PART ONE: Devastation
Chapter One: Shock
Day One:
I cannot believe it. I will not believe it. Not my Benjamin. Not my beloved son. There must be some mistake…or some vicious person spreading lies and gossip. Benjamin would never have done something so wicked…so cruel. He would never have brought such shame on our family. He would never have sold his inheritance to the henchmen of Herod.[i] Herod has been after my land for years because of the date palms and the balsam trees. Selling the land to that man would be like slapping me in my face in public…like dancing on my, as yet, undug grave. Herod is not one of us…he is not a Jew even though he claims to be. Marrying the Hasmonean princess, Mariamne, fooled no one.[ii] So selling our land to Herod is like selling our land to a Gentile…and no Gentile will honour the laws of the Jubilee year.[iii]
Aaron is furious. We were together in the field when we received the evil tidings. He thinks the worst of his brother. He openly raged against me, telling me that this was my doing…that I could have prevented this, had I not given in to Benjamin’s persistent pleading. I was appalled by the manner in which he addressed me. That I would live to see the day when my son would speak to me in such a disrespectful way. Even the workers were ashamed for my sake.
No, this has to be a misunderstanding. I will go at once into the city to hear first-hand what has taken place. I will hear the truth from the elders in the gate and they will help me to expose this boldfaced falsehood.
[i] This is pure fiction. However Mark Antony did give, as a gift, a tract of land in Jericho to Cleopatra, rich with palm and balsam trees. See https://www.itsgila.com/headlinerscleo.htm
[iii] “A non-Jew is not bound by the laws of the Jubilee year. Thus, the sale of land to a non-Jew is by definition a sale in perpetuity, and this is what the Torah prohibits.” https://www.etzion.org.il/en/selling-land-perpetuity
No comments:
Post a Comment