ay.

Already the hired wailers filled Jairus' house. Their loud cries of
grief, the shrill sound of flutes playing funeral music, and the
hysterical weeping of the friends of the child's mother made such noise
that Jesus could hardly be heard.

"Why all this wailing?" Jesus cried. The noise quieted a little. "The
child is not dead! She is only asleep!"

The wailers burst into derisive laughter. "She sleeps soundly!"

"Clear this crowd out of here," Jesus commanded. Jairus was glad to be
rid of them. Amid angry murmurs, he sent every single one of them out of
the house.

Several of the disciples were waiting outside; they watched the hired
wailers leave. "What do you suppose is going on?" asked Andrew. They
waited a little longer, but at last the suspense was too much.

"Come on," said the Zealot, "let's go in." They pressed through the
front door into an empty room. "Where have they gone?" The sound of soft
weeping came from the next room. Hesitating now, they went nearer so
that they could look through a doorway. The men never forgot what they
saw.

The little girl was standing beside the bed looking up at Jesus. He held
her hand in his. Her mother had thrown her arms around Jairus and was
weeping. Simon, James, and John stood speechless, staring at the child
who a moment before had been lying dead.

"She is alive!" gasped Andrew. The child turned toward them, but the
disciples shrank back as though fearful of what they saw.

"I'm hungry," she said.

Jesus gripped Jairus' shoulder gently. "Give the child something to eat
now." Neither of the parents replied; but they kneeled before Jesus.

The awed disciples turned toward Jesus. Could this man who gave life to
the dead be the Master they knew so well?

"For your sakes," Jesus said, "I am glad I was not here when this child
died." His words struck deep into the memories of the disciples. "I have
come to tell you what life really is. This child was dead and lives
again. But I warn you: there is a kind of death from which no one can
return. And there is true life: whoever has this life can never die."

_Who is he--who is this One who raises the dead?_ The minds of the
disciples raced, trying to grasp the meaning of what had happened.

"Fear not the death of the body; he who believes in God can never die.
Just as I have given life to this little child I give eternal life to
all who put their trust in God."

_Who can he be--who can he be--to give eternal l