stained robes. But with everything that had changed in the past few days, his thoughts refocused on the miraculous turn of events since he had met Pekah.
Instead of pleading for comfort, he gave thanks. He reviewed each of the miracles he had witnessed, and conversed with his God and King as if He were there beside him. As he did so, he realized that being driven from Hasor had been a great blessing. His father’s sacrifice had been turned to good. As he prayed, he felt certain that Samuel was a guiding participant in all of it.
Unaware of how much time had passed, Jonathan once again became cognizant of his surroundings. He wiped tears from his cheeks with the back of his hand and then ran his fingers through the soft dirt, churning the soil in his hands before dropping it and retrieving more. He looked for Eli and Pekah, but they still held back to give him some privacy. They were silent.
Jonathan patted the dirt firm, then grabbed his belongings and turned to rejoin his friends. His eyes were bleary, but surprisingly, he found the strength to put a smile on his face.
“Are you going to be all right?” Eli asked.
Jonathan thought for a moment, and nodded. “Yes. I’m fine. Do you mind if we go into the Council Hall for a few minutes before joining Amon in the courtyard?”
“We have enough time,” Eli said. “But why?”
“You shall see.”
They left the gardens to enter the village by way of the south gates, broken down by the invading army of Gideon just days before. Following the cobbled roads that led to the temple and Council Hall, the three men passed the barn where Jonathan had hidden during the siege. Arriving at the Council Hall, they found that Amon was nearly ready to depart. Jonathan hurried them inside and shut the door.
Jonathan drew in his breath at the sight before him. He had expected the same mess of torn books, overturned tables, spilled candles, and broken furniture that he had left the night of his escape, but the room was now tidy and clean. A few pieces of furniture were missing, namely several of the chairs from around the Council Table, but everything else seemed to be in its proper place.
The table held a few damaged books, hand-inked pages previously torn from their bindings now stacked in neat piles next to the volumes. Other than those awaiting restoration, the books had been placed back on the shelves. Jonathan examined the floor where his father had lain between the judgment seat and the back door. Even the blood stains had been removed from the smooth stone. He wondered who had cleaned up the hall.
Walking over to the books on the northern wall, he saw they were all correctly filed. “Someone from Daniel placed these in their proper locations,” he observed. He looked around the room again and remembered his purpose for coming.
“Pekah,” Jonathan said as he turned to look at the new captain of Gideon, “I haven’t asked for The Thorn to be returned to me. I gave it freely. But I would rather not take it with us into battle with Rezon.”
Pekah appeared to be embarrassed. “I forgot I still had the pouch around my neck.” He removed the pouch, then opened it to retrieve the cloth bundle, which he handed to Jonathan. “I’m sorry.”
“No apology needed. I considered you the steward of the scepter.” Jonathan grinned, and then repeated, “Steward of the Scepter-I like that.”
Pekah smiled.
“Eli, Pekah, I want you to see where this is stored, but I don’t want anyone else to know. Would you mind locking the doors, please?”
Eli hastened to the back of the hall, and Pekah went to the front. They locked both doors, then returned to watch.
Jonathan looked at Pekah and said with amusement, “And this, my dear Gideonite captain, is why you and the late Sachar never found The Thorn!”
He went to the judgment seat and sat down, and while firmly pressing his left heel against a small protruding piece of stone at the base, he twisted the right armrest outward. Placing the cloth-wrapped scepter in the revealed compartment, he slid the armrest back into place until it clicked, then rose from the seat. He looked up to see shock on Pekah’s face. Eli simply laughed out loud.
“Please keep this a secret,” he asked. “I don’t believe any other living person knows about this hiding place, and I would prefer to keep it that way for now. But we are going into battle, and if something happens to me, I don’t want to be the only one who knows where it is.” Then with feeling, he added, “I trust you both with my life.”
Eli grabbed Jonathan up and squeezed him hard, making Jonathan choke out a laugh before he let go.
“You are my very dearest friend, Nate. I would do anything to protect you. And…” Eli paused momentarily as if to be sure Pekah was listening. “… Pekah already has.”
Pekah glowed. Eli gave a small bow of respect in his direction, making him redden even more.
Jonathan thanked Eli for his sincere loyalty. Turning to Pekah, he said, “Your humility is evident, but Eli’s right. You have done some amazing things in the last week. I thank you again for saving my life.”
Pekah stumbled over his words. “You are welcome.”
The three men then left the Council Hall.
They found Amon’s company ready to ride, and it was apparent that Amon had been waiting for them. Even Rachel and Abigail were on their mounts next to the general. Rachel threw Jonathan a look of disgust, but then broke into a smile.
“I hope I won’t have to wait this long for your letter of marriage to arrive,” Rachel teased.
Jonathan shrugged, pretending not to know what she meant. “Am I late? I am so sorry. Please forgive me.”
This made Rachel laugh, and Abigail managed a smile.
Amon called for attention, then asked Tavor if he would pray to their Creator and Protector for deliverance. Tavor graciously accepted. The priest of Uzzah stayed on his horse, but bowed his head and loudly offered a prayer that all could hear-a humble petition, heartfelt, and sincere. On behalf of the united army, he requested protection and success, then closed with tokens of gratitude, all of which were echoed by a communal “amen.”
The general thanked Tavor for his petitions. With a waved command, they left the walls of the village of Hasor and started down the northern road.
Blinding dust clouds rose from the wide and well-traveled road to Ramathaim as the thundering hooves of more than two hundred horses hastened on their way. Pekah, Ezra, and Tavor all rode near Amon, each at the head of their fifty, and Jonathan, Eli, the women, and all of Amon’s support staff traveled in the rear. Many of the mounts in the final group were burdened with provisions, tents, and other supplies. As they began to fall behind, Amon gave the order for them to catch up later. The distance to Ramathaim was normally a very full day by donkey-drawn cart or by foot. But with the horses, Jonathan calculated that Amon’s company would make it to the Holy City sometime after Azure and Aqua were high overhead, well before the cool of the evening set in.
Dirt that had turned to powder testified of the thousands who recently marched that way. Jonathan suspected Captain Mehida’s host had traveled far during the night. Feeling sure they would not find the army until they were nearly to the Holy City of Uzzah, he hoped Mehida’s army would not be exhausted by their forced march.
Those hopes were bolstered a few hours later when they found signs Mehida had camped sometime before dawn. Amon called for the company to halt. The gurgle of a familiar stream promised an opportunity to water the horses. On their way to the stream, they passed an abandoned fire-pit. The general bent down to check its warmth with his palm.
“The coals are still alive. I expect we will catch up with Captain Mehida within the next hour or two.”
“Ramathaim isn’t far,” said an Uzzahite soldier in their midst, his tone anxious.
Jonathan noticed fear in the eyes of some of the younger soldiers around him, the implications of being so close to their goal finally settling in. A few of them, mostly Danielites, expressed their misgivings about going into battle, causing conversations to center on the gruesome work of death that would soon be required in order to subdue General Rezon and protect the inhabitants of the Holy City. Dread settled over the entire company like a pall, the sudden change in mood felt by everyone.
The thought of participating in the impending battle soured Jonathan’s stomach. Grateful as he was for Amon’s leadership, and for the great change wrought upon Jasher’s army, Jonathan found it difficult to soften the bitter anger he felt in his heart. As long as the war continued, he doubted he would find peace in his soul. Even
