In this country, this kind of morning meal would not exactly be called very delicious; but in the land proverbially overflowing with milk and honey, it was surely the most delicious breakfast, especially since the honey of the Promised Land was probably the best in the world and still is today, and its milk likewise is surpassed by none on earth.
After the meal, delicious fruit was set out, and many delighted in it and praised God, who gave the fruits such a delicious taste and the bees the ability to suck the exceedingly sweet honey from the flowers of the fields and carry it into their skillfully built cells.
One of the company of Samaritans, who was a wise man, said, ‘God’s wisdom, omnipotence, and goodness cannot be praised enough! Rain falls to the earth; a thousand times a thousand genera and species of shrubs drink in the same rain and stand in the same earth, and yet every species has a different taste, scent, and form. Every form is beautiful and pleasing to behold, and nothing grows without a use; even the driest moss plant on a stone does not grow without a purpose!
‘And then all the animals of the ground, the water, and the air! What a multitude, and what variety, from the gnat to the elephant and from the leaf mite to the most unbridled Leviathan, who could carry mountains on his back and play with the cedars of Lebanon! Oh Lord, what might, what power, and what an endless depth of wisdom there must be in God, who guides and directs the sun, the moon, and the countless stars there, holds the sea in its depths, built the mountains upon the earth, and founded the earth itself through His almighty word!’
I say, ‘Yes, yes, you have spoken rightly now; so it is. God is supremely good, supremely wise, and supremely just, and needs no one’s counsel or instruction when He wishes to do something. But I tell you: the human being of this earth is no less called to become perfect as the Father in heaven is perfect.
‘Until this time that was indeed impossible, since death wielded the scepter on this earth; but from now on it shall be possible for everyone who makes it their earnest concern to live according to My teaching.
‘But I think that if God commands a human being to attend to something small—namely, the easy practice of My teaching—then that person should surely spare no effort or work to win this highest thing!’
The high priest says, ‘Yes, Lord! For the highest thing, a human being should venture the highest! Whoever wishes to enjoy the view from a high mountain must first accept the toilsome and arduous climb. Whoever wishes to harvest must first plow and sow, and whoever knows that they can gain something must first venture something for it. But whoever ventures nothing for fear that the gain may not come can never possibly gain anything! Therefore, once You make the ways known to us, O Lord, it will not be at all difficult for us to reach what You proclaimed to us just now: to become perfect as the Father in heaven is perfect.’
I say, ‘Certainly, and I add this: My yoke is gentle and My burden is light! But until now people have had to carry heavy burdens and have been unable to achieve anything by them. The question now is how their faith will develop when they are to exchange the familiar, cumbersome old for an unfamiliar, easy new. Will they not finally say, “If we achieved nothing by way of heavy toil and labor, what shall we achieve with the effort children put into their games?”
‘I tell you: you will have to take off the old human being like an old coat and put on a completely new one instead. At first this will of course be uncomfortable; but whoever does not let such a trifle drive them back to the familiar old, but accepts a little discomfort, will attain the perfection of which I spoke just now.
‘But now all of you get ready; I shall immediately begin the short journey to the mountain. Whoever wishes to go with Me, get on your feet! And you, Matthew, go and fetch your writing equipment. But come back soon, for you see that I am already ready to go.’
Matthew says, ‘Lord, You know how ready I am now to follow You! But if I go home now, to where I hold my post as a toll collector and scribe in Roman pay and service, with my place of business at the main barriers outside the city, I shall surely find much work, as always, and the Roman guards will not let me leave until I have done it. Therefore I would prefer to obtain enough writing equipment here for today and then fetch my own in the evening, with which, as already mentioned, I could manage for two full days. For the Romans do not give me writing material for more than three days in advance, and I almost always use it up.’
I say, ‘My friend, only keep doing what I tell you, and things will always turn out well for you. Now go, as I told you, and today you will find no work and no one waiting at the barriers. But also bring your other scribes along, so that My word may be written here in several copies.’ Matthew says, ‘Yes, if that is so, I can certainly go.’
At this Matthew the toll collector goes, and indeed finds things at home just as I have foretold to him. Very soon he returns with three more scribes, and with everyone in the house we set off toward Mount Gerizim. When, after an hour’s walk, we reach the mountain, the high priest asks Me whether he should go up and open the old house of God.
But I point out the surroundings and the many people who have followed us and say to him, ‘Look, friend, this is the oldest and truest house of God. But it is very neglected, and so I now intend to restore it, as I restored Irhael’s house! For that, however, the old house is not needed, and this area at the foot of the mountain is enough. At the same time, there are several benches and tables here that will serve the scribes well. Therefore open your ears, eyes, and hearts and prepare yourselves, for what the prophet Isaiah foretold is now happening before your eyes.’
Matthew says, ‘Lord, we are ready to hear You!’
Now the well-known Sermon on the Mount begins, which can readily be read in Matthew, chapters 5, 6, and 7. But this sermon lasted about three hours, for this time I spoke slowly for the sake of the scribes.