would be folly to wait till the last hour. Let us seek parley while we
can still show a bold front.
ABIMELECH
It is too late. The dead lying before the walls will cry reproach on us.
PASHUR
It is too late. The war has heaped up such mountains of hatred.
ZEDEKIAH
Nay, it is not too late. [He pauses for a moment] An envoy has already
passed between Nebuchadnezzar and me.
[The councilors spring excitedly to their feet]
NAHUM
Thou hast received an envoy from Nebuchadnezzar? Blessed be the hour.
HANANIAH
Traitor! Thou holdest parley with the enemy!
ABIMELECH
No treaty without our consent! Thou hast forgotten.
PASHUR
Thou hast held parley, King, without consulting us? Why then are we
summoned in council?
ZEDEKIAH
Peace, peace. Can ye not wait till I have finished? Ye snap at my first
word like a pack of hungry hounds. [A pause. He continues more quietly]
A messenger has come from Nebuchadnezzar. I have not yet heard the
message. Is this to hold parley? Is this treachery? Answer!
[All are silent for a while]
PASHUR
I crave thy pardon, King. It is hard to weigh one's words when so much
hangs in the balance.
ZEDEKIAH
It is for you to decide; for you to hear the envoy, or to send him away
unheard.
NAHUM
Our position is desperate. We must hear him.
IMRE
We can listen to his message, and be cautious about accepting it.
ABIMELECH
We can hear him, and can settle afterwards whether we will let him
return. He may be sent only to spy out the land.
ZEDEKIAH
What say ye, Pashur and Hananiah?
PASHUR
Let us hear him.
[HANANIAH is silent and averts his face]
ZEDEKIAH
Since no one opposes, we will hear the message. [Going to the doorway he
calls out] Joab, fetch the envoy. [ZEDEKIAH returns to the table] Let
each ask what questions he will. But our answers must show one mind.
[BARUCH is ushered in by JOAB. The latter passes out again, replacing
the curtain. BARUCH bows before the king]
Dost thou bring a message to Israel from King Nebuchadnezzar?
BARUCH
He has sent me with a message to thee, O King.
ZEDEKIAH
These are my councilors. Who speaks to me speaks to them also, for they
and I, Israel and Israel's king, are at one by God's will. [Turning to
the others] Question him.
HANANIAH
[Scornfully] What grace does the king of the heathen vouchsafe ...
ABIMELECH
[Interrupting] Let us consider practical matters first! What is your
name?
BARUCH
Baruch, son of Zebulon, of the house of Naphtali.
ABIMELECH
Are you then of our blood?
BARUCH
I am a servant of the one God, and was born in Jerusalem.
ABIMELECH
Does anyone here know this man?
PASHUR
I know his father, a just man, and a faithful servant of the Lord.
ABIMELECH
How did you fall into the enemy's hands?
BARUCH
I was drawing water from Moria well when they seized me.
ABIMELECH
What proof have you that you are an envoy? Have you a letter, signed and
sealed?
BARUCH
Nebuchadnezzar gave me his signet ring, that I might pass the sentries
going and returning. [He shows the ring on his finger.]
ABIMELECH
I have no more questions to ask. Let him deliver his message.
BARUCH
When the Assyrian soldiers waylaid me, they took me to the king's tent.
Nebuchadnezzar has kept me under guard these eleven months. Sending for
me yesterday, he said: "Wilt thou take my message to King Zedekiah?"
Standing before him without fear, I answered: "I will." Then spake
Nebuchadnezzar: "Eleven months have I laid siege to this town. I have
sworn that not again will I lie with woman until the gates of Jerusalem
have been opened. But I will wait no longer. Should King Zedekiah wish
for terms, let him hasten. Never has an enemy withstood me more stoutly.
To none will I be more gentle than to him, should he hasten to sue for
mercy."
ABIMELECH
Nebuchadnezzar is a great warrior. It is an honor to have held out
against him for eleven months.
BARUCH
He said further: "If ye open the gates and humble yourselves ere the
moon be full, I will grant you your lives. Every man may dwell in safety
under his vine and under his fig tree. Though ye have shed our blood, I
seek not yours, but only victory and renown. It is my will that from
sunrise to sunset the nations should learn the news that none can
withstand my sword; that there is no king but shall bow before me, the
king of kings. I need but a sign, and your city shall be safe, your days
long in the land."
NAHUM
Methinks the terms are easy.
PASHUR
Too easy for me to trust them.
ZEDEKIAH
But the sign! What sign does Nebuchadnezzar demand?
BARUCH
He said: "Zedekiah, who has taken up arms against me, must abase
himself. When I enter the city, let him walk to meet me, from the gates
of the temple to the wall, carrying his crown in his hands, and wearing
a wooden yoke on his neck ..."
ZEDEKIAH
[Drawing himself up] A yoke?
BARUCH
"A yoke that all men may know his stubbornness is broken and his pride
humbled. I will meet him, will lift the yoke from his neck, and replace
the crown on his head."
ZEDEKIAH
Never shall the man wear a crown whose neck has borne a yoke. Never! [He
rises to his feet]
ABIMELECH
I could not endure it! [He also rises]
[The others remain seated and silent. After a long pause, NAHUM speaks
meditatively]
NAHUM
From the gates of the temple to the wall?
PASHUR
It is barely an hundred paces.
IMRE
No more than seventy, I think. No more than seventy.
ZEDEKIAH
[Turning fiercely upon them] Ye reckon up the paces I am to take, with
my neck yoked like an ox drawing the plough? Are ye all mad to think
that I shall so humble myself? Did ye show courage only while your own
lives were at stake? Do ye think nothing of my shame, if ye can make
your own peace? Cowards all!
PASHUR
Thou hast sworn, O King, that each of us should speak freely the words
which came to his mouth.
ZEDEKIAH
Thou dost well to remind me. Pardon my anger. Speak freely.
NAHUM
I beseech thee to accept the terms, not for our sake alone but for that
of our children.
IMRE
For the sake of our country.
PASHUR
For temple and altar.
HANANIAH
For God, who commands it.
[ABIMELECH is silent, hiding his face]
ZEDEKIAH
[Paces up and down, as the struggle rages within him. At length he steps
up to the table, and speaks in solemn tones] I will do what ye demand,
breaking my pride like a potter's vessel, bowing my neck beneath the
yoke.
[All move to speak, but he imposes silence, and continues]
I will take the crown from my head, and offer it up with my hands, as is
enjoined. But holy is the crown of Israel, and none shall wear it whose
neck hath borne a yoke. When I have put off from me the wood of shame, I
shall put away likewise sceptre and ring, consigning both to my son.
Young is he, but ye will counsel him. Swear that ye will be true to him,
so that the people may look up to him. Swear that ye will invest him
with crown and with ring.
PASHUR
[Greatly moved] I swear it, O King.
IMRE, HANANIAH, NAHUM
We swear it.
ABIMELECH
As a king hast thou acted. Praised be thy name.
NAHUM
Eternal honor to King Zedekiah.
ZEDEKIAH
Thus shall the walls stand fast, thus shall the holy city be saved,
though I sink into the dust. Better I should perish than Zion. Jerusalem
endureth for ever.
ALL
[Fervently] Jerusalem endureth for ever.
ZEDEKIAH
[To BARUCH] Thou hearest, boy? Go, then, to the king of Ashur, and say
unto him: "Zedekiah, who hath been ruler, and hath taken up arms against
thee, boweth himself before thee, that thou mayest show him thy mercy."
Hasten, that soon I may stand before the door of my house, saying to my
people the precious word, "Peace".
BARUCH
[Disquieted, speaks in subdued tones] I hear, Lord King. But there is
yet one other thing I have to tell thee, one more demand from the king
of Ashur.
ABIMELECH
[Angrily] Yet more? Does not this shame suffice him?
BARUCH
A trifle he termed it. It looms large in my mind.
ZEDEKIAH
What does his pride still crave?
BARUCH
He spake unto me and said: "I will take the yoke from the king's neck
and restore the crown to his head. He shall walk at my left hand, that
men may know I honor him as my royal brother. But there is still one
within your walls, of whom folk say that he is mightier than any. I
would see this mighty one. They say that there is a god within your
walls, whose countenance ye hide behind the curtains of a tabernacle,
for that no one can bear to look upon him. To me, fear is unknown, and I
wish to enter his presence, that I may behold him. I will not lay hands
on his altar, nor touch his bread, neither will I covet his treasures.
One thing only do I ask, that I may enter his tabernacle, for I would
fain set eyes on him who hath proved mightier than I." Thus spake
Nebuchadnezzar.
PASHUR
Never! Never!
HANANIAH
The fire of the Lord consume him for the sacrilegious thought.
PASHUR
Better that the temple should crumble to dust, than that the tabernacle
should be desecrated.
IMRE
[In consternation] He would look upon the holy of holies! Terrible is
the request.
PASHUR
Unbounded is the insolence of the heathen ruler! Dismiss his messenger,
Lord King. Send back the envoy.
HANANIAH
Send back the envoy. Never must such a thing be.
NAHUM
Be not too hasty, O King. In our hands lies the welfare of the nation.
ABIMELECH
A thousand deaths were better than this shame.
PASHUR
I will face death with you, will perish in the midst of your warriors.
HANANIAH
[Savagely] Dismiss the envoy. Rather death than this sacrilege.
IMRE
Ye talk lightly of dying. Bethink ye that your pride means seventy
thousand deaths.
PASHUR
Would you profane God's holy of holies?
IMRE
Life is part of God's holiness. God himself is life.
HANANIAH
It would be an everlasting disgrace could the heathen look on the face
of Jehovah.
NAHUM
Let our foes exult; let our pride be humbled. So be it, if the city
outlast our pride and our lives. King Zedekiah, save Jerusalem!
HANANIAH
Nay, dismiss the envoy.
ZEDEKIAH
I am naught but the hand holding the scales. I stand aloof from your
decision. Make up your minds. Count your votes. Speed ye, that the
matter may be settled for good or for ill.
IMRE
I am the oldest among you. My word is, let us comply with
Nebuchadnezzar's demands.
HANANIAH
Let us refuse. God will help us. Let us refuse.
PASHUR
I will not chaffer with God's majesty. Never will I consent to such
impiety.
NAHUM
Let God's city stand for ever. Accept the terms.
ZEDEKIAH
What sayest thou, Abimelech?
ABIMELECH
Not for me to advise thee, King Zedekiah. Not for me, who am but thy
servant and thy sword. By yes and by no, in life and in death, do I
stand by thy decision.
ZEDEKIAH
Two votes against two, and in my own mind there are voices twain!
Conflict without; conflict within. I hold aloof, leaving it to you to
direct my will. You cast it back to me like seadrift, and, trembling, I
am still constrained to decide. Have I, indeed, to throw these dreadful
dice?
PASHUR
God will give thee light.
ZEDEKIAH
Ah, would he but speak to me. Happy our forefathers to whom he appeared
in a cloud. I stretch forth my hands towards him, but still for me the
voice of heaven is dumb. I grope in the darkness, finding I know not
what. Pray for me that I may be rightly guided.
NAHUM
Thou hast our love, O King.
ZEDEKIAH
Time presses. Ere the night is spent I must say yes or no; where
perchance no is yes, and yes is no. God give me light. [He rises to his
feet and all rise with him] Leave me to myself. The cleavage among you
increases my own indecision. I shall act as my heart dictates, and it
may well be that ere ye reach home I shall have made my choice, for my
soul travaileth. Pray, friends, pray, that my choice may be the best for
Israel. Pray for me, pray for Jerusalem.
PASHUR
God give thee light. I shall not close my eyes in sleep until thou hast
chosen. I will hold vigil before the altar.
HANANIAH
Remember God.
NAHUM
Remember the city.
IMRE
Remember the children, remember the women.
ABIMELECH
I abide by thy choice in life or in death.
[All depart, leaving BARUCH and the king]
BARUCH
[Quietly] Shall I, too, take my leave, King Zedekiah?
ZEDEKIAH
[Collecting his thoughts] What sayest thou? Nay, thou must remain.
[BARUCH stands by the doorway while ZEDEKIAH walks restlessly to and fro
for a time. Then, pausing by the window, the king stares over the town,
subsequently resuming his restless pacing. At length he turns and speaks
to BARUCH]
ZEDEKIAH
Nebuchadnezzar demands an answer to-day?
BARUCH
Yea, Lord; for to-morrow the moon is full.
ZEDEKIAH
[Paces the floor again. Then abruptly] Thou sawest him face to face. Did
he ask thee anything concerning me?
BARUCH
His chief counselor and his scribe were present. The former asked me
about you, but Nebuchadnezzar bade him be silent.
ZEDEKIAH
Full of pride is he, and his wrath is like a storm over our heads. But I
fear him not. Himself, he asked nothing concerning me?
BARUCH
Nothing, Lord King.
ZEDEKIAH
To him we are naught. To him our walls are but a handful of dust. Yet we
can meet defiance with defiance. For eleven months he has been breaking
his teeth against the ramparts of the city, and he would dismiss us with
a smile. I am not worth a word, and he rates our town at a breath.
Nevertheless my yoke is not yet ready; the walls of Jerusalem still
stand. We have taught him to wait, but he has not yet learned his
lesson. Shall I be the slave of his caprices? He would tarry but a day?
Let him tarry for weeks and months. [Drawing himself up] Take this
message to Nebuchadnezzar. Say unto him ...
BARUCH
[In alarm] Decide not in anger, King Zedekiah.
ZEDEKIAH
[Rigid with astonishment] How darest thou interrupt me?
BARUCH
[Kneels] I implore thee, save Jerusalem. Stretch forth thine hand in
peace, lest the walls crumble and the temple be shattered. Lord King, I
adjure thee, open the gates, open thy heart.
ZEDEKIAH
[Wrathfully] "Open the gates, open thy heart". I have heard those words
before. They have been put into thy mouth. One stands behind thee
speaking against me with thy voice.
BARUCH
Nay, Lord King. My supplication arises from the depths of my heart.
Something will I tell thee, which hitherto I have withheld. It was not
at Nebuchadnezzar's summons that I went to him, but of my own free will,
hoping that I might soften his heart. I saw that either side waited for
the other to propose peace. Day after day, for eleven long months, did I
importune him till he sent me with this message.
ZEDEKIAH
Thou, a boy, a child? While we were holding counsel, thou soughtest out
the king of kings to seek peace and ensure it?
BARUCH
This did I, O King, in the urgency of my heart's wishes.
ZEDEKIAH
[Regards him fixedly for a time. Then, speaking sharply] Not thine own
deed, this, nor thy thought.
BARUCH
I went at no man's orders.
ZEDEKIAH
Thou speakest falsely. No boy could conceive such a deed for himself.
BARUCH
I swear to thee that I did it unadvised. He knew naught of it, neither
commanded it nor approved.
ZEDEKIAH
He? Who is he of whose orders thou speakest?
BARUCH
[Evasively] My teacher, my master.
ZEDEKIAH
Who is thy master, who? I would know who issues commands to the boys of
this city.
BARUCH
God's servant and prophet is my master. Men call him Jeremiah.
ZEDEKIAH
[Furiously] Jeremiah, always Jeremiah. Ever the shadow that follows my
deeds, ever in revolt against me. I have cast him into a dungeon, but
still, as in the beginning, rises his clamor for peace. Why this
persecution? Why?
BARUCH
Thou art mistaken. Jeremiah hath more love for thee than for any other
in this town.
ZEDEKIAH
I need not his love. I spew forth his love, and I despise his anger. Who
is he, that he should dare to love me? Shall one venture to stand up in
the streets and give tongue, declaring that he loveth me, or loveth me
not? Why should Jeremiah push in twixt me and my resolve? Would he show
himself the greater of us twain? I am the king, I alone! Let him cry,
Peace, peace! Not in his hand lieth the fate of Jerusalem. I am king in
Zion, and never shall he boast that he frightened me with his dreams.
Better the city should perish, than be saved by the hand of Jeremiah. Go
thou to Nebuchadnezzar and say unto him: Never will Zedekiah bear a
yoke. Never shall the king of Ashur raise the curtain before the holy of
holies. Nebuchadnezzar may come with all his men; he will find Zedekiah
ready to meet him.
[BARUCH raising both hands imploringly, is about to speak. ZEDEKIAH
continues]
Not a word. If thou failest to carry my message, I will have Jeremiah's
head.
[Again BARUCH endeavors to speak]
A single word, and Jeremiah's life is forfeit. Away, I command thee,
away!
[BARUCH stands for a moment, and then, veiling his face, passes out.
ZEDEKIAH draws himself up threateningly when BARUCH hesitates. As soon
as the young man has gone, the king lowers his outstretched arm, and his
countenance is once more shadowed with anxiety. Then he draws a deep
breath and speaks]
ZEDEKIAH
It is finished. No longer the torture of indecision.
[He paces to and fro once more. Then he stamps twice. JOAB enters]
JOAB
The king calls?
ZEDEKIAH
Wine, bring me wine. I need sleep, deep and dreamless sleep.
[JOAB brings a pitcher and fills a silver goblet. ZEDEKIAH empties it at
a draught. Then he listens, and his face is again clouded]
Who is walking outside there? I hear footsteps. Does the spy still
tarry?
JOAB
He has gone forth, Lord. You hear the sentry, my brother Nehemiah.
ZEDEKIAH
Tell him to tread softly when he is on guard outside my bedchamber at
night. I need sleep just as much as other men.
JOAB
I will see to it, Lord. [He draws aside the curtains of the bed and
veils the lamp. Now the only light in the room comes from the pale
moonbeams] Shall I read from the scriptures, Lord King, as heretofore?
ZEDEKIAH
Nay, not even the scriptures can help me. I would fain sleep, even as
other men sleep. My lids ache and my heart aches likewise.
[JOAB helps him to remove his outer garment. ZEDEKIAH flings himself on
the couch]
JOAB
God guard thy slumbers, O King.
[JOAB calls NEHEMIAH. Silently the two stand at the head of the bed,
motionless figures holding spears. In the moonlight their shadows rise
in giant silhouettes on the wall. The only sound is the gentle plashing
of a fountain in the court-yard]
ZEDEKIAH
[Springing up with a wild cry] Why do ye whisper together? Did I not
command ye to silence?
JOAB
[Alarmed] We said nothing, Lord King.
ZEDEKIAH
Some one is talking. Who is it that devours my slumber? All should
sleep, so that I too may sleep. Is there anyone awake in the neighboring
rooms?
JOAB
No one, Lord King. Nor anywhere throughout the palace.
ZEDEKIAH
So I alone hold vigil. Why should all the burden be laid upon me? All
the walls of the city, all the towers of care? Get me wine.
[JOAB fills the goblet once more. ZEDEKIAH drains it and flings it away.
With a groan he lies down again. All is still save for the murmur of the
fountain. ZEDEKIAH, who has been lying motionless on the bed, now very
quietly sits up in the gloom. Crouching like a wild beast about to
spring, he listens intently. Then he suddenly screams]
ZEDEKIAH
Some one is speaking. I hear a voice which drones unendingly. I have
given orders that none shall speak in my house. The voice is chanting.
But I have forbidden that any should sing under my roof. Do ye not hear
it?
JOAB
I hear nothing, Lord.
NEHEMIAH
No sound has reached me.
ZEDEKIAH
[Glares at the two lads. Crouching he listens for a moment, and breaks
forth again] I hear it, I tell you; an interminable monotone. Listen,
Joab, here where I am listening. It is somewhere beneath us, burrowing
like a mole in the darkness of my slumber, devouring my sleep. Canst not
hear, lad?
JOAB
[Listens intently for a moment, and then shudders] I hear a voice rising
from the depths. Like the voice of one singing. The spirits of the deep
are awake beneath the house. The voice laments and moans like a caged
beast.
NEHEMIAH
Perchance it is but the wind moaning through a cranny.
ZEDEKIAH
I hear words; I feel them without understanding them. Who dares to sing
by night in my house? Is it so well with my slaves that they must sing
while I toss sleepless? Away, Joab, and silence the disturber.
[JOAB hastens out. ZEDEKIAH crouches, listening. He seems at first to
hear something. Then he raises his head, and subsequently lowers it to
listen once more. Suddenly three dull blows are heard. The king listens
eagerly. He draws a breath of relief]
God be praised, the voice is stilled.
[JOAB reenters with troubled mien]
Who was talking?
JOAB
[Trembling] I know not, Lord, I did not find him. As I neared the
marketplace, the noise of singing came to me louder, rising as it were
from the depths of the earth. I followed the direction of the sound.
There was no one singing in the marketplace. The utterance had a hollow
ring, as if it came from a well or from a pit. Now I could hear the
words, and they were terrible. Thrice did I strike the ground with the
haft of my spear. Then was the Gehenna silent.
ZEDEKIAH
What were the words?
JOAB
[Shuddering] I dare not repeat them.
ZEDEKIAH
Tell me the words, I command thee.
JOAB
It was blasphemy that rose from the pit.
ZEDEKIAH
Repeat the words, if you fear my anger.
JOAB
[Complies. His voice rises in a psalm]
I have forsaken mine house,
I have cast off mine heritage;
I have given the dearly beloved of my soul
Into the hand of her enemies.
My tears run down like a river day and night,
For grievous is the affliction
Of the daughter of my people.
ZEDEKIAH
[With a loud cry] Jeremiah! Always Jeremiah.
JOAB
[Continuing to chant as if inspired]
He hath given up into the hand of the enemy
The walls of her palaces;
They have made a noise in the house of the Lord,
As in the day of a solemn feast.
He hath ...
ZEDEKIAH
Be still, be still. I will hear no more. Always Jeremiah, and again
Jeremiah. Wherever I go he stands at the cross roads; his challenge
rings behind all my doings; he forces his way into my dreams, and feeds
my indecision. How can I outrun this terrible shadow? He cries to me
even from the pit. Who will free me from him?
JOAB
Lord, if he be thine enemy, say the word ... [He makes a movement with
his spear]
ZEDEKIAH
[Startled out of his anger, looks at the lad wonderingly. Then, with
awakening pride] Thou wouldst ... Nay, I fear him not. I fear no man.
Nor am I certain if he be my enemy. I was foolish, perhaps, to flee from
him. Who can tell? [He paces the room] Joab!
JOAB
My Lord?
ZEDEKIAH
Go forth, taking with thee thy brother Nehemiah. Open the pit and bring
hither the man ye will find there. None must know that he enters and
leaves the palace.
[JOAB and NEHEMIAH pass out. The king soliloquizes in low tones]
At every cross road, behind my back, always too late and always
compelling me to listen. Why did I appeal only to God, who vouchsafes me
no answer? Why did I not hearken to those who say that he declares his
will through their mouths? But wherefore do they speak with conflicting
voices? How could I discern the false from the true? Dread is this God
who will not break silence, and whose messengers cannot be certainly
known.
[JEREMIAH enters accompanied by the two lads. At a sign from ZEDEKIAH,
JOAB unveils the lamp. Then he and NEHEMIAH withdraw. JEREMIAH is pale
and emaciated. His dark eyes flash from a white and bony face, looking
almost as if set in a skull. He regards the king with a questioning
calm. After a momentary embarrassment the king speaks]
ZEDEKIAH
I sent for thee, Jeremiah, to ask why thou dost disturb my rest. Why
singest thou in the night when others sleep?
JEREMIAH
He may not sleep who watches over the people. The Lord hath appointed me
to watch and to give warning.
ZEDEKIAH
Jeremiah, I have summoned thee to hold counsel with me. No man knoweth
that to this end I have drawn thee from the pit where thou hast been
prisoned. Wilt thou advise me truly?
JEREMIAH
God helping me, I will.
ZEDEKIAH
Know, then, what none other knows save my innermost counselors. An envoy
has come from Nebuchadnezzar, seeking to end the war between our
nations.
JEREMIAH
[Exultantly] God be praised! Open the gates, open thy heart to
humbleness.
ZEDEKIAH
Rejoice not too soon. Hard are the terms and measureless is the
arrogancy of the king of Ashur.
JEREMIAH
Arrogant hast thou been towards him, therefore must thou accept
arrogancy in return. Put compulsion on thy heart, so thou save Jerusalem
from destruction.
ZEDEKIAH
He asks my honor.
JEREMIAH
Sacrifice thine honor for the city.
ZEDEKIAH
Is not honor my office; is not pride my crown?
JEREMIAH
If they be truly thine, cast them from thee. Peace is better than honor;
suffering is better than death.
ZEDEKIAH
He would bow my neck beneath a yoke.
JEREMIAH