The lady of Bethezob dwelt in Zadok's house, and her domestics were
busily employed the following day in removing the traces of the
incursion of the Zealots. It was hopeless to seek any restitution of
the valuable effects which had been carried off, or any punishment of
the offenders; for who could enter their strongholds, and bear away
any of their members before a tribunal of justice? Javan took
advantage of the late occurrence to plead with great eloquence in the
council that evening the necessity of inviting Simon and his powerful
band to enter the city, and protect the inhabitants from the violence
of John of Gischala and his ruffian crew. His arguments had great
weight with his hearers; and some who had hitherto opposed his
object, now began to fear that it was the only step which remained to
them, by which they could hope to check the oppressions of their
present masters. Isaac was a warm supporter of all Javan's
proposals: he had always inclined to the admission of the son of
Gioras; and he now ardently desired the adoption of any measure by
which the insolence of the Zealots might be chastised, and vengeance
obtained for the injury done to the lovely daughter of Eleazar.
The wealth of this lady, as well as her beauty, had engaged the
attention of the counsellor. He was a constant visitor at her house;
and finding that his society was welcome to Mary, he had determined
to make proposals of marriage to her. The destruction and loss of so
much of her valuable furniture and household effects, as he had
witnessed the preceding evening, had exasperated him greatly, and
excited a strong desire for revenge against the aggressors; but he
knew that her possessions in land and money were so great as to
render the injury easily reparable, and he made up his mind no longer
to delay his proposals.
The council being almost unanimous on the subject of Simon, Javan
next informed them of the discovery he had made of the adoption of
the Nazarene religion by the members of his own hitherto unsullied
family. The recital was listened to with great interest by the
assembly, who were all exceedingly zealous for the honour of the law
of Moses and the traditions of the elders,--but most lamentably
negligent of God's eternal law of mercy and justice. They triumphed
in the proof they had now obtained that Javan's suspicions had been
correct; and more maliciously still did they exult in the near
prospect of seizing on the objects of their hatred, and wreaking on
them all that cruelty and bigotry could suggest. Javan did not wish
that his uncle and his family should be put to death. He desired
that by rigorous imprisonment and other sufferings they should be
induced to retract their opinions; and he obtained a promise from his
colleagues, that every effort should be used to bring them back to
the true faith before any extreme measures should be resorted to. He
also stipulated that his sister should not be captured. He had not
yet stifled every feeling of affection for her; nor could he
contemplate the idea of his mother's anguish, if Naomi was to be torn
from her, without some sympathy. He trusted that when she saw the
evils to which her relatives were exposed by their religion, she
would be affrighted for her new opinions, and gladly return to the
faith for which she had once been so zealous. He knew not the soul
of his heroic sister, or the power of true Christian faith to make a
weaker spirit than hers meet shame, and death, and agony unmoved!
The assembly broke up, after having appointed a body of guards to
attend Javan to Bethany the following evening, and to obey his
commands in all things; and the young Pharisee then turned his steps
homewards, accompanied by Isaac. All in Zadok's house appeared
cheerful and at peace, for Naomi had not communicated her own uneasy
feelings and apprehensions even to her mother; and she exerted
herself to appear in more than her usual spirits. Never did she sing
more sweetly, or converse with more animation; and so gaily did she
play with little David, and follow his sportive steps from place to
place, that Javan began to imagine that he had been deceived by
Reuben, or that the man himself had mistaken some other persons for
his sister and Claudia. But yet the minuteness of the particulars
which the informer had related, and the names of the individuals
which he had repeated, forced him to believe his testimony,
corroborated as it was by his own previous suspicions; and he
concluded that Naomi was rejoicing in the prospect of her beloved
relatives being so quickly removed beyond his reach, and in the hope
that her own share in their guilt would remain unknown. She looked
so lovely and so innocent, that he thought she could not yet have
imbibed very deeply those opinions which he believed to be so impious
and so productive of evil; and he longed to see her again restored to
her duty, and taking a cheerful part in all those Jewish rites and
ceremonies in which he had so often beheld her the admiration of all.
Isaac too was much struck with her beauty, her accomplishments, and
her amiable manners; and he privately encouraged Javan to adopt
gentle measures with her, and if possible to conceal her errors from
her parents, until he had himself endeavoured to correct them by
argument and persuasion and even by threats.
Before the counsellor departed that evening, he took an opportunity
of declaring his hopes and wishes to Mary; and she returned a
favourable answer. She wished for rank and distinction; and though
she had no particular attachment or esteem for Isaac, yet she
considered that by uniting herself to him she should obtain the
object of her ambition; and as the wife of so noble and powerful a
man, she should meet with more consideration, and possess more
influence than in her widowed and solitary state. She therefore
consented that when her affairs could be settled, and her estates in
Peræa disposed of, for the benefit of her son after her death, she
would bestow her hand on Isaac; and the arrangement was made known to
Zadok and his family as her nearest relatives. They had nothing to
oppose to her choice, though her suitor was by no means a favourite
with any of them, except Javan. He rejoiced greatly in the proposed
connexion, as he thought that Isaac would thus be more firmly united
to his own party, and by his increased wealth, be better enabled to
assist his projects, and obtain fresh adherents.
The morning of the next day was passed in completing the various
preparations for the final departure of Amaziah and his family, and
the short absence of Zadok and Naomi. The priest had agreed to his
brother's wish of hastening the journey, though he did not
acknowledge the necessity for it, or believe that there was any cause
for apprehension. He did not partake in his son's fanatical views,
or consider that the cause of religion would be advanced by cruelty
and persecution. It was well known that he was devoted to the Jewish
faith, and that he firmly believed there was no salvation for any who
departed from it: but it was also well known that his soul was full
of mercy and compassion, and that he would not injure those whom he
considered to be in a state of perdition already, and therefore Javan
and his colleagues never confided their schemes against the Nazarenes
to him. His violent anger at the discovery of his daughter's
conversion to Christianity had subsided into a milder feeling of
disappointed love and sorrow. He could not continue to treat with
harshness the affectionate and dutiful child, who had always been the
object of his pride and hopes, and who now sought by every means in
her power to win back his love and merit his approbation. The one
only subject on which she refused to listen to his authority, was her
new religion; and on that subject she always replied to him with such
gentleness and humility, and yet with such a holy zeal and firmness,
that he was constrained to admire even while he sharply rebuked her.
She had been restored to her accustomed place in the family on the
return of Javan, and had gradually resumed much of her influence over
her parents. In all customs and ceremonies that were indifferent she
conformed to the practice of her family, but in the retirement of her
own chamber she followed the manner of worship which she had learned
so highly to prize, and perused with untiring attention some portions
of the Gospels, which she had copied while at Pella from the precious
manuscripts possessed by some of her Christian brethren residing
there. No alteration was perceptible to those who frequented the
house, except that Naomi was more amiable, more obliging, and more
gentle in her temper and disposition than formerly. The
contemplation of her lovely character, which so beautifully reflected
the graces of the Christian model, tended greatly to soften the
severity of Zadok's prejudices against the Nazarenes; and for her
sake he would have been unwilling to join in any act of oppression
towards those whom she loved as her kindred, and more especially
those who were united to her by the ties both of near relationship
and a common faith. He rejoiced that his brother was about to remove
from Jerusalem, for he hoped that when Naomi was left alone, and
entirely deprived of the society of Christians, she would probably be
induced to relinquish her newly adopted opinions; and therefore he
the more readily lent his aid to the hasty completion of the
arrangements.
Mules and horse-litters were prepared, and a strong body of the
domestic servants of both Zadok and Amaziah were furnished with arms,
and appointed to act as guards to the party. A messenger was also
dispatched to Joppa in search of Rufus, to request, if he were
already there, that he would send the promised band of soldiers to
meet them at Lydda on the day now fixed for their journey, instead of
that more distant day which had been at first appointed. The baggage
was all packed, and everything was ready; nothing remained but to bid
farewell to Mary of Bethany, and consign her to the care of Benjamin.
Judith informed Zadok of their intention to visit their old and
beloved friend on that evening, and earnestly requested that Naomi
might be permitted to accompany them. She urged that it would be the
last time that she should have it in her power to lead her niece to
receive the blessing of that holy woman, which, whether she were a
Jew or a Nazarene, could surely bring no evil on her head; and it
would be a grief to Naomi if a friend whom she respected and loved so
much were to die without her having seen her once more. The priest
almost shuddered at the idea of his child receiving the benediction
of one whom he knew to have been so devoted an attendant and disciple
of Jesus of Nazareth; but he remembered that Naomi had already chosen
her lot with his followers, and that one more interview with her
former instructor could have no particular influence over her
opinions. He therefore gave his consent, though unwillingly, and
only on condition that Naomi should solemnly promise never again to
make any attempt at seeing Mary after her return from Joppa.
Javan had absented himself from home nearly the whole day, to Naomi's
great relief; and towards sunset she joined her uncle and his family,
and all together proceeded by the well-known path up the Mount of
Olives towards Bethany. As a proper precaution in case of Javan's
having actually discovered their intention, Amaziah took with him
several well-armed servants, and he and Theophilus were furnished
with swords and daggers. They arrived at the dwelling of their
friend, and entered as they were accustomed to do, without knocking,
leaving the armed domestics to watch at the entrance. The first
objects that met their view filled them with apprehensions that the
venerable saint had already departed, and that their farewell visit
was too late. Hannah was kneeling by the couch on which Mary was
laid; and as the door opened, she turned, and held up her finger in
token of silence. The tears were rolling down her cheeks, and sorrow
was strongly depicted in her countenance. Judith and Naomi stepped
lightly and quickly to the bedside, and Hannah drew aside the curtain
that shaded the dying Christian from the light of a lamp that was
suspended from the ceiling. Then they saw that life was not yet
extinct, but was ebbing gently and swiftly away. Judith beckoned to
her husband, and he with his son and Claudia advanced, with noiseless
steps, and they all stood silently to gaze on that form which they
perceived would ere long be seen no more on earth Mary's eyes were
closed, and the pallid hue of death was on her cheek. So motionless,
so calm she lay, that but for the deep and heavy breathing and a
slight movement of her parted lips, it might have seemed that she was
already dead. But her spirit was conscious still, and she was
praying at that moment that she might yet be spared to see her
expected and well-beloved friends, and bless them before her death;
yet her bodily senses were deadened, and she did not perceive that
her prayer was already granted.
Presently she opened her eyes, and was casting anxious look towards
the door, when she beheld all those she so ardently desired to see,
standing around her, and in a weak and faltering voice she exclaimed,
"Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace! My children, my
beloved children in the Lord, this is a blessing that I had scarcely
hoped for. The day has seemed long to me, for I knew that it must
close ere my dying eyes could look on you; and I feared this heart
would cease to beat before the time appointed for your coming. But
the Lord who has supported and blessed me all my days, has heard my
last request. Come near, that I may bless you all." They gathered
closely round her, and knelt in reverential silence, while she moved
her trembling hands, and laid them in succession on their heads.
"Oh, my Redeemer," she said, "thou who didst suffer death in all its
agonies, that thou mightest take away its sting from those who
believe in thee, in the hearing of these thy servants I would testify
thy power to vanquish the last enemy, and make the dark valley of the
shadow of death light and glorious by thy presence. Leave me not,
neither forsake me, O God of my salvation, and may the last words I
utter bear witness to thy love. Bless with thy choicest blessings
these thy children, whom thou hast called to the knowledge of thy
name; and of thy great mercy keep them in the way of everlasting
life. May their course in this world be happy, if it be for their
eternal good. But if thou seest that trials and sorrows are needful
for them, oh strengthen and support them, and make them more than
conquerors over every temptation and every spiritual foe. And when,
their mortal race is run, and the crown of immortality is on their
brow, may we meet and rejoice together around thy throne, and sing
thy praise for evermore, for thou hast redeemed us to God by thy
blood, and to thy name be all the glory!"
"Amen," replied the kneeling disciples with one heart and one voice,
while they bent their heads in deep devotion, and tears, which were
not of sorrow, flowed from every eye.
At this moment a loud noise was heard near the entrance, as of armed
men struggling to force open the door, and horrid imprecations were
uttered against those who opposed them. Mary shuddered, and turned
her dying eyes with intense anxiety to inquire the cause of this
untimely violence, while Amaziah and Theophilus sprang on their feet,
and drawing their swords prepared to resist the intrusion. It was a
moment of awful suspense; but soon the door was burst open, and
several men rushed in with swords and poniards, followed by the
servants of Amaziah, who had vainly endeavoured to prevent their
entrance. The spectacle that met their view was able to check the
progress even of these ruffians--and they stood transfixed to the
spot, looking with awe and admiration on the expiring saint, and the
lovely girls who, with Judith and Hannah, still knelt by her side,
and strove to overcome their own fears and support their sinking
friend.
"Behold," said Amaziah, "the victim you come to seek: she is beyond
the reach of human cruelty. Her spotless soul is winging its way to
the presence of its God and Father, to bear testimony against those
whose violence disturbed the last moments of its abode on earth."
"Say not so," murmured Mary faintly; "my dying voice shall plead for
their pardon, in the words of Him who died for them, 'Father, forgive
them, for they know not what they do!'"
A smile of pure benevolence and holy joy lighted up her countenance,
and then faded away like the last rays of the setting sun on the cold
surface of a wreath of snow. All was still--and friends and foes
forgot for a moment all other feelings, in the contemplation of the
awful change. Death looked beautiful on her placid features, which
were as calm as those of a sleeping infant.
"She is not dead, but sleepeth," said Amaziah, in tone of deep
solemnity. "May we die the death of the righteous, and may our last
end be like hers!"
The evil intentions of the ruffian band had been checked, but not
destroyed. The wonder and awe which had held them motionless had
passed away; and again they grasped their weapons, and looked for
orders towards their leaders. These were two powerful-looking men,
in complete disguise, their faces being entirely concealed, and
themselves clothed in an uncouth and foreign garb. They had not
entered the apartment at the same time with their attendants, but
remained at the entrance in conflict with some of Amaziah's servants,
whom they succeeded in disarming, and then joined the rest of their
band, as their intended victim uttered her last words of pious
intercession.
One of these strangers turned away, and his manly form trembled for a
moment with emotions that he sought to suppress; but the other called
to his men in a stern voice to do their errand, and not be affrighted
from their duty to God and man by the corpse of an accursed Nazarene.
The impious appellation seemed to recall his comrade from his
momentary weakness, and he rushed forward towards Theophilus with his
sword uplifted, and already stained with blood from the conflict
which had preceded his entrance. Claudia saw the fierce advance, and
knew that it could be no other than Javan, who thus singled out her
beloved Theophilus as the object of his rage. She forgot all other
feelings in terror for the safety of him she loved, and springing
forward, she placed herself before him, and cried:
"Javan, if blood be your object, shed mine: I am a Roman maid, allied
to your bitterest enemies. But seek not to take the life of your
countryman, your relative, and the ornament of your house."
The stranger was startled, but he spoke not. He wished not to
confirm the suspicions of Claudia, by letting her hear his voice, but
seizing her arm, he flung her aside; and as Theophilus caught her and
prevented her from falling to the ground, he aimed a blow at his
shoulder, and inflicted a wound that entirely disabled him. The
blood flowed over the dress of Claudia, and all her sudden courage
forsook her. She fainted away, and Theophilus was forced to
relinquish her to the care of Naomi, and endeavour feebly to defend
himself from the assaults of Javan. Meanwhile the chamber of death
had become the scene of a furious conflict. The servants of Amaziah
fought valiantly against a superior force, to defend their master and
his family; while their foes endeavoured to secure them captives, and
not to take their lives. Amaziah and Theophilus loudly called on the
women to escape from the house by the back entrance, while they kept
the assailants at bay; but Claudia's helpless condition, and anxiety
for the fate of their defenders, kept them in the room. They stood
by the bed of the lifeless Mary, on which they had laid Claudia also,
now apparently as inanimate as their departed friend, and utterly
unconscious of all that was going-on around her. Perhaps it was well
for her that she was so, though she only awaked to a sense of utter
misery.
The attacks of Javan and his comrade were evidently directed
principally towards Theophilus; and at length while his father and
the servants were occupied with the rest of the band, they succeeded
in securing him, exhausted as he was with exertion and loss of blood.
They hastily bound him with a strong rope, and endeavoured to drag
him from the house by the back entrance, near which they had seized
and overpowered him; but Naomi saw their intent, and loudly calling
to her uncle for aid she flew to her cousin, and rendered desperate
by excitement and alarm, she employed her strength so well as to
impede the design of Javan, and enable Amaziah to come to the rescue
Judith and Hannah stood in the way, and sought to close and bolt the
door; but what could the efforts of weak and terrified women avail
against the power and resolution of a band of armed and cruel men?
Several of Amaziah's servants were bounded, and those who were not
disabled could no longer maintain the unequal contest. They saw that
their master was in danger of being made a prisoner as well as
Theophilus, and they exerted all their courage and strength for his
preservation and that of his son. The struggle was violent and well
maintained; but alas! the faithful domestics only succeeded in
disengaging Amaziah from the grasp of the ruffians, and Theophilus
was borne away. His father would have followed the retreating steps
of the ruffians, but his servants forcibly detained him, as they were
convinced that such an attempt would only lead to his own capture;
and in grief and horror the afflicted family stood by the corpse of
Mary and the senseless form of Claudia, to consider what steps should
be taken for the safety of the unhappy Theophilus.
To hasten back to the city, and employ all their influence with Zadok
and his powerful friends, was the first impulse; but what could they
do with Claudia, in her present helpless state, or how should they
inform her of the calamity which had befallen them all? While they
prepared some rude contrivance to carry her with them, she revived,
and her first words were to inquire for Theophilus.
"He is gone to the city, my daughter," replied Judith; "and there I
hope we shall soon see him safe and free."
"But he was wounded," said Claudia, confusedly: "I felt the warm
blood flow on my cheek. Why is he gone away? he would not have left
me senseless. But I remember now--oh, the dreadful truth comes over
my brain! Javan has forced him away, and Javan will destroy him. I
always knew that he would bring desolation into my heart; and it is
done!"
A flood of tears somewhat relieved her bursting grief, and then she
wildly sprang up, and cried,
"But why do we tarry here? Come, Naomi, we will fly to the city, and
with my dear adopted parents, we will kneel and weep at Javan's feet
until we melt even his heart of stone. Farewell, dear sainted Mary!
It is well that your eyes were closed in death before this blow fell
on those you loved so much--and oh! if my eyes are not again to
behold Theophilus, I would that they had never opened from the trance
that spared me the sight of his defeat!"
Thus passionately did the unhappy girl give vent to her feelings; and
to her disposition it was a relief to do so. Meanwhile Amaziah gave
some hasty directions to Hannah concerning the burial of the
deceased, and promised to send some of his domestics, who were of the
same holy religion, to assist her in performing it as secretly as
possible at break of day, and if possible to attend himself. He
feared that the priests might hear of her death, and send to seize on
her corpse, that they might bury it according to their own
ceremonies; and therefore he desired two of the servants who had
attended him that evening to remain with Hannah, and prepare a humble
grave for her beloved mistress, in the large and well-planted garden
belonging to the house. He further desired Hannah to linger no
longer in that dwelling, after the last duties had been paid to Mary,
but to accompany his servants to Jerusalem, and take up her abode
with him and his family, until his son could be liberated, when she
should travel with them to Ephesus, and find a refuge and a home
wherever they should dwell.
The afflicted family then left the house, and by the light of the
torches with which they were provided, they bent their way towards
the city. They were startled on entering the public road to perceive
a band of men, also carrying lighted torches, approaching towards
them, and for a moment they supposed that it was Javan returning to
make a fresh attack; but the voice of their friend Benjamin speedily
reassured them, and they hastened to communicate to him the death of
Mary, and the subsequent calamitous event. It was now no longer
necessary for the kind-hearted Benjamin to proceed to Mary's house,
and he therefore insisted on joining his body of attendants to that
of Amaziah, and conducting him and his family safe to their home; and
in the litter which had been destined to carry the departed
Christian, he placed Claudia, whose weakness made her almost
incapable of proceeding on foot. Naomi and Judith walked beside her,
and sought by every argument they could find to calm her agitation,
and persuade her that there was every reason to hope for the speedy
relief of Theophilus. Perhaps they appeared more sanguine than they
really felt; but they could hardly believe that if it had actually
been Javan who had thus deprived his cousin of liberty, he would
refuse to listen to the entreaties of his family, or to be moved by
the sorrow which he had brought upon them. It seemed too cruel even
for Javan, to deliver his kinsman into the hands of those who would
count his murder a meritorious act; and therefore they tried to
believe that he only intended to detain them all in Jerusalem, until
he had further ascertained their conversion to Christianity, and
endeavoured to shake their faith by his arguments, and perhaps his
threats.
They entered the city without difficulty, by means of the private
gate, and were passing up the dark and narrow lane which led to the
offices of Zadok's house, when they saw a wild and haggard form
approaching at a rapid pace under the shadow of the wall. It was the
son of Ananus--that mysterious being who had not ceased to traverse
the devoted city day and night ever since its peace and prosperity
began to fail. His ghastly countenance and sad and hollow voice
could not be mistaken. He advanced close to the litter on which the
terrified Claudia was carried, and uttered loudly his oft-repeated
burden of woe.
"A voice from the east! a voice from the west! a voice from the four
winds! a voice against Jerusalem and against the temple!"--Then
pointing his skeleton finger towards Claudia, he uttered in a still
more dismal tone, "A voice against the bridegrooms and the brides--a
voice against the whole people!"
Swiftly he passed on, and was out of sight; while the same boding cry
was heard repeated in the distance. But not so swiftly did the
feelings of terror which he had excited in the breast of Claudia
subside. Her mind had always been inclined to superstition; and
though she strove to banish the impression that was made by the
denunciation of the wild prophet, yet it sounded continually in her
ears as the knell of all her earthly hopes.
The sad party reached their home, and immediately proceeded to the
apartment generally occupied by Zadok and his family; and there, to
their utter astonishment, they found Javan, in the usual loose robe
in which he pursued his studies, deeply occupied in transcribing some
portions of the sacred Talmud. Zadok and Salome, and their guest,
the beautiful Mary of Bethezob, were also engaged in their ordinary
employments; and all appeared equally startled and surprised at the
entrance of their relatives in a manner so unexpected, and with
countenances expressive of so much grief and anxiety.
Javan was the first to inquire, in a tone of perfect unconsciousness,
into the cause of their distress; and so well did he feign ignorance
and sympathy, that they began to doubt whether it was indeed he whom
they had so lately seen under such different circumstances, and
wearing so different an aspect. Naomi and Claudia fixed their eyes
searchingly upon his countenance, while Amaziah related to his
brother the particulars of all that had occurred to them, but they
could read nothing in Javan's features to confirm their suspicions of
his guilt. He betrayed no emotion, but affected sorrow and surprise;
and so readily offered his assistance in discovering the authors of
the deed, that his parents never thought of ascribing it to him,
though the rest of his relatives were still doubtful and suspicious.
Having acted his hypocritical part with perfect coolness, Javan left
the house on the pretence of making instant inquiries concerning the
fate of Theophilus; and with a promise to return as soon as he had
obtained any intelligence. He was no sooner gone than Claudia--who
had hitherto with difficulty restrained herself from charging him
with his duplicity and cruelty--declared to Zadok and Salome her firm
conviction that their son was the cause of the sorrow which had come
upon them; and not only that the barbarous scheme had originated with
him, but that he had been present in disguise to put it in execution.
"He had a companion who also concealed his face, and wore the garb of
a stranger," she added, "but his voice seemed to be one that I had
often heard."
The daughter of Eleazar was present, and for her sake Claudia forbore
to say that she believed Isaac to be the accomplice of Javan; but she
had no doubt on the subject, and she was right in her conjecture.
Both Zadok and Salome strongly opposed the idea that Javan could be
guilty of an act of such cruelty towards a near kinsman; but when
they heard the various reasons which existed for suspecting him, and
were informed of the listener who had been observed in Mary's garden,
they began to entertain the same opinion, and promised to exert all
their influence and authority to induce him to repair the injury he
had done, and restore his family to happiness again. The lady of
Bethezob listened with interest and astonishment to the conversation
of her friends, for until that moment she had not known that she had
been associating with Nazarenes. It is true she had seen very little
of Amaziah and his family: but with Naomi she had lived on terms of
intimacy, and for her she entertained a great affection. The idea of
any longer concealing from Javan that his sister had embraced
Christianity was laid aside, for all were equally convinced that he
already knew it; and therefore Mary's presence was no check to the
freedom of the discourse, and her inquiries were satisfied by a plain
statement of the fact, and an injunction that she would observe a
perfect secrecy on the subject towards all but the inmates of the
house. She was a kind-hearted woman when her natural feelings were
not biassed by passion or prejudice, and her sympathy was warmly
excited both towards Naomi and Claudia. She wondered at their
religious infatuation, for in her mind that all-important subject was
a matter of taste and feeling, and not of deep principle and
absorbing interest; yet she grieved for their afflictions, and those
of the bereaved parents, and would gladly have lent her aid to remove
them. All that wealth could do she cheerfully offered; but Claudia
hoped more from her influence with Isaac, when it should appear that
he was concerned in the unhappy business, than from the power of her
riches. Indeed from this hope she derived her greatest and almost
her only comfort; for when she saw how kindly Mary espoused her
cause, and how eagerly she proffered her assistance, she began to
feel that all was not yet lost, and that through her means the
liberty of Theophilus might possibly be obtained.
It was late when Javan re-entered the house, and he attributed his
long absence to the difficulty he had found in tracing the lost
Theophilus.
"At length," he added, "I have been successful; but I regret to say
that he has not fallen into the hands of the Zealots or the Idumeans,
who might be induced to restore him on the payment of a large ransom;
but he has been seized by the arm of justice. His criminal apostasy
has been discovered to some of our most holy and zealous priests; and
their righteous indignation has led them to take this step as a
salutary warning to others who may be inclined to the same heresy,
and as a wise precaution to prevent his disseminating the errors
which have perverted his mind. I grieve for his fate, but it was
only what I dreaded would be the result of his folly."
"Javan," cried Claudia, "it is you who have betrayed him! None but
you and Rabbi Joazer were acquainted with his opinions; and the Rabbi
had sworn to Zadok that he would never reveal them. You have brought
all this evil on your house, and now you seek to hide your cruelty
under the mask of sorrow."
"Silence, Claudia!" replied Javan indignantly; "and remember that
though I cast back your passionate accusations with contempt, yet I
have power and influence which it would be your wiser course to
conciliate by submission, and not thus by your unfounded taunts to
provoke me to use them against the object of your affection. But I
act from higher motives than personal love or hatred; and I shall
pursue the course which I see to be for the real good of my cousin,
and the honour of my family, without any regard to the ravings of a
heathen girl."
Claudia shrunk away from the look of fierce determination with which
Javan accompanied this rebuke. She feared that by her unguarded
exclamations she had only exasperated him still more against both
Theophilus and herself; and she resolved in future to restrain her
feelings, and if possible to conceal from him her horror and dread of
his character, and the personal dislike which she had always felt for
him. She could not reply to him, for her heart was too full; but
Naomi approached him, and in a gentle voice endeavoured to move him
to better feelings.
"My brother," she said, "do not speak thus harshly to Claudia. She
is overwhelmed with grief, and knows not what she utters; and you
should pity rather than blame her. You say that you have power and
influence over those who have carried off our unfortunate cousin.
Will you not exert them in his favour? He is your near kinsman--he
never injured you. He formed the happiness of his parents, and of my
poor Claudia too; and his character was never sullied by an act that
could reflect shame on his family. What though he now differs from
you in his religious opinions? That is a matter between him and his
God, whom he serves in sincerity; and before whom he must stand or
fall. O Javan, join not with those who seek his life; but restore
him--for I know you can--to those whose life is bound up in his life,
and let not the grey hairs of your father's brother be brought down
to the grave in sorrow."
As Naomi finished speaking, she laid her hand on her brother's arm,
and looked into his countenance with a look of moving entreaty; her
mother, with Judith, Claudia, and Mary, had gathered round her, and
with eloquent gestures joined their supplications to hers. But Javan
turned on her a look of scorn, and shaking off her gentle hand, he
exclaimed,
"Well may you plead for the life and liberty of an apostate!--for the
same blasphemous creed that has marked him for eternal shame has
branded you also! I know it all, Naomi. Your guilt, your hypocrisy,
are all revealed. And here, in the presence of your parents, I
denounce you as a Nazarene. Nay, cling not to me, and look not so
imploringly,"--and Javan turned away his face that he might not meet
his sister's sweet and tearful eyes,--"I am not going to give you up
to the arm of justice. Cruel as I know you think me, I will not give
your body to be mangled by the executioner. For our parents' sake I
spare you this; and because I believe the power of the Lord God will
yet be sent to cast forth the evil spirit that now possesses you, and
make you again what once you were. But till that time arrives I
renounce you as a sister; and I leave it to your father, to the just,
the righteous Zadok, to take such steps as may speedily wipe away
this stain, and remove the pollution from our house!"
Javan looked with astonishment at Zadok and Salome. He expected to
have seen surprise and horror depicted in their countenances at the
disclosure which he had just made; but sorrow mingled with pity was
the only emotion they betrayed.
Naomi was about to reply to her brother, but Zadok interrupted her.
"Javan," he said, in a tone of calm authority, "the error into which
your sister has unhappily fallen, has long been known both to your
mother and me. It has been the source of profound grief to us; and
many have been the prayers which we have offered up before the throne
of the Almighty that he would vouchsafe to restore her to the true
faith. Hitherto, alas! no answer has been given, and her soul is
still in darkness. Why should we have told our sorrow and our shame
to you, my son! We knew your zeal for the Lord, and we knew the
anguish it would give you to find that Naomi, your only sister, had
been beguiled from the way of holiness and truth to follow this new
and most accursed heresy. Therefore we have concealed it from you
and from the world; and, Javan, as your father, I now command you to
follow the same course. Use all your efforts, all your prayers to
bring her back; but breathe not her disgrace in any human ear. I
would not have her despised; and, oh! for worlds I would not have her
fall into the power of my zealous, but hard-hearted brethren. She is
my child, my most beloved daughter; and though my heart condemns her,
yet there she shall find a refuge, even though all the powers of
earth and hell were combined together to tear her from me!"
Zadok adored his daughter; and this burst of parental feeling was
excited by the sudden fear and horror to which Javan's words had
given rise. The thought of his lovely Naomi being consigned to death
and ignominy, as an apostate and blasphemer, had roused up all the
tenderness which he had partially concealed, but could not banish,
ever since the discovery of her lamented change of religion. She
turned in grateful astonishment at this unexpected expression of his
love, and falling at his feet, she would have kissed the hem of his
garment; but he raised her up and embraced her with all his former
affection, while he uttered a benediction which had not gladdened her
heart since the time when first she had offended him, and rebelled
against his authority.
Even Javan was moved, and Amaziah seized the moment to appeal to him.
"Behold, Javan," he said, "what is the love that a father has for his
child! Our son is as dear to us as your sweet sister is to her
parents. Judge then what must be our feelings while we know that
Theophilus is in the power of his enemies--of those who would rejoice
to shed his blood, and think that by so doing they should offer up a
sacrifice acceptable to the God of mercy. Your power is great--your
talents are respected by those on whom I believe his fate depends.
Listen then to the entreaties of your family, and show that you are
indeed zealous for the honour of God, by imitating Him who is
gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness."
"Amaziah," replied Javan, "I am not insensible to the feelings of
nature and humanity. I delight not in seeing the affliction of
others; and if I could terminate your anxiety, and procure the
liberation of Theophilus without compromising my well-known and
declared opinions, and countenancing a heresy which my soul abhors, I
would gladly do so. But the pure faith which has descended to me
unsullied from our father Abraham is dearer to me than any
considerations of a personal nature. Your son is an apostate. He
has cast off the God of his fathers, and gives to a creature, a mere
man, the honour which belongs to Jehovah alone. Therefore is he cut
off from his family and his nation--nay more, he is wiped away from
the book of life, and consigned to perdition. And shall I--a son of
Aaron--lend my aid to rescue him from the punishment which he so well
has earned? Shall I be the means of setting him at liberty, to
disseminate his accursed doctrines, and carry the same spiritual
pestilence into other families that he has brought into his own? No!
by the altar of God I swear that so long as he cleaves to his
idolatry, so long may he pine in a dungeon; or, if his judges see
fit, he may be torn limb from limb, and given to be meat for the
fowls of the air and the beasts of the field. But let him renounce
his errors, and seek the pardon of his offended God by confession and
sacrifice, and I will procure his release. Amaziah, look to your own
safety. You have narrowly escaped sharing the same fate as your son;
and I warn you to abjure your heresy, or to flee at once from the
city. Judith and Claudia are known and marked as Nazarenes; and
Naomi too is suspected. I have power to shelter her at present; but
even that may fail, and my sister may be seized on and offered as a
sacrifice to appease the wrath of insulted Heaven! O God of Jacob!
what woes have been brought on thy peculiar people by the impostures
of the crucified carpenter's son."
Javan left the room, and retired with hasty steps to the terrace,
where he remained a great part of the night, pacing to and fro, and
revolving many anxious thoughts. All his better feelings had been
excited by the scene which he had just witnessed, and it was only by
recalling to his mind the sentiments of severe fanaticism that
generally reigned there, that he had been enabled to banish the
rising emotions of tenderness and compassion. But now he had checked
what he considered a weakness. Bigotry and mistaken zeal resumed
possession of his soul, and all his thoughts were directed to the
paramount object of bringing back his cousin to Judaism, or making
him a fearful example of vengeance, as a warning to Naomi, to
Amaziah, and to all who were in like manner perverted.
He left his family in sorrow and dismay. Those who adored Jesus of
Nazareth as their Saviour, and worshipped him as God, were filled
with horror and indignation at hearing his holy name blasphemed; and
all were overpowered with the conviction that no hope remained of the
liberation of Theophilus. Zadok endeavoured to speak comfort to his
afflicted relatives, by urging them to use their influence in
persuading his nephew to renounce Christianity; but Amaziah bade him
cease such dreadful suggestions, and declared, while tears of deep
emotion flowed down his manly cheeks; that he would rather behold his
son--his only and beloved son--given up to the worst tortures that
the spirit of persecution had ever yet devised, than hear him by one
word deny the Lord who bought him with his own blood.
No one ventured to raise their voice in opposition to this
declaration of the afflicted but undaunted father, and with heavy
hearts the family dispersed to seek such repose as their sorrows
would permit.