by Craig Smith
In the aftermath of these events Vitellius became a close ally of Tiberius and was accorded the supreme honour of owning the villa closest to Tiberius's Villa Jovis on the Isle of Capri. Despite this, the two men were never intimate. Tiberius was too cunning to expose himself to a man whose best friend he had murdered. In Rome men might do business with one another, but they never forgot a debt of blood.
Pilate had first met Vitellius when Pilate commanded the Guard escorting the remains of Germanicus from Brindisium to Rome. Over the course of a month of travel the two men had spoken only twice, but that was sufficient for Vitellius to appreciate Pilate's potential. When they were in Rome, Vitellius used his influence to promote Pilate's career.
Despite the patronage Vitellius had offered him Pilate did not anticipate meeting with the senator. In fact he would have preferred never to have seen the man again.
'You have done quite well for yourself, Prefect,' Vitellius observed pleasantly when they met in camera in Pilate's cabinet close by the great hall. Vitellius had aged considerably since the two men had last met. His hair had gone to grey, his complexion had lost its colour but the essential man remained unchanged. He was persuasive, shrewd and dangerous.
Pilate could not anticipate the purpose for Vitellius's arrival in Judaea, so he answered with the extreme modesty of a corrupt civil servant. 'I aspire only to serve Rome, Senator.'
'That is good, Prefect, because Rome has need of such loyalty.'
Such statements inevitably required the sacrifice of one's own life and Pilate felt a chill take hold of him. 'I will do what I can, but I hardly need remind you that I command only half a legion of Romans. The Syrian cavalry, like any of our mercenary forces, is loyal only in the sunshine.'
'You will not need an army, only a bit of discretion.'
'The Senator knows he can trust me.'
'Tell me, Pilate, have you heard of the Jew they call Yeshua? He's a Nazarene, I believe.'
Pilate felt the tension leave him. 'I've heard of him, but have had no dealings with the man. He makes trouble in the hill country of Galilee, not in Judaea. Antipas endures him no doubt because he fears all holy men. What about him?'
'He has become a danger to the peace.'
'Not the peace of my provinces.'
Vitellius pressed the issue. 'There are many who believe the man is preparing to declare himself the Jewish Messiah.'
Pilate offered a condescending smile. 'So what if he does? He's is an indigent. He has no base beyond Galilee, no money, no weapons, not even the makings of an army! As I understand it only the poor and the desperate and a great many women follow him about. If he declares himself the Jewish king, I'll respond if Antipas cannot or will not handle it. Until then—'
'A man named Judas Kerioth has become one of his followers, Prefect.'
I'm not familiar with the name.'
'Really? I was under the impression you had dealt with the man. "The most dangerous man in Judaea," I believe you called him in one of your early reports.'
'That Judas. Of course I'm familiar with him, and I stand by my opinion. A very great danger. But if I may I ask . . . are your sources quite certain the Nazarene has not pledged himself to Judas?'
'Friends in Galilee tell us the Nazarene is something more than he seems.'
'Be that as it may, Judas did not strike me as a follower of any man.'
'Perhaps he has found someone who inspires him.'
'If it's really so—'
'We have reports Yeshua has raised the dead, a young girl, in point of fact, the daughter of a leader of the synagogue in Capernaum.'
Pilate smiled, shaking his head. 'In the East, Senator, these kinds of stories attach to magicians and self-styled holy men. One ought not to make too much of it.'
'This is more than a rumor. The wife of Antipas - a very sensible woman, if I am any judge of character - talked to the girl's father. He was reluctant to admit the truth but did so under torture. On another occasion, it is reported Yeshua met and fed five thousand men with a few loaves of bread and a handful of fish. It may be perfect nonsense, but if the man is as innocent as he seems, what is he doing meeting five thousand men in the desert?'
'I see the problem! I will look into the matter at once.'
'There is no need for that. A course of action has already been determined. We need only for you to press Antipas to arrest this Yeshua as quickly as possible and deliver him to you in Jerusalem. Once he is there I want you to execute the man as an example to the next would-be Messiah.'
That did not seem such a very great thing. 'I will contact Antipas at once.'
'Just so we understand one another. I want you to make sure Yeshua's followers are left alone.'
'That is a mistake, Senator.'
Vitellius blinked in surprise.
'—to leave Judas free, I mean. It would be a far better idea to execute Judas alongside his master. I have dealt with this man! Believe me, you do not want him free to make trouble, especially in Jerusalem!'
'Your command has given you a great deal of confidence.'
'Thank you, Senator.'
Vitellius's face darkened. 'I did not mean to compliment you. You have your orders. See you obey them.'
When Vitellius had left him, Pilate considered his predicament miserably. Tiberius imagined the affair was as simple as a public execution to set an example, but he had not seen ten thousand men present their necks for Roman swords because Judas had set the example! He had no idea what passion these Jews possessed and what an utter lack of concern for their lives they felt when their blood was up.
Summoning Cornelius, Pilate explained his orders. 'Permission to speak plainly, Prefect?'
'Of course.'
'I think Herodias has discovered the fuel for a great fire.'
'I am not sure I follow you.'
'A war in Judaea can only benefit Sejanus and the house of Herod. I believe Herodias has found someone capable of starting it.'
'This Yeshua?'
'You, sir. Outnumbered as we are, there will be no resisting the kind of uprising Judas can lead against our garrisons after we have crucified the Jewish Messiah.
Afterwards, your death will be the excuse Sejanus needs to march on Jerusalem. Once he avenges your death and breaks Jerusalem as he has always wanted, Tiberius will not be able to resist him. Sejanus will have the army and the population behind him and will force Tiberius to adopt him.'
'But the order comes from Tiberius!'
'Are you quite sure of that, Prefect?'
Pilate sighed. 'No, but if I attempt to go to Tiberius to ask if he has issued it, Sejanus will know.'
'Then you will do as you are told . . . and prepare for the worst?'
'I think I must.'
Caesarea
Fall and Winter AD 29-30.
Despite Pilate's request for Antipas to arrest Yeshua, the holy man continued to work openly in Galilee. Inquiring after the delay, Pilate learned that Yeshua made a habit of working in a crowd for a few hours and then moving quickly away, always a step ahead of Antipas's agents. 'It is like chasing the wind,' the tetrarch's envoy reported in camera some months after Pilate had asked the tetrarch for his help.
Alone with the prefect later, Cornelius begged the opportunity to offer his opinion. Pilate was feeling the pressure in the unexpected delay and looked to the man eagerly. By all means, offer an opinion!
'If one desires to catch the wind, Prefect, one cannot chase after it foolishly in the manner of Antipas. One must construct a sail and await its pleasure.'
'Anticipate him, you mean? It is impossible! Patrols find thieves who have established campsites for themselves in the wilderness, but this man stays here one night, there another. He has no fixed camp, no home. There is no anticipating such a man! I know only this. He avoids Tiberias, Caesarea, and Jerusalem.'
'I cannot speak about this Yeshua, but Judas is not a fool. If he knows Antipas is after his master, he knows time is running out. If he stays in
the desert long enough, he is finished, but in Jerusalem, at the Passover, he will find an army wanting only its king.'
Jerusalem Passover
AD 30.
When Nicodemus heard that Pilate and his court were in Jerusalem, he invited the prefect to visit him at his farm for a couple of days. Arriving under an unusually heavy escort at midday, Pilate spent a long afternoon in his friend's luxurious private baths, followed by a celebratory banquet that evening.
The following morning Nicodemus and his son took Pilate into the desert to show him the wonders the aqueduct had accomplished. The transformation was impressive, and Pilate congratulated his friend. 'You are a visionary, Nicodemus!' he exclaimed.
'On the contrary, my friend, you are the one who has brought additional prosperity to all of Judaea.'
'I fear Judaea prefers death to prosperity.'
'I am not sure what you mean.'
'There is much talk these days of a Jewish king, the long-awaited Messiah of prophesy. Are the people really so naïve, Nicodemus, that they believe they can throw off the Roman authority simply by trusting a man who pretends to work miracles?'
'There are men who excite the crowds, but they are for the most part disenfranchised. They find their strength in the villages, where the people dress themselves in rags and spend the day working for a piece of bread that you and I would not find fit to toss to our dogs. In the cities, these people have no audience.'
'I met a man some years ago who seemed capable of inspiring the people of the city.'
'These sorts of men are rare and far more dangerous to the peace.'
'I am wondering if you know him - Judas Kerioth.'
Nicodemus's eyes brightened at the name. 'He is the son of a wealthy merchant in the city. As I recall, he fell in with certain radical elements and has been disinherited for it.'
Nicodemus's son spoke. 'Judas is a disciple of the rabbi I told you I had met, father.'
'The one who despises money?' Nicodemus exclaimed with a laugh. 'Tell Pilate what he said to you.'
'I was travelling on business and heard the man speaking. The more I listened the more I liked what he said. He wasn't one these men who wants to get rid of Rome. He talked instead about the Kingdom of God. I went to him afterwards. I thought I could help him, but when I asked him what I could do for his sake, he told me I should sell all that I owned and give it to the poor, and then join him in the desert.'
'Can you imagine it?' the older Nicodemus responded.
Pilate did not answer, but looked at the son again, who said in all seriousness, 'I was almost tempted to do it.'
'Why?' Pilate asked him. He was curious more than anything.
The young man offered a mysteriously happy smile. 'I suppose because it had never occurred to me that I could.'
'He wants to destroy Rome,' Nicodemus answered, 'Men like that are all the same!'
'My father and I are not in agreement about the rabbi.'
'That is because my son was still a baby when Judas of Galilee seized the Temple. He does not remember what it was like then.'
'I have heard the stories, Father.'
'Stories are one thing. Blood is another! There was a time when I was quite certain Jerusalem would become the next Carthage - her people killed, the city razed, the earth sown with salt.'
'He talked about God, not revolution!'
'Could you find this man, if you wanted?' Pilate asked. Nicodemus and his son both turned and looked at him curiously. 'If he is the great healer I've heard about,' Pilate explained, 'I could use his services.'
'He is difficult to find,' the young man answered somewhat evasively.
'Perhaps if he comes to Jerusalem, you could inform me?'
Young Nicodemus tipped his head as if it were no great matter to him. 'If we can help, you know we will.'
In private Pilate confessed the truth to the elder Nicodemus, who listened thoughtfully to the matter
before announcing his opinion. 'Your centurion is right, I think. Sejanus wants a war. He knows you will do your part because you must, and he hopes Judas will respond appropriately because he can. He still has a great many friends in Jerusalem.'
'I cannot ignore direct orders.'
'What if I were to take care of Judas? The others who follow this Yeshua are simple men. Without their rabbi and certainly without Judas, they couldn't possibly inspire a general uprising against the Roman garrisons.'
'My orders are specific, Nicodemus. The followers are to be left alone. If Judas turns up murdered, Sejanus will know where to place the blame. If I murder Judas, I might as well slice my own wrists as well.'
Nicodemus considered the matter quietly before telling Pilate, 'Follow your orders, then. Follow them . . . explicitly.'
Pilate's face betrayed his excitement. Until that moment he had faced death, either by the hand of the Jews or his own after losing his garrisons. 'You have an idea?'
'Let us call it a chance: for the two of us and for our families - and for Jerusalem.'
The people began leaving the city as soon as the sun had set upon the Sabbath. By dawn, well over fifty thousand of them lined the road leading to the Susim Gate, the Gate of Kings. At midday their Messiah rode into their midst, his path strewn with palm leaves as he rode toward the city on the back of a donkey.
'The wind arrives,' Cornelius remarked drolly from the battlements.
Pilate nodded solemnly, unable to pull his gaze from the spectacle. 'I hope we have not caught more than our sail can manage.'
'If we have, then we will die like Romans, Prefect.'
'All things considered, Centurion, I had rather live like one.'
Nicodemus' slaves watched for Judas Kerioth at his parents' house. He appeared after dark on the second evening of their watch and entered by a side gate. An hour later he came back into the street. The slaves were waiting for him. They handed Judas a scroll held together by a piece of wax with an impression of the signet ring of Nicodemus. Recognizing it, Judas opened the letter eagerly and read by the light of the slaves' torches:
The Kingdom of God is at hand, my friend.
—Nicodemus
Judas looked at the slaves questioningly. Their leader told him, 'My master wishes to speak with you this evening, if it is possible.'
Judas followed the slaves to a house within the city and came before Nicodemus the Elder. 'Your master is wanted by the Romans, Judas,' Nicodemus told him by way of greeting. 'He hasn't much time left.'
'Antipas has chased him for the better part of the last year without effect.'
'Antipas is an old fox whose teeth have rotted away from eating carrion. Pilate is not. Pilate will find him . . . sooner or later.'
'It may be we find Pilate first.'
'You have the army for it. It seems a shame your king hesitates to use it.'
Judas's eyes flashed at the insult, but he did not speak.
'The Jews have never been more ready to fight, nor more certain that the time has come. They want only inspiration and a commander to lead them!'
'Rome has always been kind to you, Nicodemus,' Judas remarked. His tone was casual, but his point was made. He did not trust Nicodemus.
'I pay well for the kindness, but I am tired of it. Their greed is insatiable. I had rather buy the services of an army to defeat him than pay Pilate another penny for his goodwill.'
Judas smiled. 'Are there armies about that are for sale?'
'Herod Antipas is easily bribed.'
'We want nothing from that man!'
'And nothing is what he is selling. The moment you turn on the Roman garrison the Governor of Syria will order three of his legions to march south on Jerusalem. These he will support with three auxiliary units of Syrian cavalry - thirty thousand men under arms. He will ask in addition that Antipas bring an army into the field before he proceeds to Jerusalem. If Antipas delays, the Romans will wait. That is when you will strike.'
'Have you spoken to Antipas?'
'My gold will
say all that is necessary, but I will not waste it on dreamers and fanatics. I need to see a man who can lead Judaea against the Romans before I will spend money on revolutions.'
'That man is among us now!'
Nicodemus shook his head. 'I have seen men like your master more times than I care to count. They possess every advantage the Lord can give a man and then hesitate at the critical moment. Nations rise and fall because of their indecision. Who can say what stops them from seizing the moment? Certainly not courage. Perhaps they think that in time their opportunities increase. I do not know. I do know this. The nation of Israel cannot be born again without spilling the blood of both Romans and Jews. Let Pilate have your master. Let him hang him as he intends from a Roman cross. Let him do it before all the Jews on the day of our Passover.'
'You cannot be serious!'
'You saw the people receive him in Jerusalem. You saw the hope in their faces. Tell me! Will the people not ache with the loss of such a leader?'
'They will burn with fury,' Judas muttered, 'as they always do when they see the Romans humiliate us.'
Nicodemus nodded solemnly, his dark eyes catching the younger man's and holding them. 'Some men are born to lead, Judas, and some to inspire. Since you were very young people have known it was in your nature to lead. Why do you hesitate when you see what the death of your master will inspire? Do you not remember Moses? He placed a serpent upon a cross and set it before his army. So it will be when you hold up the death of your master before our people. Your time has come to fulfill your destiny, Judas. The Kingdom of God is at hand. Give Pilate Yeshua and Pilate will give you Jerusalem.'
'I cannot give Yeshua to Pilate and then lead his army into battle!'
'Why not? What happens under cover of darkness will stay in darkness. No one will ever know. Besides, it is not his army you will lead. When you are King of Israel they will have forgotten even the name of Yeshua. Men will speak of Judas Kerioth as the Messiah of prophesy. And they will be right!'
As Judas considered the prospect that he would become the true Messiah, his eyes glistened with excitement. 'Can you buy Antipas off?'