The Master's Quilt by Michael J. Webb

themselves about him and held his breath. He had
come too far to steal away now. No, he must watch the drama below
him play out, knowing full well that if he was caught, he would die
on the spot.

CHAPTER NINE
     
     
     
    D oras looked around
the Great Hall.
    The Council had steadily warmed up to the
High Priest’s presentation.
    If he were going to maintain the support of
those he had so meticulously courted these past few weeks, he would
have to act soon and with decisiveness. He was walking a taut rope.
If he were going to defeat Caiaphas, and block Annas from filling
the void left by his son-in-law’s demise, he would have to be every
bit as strong as David and act with the wisdom of Solomon.
Otherwise, he might end up just like Saul—a crazed madman, bereft
of power, dignity, and his God.
    When one risks as much as I am risking, it
is wise to wait for the perfect moment to strike , he thought
smugly. After all, David slew Goliath with but one stone. As
he concentrated on what Caiaphas was saying, his eyes narrowed with
cunning.
    “Perhaps the greatest insult Jesus indulged
in was his attack upon the holy Temple of God,” said the High
Priest pointedly, following up his earlier train of thought. “He
ignored the holy Temple as a place of worship, and even went so far
as to accuse the priests, who diligently serve God on a daily
basis, of being a ‘den of thieves.’”
    There were rumblings of assent from the
audience.
    “Is there a man here today who doesn’t
believe that the holy Temple was built under the direction of God
himself? I think not. We in the priesthood understand all too well
that the house of God is a place of refuge—a haven where men can
hide from the turbulence of persecution and sin. All men may
come and be blessed, clothe their naked souls, feed their hungry
bodies, and learn the wisdom of Almighty God.”
    “In short, my brothers, the holy Temple is
the focus of our entire relationship with our God. It is the cement
that binds Jews together. It is the grandest of all the grand gifts
from our Father. Yet, the Nazarene scoffed at the Temple. And with
a pettiness common to those who would seek to usurp rightful
authority to gain favor for their own personal beliefs and
doctrines, He insisted that the Temple would be destroyed—almost as
if He would be glad to see such an occurrence and raised up by
Himself in three days.”
    Caiaphas smiled. The looks he saw on the
faces before him made it clear that he had not lost his skills of
persuasion. I am like the great Leviathan of the ocean , he
thought. I have no fear of my enemies; they are impotent against
me.
    His moment of private, prideful exaltation
was cut short, however, as the memory of his dream intruded into
his thoughts. Suddenly his mouth was as dry as the sand of the
Negev. In the space of a heartbeat, it was as if a blistering
summer wind swept through his spirit, like a Syrian sirocco sweeping in off the desert, scalding his soul.
    He gasped as a quiet, firm Voice inside him
said, “Remember Job. . .and be not deceived.” He scrutinized the
faces staring at him expectantly and realized that no one but
himself had heard the rebuke. Flustered, he gathered the bulk of
his priestly apparel about him, like a shepherd gathering together
his flock, and regained his composure.
    Until this moment he had directed his
statements to the Council in general. Now, it was time to reach
down deep into the hearts of the Pharisees and, like Gideon, strike
a decisive and conclusive blow in the heart of the enemy camp where
Doras had found succor and encouragement.
    The Pharisees, being primarily merchants and
tradesmen in the business community, had no formal education in the
interpretation of the Scripture. They relied heavily upon
professional scholars, the scribes, for their information regarding
legal tradition. This led to an attitude of excessive rigidity and
intolerance especially where the practical application of the Law
was concerned. To