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replied.32
"But you also wrote that what Jesus said didn't mean you'd never die, just
that you might not die until after his return. "33 As soon as the words left
his mouth, Cohen realized that he did not need an answer; both he and John
were fully aware of the fate that soon awaited them and that fate matched
Jesus' words perfectly.
"The Lord told my brother James and me that, like him, we would both die a
martyr's death.34 James was the first of the Lord's apostles to die,35. . .
and I shall be the last. I suppose in this way at least, my mother's request
to Jesus will be granted: James and I will sit at the Lord's right and left
hands in his kingdom."36
Cohen still struggled.
"In the Book of Revelation," the man continued, "I said that an angel gave me
a scroll and I was told to eat it. I wrote:
31 John 19:26.
32 John 21:22.
33 John 21:23.
34 Matthew 20:20-23.
35 Acts 12:1-2.
" Matthew 20:20-23.
274 In His Image
I took the little scroll from the angel's hand and ate it. It tasted sweet as
honey in my mouth, but when I had eaten it, my stomach turned sour. Then I was
told, "You must prophesy again about many peoples, nations, languages, and
kings. "31
Cohen nodded recognition. "The words of the scroll were sweet," the man
explained, "because in that moment I came to know that I would live longer
than even Methuselah.38 But the scroll became sour in my stomach as I came to
understand that I would have to wait longer than any other man to see the Lord
again. Then I was told the reason that my life must continue: I have remained
on this earth to prophesy again, this time with you, about many peoples,
nations, languages, and kings."
Knitting his brow, Cohen lapsed into an introspective state. He believed but,
then again, it was almost too much to believe. "I suppose it should have been
expected," he said finally, "after you survived being immersed in boiling
oil.39 And it explains the prophesies of Yeshua concerning the end of the age,
when he told the disciples '. . . some who are standing here will not taste
death before they see the kingdom of God come with power. '40 If you are John,
then indeed that generation has not passed away. Still, what of Polycarp?"
Cohen asked, referring to the late first-
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20Clone%20Trilogy%20(3)/01%20-%20In%20His%20Image.txt and early second-century
bishop of Smyrna who, according to his student Irenaeus, said John died during
the reign of the Roman emperor Trajan.41
"Have you not read Harnack?" the man responded, referring to the German
theologian who propounded that Polycarp was referring not to John the Apostle
but to another man, a church elder, also named
John.42
It occurred to Cohen that this might also explain one of the mysteries of the
Bible that had always puzzled him. "And is this the
37 Revelation 10:10-11.
38 According to Genesis 5:25-26, Methuselah lived to be 969.
39 As Tertullian reported, De praescriptione hereticorum 36.
40 Mark9:l; also Matthew 16:28 and 24:34.
"Adversus haereses 2.22.5.
" Lehbuchder Dogmengeschichte, 1885-1889.
Through a Glass Darkly 275
reason for the apparent later additions to the original text of your
gospel?"43 he asked for confirmation.
The man nodded. "I regret the confusion that has caused. From time to time I'd
tell someone about something Jesus did or said that I had left out of my
Gospel and they'd urge me to include it. It never even occurred to me that, by
adding a few things I had left out of the earlier versions, I
would cause so much confusion later on. Saul, I understand your reason for
questioning, and yet I
know that at the same time, the Spirit gives witness to you that I am who I
claim to be."
"But where have you been?" Cohen asked. "How could you have kept your identity
concealed?"
"It's easier than you might imagine," John answered. "I must admit, however,
I've not always been as successful as I would like. There was a period of a
few hundred years that no matter where I
went from China, to India, to Ethiopia the stories would follow me."
A thought occurred to Cohen. "Prester John?" he asked, referring to the
mysterious figure mentioned in dozens of legends and by a few more reliable
sources such as Marco Polo, over a span of several hundred years and in
widespread locations.44
John nodded. "Though how I ever got tied in with the legends of King Arthur, I
can only guess was the result of speculation that I had the Holy Grail.
"Since then, I've been a lot more careful about concealing my identity. To
avoid questions I've had to move frequently never more than ten or fifteen
years in one place. And I have always tried to find work in the Lord's service
that would not draw attention. I've pastored a hundred small churches in every
corner of the world. But is it so surprising that I could have gone unnoticed
in a world of hundreds of millions? After all, God himself became a man and
lived on the earth and went unnoticed by the world for thirty years until the
time was right for him to begin his ministry. Now the time is right for me;
and for you as well, my friend."
43 John 7:53 through 8:11 does not appear in the earliest manuscripts of
John's gospel, and the original inclusion of John 21 is questioned based on
contextual issues.
44 For information on Prester John, see for instance: E. D. Ross, "Prester
John and the Empire of
Ethiopia," Arthur P. Newton (ed.), Travel and Travellers of the Middle Ages,
New York: Barnes &
Noble, 1968 (first published in 1926), pp. 174-194; C. F. Beckingham, "The
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Quest for Prester
John," Bulletin ofTheJohnRylands University Library, LXII (1980), pp. 290-310.
276 In His Image
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Sahiwai, Pakistan
Decker tried to maintain an encouraging smile as he walked among several small
groups of people who were sitting on logs or squatting on the ground eating
their rations. It was just after six o'clock and the day's second meal one
could hardly call it dinner was being served. It had been nearly two hours
since Secretary-General Hansen's helicopter had left, four hours late, with
the rest of the U.N. contingent. Decker and Christopher remained to await the
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