_A Narrow Escape._
The issue was squarely drawn.
Either the Temple Prophets were the true spokesmen of the God of Judah
and Jeremiah was an impostor, or Jeremiah spoke the truth that had
been "cut off from their mouth" and the Temple Prophets were feeding
the people on "lying words."
A great concourse of citizens of Jerusalem and pilgrims to the city
gathered for the debate. Jeremiah, much older looking than his years,
was the center of attraction. He was tall and erect. His face was
somewhat drawn and showed wrinkles of worriment. He was dressed in an
unadorned brown mantle that singled him out among the holiday-attired
priests and prophets with whom he was conversing.
Evidently this was to be a friendly argument, without ill-feeling on
either side.
Jeremiah was the first to speak. As soon as he began it was plain to
be seen that his worry was not fear of the arguments with which his
opponents were about to attack him, but that it was deeper-seated. He
started by informing his hearers that he was well acquainted with the
things that were being preached in Jerusalem as the word of God.
"I hearkened and heard, but they spake not aright. No man
repenteth him of his wickedness, saying, 'What have I done?'
Everyone turneth to his course as a horse that rusheth
headlong into battle.
"Yea, the stork in the heavens knoweth her appointed time;
the turtle dove and the swallow and the crane observe the
time of their coming; but my people know not the law of
the Lord."
"Is that so?" queried one of the Jerusalem prophets, with a sneer. In
his reply, he pointed out that both the laws of the religion and the
laws of the State were known to the priests and prophets, in whose
charge were the Temple and the government, and were obeyed by them and
the people. With sweeping gestures he emphasized the prosperity of the
people and the peace of the country. "Thou art the disturber of the
peace," he concluded hotly. "Leave the Temple and the State to the
wise men, the scribes, the priests and prophets in Jerusalem, and all
will be well."
"The same kind of argument," thought Jeremiah, as he listened
attentively to the speaker. "They always fail to grasp the vital
things that God demands of them." In his rejoinder, therefore,
Jeremiah came back forcibly:
"How do ye say, 'We are wise and the law of the Lord is with
us!' But, behold, the false pen of the scribes hath made
falsehood of it. The wise men are put to shame. Lo, they
have rejected the word of the Lord.
"And what manner of wisdom is in them? Every one, from the
least even unto the greatest, is given to covetousness; from
the prophet even unto the priest every one dealeth falsely.
"And they have healed the hurt of the daughter of my people
slightly, saying, 'Peace, peace,' when there is no peace."
Instantly there came to Jeremiah's mind the story of the Kingdom of
Israel with its deceitful priests and false prophets, who, at Bethel
and Shiloh, taught and preached untruths about God--and the sad end of
them all. They, too, had thought everything was well with them and
their sanctuary and the peace of the land. So Jeremiah continued:
"Then go now to my sanctuary which is in Shiloh, where I
caused my name to dwell at first and see what I did to it
because of the wickedness of my people Israel.
"And now because ye have done all these deeds, and although
I spoke to you insistently, ye have not heeded, and although
I called you, ye have not answered, therefore I will do to
the house, which ye call by My name, in which ye trust, and
to the place which I gave to you and to your fathers, as I
did to Shiloh."
This speech started several commotions in different parts of the
crowd. From the extreme edge, to the right of the speakers, one man
began to come forward, shouting:
"Blasphemy!"
The cry was taken up all around him. From various directions men,
throwing their arms in the air and yelling at the top of their voices,
made their way with difficulty toward the speakers, crying:
"Blasphemy! Blasphemy!!"
Jeremiah, at first, could not understand the commotion. What had he
said, what had he done, that was blasphemous? Then, as the cry became
general and the surging mob became threatening, the thought came to
him that the people had been taught by the priests and prophets in
Jerusalem that the Temple was inviolable, that no matter what the
political fortunes of Judah might be, God would never permit "the
House which is called by His name" to be destroyed.
Now Jeremiah understood and he was helpless. His simile of the
sanctuary at Shiloh suggested the destruction and ruin of the Temple
in Jerusalem--and that was blasphemy.
He did not know, however, that his opponents had purposely planted men
in various sections of the assembly to wait and watch for any
blasphemous hint in his argument and to raise the cry against him.
"Blasphemy! Blasphemy!" The cry was now general. And the leader who
started it, when he came within reach of Jeremiah, grasped his mantle
and shouted:
"You must die!"
The Temple guard rushed to the prophet's assistance. Blasphemy was
punishable by death, but the punishment must come in the regular,
legal way and not by the hands of the mob.
Under protection of the guard, therefore, Jeremiah was led to the new
gate, built by King Josiah, where the princes sat as judges. At his
heels was the threatening, gesticulating crowd, goaded on by
Jeremiah's enemies, demanding his life.
The trial was opened without delay. Here were thousands of witnesses
who had heard the man and there seemed little hope for him to escape
being stoned to death. One of the prophets opened the case for the
prosecution, addressing himself to the judges:
"This man is worthy of death; for he hath prophesied against
this city in the name of God, saying, 'This house shall be
like Shiloh. This city shall be deserted, without an inhabitant.'"
Turning dramatically to the crowd, he swept his arm over their heads,
adding for the purpose of affirmation:
"As ye have heard with your ears."
"Aye, aye," many responded.
"Blasphemy! Blasphemy!" shouted others.
And still others demanded, "He must die! He must die!"
When a semblance of quiet was restored, Jeremiah stepped forward from
between the two guards who had him in charge, faced the accusing
people, and said, very calmly and humbly:
"It was the Lord who sent me to prophesy against this Temple
and against this city all the words that you have heard."
"Bah!" jeered the leaders of the opposition, and many took up the
signal and joined in the jeering. Jeremiah did not permit the jeers to
interrupt him:
"Now therefore reform your ways and your acts and obey the
voice of the Lord your God; and the Lord will repent of the
evil that he has pronounced upon you."
"Hear him! Hear him!" arose from all directions. "He blasphemes! He
blasphemes!" Jeremiah paid no attention to these outcries, but turned
to the judges and concluded his defense:
"But as for me, see, I am in your hand; do with me as
appears to you to be good and right.
"Only be assured that, if you put me to death, you will
bring innocent blood upon yourselves and upon this city and
upon its inhabitants, for verily the Lord hath sent me to
you to speak all these things in your ears."
Jeremiah ceased. He walked back to his place between the two guards to
await his sentence. The mob was rather taken by surprise at the
prisoner's defense. He made no arguments for release, no pleas for his
life, but stated his belief in his work and his faith in God, trusting
for the rest in the justness of his cause.
From out among the princes arose Ahikam, the eldest son of Shaphan,
who was the Royal Scribe for Jehoiakim, as his father had been for
Josiah. Ahikam and Jeremiah had been close friends as young men, even
as their fathers had been all their lives. Recently, however, they had
not seen much of each other. Jeremiah was busy about his business and
Ahikam was permanently stationed in Jerusalem, at the palace.
Jeremiah hardly recognized Ahikam when he began to address the judges.
His interest in the speaker was greatly stirred, however, when he
heard Ahikam say that he had no apology to offer for the position he
was taking, nor for his friendship and love for the man who was
accused of the crime of blasphemy. He said that he believed that his
and Jeremiah's fathers were of the greatest service to King Josiah in
the prosperity that attended his reign, and that, though the priests
and prophets of Jerusalem might not understand it, Jeremiah wanted the
peace and prosperity of the nation and of the capital, not their doom.
Then, rising to a pitch of oratorical flight, he cried:
"This man is not worthy of death, for he hath spoken to us
in the name of the Lord our God."
Up jumped Pashhur, the chief officer of the Temple, and told the story
of Uriah, the son of Shemaiah, who also had prophesied in the Temple
in the name of God. Pashhur continued:
"And he prophesied against the city and against this land
according to all the words of Jeremiah; and when Jehoiakim,
the king, with all his mighty men and all the princes, heard
his words, the king sought to put him to death; but when
Uriah heard it, he was afraid, and fled and went into Egypt.
"And Jehoiakim, the king, sent men into Egypt, and they
fetched forth Uriah out of Egypt, and brought him unto
Jehoiakim, the king, who slew him with the sword, and cast
his dead body into the graves of the common people."
But Ahikam, who, like his father, was acquainted with the history of
his people, arose and answered Pashhur:
"Micah the Moreshtite, prophesied in the days of Hezekiah,
king of Judah, and he spake to all the people of Judah,
saying, 'Thus saith the Lord of Hosts: "Zion shall be plowed
as a field, and Jerusalem shall become heaps and the mountain
of the house as the high places of a forest."'
"Did Hezekiah, king of Judah, and all Judah put him to death?
Did he not fear the Lord and entreat the favor of the Lord
so that the Lord repented him of the evil which he had
pronounced against them? But we are on the point of doing
great injustice to ourselves."
To the surprise of the priests and the prophets Ahikam's argument
prevailed with the princes who sat in judgment, and with the people
themselves. They dispersed without further ado, but they continued
discussing the situation among themselves.
No punishment was visited upon Jeremiah, but he had a narrow escape.
Jeremiah and Ahikam left the gate arm in arm. They were happy at the
renewal of their friendship, even if it took place in the shadow of
death.
Ahikam warned his friend to be more careful, when they parted.
Jeremiah left him with much to think about. It was the first time that
he had been attacked and his life threatened. In addition, though
Jeremiah did not hear of it that day, Pashhur had sworn to corner
Jeremiah yet, so that he could not escape.