“But even there, if two of you shall meet and utter my name and look to the west, you shall see me, and these my words shall again visit your ears.”
And when we reached the hill of Bethany, He said: “Let us go to Jerusalem. The city awaits us. I will enter the gate riding upon a colt, and I will speak to the multitude.
“Many are there who would chain me, and many who would put out my flame, but in my death you shall find life and you shall be free.
“They shall seek the breath that hovers betwixt heart and mind as the swallow hovers between the field and his nest. But my breath has already escaped them, and they shall not overcome me.
“The walls that my Father has built around me shall not fall down, and the acre He has made holy shall not be profaned.
“When the dawn shall come, the sun will crown my head and I shall be with you to face the day. And that day shall be long, and the world shall not see its eventide.
“The scribes and the Pharisees say the earth is thirsty for my blood. I would quench the thirst of the earth with my blood. But the drops shall rise oak trees and maple, and the east shall carry the acorns to other lands.”
And then He said: “Judea would have a king, and she would march against the legions of Rome.
“I shall not be her king. The diadems of Zion were fashioned for lesser brows. And the ring of Solomon is small for this finger.
“Behold my hand. See you not that it is over-strong to hold a sceptre, and over-sinewed to wield a common sword?