Chapter 3 of 15
Until the unsettling visit of Pontius Pilate, my life had largely been uneventful, my duties had been tedious and repetitive, my surroundings calm and secure. I am ashamed to say, my brother, that rather than cherishing this serenity, I yearned for adventure. And so you may understand why I was, in a way, saddened by the departure of the Procurator, as I believed that he had taken his whirlwind with him and that the excitement he generated would not soon return to my simple life. However, as I was quickly to learn, I was very mistaken.
The Procurator had been gone for less than an hour when the same slave who had earlier announced the arrival of a hooded Roman approached me once again with news of a stranger at the door. I asked if it was the same man who had appeared earlier, but the slave said no, that this visitor was clearly a Judean. The visitor would likely have been sent on his way were it not for the fact that the slave, seeing the deference I had shown to our previous visitor, thought that perhaps the household had adopted a new policy toward the treatment of strangers who showed up at the door at night, unannounced. I told the slave that nothing had changed and that he should send the man away.
But then, for some reason that I still cannot explain, I asked the slave if our new visitor had identified himself. "He has," the slave said, and he told me the name of the visitor.
I felt as though I had been struck dumb. When finally I was able to speak, I told the slave to escort the visitor to the same inner room that we had used earlier, and I ran off to fetch my master once again. When Caiaphas saw that I was interrupting the council for a second time, his expression told me that he feared that the Procurator had returned – and indeed, he pulled me aside and asked if that was what had happened. I told him that we did have a visitor, but that it was not the Procurator. "The man's name," I said, barely trusting myself to speak, "is Judas. Judas Iscariot."
To my master's credit, although his eyes did widen with surprise, he recovered almost immediately. He nodded, more to himself than to me, and he told me to go and bring Judas to him. I thought I had misunderstood – surely Caiaphas did not wish me to bring this dangerous man into the council chamber to meet with the priests! But my master calmly repeated his instruction, and I scurried off, fretfully, to do as I was told.
I do not know what my master told the other priests in my absence, but I do know that the chamber suddenly grew quiet when I returned with Judas. He was a large man, bearded and with long hair; his garments were torn and dirty, but he carried himself with an air of great confidence. The priests turned to stare at him as he strode into the room. He returned their stares with insolence, he sat without being invited – and then, as some of the priests gasped in horror, he leaned back and put his feet on the council table. Several of the priests protested this outrage, but Caiaphas held up his hand for silence. "Has your master sent you here for a purpose?" he demanded. "Or have you come here only to show us how ill-bred you are?"
"Save your insults, priest," Judas sneered. "They have no effect on me. And whether or not my master sent me is no concern of yours. I am here for but one reason, and that is to tell you where my master is so that you may arrest him."
At that, confusion filled the room. The priests shouted in amazement at Judas and at each other as they tried to decide what to do. Some wished to arrest Judas to gain favor with the Romans; some wished to throw Judas from the house (although I could not help but notice that not one of them volunteered to do the deed himself); still others knew not what to do, but spoke loudly against Judas for his lack of respect.
After a time, Caiaphas once again held up his hand for silence. "We have decided to accept your proposal," he said, although clearly he had consulted with no one. "Discuss the arrangements with Enoch," he added, pointing to me, "and we will send a delegation to arrest your master. It is time for us to hear what he has to say for himself."
Judas jumped hotly to his feet, startling some of the priests, who drew back from his anger. "You will listen," he snarled, "but you will not hear." He stared at each of the priests in turn, his face twisted with contempt. Then he whirled about and started to leave the chamber. I turned and hurried to follow.
"Wait!" my master called. Judas stopped and turned back to face him. I turned as well, just in time to see the priest toss Pilate's purse to Judas, who caught it and looked at the priest with puzzlement.
Caiaphas returned Judas' look with an even stare. "To seal the agreement," he said.
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©2004 Henry Charles Mishkoff