Part 53 (1/2)
The hateful Decimus, his kinsman, named one of Caesar's heirs--who had lured him from his house to the Senate!
”I must acquaint myself with your holy book,” I said ”It seems to haveit” Not like the philosophers ished to deny it, or tried to avoid it by advising anyone e his wife to think only that she
”We were sorry to lose Caesar, too,” said Epaphroditus ”It will be a long tiain”
YesI re by the funeral site for days
”He confir the right to send the yearly Teave us back the port of Joppa, which Pompey had taken, he stopped the abo,' which bled us dry, and he exempted us from military service, since it would require us to break our dietary laws and work on the Sabbath Yes, he was our friend We lost our chaood to you because he sensed you valued it,” I said I kne unappreciated he feltto know that others felt deprived and bereft in this horrible aftermath ”What will happen to Judaea now?” I wondered out loud
”That will depend on who succeeds Caesar in Ro Herod is in outs his enen with Gabinius to restore your father to the throne; Herod helped him with troops and supplies Would he help the assassins now, if they cato be tricky” He paused ”Personally I prefer Herod to his rivals, because he is the only one with the sense to see that a zealot-led country is dooion from his politics But the others” He shook his head ”They will not stop until Judaea ends up coated and sovernhest contest in the land being Zeus versus Serapis versus Cybele
”We are different,” he agreed ”That always makes it hard to predict ill happen to us, in the short or or the long run” the long run”
The as starting to stir the curtains dividing the rooolden la late, and people had retired I should let Epaphroditus return to his ho to me privately to report the news from Rome, but it was far past business hours Yet I found that every remark he made aroused my curiosity and led me to ask another question
”Mardian mentioned, almost offhandedly, that you do attempt to predict ill happen to you--that you have books of prophecy, and expect a deliverer, or a messiah What is that?”
He looked als of one people are apt to provoke ridicule when recited to an unbeliever”
”No, I truly want to know To as he referring?”
”Over the ages our beliefs have changed,” he said ”We never believed in an afterlife--we had our own version of Hades, Sheol, Sheol, a dark place where shades wander Nor did we think of the ages as a story,forward to soun to see life as continuing after death, of the soul's survival--and the body's, too--and events proceeding to soe will be the Messiah” a dark place where shades wander Nor did we think of the ages as a story,forward to soun to see life as continuing after death, of the soul's survival--and the body's, too--and events proceeding to soe will be the Messiah”
”But who is is this Messiah? Is he a king? A priest?” this Messiah? Is he a king? A priest?”
”It depends on which prophecy you read Zechariah, one of our prophets, speaks of two messiahs--one a priest, and one a prince fro David Daniel calls him the Son of Man, and says there is only one”
”But what does he do?”
”He ushers in the new age, one way or another”
”What new age?” I asked
”An age of purging, of judge of peace and prosperity”
Peace and prosperity That e had in Egypt now--if Rome would allow us to keep it ”That is what I wish for my people, and my land” I looked at him sharply ”Do you believe these prophecies?”
He smiled ”I do not trouble ent daily business to take care of, the dreams of what may happen seem to recede I don't disbelieve disbelieve them, I simply have no need of them They do not answer any lack in my own life” them, I simply have no need of them They do not answer any lack in my own life”
”There are also prophecies about a worinned atif you are she, and unaware of it?”
”No, but I wonder if any of the people see ht for a moment ”It is possible But you would have to study those writings for yourself I ahed ”They are scattered writings I know one is called the Oracle of the Mad Praetor, another the Oracle of Hystaspes, and there's so called the Potter's Oracle Then there are many uttered by different sibyls I shall have to have them copied at the Library and study theh, you are sure to see yourself in them,” he warned ”That is the way of prophecies They expand and contract and always fit the situation at hand Like fortune-tellers and astrologers” ”You don't believe in thee, yes That it can be partial, and deliberately erous That is why our God has forbidden us to have anything to do with them Moses told us that God said, 'Do not practice divination or sorcery Do not turn to mediums or seek out spiritualists, for you will be defiled by theers and fortune-tellers attached toI was not bound to follow this Moses Then I had a sudden reypt? Someone told me he had absolutely forbidden you to return So why are all the Jews of Alexandria here? It seeypt”
He laughed ”Now, if I wanted to be difficult, like soue that Alexandria is not 'in Egypt'--she is called Alexandria ad Alexandria ad A Aegyptuuly clever The true answer is that we disobeyed, as we have a habit of doing” Alexandria-by-Egypt But I find such arguly clever The true answer is that we disobeyed, as we have a habit of doing”
I laughed ”Like all subjects,” I said ”I must count myself lucky that my subjects have not been as rebellious as your people” ”Indeed” He bowed ”Your Majesty--”
”Yes, I know It is late, and I have kept you too long A poor reward for your diligence in coo now”
Clearly relieved, he took his leave After he was gone, I stood for a long ti city Was Was there anything to these prophecies? What did they say? there anything to these prophecies? What did they say?
As I lay down and rested at last, I kneas right: the idea of theerously seductiveboth for the ruler and the people But I still wanted to see them
Chapter 38
Day followed day in the splendor of high suers, and reports that had accuyptian month of Epeiph, and the month of Quintilis, now officially called Julius, in the Roman calendar
From what my informers toldposts in Rome--Brutus was incensed He was especially infuriated because, while he himself had to stay away from Rome for his own safety, the Ludi Apollinares Ludi Apollinares, ga take place right in the middle of this newly named month The honors would accrue to Caesar, but the cost would be borne by Brutus
Then I heard that Octavian, as if to snub Brutus's efforts, was holding gaht afterward to celebrate Caesar's victories--the Ludi Victoriae Caesaris Ludi Victoriae Caesaris--and he was doing it at his own expense, to show his ”father's” love for his people He was also dee of putting them on were too cowardly to dare
But before any reports caames, I had yet another acy from Caesar
In its particulars, it was like the birth of Caesarion, only the child was too small to live--it was only halfway to its time of normal birth I was forced to lie abed, dosed with pennyroyal and draughts of red wine It was not , however, buttightly to the pendant aroundbetween us; our life together is frozen in the past
Gone, gone, and gone, I repeated toon the bed, and each as like a hammer onaround me Charmian and Iras anticipated my every wish, Mardian came with jokes and riddles, Ptole to me, and Epaphroditus had some of his scriptures copied out for me They all dealt with loss and fortitude
I particularly liked one that went, ”Thus saith the Lord, A voice was heard in Ra for her children, refused to be comforted for her children, for they were not” For they were not they were notsad words, sad thought, true thought
The nights were hot,They moved my bed out onto the terrace, where sea breezes blew and I could see the stars I would lie and look up at the blue-black bowl that arched over ht the Goddess Nut, stretched across the sky from east to west, sed the sun, which traversed her body to be reborn each dawn She was always depicted in gold, lying across a deep, rich, blue sky
It was artistic fancy The stars were not gold, they were a cold, fiery white, and the sky was inky And the nights I lay outside, theof Sirius, the star that had been below the horizon for seventy days, took place A brilliant spot of light, it signaled the first day of the new year and announced that, far away to the south, the Nile too would begin to rise The year was cycling,relentlessly on
I could hear, far below rounds, the shouts of excitean Even to the Alexandrians, the rising of the Nile was life-bringing, as it was necessary to produce the grain the city exported