“He is cured. You can give him bread and wine, and he will keep it down.”
2.81.5 His father, Zedekiah, was all amazed joy and gratitude.
2.81.6 After embracing his beloved boy, he turned to me
and wrung my hands warmly. He kept patting my shoulder
but shaking his head, unable to speak
for the tears which were running down his cheeks.
2.81.7 When he had largely recovered his composure, he went through
to the living room and said to the people there:
2.82 “My son, almost dead, has been returned to fullness of life again!”
2.82.1 His words were met with a great clamour of jubilation, excitement,
disbelief, questioning, laughter and congratulations.
2.82.1 The boy’s mother stood there, her face wreathed in smiles.
2.83 After that, there was no question of needing accommodation.
When Zedekiah told the astonished comforters that the boy was cured,
and the youth, himself, appeared smiling at the door, and asked, yet again,
for food, the well-wishers, one and all, gathered around me
and invited me to their homes.
2.83.1 However, I preferred to remain with the boy’s father,
who now said he had many questions to ask me;
he hoped I could answer them.
and everyone was invited to eat their fill,
Zedekiah sat down and asked his first question.
2.84.1 He said: “You have done something no priest or doctor could do.
Healing only comes of God.
2.84.2 Although you are a stranger, I perceive you must come from God.”
“Yes.” I said. And the people murmured, wonderingly.
2.84.3 “This illness which has come upon my son.
Was this a punishment for something I have done wrong in the past?
2.84.4 And how could I commit so grievous a sin that God
should want to take my only son from me?”
2.85 Many of the people nodded when they heard these words.
2.87 GOD gives us LIFE and being.
2.88 He would not snatch these away as a man will snatch
some treasure from another man because he is angry with him.
2.88.1 This is the way that mankind behaves. Not GOD.
2.88.2 And GOD is not placed on a throne in some part of the sky
like human kings sit on thrones and govern their people.
2.88.3 This is the human way, and a human belief – not truth.
2.88.4 The way of GOD is far beyond anything the human mind
can devise or dream about.