By
The
Twelve Apostles
John As A Hermit
It came to pass when
John, the son of Zacharias and Elizabeth, had finished all his studies in the
Egyptian schools that he returned to Hebron, where he abode for certain days. And
then he sought the wilderness and made his home in David's cave where many
years before, he was instructed by the Egyptian sage, wsie
man.
Some people called him Hermit of Engedi; and others
said, “He is the Wild Man of the Hills.” He clothed himself with skins of
beasts; his food was carobs, honey, nuts and fruits.
John Begins His Work As A
Harbinger
When John was thirty years of age, he went into
Jerusalem, and in the market place he sat in silence seven days. The common
people and the priests, the scribes and Pharisees came out in multitudes to see
the silent hermit of the hills; but none were bold enough to ask him who he
was. But when his silent fast was done, he stood forth in the midst of all and
said:
“Behold the king has
come;
the prophets told of
Him;
the wise men long
have looked for Him.
Prepare, O Israel, prepare to meet your king.”
And that was all he said, and then he disappeared, and no one knew where he had
gone. And there was great unrest through all Jerusalem. The rulers heard the
story of the hermit of the hills. And they sent couriers forth to talk with him
that they might know about the coming king; but they could not find him.
And after certain days he came again into the market place, and all the city
came to hear him speak; he said:
“Be not disturbed, you rulers of the state;
the coming king is
not an antagonist.
He seeks no place on
any earthly throne.
He comes the Prince of Peace,
And the king of righteousness and love.
His kingdom is within the soul.
The physical eyes of men shall see not it
and none but the pure
in heart can enter.
Prepare, O Israel, prepare to meet your king.”
Again the hermit disappeared; the people strove to follow him, but he had drawn
a veil about his form and people could not see him.
A feast day came; Jerusalem was filled with Israelites and proselytes
(converts) from every part of Palestine, and John stood in the temple court and
said,
Prepare, O Israel, prepare to meet your king.
Lo, you have lived in sin;
the poor cry in your streets,
and you regard them not.
Your neighbours, who are they?
You have defrauded
friend and foe alike.
You worship God with voice and lip;
but your hearts are
far away, and set on gold.
Your priests have bound upon the people
burdens far too great
to bear.
The priests, and the
rich and wealthy,
live in ease upon the
hard earned wages of the poor.
Your lawyers, doctors, scribes
are useless cumberers of the ground.
They are tumours on the body of the state.
They neither toil nor do they spin,
yet they consume the
profits of your markets of trade.
Your rulers are adulterers, extortioners and thieves,
who do not regarding
the rights of any man.
And robbers ply their calling in the sacred halls;
the holy temple you
have sold to thieves;
their dens are in the
sacred places set apart for prayer.
Hear! hear! you people of
Reform; turn from
your evil ways
or God will turn from
you
and the heathen will
come from afar,
and what is left of
all your honour and your fame
will pass in one short
hour.
Prepare, Jerusalem,
prepare to meet your king.”
He said no more, left the court and no one saw him go. The priests, the doctors
and the scribes were all in rage. They sought for John intent to do him harm.
They found him not. The people stood in his defence.
They said, “The hermit speaks the truth. And then the priests, the doctors and
the scribes were sore afraid; they said no more; they hid themselves away.
The Voice Of One Crying In The Wilderness
Now in the
fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate being governor
of Judea, Herod being tetrarch of Galilee, his brother Philip tetrarch of Iturea and the region of Trachonitis,
and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene, while Annas and Caiaphas were high priests, the word of God came
to John the son of Zacharias in the wilderness. And he went into all the region
around the Jordan, preaching a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins,
as it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet, saying:
Next day John went again into the temple courts and said, “Prepare, O Israel,
prepare to meet your king.” The chief priests and the scribes wanted to know
the meaning of his words. They said,
“Bold man, what is the meaning of this message that you bring to Israel?
If you be seer and
prophet tell us plainly who has sent you here?”
And John replied,
"The voice of one crying in the wilderness:
'Prepare the way of the Lord;
Make His paths straight.
Every valley shall be filled
And every mountain and hill brought low;
The crooked places shall be made straight
And the rough ways smooth;
And all flesh shall see the
salvation of God.'"
“Prepare the way,
make straight the paths,
for, lo, the Prince
of Peace will come to rule in love.
“Your prophet Malachi wrote down the words of God:
‘And I will send Elijah unto you
before the
retribution day shall come,
to turn again the
hearts of men to God,
and if they will not
turn, lo,
I will smite them with a curse.’
You men of
As I passed by,
I saw a wounded bird lying in your streets,
and men of every
class were beating it with clubs;
and then I saw that
Justice was its name.
I looked again and saw that its companion had been killed;
the pure white wings
of Righteousness were trampled in the dust.
I tell you men, your awfulness of guilt has made
a cesspool of
iniquity that sends a fearful stench to heaven.
Reform, O Israel, reform; prepare to meet your king.”
And then John turned away, and as he went he said, “In seven days, lo, I will
stand at Gilgal, by the Jordan ford, where Israel first crossed into the
Promised Land.” And then, he left the temple court to enter it no more; but
many people followed him as far as Bethany, and there he tarried at the home of Lazarus, his kin. The anxious people
gathered all about the home and would not go; then John came forth and said,
“Reform, O Israel, reform; prepare to meet your king.
All the sins of Israel do not lie at the door of priest and scribe only.
Do you think that all
the sinners of Judea are found
among the rulers and
the men of wealth?
It is no sign that man is good and pure because he lives in want.
The listless, shiftless vagabonds of earth are mostly poor
and have to beg for
bread.
I saw the very men that cheered
because I told the
priests and scribes of their injustice unto man,
throw stones and beat
poor Justice in the streets.
I saw them trample on the poor dead bird of Righteousness.
And you who follow after me, you multitudes,
are not better than
the scribes and priests in crime.
Reform, you men of Israel; the king has come.
Prepare to meet your king.”
With Lazarus and his sisters, John remained for certain
days. In honour of the Nazarite. a
feast was spread, and all the people stood about
the board (in attendance and in support).And when the chief men of the
town poured out the sparkling wine and offered John a cup, he took it, held it
high in air, and said,
“Wine makes glad the carnal heart,
and it makes sad the
human soul.
It plunges deep in
bitterness and gall the deathless spirit of the man.
I took the vow of Nazariteship
when I was a child,
and not a drop has
ever passed my lips.
And if you would make glad the coming king,
then shun the cup as
you would shun a deadly thing.”
And then he threw the sparking wine out in the
street.
The above action of
St John De Baptist simply means that the children of God must not forget the
reason why they are here on earth. God sent humanity here on earth to learn how
to live in heaven. Many are ignorant of this fact, and therefore involve
themselves in all kinds of worldliness. Whatever you do, you must study
Spiritual Science and Yahweh's Book Of Life, and follow the everlasting Paths of
Righteousness, if you want to inherit the Kingdom of Heaven.
Drinking wine, which
does not contain alcohol, is very good for your health and spiritual growth,
especially when you pray God to change the wine into the Blood of Jesus.