There will be no mercy!
[Screaming]
Joseph: My sister's only child hanging from a cross!
- Joseph... - We need this to end!
Caiaphas: We must govern ourselves
so that we are never again subjected to Roman justice.
You did nothing of any worth whatsoever.
Man: Make way for King Antipas.
Your position is reliant on my endorsement.
John, I'm poor and sick in my soul.
I'm glad to give you this land.
Barnabas, it's perfect.
God has a purpose for each of us. I'm meant to preach.
Be patient, Stephen. The time will come.
And didn't Jesus say, "I will rebuild this temple in three days"
before he rose from the death you condemned him to?
Silence him. Shut him up.
Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.
Sync & corrections by wilson0804 www.Addic7ed.com
John: "No longer will violence be heard in your lands",
nor ruin and destruction within your borders.
Your walls shall be called salvation,
and your gates praise.
No longer will the sun light your days
nor the moon bright your night.
You will have the Lord for everlasting light
"and your God for your glory."
[Women wailing]
My son is dead! Stephen is dead!
Because of you! You and your politics!
Where is he?
Where is he now, this Messiah of yours?
[Sobbing]
Matthew: Why doesn't he raise him up
or ask the Lord to bring Stephen back to us?
Is it for us to test him?
I dreamt last night
that Stephen wouldn't be the last of us to die.
Another hungry soul that's heard the word.
God be with you.
Have you come to hear the word of Jesus?
[Chuckles]
No.
I am Saul.
Scholar, Jew, Roman citizen, pharisee,
defender of the great temple of Jerusalem.
I have come to teach you of the wrath
you will all bring down upon yourselves
if you do not end your blasphemy.
If.
[Women wailing]
Peter: The desert and the parched land will be glad.
The wilderness will rejoice...
And blossom.
Like the crocus,
it will burst into bloom.
It will rejoice greatly...
[Wind whistling]
...and shout for joy.
[Thunder rumbles]
[Children laughing]
So, tell us,
how are we so wrong in our belief?
Friend, speak with us.
What's the matter, have you no tongue?
Or no brain?
Jesus of Nazareth,
this peasant Messiah you love and praise,
is nothing more than a false prophet.
You dare come here and say that?
I don't say it. The Sanhedrin says it.
The psalms of Solomon say it.
The prophecies of Jeremiah, Isaiah, and Daniel say it.
Who are you to say otherwise?
Who?
Oh.
What's the matter?
Have you no tongue?
No courage?
[Scoffs]
Be gone, little man.
[Indistinct conversations]
Annas: I don't understand you, Jonathan.
You saw the slaughter, the wave of crucifixions,
saw what bloody turmoil made its home in Jerusalem.
Of course. Father, I'm not blind.
And you accept that Caiaphas, as high priest,
stands knee-deep in blood.
Blood spilled by Pilate wielding the power of Rome.
Yes, I accept Caiaphas has not handled things well.
So, why can't you accept that he must be replaced?
Jerusalem needs a man who will forge
a different relationship with Rome
to take us back to the peaceful times
Caiaphas once stood for.
The Sanhedrin is looking for a man to challenge Caiaphas.
The Annas family needs that man to be you.
The whole idea of your loving family
gathered in our house to give thanks
gives me indigestion.
Well, take a potion. Clear your head.
[Children laughing]
Hmm.
Two guests of honor have invited themselves.
Although a little more notice wouldn't have hurt.
Antipas and Herodias.
[Sighs]
Herodias: I had no idea the Nazarene camp
was so close to the city.
And so populated.
Why would anyone leave everything they knew
to live like that?
Hyah. [Horse whinnies]
We are honored the festival of Purim
has brought you to our home.
In truth, it was a useful excuse to come to Jerusalem.
To see if the city was still standing.
Annas: My son and I think,
as Jews, we can talk honestly about recent dark days.
Jonathan: The people will not soon forget the blood spilled
in Governor Pilate's wave of crucifixions.
Caiaphas: They shouldn't forget.
But was there ever a time when the people were content?
If the anger of the people was fading,
there would be room for this complacent approach.
Father, we are hardly complacent.
But the anger is growing,
just as the new city of tents out in the desert is growing.
You mean the camp? Hm.
There are thousands there now.
Antipas: Yes.
We passed it on our way here.
Where will it stop?
At 5,000 converts? [Sighs]
100,000?
Will everybody please stop
going on about these people?
[Sighs]
Tell me, what exactly is it that you'd have me do?
Hmm?
Have them slaughtered in their tents?
Annas: Antipas, surely, the people...
And you, as their ruler...
Want to see a high priest in control of events.
Jonathan: Not led by them.
Not governed by the whim of his Roman master.
I do enjoy the smell of treachery.
Poor old Caiaphas has the look of a man
preparing to face the executioner.
If it was a choice
between him and young Jonathan as high priest,
I don't know who I'd go for.
Neither.
But I'll have to give my support to one of them,
and then let Pilate have the responsibility.
My lady.
Saul: And then there was Zachary of Beersheba,
a passionate man who tried to follow
the example of Moses
and lead his friends across the red sea.
[Chuckling] He drowned, and so did they.
And then there was Simon from Peraea...
Brave, well-intentioned Simon.
[Chuckles]
Well, he believed that he was sent by God
but only made a Jew's life ha...
But only made a Jew's life harder under Rome.
And there was another pretender...
An imposter from Galilee, this man Jesus.
You're Peter. I've heard you preach.
You do it well.
A little softhearted, perhaps, but...
I have a case to make against your false Messiah!
Do you want to hear it, Peter,
or are you afraid I will unpick your delusions
in front of this gullible crowd?
This man is living in darkness
and doesn't even know his eyes are closed.
He claims such knowledge,
but he's just stumbling in the dark
if he doesn't know this...
No one can come to the father except through Jesus.
Jesus is the way and the truth and the life.
This Jesus of yours
is nothing more than a false prophet
of illiterate fishermen.
He has you all in a net of lies.
John!
You use words like a trader selling stones.
There's no heart to them, no love.
I have... Love
for those things you want to destroy...
The temple in the heart of Jerusalem.
Centuries of law and tradition
your pathetic little band can no more replace
than a flea can fill the shoes of a man.
Speak simply.
If there is truth to your thoughts,
you'll be understood.
Here's a simple truth...
If you set yourself against the temple,
you will be destroyed by the temple.
Simple.
Truth.
Even if I could persuade the Sanhedrin
to trust your family,
who stood by while more and more
of our people were crucified.
There was nothing... and even if I was willing to speak
in your defense and so gain for you
the support you'll need to unseat Caiaphas
and heal the wounds you've caused,
have you no shame
that you'd plot against your own son-in-law?
I have shame.
Shame that I didn't act sooner
to save so many from their pain.
Those who died and those, like you,
who lost the ones they loved.
We ask you to not let that failing
cost more blood and suffering,
not to let the moment pass when we can act to start afresh.
My son Jonathan is a man of integrity
who will truly speak for the people of Jerusalem.
The only man who can bring both...
[indistinct talking]
Both change and continuity.
Before you even think of making the case to Pilate,
he'll need the unreserved backing of Antipas.
Pilate will want his approval to maintain order.
If, with your support, we can unite
the Sanhedrin behind us, we can approach Antipas today.
You won't regret this, I promise.
This man would have you believe in a crucified Messiah.
Deuteronomy says,
"for he that is hanged on a tree or on a cross
is accursed of God."
But God raised him up,
having loosed him from the pains of death
because it was not possible he should be held by it.
So you claim,
but who among you has seen the resurrection?
Who?
You?
You? You?
Only your charlatans, who need you to believe it.
Jesus and the truth of his message are loved.
By all our people?
Not even by all of Jerusalem.
They loved him so little... They executed him.
And fulfilled Isaiah's prophecy.
The Messiah is a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief.
This man thinks it's a mark of success
when those you love are executed.
He won't be happy until you're all dead...
Like Stephen.
If you stay here one moment longer,
I swear I'm going to tear your head off.
Don't worry.
I've heard enough to see that reason won't break you
from your delusions.
You will see me again, though.
Be sure of that.
[Crowd murmuring]
Jonathan: Rabbi Gamaliel,
how can these blasphemers in the desert
want to end all this?
Don't concern yourself with them.
Look to your own studies.
Improve your understanding, and then...
Yes, but they just don't see
that this... All of this...
Is the heart and soul of Jerusalem.
I tried to tell them, but they just won't see reason.
Then, Saul, don't spend more of your energy
trying to correct their mistake.
I see a path for you from scholar to rabbi,
from rabbi to, perhaps, a seat on the Sanhedrin.
Who knows?
These men,
they do the same work as the Sanhedrin.
They toil to preserve the old
while making it new.
What this fisherman Peter and the others want to do
is destroy the old,
replace it with the new.
I have to find a way to stop them.
I have to.
I think that went well.
For you.
An anniversary gift.
After you left our house,
my wife reminded me that it was at Purim 10 years ago
that we first met.
Me as high priest,
you as tetrarch of Galilee and Perea.
Each trying to work the other out.
And here we are, still trying.
Please.
So, your father-in-law and his son
would very much like to take from you
those fine robes of office that you wear.
Now...
What are you going to do
about these fanatics in the desert?
The ringleader of the cult, the man they follow,
is from Galilee.
This reflects very badly on me.
They will soon tire of the hardships
that come from following their... Messiah.
But what happens?
Dissent becomes revolt.
The Roman response could be devastating.
Solve this problem for me, Caiaphas.
And if this attempt to overthrow you reaches Pilate,
you will have my support.
[Indistinct conversations]
Leah: We know you're conspiring
with my father and brother.
Should I know what you're talking about?
The three of you won't win this fight.
My husband will remain in office as high priest,
and you will suffer for your betrayal.
Tide is turning against your husband,
and I can't stand in the way of it.
If you don't recognize that,
you'll both drown in the flood.
Reuben: The high priest has more to deal with today
than you can even imagine.
And you think that I should bring him
out here to talk to you? Yes.
Come back in three days.
The answer will still be the same,
but at least it'll give me chance to forget you.
In three days, the danger to the temple could be doubled.
What danger to the temple?
Forgive me. I...
I was merely talking about the followers of the false Messiah
gathering in the desert.
Come with me.
You wanted to see me?
Thank you for your good grace.
Having read much in the temple archives
of your family's great history,
I hope that, with respect...
Could we perhaps have a little less respect?
Time kills us all. Of course.
[Sighs]
I believe we share a common interest,
a common desire
to rid Jerusalem of a pest...
The fishermen and their followers
growing in numbers and confidence
outside the city walls.
And what is it that fuels your desire to see them gone?
They offend me.
Their actions to undermine the temple,
their defiance offends me.
Their defiance of the Sanhedrin,
who could not have been more definitive in their verdict
when they said...
What exactly do you want?
The authority to... Act on your behalf
and solve this problem...
To remove these blasphemers so completely
that not even the stain of their memory is left behind.
[Grunts]
[Sighs]
I just can't stop thinking about Stephen.
Stop being such a man.
What?
You see the women at the funeral.
They weep and they wail
and they scream out their pain
so the whole world knows about it.
And while all this openhearted grieving goes on,
the men look at their feet
and put on their sad face.
Don't bottle it up.
Let out that pain.
Honor Stephen by leading us, Peter.
Aah!
[Wind gusting]
What I need is for you to give me the authority
you would give the least promoted of your temple guard.
Authority to use how?
And 20 men from that guard.
Aah! Their strength is their popularity.
I want to take that from them.
You have questions.
You say, "why did he call me his rock?"
You ask, "am I the foundation?"
Is this where his church will be built?"
There is only one foundation stone.
And his name is Jesus Christ!
And his church is not here.
It's not in those tents or these walls.
It's you... all of you.
You are his church.
And like those we ask to believe
even though they didn't see him rise again,
we must push away our fear
even as we recognize the persecution we face.
[Crowd murmuring]
We have to go to Jerusalem and preach the word
to build his church!
Recruit your own men.
I'll pay.
Forgive me,
but wouldn't it benefit your authority
to be seen as the hand at work?
We need to claim back the true message of our faith
from the families of the temple and their masters from Rome.
[Indistinct conversations]
They crucified the man who said to you,
"I am the light of the world.
Whoever follows me won't walk in darkness."
And with my own eyes, I saw him.
We just buried a man... A good man and a friend.
Stoned to death because he dared speak the truth.
He was a young man, like you.
He shed blood and felt pain, just like you.
His mother wept tears for him, just as yours would.
But he had a burning need
to speak the truth of the word of God.
Saul: With the authority of high priest Caiaphas,
I, Saul of tarsus,
hereby accuse all the people here of supporting blasphemy!
Do you see this?
These friends of Rome standing against us?
Peter: Is this your answer? Violence?
You underestimate me.
You will all be taken away
and your name added to a list of offenders!
These people have done nothing.
Any further offense,
and you will all face the Sanhedrin court!
Then take us. Take our names.
We're the ones to arrest.
No. You two can go.
These people will soon learn the danger of your company.
You and your men are no match
for the fire of the Holy Spirit that fills us.
Really?
Well, let's see whose fire burns brightest, shall we?
Take them!
[Indistinct shouting, screaming]
I've weakened these fanatics by isolating them,
by turning their supporters against them.
By terrorizing the citizens of Jerusalem.
Well, there was a problem nobody seemed able to solve.
[Chuckles] Neither have you.
They know you'll persecute them
if they listen to the preachers in Jerusalem,
so they're leaving the city
to hear what they have to say.
[Indistinct conversations]
Did you really think this man Saul
would stand in the way of our mission?
The temple won't stand for this.
They won't let it go on much longer.
Annas: It looks like your hero Saul
couldn't solve the problem of the Nazarene camp.
Where are the other two conspirators?
I didn't come to bicker.
I came to ask you to show some dignity,
to recognize that the will of the Sanhedrin
is turning against you,
and ask you, for the good of this family,
to stand down.
For the good of this family?
For the good of this family,
you, who in his day as high priest
hadn't the wits to walk in step with Rome.
You, who left a mess behind him that I had to clear up.
Yo plot against me?
And now I must listen to the rantings
of a failed and a bitter old man
for the good of this family?
Get out of my house!
Before I forget you're my wife's father
and put a blade between your ribs.
We'll take this to Pilate.
[Door opens, closes]
Claudia: You must favor Caiaphas over his brother-in-law.
Must I?
Don't tell me what to do.
A 10-year-old alliance
shouldn't be tossed aside without good cause.
Is it Caiaphas you approve of or his wife?
I hear the two of you are becoming
the best of friends.
Minerva, goddess of wisdom.
Minerva,
which of these men shall be high priest,
and which one shall be left to rot in the desert?
Nothing.
Very disappointing.
There is a rumor
you knew of the plot against my life and did nothing.
Is that true?
No. That's ridiculous.
And a rumor you have a spy here in my palace.
And another that you visit the Nazarene's camp each night
and pray with them.
All of which, it's been suggested,
makes you unfit to continue in office.
Is any of this true?
None of it.
Lies are being spread by those who wish to undermine me.
You undermine yourself by failing to get a grip on...
Enough.
I will not waste my time separating truth from fiction,
like a mother with squabbling children.
Tiberius shall decide.
I met a Greek once who made every decision
with the toss of a coin.
Emperor's head...
Or the divine Livia?
Shall I commend you for your ambition?
Or do I condemn you for spreading baseless rumors?
Heads, I condemn.
Livia, I commend.
[Swallows hard]
Heads.
Then I condemn you
for making such a poor job of your treachery.
These fishermen and their followers...
Are they being dealt with?
They are, firmly and finally.
Unless he wants to be loved by all,
the high priest's job is not a hard one.
He must deliver what's expected
of the province of Judea by Rome
and resist the many, often irrational,
demands of his people.
There are girls in the kitchen who can do that.
Dogs in the street.
Even a donkey.
Heads, you stay.
Livia...
I'll replace you with a donkey.
Get that, will you, Caiaphas?
Head.
Excellent.
You both may go.
I need to speak with your high priest.
And the lesson is,
don't play politics unless you're good at it.
This coin...
It has two heads.
It does, doesn't it?
[Indistinct conversations]
By order of Caiaphas, who remains high priest,
you are removed from the Sanhedrin.
[Chuckles]
Even though it was your own father and brother
who hatched this plot?
And you will leave Jerusalem
or find yourself arrested for treason.
This all began
with the murder of the Nazarene... Jesus.
All your interfering, your scheming.
It will bring you down... Eventually.
[Door opens]
[Footsteps approaching]
Saul: I tried to reason with them,
but they just wouldn't listen.
I tried to come between them and their supporters,
but it would appear they would prefer
the idiotic doctrine of the Nazarene.
Caiaphas: This gives you my full authority to rid me of them.
Permanently.
Do whatever is necessary.
Whatever is necessary.
[Indistinct conversations]
[Sniffles]
Let me tell you about these people.
These people want to bring down the temple...
The temple.
The guiding hand in yours and my life.
The well of wisdom.
And they think nobody...
Nobody... Will stand in their way.
They disregard the ruling of the Sanhedrin,
who call them blasphemers!
The very next day,
one of them walked into the temple itself
proclaiming his profanity.
[Crowd murmuring]
And although...
And although the people of Jerusalem
delivered their justice and they stoned him to death,
they continue recruiting the gullible and the weak-minded
to their cause.
Do we say enough?
Crowd: Enough!
Will we break their heads?
[Crowd cheering]
With swords
and clubs and bare fists,
we will say, "leave this land",
or you will leave this earth in a shroud of blood!"
[All cheering]
[Metal clinking]
Grab weapons! Grab armor!
Follow me!
[Indistinct shouting]
Pay heed to this and spread the word.
These people are being arrested for aiding, sheltering,
and feeding the followers of the false Messiah.
They will be...
They will be imprisoned.
Anyone else who does likewise
will also pay with their freedom.
And don't think of scurrying off to the desert
for help from your friends.
It's their turn next.
[Indistinct conversations]
Simon: He's coming!
Saul's coming back!
He's bringing men with swords.
Take what you can!
Let's get everyone out of here.
[People screaming]
This way. Go. Go with them.
We should go back to Galilee.
No, we have to stay together.
We gather again in Jerusalem.
We have to go now.
No. I'll stay.
I will not be cowed by this man and his threats.
I won't leave you to face him alone.
He won't be alone.
This was my land. I'm staying.
And me.
There's more than one way to welcome a visitor.
See you in Jerusalem.
Peter: Please hurry. Run.
Mix it carefully.
Too much and it won't work.
Go. Move faster.
Go on. Faster.
Take my hand.
[Screaming continues]
James, go.
Saul: Pull it all down.
Burn it.
I want nothing left to show that they were ever here.
Now!
[Men shouting]
He's leaving it too late.
No.
He knows what he's doing.
There!
Take him!
[Grunts]
Let's see whose fire burns brightest now!
No!
No!!
I will crush you!
You will try!
[Echoing] You will try!
Sync & corrections by wilson0804 www.Addic7ed.com