The family of the poor carpenter from Nazareth stood on the soil of ancient Egypt. How had they crossed the sea? Joseph thought in a fishing boat, but it had all happened as in a dream. He opened his eyes, and sought the mountains of Nazareth, and saw the dark grove of palm-trees with their bare trunks and sword-shaped leaves, and he saw the gate flanked by enormous stone figures which, lying on their bellies, stretched out two paws in front of them and lifted huge human heads high in the air. He saw the triangular form of the pyramids rise against the yellow background. Strange odours filled the air, as well as shrill noises made by fantastic figures, and every sound struck hard and sharp on the ear. Joseph's heart was heavy. His home was abandoned, and they were in a strange land in which they must certainly be lost.
Mary, who was always outwardly calm, but inwardly bound up passionately in the child, looked at Joseph's stick, and said: "Joseph, it is a nice thought of yours to deck your staff with a flower in token of our safe arrival." Then Joseph looked at his stick and marvelled. For from the branch which he had cut at Sinai there sprouted a living, snow-white lily. Oh, Joseph, 'tis the flower of purity! But what was the use of all the flowers in the world when he was so full of care? He lifted the child in his arms, and when he looked at his sunny countenance the shadows were dispersed. But they experienced shadows enough in the land of the sun, where men had built a splendid temple to the sun-god like that which the Israelites at home had built to the great Jehovah.
Things did not go very well with these poor Jews during the long years they remained in this land. They did not understand the language; but their simple, kindly character and their readiness to be of use told in their favour. In that treeless land carpentry was at a discount. They built themselves a hut out of reeds and mud on the bank of the Nile near the royal city of Memphis, but in such a building the carpenter's skill did not shine. Still it was better than the dwellings of other poor people by the riverside. Joseph thought of fishing for a livelihood; but the fish-basket that he wove was so successful that the neighbours supplied him with food so that he might make such baskets for them. And soon people came from the town to buy his baskets, and when he carried his wares to market, he got rid of them all on the way. So basket-making became his trade, and he thought how once the little Moses was saved in a basket on the Nile. And just as his work was liked, so also did Mary and himself win affection, and they confessed that life went better on the banks of the Nile than in poor little Nazareth, for veritably there were fleshpots in Egypt. If only they could have crushed their hearts' longing for home!
When the little Jesus began to walk, the mothers who were their neighbours wished him to make friends with their children and play with them. But the boy was reserved and awkward with strangers. He preferred to wander alone at evening-time besides the stream and gaze at the big lotus flowers growing out of the mud, and at the crocodiles which sometimes crawled out of the water, and lifting their heads towards the sky, opened their great jaws as if they would drink in the sunshine. He often remained out longer than he ought, and came back with glowing cheeks, excited by some pleasure about which he said nothing. When he had eaten his figs or dates, and lay in his little bed, his father and mother sat close by, and spoke of the land of their fathers, or told ancient tales of their ancestors until he fell asleep. Joseph instructed the boy in the Jewish writings; but it was soon apparent that Joseph was the pupil, for what he read with difficulty from the roll, little Jesus spoke out spontaneously from his innermost soul. So he grew into a slender, delicate stripling, learned the foreign tongue, marked the customs, and followed them so far as they pleased him. There was much in him that he did not owe to education; although he said little, his mother observed it. And once she asked Joseph: "Tell me, are other children like our Jesus?"
He answered; "So far as I know them—he is different."
One day, when Jesus was a little older, something happened. Joseph had gone with the boy to the place where the boats land, in order to offer his baskets for sale. There was a stir among the people: soldiers in brilliant uniforms and carrying long spears marched along; then came two heralds blowing their horns as if they would split the air with their sharp tones; and behind came six black slaves drawing a golden chariot in which sat Pharaoh. He was a pale man with piercing eyes, dressed in costly robes, a sparkling coronet on his black, twisted hair. The people shouted joyfully, but he heeded them not; he leaned back wearily on his cushions. But all at once he lifted his head a little; a boy in the crowd, the stranger basket-maker's little son, attracted his attention. Whether it was his beauty or something unusual about the boy that struck him, we cannot say, but he ordered the carriage to be stopped, and the child to be brought to him.
Joseph humbly came forward with the boy, crossed his hands on his breast, and made a deep obeisance.
"That is your son?" said the king in his own language.
Joseph bowed affirmatively.
"You are a Jew! Will you sell me the boy?" asked Pharaoh.
And then Joseph: "Pharaoh! although I am a descendant of Jacob, whose sons sold their brother Joseph into Egypt, I do not deserve your irony. We are poor people, but the child is our most cherished possession."
"I only spoke in kindness about the selling," said the king. "You are my subjects, and the boy is my property. Take him, Hamar."
The servant was ready to put his hand on the little boy, who stood by quietly and looked resolutely at the king. Joseph fell on his knees and respectfully represented that he and his family were not Egyptian subjects, but lived there as strangers, and implored the almighty Pharaoh to allow him the rights of hospitality.
"I know nothing about all that, my good man," said the king. Then, catching sight of the boy's angry face, he laughed. "Meseems, my young Jew, that you would crush me to powder. Let me live a little longer in this pleasant land of Egypt. I shall not harm you. You are much too beautiful a child for that." He stopped, and then continued in a different tone: "Wait, and look more closely at Pharaoh, and see if he is really so terribly wicked, and whether it would be so dreadful to live in his palace and hand him the goblet when he is thirsty. Well? Be assured, old man, I shall do you no violence. Boy, you shall come to my court of your own free will, you shall share the education and instruction of the children of my nobles; only sometimes I shall have you with me, you fine young gazelle. Now go home with your father. To-morrow I will send and ask, mark you—only ask, not command. He who is tired of plundered booty knows how to value a free gift. You hear what I say?"
When the crowd heard Pharaoh speak to these poor people with such unwonted kindness, the like of which they had never heard before, they uttered mad shouts of joy. As the king proceeded on his way in his two-wheeled golden chariot, a long array of soldiers, cymbal players, and dancing girls following behind, the palm-groves resounded with the cries of the people. Joseph fled with the boy down narrow streets so as to avoid the crowd that wanted to press round him and look at and pet Pharaoh's little favourite.
The same evening an anxious council was held in the little hut. The boy, Jesus, was drawn to Pharaoh without saying why. They were terrified about it. The two working people had no idea that their life was becoming too narrow for his young soul, that he wanted to fortify himself with the knowledge to be obtained from the papyrus rolls of the ancient men of wisdom, with the intellectual products of the land of the Pharaohs. And still less did they imagine that a deeper reason led their boy to desire to learn something of life in the world.
Joseph admitted that the manuscripts in the royal collection counted for something. But Mary put little trust in the writings, and still less in Pharaoh.
"We've had," she said, "a painful experience of the good intentions of kings. Having escaped the violence of Herod with difficulty, are we to submit to that of Pharaoh? They all play the same game, only in a different way. What Jerusalem could not accomplish by force, Memphis will accomplish by cunning."
Joseph said: "My dear wife, you are not naturally so mistrustful. Yet after what we have gone through it is no wonder. This legend of a young King of the Jews has been a real fatality to us. Whoever started it can never answer for all the woes it brings."
"Let us leave that to the Lord, Joseph, and do what it is ours to do."
When Joseph was alone with her he said: "It seems to me, Mary, that you believe our Jesus is destined for great things. But you must remember that a basket-maker's hut is not exactly the right place for that. He would have a better chance at Pharaoh's court—like Moses. And we know that the King of Egypt is no friend of Herod. No, that is not his line; he really wishes well to the child, and no one can better understand that than ourselves. Did he not say that our darling should be treated like the children of the nobles?"
In the end she decided to do what was best for the child. He was past ten years old, and if he wished to go from the mud hut to the palace, well, she would not forbid it.
Jesus heard her words. "Mother," he said, and stood in front of her, "I do not wish to go from the mud hut to the palace, but I want to see the world and men and how they live. I am not abandoning my parents to go to Pharaoh—although I go, I remain here with you."
"You remain with us," said his mother, "and yet I see that even now you are no longer here."
But she would not let him know how it was with her. He should not see her weep. She would not spoil his pleasure. And then they discovered that after all he was not going very far away, only from the Nile to the town, and that Pharaoh had promised him liberty; he could visit his parents, and return to them whenever he so wished. But he would no longer be the same child who went from them. Mary reflected that that was the usual case with mother and son; the youth gave himself up more and more to strangers, and less and less of him remained to his mother. There remained to her the memory that she had borne him in pain, that she had nourished him with her life; she had a claim on him more sacred and everlasting than any other could have. But gradually and inevitably he separated himself from his mother, and what she would do for him, and give him, and be to him, he kindly but decidedly set aside. She must even give him her prayerful blessing in secret; she hardly dared to touch his head with her trembling hands.
Next day at noon a royal litter stood before the hut. Two slaves were the bearers, one of whom was old and feeble. When Mary saw the litter she exclaimed that she would not allow her child to lie on so soft a couch. The boy smiled a little, so that two dimples appeared on his rosy cheeks, and said:
"Why, mother, do you think I would ride on those cushions? Now, let the sick slave get in, and I will take his place."
But the leader of the little procession was not agreeable. The boy could do as he liked, stay, or go with them.
"I shall stay," said Jesus, "and go to Pharaoh when I please." The litter returned empty to the palace.
The next day the boy made up his mind to go. His parents accompanied him through the palm-grove to the town. He walked between father and mother in his humble garb, and Joseph gave him good advice the while. Mary was silent and invoked the heavenly powers to protect her child. Only the boy was admitted through the gateway of the palace; father and mother remained behind and looked fearfully after their Jesus, who turned round to wave to them. His face was glad, and that comforted the mother. The father thought it incomprehensible that a child could so cheerfully and heedlessly part from the only creatures who cared for him; but he kept his thought to himself.
The boy felt curiosity, satisfaction, and repugnance all at the same time, when he gave himself into the hands of the servants, who led him to a refreshing bath, anointed him with sweet-smelling oil, and clad him in a silken garment. But he desired to learn what life in the royal palace was like. And gradually its splendour began to enfold him. The Arabian tales which his father loved to tell him contained marvels and splendours, but nothing to be compared with the magnificence and brilliance that now assailed his senses. Marble staircases as broad as streets, halls as lofty as temples, marble pillars, brilliantly painted domes. The sun came through the windows in every colour there is, and was reflected red, blue, green, and gold by the shining walls. But more fairy-like were the nights, when thousands of lamps burned in the halls, a forest of candelabra shone like a conflagration kept within bounds; when the courtiers seemed to sink into the carpets and divans and silken and down coverlets; when the sweet-smelling incense rose from the golden censers and intoxicated the brain; when a hundred servants made ready the banquet of indescribable luxury, and carried it in silver dishes, alabaster bowls, and crystal goblets; when youths and maidens, with arms entwined, crowned each other with wreaths of roses; when the fanfares sounded, and the cymbals clashed, and song gushed from maidens' throats; and when at length Pharaoh entered in flowing purple robes adorned with a thousand sparkling diamond stars—on his head an indented coronet, shining like carbuncle—the god! the sun-god! On all this our boy from the Nile hut looked as at something wonderful that had nothing to do with him. A fan of shimmering peacocks' feathers was put into his hand. Other boys had similar fans, and with half-bared limbs stood close to the guests and fanned them into coolness. Young Jesus was to do that for Pharaoh, but he did not do it, and sat on the floor and never grew weary of looking at Pharaoh's pale face. The king answered his gaze kindly: "I think that is the proud youth from the Nile, who does not desire to sit at the feet of Pharaoh."
"He shall sit at the right hand of God," sang the choir. Slowly, with the air of an irritated lion, the king turned his head in order to see what stupid choirmaster mingled Hebrew verses with the hymn of Osiris. Then ensued noise and confusion. The windows, behind which was the darkness, shone with a red light. The people had assembled before the palace with torches in order to do homage to Pharaoh, the son of Light. The king looked annoyed. Such homage was repeated every new moon—he desired it, and yet it bored him. He beckoned to the cup-bearers, he wanted a goblet of wine. That brought the blood to his cheeks, and the light to his eyes. He joined in the hymn of praise to Osiris, and his whole form glowed with strength and gladness.
When the quiet night succeeded the luxurious day, so still was it that the lapping of the waves of the Nile might be heard. Jesus lay on a curtained couch of down, and could not sleep. How well he had slept in the hut by the Nile! He was hot and rose and looked out of the window. The stars sparkled like tiny suns. He lay down again, prayed to his Father, and fell asleep. The next day, when the feast was over, he would find the rooms in which the old writings were kept, and the teachers who would instruct him. But it was not like the feast that comes to an end; it was repeated every day at the king's court.
It happened one night that the slaves stole around and woke each other. Jesus became aware of the subdued noise and asked the cause. One approached him and whispered, "Pharaoh weeps!" Like a mysterious breath of wind it went through the palace, "Pharaoh weeps!" Then all was still again, and the dreaming night lay over everything.
Jesus did not lie down again on the soft cushions, he rested on the cool floor and thought. The king weeps! Arabia and India, Greece and Rome have sent their costliest treasures to Memphis. Phoenician ships cruise off the coasts of Gaul, Albion, and Germany in order to obtain treasure for the great Pharaoh. His people surround him day after day with homage, his life is at its prime. And he weeps? Was it not perhaps that he sobbed in his dreams, or it may be laughed? But the watchers think he weeps.
And the days passed by. As the king had said, the boy was free. But he stayed on at the palace because he hoped one day to find the room in which the manuscripts were kept. He often strolled through the town and the palm-grove down to the river to see his parents. Thousands of slaves were working at the sluices of the stream which fertilised the land. The overseer scourged them lustily, so that many of them fell down exhausted and even dying. Jesus looked on and denounced such barbarity, until he, too, received a blow. Then he went out to the Pyramids where the Pharaohs slept, and listened if they were not weeping. He went into the Temple of Osiris and looked at the monster idols, fat, soulless, ugly, between the rounded pillars. He searched the palace untiringly for the hall in which the writings were kept, and at last he came upon it. But it was closed: its custodians were hunting jackals and tigers in the desert. They found it dark and dreary there among the great minds of old; the splendour and luxury of the court did not penetrate to the hall of writings.
Then nights came again when whispers ran through the halls, "Pharaoh weeps." And the reason, too, was whispered. He had caused the woman he loved best to be strangled, and now the astrologers declared that she was innocent. One day the king lay on his couch and desired that the boy from the Nile should be summoned to fan him. As the king was sick, Jesus agreed to go. Pharaoh was ill-humoured and impatient, neither fan nor fanning was right, and when the boy left off that was not right either.
Then Jesus said suddenly: "Pharaoh, you are sick."
The king stared at him in astonishment. A page dare to open his mouth and speak to the Son of Light! When, however, he saw the sad, sincere expression of sympathy in the boy's countenance ho became calmer, and said; "Yes, my boy, I am sick."
"King," said Jesus, "I know what is the matter with you."
"You know!"
"You keep shadows within and light without. Reverse it."
Directly the boy had said that Pharaoh got up, thinner and taller than he usually appeared to be, and haughtily pointed to the door, an angry light in his eyes.
The boy went out quietly, and did not look back.
But his words were not forgotten. In the noise and tumult of the daytime Pharaoh did not hear them; in the night, when all the brilliance was extinguished and only the miserable and unhappy waked, he heard softly echoed from wall to wall of his chamber, "Reverse it! Bring the light inside!"
Shortly before that time Jesus had discovered an aged scholar who dwelt outside the gate of Thebes, in a vaulted cave at the foot of the Pyramid. He would have nothing to do with any living thing except a goat of the desert which furnished him with milk. And as he kept always within the darkness of the vault, bending over endless hieroglyphics on half-decomposed slabs of stone, on excavated household vessels, and papyrus rolls, the goat likewise never saw the sun. Both were contented with the food brought them daily by an old fellah. The hermit was one who had surely reversed things—shadow without and light within. When Pharaoh dismissed Jesus, he sought the learned cave-dweller in order to find wisdom. At first the old man would not let him come in. What had young blood to do with wisdom?
"My son, first grow old, and then come and seek wisdom in the old writings."
The boy answered: "Do you give wisdom only for dying? I want it for living."
Then the old man let him in.
Jesus now visited the wise man every day and listened to his teachings about the world and life, and also about eternal life. The hermit spoke of the transmigration of souls, how in the course of ages souls must pass through all beings, live through all the circles of existence, according as their conduct led them upwards to the gods, or downwards to the worms in the mud. Therefore we should love the animals which the souls of men may inhabit. He spoke with deep awe of the serpent Kebados, and of the sublime Apis in the Temple of Memphis. He lost himself in all the depths and shoals of thought, verified everything by the hieroglyphics, and declared it to be scientific truth. So that the man who lived in the dark discoursed to the boy on light. He spoke of the all-holy sun-god Osiris who created everything and destroyed everything—the great, the adorable Osiris by whose eye every creature was absorbed. Then he would again solemnly and mysteriously murmur incomprehensible formulae, and the eager boy grew weary. Here, too, something evidently had to be reversed. So thinking, he went quietly forth and left the little gate open. When the old man looked up at him, there he was in the open air pasturing the goat, who, delighted at her liberty, was capering round on the grass.
"Why do you not show your reverence for truth?" he said, reprovingly.
And Jesus: "Don't you see that I am proving my reverence for your teaching. You say: We must love animals. Therefore I led the goat out into the open air, that she may feed on the fragrant grass. You say that we should kindle our eye at that of the sun-god, therefore I went out with the goat from the dark vault into the bright sunlight."
"You must learn to understand the writings."
"I want to know living creatures."
The old man looked at the boy with an air of vexation. "Tell me, you bold son of man, under what sign of the zodiac were you born?"
"Under that of the ox and the ass," answered the boy Jesus.
The man of learning immediately hurried into his cave, lighted his lamp, and consulted his hieroglyphics. Under the ox and the ass—he grew afraid. Away with Libra, away with Libra! He investigated yet again. It stood written on the stone and in the roll. He went out again, and looked at the boy, but differently from before, uneasily, in great excitement.
"Listen, boy, I've cast your horoscope."
"What is it?"
"By the ancient and sacred signs I've read your fate. Knowing under what sign of the zodiac and under which stars you were born, I can enlighten you as to the fate you go to meet so callously. Do you desire to know it?"
"If I desire to know it, I will ask my Father."
"Is your father an astrologer?"
"He guides the stars in their courses,"
"He guides the stars in their courses? What do you mean? You are a fool, a godless fool. You will learn what terrors await you. This arrogance is the beginning. His Father guides the stars in their courses indeed!"
News came from Judaea that King Herod was dead. It was also reported that his successor, called Herod the younger, was of milder temperament and a true friend of his people. So Joseph considered that the time was now come when he might return to his native land with his wife and his tall, slender son. His basket-making, through industry and thrift, had, almost without his noticing it, put so much money into his pocket that he was able to treat with a Phoenician merchant regarding the journey home. For they would not go back across the desert: Joseph wanted to show his family the sea. He took willow twigs with him in order to have something to do during the voyage. Mary occupied herself in repairing and making clothes, so that she might be nicely dressed when she arrived home. The other passengers who were in the big ship were glad of the idleness, and amused themselves in all sorts of ways. Jesus often joined them, and rejoiced with those who were glad. But when the amusement degenerated into extravagance and shamelessness, he retired to the cabin, or looked at the wide expanse of waters.
One moonlight night when they were on the high seas, a storm sprang up. The ship's keel was lifted high at one moment only to dip low the next, so that the waves broke over the deck; bundles and chests were thrown about, and a salt stream struck the travellers' faces. The rigging broke away from the masts, and fluttered loosely in the air out into the dark sea which heaved endlessly in mountains of foam, and threatened to engulf the groaning ship. The people were mad with terror and anguish, and, reeling and staggering, sought refuge in every corner in order to avoid the falling beams and splinters. Joseph and Mary looked for Jesus, and found him quietly asleep on a bench. The storm thundered over his head, the masts cracked, but he slept peacefully. Mary bent over him, and climbed on to the bench so that they might not be hurled apart. She would let him sleep on, what could a mother's love do more? But Joseph thought it time to be prepared, and so they woke him. He stood on the deck and looked out into the wild confusion. He saw the moon fly from one wall of mist to the other, he saw dark monsters shoot up from the roaring abyss, and throw themselves on the ship with a crashing noise, and turn it on its side so that the masts almost touched the surface of the water, while birds of prey hovered above. The ship heaved from its inmost recesses, and cracked from end to end as if it would burst. Jesus, pale-faced, his eyes sparkling with delight, held on to the railing. Joseph and Mary tried to protect him. He thrust them back, and without ceasing to gaze at the awful splendour, said: "Let me alone! Don't you see that I'm with my Father?"
It is written of him that he is the only man who had no father on earth, and so he sought and found Him in heaven.
Others who saw the youth that night became almost calm in spite of their terror. If he is not afraid for his young life, is ours so much more valuable? And then, whether to conquer or to fail, they went to work with more courage to steer the ship, to mend the tackle with tow, to bale out the water, until gradually the storm subsided. When day dawned Jesus was still gazing with delight at the open sea, where he had watched the struggle of winds and waves of light and darkness. At last he had found it—light both within and without! The helmsman blew his horn, and announced, "Land in sight!" Far away over the dark-green water shone the cliffs of Joppa.
When the ship was safely steered through the high cliffs into the harbour, our family landed in order to journey thence to Jerusalem on foot. For it was the time of the Passover, and it was many years since Joseph had celebrated it in Solomon's Temple. The feast—a memorial of the deliverance from Egypt—had now a double meaning for him. So he wished to make this détour to the royal city on his way to his native Galilee, and especially that, after their sojourn in the land of the heathen, he might introduce Jesus to the public worship of the chosen people. Joseph and Mary clasped each other's hands in quiet joy when they were once again journeying through their native land, breathing its fresh air, seeing the well-known plants and creatures, hearing the familiar tongue. Jesus remained calm. If he found any childish memories there, they would be of the king who had persecuted him. He could regard the land with calm impartiality. And when he saw his parents so glad to be at home again, he thought how strange it was that lifeless earth should have so much power over the heart. Does not the Heavenly Father hold the whole earth in his hand? Does not man carry his home within his own bosom?
Their possessions were tied on to the back of a camel, and they trudged cheerfully after it. Joseph carried an axe at his waist in order to defend them from attacks, but he only had occasion to try it on the blocks of wood that lay in the road, which he liked to hack at a little if they were good timber. The nearer they approached the capital the more animated the stony roads became. Pilgrims who were proceeding to the great festival in the holy place streamed along the paths. After sunset on the second day our travellers found themselves at an inn in Jerusalem. Joseph could afford to be more independent than he had been twelve years back—he had money in his pocket! Their first walk was to the Temple. They hastened their steps when passing Herod's palace.
The Temple stood in wondrous splendour. All sorts of people filled the forecourt, hurrying, pushing, and shouting, pressing forward through the lines of pillars into the Holy Place, and thence into the Holy of Holies, where the ark of the covenant stood, flanked by golden candelabra. Every fifth man wore the robes of a rabbi, and was thus sure of his place in the Temple as one learned in the law. Pharisees and Sadducees, two hostile parties in the interpretation of the law, talked together of tithes and tribute, or entered on lively disputes over the laws of the Scriptures, a subject on which they never agreed. Joseph and Mary did not observe that others were quarrelling; they humbly obeyed the rules, and stood in a niche of the Holy Place and prayed. But Jesus stood by the pillars and listened to the disputants with astonishment.
The next day they inspected the city as far as the crowds rendered it possible. Joseph wished to visit the grave of his noble ancestor, and pushed through the crowds that filled the dark, narrow streets, noisy with buyers and sellers, donkey-drivers, porters, shouting rabbis, and an endless stream of pilgrims. When they reached David's tomb Jesus was not with them. Joseph thought that he had remained behind in the crowd, and, feeling quite easy about him, paid his devotions at the tomb of his royal ancestor. When they returned to the inn, where they thought to find Jesus, He was not there; time passed, and He did not come. Someone said He had joined a party of pilgrims going to Galilee, because He thought that His parents had already set out. "How could He think that?" exclaimed Joseph. "As if we should go without Him!"
They hurried off to fetch their son, but when they came up with the pilgrims, Jesus was not there, nothing was known of him, and his parents returned to the town. They sought him there for two whole days. They visited every quarter of the city, searched all the public buildings, inquired of every curator, asked at the strangers' office, questioned all the shop-keepers about the tall boy with pale face, brown hair, and an Egyptian fez on his head. But no one had seen him. They returned to the inn, fully expecting to find him there. But there was no sign of him. Mary, who was almost fainting with anxiety, declared that he must have fallen into the hands of Herod. Joseph comforted her, though he was himself in sad need of consolation.
"Poor mother," he said, drawing her head down on his breast, "let us go and place our trouble before the Lord."
And when they had gone up into the Temple, there, among the scholars and the men learned in the law they found Jesus. The youth sat among the grey-bearded rabbis, and carried on a lively conversation with them, so that his cheeks glowed and his eyes shone. Judgment had to be pronounced on a serious case of transgression of the law. A man in Jerusalem had baked bread on the Sabbath, because his neighbour had been unable to lend him the oven the day before. The Pharisees met together, and eagerly brought forward a crowd of statutes regarding the culpability of the transgressor. Young Jesus listened attentively for a while, and then suddenly stepped out of the crowd. Placing himself in front of the learned men, he asked: "Rabbis, ought a man to do good on the Sabbath or not?"
They did not know at first whether to honour this bold young man with an answer. But there is a precept in the law which declares that every inquirer must be answered, so one of them said curtly and roughly: "Of course a man should do good."
Jesus inquired further; "Is life a good thing or not?"
"As it is the gift of God, it is a good thing."
"Should a man then preserve life or harm it on the Sabbath?"
The wise men were silent, for they would have been compelled to acknowledge that life must be preserved on the Sabbath, and their accusation of the man who had baked bread for his food would have fallen to the ground.
Jesus walked quickly up the steps to the table, and said: "Rabbis, if a sheep fell into a brook on the Sabbath, would you leave it there till the next day? You would not first think: To-day is the Sabbath day, but you would pull it out before it was drowned. Which is of greater value, a sheep or a man? If a sick man comes on the Sabbath day, and needs help, it is given him at once. And if you have a splinter in your flesh, no one asks if it is the Sabbath; the splinter must be taken out. But you come with your laws against a poor man who was obliged to prepare his food on the Sabbath, and you imagine yourselves better than he is. No, that will not do. The intention must decide. If any one bakes bread on the Sabbath, I should say to him: 'Is it for your own good or for gain?' In the first case you are acting rightly, in the last you desecrate the Sabbath."
As they now did not know what to say, they decided that the youth was too insignificant for them to dispute with.
Jesus, still excited, came down and joined the crowd, where his mother was wringing her hands over the boldness with which her son had spoken to the elders and the wise men. She stretched her arms towards him. "Child! child! What are you doing here? Why treat us so? What we have not suffered on your behalf! We have sought you for three whole days in the greatest anxiety."
Then Jesus said: "Why did you seek me? He who has a task to do, cannot always stay with his own people. I have been about my Heavenly Father's business."
"Where were you all the time?"
He did not answer. Others might have told how he stood between the pillars listening to the discussions of the Rabbis until he could keep silence no longer.
Joseph said to him with some severity: "If you are learned enough to interpret the Scriptures to those honourable men, you must know the fifth commandment: 'Honour thy father and thy mother that thy days may be long in the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee.'"
Jesus said nothing.
"And now, my son, we will betake ourselves to that land."
And so they set out on the last stage of their journey. It was hard walking over the vineyards of Judaea and Samaria, and Mary, when they were quite near home, asked if she should ever see Nazareth again. Jesus marched the distance, so to speak, twice, for he was never tired of turning aside to gather dates, currants, and figs, or to fetch a pitcher of water in order that his parents might quench their thirst. So they went slowly over the rocky land, and when the mule-path led to an eminence over which flat stones lay scattered, and which was thickly sown with stumpy shrubs, the fertile plain of Israel lay before them. It was surrounded by wooded hills, while villages were scattered about its surface, and shining rivers wound through it. Opposite, one range of mountains showed behind the other, and the highest lifted their snowy peaks into the blue sky.
Joseph let fall the camel's guiding rein and his staff, extended his arms and exclaimed: "Praise the Lord, oh my soul!" For Galilee, his native place, lay before him.
When they saw the little town of Nazareth nestling in a bend of the hills—ah! how small the place was, and how peaceful amid the green hills!—Mary wept for joy.
The inhabitants of Nazareth were not a little astonished to see Joseph, the carpenter, who had so long disappeared from their midst, walk up the street with his wife and a handsome boy. It was a good thing that they had baggage with them. But Cousin Nathaniel made a very wry face, in which the smile of welcome struggled with the anxiety this unexpected arrival caused him. Cousin Nathaniel had taken possession of, and settled comfortably in the house, regarding himself as the heir. Now he must pack up and go.
Joseph was delighted to see his workshop again, with its vice, bench, yardstick, plane, and saw. The red dyeing vat was also there, and the cord with which the timber was measured before the axe was used on it. Cousin Nathaniel declared that many of the tools belonged to him, until Joseph pointed to the J with which all the things were marked for the sake of order. When the old workman tied on his apron, and for the first time set to work with the plane so that the fine shavings flew whirring about, his blood flowed swiftly for delight, and his eye looked like that of a young man. And so the carpenter began cheerfully to work again, not only in his own shop, but anywhere in the neighbourhood where building or repairing was required, or tables, chests, or benches were needed. The little property he had brought from Egypt would be increased here, so that when the time came his son should make a good start in life. Mary helped him with careful and economical housekeeping, and made undergarments and cloaks for the women of Nazareth. Jesus had a room to himself to which he could withdraw when work was over. Joseph hoped, by making him comfortable at home, to counteract the attractions of the outside world. The vine trellises could be clearly seen through the windows of the room, and a hill with olive-trees, and clouds from Lebanon passing over the sky, and the stars that rose in the east. The first gleam of sun, moon, and stars, when they rose, fell into that peaceful chamber. The Books of Moses, the Maccabees, the Kings, the Prophets, and Psalmists which Jesus gradually collected in Nazareth, Cana, Nain, and in villages below round the lake, filled a shelf. The men of Galilee had become indifferent to the works which their forefathers wrote with toil and reverence; they had had to wait too long for the fulfilment of the prophecies, and began to doubt that a Messiah would ever come to the Jews, so that they were quite pleased to give the parchments to that nice boy of Joseph's. If they wanted to know anything, they had only to ask him, and he explained it so clearly and concisely, and sometimes so impressively, that they never forgot it again. That was much easier than awkwardly searching for themselves, and labouring hard to decipher the words only to be unable to understand them when they had done so.
Many a night, by the light of the moon, did Jesus read in his books. They were the same as those we read to-day when we open the Old Testament. So that it is as if we sat with Jesus on the same school bench. He read of Adam and his sin, of Cain and his murder, of Abraham and his promise, of Noah and the deluge. He read of Jacob and his sons, of Joseph whom his brothers sold into Egypt, and of his fate in that land. And he read of Moses the great lawgiver, of David the shepherd, minstrel and king, and of Solomon's wisdom and of his temple, and of the Prophets who judged the people for their misdeeds, and prophesied the future kingdom. Jesus read the history of his people with a burning heart. He saw how the race had gradually gone from bad to worse. If he had at first rejoiced with all enthusiasm, later on he became angry at the degeneration. Grief made him sleepless, and he peered thoughtfully into the starry heavens, asking: "What will deliver them from this misery?"
The stars were silent. But out of the distance, out of the stillness of eternity, it was proclaimed: I love them so deeply, that I shall send my own Son to make them happy.
By day Joseph took care that the youth should not dream too much. Jesus must learn his trade. He did so willingly but not gladly, for his head was not with his hands, and while he should have joined two beams to make a door frame, the dark saying of the Prophet sounded in his head: "He is numbered among the transgressors."
"What are you doing there? Is that a door frame? It's a cross!" So Joseph awoke him out of his reverie, and Jesus was terrified to see that he had nailed the pieces of wood crosswise.
"Tell me," said Joseph to the boy, "what are you thinking of? If you've any sense in your head use it for your honest work. The simplest handicraft needs it all, and not only a piece here and there. And especially carpentering, which builds people houses, bridges, ships, and yea, temples for Jehovah. You cannot imagine what mischief a bad carpenter may do. You're thinking of divine things? Well, work is a divine thing. With work in his hands, man continues the creation of God. People say that you are clever; then let your master see it. You make the tools blunt and the work is not clean and sharp. This can't go on, child."
Jesus let the lecture pass in silence, and worked far into the night to make the mischief good.
Joseph confided his grief to his wife. Not that the boy would turn out a bad carpenter. If he liked he could succeed in anything. But Joseph was grieved to have to scold his favourite so often. He had to do that to every apprentice.
Mary said: "Joseph, you are quite right, to direct him. I am indeed anxious. I observe the child carefully, and I am not satisfied. He is so different, so very different from boys of his age."
"I think, too, that he is different," said Joseph. "We must not forget that from the very beginning it was different with this child. Jehovah understands it; I can't fit it together. He reads too much, and that's bad for young people."
"And I almost fear he reads the Law in order to criticise it," said Mary.
"He'll find himself. At his age boys exaggerate in everything." So Joseph consoled himself. "He's a singular boy. Look at him when he plays with other children! The tallest of them all! No, after all, I wouldn't have him other than he is."
They had talked in sorrow and joy while Jesus was nailing the wood correctly out in the workshop. And when he had gone to bed, Joseph crept into his room, and laid his hand gently on his head.
And so the years went by. Jesus improved in his work, and grew in intelligence, and in cheerfulness. The Sabbath day was all his own. He liked to go up to the hill top where the sheep were feeding among the stones and the olive-trees, whence he could see the mighty mountains of Lebanon and, the wide landscape, partly green and fertile and partly barren, down to the lake. He stood there and thought. He was always friendly with the people he met or who were employed about him, but he seldom became intimate with them. Occasionally he would join in some athletic exercise with youths from Cana, and in wrestling, strive who could overcome the other. Then his soft brown hair would fly in the wind, his cheeks would glow, and when the game was over, he would return arm-in-arm with his adversary to the valley below. But he preferred to be alone with himself, or with silent nature. Beautiful ideas came springing like lambs in that peaceful place, but there also came thoughts strong as lions. He dreamed. He did not think; thought, as it were, lay within himself, and then he spoke out many a word at which he was himself terrified. Ideas began to shape themselves within him, and before he was aware of it they were clearly spoken by his tongue, as if it was another who spoke for him. And so he came out of the mysterious depths to the light.
He was often challenged to dispute; he never defended himself except by words, but they were so weighty and fiery that people soon left him in peace. If he struck, he knew how to make the injury good. One day when he was going down the defile to the stony moor, a mischievous boy ran up behind him and knocked him down. Jesus quickly picked himself up, and shouted angrily to the boy, "Die!" When he saw the blazing eye, the boy turned deathly pale and began to tremble so that, near to fainting, he had to lean up against the rocky wall. Jesus went up to him, laid his hand on his shoulder and said kindly, "Live!"
No one in the whole country-side had ever seen such an eye as his. Like lightning in anger, in calmer moods like the gleam of dewdrops upon flowers.