The First Book of Samuel by SAREJESS (epub read online books txt) 📕

upset the tables of the money changers. What a scene that had been. The whole city had been in uproar. After that, then he had returned to preach and teach in the precincts of the temple. The temple authorities had tried in many ways to catch him out in points of the law, but some how this simple carpenter from the backwater town of Nazareth had outwitted them with his simple wisdom and knowledge of the Law of Moses.

Yesterday one of his followers, Judas had come to the inn asking for a room for the carpenter and his followers to spend the Passover. Samuel had jumped at the chance to be of service to this prophet and his followers. The bargain had been quickly struck and Samuel had rushed off to arrange things. Then, just before dusk, the carpenter and his followers had arrived and he had shown them to the upper room which he had given them for the duration of the Passover. Later in the night Judas had slipped out. He seemed quite upset. He handed Samuel a few coins and was gone. A while later, the rest of the group had left, apparently on some urgent business. Later Samuel had heard that one of the disciples of Jesus had betrayed him to the Sanhedrin and Jesus had been taken in for questioning. This in itself Samuel found strange. The Sanhedrin did not sit at night as a rule and more especially during the days approaching Passover.
Now Samuel was aware that when Ruth had died she had a strong and unshakable faith in this man. His words had penetrated the cold heart of a woman who had in her life been some times a very unpleasant person to live with. Their love however, had endured until the day she had died. Now the young man who had caused such a change in her was on his way to his death and what a death it was. To die this gruesome way; nailed to a tree, it was a death fit for murderers and lawbreakers, but this prophet, reasoned Samuel, had done nothing to warrant such a death. Yet earlier that morning the crowds had shouted “Crucify him! Crucify him! Give us Barabbas!” So much so, that the Roman governor, who was not known for his kindness had allowed the zealot and murderer to go free, while an innocent man was lead to the tree.

Now in a sea of thousands of people, Samuel felt all alone. His heart was, in a strange way, affected by this man’s agonies. Earlier they had laid the whip upon his back and given him the customary 39 lashes. This they had determined was the most that a man could take, for if one lash more was laid upon his open flesh he would surely die. The whip had laid open his back, its strands laced with pieces of bone and stones which tore out a man’s vitals. Then mocking him, they had placed a crown of thorns on his head and a robe of purple around his bleeding and battered shoulders and jeeringly hailed him as King. This had not pleased the religious authorities whom had cried out at this mockery, that they had no king but Caesar. Now the vast crowd moved towards Golgotha's hill.

Samuel followed the crowd, watching as the condemned men were first stripped of their remaining clothing. The Romans meant to humiliate their victims by removing the last vestiges of human dignity. Thereafter, the victims were forced to the ground and their terrible ordeal begun in earnest. From this point, there was only one outcome; a slow agonizing death due to loss of blood and the build up of poisonous gas in the victim’s system. Thus Samuel watched as the man’s hands moved into position. One of the other condemned men screamed as the first blow of the hammer drove home the nail. When the victim’s arms had thus been fastened to the cross beam, they were hoisted high. Agonizing screams of pain rang through the air as each man, nailed to their cross, was lifted upright, which in this case was a number of denuded olive trees. With their feet fastened quickly to the upright with another long nail the long agony had begun. Samuel stood weeping as did a small group of women who were obviously family members and a few close friends of the carpenter. The sky was growing dark with clouds. It was going to rain that might bring some relief to the city which was sweltering in the heat. The condemned men though, would find no comfort from the rain.


27 AD the evening after Pentecost
“Well there certainly has been a lot of strange goings on here in Jerusalem in the last few weeks,” thought Samuel. It had started with the crucifixion of the carpenter from Nazareth, which Samuel had watched but before too long he turned away and hurried back to the inn. There were a lot of preparations for the coming Passover and Samuel more then ever wanted to do things right this year, the first without Ruth.

At midday the sky had become as night. Residents of the city had looked at the heavens with fear. Then at about three in the afternoon there had been a minor earthquake and the city was abuzz with rumors of the curtain which covered the Holy of Holies been torn asunder. There was also some minor damage to other parts of the city and then the followers of the carpenter had returned just before sunset entering quietly, some of them weeping. Samuel thought to himself at the time “This is not much of a Passover for those poor people. That poor woman had just buried her first born son and now she is in a strange city celebrating the greatest Holy day of the Jewish year and grieving over her son.”

Strangely the following Sunday before the sun had risen, some of the women had left carrying jars to perform the cleaning ritual on the dead man as required by the Law of Moses since there had not been time to do so the day of his crucifixion, only to return just after the sun had risen in a very excited state. Samuel had opened the door for them and watched as they hurried up the stairs to the room which he had put at their disposal. There was an uproar and a short while after, a number of the men who, up until now, had been as quiet as mice, came rushing down the stairs and demanded that Samuel open the door. Hurriedly he had opened the door. The big man who seemed to be their spokesperson, now rushed out the door followed by another of the followers of Jesus.

Later that Sunday in the market, Samuel had heard the whispers and the remarks. The gossip mongers were busy this morning, he thought. At the time there had been reports of tombs being thrown open and the righteous dead within these tombs had been seen walking about the city. “Hardly credible” thought Samuel. Then the latest news, which was being spread about the followers of the Nazarene, had said that angels had spirited away his body. An even stranger tale because as far as Samuel knew the Sanhedrin had insisted that the Roman authorities place a guard on the tomb, for had Jesus not said he would rise on the third day? Those who knew the Roman law, knew that if the guards who kept watch in that lonely graveyard had been neglectful of their duty, they would be put to death, yet the story persisted. Then there was the story that the followers of Jesus had been spreading about that he had indeed risen from the grave and would not many days hence meet with them. Samuel had returned to the inn more confused then usual at this turn of events. Later in the evening there had been raised voices in the upper room and Samuel had wanted to go up and have a look at what was causing the noise but thought better to leave them. They are still grieving; it would seem improper to disturb them during this time.

In the days following the disappearance of the Nazarene the followers of Jesus had been strangely quiet, seldom leaving the room; although they had left the room for a few days. Upon their return they had seemed strangely expectant of some, as yet unmentioned event in the last few hours. There had been some strange goings on in the upper room. A large number of the followers had gathered to pray. Then there had been the sound like the winds, which sometimes came rushing off the desert. But this was not the time for the wind, which enveloped the city in hot dust and yet the building had been filled with the sound of a mighty wind and there had been an unseen presence which had stopped Samuel in his tracks. He had been walking into the front room of the inn when the noise had come. He had found himself at the same time frightened and overjoyed by the wind. Somewhere deep in his soul he knew this wind meant him no harm but he had found himself on his knees weeping uncontrollably.

Then from the room upstairs had come the sound of many voices raised, speaking all at once. In the hullabaloo he heard the voices of Egyptians, Syrians, Greeks, Romans, Mesopotamian and Persians.

The followers of Jesus had streamed down the stairs and out on to the streets all talking at once all smiling all shouting praises to the JHWH giving thanks for the resurrection of there Saviour. Samuel recovered his equilibrium and wondered what had come over him hurrying out into the street he followed the group of men and woman who made their way to the temple. Entering the temple, they moved into the court of the Gentiles. Here they began to preach. The big man, who had seemed so fearful on the Sunday following the crucifixion of Jesus, seemed strangely transfigured. He stood upon the steps and raised his voice. "Yea men of Israel, harken to the word of the JHWH" he shouted. People who had been going about their daily worship turned and moved towards the man to hear what he had to say. It was not uncommon for persons who were caught up by the Spirit of JHWH to prophesy. Samuel turned away and made his way to the gate, no longer wishing to see what would happen to this man. He had witnessed what they had done to Jesus and he had no desire to see what the Sanhedrin would do to this follower of Jesus.
Later in the evening as he reflected and thought of the stories he had heard of the day’s events in the temple, thousands had flocked to hear the words of the man Peter, disciple of Jesus, whom they were now calling Christ. Peter had preached a message of Salvation in the belief of Christ come the messiah Jesus. If you would only but believe that he had died and had risen to pay the price for the forgiveness of sins. Peter had shouted across the ancient precincts of the temple of JHWH. The Sanhedrin was in emergency meetings to determine the seriousness of this new threat from the followers of Jesus. “I bet they are sorry they put him to death” reflected Samuel “Serve them right self-righteous bunch of hypocrites”. It was said that many thousands had heard the call and were now joining the followers of Jesus.


CHAPTER THREE
70 AD The temple is burning Samuel
The fighting had got worse. The citizens of the city now crowded into an ever-decreasing circle; found