Jeremiah
[Calling wildly from amid the crowd] Heed him not! Heed him not! Heed him not!
[A tumult ensues, and the crowd draws apart, disclosing Jeremiah in the midst. He tries to make his way up the steps to the place from which Hananiah is speaking]
Voices
Who is that speaking?—What is he saying?—Who is he?
Jeremiah
Do not heed him. Pay no heed to him who speaks through the lips only; reject the lure of his words. Do not listen to the hypocrites who would lead you into slippery places. Do not fall into the snare of the fowlers. Do not listen to the decoy calling to war.
Pashur
[The high priest, wearing full vestments, has appeared on the threshold of the temple] Who speaks in the crowd?
Hananiah
Who speaks against the Lord? Let him show himself in the open.
Jeremiah
[Coming forward] Dismay speaks; concern for Jerusalem cries aloud; the mouth of terror is opened. I speak for Israel, and for the life of Israel.
Voices
Who is he?—I know him not.—He is not one of the prophets.—I know him not.—Who is he?
A Voice
It is Jeremiah, the son of Hilkiah, of the priests in Anathoth.
Voices
Who is Jeremiah?—Who is he?—What do the people of Anathoth want in Jerusalem?—He is the son of Hilkiah.—Who is he?—What does he want?
Pashur
[To Jeremiah, who is mounting the steps] Away from the steps of the temple! The messengers of the Lord, the men of God and the prophets, may alone tread the holy threshold. To none but us is it given to reveal God’s will.
Jeremiah
Who dares declare that to him only has the Lord vouchsafed wisdom and the secret of his will? God speaks to men in dreams, and to me likewise has he sent dreams. He has filled my nights with horror, and has awakened me at due time; he has given me a mouth that I may speak and a voice that I may cry aloud. He has breathed dismay into my mind that I may spread it over you like a burning cloth. I will utter my dismay on behalf of Jerusalem; I will cry my cry before the people; I will reveal my dreams.
Baruch
Away with dreamers and interpreters of dreams. The hour needs waking men.
Hananiah
Dreams come to all. Beasts stir in their sleep, and the dreams of slaves are full of visions. Who has anointed you, that you should speak before the temple?
Voices
No.—Let him speak.—We want to hear him.—He is out of his mind.—Let him reveal his dreams.—The marketplace is free to all.—God’s house is free. Speak, Jeremiah.
Pashur
Not from the threshold of the temple.
Hananiah
I am the prophet of God, and there is no other prophet in Israel to-day. You shall hear my words, not those of the chatterers in the streets. Scourge the dreamers out of the marketplace.
Baruch
He is a coward, shun his terrors.
Voices
Let him speak.—We want to hear what he has to say.—No, let Hananiah speak.—Perhaps Jeremiah is sent by the Lord.—Why should not we hear him.—Speak, Jeremiah.—What has he dreamed?—Revelation often comes in dreams.—Let him speak, Hananiah.—We can compare their words.—Speak, Jeremiah.
Jeremiah
[From the top of the steps] Brothers in Israel, brothers in Jerusalem, in my dream I heard a storm burst upon the city, and I saw warriors assail our walls. The pillars fell and the battlements were laid low. Fire sat upon the roofs like a red beast devouring our dwellings. No stone was left standing upon another, and the streets were laid waste. I saw the dead lying in heaps upon the ground, so that my heart was turned within me and my mouth was unsealed even in sleep.
Pashur
Madness is crying from the steps of the temple.
Hananiah
The falling sickness afflicts him, and he in turn afflicts us.
Baruch
Down with him.
Voices
No, we want to hear his dreams.—What do they mean?—He is a madman.—He is a fool.—Away with him!
Jeremiah
But, brothers, when I awakened in the sweat of my body, I mocked myself even as you mock me now. Did not peace brood over the land; were not the walls untouched, so that no breeze stirred athwart them? I went forth from the house full of shame for my own terrors; I sought the marketplace that I might rejoice in its peace. But when I came thither I heard shouts of exultation; and my heart broke within me, for the shouts were clamors for war. Brothers, my soul was bitter as gall, and the words came to my lips against my will. Tell me, is war so precious that you should praise it? Is it so kindly that you should long for it? Does it bring so much good that you should greet it with all the warmth of your heart? I say unto you, people of Jerusalem, that war is a fierce and evil beast, one that devours the flesh of the strong and sucks the marrow of the mighty, crushing towns in its jaws and trampling the land beneath its hoofs. Those who awaken it, shall not again lay it to sleep; and he who draws the sword, is like to perish by the sword. Woe, therefore, to the contentious man who quarrels when there is no need, for he shall come out upon one way, and flee upon seven. Woe to those who murder peace with the words of their mouth. Beware of all such, O people of Jerusalem.
Baruch
Beware of cowards, O people of Jerusalem; beware of traitors in the pay of the enemy.
Hananiah
What promise does he bring? Where is God’s word? He speaks for Babylon and for Baal.
Voices
No, no.—His words are just.—There is much truth in what he says.—Let him deliver his message.—Dreams.—Where is the promise?—Go on.—We want to hear him too.
Jeremiah
Why do you awaken the ravening beast with your shouts. Why do you summon the king of the north to your city? Why do you clamor for war, men of Jerusalem? Did you beget your sons for slaughter, and your daughters for shame? Did you build your houses for destruction by fire, and your walls for the battering ram? Bethink thee, Israel; call a halt ere thou runnest into the darkness, Jerusalem. Is thy slavery so hard, are thy sorrows beyond assuagement? Look around. God’s sun shines over the land; the vines bloom in peace; lovers walk happily together; children play unhindered; the moon shines gently over the sleep of Jerusalem. Fire and water keep their appointed places, the storehouses are well filled, and God has his spacious mansion. Say, Israel, is it not well with thee within the walls of Zion; art thou not blithe in the valleys of Sharon; art thou not happy by the blue waters of Jordan? Let it suffice thee to live at peace under God’s tranquil gaze. Hold fast to peace, people of Jerusalem.
Zebulon
His words are just! Hail