A Roman Lawyer in Jerusalem | Page 4

in thought, At last he said, 'No
longer will I bear This ignominy heaped upon my Lord. No man hath

power to harm the Almighty One. Ay, let men's hands be lifted, then at
once, Effulgent like the sun, swift like the sword, The jagged lightning
flashes from the cloud, Shall he be manifest--the living God-- And
prostrate all shall on the earth adore!'
"Such was his thought when at the passover The Lord with his disciples
met and supped: And Christus saw the trouble in his mind, And said
'Behold, among you here is one That shall betray me--he to whom I
give This sop,' and he the sop to Judas gave; And added--'That thou
doest, quickly do;' And Judas left him, hearing these last words-- 'Now
shall the Son of man be glorified.'
"Ah yes! his master had divined his thought-- His master should be
glorified through him.
"Straight unto me and the high priests he came, Filled with this hope,
and said, 'Behold me here, Judas, a follower of Christus! Come! I will
point out my master whom you seek!' And out at once they sent me
with my band; And as we went, I said, rebuking him, 'How, Judas, is it
you who thus betray The Lord and master whom you love, to death?'
And, smiling, then he answered, 'Fear you not Do you your duty; take
no heed of me.' 'Is not this vile?' I said; 'I had not deemed Such
baseness in you.' 'Though it seems so now,' Still smiling he replied,
'wait till the end.' Then turning round as to himself he said, 'Now comes
the hour that I have prayed to see-- The hour of joy to all who know the
truth.'
"'Is this man mad?' I thought, and looked at him; And, in the darkness
creeping swiftly on, His face was glowing, almost shone with light;
And rapt as if in visionary thought He walked beside me, gazing at the
sky.
"Passing at last beyond the Cedron brook We reached a garden on
whose open gate Dark vines were loosely swinging. Here we paused
And lifted up our torches, and beheld Against the blank white wall a
shadowy group, There waiting motionless, without a word; A moment,
and with rapid, nervous step Judas alone advanced, and, as he reached
The tallest figure lifted quick his head; And crying, 'Master! Master!'

kissed his cheek. We, knowing it was Christus, forward pressed.
Malchus was at my side, when suddenly A sword flashed out from one
among them there, And sheared his ear. At once our swords flashed out,
But Christus, lifting up his hand, said, 'Peace, Sheathe thy sword,
Peter--I must drink the cup.' And I cried also, 'Peace, and sheathe your
swords,' Then on his arm I placed my hand, and said, 'In the law's
name.' He nothing said, but reached His arm out, and we bound his
hands with cords. This done I turned, but all the rest had fled, And he
alone was left to meet his fate.
"My men I ordered then to take and bear Their prisoner to the city; and
at once They moved away, I, seeing not our guide, Cried, 'Judas!' but
no answer: then a groan So sad and deep it startled me. I turned, And
there against the wall, with ghastly face, And eyeballs starting in a
frenzied glare, As in a fit, lay Judas; his weak arms Hung lifeless down,
his mouth half open twitched, His hands were clutched and clinched
into his robes, And now and then his breast heaved with a gasp.
Frightened I dashed some water in his face, Spoke to him, lifted him,
and rubbed his hands. At last the sense came back into his eyes, Then
with a sudden spasm fled again, And to the ground he dropped. I
searched him o'er, Fearing some mortal wound, yet none I found. Then
with a gasp again the life returned, And stayed, but still with strong
convulsion twitched. 'Speak, Judas! Speak!' I cried. What does this
mean? No answer! 'Speak, man!' Then at last he groaned. 'Go, leave me,
leave me, Lysias. Oh, my God! What have I done? Oh, Christus!
Master, Lord. Forgive me, oh, forgive me!' Then a cry Of agony that
pierced me to the heart, As groveling on the ground he turned away
And hid his face, and shuddered in his robes. Was this the man whose
face an hour ago Shone with a joy so strange? What means it all? Is this
a sudden madness? 'Speak!' I cried. 'What means this, Judas? Be a man
and speak?' Yet there he lay, and neither moved nor spoke. I thought
that he had fainted, till at last, Sudden he turned, grasped my arm, and
cried, 'Say, Lysias, is this