sacrificial altar. His thoughts drifted back to the days when he had traveled with his father and mother to make sacrifices at the temple in Ramathaim. At least twice a year, they would make the long day’s journey to the Uzzahite city for that purpose. The trip was easy, usually uneventful, and the family always enjoyed spending the time together. After the accident when his mother had passed away unexpectedly, Jonathan and his father still made the trip together, even though it saddened them to go without her.
Now that Father is gone…
Jonathan was almost unaware of his audible sigh. Both Eli and Pekah regarded him with concern. He noticed their gaze, and realized they’d heard him. Putting the memories out of his mind, he kicked a small rock with the side of his boot, sending it skipping through a bush. It startled a bird in the trees above.
Now stopped, Eli stepped closer, threw his arm around Jonathan’s shoulder, and gave him a slight squeeze. “I’m so sorry.”
Pekah offered a thin smile.
“Thank you both for understanding. I’m saddened by the thought of traveling alone the next time I go to offer sacrifice. No offense intended, Eli, but I’m not looking forward to it.”
Eli turned to Pekah to explain. “Jonathan and Samuel would always come to stay with my family for a few days so they could spend time at the temple.”
“Yes, our trips were always a family occasion. It won’t be the same with my father gone,” Jonathan said as they resumed their journey. “But I know he has found peace in the arms of the Promised One.”
“Yes, he has,” added Eli. “I’m sure of it.”
Pekah brushed a low-hanging branch away from his head. “I don’t mean any disrespect, Jonathan, but tell me more of this Promised One. Is He the same who should come and rule? How is it that you’re sure the king is with Him?”
Jonathan slowed his pace and raised an eyebrow at hearing Pekah call his father “king.” He didn’t expect such an admission from a Gideonite. He dismissed it, however, and answered the question sincerely.
“Yes, Pekah,” he replied. “The Promised One is the same as the One who will come and rule in righteousness. He is the True Great King. He is also The One Who Would Suffer. Do you know of Whom I speak?”
“Yes-my mother taught me of this Great King.”
“Did she teach you He would suffer and die?”
“I don’t recall hearing that, but she said that one day a Great King would come and He would heal the sick and unite the tribes into one people. There are many among the Gideonites who believe this, but I didn’t know He would die.”
“Pekah, we call the Great King ‘The One Who Would Suffer’ because He will suffer pains and sorrows, and will be put to death by cruel and wicked men. Before Father Noah died and entered into his eternal rest, he told Daniel that the Promised One will not be of this world, but one far away. There are many worlds under the Creator’s care, and our world is but one of an innumerable host of them. He also said there will be a sign given when the Great King has been born, and this sign will point our eyes and our hearts to His mortal home in the heavens. After He fulfills His mortal time, He will die, but will be raised up with new life, never to die again. Then He will come to rule and reign among us for a time, here on Gan. He will visit all of His kingdoms, because He cherishes them all.”
Jonathan glanced sideways at Pekah, whose expression was earnest.
“I had no idea, Jonathan. I have never considered that the Great King would not be a man born among us. You say He lives in the heavens, and yet will find His way to our world?”
“Yes.”
Pekah paused. “Why will He die?”
Jonathan gathered his thoughts. The three men stopped underneath an immense oak tree and felt the mid- morning breezes whisk around them, rustling the leaves above. Azure and Aqua were now fully eclipsing, burning brightly together in the sky, and the shade felt good to Jonathan. Hearing water, he noticed that the trail had brought them close to the bubbling stream of the night before, but here the stream ran much slower and larger, having been joined somewhere by other sources.
“The answer to that question could be a long one. Do you mind if we stop to get a cool drink?” Jonathan asked.
They left the trail and drank, then refilled their water skins before returning to the shade of the tree, feeling refreshed. Jonathan saw that Pekah patiently waited for the conversation to continue, and he cleared his throat and began again.
“He will die for us. We sacrifice to remind ourselves that He will one day provide a lasting sacrifice, that we might live again.”
“We will live again, like Him?”
“Yes. The Great King will take up His body again, and He promises the same for us. Our bodies will then be whole. They will be immortal.”
Pekah frowned. “I have heard Him called the Holy One before, but I don’t understand. If He is holy, why will He do this?”
“You mean, because we are not holy like Him?”
“Yes.”
“Let me try again. We die, and we sin. The Great King will not sin, and yet He will die in the flesh and then live again that we might have mercy. He does it because He is merciful. Does that make sense?”
Pekah nodded.
“Not only that, but He claims all justice by this act. Justice and mercy-He claims them both. This way, we can come to Him, fully justified by Him, and find our rest, if we are willing to ask for His mercy. We will live again to stand before Him, to be judged of our actions in this life.”
Pekah was thoughtful. “Tell me more. How does this mercy come?”
“Let’s walk.” Worried about the time, Jonathan motioned toward the trail and took the lead.
Eli broke in at that point. “We are obedient. When we do wrong, we make it right. But we must covenant with the Great King that we will follow Him. He expects us to do as He will do. But to truly make claim on this mercy, there must be water, and blood, and spirit.”
Pekah scratched his head, obviously very confused. “What do you mean by water, blood, and spirit? I have never heard such a thing before.”
“Eli, may I?” Jonathan inserted.
Eli nodded.
“Under priestly authority, water is where we make our covenant. We lay down our body in the water, and promise ourselves to the Holy One. He then raises us up, a new creature. Blood is where the price of mercy is paid. The sacrifice of clean, unblemished animals shows us the price He will pay. It is by His blood that we will find mercy. By our covenant and commitment to do His will, we are His forever. And then if we do these things, we will feel the Spirit of God purging all desire to sin from our hearts. We will know for ourselves the love He has for all His creations. This is why He will die.”
Pekah was silent.
“You seem perplexed,” Jonathan observed.
“I’ve felt some of these feelings before in my life. My mother taught me about the Great King. Somehow, I think I have always known she was right. I felt this way when you and I talked by the stream-I felt my burdens lifted as we made our oath of peace and buried the weapon of Sachar. Is that the mercy to which you refer?”
Jonathan felt warmth in his soul. “Yes. That is exactly what I am talking about.”
“I think I understand. But…”
Jonathan pressed him to finish.
Pekah’s gaze fell, and he stopped walking. “I’m embarrassed to ask.” He stared off into the trees.
How can I help him? Jonathan silently prayed. I must not have explained it very well. Father was so much better at this than I am. Then an idea came to him-Pekah wasn’t confused about the Great King or why He died. He moved next to Pekah so he could see his face.
“This covenant can be made by any man or woman… or a Gideonite soldier who wishes to repair wrongs,” Jonathan said.
Pekah’s eyes went wide. “How did you know what…?” he stammered. He could not even finish the
