Then said Jesus to the High Priest: "If you do not believe it now that
I stand before you as a malefactor, you will believe it when I come
down from heaven in the clouds at the right hand of Almighty God."

When Jesus had spoken these words, Caiaphas turned to the assembly:
"What do you want more? If that's not rank blasphemy, I'll resign my
office. If that's not blasphemy, then we have punished others, who
said less, far too severely. What shall we do with Him?"

Several priests rent their garments in anger, and shouted: "Let Him
die!"

The cry was taken up by many voices out in the streets. The priests
immediately put things in shape for the sentence to be pronounced that
night, and, if possible, carried into effect before the festival,
without making a stir.

If the matter had rested with Herod, King of the Jews, he would have
rid himself of his rival from Nazareth with a snap of his lingers; but
it was the Roman governor with whom they had to deal. So Pontius
Pilate also was awakened in the night. He was a Roman, and had been
appointed by the Emperor to hold Judaea in spite of Herod, whose Jewish
kingdom had become as nothing. Pilate often declared that this office
of ruling the Jewish people for the Emperor had been his evil star. He
would rather have remained in cultured Rome, whose gods were much more
amiable than the perverse Jehovah, about whom all kinds of sects
disputed. And then came this Nazarene. When Pilate learnt the reason
why he was disturbed from his sleep he cursed. "This stupid business
again about the Nazarene who, accompanied by a few beggars, rode into
Jerusalem on an ass, and said He was the Messiah. The people laughed
at Him. And that's to be made a political case! They should expel Him
from the Temple and let people sleep."

But the crowd shouted in front of his windows: "He is a blasphemer! A
deceiver and a traitor! An anarchist! He must be tried!" Pilate did
not know what to do. Then his wife came, and entreated him not to do
anything to Jesus of Nazareth. She had had a horrible dream about Him.
She had seen Him standing in a white garment that shone like the moon.
Then he had descended into a deep abyss where the souls of the
condemned were wailing, had raised them up and led them on high. Then
dreadful angels with big black wings had seized the judges, and thrown
them into the abyss. Pilate had been among them, and his cry of pain
still rang in her ears.

"Don