My Dear Father:
The inquiry you made in your last letter, "What hath become of the
prophet of Jordan, since the fame of Jesus hath so eclipsed his
own?" I can answer but with sadness. The mission on which John came
terminated when Jesus came. Soon afterwards he left the wilderness and
entered Jericho, where Herod chanced to be visiting. Here he preached
in the public places, and in the market, and on the very steps of the
Governor's palace. Now while he was thus speaking to the people, and
the officers and soldiers of the Tetrarch's guard, Herod himself came
forth upon the balcony to listen. The prophet no sooner beheld him
than he boldly addressed him, and sternly reproved him for the sin of
having married the wife of his brother Philip, contrary to the law.
Now Herod, it is said, did not show resentment at his plain dealings,
but, inviting the prophet into his hall, talked much with him, and in
parting offered him gifts, which John refused to touch. The next day he
sent for him again to ask him some questions touching the Messias of
whom he preached. Now Herodia, when it was reported to her, after the
return of Herod from Jericho to his Tetrarchy, how that the prophet had
publicly spoken against her marriage with Herod, became very angry; and
when she found that John was still favored by her husband, she sent for
Herod and said that if he would please her he must throw the prophet
of Jordan into prison. At length Herod yielded, against his own will,
and gave orders for the arrest of the prophet; who, the same night, was
thrown into the ward of the castle. For some weeks this holy man, whose
only offense was that he had the courage to reprove sin in high places,
remained in bonds, while Herod each day sought to find some excuse for
releasing him without displeasing Herodia, of whose anger he stood
in great fear, being an abject slave to his love for her. At length
the birthday of Herod arrived, and he conveyed word to John that in
honor of the day he would send and fetch him out of prison as soon as
he should obtain the consent of his wife, which he believed she would
accord to him on such an anniversary.
Now, after the feast, Philippa, the daughter of Herodia, and of her
former husband Philip, came in and danced before Prince Herod; and
being beautiful in person and full of grace in every motion, she so
pleased her step-father that he made a great oath, having drunk much
wine with his guests, that he would give her whatsoever she would
ask, were it the half of his kingdom. Her mother then called her, and
whispered to her imperatively.
"Give me," said the maiden, turning towards Herod, "the head, now, of
John the Baptist in a charger."
The Tetrarch no sooner heard this request than he turned pale, and said
fiercely:
"Thy mother hath been tampering with thine ears, girl. Ask half of
my kingdom and I will give it thee, but let me not shed blood on my
birthday."
"Wilt thou falsify thine oath?" asked his wife, scornfully.
"For mine oath's sake, and for those who have heard it, I will
grant thy desire," he at length answered, with a sigh of regret and
self-reproach. He then turned to the captain of the guard and commanded
him to slay John Baptist in prison, and bring presently there his head
upon a charger.
At the end of a quarter of an hour, which was passed by Herod in great
excitement, walking up and down the floor, and by his guests in silent
expectation, the door opened, and the captain of the guard entered,
followed by the executioner, who carried a brazen platter upon which
lay the gory head of the eloquent forerunner of Christ.
"Give it to her!" cried Herod, sternly, waving him towards the
beautiful maiden who stood near the inner door. The executioner placed
the charger in her hands; and, with a smile of triumph, she bore it to
her mother, who had retired to an inner room.
All the disciples of the murdered prophet then went where Jesus was
preaching and healing, and told him what had been done to John. "When
Jesus heard of the death of John, he was very sorrowful," writes John
to Mary, "and went away into a desert place apart." In the meanwhile
the disciples of John Baptist fled, some into the deserts, while
others sought Jesus to protect and counsel them. At length he found
himself surrounded by a great multitude, chiefly of John's disciples,
besides many who had come to hear him preach and be healed of him. The
place was a desert and far from any town. Forgetful of all else, save
following Jesus, they were without food. "Which," says John, writing
to Rabbi Amos, "we who were his disciples seeing, suggested that Jesus
should send them away to the villages to buy themselves victuals. But
Jesus answered us, and said quietly:
"'They need not go away; give ye them to eat.'
"And Simon said, 'Master, where can we get bread for so many? We have
among us but five loaves and two small fishes.'
"Upon hearing this, Jesus said, 'It is enough; bring them hither to me.'
"We collected the bread and fishes, and I, myself, laid them upon a
rock before Jesus. He then said to us, 'Command the multitude to sit
down on the grass.' And when they were all seated, he took the five
loaves and laying his hands upon them and upon the two fishes, he
looked up to heaven and blessed them, and then, breaking them into
fragments, he gave them to us his disciples, and bade us distribute to
the people. As often as we would return for more, we found the loaves
and the fishes undiminished, and I saw with wonder how, when this
Prophet of God would break off a piece of one of the fishes or of a
loaf, the same part would immediately be seen thereon as if it had not
been separated; and in this manner he continued to break and distribute
to us for nearly an hour, until all ate as much as they would. When no
one demanded more, he commanded us to gather up the fragments which lay
by his side, and there were twelve baskets full over and above what
was needed. The number that was thus miraculously fed was about five
thousand men, besides nearly an equal number of women and children. And
this mighty Prophet, who could thus feed an army, voluntarily suffered
forty days and nights the pangs of hunger in the desert! He seems a man
in suffering, a God in creating!"
This wonderful miracle, my dear father, is one that has too many
witnesses to be denied. Not a day passes that we do not hear of some
still more extraordinary exhibition of his power than the preceding.
Every morning, when men meet in the market places, or in the corridors
of the Temple, the first inquiry is, "What new wonder has he performed?
Have you heard of another miracle of this mighty Prophet?" The priests
alone are offended, and speak evil of him through envy.
They even have gone so far as to assert that he performs his miracles
by magic, or by the aid of Beelzebub, the prince of the devils. "If
we suffer him to take men's minds as he doth," said Caiaphas to Rabbi
Amos yesterday, when he heard that Jesus had walked on the sea to join
his disciples in their ship, and stilled a tempest with a word, "the
worship in the Temple will be at an end, and the sacrifice will cease.
He draweth all men unto him."
You have asked, dear father, in your letter, "Where is Elias, who is to
precede Messias, according to the prophet Malachi?" This question Jesus
himself has answered, says John, when a rabbi put it to him. He replied
thus:
"Elias has come already, and ye have done unto him whatsoever ye
listed."
"Dost thou speak of John the Baptist?" asked those about him, when
they heard this.
"John came in the spirit and power of Elias, and therefore was he thus
called by the prophet," was the answer of Jesus.
I did not tell you that besides the six disciples whom I have named,
he has chosen six others, which twelve he keeps near his person as his
more favored followers, and whom he daily instructs in the doctrines
he came down from heaven to teach. Of the thousands who never weary of
going from place to place in his train, he has also selected seventy
men, whom he has despatched by twos into every city and village of
Judea, commanding them to proclaim the kingdom of God is at hand, and
that the time when men everywhere should repent and turn to God, has
come.
It is now commonly reported that he will be here at the Passover. I
shall then behold him, and, like the wise men, I shall worship him with
mingled awe and love. I will again write you, dear father, after I see
and hear him. Till then, believe me your affectionate daughter,
Adina.