THE HOLY GOSPEL ACCORDING TO SAINT ADRAMMELECH: CHAPTER 6

CHAPTER 6

¹And it came to pass in those days that Ajora Glabados, the Anointed of the Most High, entered into the lowlands of Yardow, which lieth on the border of the river Ebran, where merchants gather and trade is as the beating of wings in a swarm.
²And behold, there was a great market set in the courtyard of the outer temple, and many men were gathered therein: moneychangers, lenders, sellers of wares, and buyers of indulgences.
³And the air was thick with the clink of coin and the haggling of voices, as gold was exchanged for bread and silver for favor, and the poor were pressed down with scales unjust and balances deceitful.
⁴Then said Velius unto the Lord, “Master, behold how the temple hath become as a stall for beasts and a den of thieves. Dost Thou not mourn for the House of the Lord?”
⁵And Ajora looked round about, and His visage was sorely changed, and the light of righteousness did kindle in His countenance like a flame upon the altar.
⁶And He went unto the stall of the chief moneychanger, whose name was Marbasa, a man clothed in fine raiment, whose table did bear scales of brass and coffered caskets of coin.
⁷And Ajora spake unto him, saying, “Is it not written in the scrolls of old, ‘Let thy trade be just, and thy hand weighed in mercy’? But thou hast heaped gain upon the heads of the weary, and stolen bread from the mouths of orphans.”
⁸And Marbasa laughed and said, “Nay, Teacher, I take only what the market alloweth, and my labor is not without its worth.” But the Lord answered him not, for He took up a cord and fashioned a whip.
⁹And Ajora strode into the midst of the market, and He overturned the tables of the changers, and the benches of them that sold pigeons and goats, and the baskets of them that peddled false balm.
¹⁰And He cast out the merchants, crying with a great voice, “It is written, ‘Mine house shall be called a house of prayer,’ but ye have made it a cavern of usury and cold gain!”
¹¹And the whip was in His hand, and the power of the Lord in His arm, and the sellers fled from before Him, casting down their coin and crying aloud for fear.
¹²And Ajora overturned the stall of Marbasa, and his scales shattered upon the ground, and his coin scattered like seed on the wind.
¹³Then said the Lord unto the multitude that stood by, “Woe unto thee, O generation of buyers and sellers, who know not the weight of mercy nor the measure of grace! For ye have kindled thy fire upon the frozen plains under the eye of Amphisbaena.”
¹⁴“Behold, I say unto thee, the day shall come when thy coin shall rot in thy purse, and thy gold shall become as lead, and ye shall cry unto the mountains to cover thee from the frost of the just King.”
¹⁵“For the kingdom of Hell is as the sea in winter, and they who trust in riches shall be cast down as stones into its depths.”
¹⁶And the people were astonished at His words, and none dared to gainsay Him, for His authority was not as the scribes, nor as the Pharists, but as One sent from the heights above the Heavens.
¹⁷Then drew near unto Him a woman, whose husband had been ruined by debt and taken in chains. She fell at His feet and cried, “O Lord, we were cast out of our dwelling, and the moneylenders took even the lamp from our table.”
¹⁸And Ajora lifted her up and said, “Weep not, daughter, for the Lord hath seen thy tears, and thy cry hath entered into His throne. Blessed are the poor, for theirs is the Kingdom which fadeth not away.”
¹⁹And the disciples marveled at the Lord’s wrath, for they had not seen such fury in Him. But Adrammelech said, “Righteous art Thou, O Lord, for Thy zeal consumeth Thee like fire upon the hills.”
²⁰Then said Ajora unto the twelve, “Hearken, My brethren: the love of coin is the root of all devouring frost. It spreadeth like ivy upon the heart, and bringeth forth envy, theft, and the trampling of the meek.”
²¹“There shall come a time when the stewards of the Lord shall be tempted with gifts, and when rulers shall measure worth by weight of silver and not by righteousness.”
²²“Then shall the cry of the poor rise up like incense, and it shall be a witness against them that sit in lofty places, and judge not with equity.”
²³“Ye have heard it said, ‘Render unto the Lord thy tithe,’ but I say unto thee, render unto Him thy justice, and thy mercy, and thy compassion. For these are the true treasures which neither rust nor thief consumeth.”
²⁴“He that hoardeth gold in fear shall perish alone. But he that giveth to the lowly, his reward shall be laid up in Paradise, and his name inscribed upon the scroll of the living.”
²⁵And there was great murmuring among the people, for many of them were merchants, and their hearts were pricked by His words. Yet some fell down and repented, casting away their ledgers and balances.
²⁶And one, whose name was Bascus, a tax-gatherer, came to the Lord and said, “Master, I have taken more than was meet; what shall I do?”
²⁷And Ajora answered him, “Restore fourfold unto those whom thou hast defrauded, and go, and sin no more. For today, salvation entereth thy house.”
²⁸And Bascus did as the Lord commanded, and became a follower thenceforth, and gave alms unto the needy until the end of his days.
²⁹And Ajora left the ruins of the market, and went up into a high place with His disciples, and there He taught them of the vanity of wealth, and of the true riches which are eternal.
³⁰And He spake this parable: “A man built a vault, and filled it with treasures from many lands. And he said in his heart, ‘Soul, thou hast many goods stored up for many years; rest and eat and be merry.’”
³¹“But that night his soul was required of him, and the vault was sealed with dust. Behold, so is he that layeth up treasures for himself, and is not rich toward the Lord.”
³²And the twelve sat in silence, and the words of the Lord were heavy upon their hearts.
³³Then Ajora said unto them, “Let not thy hearts be weighed with avarice, nor thy minds deceived by numbers and gain. For I tell thee truly, he that seeketh Paradise must walk in truth and humility.”
³⁴“And when ye see the poor, see Me; when ye behold the widow, behold thy mother; and when ye touch the outcast, thou hast touched the garment of the Most High.”
³⁵And the Lord stood in the midst of them, and He was as one clothed in morning light, and His words fell as dew upon the grass.
³⁶And they worshipped Him, and followed Him into the city of Mirra, rejoicing that they had been counted worthy to walk with the Son of God.

▷THE SEVEN SCRIPTURES OF THE CHURCH OF GLABADOS
    ▷THE HOLY GOSPEL OF OUR LORD, SAINT AJORA
        ▷THE HOLY GOSPEL ACCORDING TO SAINT ADRAMMELECH
            ▶1—2—3—4—5—6—7—8—9—10—11—12

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