THE HOLY GOSPEL ACCORDING TO SAINT ADRAMMELECH: CHAPTER 9

CHAPTER 9

¹And it came to pass in those days, while the Lord yet tarried in Murond, that the teachers of tradition and the lords of temple and court gathered themselves together by stealth, that they might lay hold upon Ajora, and destroy Him.
²For they said among themselves, “Behold, this man causeth the hearts of the people to depart from our keeping. If He rise further, our authority shall be as a wind with no sail.”
³And one among the lesser brethren, whose name was Zebeb, who had walked with the Lord and eaten of His bounty, was moved by envy and gold alike.
⁴He came unto the lords of the temple by night, and bowed himself before them, saying, “What will ye give me, if I deliver Him unto thee?”
⁵And they covenanted with him for thirty coins of electrum, and he took the pieces and departed.
⁶From that hour did Zebeb seek opportunity to betray the Lord, not in the sight of the multitude, but in some solitary place.
⁷And on the fifth day since the entry into Murond, the Lord sat at meat with His disciples in the upper room of a potter’s house, and He spake unto them in solemn tones.
⁸“Verily I say unto thee: One among thee shall this night deliver Me unto them that hate righteousness.”
⁹And they were sore amazed, and each spake in turn, saying, “Lord, is it I?” But the Lord answered not at first.
¹⁰After they had supped, the Lord went forth with the eleven into the Garden of Gethosia, a grove of olives upon the eastern hill, there to pray.
¹¹And He said unto His disciples, “Sit ye here, while I go yonder and pray.” And He took with Him Hashmal, Ultima, and Adrammelech.
¹²And He began to be sorrowful and very heavy, and said, “My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death: tarry ye here, and watch with Me.”
¹³And He went a little farther, and fell upon His face, and prayed, saying, “O Lord Most High, if it be possible, let this cup pass from Me: nevertheless not as I will, but as Thou wilt.”
¹⁴“Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.”
¹⁵And while He yet spake, lo, a company of armed men approached, with torches and blades, and with them came Zebeb.
¹⁶Then they that came laid hands on the Lord and seized Him, and the disciples would have fought, but He forbade them, saying, “He that taketh the sword shall perish with the sword.”
¹⁷“Thinkest thou not that I cannot now pray to My Father, and He shall presently give Me more than twelve legions of angels? But how then shall the scriptures be fulfilled?”
¹⁸Then all the disciples forsook Him and fled, and the Lord was left alone among His captors.
¹⁹And they led Him away to the Hall of Stones, where sat the High Council of Murond, robed and assembled in darkness.
²⁰And many false witnesses were brought in haste, but their testimony agreed not. One said, “He spake against the Temple,” and another, “He calleth Himself the Son of the Most High.”
²¹And the High Elder rose and said, “Answerest Thou nothing? Behold how many accuse Thee!”
²²But Ajora held His peace, and opened not His mouth, that the prophecy might be fulfilled: “He was oppressed and afflicted, yet He opened not His mouth.”
²³At length, the Elder said, “I adjure Thee by the Living God: tell us whether Thou be the Glabados.”
²⁴And Ajora said unto him, “Thou hast said it. Nevertheless I say unto thee, hereafter shall ye see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of Power, and coming in the clouds of Heaven.”
²⁵Then the Elder rent his garments and cried, “He hath spoken blasphemy! What further need have we of witnesses?”
²⁶And the Council cried out, “He is worthy of death!” And they smote Him with their hands, and blindfolded Him, and said, “Prophesy, O Glabados, who is it that struck Thee?”
²⁷Then they bound Him with chains and brought Him before the Prefect of the city, whose name was Mallius.
²⁸And Mallius, though a man of law, found no fault in Him. He said, “This man stirreth not sedition, nor doth He speak treason; ye bring me a lamb and call Him a wolf.”
²⁹But the priests and temple lords stirred the crowd, crying, “Kill Him! Let Him be hanged! It is better that one die than the temple fall!”
³⁰And Mallius, desiring to quiet the tumult, gave command that Ajora be sentenced unto death, though his heart was troubled.
³¹And he said unto the people, “I am innocent of the blood of this just man: see ye to it.” And he washed his hands in a basin of water before the multitude.
³²But they answered, “His blood be upon us and upon our children.”
³³Then was the Lord delivered unto the jailers, to be held until the day of execution. And they mocked Him, and clothed Him in a mantle of faded crimson, and set upon His brow a crown of woven thorns.
³⁴And they bowed the knee before Him in mockery, saying, “Hail, King of Ivalice!”
³⁵Yet the Lord answered them not, nor did He curse them, but bore all things meekly, knowing what must be accomplished.
³⁶Thus was fulfilled the word of the prophet, who wrote, “He was despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief.”
³⁷And night fell upon the city of Murond, and the hearts of the disciples were heavy, for their Lord was taken, and none knew what the morrow would bring.

▷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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