Confrontation in Capharsalama

CHAPTER 4

Yeshua rescues a man named Ephres, who is being beaten by three men who claim they are doing so because they believe he is a homosexual and they are fulfilling the will of God. Yeshua explains the principles of God and how Elohim is more concerned with the virtues of one’s character and the faithfulness of their devotion than the choices of their affections. Though there are those who may be scorned by the ignorant, they are loved by God.

 1 And it came to pass that the family of Yochanan remained in Bethany at the house of Martha’s parents, under the stewardship of her brother Lazarus, while Yochanan bid them farewell and made a journey to Gimron.

 2 And Yeshua and Miriam began a journey with their two children to Nazareth so that they might once again see the family of Yeshua.

 3 Their farewells to their family and friends in Bethany were prolonged, causing them to depart late in the morning. A donkey carried their belongings, and they traveled slowly by foot because of the children. After a short first day’s journey, they set a camp for the evening, some distance from the road, on the north side of the village of Capharsalama.

 4 As Miriam was preparing the evening meal of bread from Bethany and salad from greens they had picked along their route, they saw a man running along the road, being pursued by three other men who caught up with him as they watched and began to beat him with short sticks.

 5 “Stay here with the children,” Yeshua commanded. Then without another word, he ran toward the altercation.

 6 As he came upon the men, they did not even notice him, so intent were they upon beating the hapless fellow on the ground, who was looking up at the stars and calling out in a weak voice, “God is great. Help me, O Lord.”

 7 Coming beside them unnoticed, Yeshua said in a loud voice of exceeding power, “In the name of Elohim, cease this instant your cowardly deed!”

 8 Hearing a voice of thunder coming as seemed to them from the very air around them caused all three of the attackers such fright that they let go of their sticks as if they were hot irons and dropped to the ground trembling in fear.

 9 Ignoring them, Yeshua went to assist the man they had been beating. Blood flowed freely from his head and his body, and he moaned softly with his eyes closed. Yeshua knelt beside him and touched his wounded head lightly. Immediately, the bleeding stopped.

 10 Yeshua looked up at his attackers, saying, “As his clothes show, this man is poor, so you do not beat him to steal his money. But you have nearly taken his life. For what cause think you to take the authority of God into your hands?”

 11 The three men rose up, and seeing Yeshua alone and weaponless, their courage began to return. The largest pointed a finger at the stricken man and said, “He is not from our village, and we have seen that he has unnatural affections for men, which thing we cannot abide.

 12 It was only last week that our rabbi exhorted us that it is an abomination for a man to lie with another and such should be put to death. We are devout men, not just in word, but also in deed, and we are here to fulfill the will of God.”

 13 Yeshua stood up, and in his height, he was taller than the largest of the attackers, and he said unto them, “Has this man sinned against you?” And the three denied that he had. And Yeshua said, “Has he sinned against your family?” And again, they denied that he had. And Yeshua asked once more, “Then how is it that you say he has sinned?”

 14 The middle of the three became flustered and, speaking quickly, said, “He was found sleeping in a stable under a cloak with another man. The other ran faster than we could catch, but this one we have. Therefore, leave us be and we will finish what we have begun.”

 15 “They were naked beneath the cloak?” Yeshua inquired. And the men replied that they had been clothed. “Then how was it that they were showing affection one for another?” Yeshua wondered. But again, the men said they did not see such.

 16 “Perhaps, they were merely drawing closer to share warmth on a cold night.” Yeshua suggested. “And they are not after all as you assume them to be.

 17 As you judge so shall you be judged by Elohim.

 18 If you take a life, especially from a false judgment, it is you who will stand condemned before God and pay for your sins, not just with your life, but with your eternity. Are you so sure of your judgment then that you will risk your own eternal reward?”

 19 The men looked upon the ground and shuffled about sheepishly, mumbling to one another at the words Yeshua had said and unsure how to answer.

 20 Yeshua admonished them, “Return now to your homes and leave this man, for you know neither the will nor the power of Elohim. I will return to Capharsalama in the morning and will speak to your rabbi. Let him know that Yeshua of Nazareth will call upon him after the morning meal.”

 21 Then the men backed away from Yeshua and, turning about, hurried back to their village to speak of all that had transpired.

 22 Yeshua squatted down, and putting his arms beneath the limp body of the man, he easily lifted him and carried him to where Miriam and the children waited.

 23 Miriam tended to the man’s wounds with water and herbs while Yeshua explained that even though their first day had been a short journey, their second day would be even shorter, as they must return to Capharsalama in the morning so that he might speak to the rabbi.

 24 They had no campfire, but there was a bright Moon that night. After the children fell into sleep, Miriam applied fresh crushed herbs to the man’s wounds, and Yeshua came to him and touched him lightly at each spot of his injuries, saying, “As you love God, may your wounds so be healed.”

 25 The man slept soundly through the night and awakened upon the sunrise, startled to see he was still alive, lying with a family about him and his attackers nowhere to be seen. “What miracle has occurred that I am here?” he asked in amazement.

 26 Yeshua came to him and, putting his hand upon his shoulder, said, “I am Yeshua of Nazareth and this is my wife Miriam, and our children, Uriel and Dara. Yesterday was not your day to die, and your greatness is still before you.”

 27 Then Yeshua told him of all that had befallen him from the moment he was hit on the head and fell asleep until the moment he had just now awakened.

 28 After listening to Yeshua, the man shook his head dejectedly saying, “I am Ephres, and I have no greatness before me. I have nothing. I am nothing, except miserable. In truth, I am guilty of what my attackers accused me of, so leave me; I am grateful for your help, but now you know the truth, so do not waste your time with one such as me.”

 29 Despite his words, Yeshua did not move, and he told him, “I have always known the truth. And Elohim is more concerned with the virtues of your character and the faithfulness of your devotion than the choices of your affections. Though you may be scorned by the ignorant, you are loved by God.”

 30 The words of Yeshua were like the greatest balm of healing to Ephres. A smile of wonder came upon his face, and he glowed with serenity from within his heart. He looked upon Yeshua with awe and told him, “If only all men felt as you do, I could lead a normal life.”

 31 “There is no other way a man who loves and gives true devotion to Elohim could feel,” Yeshua answered. “I am going now to speak with the rabbi and the people of Capharsalama that they may have no confusion on this. If you are well enough, I would like you to come with me and my family.”

 32 “Of course!” Ephres said in eagerness, standing up quickly, to his own surprise. “You are my savior, and even now go to defend me. I would be less than an ant if I did not stand beside you.”

 33 After Ephres had eaten a little bread with honey and olive oil, he stood thumping his chest and exclaimed, “I feel like a new man. In truth, I do not even have bruises upon my body. How can this be?”

 34 And Yeshua said unto him, “In your darkest hour, you did not call upon men for mercy, but upon God for strength. Even as you have asked, so it has been done, because of your faith.”

 35 Shortly thereafter, Yeshua, Miriam, their children, and Ephres returned to Capharsalama.

 36 As they walked toward the village, they did not have to seek out the rabbi, for their approach had been noted by the villagers and the rabbi and several of the men from the village stood upon the road awaiting them.

 37 As they approached, the rabbi raised his hand, saying, “Stop there. You may not enter this village if you walk with this wretch of a man or with a brazen woman who is not covered, for God has said that it is an abomination for a man to lie with another and a shame for a women to be uncovered among men.”

 38 Despite the bravado of the rabbi and the courage instilled by their numbers, the gathered men still seemed somewhat in awe of Yeshua, for his presence, even without speaking, was powerful and unusual. Because of his height, all upon the road looked up to him, and his hair, though not long, was longer than usually seen among the men of Judea.

 39 Because of the influence of the Greeks and Romans, many men his age removed their facial hair, but he wore a full beard, which was a little longer than the current fashion and slightly parted in the middle in a style seldom seen. Lastly, his eyes were a most piercing blue, a rare color in Palestine and unnerving to many who looked upon him.

 40 Facing the men, Yeshua held out his arms to his sides, at waist height with his palms forward, saying, “Rabbi, by what law do you bar our passage, condemn this man, and vilify my wife?”

 41 And the Rabbi answered, “By the Code of Moses.”

 42 Taking a moment to look individually at each man in the group, which had a diverse appearance, Yeshua further inquired, “The same code that says that men should not cut their hair or beard?”

 43 The rabbi seemed irritated by the question, answering, “There is only one Code of Moses, but there are degrees of graveness; whether one’s hair is short or long, whether one has a beard or not, is not comparable with sexual transgressions, particularly the most heinous kind that this man is guilty of.”

 44 Now Yeshua spoke calmly and quietly, but with great power in his voice, saying, “And I declare unto you that the Code of Moses is only in small part from Moses and more from men who knew not God.

 45 And by this, you may know the truth: If a law teaches to honor and respect Elohim and to honor and respect yourself and to honor and respect your fellow brothers and sisters of spirit upon this Earth, and to honor and respect all creatures over which you are stewards, then you may know with a certainty that it is from God.

 46 But if it teaches to not honor and respect Elohim, or to not honor and respect yourself, or to not honor and respect your fellow brothers and sisters of spirit, or to not honor and respect life entrusted to your stewardship, then you may know with certainty that it is of man, and any who obey it do so to appease man, not God.”

 47 The crowd stood unable to move, shocked that any man could say such things. And the rabbi, after his gaping mouth closed, began to sputter in a most angry manner, saying, “This is blasphemy of the highest order. How dare you speak such horrible words? God shall surely strike you where you stand.”

 48 With a smile, Yeshua looked about him to the sky, as if waiting for a thunderbolt to come from Heaven. And he told them, “If I were speaking that which was not true, then surely I could not stand before you and would suffer the wrath of Heaven. But here I still stand, and I say unto you that the spirit of God is in me, and I speak the truth to you. Therefore, open your ears that you may hear.”

 49 Now the rabbi was still sorely vexed at the words of Yeshua and was about to respond with a condemnation when Yeshua interjected, saying, “Prove me now, good men of Capharsalama. If I can show you that the Code of Moses is more a code of men than of God, will you then consider that the words which are written concerning women and men may not be after all the truth as you have always been taught?”

 50 Hearing this statement from Yeshua, the rabbi practically screamed, “Sacrilege! The Code of Moses was given by the word of God. To say it is not perfect in every way is to say God is not perfect.”

 51 Yeshua answered, “If all the words which are written came from Elohim through Moses, then you would be correct as would your judgments upon us. But are you so afraid of truth that you will not even allow me to prove to you that the words you hold sacred are often the greatest sacrilege?”

 52 “We will not listen to such nonsense,” the rabbi proclaimed.

 53 But one of the men of the village stepped forward and said, “Let us hear the words of the stranger, for he speaks as one who has authority. If we judge his words to be in error, then we are no worse off and he will be exposed as an affront to God. But if we judge his words to be wise, then we will have gained something of importance on this day.”

 54 The rabbi glared at the man and began to speak in anger again, but seeing the crowd in agreement with the words of the villager, he acquiesced to Yeshua, “Very well, speak as you will, but know that your very words will be your condemnation.”

 55 Yeshua looked one by one into the eyes of each man before him and then said unto them, “If the Code of Moses were actually written by Moses as given unto him by Elohim, then it could contain no errors of substance.

 56 If it were written only by Moses and no others, there could be no confusion. If it were written by a prophet of God, it would only contain that which leads men to honor and respect God and the creations, which God has made.

 57 To prove that some of the laws are of man, I will first show that many of the words written in the books of Moses are from unnamed men other than Moses, for if they fall, so fall the erroneous laws which they contain.

 58 Good Rabbi, can you tell me, was Moses a humble man?”

 59 And the Rabbi frowned, answering, “The word of God says, the man Moses was very meek, above all the men who were upon the face of the Earth.”

 60 Yeshua inquired further of him, “And in his humility, he wrote these words about himself?”

 61 Perhaps, a later writer added that little tribute,” the rabbi admitted.

 62 And what think you men of Capharsalama?” Yeshua continued. “The Torah also says there arose not a prophet since like unto Moses, whom the Lord knew face-to-face. Did Moses in his humility, write his own eulogy?”

 63 And the men of Capharsalama murmured that these were indeed questions.

 64 But the rabbi said, “These are trivial things. You speak of nothing of substance.”

 65 “Then perhaps you will consider the covenant with Abraham significant, as there are different accounts of this blessing from which all the Children of Israel claim their birthright.

 66 Or perhaps the name of God, which Moses surely knew, but which is said differently in different parts of the Torah, as is the important account of the revelation at Beth-el to Jacob from which the Children of Israel claim the land of their forefathers.

 67 And what of the commandments of Sinai? Are they so complex that Moses must write them twice and differently each time?

 68 And what of women? Are they chattel or servants or merely comely beasts to be used as man sees fit? The books of Moses give a record of Lot, a man so righteous that God spared him, but destroyed all the inhabitants of Sodom and Gomorrah.

 69 Yet according to the sacred books, just shortly before, Lot offered his two virgin daughters to be raped by an unsavory group of townspeople rather than let them speak to the men who were visiting his house.

 70 And what of the recordings of genocide, those places where the books of Moses record God commanding that every man, woman, and child of an enemy should be killed?

 71 O men of Capharsalama, consider the feelings in your heart, even as your mind considers my words. Would you give your daughters up to strangers to be raped? Do you think Elohim, the true God of Heaven and Earth, would ask you to do such a thing?

 72 And if you were in an army that came upon a village of innocent women and children, even babes upon their mother’s breast, could you strike them down as they fled or pleaded for mercy and kill them? Do you think that Elohim, the true God of Heaven and Earth, would ever ask you to do such a thing?

 73 Think not that I speak only of the errors of the books of Moses, for many are the errors of men in the books that came after Moses.

 74 Is it not written in the law that you shall not suffer a witch to live? Yet is it not also written that King Saul sought council of the witch of Endor and that she made manifest the dead prophet Samuel, that the king might speak with him when neither God nor the prophets in his kingdom would? Or has that part been kept from you in the readings of the sacred books?

 75 Know you not that if this were so, it would make a witch greater than a prophet of God? Verily, it would make a witch greater than God, for God would not come to Saul in dreams and the prophets of God spoke to him not. Yet it is written that by the power of the witch, Samuel was made manifest, and by the power of the witch, the prophet of God spoke.

 76 O men of Capharsalama, these are not the words or actions of Elohim. They are the abominations of men seduced by familiar spirits to write that which is contrary to the very nature of God.

 77 Therefore, O men of Capharsalama, consider the words that I have spoken of all these things that are contained within the books of Moses.

 78 I say unto you that these writings are the evil desires and commandments of men.

 79 They are not possible for a God of infinite love and fairness, and they are not worthy of you.”

 80 “It is you who speaks sly abominations upon that which is sacred” the rabbi said. “These are weighty matters which confuse those not well versed in the law and cannot be properly addressed by a handful of common men on a village road during the heat of the midday. These are fine points fit only for those trained in the law to comprehend. In any case, the main messages of the law and the sacred books are indisputable, even if there were discrepancies, which I do not say is true.”

 81 And Yeshua said unto him, “The true words of Elohim are simple and clear to all men and need not the interpretation of priests, for God would ask nothing of man that could not be easily understood by all, lest man error because of misunderstanding and not through willful disobedience.

 82 The true laws of Elohim are meant to be a freedom to man, to establish simple, clear paths of righteousness by which man may prosper when he walks the path.

 83 The unrighteous laws of men, both those given by Caesar and those given by priests, are intended to be an enslavement to man, to compel him to give of his time and substance to sustain those in power, to put fear of punishments into his heart, that he can be controlled and will obey dictates of the unrighteous laws which his spirit would otherwise give no concern to or value.

 84 Therefore, what man has perverted, let me make clear, and in this listen to the spirit of God that resides within each of you, within every man and woman ever born, for this quiet voice will always testify to you of truth if you will open your heart and mind to receive it.”

 85 Of this man,” he said pointing to Ephres, “think you that it matters to Elohim to whom he directs the affections of his heart as long as he gives his first devotion to God?

 86 And if he gives his first devotion to God, it must follow as night to day that he also does good to all men, for a man devoted to Elohim has only peace and love in his heart.

 87 To give sincere devotion to God and to give good in your words and actions to your brothers and sisters of spirit is all that God asks of anyone. Any law that demands other than this speaks not from God, but from man.

 88 And think you that it is a shame that my wife is uncovered? Would you also cover the glory of the Sun or the Moon or the stars? For they too are God’s creations.

 89 Woman was made to stand beside man, not behind him; equal to him, not less than him; thus have they been made by Elohim.”

 90 At this, the rabbi could not contain himself and said, “Numerous are the places in the Law where a woman’s place is given. She is clearly under the direction of her husband.

 91 And no man of worth wants to see another man lusting after his wife, so it must be that she is well covered when in public. This is just common sense if nothing else.”

 92 Yeshua took a step toward the rabbi, saying, “Verily, I say unto you any man who would make a woman less than a man, or subject to the will of a man, will find desolation in the world to come.

 93 Elohim has made them equal in this life and the life to come. Look you to the books of Moses, which you love, and the story of creation: When Adam and Eve were given the Garden of Eden, God did not give dominion of all the Earth only to man, but to both man and woman equally.

 94 And thus it is so: Man and woman are equal in the sight of God and whosoever would have dominion over woman in this life acts from an evil heart, and not the true light of God.”

 95 The mouth of the rabbi gaped again as he prepared to speak, but before he could speak his mind, Yeshua said unto all of the men, “I have said what I have said. I have given you the true Celestine Light of God. How then will you now act? What does your heart feel? What is the truth that whispers in your mind despite all you have been taught before?

 96 Here we will leave you, for my family journeys north. But I say unto you that this man, Ephres, is a good and righteous man who is devoted to God and does only good to his fellow man. Will you let him pass your town in peace?”

 97 The rabbi blustered, “Nothing you have said has changed anything. Good riddance to you and take that man with you if you do not desire him to meet a worse fate.”

 98 But the villager who had spoken before stepped forth again, saying, “The rabbi does not speak for all of us. My heart and I think the hearts of some of my friends have been touched by the words you have said. You have given us much to consider.

 99 We are not changed from who we were to who you would have us be in these short moments, but we have changed enough to give more thought to the words you have spoken.

 100 Therefore, go your way in peace and forgive us the disrespect to your wife. The man Ephres may come in peace to our village. None will harm him.”

 101 At those words, the rabbi turned in disgust and walked back toward the village.

 102 And Yeshua came forward and put his hand upon the shoulder of the villager who had spoken, asking, “What is your name, friend?”

 103 “I am called Gimiel,” he replied. “I am a simple man with flocks of sheep.”

 104 Yeshua smiled, saying, “Your humility has not hidden your courage, nor your simpleness the sharpness of your mind. I return to my home in Galilee, and the time will soon come when you shall hear of me again. If you know then what you know not now, come to me, and you shall learn the mysteries of the kingdom of God.”

 105 Gimiel bowed his head to Yeshua and said unto him, “Teacher, you have opened our eyes today, but now you depart and we will have no one to give us further knowledge. Lest we soon fall back into our old ways, how then are we to know that which is true from that which is false when we are confronted with a choice?”

 106 Yeshua answered, saying, “When you see a fine carpet from the masters of Tarsus, you have no doubt of its authenticity because of the tightness of the weave, the brightness of the colors, the purity of the wool, the subtle highlights of the silk, and the beauty of the design.

 107 If a man were to come to you and offer to sell you a carpet he said was from Tarsus, it would take you but a moment of examination to know whether the carpet merchant spoke truth.

 108 So it is with the words of God as spoken by prophets and prophetesses through all time and the corruption of the words of men upon the sacred.

 109 Like the carpets of Tarsus, the true words of God are built upon a foundation that marks them undeniably as to their source.

 110 In this, you have a most easy test. You do not have to get into great theological contemplations, for the ways of God are pure and simple, distinct and easy to know.

 111 The commandments of Sinai have been given to you, and they are easy to live. The very first words of God as recorded spoken to Adam and Eve are in innocent purity, as yet undiluted by the machinations of men.

 112 Therefore, if the commandments say not to kill, but in other places in the sacred books it records the people of God being commanded to kill every man, woman, and child, is this not a contradiction of the foundation of truth?

 113 If Elohim told Adam and Eve that every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the Earth, and every tree in which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed would be meat for them, but later the sacred books record God saying to eat the flesh of animals, is this not a contradiction of the foundation of truth, in both the commandments of Sinai and the word of Elohim spoken to Adam and Eve?

 114 Do you think that Elohim is a changeable God who gives contradicting commandments or conforms to the desires of men? Verily, I say no! Elohim is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

 115 Seek to understand the heart and essence of Elohim, and you will hold the foundation of good by which you may know the truth of all things of light.

 116 Here then is the key to understand the foundation of Elohim, whereby you may know the truth of all things of God: Verily, the basis of all goodness and godliness is to love and respect God, the giver of all life and the creator of all things.

 117 And to love and respect your neighbors, for every injury to them is an injury to you and every blessing to them is a blessing to you.

 118 And to love and respect yourself by treating the body you have been given as a temple and the hours of your life as a stewardship from Elohim.

 119 Any law that is contrary to this is a law of man, not God. Any man or rabbi, priest, or Caesar who teaches other than this teaches from a place of darkness, not of light.

 120 Therefore, I say unto you, even as you know at a glance a true carpet of Tarsus, know also the truth of Elohim by the firm and simple foundation that has been given.

 121 Once you have weighed all things in the balance and the truth you hold does not seem wanting, seek out Elohim in quiet prayer and ask in humility to know of a certainty that which seems right to your heart and mind is true.

 122 If you ask with a sincere heart and a repentant life, you will feel the power of God move within your heart a sureness of thought confirming that which your mind has found.”

 123 Surely these are enlightened words,” Gimiel said as the others nodded in agreement.

 124 Yeshua admonished them, “You now hold the candle of truth. Hold it high that others may see the light.”

 125 And turning to Ephres, Yeshua said, “Keep your devotion to God and remember my words; your greatness is still before you.”

 126 Then bidding farewell to all the men, Yeshua and his family turned and continued their journey north.

 127 And Ephres and the other men stood upon the road looking after them until they were no more to be seen.