Page:Apocryphal Gospels and Other Documents Relating to the History of Christ.djvu/399

Rh God said to John, Where is my son? John saith, Seest thou him who beareth the crown of thorns, and hath his hands bound? When the mother of God heard this, and saw him, she fainted, and fell backward to the earth, and lay a considerable time. And the women who followed her stood around her and wept. And when she revived and arose, she cried with a loud voice, saying, My lord, my son, whither is the beauty of thy form departed? How shall I bear to see thee suffering such things? And saying this, she tore her face with her nails and smote her breast. Whither have passed, said she, the good deeds which thou didst in Judea? What evil hast thou done to the Jews. Thus then the Jews who saw her weeping and crying out came and drove her out of the way. But she was not persuaded to flee, but continued saying, Slay me first, O lawless Jews.

Then they retired to the place called Cranium, which was paved with stones, and there the Jews set up the cross. Then they stripped Jesus, and the soldiers took his garments and divided them among themselves, and they put upon him a scarlet cloth; and raised him up and fastened him on the cross at the sixth hour of the day. After this they also lifted up two robbers, one on his right hand and one on his left.

Then the mother of God, standing and beholding,