Page:Philochristus, Abbott, 1878.djvu/110

102 seemed to me not possible that Jesus of Nazareth could be greater than they, so as to be the Messiah. But when I asked myself, "Could it then be that Jesus is a deceiver?" my heart made answer, "Nay, that could not be. And if thou trust not in Jesus, there is not any one in the world in whom thou canst trust." So I comforted myself in my perplexity, saying to myself, "Perchance the time hath not yet come for Jesus to manifest himself as the son of David, nor as the Son of man spoken of by the prophet Daniel: but doubtless that time will come; and then shalt thou see Jesus, as the Messiah indeed, in power."

But on the morrow, very early, when we went forth to the house of Simon Peter, behold, a mixed multitude had gathered round the doors waiting for the coming of Jesus. And I also waited, standing with them, and heard how they conversed with each other. But it seemed that one had but now come forth from the house of Peter, saying that Jesus could not be found in the house. Then arose a murmur in the crowd; and a certain man from Antioch said that Simon had set a snare for Jesus of Nazareth, and had betrayed him to Herod the Tetrarch. But there was in the press one Gorgias the son of Philip, a man well known to Simon; and he laughed the man of Antioch to scorn. He had been in the army of Herod the King in former times, and his father was a Greek; but he conformed himself to the Law and joined himself to the sect of the Galileans; and his word prevailed greatly with them, because he was versed in warlike matters. This man declared that Jesus had withdrawn himself, that he might not be shut up in prison by the Tetrarch: "And no marvel," said he, "for, seeing that the tyrant hath but now taken John the son of Zachariah, why should he not also adventure to take the new prophet?"

Others, beside myself, had not heard before that John