulness and adoration as regards the Christ, 
 the Magdalene walked quickly on. Already the 
 thrills of terrestrial joy, for which her earthly heart 
 was still most fitted, were soothing the graver griefs 
 of separation from the Christ, and she sped fearlessly 
 along the by-path of the Jericho road. It was later 
 than she thought. Olive and cactus, prickly pear 
 and pomegranate trees, all were growing grey and 
 dark ; and, as now and then she lifted her eyes and 
 tried to pierce the deepening gloom, great shadows 
 rose in front of her, like screens of night-clouds, 
 against which it seemed she must strike her body, 
 till she came close to them and saw their nothing- 
 ness swallowed up in farther deeps of shadows ; and 
 above, the glow, that had seemed like the eternal 
 eye of God, grew dimmer too, and it was really 
 night. 
 
 Presently she became conscious of a strange fear 
 not of earthly things, but of something about to 
 happen. As a new terror crept into her heart, so a 
 voice seemed to whisper, " Fear not! Fear not! " 
 
 Almost she felt a supernatural presence walking 
 by her side. Was it fancy, or was there really in 
 the darkness a faint, golden light, like atoms of 
 
 374
 
 LAZARUS. 375 
 
 heaven-sent glory ? Accustomed as she had been 
 to miracles and incomprehensible events, made be- 
 lievable only by the assurance of a great faith and 
 the daily presence of Divinity, little wonder that she 
 strove to still the beatings of her heart, to hear 
 whether voice of angel spoke. Her soul and heart 
 seemed to grow hollow and vaulted and expectant, 
 as if emptying themselves to make room for some 
 great presence to hold the voice of God ; and yet she 
 sped on, fearful of she knew not what. Why did 
 the words of the Crucified Saviour haunt her? The 
 words He had murmured through His dying agony 
 to the thief that suffered too : " This day shalt thou 
 be with Me in paradise ! " Why in the darkness did 
 she see, as it had stood before her on the darkening 
 mount of Calvary, the beauteous divine face looking 
 upward ? 
 
 For an instant she doubted whether she had sinned 
 in loving Lazarus. Then all her terrors and her 
 doubts were brought to a sudden ending at the 
 sound of a voice close by. 
 
 ' Woman! " it said. 'T was a voice she knew, 
 but not a voice divine, nor of a friend, nor yet of 
 man. A woman's voice, deep with set purpose, 
 wrung with hate, and hoarse with loathing. ' Wo- 
 man, I would speak with thee! " 
 
 Then all the fearlessness of a noble nature depend- 
 ent on divine support returned. 
 
 " What wouldst thou ? Who art thou? " asked 
 the Magdalene. 
 
 " I am the daughter of Caiaphas; and thou, thou 
 art the affianced wife of Lazarus. Is not that so ? " 
 
 " 'T is even so," said the Magdalene, in a sweet,
 
 LAZARUS. 
 
 low voice, all the gladness of that bright reality and 
 her true love ringing in her answer. 
 
 She was close now to the dark, veiled woman who 
 faced her. The two stood on the pathway, unable 
 to distinguish one another's faces, barely the outline 
 of each other's figures; only their voices and the 
 faint rustle of their clinging garments proving the 
 presence of two human beings in that solitary spot. 
 
 " Dost know that I, too, loved Lazarus, whom 
 thou hast filched from me?" asked Rebekah 
 fiercely. 
 
 " Alas! I know that thou dost love him, and I 
 grieve for thee, fair maiden," replied the Magda- 
 lene. " But thou wouldst not grudge the poor, sin- 
 ning, penitent Magdalene one little ray of joy in her 
 sad life. I have loved Lazarus dearly for many 
 years ; yet it never seemed to me that I, the harlot, 
 should have such joy as to wed Lazarus; and it 
 never could have been, but that the Lord forgave 
 me and washed me from my sins." 
 
 ' Thou shalt not wed Lazarus," cried out Re- 
 bekah, raising her hand as if to strike the Magda- 
 lene. " I tell thee thou shalt not, thou shalt not; I 
 will not have it." 
 
 " Believe me, maiden, I feel much for your grief; 
 but, if I wed not Lazarus, he will not wed another ; 
 why then be jealous of one so lowly as thy servant 
 Mary?" 
 
 " I will not have thy pity," cried Rebekah, be- 
 yond herself. ' Who art thou to dare to pity the 
 High Priest's daughter ? Thou sinning harlot, who 
 wert derided of all men and women, till this half- 
 mad Nazarene appeared and made a pastime of the
 
 LAZARUS. 377 
 
 companionship of sinners, because none other would 
 believe on Him." 
 
 " 'T is true I was a sinner and a harlot," replied 
 the Magdalene, with downcast eyes and sweet, sad 
 voice. " 1 was ; but there is that in the power of 
 God that can wipe out all sin and set one, with clean 
 feet, afresh along a new path of life, that is all joy, 
 and peace, and faith, and happiness, and love." 
 
 "Believest thou this ? " asked Rebekah musingly. 
 Then, with renewed wrath and infinite scorn, she 
 added: " Ah, 't is easy for thee to talk of all this 
 inward joy when Lazarus is thy affianced bride- 
 groom, and he loveth thee; but tell me, if I took 
 him from thee, and if he left thee, or if he died, or 
 if he loved another, what wouldst thou say then ? 
 Wouldst still have inward joy and peace and trust ? " 
 
 The night was growing chilly, and a shiver struck 
 the Magdalene's heart at Rebekah's words. She 
 paused a moment to reflect what she would do if the 
 newly opened doors of her heart were shut to again. 
 
 If Lazarus should die! It was as if her heart 
 fluttered and fainted within her, and as if from the 
 ebbings of her swooning mind there rose up mystic 
 music on the night air, that only she could hear or 
 understand : 
 
 " Yea, I will be with you always, even unto the 
 end of the world." 
 
 Then, with strengthened spirit, she raised her 
 head and looked outwards in the gloom, towards 
 where she fancied the eyes of Rebekah were looking 
 for her answer, and she said : "Yea, even if I should 
 lose Lazarus, if he should die, or love another, I 
 would still believe and love the Lord.'
 
 3/8 LAZARUS. 
 
 While she spoke, Rebekah uttered not a word, 
 and all nature, the creeping things of night, the 
 humming, buzzing things that hang on trees and 
 boughs, all seemed to hush to do obeisance to the 
 soul the Lord had won. 
 
 Then, like a beacon from heaven, a faint moon 
 crept out from behind the clouds, so that the two 
 women could just discern each other on the path- 
 way; and the Magdalene looking, saw the face of 
 Rebekah glowing with anger, distorted by a sullen 
 despair and wounded vanity and wrath ; and, in her 
 heart, there rose a tender feeling for this woman, 
 who loved and was not loved by Lazarus. And all 
 this time Rebekah's arm was beating with strange, 
 nervous movement beneath her cloak. She found it 
 hard to anger herself with one so meek and gentle as 
 Mary Magdalene ; but the fierce, unrelenting, domi- 
 neering spirit of Caiaphas was strong within her. 
 To be spurned by Lazarus, triumphed over by a 
 harlot, how could so proud a nature brook such 
 ignominy ? 
 
 "Am I not as beautiful as thou ?" she asked, 
 turning, while she did so, without knowing it, her 
 beautiful face upward toward the moon. " Why 
 should Lazarus not love me ? " 
 
 " Thou art indeed more beautiful than I," replied 
 the Magdalene; " but who can direct love ? " 
 
 " I tell thee he shall love me," cried Rebekah, 
 growing furious again, like a stormy sea that has 
 been calm during a short lull. " He shall need 
 me, he shall serve me, and, if thou wert not here, 
 I would make him love me. It is thou, thou, who 
 hast beguiled the hearts of thousands of men with
 
 LAZARUS. 379 
 
 thy witchcrafts ; thou, who hast united thyself with 
 this prince of darkness that calleth Himself the 
 Christ and is no God at all, who triest by thy 
 foul treacheries to take him from me. I tell thee 
 thou shalt die; or, if thou live and wed Lazarus, 
 then Lazarus shall die a horrible death; and it 
 will be thy pride, thy foul beguilings, that will 
 have caused it." 
 
 " I fear thee not," replied the Magdalene, " for 
 the Lord would not permit Lazarus yet to die ; or, 
 if He should, He would surely bring him to life an- 
 other time that he might testify of Him. Thou art 
 mad, most noble maiden, for love of Lazarus. Be 
 calm, be patient, and forget this thing, and turn 
 unto the Lord." 
 
 "Ah, thou canst speak like this, who hast thy 
 soul's desire; but I will not have it to be robbed by 
 thee of Lazarus. I tell thee I will not." And she 
 stamped her feet and gazed close into the Magda- 
 lene's face. 
 
 "I rob thee not, maiden, since he loves thee not," 
 replied the Magdalene; " and this is no place for 
 thee so late. Should any pass, what would they say 
 to see the proud daughter of Caiaphas in the olive 
 groves at night ? " 
 
 " I care not what they say, so Lazarus loves me 
 not," Rebekah answered waywardly, her voice end- 
 ing in a sob. " I care not, I know not; only I know 
 that there is no room on earth for thee and me and 
 him ; and one must die. Seest thou this ? " and she 
 raised a dagger in her hand ; in the moon's pale 
 gleam it looked like a flaming needle. " Seest 
 thou this ? "
 
 380 LAZARUS. 
 
 The Magdalene bent her eyes on it, and a great 
 fear crept over her. 
 
 " Well, either thou or Lazarus shall die by this. 
 I would rather it were thou ; but, if thou weddest 
 Lazarus, then will I kill him." 
 
 Helplessly the Magdalene looked around her; but 
 save where, here and there, the moon half-heartedly 
 lit up a tree, the darkness was profound. In her 
 heart she cried to Heaven for help, for her own 
 thoughts were so bewildered that she failed to real- 
 ise that a great purpose was being accomplished. 
 
 Who was she to wed a man so good as Lazarus ? 
 Why had she ever thought such sins as hers could 
 end with such mad joy ? And Lazarus, what if her 
 love and presence should hamper him along the path 
 he had cut out ; what if these two brands, plucked 
 from the fire and united in the fierce flames of 
 earthly passion, should forget forget their close 
 companionship with the Christ, the Immortal Ex- 
 ample, the Stupendous Sacrifice, the gigantic trust 
 He had left behind, the forgiveness, the miracles, 
 the gift of the Holy Spirit, their mission to others ? 
 Then a voice that seemed to her as if the Christ still 
 spoke on earth, a voice that, with its music as of 
 low-pitched organs playing by the side of mountain 
 torrents, brought back the remembrance of a holy 
 adoration that pressed out all possibility of lesser or 
 mere earthly love ; that voice spoke to her once more 
 the words, " Greater love hath no man than this, 
 that a man lay down his life for his friend." 
 
 "If it must be Lazarus or I," she murmured 
 faintly for the flesh is very weak; the weaker, 
 when the spirit is the strongest, as if the devil cried
 
 LAZARUS. 381 
 
 out for his own " If it must be Lazarus or I, kill 
 me, for Lazarus must testify." And she bared her 
 lovely bosom with proud gesture to the poignard, 
 pressing against it that the pain might be the sooner 
 over, that the sharp steel might sever the cords of 
 life with swifter touch ; then she sank on to her knees 
 and, as her head fell back, she cried: " Forgive 
 her, Lord, for she knoweth not. She loveth much ; 
 forgive her much as Thou forgavest me. O Lord, 
 receive my soul! " 
 
 Then she fell quite back and died, and, as she fell, 
 Rebekah leaned over her and smiled with a hard, 
 triumphant smile, but with the light of madness in 
 her eyes. Then, when the Magdalene moved not, 
 her eyes opened wide with horror, and as the dark 
 red current gushed in a ceaseless torrent to the 
 ground from her white bosom, Rebekah held her 
 hands with horrific terror to her head and watched. 
 At last, once she shrieked ; then tore madly through 
 the grove of olive trees towards the home of Caia- 
 phas. And the Magdalene lay dead beneath the 
 dawn-tinted trees, the will of God accomplished. 
 At rest at last.
 
 CHAPTER XLV. 
 
 ELL all that thou hast, take up thy cross, and 
 follow Me," murmured Lazarus, while he 
 bent over the dead body of the beauteous Magda- 
 lene, now lying on the very couch on which he him- 
 self had died. 
 
 She had been found close to Jerusalem, stabbed 
 in the heart by some foul hand. None would ever 
 know the quick, hot words, the madness-given 
 strength of the proud woman who had stabbed her 
 in her jealousy. None would ever know how Laza- 
 rus mourned his bride. He had sold all that he pos- 
 sessed ; had this too been a possession that would 
 have kept his soul back from the great work of testi- 
 fying ? If so, blessed be the Lord who giveth and 
 taketh away; he, too, must tread the winepress 
 alone. 
 
 A ship was waiting to take Lazarus and Mary 
 away to where he could preach the gospel unmo- 
 lested. Simon could not make up his mind to let 
 both daughters leave him in his old age ; so it had 
 been decided that Martha should remain with him. 
 The spirit of the Eternal One had shown Lazarus 
 that he would not have been restored to life only to 
 die again at once. The Lord had commanded him 
 to testify. This he must needs do, and, to do so, 
 
 382
 
 LAZARUS. 383 
 
 he must leave Judaea; for, everywhere, a price was 
 offered for his capture. 
 
 He had hoped to carry away with him the living 
 Magdalene, but the Lord had willed it otherwise. 
 Perhaps she had deserved a better fate, a rest for all 
 her taunts and trials. 
 
 In the beautiful garden of Bethany, where the 
 almond tree and pomegranate were now just putting 
 forth their buds, where the feet of the Lord had so 
 often stood, they buried her, and Martha and Mary 
 combed with loving tenderness the tresses that had 
 wiped the feet of Jesus. And on her bosom Laza- 
 rus placed a little cross of cedarwood, the first that 
 had been made in record of the Christ's shameful 
 death; the symbol that was to become the only 
 staff of comfort in the valley of death, that dark, 
 terror-beset ravine that must be traversed ; the dark 
 shadow thrown across eternal sunshine. And over 
 the grave they planted the myrtle in token of love, 
 and little cypress trees. 
 
 And then the two who had so loved the Lord left 
 Bethany and Judaea for ever, and sailed forth to 
 preach to other nations the great truth of salvation 
 that had been rejected by the Jews. 
 
 THE END.
 
 DATE DUE 
 
 PKINTEOINU S A
 
 UC SOUTHERN REGIONAL LIBRARY FACILITY 
 
 A 000811 287 2