1 Coming from the wilderness, 𐤉𐤄𐤅𐤔𐤏 still retained the full power of the Ruaḥ Ha’Qodesh. Having it on trusteeship from Elohim, He would not use it unworthily. At night it shone around Him like a pale blue haze; and though many have it, never has another manifested it in such strength.
2 Two followers of Yoḥanan the Forerunner – one being Andri the brother of Shim’on – were sent by him to be with 𐤉𐤄𐤅𐤔𐤏 and accompanied him to the Sea of Galil of the Nations. Early in the morning Andri sought out his brother and said, “We have found the Deliverer,” but at the time Shim’on thought another was meant.
3 When 𐤉𐤄𐤅𐤔𐤏 had known Shim’on for two days, He said, “You are strong, silent and steady, one likely to be ever steadfast in conflict; therefore you shall be called Kĕpha,” this meaning “the Rock” in the tongue of the Nations. And from that day Kĕpha became a follower of 𐤉𐤄𐤅𐤔𐤏.
4 Passing along the shore, they came upon the Tower of Fishermen, and a boat was being unloaded by its owners. One who accompanied 𐤉𐤄𐤅𐤔𐤏 said, “Those are good men known to me.”
5 Then 𐤉𐤄𐤅𐤔𐤏 spoke to them while sharing a meal and later said, “Fishing is a good life, but there is a better one. Follow Me and you will become fishers of men.” So, placing their boat in the keeping of others, they followed 𐤉𐤄𐤅𐤔𐤏.
6 At this time, 𐤉𐤄𐤅𐤔𐤏 spoke with caution, for the people still recalled Yahuḏah from Galil who had smitten the Romans in battle. 𐤉𐤄𐤅𐤔𐤏 was a Man of long silences, and many thought Him strange. But He taught all along the shore of the Sea of Galil and called others to follow Him. They worked wherever they could, for 𐤉𐤄𐤅𐤔𐤏 said, “What We offer is not to be sold like a common chattel, and We will not take anything without giving value in return
7 He healed many, saying, “It is not I but the power from above with Me.”
8 Some of the talmidim said, “It is truly He who heals.”
9 But He did not cure all, for in some it created a disturbance, while many were not cured because this would have done them more harm than good.
10 When asked, “How do You heal?” 𐤉𐤄𐤅𐤔𐤏 replied, “By the finger of Elohim.” This is what the neḇi’im had said regarding these things: “These are the words of 𐤉𐤄𐤅𐤄: ‘I will restore you to health and heal your wounds. Be strong of heart and courageous, neither afraid nor dismayed, for I am with you always.’ ”
11 About this time, the talmidim questioned 𐤉𐤄𐤅𐤔𐤏 concerning the world of Ruaḥoth wherein lay the Reign of the shamayim, and He said, “It is like a flight of stairs leading from cellar to roof. They who enter the house are given a place on the stairs and may step downwards and back, but never up, though the stair above is not unknown to them. Those on the top stair are in glorious sunshine, while those at the bottom are in darkness and gloom.”
12 A talmid said, “Many who do not come mock your words.” 𐤉𐤄𐤅𐤔𐤏 replied, “Dogs bite stones, not those who throw them.”
13 Someone asked, “Are You the Hammer of Elohim? For all yearn for Elohim’s intervention and when that comes will rejoice, saying, ‘This is the day of 𐤉𐤄𐤅𐤄 for which we have long waited.’ ”
14 𐤉𐤄𐤅𐤔𐤏 answered, “There is a time for sowing and a time for reaping, everything to its appointed time.”
15 𐤉𐤄𐤅𐤔𐤏 gathered His followers around Him and taught as follows: “These days are a night of ignorance when all is dark, but I am the Light which will dispel the darkness. My Light will light your lamps, and you too will become bearers of the Light. I am the Light to point the Way, and none can find the way to 𐤉𐤄𐤅𐤄 except by the Light.”
16 “I come to testify concerning the Father, for those following My Way see Elohim in the Light of the Father. Does not a father chastise in love and punish with affection? Does he not give you tasks only just within your power of accomplishment? Even as with an earthly father, so with the Father of the shamayim, who is infinitely greater. Being flesh, we understand earthly ways, but the ways of 𐤉𐤄𐤅𐤄 may also be known and understood, for His Ruaḥ resides in all men.”
17 “Be upright in faith yourselves and teach uprightness and Truth. Fear no man, especially the rich and powerful, for they live in servitude to their possessions and position. You must carry the Light to many, but few will be those who light the lamp of their lives from it.”
18 “Do not covet riches, for though few men possess them, all who do are not free but are themselves possessed by their wealth. Because riches are the possession of a few, all seek them. Even so are My words; were they possessed by all; none would value them.”
19 One said to 𐤉𐤄𐤅𐤔𐤏, “Aḏonai, we are not all like Yoḥanan who could surely eat bread made with sand. Is there no easy way?” 𐤉𐤄𐤅𐤔𐤏 said, “The only easy paths in life lead nowhere, or are cut by others. But the path I point can be cut by none but yourselves.”
20 “A peddler going from place to place is willing to undergo the hardships incurred through his wandering, in order to earn his livelihood. Even so should you be prepared to cheerfully accept the hardships imposed by life, in order to gain glory in the life which follows.”
21 “If a child is not raised with austerity, can it enjoy the pleasures of later life? Only the foolish parent overindulges the child, and if it is done in the name of affection, the parent is either a hypocrite or irresponsible.”
22 Now, close by there was a well, and the talmidim were drawing water for drinking. 𐤉𐤄𐤅𐤔𐤏 called them over and said, “Do you find the water refreshing?” They replied, “Yes, we have drunk our fill and are refreshed.” 𐤉𐤄𐤅𐤔𐤏 said, “Does any water remain in the well?” They replied, “Aḏonai, this well is inexhaustible and cannot be drunk dry by any number of men.”
23 Then 𐤉𐤄𐤅𐤔𐤏 said, “It is even so with My teachings. What I have revealed so far is but a small portion of the whole, yet it suffices for the present needs. The people among whom we go are perverse and headstrong and, like a thirsting donkey, can be given only sufficient to ease their pressing need. If they say to you, ‘This is beyond our understanding’ or ‘You have told us only in part,’ recall this well and the refreshing water you obtained from it.”
24 One of the talmidim asked, “How shall we judge what people do, whether it be good or whether it be bad?”
25 𐤉𐤄𐤅𐤔𐤏 said, “If you are unsure whether a person’s actions be good or bad, incline in his favor. If anything may be interpreted favorably or otherwise, then interpret favorably. Do not seek for wrongdoing, like dogs chasing a foul smell. If a good man does something appearing to be bad, then withhold judgment, wondering whether there be some good motive behind it. Yet do not be easily hoodwinked. If one with a bad reputation does something seemingly good, question his motives, but bear in mind that no man is either wholly good or wholly evil.”
26 𐤉𐤄𐤅𐤔𐤏 said, “Fortify yourselves with the knowledge of Truth as I have imparted it to you. Rejoice in the knowledge that you stand within its everlasting light.”
27 The talmidim said, “Aḏonai, we are grateful for what You give us. We know each of us is a part of the everlasting Ruaḥ. We have truly found Truth and see it more clearly than others. We are children of the Light and of the Ruaḥ, even as we are children of the Father. None of us can ever repay You, for we have been given treasure beyond riches. Only the Father of the shamayim can provide proper recompense for Your labors among men.”
28 At this time, 𐤉𐤄𐤅𐤔𐤏 was teaching His talmidim at a place apart, for He was still wary of the people, but He and the talmidim went among them to earn their bread.
29 𐤉𐤄𐤅𐤔𐤏 healed many, but to His talmidim He said, “I have not come to strengthen the bodies of men but their Ruaḥoth. For if man is wholesome in ruaḥ, he is wholesome in body. It is better to treat the man than the disease.”
30 One day, a talmid returning from his labor said to 𐤉𐤄𐤅𐤔𐤏, “Aḏonai, we work all day and scarcely sleep at night, yet when we tell of Your teachings we are abused and mocked by the people. Where is the benefit in this? Should we not be treated otherwise?”
31 𐤉𐤄𐤅𐤔𐤏 said, “When I was a boy, the poor would gather about My mother’s door, for she always had an extra loaf in the oven for them. One day, a beggar, having been fed often and now perhaps considering it his entitlement, found fit to scold her, for this day she was not well, and therefore slow. She, not being used to this, began to weep.”
32 “So I say unto you, do not let the talk of thoughtless tongue perturb you, for this is only a foretaste of what is to come. These things are refining processes of the ruaḥ, therefore rejoice for the benefit rather than sorrow for the hurt.”
33 “For when My mother cried, I said to her, ‘Dry your eyes and be happy, for now you can perform your charitable acts to perfection. Had those who stood about the door praised you, the deed would have been less worthy, having been done for their praise and therefore not entirely out of charity. Many do good works because it increases their self-esteem, but charity is not giving the bone to a hungry dog, but giving the meat when hungry yourself.’ ”
34 Andri said to 𐤉𐤄𐤅𐤔𐤏, “If we give all we have to the poor, they will grow fat and slothful, preferring a life of beggary to one of toil.”
35 𐤉𐤄𐤅𐤔𐤏 said, “Charity is giving a hand to a blind man or soothing the wounds of those smitten by the ruaḥ-strengthening sword of ḥai. It is good to help those in distress or those who cannot help themselves, but sometimes giving does more harm than good. Many give because it eases their conscience or raises their self-esteem. Such giving is not goodness. But when giving entails self-sacrifice, then it is better to give than to receive, for the benefit lies in the sacrifice made and not in the thing bestowed.”
36 “A rich man was going away, so he gave a purse of silver to each of his two servants so they could keep themselves while he was away. One servant spent the money on merchandise which he hawked around the city and, by being thrifty, was able to recover the silver with sufficient over to buy a stall and then a shop. When the master returned, he said to this man, ‘Such efforts should not go unrewarded,’ and made him a gift of the silver.”
37 “The other servant, having the purse of silver, began to spend it on pleasure and a life of ease, so when the master returned, there was nothing left. This angered the master after seeing how hard the other had toiled, so he demanded repayment of the silver and, when this could not be done, enslaved the man.”
38 “The improvident servant was unable to understand why the other has been given a gift and freedom, while he was enslaved for being unable to repay – why he who had money was given more. Yet I say to you, this is the Way of the Father who gives trusteeship of Earth’s bounty to his children. Likewise, they are given talents of spiritual gold which are greater than any earthly silver, but these many choose to bury in the ground. For them the day of accounting must surely come.”
39 𐤉𐤄𐤅𐤔𐤏 tarried long beside the waters, moving from place to place and teaching His talmidim according to their understanding. Some were like strong, well-plastered cisterns holding water without leaking a drop; others could not retain all that was poured into them. 𐤉𐤄𐤅𐤔𐤏 taught each only in accordance with his capacity, and some carried much more of His teachings than others.
40 One day, at eventide, 𐤉𐤄𐤅𐤔𐤏 said, “Because you are wearied and your task seems endless, do not despair. What you do may be likened to a man down by the shore whose master has set him the task of carrying water from the sea to fill a hole in the sand. The sea flows no less, neither does the land become flooded. When the master comes, the man says to him, ‘This is a fruitless task to which I can see no end,’ and the master replies, ‘It is one which grows easier with time, and each day you are paid.’ ”
41 “Two men, finding favor in the eyes of a sovereign, were promised high positions in a distant city, but had to find their own way. They set off together and stayed the first night at an inn where there were many attractions. One man spent the night in drinking and merriment; the other, finding an experienced traveler who knew the road, kept the night in his company. This second man learned that by going a particular way he would avoid a thick forest full of wild beasts; a turning would lead him away from a swamp, and others from a precipice and thorny thickets. He went to bed and awoke early, feeling refreshed, and went his way. The other man, being heavy-headed and sluggish, started late in the day.”
42 “The early starter, heeding all he had been told, came quickly to the city and enjoyed his rewards. The other became lost in the forest and was wounded by wild beasts. He wandered through swamps and fell down the precipice to die of weariness among the thickets.”
43 “Now, the thick forest is ignorance, the swamps are delusions, the precipice the carnal desires which lure men to spiritual disaster, and the thorny thickets tribulation and suffering, without which development is impossible. The experienced traveler is a talmid of the Light, and the man who reaches the city one who listens to him.”
44 The talmidim said, “Aḏonai, many people hear our words, but how many take them to heart and benefit? We are trying to bail out the sea with a shell.”
45 𐤉𐤄𐤅𐤔𐤏 said, “Then you are learning patience and persistence in a good school. If a cloak is placed around a shivering man, his body becomes warm and is comforted, but if it is placed around a boulder, there is neither effect nor response.”
46 “Though I have told you the days fly as though carried on the wings of swallows, do not act as though the day’s labor is all important and must be completed within the day. Doing this you become less able to perform the task, for he who tries to reach out over the edge of his limitations falls into a pit and achieves nothing.”
47 Ya’aqoḇ, the talmid, said, “If a man of unlimited wealth says, ‘Come and count silver pieces from sunrise to sunrise, and all the pieces counted will be yours,’ could the man counting be expected to sleep during the night?”
48 𐤉𐤄𐤅𐤔𐤏 replied, “A man having much wealth is unlikely to do anything without purpose, and this would be in the counting. Could you count silver pieces from sunrise to sunrise and not make an error?”
49 𐤉𐤄𐤅𐤔𐤏 said, “Let none among you take the handgrips of My plow unless he is prepared to grasp them firmly and cut a deep furrow. Let none of you walk behind it unless prepared for weariness and sweat. There is no easy way for the plowman. The field is there, and he must cultivate it furrow by furrow. If he is careless, the grain yield will be poor.”
50 “Water drawn from the ground or falling from the sky will produce burning weeds and grass, but to produce bread to eat and wine to drink, water from the brows of men must be added. Yet labor is not without its own reward, for the man who labors all day sleeps contentedly even though his pillow be a stone, while the sluggard sleeps without content even though he lie on a pillow of down.”