Arise, Jerusalem,
Arise, city of affliction.
Fear no longer,
For I have compassion upon thee.
I have been wroth with thee,
For a moment I have forsaken thee,
But not for ever doth mine anger endure.
Therefore, since thou hast been forsaken,
Hast been for a day the rejected of God,
Now shall thy glories be restored unto thee,
And now shalt thou be exalted for all eternity.
I will deck thee with my love,
And girdle thee with peace,
Will show thee the light of my countenance,
And bestow my blessing upon thee.
Arise, Jerusalem,
Arise,
For I have delivered thee.

The Elder

A blessing upon your words.

The Others

Hear him, God.—Fulfil his words.—Deliver Jerusalem.

Jeremiah

Lo, she is risen. She has heard the call. The Lord has loosened the fetters from her limbs, and has lifted the yoke from her neck. He has wiped the tears from her cheeks, has consoled the widows and the orphans. Smiles succeed to sorrow. The season of blossoming hath returned. Zion yearns for her children, that they may look upon her in her happiness and rejoice in her renewal. Already have the children of Israel heard the summons of the Lord. Dispersed never so widely to the ends of the earth and among the islands of the sea, yet do they return in their myriads to Zion. From the north and the south, from the east and the west, the happy pilgrims come. Their footsteps hasten across the hills of Gilead, eagerly do they make their way over Bashan and Carmel, that they may see the city of our love, the city of our suffering, the holy fortress of Zion. And Jerusalem rejoices to welcome her children, returned in countless numbers from the prison-houses of exile. Where the flowers were withered, new buds are springing; where darkness had loomed, there shines fresh light; those who have been dumb, find voice. Jerusalem has risen from the tomb. The hills nod to her as of old; the shadows of the mountains lie athwart her plains; as dew gleams in the meadows, so peace shines in the city, the peace of the Lord, the peace of Israel, the peace of Jerusalem!

The Others

Fulfil the prophecy, O God.—Bring peace to Israel.—Let Jerusalem arise.

Jeremiah

When the glad day comes, and in Zion we meet,
We, who so long have been captives and slaves,
Who have dwelt with the stranger in gloomy abodes,
Joyfully reassembling,
We shall pray:
Blessed be thy name, Lord God of Sabaoth!
Great and wonderful have been thy mercies!
By the waters of Babylon we sat down and wept,
Breaking the bitter bread of slavery;
We mingled the wine in our pitchers with tears;
For our souls were sick with longing for home,
And our servitude was a daily death.
Then we called unto thee, compassionate one, and called not in vain,
For thou didst break our bonds.
With the dew of thy goodness, with the waters of life,
Didst thou quench the fever of our thirsty souls.
Us the dispersed, us the vanquished,
Didst thou raise from the dust and lead home to Zion.
Look on us, O mountains; look on us, O fields!
We have returned, we have risen as from the dead!
Let the sound of our streamlets murmur in our prayers;
Let the gardens welcome us with their flowers;
Let the roses of Sharon greet us with their perfume,
The forests of Carmel and Lebanon with their shade.
And thou, holy city, the beloved, ne’er forgotten,
The vision of our days, and the dream of our nights,
The bride of our love and the mother of us all,
Let thy cymbals sound, thy flutes breathe notes of gladness;
Arouse thee and give utterance to thy rejoicing,
For we have returned to thee, Jerusalem!

The Others

[Pressing near him in their delight, throwing themselves at his feet, embracing his knees] Returned!—Risen as from the dead.—Glorious prophecy.—Jerusalem.—Jerusalem.

Baruch

[On his knees] My master, my teacher, how sweet are your words, how blissful is your message.

The Elder

Blessed be he who brings comfort in time of affliction.

A Woman

His eyes glow like stars and light up the vault.

Another Woman

God’s spirit has descended on him.

The Wounded Man

His words have heartened me. I live, I live again. Oh that I, too, might one day return to Jerusalem.

Zephaniah

Your words have brought me new courage, Jeremiah.

Jeremiah

[Paying no heed, but gradually awakening from his trance and looking round with alarm] Where are they to whom I spake? Surely I talked with messengers from King Nebuchadnezzar? Have I been dreaming? Methought there were three men, richly appareled.

The Elder

They fled before the lightnings of your glance.

Another

Your anger smote them like a sword.

Jeremiah

[Still confused] What did I say? My mind is dark, and yet I seem to recall something. What did I say? Why do you all look at me yearningly? Why do you crowd round me? You looked at me with horror in your faces, but now … What has happened to me, and what has happened to you?

The Elder

Man of God, man into whose heart the fire of God has passed, this light streams from you. Mightily have you prophesied to us.

A Man

You have freed my soul from its anguish.

A Woman

You have feasted my heart on manna.

The Wounded Man

Look at me. I can get up. I can walk. The pain has gone. Your words have called me back from death.

Voices

A miracle.—A miracle like those of Elijah.—Raising from the dead.—Let us bow before God’s messenger.—A miracle.—A miracle.

Jeremiah

[Gently] Nay, brothers, shame me not by your praises. I have no part in what has befallen. A miracle has there doubtless been, but it has been wrought on me, not by me. I cursed God, and he has blessed me; I fled from him, and he has found me. None can escape his love, nor can anyone overcome his power. He has vanquished me, my brothers; and nothing is sweeter than to be vanquished by God.

The Elder

[Ecstatically] Jeremiah, Jeremiah, may God do by all of us even as he has done by you.

Jeremiah

Alas, that I knew not the Lord till so late! Alas, that I found you so late, my brothers! Dark lies the city, and dark our fate; but wonderful is life, holy the world wherein we dwell. O earth which I have despised, be gentle to me as I kneel; God, whom but now I renounced, be gracious to my prayer! [He kneels]

I thank thee, O Lord, for thy gentleness toward me,
When I, froward and fierce, did thy service abjure.
For that thou whom I cursed didst with blessings reward me,
My heart will be grateful while life doth endure.
In life I will praise thee, in death I will praise.
With the bread of thy word thou dost nourish my days.
Let me bless thee for filling my soul with thy breath,
With that spirit of love which is stronger than death.
Let me bless thee for this, that harshly thou dravest
Me forth from thy face; that sorrow thou gavest
To me and to others. Nay, sorrow I bless,
For when men keep aloof, lo, the touch of distress
Makes them know they are kin. But the sorrows God sendeth
Are the firstfruits of storm, which in sunshine oft endeth.
I bless thee then, God, on life’s journey the guide,
Whom all seek to escape, but from whom none can hide,
For the lowliest ever thy grace can best win,
And the sinner thy love, yea, because of his sin!
Blessed the man who can lose self in God!
Blessed the man who is chosen of God!
Blessed the heaven, in music ensphered,
Blessed the world, as thy mirror endeared!
Blest the stars which shine peacefully, far above strife,
Blest the quiet of death—blest the turmoil of life!

Baruch

[Throwing himself on his knees before Jeremiah] Jeremiah, my master, Jeremiah! Let not thy word shine upon us alone. Many are waiting in the marketplace, their souls full of fear. Give courage to the despairing. Fill the thirsty with the waters of life.

The Elder

Yea, strengthen the knees of the tottering. Console the afflicted!

Voices

Go forth to our brothers.—To them, as to us, bring solace.—Give them the message.—The promise.

Jeremiah

[Rising] So be it, brothers, lead me to them. I have been comforted of God, and now will I comfort others. Let us go forth, that we may build again the temple in the hearts of the hopeless, may build there the everlasting Jerusalem. [He strides out through the door]

The Others

[Surrounding him, some leading the way, while all the voices mingle in exaltation] Jerusalem.—Jerusalem the undying.—Prophesy!—On, God’s master-builder.—Jerusalem endureth for ever!

THE EVERLASTING ROAD

SCENE NINE

For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end. Then shall ye call upon me, and I will hearken unto you. And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart. And I will be found of you, saith the Lord: and I will turn away your captivity. Jeremiah XXIX, 11–14.

SCENE NINE

The great square in front of the temple, as in the first scene, save that now everywhere signs of the sack are visible.

In the square we see a medley of hand-carts laden with household goods, of packhorses and other beasts of burden, and of wagons. Men and women, preparing for the exodus, are busied among these. New groups continually flock into the square from the surrounding streets, and the noise of conversation grows ever louder. The women and children, together with the men too old for work, sit apart on the steps. Chaldean warriors, fully armed, stride masterfully through the crowd, making way for themselves with their spears.

The moon shines fitfully. Gradually the dawn reddens in the east.

Voices

This is our meeting place.—How many of us are here?—Keep together, sons of Reuben.—How dark it is.—This is the best place, so that we can lead the way.

Other Voices

Don’t push.—This is our place.—Our mules have been standing here since evening.—The place is ours.—The sons of Reuben always want to be first.

An Elder

Do not quarrel, children. Let Reuben lead the way, for such is the law.

Voices

There is no longer any law.—The scriptures are burned.—Who are you to order us about?—It is the priests’ commandment.—There are no priests left; they have all been put to the sword.—Hananiah escaped the slaughter.—Nay, they made an end of him too.—We are leaderless.—Who shall give us the law?—Who will make the sacrifices for us in Babylon?—Who will interpret the scriptures?—All of the race of Aaron have been slain.—Woe unto us that are orphaned.—Had we but the ark and the roll of the law.—The roll of the law has been burned.—Nay, the word of God cannot be burned.—I tell you I saw it perish in the flames.—Alas, is the law burned?—Impossible, how can God’s word be burned?—Has not his house been burned; has not his altar been overthrown?—Did he not deliver over his holy city to destruction?—Yea, yea, he has made us the slaves of our enemies. He has broken the covenant.—Blaspheme not.—I fear him no longer.—We are leaderless; would that Moses could lead us as of old; would that there were still a judge among the people.—What has become of the king, him whom they blinded?—He has always been blind.—To him we owe these disasters.—Alas for the fate of Israel, the destruction of Jerusalem!

[A disorderly rout, laughing loudly, issues from the palace. The newcomers are the princes of Chaldea, with slaves bearing torches. The princes are drunk. In the midst of the brawling crowd we see the figure of a man whom the princes are buffeting and pushing one to another, so that he totters, and is continually in danger of falling]

The Chaldean Princes

Are you ready for a fresh attack on Nebuchadnezzar?—On, stormer of Babylon.—Pillar of Israel, take heed lest you fall.—He cannot dance like King David.—He cannot play the psaltery.—Enough of him, let us go back to our wine.—I would rather amuse myself with his wives.—Let him drink darkness while we drink wine.—Come away!

[Laughing and shouting, the princes return into the palace, leaving the man of whom they have been making sport swaying unsteadily as he stands at the top of the steps. The moon has pierced the clouds, and his shadow stretches across the stone flooring behind him. This gives him the appearance of a gigantic wraith. The crowd beneath is filled with astonishment and alarm]

Whispering Voices

Who is it?—Why have they cast him out from their board?—Why does he not speak?—Look how he raises his hands imploringly to heaven.—Who is he?—Don’t go near him.—Yes, I will see who it is.

[Some of the bolder spirits have mounted the steps]

A Voice

[With a cry of recognition] Zedekiah!

The Crowd

The king.—The blinded king.—God’s judgment.—Zedekiah.

Zedekiah

[Falteringly] Who calls me?

Voices

No one calls thee.—For thee there are naught but curses, and God’s judgments.—Where are thy Egyptian friends?—Where is Zion?

Other Voices

Be silent!—He is the anointed of the Lord, blinded by our enemies.—Reverence the king.—Have pity on his sufferings.

The First Voices

Nay, he shall not sit among us.—Where are my children?—Give me back my children.—A curse on the man who has murdered Israel.—He is to blame for all.—Why should he live when better men have died?

Zedekiah

[To one who has taken his hand, to lead him] Who are these who rail against me? Are my foes those of mine own household?

The Guide

Lord, they are thy companions in misfortune.

Voices

Do not bring him down here, for his lot and ours shall not be mingled.—Let him sit apart.—God has punished him.—A curse lies upon him.—No longer shall he be king.—Of what use is a blind king?

Zedekiah

[Wellnigh weeping in his helplessness] Lead me forth. They have put out my eyes, and now they will take my crown. Hide me from my enemies.

A Woman

Rest here, Lord King. Lie down and rest.

[A couch is extemporized for Zedekiah at the foot of the steps. The inquisitive gather round]

The Elder

Keep away, keep away. Reverence the Lord’s anointed. God has appointed him our leader.

Voices

How can a blind man lead us?—He cannot reign in Jerusalem, for Zion has fallen.—We are all slaves, and slaves need no leader.—Nay, we need a deliverer.—Were but Moses here to help us at this hour.—How can a man so afflicted give us help and consolation?—No one can help us.—See, the dawn comes. Let us make ready for the journey.—Alas the day!—As wanderers and exiles, we go leaderless into a far country. [Loud chanting is heard in the distance] Hark, the trumpet.—Alas the trumpet sounds.—The first signal for departure.—No, no, that is not a trumpet.—Cannot you hear singing, with cymbals and drums?—Our enemies are rejoicing.—O shame! O torment!

[The chanting draws nearer and nearer, until individual voices and the clashing of the cymbals can be clearly distinguished. At length a group of persons is seen advancing, and thronging exultantly round a tall figure]

A Voice

Look! They are of our own people.

Voices

Impossible.—They are rejoicing.—How could any son of Israel exult on this day of sorrow?—They must be drunken with wine.—Assuredly they are our brothers of Israel.—Who is it in their midst?—Look at that frenzied woman clashing the cymbals!

[The approaching singers, Jeremiah in the center, advance in the pale light of dawn. Some of them are in truth ecstatic and unsteady in their movements, as if drunken; but others are of sober mien]

Chanting Voices

Hosanna!—A prophecy.—Jerusalem endureth for ever!—Blessed our return home.—Blessed be the consoler, and blessed the comfort he brings.—Hosanna!—Jerusalem endureth for ever!

Voices from the Crowd

[In excitement] They are mad.—What has happened?—Hark how they shout Hosanna!—Who is the prophet?—What is his message?—Let him deliver it to us also.—Who shall bring us consolation?

A Voice

Look, is it not Jeremiah whom they surround?

Voices

Yes.—No.—His face was lowering, but this man’s face is radiant.—Nay, it is he.—How changed he is.—A curse upon him who breathed curses.—How can sweetness come from the bitter?

Baruch

Hearken to the message of comfort, brothers. Feed your souls with the word of God, with the bread of life!

Voices

How can comfort be brought by this man accurst?—His words are like scorpions.—His message will choke us.—We have had enough of the prophets, for they have misled us one and all.—No, no, Jeremiah gave us true warning.—I tell you he will rub salt into our wounds.—Away, away, man without bowels of compassion!

Baruch

I beseech you to hear his message. He has uplifted our hearts, and will uplift yours likewise, brothers in God.

The Wounded Man

I testify for him, I testify for him! Fevered by my wounds I lay unable to move. His words have restored my strength. Lo, on me he hath wrought a miracle.

Voices

Who is this?—Listen to what he says.—He tells of a miracle, and a miracle is what we need.—I need comfort.—Naught but Zion’s valleys will comfort me.—What comfort can he give?—Can he raise the dead; can he rebuild the temple?—Let us hear his message.

The Woman

Balaam! Balaam! Balaam! Hail, for that you who came to curse Israel have blessed us thrice.

Baruch

Master, look upon their discord. Make their hearts one, their spirits fruitful. Lift them from their mourning, lift their souls to God.

Jeremiah

[Leaving his companions and going to the top of the steps] Brothers, in the darkness I feel you to be near me, and know that your souls are filled with darkness. But why do you despair? Why do you lament?

Voices

Hearken to the blasphemer.—I warned you against him.—He mocks us.—He asks why we lament!—He rubs salt into our wounds.—Are we to rejoice on the day of our exodus?—Are we to forget the dead?—He laughs at our tears.—Silence, let us hear him.—Let us hear his message.

Jeremiah

Hearken, brothers, give ear unto my words. Is all lost, that you should lament? There still remains the precious gift of life.

A Voice

What a life!

Jeremiah

And I say unto you, who has life, has God also. Leave it to the dead to complain of those who have led them to the tomb. We, who survive, should continue to hope. Lament not, despair not, while breath remains; neither opening your mouths in revolt, nor closing your ears to words of consolation.

Voices

Words, only words, which avail nothing.—If you would lift up our hearts, lift up the walls of Jerusalem.—Rebuild the fortress of Zion.—Alas, he cannot see our distress, he cannot recognize our suffering.

Jeremiah

Brothers, I read your suffering like an open book, and the scroll of your pain lies unrolled before me. Natheless, brothers, I see a meaning in this pain and suffering; I see God therein. The hour is sent to us for trial. Let us meet the test.

Voices

Why should God try us?—Why should he visit us, his chosen people, with affliction?—Why should he make our burden so heavy?

Jeremiah

God sends us this trial that we may know him to be God. To those of other nations, few signs are given and little recognition is vouchsafed. They fancy themselves able to see the face of the Eternal in images of wood and stone. Our God, the God of our fathers, is a hidden God; and not until we are bathed in sorrow are we enabled to discern him. He chooses those only whom he has tried, and to none but the suffering does he give his love. Let us therefore rejoice at our trials, brothers, and let us love the suffering God sends. He has broken us with affliction, that he may sink the deeper into the freshly ploughed ground of our hearts, and that we may be ready for the scattering of his seed. He has weakened our bodies that he may strengthen our souls. Let us joyfully enter the smelting furnace of his will, that thereby we may be purified. Follow the example of your forefathers, and thankfully accept the scourgings of the Almighty!

Voices

Not our will but his.—A blessing on our trials.—I must learn to stifle my complaints.—True, our forefathers likewise were in bondage.

Jeremiah

Brothers, if we believe that we shall arise, already we have arisen. What should we be without faith? Not to us, as to other nations, has a country been given to which we may cling; a home, where we may tarry; rest, that our hearts may wax fat! Not for peace have we been the chosen among the nations. Wandering is our habitation, trouble our heritage, God our home. Do not for that reason covet your neighbor’s goods; do not for that reason complain. Leave to others their happiness and their pride; leave to others an abiding place. For yourselves, people of suffering, gladly accept trial. Have faith, chosen of God, seeing that sorrow is your heritage. Because it is your eternal heritage, therefore are you chosen.

Voices

True is the word.—Sorrow is our heritage.—I will shoulder my burden.—I have faith in God’s mercy. He will lead us now, as he led us out of Egypt.—God will deliver us, as he delivered our fathers.

Jeremiah

Arise, then, and cease repining. Take up your faith as a staff, and you will march bravely through these trials as you have marched for thousands of years. Happy are we to be vanquished, and happy to be driven from home; for we are vanquished, we are driven from home, by God’s will. Happy are we to lose all, that we may find him; happy is our hard lot, gladsome our trial. Kings who mastered us have vanished like smoke; nations which enslaved us have been scattered and their seed has been destroyed; towns wherein we served as bondmen have been made desolate, and are now the home of the jackal; but Israel still lives, ever young, for sorrow is our buttress and overthrow is our strength. Through suffering we have endured the assaults of time; reverses have ever been our beginning; and out of the depths God has gathered us to his heart. Think of our former troubles, and how those troubles were met. Think of Egypt, the house of bondage, the first ordeal. Give praise to affliction, ye afflicted; give praise to trial, ye sorely tried; praise the name of God who, through tribulation, has chosen us for all eternity!

[A wave of enthusiasm answers his words. The confused medley of voices gradually gives place to rhythmical choruses]

Voices

Bondmen of Mizraim
Were our fathers,
Bridled and bitted
Were our fathers,
Israel’s children.
Taskmasters cruel
Hasted our fathers,
Beat them with rods,
Scourged them with cords,
Afflicted our fathers
With manifold tasks.

Higher Voices

Ere long the darkness which encompassed us
Was pierced by Jehovah’s compassionate gaze.
To save his people before it had perished,
God raised up a deliverer,
One of the house of Levi.
Moses came to our aid,
A man mighty of tongue,
A man mighty of hand.
He led us forth from the land of Egypt.
He freed us from the house of bondage.

Exultant Voices

Those who had numbered but seventy
When they entered the land of Egypt,
Went out from it numbering countless thousands,
Driving before them flocks and herds,
And bearing with them great possessions.
Before their faces went the pillar of cloud,
Before them went the pillar of fire,
And the angel of God went before the camp of Israel.
Such was the first exodus,
Such the beginning of happiness,
When God was bringing our fathers to the land of promise.

Jeremiah

But new tribulations awaited us,
Fresh trials;
Forbear not to recall the days of bitterness,
Forget not those days!

Voices

Pursuing us,
Came the army of Pharaoh,
Horses and chariots,
And a multitude of horsemen.
With vengeful clamor
Did they follow after.
The sea barred our passage;
Death pressed at our heels.

Higher Voices

Thereupon the Lord sent the strong east wind,
Dividing the waters that the sea might be dry land.
The waters were a wall unto us,
On our right hand, and on our left.
Thus went we into the midst of the sea
Upon the dry ground.

Exultant Voices

With the clashing of arms and the roaring of chariot wheels,
Our foes, thirsty for blood, followed after,
On the dry ground between the walls of the sea.
They shouted in their wrath as they thought to smite us.
But Moses stretched forth his hand over the sea,
And the waters returned, and covered the chariots and the horsemen,
And all the hosts of Pharaoh that came into the sea after them;
Thus did the Lord overthrow the Egyptians in the midst of the sea!

Deep Voices

Thus did the Lord deliver us out of danger,
And lead us forth from the land of bondage.
Thus wonderful was the beginning
Of our happy and unhappy wanderings!

Jeremiah

Again and again did he pour over us the bitterness of death and the waters of the cup of trial, that we might be healed for evermore. Bethink ye of the scorching days in the desert, of the forty years of privation ere we reached the promised land.

Voices

Parched were our throats,
Blistered our lips,
Athirst were we
And anhungered,
In that waterless and barren region.

Exultant Voices

Then Moses lifted up his hand,
And with his rod smote the rock twice.
Lo, the stone was riven in sunder,
The water gushed forth abundantly,
The congregation drank and their cattle,
And the wanderers laved their toilworn feet.

Higher Voices

When we were weary, the Lord gave us rest.
He sent cool breezes
To temper the burning heats of noontide.
Bitter springs did he sweeten for our sake.
The wind brought fat quails from the sea.
When our entrails were gnawed with hunger,
Lo, after the morning dews had risen,
There lay on the face of the wilderness
Manna, small and round, the bread of heaven.

Jeremiah

Albeit, never was it granted us to live in safety.
Continually did the Lord chastise us with his holy hand.
Ever and again did he renew the tribulations of his people.

Voices

The nations stood
Against us in arms;
Greed and envy
Closed the roads
Of our pilgrimage;
Cities shut their gates;
Spears gleamed,
Strewing our path with death.

Higher Voices

Then God forged us new weapons,
Making our hearts like sharp swords,
Giving us strength against thousands,
Victory over tens of thousands.

Exultant Voices

Trumpets blew, walls fell down;
Moab was overthrown, and Amalek.
With the sword we carved ways
Through the anger of the peoples and the times,
Until our hearts stood the test,
Until we reached the land of promise,
Canaan, where after labor we could rest.
Here was a home for the wanderers,
Now could we ungird our loins,
Doff our shoes, lay aside our staves.
These staves put forth green shoots,
Israel blossomed, and Zion arose.

All the Voices

Again and again have we been yoked to the plough,
Necks bowed; again and again enslaved:
But never has he failed to break our yoke,
To free us from captivity and exile:
From all our afflictions, all our privations,
Never has he failed to deliver us,
To summon us home at last,
To grant us a renewed flowering.

Jeremiah

Have no fear, have no fear, that the Lord will forsake us!
Mistrust him not, brothers, in days that are dark!
For when he debases us, when he afflicts us,
The suffering he sends is but sign of his love.
Then bow ye, my brothers, bend necks to the yoke,
Accept gladly the lot by Jehovah decreed.
Know, that sorrow but proves us, that trial uplifts us,
That affliction, though sore, brings us nearer to God.
Each pang that we feel is a step toward his kingdom,
Since the vanquished on earth are in heaven beloved.
Up brothers, march onward, march onward to God.

Voices

[Ecstatically] Yea, now let us begin our wanderings.—Lead us forth.—We shall suffer, even as our fathers suffered.—Exodus and never-ending return.—Hasten, hasten, sunrise is at hand.—Let us march steadfastly into slavery.—Now as ever, God will deliver us.—We will all go, not one will stay behind.

Zedekiah

Alas, alas! Who will lead me? Leave me not behind! Who will carry me?

Jeremiah

Who calls?

Voices

Let him stay where he is.—He is chaff for the winnowing fan.—He is rejected of God. [To Jeremiah] Lead us, prophet.—You shall be our master.—Leave the outcast.

Jeremiah

No one is an outcast! Whoever calls for help must be heard, for all our sakes.

Voices

Not he.—He is the cause of our troubles.—He is the rejected of God.—He is one accurst!

Jeremiah

I, too, was rejected of God, and God has heard my prayer; I, likewise, was a man accurst, and God has blessed me. Who was it, crying in his distress? Let me bring him comfort, even as I was comforted.

Voices

’Tis the man lying on the steps.—God’s wrath has smitten his pride.

Jeremiah

Why lies he alone there? Wherefore does he not join us?

Voices

Look, his stars are darkened.—No longer can he find his way, for he is blind.—They have put out his eyes.

Jeremiah

[Drawing near the recumbent figure with profound emotion] Zedekiah! Lord King!

Zedekiah

Is it thou, Jeremiah?

Jeremiah

It is I, Lord King. I am thy faithful servant, Jeremiah. [He kneels beside the king]

Zedekiah

Scorn me not! Drive me not from thee, as I drave thee from me! Thy words have burned me to ashes, man of might. Now leave me not alone in the hour of mine anguish. Be with me, as you swore before God when last we met.

Jeremiah

I am with thee, King Zedekiah.

Zedekiah

[Groping for him] Where art thou? I cannot find thee.

Jeremiah

I am at thy feet, thy servant and thy slave.

Zedekiah

[Trembling] Mock me not before the people, nor bow thyself in reverence to one abased. The oil wherewith I was anointed hath turned to blood upon my brow. My crown is dust.

Jeremiah

Thou hast become the king of sorrows, and never wert thou more kingly. Zedekiah, I stood upright before thee when I faced thee in thy strength, but I bow myself before thee now that God hath brought thee low. Anointed by suffering, lead us forth! Thou who now seest God only, who no longer seest the world, guide thy people. [He rises and faces the multitude]