Johann Quisumbing

An Adventure Story of Yeshua bar Yosef by JQuisumbing

The door swung open and icy cold air rushed in. Iacob and Yohanen entered carrying firewood in.

“Quick, close the door! All the warm air is escaping,” said a voice at the far end of the room. 

Yuda was the first to kick the door closed. Blowing into his hands and rubbing them vigorously, he grumbled, “Yohanen, your abba said that this is the mildest winter so far. Well, I think your abba is…”

“Yuda. Be nice,” Yeshua said.

“I am freezing to death here!” he bawled, jumping up and down, causing laughter among the men huddled around a glowing brazier.

“Come by the fire,” Yeshua said, chuckling. “You are just not used to living in the highlands of Galilee, Yuda. We are creatures of the valley.”

“Don’t fret, Yuda. Abba said that Spring might come early,” Iacob teased. “Master, we ran into Toam by the synagogue earlier. He asked to talk to you.”

“Oh yes. I promised to speak to him. Where is he staying?”

“I believe he is guesting in Rachel’s inn at the edge of the village,” said Andraus. “I will guide you there.”

Later that morning, they arrived at the house which was about a quarter mile from the village of Bethsaida. Rachel is a middle aged widow who converted her house into a traveler’s inn since it is located by the main road that went north to Caesarea Philippi and south to Capernaum. They saw her dressed warmly carrying a basket. She was coming from the backside of her house.

“Shalom Rachel,” greeted Andraus. 

“Shalom Andraus. I have not seen you and your brother in a while. Where is he?”

“He is in Capernaum.”

Then she saw him and said, “Oh, greetings Rabbi. I’m sorry I didn’t notice you right away. Please enter.”

“Thank you, Rachel. We are here to talk with one of your guests.” 

The common room they just entered could hold at least twenty. The room was divided in two sections, the largest of which was elevated about three feet. The lower area was about a third of the size of the room. Back when this house was still a farm, the lower area would have been crowded with sheep, goats and maybe a donkey or two; taking refuge from the winter’s cold. Instead of stalls, sleeping pallets are in its place. They found Toam sitting on the end of one with two others extending their hands over an iron brazier. 

When he looked up to see who came in, he promptly got up and approached. He happily took his hand and said, “Thank you, Rabbi, for seeing me. I am desperate for clarity. All night, I could not rest. My thoughts were all over the place. It goes here and it goes there. And…”

“Calm, Toam!” Yeshua said, genially. “Fretting will not get you any closer to what you seek. Do you not think?” 

Toam calmed a little, nodding slightly.

“Let us go for a stroll. The sun is up and shining,” he said. “Andraus, please get the others and meet us by the river. Let us take advantage of this clear weather and walk to Capernaum.” As they were out the door, he asked, “How is the family?”

The Jordan River is really running heavy downriver heading toward the Sea of Galilee. Water buildup coming mostly from the snow-melts of the Lebanon mountains. From on top of a Roman built bridge that spanned the river, Yeshua was following the progress of a floating tree trunk that was disappearing under it, while patiently listening to Toam’s life story.

His family was originally from Rome during the time of Augustus. They did very well dealing in gemstones. But then they lost it all when Toam was seventeen. It was the time when Roman religion was so threatened by Jewish missionary efforts, that Emperor Tiberius was pressured to expel the Jews.¹  For years, their lives were like that of nomads until they eventually settled in a Galilean city named after the Emperor.² His father’s reason to live in this lakeside city was because it reminded him of their time in Rome which they desperately long for.  They put all their blame on the religious leaders; especially those at Jerusalem. 

“Of course, I have my own reasons not to be happy with them too… these teachers of the people… these elite orders of men,” Toam spat out. “When I went to the Temple, I found that the priesthood was no different. The arrogance I have seen. Even my own cousin, on my mother’s side, a Levite serving the priests, trots around like he was more than just a singer of psalms. I was so disgusted that I started to doubt the existence of Adonai. I even began to wonder that the different gods of Rome are simpler to accept. But then my life felt wrong. I could not explain it. I became moody and was prone to anger so much so that it affected my family. It was a gentile friend who thought that maybe I should turn back to our religion. ‘After all,’ he said, ‘you are still a Jew.’ 

“So, I had to find a way to know more about Adonai. But my education had been lacking due to my father not being that religious. There were one or two Pharisees in Tiberius, but I could not trust learning from them. So I, with my wife and four children, moved to Tarichea³ which had a quaint synagogue where I was learning a little from the rabbi there. However, his lessons were somewhat rudimentary and many of my questions were left unanswered.

“Then, I heard about the Baptist. So, I sought him out in the Lower Jordan. When I found you baptizing by the river. Oh, excuse me, it was your followers that were doing the actual baptizing.⁴ You were teaching by the banks. Something in your teaching  resonated in me. I could not explain it. I wanted to hear more, but then I started to hear things about you. Forgive me. I had a hard time accepting what others were saying that you are… that you are the Messiah.”  

“How about now, Toam?” he asked, smiling.

“Rabbi, I will not ask if you are… Him. For me to believe,  to act properly, I must see one hundred percent proof.”

“Toam, allow me to ask you this.” Toam nodded. “Can you provide for me one hundred percent proof that you are who you say you are, right at this moment?” asked Yeshua, while slapping his open palm.

Toam’s face creased a couple of times. His mouth opened to say something but then he shut it. He did this twice more, then shook his head in the negative.

Yeshua placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder and said, “I am so glad that you are quick to recognize this. No human beings actually live by a hundred percent proof. It is impossible for mankind whose perceptions are limited. So, how can you get to know who the Messiah truly is? At that matter, how does one get to know the Creator who is Spirit? How do the finite see the infinite?”

“What is the answer, Rabbi?”

“If I wanted to find things about you, I would seek out those things that are available to me. I would study the evidence of you. For instance, if I wanted to know if you are trustworthy, I’d seek out those who know and trust you. I’d also watch you closely and see if you practice what you preach. All evidence that I accumulate of you, gives me a clearer picture of your character, your convictions and your trustworthiness.

“Now, as to Adonai, the evidence of Him is all around you if you are willing to open your eyes.”

“But can my eyes not be easily deceived?”

“Very good! You are on the right track. How do men get to know One who is infinitely invisible? They cannot unless He revealed Himself to them and they wrote it down. That is where the Scriptures come in. Do you want to know whether I am the Messiah?”  

Toam nodded.

“Have you ever watched a jackal hunt a hare in its burrow? It would use its keen sense of smell to locate it then it would dig and dig and dig. Learn the lesson of the Jackal.” 

“Rabbi, could you not just show me?”

Yeshua laughed a little and said, “Toam, you remind me of Gideon. You see, Adonai tasked him to be the hero and save the people from a marauding army. He expressed his uncertainties and asked the Lord to give him two signs. The first one was that He would drench the fleece with dew but the surrounding ground would be dry. The second request was the reverse of the first request.”⁵

Then, Yeshua saw his companions approaching. “Toam, I don’t need to give you a sign like Gideon. Your problem is not timidity. Put your nose down and hunt. Then, start digging. Come and follow me.”

TO BE CONTINUED

Footnotes: [1] 19AD – Jews banishment from Rome by Tiberius; [2] City of Tiberius – built by Herod Antipas on the western shoreline of the Sea of Galilee; [3] Tarichea – 2 possible locations – (a) Between Tiberius and Magdala or (b) on the west bank of the Jordan where it flows out of the Sea of Galilee; [4] John 4:1,2; [5] Judges 6 

Author’s Note: Chapter 5 of this story covers that part of Jesus’ biblical timeline from after He changed water into wine until He clears the Temple of greedy hawkers.

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