Page:As others saw Him.djvu/177

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THE MEETING OF THE HANANITES.
171

latter opinion, for, as I have heard, on the eve of the fourteenth of Nisan he came stealthily into the city of Jerusalem, and ate the Passover lamb concealed in an upper chamber of one of his friends in the city. It showeth how earnest this man was in following the larger precepts of the Law, though in smaller matters he seemed to neglect it. For by this time he must have known that he was no longer safe in Jerusalem; and, indeed, he proved this by his secret entry into it. Yet in order to fulfil the Law, which saith, "The Passover lamb is to be eaten in Jerusalem," he risked his own and his followers' lives. Yet was he careful of them; for, as thou shalt soon hear, as soon as he had gone through the meal prescribed by the Law, he escaped out of Jerusalem.

Now, that night I was standing at the door of my house, looking upon the city bathed in the light of the moon, which was near its full, when suddenly a man seized me by the arm and said, "Thou art wanted." I looked, and behold it was Simon Kantheros, my brother-in-law. And I said to him, "Who wants me? and