"Kommandant, is that really a hard question for me? Of course I'll answer that 'good' is following orders with great efficiency and speed, to be loyal and true to all values that I hold dear, and to pursue victory and success no matter what. That's what I define as 'good', Kommandant."
"As expected..."
"Now... your point in bringing me here?"
Erika watched with a mix of curiosity and concern as Maho spent the next few seconds breathing deeply, as if she were nervous about what she were about to do or say. Keeping an outer composure, her hands were beginning to shake and clench her skirt from the nervousness and anxiety of what she might hear next, as she prepared herself for what Maho was going to say.
"Erika... be truthful."
"W..what do you mean by this, Kommandant?!"
"You heard me..."
"I am! I am telling the truth, that's... that's what I consider good!"
"Is it what you truly believe...
...or is that just what you've been taught?"
Erika couldn't respond. Her mind was shocked by how skeptical Maho was acting towards her. She had always been loyal, true to her words, as good of a commander as she could hope to be. But to hear Maho expressing doubts to her conclusions, already added to the great suspicion Erika had of her commander. When Maho had arrived a few days before with that swollen face, she had a hard time trusting that reasoning of some severe allergy she had contracted earlier that day. Now that the swelling had just about now disappeared, a faint mark of a hand was visible on her left cheek, indicating that she had been slapped by someone, but just who could that someone be? Nobody could dare to lift a finger, or let alone let out the slightest sound against anyone in the Nishizumi family, and those who did normally never saw a good life ever again, which meant that even though everyone who saw Maho saw that hand mark, they didn't dare question her. Now, there were a lot of factors that were playing to the fact that something had happened to Maho, and Erika was hoping to get to the bottom of it before-
"Erika, are you listening?"
"K-Kommandant!"
"Answer my question, then."
"W-well, it's what I've been taught, of course, what your good mother has taught me, what I have learned from her tutelage!"
Maho had let out another sigh. Truly, Erika was more receptive to Shiho's doctrines than she could ever hope to be at this point, even more than just receptive, she was, in effect, fully indoctrinated. Erika didn't fully know it, but Maho was now the polar opposite of her, as the former was slowly becoming more human again, while the other was firmly stuck in doctrine and belief. Bracing herself, Maho challenged Erika's, and by extension, her own mother's school of thought.
"Then, answer this following question:
If it meant killing everyone dear to you in order to see that success which you desire, or allowing loved ones and those close to you to die, would you still strive for that success, or would you listen to reason and humanity, and preserve those precious lives without which you would be nothing?"
"Kommandant, that-"
"Think it over carefully."
"Kommandant, why do you ask me this-"
"I do not wish for your objections, I wish for your answer. Would you sacrifice all those you love for the sake of victory, or preserve them?"
"Kommandant, this is most unusual coming from you, why-"
"ANSWER. THE QUESTION."
Erika, intimidated by her commander's wrath, was again unable to give an answer, a mix of confusion and struggling to come up with an answer holding her peace. How could she respond? If she responded with what Shiho would expect her to say, then that would probably get Maho against her even more. If she responded with the option contrary to Shiho's teachings, then for one, Shiho would be mad if she found out, and two, it would go against what she had been taught ever since she began Sensha-do as a diehard to-the-letter follower of the Nishizumi doctrine. But those thoughts weren't fully processing, as Erika was still confused as to why Maho was acting and speaking like this. Was there something she didn't know about Maho? Was she missing something?
"Well?"
Erika could utter only a feeble answer.
"I... I do not know how to answer..."
Maho's heart softened at the realization of her hurt to Erika, and her mood shifted to a more peaceful, relaxed one.
"It's fine... I'm... I'm sorry I pressured you."
"Kommandant, are you alright?"
"That's a question I should be asking you, Erika."
"What? I am perfectly fine, I swear it!"
"No, you aren't, and please, hear me out here."
"Alright..."
Letting out a sigh, Maho began to let out her story.
"The real reason I have this injury is because Okaa-san slapped me for disagreeing with her."
"You what?!"
"I disagreed, because what she is doing is wrong!"
"Kommandant, you cannot possibly-"
"Erika, hear me out first! Please!"
"But, Kommandant, why are you doing this, I thought..."
"Because it is the right thing to do! Because it is what any person with a good heart would do! Because it is what Miho would do!"
"Kommandant, why do you speak as if you support that traitor?!"
"I'll tell you this, Erika... today, I believe that I was wrong in just sitting back and watching my sister jump into that river! If I had jumped in, all would've been saved! Now, I am ashamed I didn't jump in, I consider that decision the biggest mistake in my life, bigger than any other put together! And it was because I had allowed my Nishizumi teachings to overpower my humanity! I intend to never make this mistake again!"
"...You cannot be saying this, Kommandant..."
"You've been brainwashed, Erika. Shiho has truly removed any sense of humanity in your heart. You don't have a heart of flesh, but of stone."
"Nishizumi-sensei's teachings are correct, you cannot be going against them!"
"Then I will go against them if my conscience tells me to! I will listen to good and not what is evil! I will do what is the right thing, even if it goes against what I have been taught through all of my life! I will pursue the correct path, a path that is one that is considerate to others, caring, loving! If Shiho will disown me for this, then so be it! I'd rather be free of evil than be a slave to it!"
"Kom... Maho-san, what has gone into you?"
"I'm not a machine, Erika. I am a woman, and one who has the right to think, to act, to feel according to what I think is right. And if you are going to be mindlessly addicted to Shiho to the point that you will just follow her to the ends of the earth, even if it means killing innocents to further her aims, then I am sorry, but I shouldn't consider you human at all. If you truly have life in you, a soul, any feelings, then please, see what I see in Shiho, and help me to fix her. I've already lost so much, and I don't want to lose anymore.
For my sake, Erika, listen to me. It's because of Okaa-san I'm no longer the girl I used to be. Ever since my sister left because of Shiho's stern teachings against her, my life has become nothing but a dumpster. It's much more stressful to handle Kuromorimine without her, you may be a good replacement, but I cannot accept the fact you follow what my mother is saying even though it cost us the lives of two girls in what is supposed to be a safe sport. Then, she's about to get disowned if she loses this match, and because of that I cannot consider her my dear sister anymore, and that is a reality that I refuse to accept! I cannot handle bearing this load anymore, you must understand what I'm going through. You must understand that I am a human being, not a machine. I have the love of humanity in my heart, the question is, do you?"
Erika was once again speechless. Unable to give a response, she simply stared at Maho for several seconds, overwhelmed with the shock and amazement at what she heard here. She couldn't believe what she was hearing, and through a mix of an inability to answer and shock at what she perceived to be heresy being spit out of her commander's mouth, she couldn't allow herself to stay here any longer. Standing up and bowing, she slowly and quietly left the room, politely closing the door behind her as Maho refilled her empty glass, consumed the contents of the glass of water next to her, before laying her head on her table, her mind exhausted from the exchange, yet hoping that Erika would see reason, and join her in this little revolution against the ideas of the Nishizumi Doctrine, though she knew that Erika's fierce loyalty wouldn't make it easy at all.
After a few minutes of silent contemplation about the events of the past hour, Maho raised her head, stood, and opened the curtain. Adjusting her chair to face the window, she sat rigidly in her seat, eyes dry, staring outside into the open sea that surrounded the Graf Zeppelin on all sides. For the next seven hours, she just stared, not giving any consideration to time or what was happening. She watched as the noon blue sky gradually shifted to the orange of sunset. Several had knocked on her door, reminding her of this and that, but she didn't answer the minutest sound, simply continuing to stare blankly outside. The time of the day's practice session passed without her, and as the sun finally set under the horizon, Maho finally broke her gaze, and after some stretching and more water, repaired to her room, never interacting with anyone else along the way.
"It just doesn't make any sense anymore, Koume-san. Why is she against the Nishizumi doctrine now? The very one who is the daughter of the Headmistress herself! She didn't even address her by her honorific!"
"I feel that now that Maho-san has let herself out to you, I think I should tell you now, that she has been like this long before you realized this, starting not long after Miho-san left."
"Why wasn't I told?! Why didn't you-"
"Maho-san might've gotten mad, and she's the second-to-last person I want mad!"
"She's spouting heresy, Koume-san! H-how can I address her as my Kommandant now that she's confirmed my suspicions of her?"
"Will you tell Nishizumi-sensei, then?"
"I think I should, this is going too far... though she did ask me not to... but should I listen to her or not?"
"Authority is still authority, Erika-san, no matter what we must respect it."
"Yeah, but..."
"You know, there's tension going on between you two, but if we wanna start another winstreak and get that tenth win we better say united right now, so I don't recommend going against our dear commander at this moment, Erika-san."
"Emi-san, she's being heretical! I can't let this pass!"
"Heretical or not she's still our commander. Unless you wanna dash our hopes of seeing a tenth consecutive win in our lifetimes, then you might as well submit to her authority."
"Emi-san is right, we have a duty to our commander, and we must fight for her no matter what. Absolute loyalty to our superiors is what the Nishizumi Doctrine teaches."
"Well, Maho-san is going against those doctrines, so I don't know who to follow but Nishizumi-sensei."
"Nishizumi-sensei is our ultimate authority, but once again, Erika, we cannot afford to have division, especially when we're about to fight this no-name school that is somehow in the finals with us."
"Hida-san, you too?"
"I'm just trying to help keep this team together in light of what you just revealed to us. And if we somehow lose to that no-name school, our reputation's gonna sink as low as Anzio's."
"Don't exaggerate, Hida-san, it won't be as bad as that."
"Fine, but it'll still be pretty embarrassing for us to lose to a school that we outnumber two-to-one."
"Then that is why we should remain united at this time, we cannot afford divisions, as we have expressed several times before here."
"Koume-san is right, Erika-san. Please don't be so against Maho-san at this moment in time."
Erika was subdued. For all Maho had told her earlier, she couldn't afford to split Kuromorimine right before the match against Ooarai, and that traitor to the school. If anything she wanted to see Miho get knocked down, and learning that she could be disowned should she lose the tournament was a big motivator to win this tournament. While it was bad that Maho was shifting away from the Nishizumi doctrines, she wanted to see Kuromorimine rise, and Miho continue to fall, and in order to do that she had to work with Maho to make sure that Kuromorimine, not Ooarai, would emerge victorious. Begrudgingly, she conceded, and withdrew to her room to take a nap.
No practice sessions had occurred that day as Maho had never exited her room, and Erika was in no condition to hold one. Therefore, after the time of the practice session passed without any practice, the day simply continued as if it had been a normal school without Sensha-do, which was bound to get some suspicious eyes on them, especially Shiho's, since she had made it imperative that practices be held for long periods of time every day in preparation for the finals. Nevertheless, spirits were still high, although some, especially Maho and Erika, weren't so enthusiastic.
All-Stars University - 1 day before the duel
The music room was alive with music. Every instrument you could expect to find was there. Stringed instruments, percussion, woodwinds, brass, and several pianos, all inside one massive room. At the center, the Sturmi crew were well into a performance of Schubert's Trout Quintet with Alice at the piano, as Chiyo sat nearby, pleasantly listening to the music that was being produced from these five young girls that included her daughter. It was Hannes and Frisell on the first and second violins, respectively, Lofstrom on the viola, and Jouko, being the largest girl of them, on the cello, and having performed as a string quartet for their school since they were young, though at first they weren't too impressive given they weren't musical prodigies, they had gotten quite competent at coordination and sight-reading as time went on, making some people think that they were destined for glory in a career, until they pursued Sensha-do.
Alice, on the other hand, was, as she was in Sensha-do, a prodigy in music, honing her skills with great help and support from her mother, who, outside of Sensha-do, was also a very skilled, talented, and articulate pianist, though she hadn't pursued a career to focus on Sensha-do, which disappointed those who heard her play. It was, by this point, a family tradition to be very good at playing the piano, and though it was not officially a requirement, it was basically one due to all of the "Respect the ancestors and gods" thing. Nevertheless, there was still that remarkable talent passed down through the generations, and once you heard a Shimada play, you could expect whatever they played to be as perfect as you could ever hope for. This, combined with the skillful playing of the foreign quartet, who did well in maintaining eye contact and giving good subtle signals to coordinate each other, was giving a performance that was most pleasant to the ears, something Chiyo, listening to the music with a mix of happiness, pride, and enjoyment, could very well attest to.
After the final notes of the Trout Quintet had been played, the five musicians relaxed to rest from a long period of continuous instrument playing as Chiyo, bearing a smile, and having a few tears in her eyes, stood and applauded the fine performance, before Alice rushed to embrace her mother, afterwards shaking hands with her accompanists. A conversation was soon struck up by the six individuals, only to be, rather rudely, interrupted by a sudden shout from the entrance of the music room, accompanied by some commotion. Turning to see who it was, Alice's eyes began to twinkle with that childish excitement a parent always loves to see, while Chiyo was rather amused, and the Sturmi crew stood wide-eyed.
"Aw, c'mon, don't leave us three out of that!"
"Chuzika, no need to be so... oh..."
"Ruzuku, why so... oh."
"Uhh... apologies, Shimada-sensei!"
Letting out a subtle giggle, Chiyo allowed Alice's fellow Centurion crew to enter as Alice was visibly struggling to contain her excitement. The Sturmi crew, meanwhile, were left surprised to see the real Centurion crew in person. They had heard many stories, seen the footage of their operating in those All-Stars matches, and couldn't help but be left astonished at how much of a well-oiled machine they were. As usual, they were expecting to see menacing, frightening personalities you'd usually expect from a fearsome group of people, but here, their personalities were just as colorful as the Sturmi crew's, and much warmer than expected, especially when they began laughing together with Alice, who was herself having a great amount of fun being around them.
Chuzika, the loader, was the polar opposite of Lofstrom in terms of personality, and was more like Hannes in that she was loud, boisterous, bombastic, and quite obnoxious. Her twin sister, Mizuzika, the gunner, was more like Frisell in that she was more thoughtful yet talkative, and more reserved than her twin. Both had been from Saunders High School, being distinguished as the best in the school. Finally, there was Ruzuku, the driver, who was a mix of Jouko and Frisell, warm, pleasant, yet, like Mizuzika, restrained and the calmest of the trio. She was easily distinguishable due to the fact she was wearing glasses and was the only one of the trio to have a ponytail. She hailed from Saint Gloriana, and was once part of the highly-prestigious Tea Garden, which explained her more reserved and calm nature. To face them in battle was terrifying, but to meet them outside of Sensha-do, they could easily become your new best friends, and that was much the case once they met the Sturmi crew.
"So, the 'Four Horsewomen of the Sensha-do Apocalypse' have met my eyes at last! Hope y'all are doing well, pleasure to meet ya!"
"Pleasure to meet you as well, names Hannes, but you can call me Handy!"
"'Handy,' hah! Love it! You're the commander?"
"Nope, I'm the driver, that honor goes to our beloved giant here."
Chuzika seemed to dither a bit as she gazed at Jouko. She was taller than her by a solid foot, but, recollecting herself, she greeted Jouko with that same energy her close associates always knew her for having.
"Pleasure to finally meet the legend herself... oh, boy, why am I so excited?!"
"Jouko... I've heard stories... I can't believe I'm seeing you as well!"
Jouko was rather confused at this celebrity treatment, thinking that for this particular crew to treat her like royalty was far beyond her worth, but at the same time, she was also surprised, as for this crew, the best in all Japan, to treat her like such, this warranted so much. Nervously she accepted their praise, but suddenly her conscience was at work, just as it had been before the match against Pravda. Instead of criticizing her for thinking evil, it now criticized her for accepting praise that should in reality be given to God and God alone, as exemplified in one of the five solas, Soli Deo Gloria, to God alone be the glory. Suddenly shivering, which startled her new fans, Jouko meekly gave a correction to them, apologizing for accepting their praises, much to their surprise.
"S..sorry, I shouldn't be accepting your praises. God alone deserves it..."
"'God'? Do you mean..."
"Mizuzika... did you forget? She's Christian, as well as her crew!"
"Ohh... I forgot, sorry."
"All good, all good, just, sorry, conscience kinda did some rebuking back there."
"No worries! Now, let's go meet the others!"
Chatter once again filled the room as the Centurion crew met their rivals for the first time, engaging in delightful conversation, joking around, banter, and whatever else as they talked. However, Chiyo had not forgotten the original purpose of the Centurion crew's arrival here in the first place, and, wanting to hear more delightful music to close off the final day before the duel, gently gave her reminder.
"Now that we're all here, I trust that you three haven't forgotten your purpose of first coming here?"
The three immediately flushed red at the realization.
"Uhh... right..."
"W..W-Who wants to suggest...?"
"I'll try the..."
Jouko, wanting to help ease their tensions, piped up first.
"Relax, we can always do Mendelssohn!"
"Don't really know that... sorry..."
"Grosse Fuge, maybe?"
"I guess, but isn't that for string quartet?"
"I mean, the more the merrier!"
"But what about... Alice?"
Alice, equally skilled on the violin as on the piano, had, as her crewmates tried to figure out what to play, eagerly picked up a violin and sat next to Chuzika, who herself sat next to Hannes. Mizuzika joined Lofstrom on the viola, while Ruzuku joined Jouko at the cello. As Chiyo once again took her seat ready to hear another performance from the enlarged ensemble, and the sheet music for Beethoven's Grosse Fuge distributed throughout the music stands in front of the ensemble's seats, Alice prepared herself, and signaling to the others to start, all hit the beat, and began the complex, confusing masterpiece that was the Grosse Fuge. Confusing as it might be, Chiyo had already heard the piece many times, by now understanding all of it, and very much enjoying the performance these eight girls were now giving her.
"...Mika, I'm telling you, I cannot allow this, I'm sorry."
"None can bend the winds to their favor, nor can one in subjection be the subjector to their subjector."
"Mika, please, as a Christian I must protest this action! The Bible explicitly states-"
"With all due respect, Jouko, I have not read your Bible, and therefore am not inclined to obey it. Forgive me, but as one with higher authority than you, my word is final."
"Still, it isn't good to steal! We barely won the match against Pravda last time, what happens if they find out we did it? They won't hesitate to send-"
"Jouko, trust me, they will never suspect a thing."
"Ugh... Still, Mika, I can't-"
"Once again, back to square one, it seems... Hm."
"Mika... please... I beg of you, do not do this, for the sake of your conscience and for the sake of the school..."
"I'd say my conscience is clear, Jouko, and once again, they'll never suspect a thing."
"B-but... Has Linder talked to you? I'm sure she-"
"Oh, she has."
"It seems she wasn't able to persuade you."
"Mhm... now, I must be going. A new tank awaits for us."
"Mika... don't!~"
Jouko stood defeated as the phone line hung up. Slowly allowing her arm to drop, and gently setting the phone on the nightstand, she walked towards and collapsed onto her bed as her friends, who had witnessed the whole exchange, looked on with worry, not just for their friend, but also for the potential ramifications of this affair.
"I don't like this one bit, Jouko..."
"Mika used to be a favorite of mine, now I just don't know anymore."
"Surely you can keep trying, right?"
"Frisell, Mika isn't gonna budge if I keep calling her. She's dead set on that KV-1, and she wants it no matter what."
"Well, if Pravda finds out, then it was nice knowing Continuation. Dozens of lawsuits and we're bust."
"Lofstrom, don't be so pessimistic! I don't think Pravda will go that far."
"Sorry, I just don't want to lose Continuation after how far we've gotten."
"As do I... Jouko, should we?"
"Yeah, Frisell... let's pray about this... I'm still struggling to believe all this, but it's the best option we have right now."
"Alright. Everyone... join hands..."
Once more, the crew united in prayer that soon, this entire affair would be resolved and brought to a peaceful, cordial close. Hannes and Frisell were optimistic, but Lofstrom and Jouko, the latter of whom was the closest to Mika, were not as hopeful. Jouko knew well that what was being prayed was probably not part of the will of God, and many a time that was true, so acknowledging that God's will be done in her turn to pray, Jouko also prayed for strength and guidance to weather the storm, and maneuver into safe, calm waters once again. Prayers finished, Jouko bid all good night, and once the room was empty save her, she grabbed her Bible and phone, and, for the first time in several days, called Miho for nightly devotions.
Ooarai
Miho and Anglerfish Team were gathered in Miho's room, spending what last moments they could together before the match against Kuromorimine. Ever since that first Bible study with Jouko, and their singing during the match against Pravda over a week before, the team had begun a slow but steady shift to Christianity. Miho, having interacted the most with Jouko, was pretty much on board already, but the others weren't as easy to accept it, at least those like the nihilistic Mako, or Hana, who had been reared in a very traditional household, though she was already asking questions instead of denying everything fervently. In Yukari's case, history was her strong suit, and, when she was permitted to read Miho's Bible, she always spent time in the history section of the Books of the Judges, Samuel, Kings, Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther. Of course, being a girl, Deborah was Yukari's favorite character. As for Saori, it was Esther, for the female characters, but Samson took the gold.
Miho, however, made sure that the focus stayed on what Jouko wanted them to focus on: the New Testament and the fulfillment of the great millenniae-long redemption story, and the words of the Epistles that served as instruction and guidance for them. And it was having some success, in at least challenging the beliefs of those like Hana or Mako. But they hadn't yet held studies with the other teams, and this was actually due to a little disagreement between Miho and Jouko. The latter was in favor of quickly spreading the Bible's teachings throughout the school and beyond, but the former was in favor of gradual ministry, that is, to allow spiritual growth and strengthening in those who were inquiring and learning about the Bible before making any moves to expand the Gospel further beyond. Jouko, not wanting to provoke a risky and bitter dispute with Miho as she was nearing the point of conversion, allowed Miho's method to be the one to be used, agreeing to disagree with her, praying for success.
Now, on this final night before the day of destiny, the Anglerfish crew prepared to start devotions. Miho had been growing more indulged in the Bible, and was starting to be a more independent girl. But, there were still some fields where she required Jouko's guidance, so those soon became the focal points of each nightly devotion. Since the Pravda match, the Anglerfish crew had gathered only twice before, and each time had been without Jouko. Miho didn't really expect Jouko to call since she was busy at All-Stars, with that big duel before her she had to get ready for it with lots of practice, so she couldn't really be available. Once everyone had been seated and made themselves comfortable, Miho brought out her Bible and began to search for an appropriate verse or portion to study with the crew, flipping through the Pauline Epistles to try to find a specific verse or chapter she could use as a point of study, as the others looked on with curiosity as to what was in store for them tonight, hoping Miho could find a good verse to use for a time like this.
As Miho made her way through Romans, one of the first options her mind brought her to, her phone suddenly began to ring, diverting everyone's attention to it. Awkwardly taking it out of her pocket and opening it, she saw that Jouko was calling. With a degree of surprise, she answered and pressed the phone to her ear to hear what Jouko had for devotions. However, she noticed that her voice wasn't that pleased or relaxed like it usually was, sounding more upset, anxious, and unsettled, which understandably got Miho a bit worried for her well-being.
"Jouko-san, what's wrong?"
"Mika and I are in the middle of a dispute... she's stealing something."
"What? Why?"
"Just... don't get too into it, I'll try to solve it. Let's just get on with the study..."
"I... I've brought my friends over tonight."
"Oh, well, that's nice to hear! Have you started?"
"I'm still trying to find a verse, and considering what's happening tomorrow I need a good one."
"Sure thing... "
Jouko took a minute to try to find a suitable verse as Miho did the same. After a while, Jouko had something good.
"Ah! Psalm Twenty-seven!"
"Psalm..."
"Twenty-seven."
"Alright! I'm there now!"
"Feel free to read it out loud."
"Okay..."
Glancing at her friends who were waiting for the verse, Miho began to read.
The Lord is my light and my salvation— whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life— of whom shall I be afraid?
When the wicked advance against me to devour me, it is my enemies and my foes who will stumble and fall. Though an army besiege me, my heart will not fear; though war break out against me, even then I will be confident.
One thing I ask from the Lord, this only do I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple.
For in the day of trouble he will keep me safe in his dwelling; he will hide me in the shelter of his sacred tent and set me high upon a rock. Then my head will be exalted above the enemies who surround me; at his sacred tent I will sacrifice with shouts of joy; I will sing and make music to the Lord.
Hear my voice when I call, Lord; be merciful to me and answer me. My heart says of you, "Seek his face!" Your face, Lord, I will seek. Do not hide your face from me, do not turn your servant away in anger; you have been my helper. Do not reject me or forsake me, God my Savior. Though my father and mother forsake me, the Lord will receive me.
Teach me your way, Lord; lead me in a straight path because of my oppressors. Do not turn me over to the desire of my foes, for false witnesses rise up against me, spouting malicious accusations. I remain confident of this: I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.
Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.
Saori and Yukari excitedly perked their heads, feeling a sense of motivation from the psalm, though at the same time they were confused, as although they had already met twice before, they still hadn't gotten a full idea of who this "Lord" was from the Bible. Hana and Mako weren't as enthusiastic, for obvious reasons. Hana simply sat quietly and respectfully, while Mako was starting to drift off to sleep. Miho didn't know what to do next at first, but Jouko, hearing nothing yet, decided to test Miho, to see if she could be able to "hold her own" by now.
"Miho, I'll let you do your own thing. I'll just leave you with these: Pravda match, your experiences, and try to get the message of the Psalm. That's all, go get them."
"Jouko-san, are you sure?"
"C'mon, you've already held your own studies, I'm sure this can be no different!"
"Okay..."
"Take your time, though, don't wanna mess something up, especially in this environment."
Taking a minute to try to piece together an explanation, reading and re-reading the passage multiple times, and keeping Jouko's suggestions in mind to come up with some ideas, Miho gave a deep breath just before beginning, and began to explain what the Psalm meant, and what she was trying to convey before her friends.
"Um... what I can say here is... it's another example of... uhh..."
"Miporin, are you alright?"
"Nishizumi-dono, I can help give ideas!"
"No, no, I'm okay... I'm just trying to think..."
A few more seconds of silence passed, before Miho was able to piece something together.
"Remember the Pravda match, where we all sang those songs?"
She received affirmation from all.
"Well, those songs are about this Lord that this verse talks about, and re-reading it, it tells us that this Lord from this passage will be there to be with us, and lead us to victory, no matter who fights against us! And that brings me to... Jouko-san, what verse from Romans is that again?"
"Romans chapter eight, verse thirty-one."
"Right! Romans chapter eight verse thirty-one, it says that if God is for us, who can be against us?"
"Nishizumi-dono, and those songs emboldened us, so that we could charge against Pravda and win!"
"Yukarin is right! Whoever this 'God' can be, there's something that comes with him that gives us courage! How about you, Hana?"
Although she could see her friends' points, Hana still had a sense of doubt and worry.
"I love these things you are all saying, but... I'm not so certain, I was very traditionally raised and Okaa-san won't be happy that... well... I'm doing all this."
"Hana-san, I've went through your similar things, but with the help of this book I've kept a strong resolve."
"How can I be sure that I can trust these? I don't say this because I want to jeopardize friendship, I would never do that! But... how can I really trust this?"
"Hana-san, we've been true friends ever since we met... could I ever do any harm to a good friend?"
"I suppose not... I'll trust you on this, Miho-san."
Exchanging smiles, all eyes turned to Mako... who was asleep as always. Collectively sighing, with Hana managing a little chuckle, the crew returned to the topic at hand, as Jouko happily listened on, glad to have a refresher from what had happened earlier.
Alice's room
Happy and satisfied with her activities over the past few closing hours of the day, and having bid goodnight to her friends, fellow students, crew, and mother, Alice jovially went to bed, excited for tomorrow's bout. Surrounded by her Boko dolls, it didn't take long for her to drift to sleep with a cute little smile on her face. As her brain turned off and her body's functions slowed and stopped to take its rest, Alice was transported from the mortal realm to experience whatever this particular night would bring her for her dreams, something Alice was always excited for every time she went to bed. There were always new adventures waiting for her once she fell asleep, and whether she remembered them, or in more cases, forgot, all her dreams were pleasant, some exciting, others very calming and relaxing, with a couple of nightmares here and there, though such things were very few and very far between, fortunately.
Normally, Alice's dreams involved Boko, Chiyo, some of the University students, especially her crew and the Bermuda Trio, and, as of late, the Sturmi crew. But this dream, on this particular night, was different from all of them. There was no Boko, there was no Chiyo, there was no University students or crew members or Bermuda Trio or Sturmi crew. Instead, it was just between two individuals, one of which, was Alice.
Alice found herself dressed in her normal attire, her frilly dress, striped sleeves, and hair nicely tied in its usual form. She seemed to be in a park. It was lively, with the birds singing their tunes and calls, some distant rabbits and squirrels bounding along the grass, and some fish flopping in the pond. The path was smooth and easy to cross, dotted with differing stones and rocks that gave it a rather colorful appearance. Benches, lampposts, tables with chairs, and directional signs were placed along the path. Strangely, however, the park was empty. Alice couldn't see anybody else but her. She couldn't see any signs of Boko or her mother, and there were no manmade sounds audible in the far distance. Nervously, Alice began to walk down the pathway, hoping to find any sign of human life, or at least, something she could be able to recognize in order to feel less lonely in this lovely, yet empty park.
After Alice had walked some distance down the path, which seemed to never end, she caught a glimpse of something in the distance. It seemed to be seated, eating some food and drinking what seemed to be tea. Curious and excited, Alice began to run towards the figure, glad to finally see that she wasn't the only person in this vast expanse around her. As she ran farther down the path, the figure grew in size as she neared it, and her hopes were fulfilled when the figure ended up appearing like a man. This only motivated Alice to run even faster, to meet this man and talk with him in order to get rid of her loneliness. The closer and closer she got, the easier it was to make out the man's individual features, which gave Alice a sense of deja vu when she was close enough to see every detail of the man, as he looked rather similar, as if she had seen him in countless pictures before.
The man was wearing a pure white robe, though at his side, there was a patch of red, as if he had been stabbed and blood had gushed out, yet there was no hole on the robe. Likewise, there were patches of red all over the man's back, and more all over his torso. His wrists contained a hole on either side. His feet, too, had holes in them, and finally, on his brow were countless scars. He seemed to be badly hurt, and yet, he didn't seem to mind the possible pain, simply enjoying the tea in front of him, and the few pieces of bread on the plate in front of him as if there was nothing wrong. Alice was still looking at the man when suddenly, the man noticed her. Frightened, Alice froze in her place, but felt a rather comforting feeling when she saw the man gesture to her, to sit with him and eat and enjoy nature together. A glance at the table revealed a second teacup and plate of bread waiting for Alice, and with surprise she did sit.
There was no talking at first, just eating and sipping, and glancing around at the beautiful surroundings, and listening to the calming sounds of the animals and gentle rustling of the leaves, as well as the slight rippling of the pond. In addition to these things, Alice was enjoying the unusually very delicious food and tea, which contained a taste that was enough to win every food and drink competition in the world; it was just that good, and Alice felt great consuming the contents. After a while, the man began to talk to Alice.
"Beautiful, isn't it all?"
"Y...yes... it is."
"Indeed, what do you like most here?"
"I'd... um... say the birds. I love to hear their songs."
"I could listen to those beautiful calls all day as well."
"Say... what about you?"
"Me? Well, I'd like to watch the animals move around happily, it's always pleasing and warming to see them have their fun."
"Yeah... I guess so..."
"How's the food and drink, by the way?"
"They're amazing! Did you make these?"
"Oh, of course! I wouldn't want to sit here hungry, of course."
"How do you do it... what ingredients are there?"
"Just a little ingredient called 'faith,' as I like to call it."
"'Faith'?"
"Mhm."
"Is it some secret ingredient nobody knows about, or..."
"Oh, everyone knows it, but few use it, unfortunately."
"Oh... that's a shame... this is a very good meal!"
"I'm glad you enjoyed it."
"Well... I have one more question to ask..."
"Sure."
"What are those... wounds... and scars that you have? What happened to you?"
"Oh... I... are you ready to know?"
"Yeah, I wanna know?"
"Are you sure you want to know? You won't like what you'll see."
"Please, show me!"
"Alright, but promise me you won't hate me after this..."
"I won't!"
"Here we go."
Suddenly, the man disappeared, and Alice was whisked away from the peaceful park to an uproarious scene that was the polar opposite of its peaceful, calm nature.
She was standing on a large wall, above a gate, surrounded by countless people. Her clothes were different, this time more ancient, similar to the clothes being worn by those around her. At first, she tried to see where she was, and it seemed she was in some ancient city, but in the distance, the shouting was growing louder and louder. Quickly turning her head to where the crowd was looking, she saw a path below, with many more people lining both sides of it. There were processions of soldiers at first, but soon, the main focus of this procession manifested itself, and the crowds reacted with a great tumult, a mix of mockery, jeering, insulting, ridicule, and, for a very select few, weeping and sorrow. Alice herself kept quiet, interested, and at the same time, fearful of what was about to greet her sight.
Three men, under heavy guard, were bearing heavy wooden crosses. The lead man, bruised and covered head to toe in blood and scars, seemed to have a sort of headpiece on, something like a crown, but it wasn't a crown of gold or other precious jewels; rather, it seemed to be made of thistles, and as the man grew closer, Alice could see thorns protruding out of those thistles. The sight almost made Alice vomit out of disgust, but, collecting herself, she returned to the edge of the wall to see that the man in front had collapsed. Some of the soldiers were beating him, trying to make him stand up, until one man, who seemed to be African, was dragged forward by an officer. After he seemed to be yelled at, he put himself under the cross of the fallen man, and, helping him up, began to help him carry it. After this interruption, the procession continued, proceeding beyond the massive gates and towards a hill not far away from where Alice was standing.
Once again, Alice was transported to a different place. This time, she ended up on the nearby hill itself. It seemed that some time had passed, with the procession now having reached its final destination. The three condemned men laid down their crosses, the African man from earlier shoved back into the crowd, his duty done, and now, Alice bore witness to the next gruesome chapter of this strange, violent dream.
From a distance, she watched as the condemned were bound with tight ropes at their forearms and feet, and once that was done, iron nails were brought from a crude box, as well as a heavy wooden hammer. The soldiers knelt beside the arms of the man in the center, and drove a nail through each of his wrists, as another drove one more nail through both his feet, into the wood, fastening him to the cross, and leaving him with no chance of escape. Alice flinched with each blow of the hammer onto the nail, but strangely, the man in the middle didn't make a sound or give a reaction, as if he were feeling no pain. His lips were moving, but Alice couldn't hear or make out what he was saying. Alice feebly asked one man who was in the middle of hurling insults at the crucified, next to her what the sign said, speaking in a language she didn't understand, much to her surprise.
"What did he say?"
"Delusions are kicking into him again. 'Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do' was what I heard the people in front saying, I dunno what he really said, but no wonder why this guy's up there."
Forgiveness in the face of unimaginable punishment? Alice didn't know how it was possible for one to ask forgiveness for their tormentors. Could it be that this man wasn't as bad as they said he was? Alice felt herself being moved by some unknown force, though she thought the crowd was to blame. Once the cruel deed was finished, ropes were fastened to the crosses, and with inconsideration they were all lifted up, sliding into their respective holes with a very rough nature. Alice looked up as the crowds mustered around the erected crosses, hurling insults at the three criminals who had committed so horrible crimes that they warranted this most horrible punishment, as soldiers below the crosses were casting lots for the robe the central man had been wearing earlier. The man in the middle had a sign above his head, but it was in a strange language. Once again, Alice feebly asked another spectator, this time a woman of middle age, referring to the sign above the Man's head.
"Can't you read, young girl? It says: 'Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews'. That answer your question?"
A sudden realization hit Alice. This was the very same Jesus she had heard about, read about, and saw pictures of, so many times over the past year. She remembered how He had been so loving, so kind, how He had preached love and kindness, and not rebellion or violence. What had this Man done or said to warrant such a punishment? There was nothing bad said about Him, what could He possibly have done? And what was meant by "King of the Jews?"
"What do you mean... 'King of the Jews'?"
"Said something about founding a kingdom, governor seemed to take it was a new Jewish kingdom so he slapped that sign on top of him. Looks like he won't be king of anything, heh. Speaking of which... HEY! IF YOU'RE THE 'SON OF GOD', AS YOUR DELUDED MIND SAYS, COME DOWN FROM THAT CROSS AND I'LL BELIEVE YOU!"
The Man didn't respond directly to His challenger, but He seemed to start speaking again, but as Alice was too far, and how that man's challenge was taken up by the others, drowning out whatever little sound or voices came from the crosses, she couldn't understand what was being said. But, looking at the Man's face, there was no visible sign of hate or malice, not even the slightest arch of the brow or the clench of His lips. Instead, it was only compassion, love, a sense of sorrow and concern that emanated from His face, and Alice again began to, now more seriously, consider how this Man wasn't what these people made Him to be, but that rather, He was innocent, and that He had done nothing wrong to deserve punishment. She began to be moved closer to the cross once the thought settled in her mind.
Then, a voice from the three crosses. It wasn't Jesus, but rather one of the criminals, which hung to the left side of the Man. Seeing what the crowds were up to, the criminal decided to spend the last moments of his otherwise miserable life joining in the fun and adding himself as another body on the dogpile.
"Hey, you! If you are the Christ, save yourself, and us!"
But a second voice was raised. It was the other thief, to the Man's right, but instead of joining in the derision, he came to the Man's defense.
"Have you no fear of God, considering we're having the same punishment here? And this stuff that's being done on us is all justified after what we've done, but as for this Man between us? He's done nothing wrong! He's innocent!"
His defense of the Man completed, the criminal defending the Man spoke directly to Him, his face transformed into a pleading one. The Man turned His head to His defender, smiling as the criminal gave Him a request that He was more than happy to grant.
"Jesus... Lord... please... remember me when You come into Your kingdom..."
"Verily I say unto thee, Today shalt thou be with me in paradise."
Alice was surprised that even in the face of death this Man could still put someone suffering the same fate as Him to ease, and this reinforced her considerations that this Man had done nothing to warrant this punishment. Once again, she was pushed even closer to the cross.
The Man then turned His head to two individuals close to Him, a woman who was entering old age, and a younger man, a few years younger than the Condemned. The Man spoke a few words to them, which caused the woman to cry once more while the younger man led her away to comfort her.
"Woman, behold thy son. Son, behold thy mother."
Alice noticed that the skies were now growing darker, where before it wasn't even close to nighttime, which got her, and understandably many others around her, concerned. This wasn't supposed to be happening, and a couple were so scared that they ran from the place to go lock themselves in the homes for protection from whatever was about to happen. She heard the Man's voice as it shouted a heartbreaking question.
"Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?!"
"My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?" was the translation of those words, which got Alice thinking what the Man could mean by "My God", as that man from earlier had described Him as the Son of God, and daring Him to show them all a miracle by saving Himself from the cross. Either it was a cruel joke, or an ironic one in that this Man had performed miracles when He was alive, and had at least a sense of divinity, and Alice's caring heart tended to believe the latter, which got her pushed even closer to the crosses. After a few more minutes, the Man spoke again.
"I thirst..."
Suddenly, a sponge was brought to His cross, with a bucket of some sort of liquid, probably water, accompanying it. Impaled on a stick, the sponge was dipped in the liquid and placed up to the Man's lips, who, seeming to taste it, quickly withdrew His head from the sponge, meaning that whatever the substance was didn't have a pleasant taste. The darkness was now nearing the point of pitch-black, and before long some were bringing lanterns to try to see amid the darkness.
Alice found herself being dragged nearer to the cross once again. Now, she was one of those closest to the cross, the closest she was allowed to be. It was very easy to hear and make out what the Man was saying, and the final words that came out of His mouth, Alice heard loud and clear.
"It is finished!
Lord, into thine hands, I commend my spirit!"
As the Man let out one final breath, His lifeless head dropped, and His entire body eased, signifying His death. The Man known as the King of the Jews was no more. But just as everyone was beginning to start making their way from the hill, all nature seemed to rage with unimaginable fury at this Man's death. A devastating earthquake struck the hill, throwing all off guard, some losing their footing and falling onto the ground. So frightened were many of them that the hill was vacated by most of the previously arrogant crowds. Somehow, the crosses never collapsed through the tremors. Alice herself almost fell face-down when a soldier grabbed her and helped her up, just as the earthquake came to an end. Dusting herself off, she saw the soldier next to her remove his helmet, and utter a solemn proclamation and acknowledgement.
"Truly, this Man was the Son of God."
Before Alice could comprehend what had happened, three soldiers stepped forward bearing clubs. Alice watched with disgust as the legs of the criminals next to the Man were broken with a heavy blow, eliciting earsplitting cries of pain from them, while another soldier, seeing the Man was already dead, dropped his club and plunged his spear to the side of the dead Man. Out of the wound poured both blood and water. Alice, unwilling to take anymore, collapsed on her knees and began to cry for the Man who not only was innocent in her eyes, but also was so loving and kind that even to those suffering with Him, He gave them comfort. Not a sign of evil was present on His countenance, and she couldn't help but want to break out about how He was innocent and had done nothing wrong. Suddenly, a whirlwind whisked her away from the dreadful place of execution to the park where her dream had begun before.
The shouting, the tumult, the dark atmosphere, the dreaded aura, all were gone. The peaceful, calming park had returned, with its singing birds, happy wildlife, and flowing waters nearby. She was seated back on the table, the Man opposite her. He spoke again:
"Now, do you see what I have done for you and everyone else?"
"But... why? Why did you do it, you were innocent!"
"Because I loved you all. I didn't want you to suffer the punishment that I suffered. That was the ultimate sacrifice I made."
"Does that count... me?"
"Everyone who has lived, lives, and will ever live, yes."
"And what was pushing me towards you? Was it the crowd, or..."
"You'll figure it out eventually. You okay?"
Alice was crying again.
"Why do you have to love us so much you had to go through all that?! Why are you so willing to just suffer like that?! Why can't you let-"
"That's the measures I'm willing to go to just to make sure you have a second chance."
"But why?! All your wounds, your scars, what... what if it wasn't worth it?! Why should you suffer, why..."
"Calm down, calm down, you'll lose your mind... everything will be revealed to you, I'll make sure of it."
"O...okay..."
"After all, my special ingredient is something called 'Faith'."
"Alright, I'll have faith! Just... I'm glad you're alive..."
The Man continued to comfort Alice, stroking her back and running His fingers through her hair. Slowly, the park began to disappear into black darkness.
Alice opened her eyes, and found herself in her room, her mother comforting her with a rather concerning look on her face. Alice's pillow was soggy, and her eyes felt worn. Visible tears were still in her eyes, which had Chiyo gently wiping them off with her handkerchief. The dream was fresh as the morning dew in Alice's mind, and she could still remember every detail of it. Looking outside her window, the sun was already risen, and the time was 8:30am. Her mother was sitting next to her, patiently waiting for her to wake up, and, having seen that she had been crying and sobbing, comforting her and gently wiping away her tears. When Alice noticed, she hugged her mother very tightly, as if she had experienced a nightmare. Chiyo quickly got to comforting Alice again, inquiring what it was that her daughter had experienced the previous night. Fearfully, Alice told her every detail.
Chiyo listened with horror at the gruesome descriptions her daughter was giving her, and once again, her mind was taken back to the Bible. Again, it was that Bible. This time it was the Gospels, the books that retold the same scene that Alice had found herself in during the dream. What could it mean, Chiyo had to find out. But now, there was no time for that. In but a few hours, the duel between Alice and Jouko would begin, and Alice needed to be in top condition to fight, so, she decided to just have Alice put off the dream and its meaning for now to focus on the duel, to which Alice agreed, and got out of bed to go get ready for the big day ahead of her. She would just ask Jouko later, preferably before the match, in order to really get that meaning from a source she knew she could trust. But Chiyo knew that such a dream was bound to greatly affect Alice's performance that day. So, she had to confirm if she was ready.
"Alice... do you think you can fight today?"
"Yes, Okaa-san! I will fight today!"
"Please, be honest, Alice... I'm concerned for your condition after... what you've told me..."
"I'll talk to Jouko-san, I think she can help me."
"Do you want her to come here?"
"Please!"
The Sturmi crew were almost finished with breakfast, the topic of discussion being about Mika and Linder's situation. Linder was getting pressured, and although Jouko and the others had tried to give their best support, Linder was unable to change the situation. Mika was growing hard-hearted, her resolve set on her goal of getting a new, strong tank for Continuation's roster. Normally such an endeavor would be a good idea, but for Jouko and company, it was against their morals. Having called Linder earlier that day, things weren't going well back at Continuation. Though the details of what was happening behind the scenes had successfully been hidden from the rest of the school, at least the regular crew members, some of the other tank commanders who had gotten the news did not take to the Sturmi crew and Linder's objections to the operation, which was causing problems for Linder. Though she had been advised to keep strong, support from her heroes reaffirmed, which got her spirits up, Jouko knew that this could possibly lead to an ugly split.
Stresses were starting to get high for the crew as they continued eating their breakfast, prepared by themselves. No matter how much they ate, or how much water they may drink afterwards, they would still have that stress. The discussions had sometimes gotten heated, not because they were having a dispute amongst themselves, but because of how angry they were at the situation, and the need to blow off some stress causing them to get very passionate. Once again, they all entered into prayer, hoping that all of this would get resolved, reassuring each other and themselves once the prayer was over, doing their best to build up their faith. Soon enough, the breakfast was concluded, a good meal consumed, and the Sturmi crew, still stressed out over the situation, prepared for one final round of practice before the big event that was in a few hours, which would also help in alleviating their stress.
However, just as they were leaving, there was a banging on the door, with shouting behind it. Startled, Hannes angrily stormed through the door, yanked it open, and without even looking, screamed back.
"HEY! MIND BEING LESS NOISY NEXT TIME?!"
The visitor meekly apologized, which led Hannes to get a better look, to which she was immediately embarrassed and silenced.
"Ch...Ch-Chu-"
"Chuzika-san, please forgive us... we're not in the best situation right now."
"It's okay, Frisell-san, but Alice-san isn't in a good situation either."
"What? What happened?"
"Chiyo-sensei told me to get Jouko to her immediately, Alice-san had a bad dream and she wants an explanation for it, and she wanted Jouko specifically."
Exchanging glances, Jouko and the crew followed Chuzika outside the halls, through the courtyard, and towards the Shimada residence which was in a more private area, and secluded from the rest of the university. Upon entry, they could hear eager running from one of the rooms, to find Alice suddenly appear and excitedly leap into Jouko's arms. Jouko, surprised, almost fell over from the force of the impact, caught in time by her friends as Chiyo also appeared from around the corner. Alice was clinging tightly to Jouko to the point that Jouko was having problems expanding her stomach when she tried to breathe. After Alice finally let go and turned back to her mother, Chiyo allowed Chuzika to leave, before leading the rest to the living room to see if they could try to help Alice calm down so as to get her in better condition for the duel.
Once everyone had settled into their respective couches and chairs, Chiyo allowed Alice to relay the whole dream to Jouko, as she still vividly remembered the details. As Alice got deeper and deeper into her dream, Chiyo noticed the faces of the Sturmi crew slowly morph into faces of shock and bewilderment, exchanging looks, and in the case of Frisell, looking into her Bible which she had brought. Once Alice had finished, there was silence for several seconds as the Sturmi crew took the time to take in everything that they had heard. Hannes was the first to break the silence.
"Alice-san, you know... exactly Who you've just met in that dream?"
"J...Je.."
"Jesus Christ is what you mean to say," finished Frisell.
"Yes... I read about Him before!"
"Of course! Jouko, remember when she pointed out how the story we told her the other day was right from the Bible?"
"She must've read it, then!"
"I did, I read it all, but..."
"All?"
"Yeah!"
"What happened?"
"I'd prefer not to explain."
This sudden interruption by Chiyo temporarily silenced everyone, but after recollecting themselves, the conversation continued.
"Well, I'd say let's explain the story of Easter to Alice, shall we?"
"Sure, Hannes, after all, it is Holy Week right now."
With a collective nod, the Sturmi crew relayed the story of Easter, or the story of the death and resurrection of Jesus.
Author's Note: This next part is basically a retelling of the Easter story, which most of you are probably already familiar with. Feel free to go to the next chapter (once it's completed) here, as the story involving the GuP part is over, though if you want to refresh your mind about what happened in the Passion story, feel free to read through the whole thing, though it is very, very long.
For those who are Christian like me, let this (very long) next section be another reminder of what our Lord has gone through for us, especially because at the time of this chapter being posted, it is Holy Week, where we celebrate the week where Jesus entered Jerusalem to be crucified as the ultimate sacrifice for the sins of the world, and was raised up from the dead three days after His death, and the day this is posted is Good Friday, the day where we celebrate the ultimate completion of the Plan of Salvation.
For those reading this right now, if you celebrate Holy Week and are religious like me, let us not forget what our Lord has done for us. If you don't really care and want to just continue to the next chapter, then I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and I'm looking forward to the next. Have a good one and Panzer Vor.
Author's Note 2: I feel quite guilty that I haven't done this in earlier chapters, but I want to extend a massive shoutout to florentinomain00f (Hoshino Ai on Discord) for his in-depth reviews of my chapters and helpful suggestions in Discord. He's a very good writer and a pretty nice fellow, so be sure to check out his story "Boots on the Ground" if you have time, it's very good and well-written, though, like this fanfic, it may have themes that may not be comfortable, but regardless, please check it out, he deserves a lot of support and credit.
Having triumphantly arrived in Jerusalem, the crowds acclaiming Jesus as the Messiah, things soured as the religious leaders of Israel were completely set on the death of this Upstart who for three years had been turning the land upside down with His radical teachings, a conviction which was further solidified after an uproar occurred at the Temple, where Jesus, infuriated with how this holy, sacred place had been converted into nothing but a lowly, common marketplace, thrashed all of the market stalls and drove all who were participating in money-changing and selling out of the Temple grounds, leaving many surprised, disappointed, and angered merchantmen, whose complaints worked in further angering the priests. So resolved were these leaders that they successfully convinced one of the Twelve Disciples to betray his Master for a good sum of money, thirty pieces of silver, a very valuable reward.
On the night of His arrest, Jesus gathered the disciples to eat in an upper room. In an act of humility, He washed the feet of His disciples, which was the polar opposite of the traditional practices of the time where servants were the ones to wash the feet of superiors, which Jesus would later set as an example to follow, to do what He had just done, saying that no servant was greater than his master. After this, once all had been seated, Jesus surprised the disciples by making a solemn declaration, that one of those in the room would betray Him. Immediately, all denied that this would happen, but Jesus decided to reveal the traitor by dipping a piece of bread into wine, and handing it to Judas, who, after being told by Jesus to do what he was about to do quickly, left in a hurry, leaving the others confused, and for Jesus, sorrowful that this close friend would be the one to do this to Him, all for some money.
Proceeding with the meal immediately following this incident, Jesus blessed the bread, broke it, and handed the pieces to His disciples, proclaiming it to be His body broken for them, and commanding that this be done in remembrance of Him. Taking a cup of wine immediately after, He made another prayer of blessing, and handed it to each of the disciples to consume, once more giving the command that this be done in remembrance of Him. With the meal now completed, Jesus and the disciples sang a hymn, and departed the upper room, making their way to the Mount of Olives, stopping at a garden called Gethsemane. Another dark prediction was given, that on this night, all of the disciples would be scattered, separated from their Master, but reassuring them that they would return after Jesus was raised up. Peter refused to agree, declaring his loyalty and that he would never leave his Master, only to be struck with a devastating prediction aimed at him. Before the rooster would crow, greeting the new day, Peter would deny his Master three times. Peter again re-iterated his loyalty, saying that he would remain loyal even if he would die, a statement agreed upon by the other disciples.
Bringing only Peter, James the Greater, and John, the same disciples who had witnessed the Transfiguration, with Him to a more secluded area in the garden, leaving the rest behind, Jesus asked the three disciples to pray, or watch with Him, as He was filled with anguish and sorrow. After walking further on, not too far off from the three disciples, He fell onto His face on the ground, and with earnestness and desperation, requested that the bitter cup of the Passion be passed on from Him. However, He accepted the will of the Father, conceding that if He should drink of the cup, then so be it, He would drink it. Returning to find the three disciples asleep, Jesus awoke them, and warned them that they should watch and pray, or fall into temptation, adding that the spirit was willing, but the flesh was weak. A second time, Jesus prayed the same prayer, that the cup be passed from Him, but that God's will be done. Returning to find the disciples asleep again, He left them without waking them, and once more prayed the prayer. Through all this, such was Jesus' agony that His sweat was like great drops of blood. After this third prayer, Jesus received comfort and strength from an angel sent from Heaven. With this done, the time had finally come.
Waking His disciples, Jesus told them that the hour of his betrayal had now arrived. Sure enough, as He spoke, an armed group of religious servants and Jewish soldiers sent by the religious leaders had come to take the Master away. Judas, at the head, came up to Jesus and kissed Him, a prearranged signal to identify which one was Jesus. Jesus, after questioning how Judas would betray Him with a kiss, admitted that He was the One they were looking for, proclaiming, "I am He," which contained the very same words spoken to Moses from the Burning Bush, "I AM THAT I AM." These words caused the entire mob to fall down from their power, but after standing back up, rushed forwards to seize the Man who had caused them so much trouble. Peter, enraged to see them try to lay a hand on His Master, drew his sword and rushed at one of the servants helping in the arrest, named Malchus. With a fierce swing of his sword, Peter chopped off the poor man's ear, causing him to clutch at the wound in great pain, crying out in great agony. Jesus, seeing this, rebuked Peter, declaring that "Those who live by the sword will die by the sword," and further stating that He could, at that moment, call great numbers of angels, but should that happen, the Scriptures would remain unfulfilled. He also pointed out to the mob how He hadn't been seized when He had sat daily teaching in the Temple, but again expressed that the Scriptures must be fulfilled. Therefore, Jesus accepted His arrest, and was led away as the disciples ran off in fear, forsaking their Lord whom they had served loyally and faithfully ever since they had been called three years before.
First, Jesus was brought before Annas, the previous high priest and father-in-law of the current high priest, Caiaphas. Annas questioned Jesus about His disciples and teaching to understand what this was all about. Jesus replied that He had spoken openly, preaching in the synagogues and in the Temple, hiding nothing, and telling Annas that instead of questioning Jesus, those who had heard Him speak should be the ones questioned instead. This prompted one of the officers present to step forward and strike Jesus, very angered at how Jesus spoke to this man of high bearing, and the audacity from Him. Jesus replied that if He had spoken evil, witness should be brought of it, but if what had been said was well, meaning no harm, then Jesus questioned why his attacker had struck Him. Annas, unable to really deal with this situation, sent Jesus off to face Caiaphas and the Sanhedrin.
Brought before the Sanhedrin, the governing religious body of all Judaism, Jesus was the subject of many false testimonies from false witnesses, all of which were unable to be proven or used as a good reason to condemn Him to death. However, two false witnesses professed to having heard Jesus say that He would be able to destroy the Temple and raise it again in only three days, whereas the Temple had taken decades to construct. Caiaphas wondered why Jesus didn't give an answer, questioning what it was that the false witnesses were accusing Him of. When Jesus still didn't answer, Caiaphas, now nearing the end of his rope, placed Him under oath to tell them all if He was as He claimed to be, the Son of God. Jesus affirmed this, proclaiming in addition that He would be seen sitting at God's right hand, coming down in clouds of glory. It finally pushed Caiaphas to rage, causing him to tear his robes in anger, declaring that Jesus had spoken blasphemy, and that there was no more need of witnesses, as it had been admitted by the Man Himself. Questioning the Sanhedrin what they thought should be the punishment, what met the ears of Caiaphas was undoubtedly the answer that he was looking for, and that answer was that Jesus deserved death. Rushing at Jesus, they spat at Him, beat Him, slapped Him, mocking Him by asking Him to prophesy who it was who had slapped Him, but through all this, Jesus remained silent, accepting the punishments being heaped on Him by those whom He had come to save.
In the courtyard outside the hall of the Sanhedrin, Peter and some other servants of the Sanhedrin were listening on to the proceedings going on inside. During all this, one of the servant girls noticed something strange, that being one of those listening on. His face was familiar, too familiar. Walking up to him, she pointed out how the man had been with Jesus. Peter, who was the subject of this sudden exposé, didn't want to get himself in trouble, so, in order to try to get himself out of this situation, he denied that he was whom the girl had declared him to be, saying that she didn't know what she was saying. Unfortunately, another servant girl came forward affirming what her compatriot said of Peter, forcing him to again deny, saying that he didn't know who Jesus was. A little later, more people came up to Peter, also saying that he was one of Jesus' followers from the way he spoke. Peter, by this point done with all of this, angrily called down curses on his accusers and swore fierce oaths that he did not know who Jesus was, and that he never did know. At that moment, a startling sound greeted Peter's ears. It was the distinct sound of a rooster's crowing, signaling that a new day had begun. Immediately, the words that Jesus had spoken to Peter regarding these three very denials came back to him. Peter remembered how he had vowed that, even if he were to die with his Master, he would never do such a thing as deny Him. But here he was, having done exactly that, three times. Overwhelmed with grief, Peter rushed out of the courtyard, weeping bitterly.
Not long after, seeing the Man whom he had served ever since he had been called, and whom he had now betrayed, condemned by the Sanhedrin, Judas, overcome with great guilt and shame, gave back the thirty pieces of silver he had been paid to deliver Jesus to them, admitting his sins by betraying innocent blood. The priests refused his money, and in a fit of rage, Judas threw the bag onto the floor, and rushed to a distant place outside the city. Unable to bear the shame and remorse of having betrayed his Master, he picked out a tree, and fastening his belt around him, hung himself. As for the pieces of silver, seeing that they were the price of blood, the priests decided that they weren't to be placed into the treasury, which would cause it to be defiled. Instead they would be used to buy a potter's field for burying strangers. Consequently, the field was named the "Field of Blood", because the money that bought it had been used to shed blood. Later, Judas' body was let loose from the tree it had been hung upon, and when it struck the ground, his body burst open, causing his bowels to be spilled from his body, a gruesome end to the disciple who betrayed his Master.
Meanwhile, Jesus was brought by the religious leaders to the Roman governor of the region, a man named Pontius Pilate. He was the last obstacle in a death sentence carried out by the Sanhedrin, as capital punishments which were to be carried out by the Sanhedrin required the governor's approval. So, the religious leaders attempted to get Pilate to get Jesus crucified, to no success, as Pilate found no fault in Him. Seeing that Jesus was Galilean, he decided that Herod Antipas, who was ruler over Galilee, would deliver justice. At Herod's palace, the ruler was delighted to see Jesus before him, having heard many stories and tales, and wishing to see a miracle from Him to entertain him and his court. At first, Herod questioned Jesus, but getting no reply, was forced to endure the religious leaders' vehement, scathing accusations, but still, Jesus made no answer. which made Herod upset. So, to entertain himself, as this Galilean was not going to do it for him, he and his soldiers treated their Prisoner with contempt, mocking Him and robing Him in an elaborate robe, before sending Him back to Pilate. That day, both Herod and Pilate became friends, having previously been rivals.
Back at Pilate's court, the governor was disappointed that he would have to be the one to deal with this, so he decided to question his Prisoner. He questioned if Jesus was the King of the Jews, which was affirmed, but Jesus stated that His kingdom wasn't of the world, because if it was, His disciples would've fought back, prompting Pilate to exclaim that Jesus was a king. But Jesus said that while Pilate said Jesus was a King, the real reason Jesus had come to the world was to testify to the truth, and that everyone on the side of truth would listen to Jesus. Pilate responded by asking, "What is truth?" Pilate would ask more questions, but Jesus remained silent, which amazed the interrogator. To the religious leaders who were eager to receive the governor's permission, Pilate admitted that he found no fault or a basis for being charged in the Accused, but, since it was the Passover feast, then there would be an amnesty vote to free a prisoner of the public's choice. The two choices of the amnesty vote were Jesus, and another prisoner, also condemned to death, named Barabbas, who was guilty of inciting rebellion against the authorities. To Pilate's surprise, the crowds shouted for the crucifixion of Jesus, instead of Barabbas. Pilate tried to reason, but the crowd, stirred by the chief priests and religious leaders, demanded the blood of Jesus. There was also the issue of Pilate's wife who had received a nightmare about Jesus' death, and pleaded with her husband not to crucify. Pilate decided to simply scourge Jesus, hoping that would be enough to satisfy the crowd.
Taken away, Jesus was tied to a post, and soldiers bearing "cat-of-nine-tails" whips with sharp hooks at the end of each strand began to inflict their punishment on their poor Victim. The claw-like hooks pulled on the flesh of Jesus, tearing the skin off of Him and causing great pain, cutting deep, horrible wounds which oozed great amounts of blood. Every part of Jesus' body was affected, to the point Jesus was almost unrecognizable. His wounds were innumerable, His pain immeasurable. But that was not the end. The soldiers further mocked Him, this time attacking His claim as King of the Jews by placing on His brow a crown of thorns. On every angle, the crown was pushed down, piercing the flesh and causing even more pain and more blood to gush out. At the conclusion of the humiliation, a purple robe symbolizing royalty was placed on the cut-up shoulders of Jesus, and mockingly, the soldiers "paid homage" to Him, giving their mocking "Ave's" before proceeding to continue with their punishments, beating Him with clubs or their own fists, as well as spitting on and striking His face. After this was done, Jesus was brought back to Pilate, and presented before the crowds, who again shouted for His death. Pilate again attempted to reason, but again his words had no effect. Finally, the crowds won, Pilate being convinced by the religious leaders that as Jesus claimed to be a king, that meant He was rebelling against Caesar, since there was no king but Caesar, and that if Pilate were to set Jesus free, then he was no friend of Caesar. So, Jesus was handed over, while Barabbas, the one who was supposed to have been the one to be executed, was set free. Pilate would wash his hands of the whole affair, while the religious leaders would call Jesus' blood to be on them and their descendants.
With His clothes placed back on Him, Jesus was given a heavy wooden cross to bear. He was joined by two other thieves also condemned to death by crucifixion. According to tradition, Jesus fell three times as He made His way to the place of execution, weakened from the punishments inflicted on Him earlier. A man named Simon, who hailed from a city in Libya, Cyrene, was consequently called from the crowds to help Jesus carry His cross. Obedient, Simon came forward, and also took the load of the cross all the way to the place of execution, a hill outside the city named Golgotha, or more commonly known today, Calvary, which meant "Place of the Skull". Along the way, Jesus would come across a group of women who were mourning and weeping for Him at the gate of the city. Jesus told them not to weep for Himself, but for their children, as in the future, they would proclaim blessings on those who were barren and childless, calling on the mountains to fall on them and the hills to cover them, for if this was done when the wood was green and alive, what if when that wood would become dry? Another tradition of this Via Dolorosa holds that during the walk to Calvary, a woman named Veronica, seeing the ragged state of Jesus and feeling sympathy, came forward offering to wipe Jesus' brow with her veil. Jesus accepted this generous offer, and once He finished wiping the blood and sweat from His face, the veil was returned, and contained a miraculously captured image of the Christ on it. Once the procession reached Golgotha, and Simon, his duty done, withdrew back to the crowd, the climax of the Plan of Redemption, millennia in the making, was about to begin.
At first, Jesus was offered a mixture of wine and myrrh (or gall) to ease the pain of what was about to be done on Him, but tasting it, refused the drink. Arms and legs pinned down, Jesus remained silent and submissive as the nails were painfully driven through both His wrists and feet, and rough, uncomfortable ropes that had strands protrude like needles bound His arms to the cross. The cruel deeds now done, the crosses were then hoisted to their upright position, and slid without care or consideration down into the holes which would keep them in place, this drop into the hole causing gravity and physics to also participate in the cruelty, as the force and recoil of the fall dragged the arms and feet and tugged them harshly on the nails, causing the flesh to be torn and causing even more pain and suffering. The other thieves were placed on either side of Jesus, who was in the center of the three. Above His head was a wooden inscription written by Pilate, which read, in Hebrew, Greek, and Latin, "Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews". The religious leaders wanted to change it to say that it was a claim of Jesus, rather than using it as an actual title, but Pilate sternly defended this inscription, proclaiming that what he had written, he had written, and there was nothing more to be added on the inscription. At the foot of Jesus' cross, soldiers divided His clothes amongst themselves, but on seeing the valuable undergarment, they decided that it held too much value to be divided, so they would simply cast lots for it, which fulfilled one of the prophecies of the Old Testament, specifically Psalm 22. This was on the ninth hour of the day, or nine hours after the sunrise, which was around 6am, but at around noon, the sky was filled with darkness that lasted for three hours.
During the Crucifixion, the Gospels record Seven Sayings of Jesus as He died on the cross.
The first saying of Jesus was a prayer for forgiveness:
"Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do."
Instead of crying out for vengeance, or shouting in anger, or calling down curses on those who had done harm unto Him, Jesus instead asked His Heavenly Father to forgive them all, another display of the love and care that Jesus had exhibited and preached throughout His ministry, and throughout His entire life.
The second saying of Jesus was a promise of paradise and salvation to a penitent thief:
"Assuredly, I say unto you, today, you will be with Me in Paradise."
Just before, the crowds and soldiers had mocked Jesus. Some mocked His claim to be King of the Jews, while others made fun of His miracles, daring Him to come down and save Himself from His fate, to come down from the cross in order to ensure their belief. Jesus never uttered any words back. Among these mockers and scoffers was one of the thieves who were crucified alongside Jesus, whom tradition names Gestas, and holds was on the left hand of Jesus. However, the other thief, traditionally named Dismas and said to be on the right hand of Christ, comes to Jesus' defense, proclaiming that although the thieves were deserving of death, Jesus was an innocent Man who had done nothing deserving of death. Immediately following this, the thief addresses Jesus with a plea, a plea to remember him when Jesus would go into His kingdom, a plea which Jesus, certainly with compassion and joy at this man's penitence, happily accepts with these words.
The third saying of Jesus was the entrustment of His mother, Mary, to John, the "Disciple Whom Jesus Loved".
To Mary, He says, "Woman, behold thy son!"
And to John, He says, "Son, behold thy mother!"
It should be noted that Jesus' addressing of Mary as "woman" is not dismissive at all, though it may sound so in English, but rather, in the original Greek language, the word is used for respect or tenderness. This episode can be another demonstration of Jesus' love and care for those closest to Him, entrusting the care of His mother, now left with no Son or husband to help her, to one whom Jesus knew could be able to care for her, his Beloved Disciple, John.
The fourth saying of Jesus is called the "Word of Abandonment," and is one of the most famous sayings of the Bible.
"Eli, Eli, Lama Sabachthani?"
("My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?")
Subsequent interpretations of this passage, the words of which are taken from the 22nd Psalm (which is also the Psalm involving the casting of lots for the garment), written by Jesus' ancestor, David, take it to mean that Jesus was abandoned by the Father, or that because Jesus had taken upon Himself all of the past, present, and future sins of humanity, the Father, who was unable to even look at sin due to His absolute purity, turned Himself away from the sorrowful scene, or that it was Him being human, and feeling forsaken, as His friends had largely forsaken Him, and that He must've felt forsaken by God as well.
The fifth saying of Jesus was His declaration of thirst.
"I thirst."
This is called the "Word of Distress." In response to this, Jesus was brought a sponge, which was placed on a hyssop branch or rod, containing what is most likely posca, a mix of water and wine vinegar, but He refused it. This fulfilled another prophecy, which stated that "in my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink." (Psalm 69:21)
The sixth and penultimate saying of Jesus was another declaration, but instead of a declaration of defeat or suffering, it was the greatest declaration in human history.
"It is finished!"
When Eve had eaten of the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, falling into the temptations of the Satan, that marked the beginning of humanity's sinful nature, as it was a disobedience of God's simple yet clear command. Had they remained obedient to God's order to not eat of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, then death and sin would never have corrupted the creation which was made in the image of God. However, because of their disobedience, not only were they aware of their nakedness, but they were also cursed to mortality, forbidden from entry to the Garden of Eden, and unable to again eat of the Tree of Life, its effects of longevity and great health and body, which had allowed Adam and the early generations to live for near millennia, slowly waning and disappearing with each passing generation, until by the time of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the oldest one could live up to was the age of 100. Eve, and all women who were coming after her were cursed with painful conception, that is childbirth, and for Adam was the curse of eating of the now-cursed ground, which would bring thorns and thistles, and the produce of this ground, for the rest of his life, further cursed to return to the ground from which he was formed, "For dust you are, and to dust you shall return."
But humanity wasn't the only one to be cursed. The serpent, who had deceived Adam and Eve in the Garden, was cursed above all other beings, to live on its belly, to eat dust for the rest of its days, with enmity placed between it, the woman, and their descendants. The results of this enmity would be that the serpent's head would be bruised, but it in turn would bruise the heel of the Seed of the woman. This was the declaration of the Plan of Salvation, that although humanity was doomed to this curse, there would be a time where One would come to deal a crushing blow to the serpent, at the cost of a deadly blow to Himself, for the sake of the salvation of humanity. When this would happen was not revealed, but each passing generation held on to this hope. However, at the same time, humanity plunged deeper and deeper into sin, committing many horrible acts of varying kinds, from indecency to violence to immorality, at one point, humanity was nearly doomed to be utterly consumed by the great floods had it not been for Noah and his family's faithfulness. Even after this, however, humanity continued on its path of sin, and once again, destruction was rained down on Sodom and Gomorrah, the most evil cities in existence at that time, with fire and brimstone, leaving no trace of either city.
As the centuries passed, no sign of this Seed had appeared. The days of Abraham and the patriarchs passed. The days of Moses and Joshua and the Israelite Exodus passed. The days of the Judges and the Kings and Prophets passed. The days of the captivities and the stories of Daniel, his companions, and Esther passed. The reconstruction of the Temple and Jerusalem under Zerubbabel and Nehemiah passed. Thousands of years had gone by with no sign of this promised Seed. Prophets from Isaiah to Daniel to Malachi had prophesied the coming of a Messiah, but still, there hadn't been one. The land of Israel was engulfed in the ongoing turmoil of the world, imprisoned by Babylon, Assyria, Medo-Persia, before these empires collapsed, Babylon and Assyria to the armies of Medo-Persia, then Persia to the Greeks, the final death blow dealt by the rapid conquests of Alexander the Great. Greece was then shattered, and the Maccabees secured Israelite independence from one of the rival Greek kingdoms, but it was soon snuffed out by the conquests of Rome, a conquest accomplished by the Roman soldiers under Pompey the Great. Once again, the promised Messiah had still not come. The Jews wished for their freedom from tyranny, to self-government, and believed that the Messiah would be the one to free them from Roman rule.
It was during this Roman period that Jesus was born of a virgin, conceived of the Holy Spirit, in a shabby stable in a small town that bore the honor of being the birthplace of King David, an ancestor of Jesus by virtue of Joseph's marriage to Mary after the birth of Christ. Jesus grew to be of great wisdom and stature, in favor with God and man. He began His ministry after His baptism by His cousin, John the Baptist, on the banks of the Jordan River, and the three temptations by the Satan following his 40-day fast in the wilderness. Gathering His Twelve Disciples, He preached throughout all Judea, proclaiming the Kingdom of God and the arrival of the Son of God, performing many miracles in cities including Cana, Capernaum, and Gadara. Many accepted the message, but most rejected it. Three years He ministered, until, a few days after the Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem, He was arrested, tried, and finally, condemned to suffer the worst punishment available to any condemned prisoner: crucifixion. None of His accusers realized that this was about to be the fulfillment of thousands of years of prophecy.
With the words spoken here by Jesus, He proclaimed that the great plan of salvation had finally been completed. There was no longer any need of sacrifices or related rituals, no more need to shed the blood of blameless, spotless lambs as a sacrifice for the atonement of the sins of all. Jesus had finally fulfilled His mission, and opened up a way for all to seek salvation through repentance, which was further reinforced by something that would happen not long after this.
The seventh and final saying of Jesus would be the final words spoken on the cross.
"Father, into thy hands I commend My spirit!"
His purpose of being the ultimate sacrifice for the salvation of the world now completed, Jesus finally gave up the ghost. In Psalm 31 is found these very same words: "Into Your hand I commit my spirit; You have redeemed me, O Lord God of truth," yet another fulfilled prophecy.
Immediately following Jesus' death, the earth erupted in anger. There was a great earthquake felt in the surrounding area, and amidst the tremor, the graves of the righteous were opened, and those inside, previously dead, came back to life, subsequently appearing to many in Jerusalem. Another incident that happened during the earthquake took place inside the Temple itself, where the priest was making the offering. Immediately, the great curtain that divided the Holy Place from the the Most Holy Place, or the Holy of Holies, was suddenly torn into two by an invisible force. This act signified that there was no longer a barrier separating man from God, and that they were now able to address Him directly through prayer. Back at Calvary, the scene was transformed from one of mockery to one of utter fear and reverence. Bystanders beat their chests, and went away from the place, while the Roman soldiers stood terrified. So moved was one of the centurions, that he proclaimed, "Truly, this Man was the Son of God," also proclaiming Jesus to be righteous. A group of those who knew Jesus, including many women from Galilee, which included Mary, the mother of Jesus, Mary Magdalene, and Salome, a follower of Jesus (not to be confused with Herod's daughter), looked on at the sad scene from a distance.
Following this, due to the time of the Sabbath drawing closer, those on the cross couldn't be hung on them any longer due to the Preparation Day. So, in order to speed up their deaths and to respect the wishes of the Jewish leaders, Roman soldiers bearing clubs were brought forward to break the legs of those who were still alive. The agonizing screams of the thieves pierced the air alongside the cracks and snaps of their bones being broken, until they were finally silenced as they, too, gave up the ghost. However, when it was Jesus' turn to have His legs be broken, the soldiers noticed that He was already dead. So instead, one soldier pierced His side with his spear, and from the wound, there poured out a mixture of blood and water. Several prophecies were fulfilled, one being that a bone of Him would not be broken (Psalm 34), a possible one saying that He was pierced for the transgressions of humanity (Isaiah 53), and that "They shall look on Him whom they pierced" (Zechariah 12:10). A burial party later sent by Joseph of Arimathea, secretly a believer of Jesus, came to bring down Jesus' body. Among those in this party was a Pharisee named Nicodemus, one of the leading religious men of his day, and the man whom Jesus had spoken to in the night, being given the famous declaration of John 3:16. Also in this party was Salome, Mary, mother of Jesus, and Mary Magdalene. Brought to Joseph of Arimathea's private tomb, initially intended to be reserved for his own burial, the body of Jesus was interred, and a great stone was rolled over the entrance. However, the priests didn't forget that Jesus had made mention of His resurrection three days after His death, so in order to prevent this, a guard was placed at the tomb, with Pilate placing a seal to secure it.
On the Sabbath day, Jesus' body rested, a callback to God's rest on the seventh day following His creation of the world. In a sense, one could say that where God rested from creating the world, He also rested from saving it.
After the Sabbath had passed, a group of women ventured to the tomb with spices in order to anoint Jesus' body. Along the way, they wondered who would be able to roll the stone away to enter the tomb, as it was very large. However, another violent earthquake took place at the tomb, and as a result, the stone had been rolled away by an angel of the LORD. Shocked to see such an immovable object be moved by an unstoppable force, the women decided to look inside the tomb, hoping that the body was safe, only to find two men with garments white as snow. They told the frightened women that they were looking for Jesus, but He wasn't in the tomb, rather, He had risen from the dead! They were then commissioned to go back to Jerusalem to inform Peter and all the other followers of the greatest news mankind would ever receive, for Jesus was going ahead of them to Galilee, where they would meet Him. The women did so, running back to tell the good news, but they were largely waved off. Peter and John, however, decided to verify it for themselves, John outrunning Peter in the race to the tomb, and sure enough, seeing the tomb, it was empty, the linen sheets of cloth that had wrapped the body of Jesus lying on the rocky bed, with no body to cover it. They decided to run back and confirm the news to their associates, leaving Mary Magdalene by herself at the tomb. Seeing it empty, she began to weep, but two men in white raiment asked her as to why. Mary replied that her Lord had been taken, and she didn't know where He was laid. Another voice came from behind, and turning to see who it was, Mary saw Jesus, but didn't recognize Him, thinking He was the gardener. Jesus asked why Mary was crying and who she was looking for, to which Mary asked Him to tell her where He was laid, so she could take Him away. All it took for Mary to recognize the Christ was Jesus calling her by her name. Her sorrow instantaneously transformed into joy, she rushed forward to embrace her risen Lord, but Jesus prevented her from doing so, telling her that He hadn't yet ascended to the Father, but commissioned her with these words: "Go to My brethren and say to them, 'I am ascending to My Father and your Father, and to My God and your God.'" Mary did so, going back to the disciples and telling them what she had experienced at the tomb.
Later, Jesus Himself would appear to His disciples, first in a closed room, where Thomas, who initially doubted, would later acclaim Jesus as his Lord, having felt His wounds. A test was held (first suggested by Jesus, seeing His disciples still didn't believe at first sight) to prove Jesus being alive being Him eating a piece of broiled fish and honeycomb, which He did, proving that He had risen. A few days later, Jesus appeared once again as the disciples, were out fishing, and having caught nothing since the previous night, they were about to sail back to shore when a voice called to them from the shore, asking them if they had caught any food. They replied that they hadn't, and the voice told them to cast their nets on the right side of the boat. This they did, and their catch was immense, totaling at 153 fish. John, recognizing the Man as Jesus, alerted Peter of this realization, which caused Peter to immediately jump into the water and swim back to the shore, later being joined by the rest of the disciples who began to cook the fish for eating. Once the breakfast was completed, Jesus addressed Peter, asking if he truly loved Him. Peter replied in the affirmative, telling Jesus that He knew that he loved Him, to which Jesus commanded him to "Feed my sheep." Once again, Jesus asked the same question, and Peter again replied in the affirmative answering as before with Jesus again giving His commission to "Feed my sheep." Finally, Jesus asked Peter a third time if he loved Him. Peter was grieved at this, as this was the third time Jesus had asked him this, and Peter exclaimed that Jesus knew all things, and that He knew that he loved Him. A third time, Jesus commanded Peter to "Feed my sheep," further stating how when Peter was young, he was able to gird himself and walk around as he pleased, but when he was older, he would stretch out his hands, be girded by another, and be taken to where he didn't want to go, predicting the way Peter would die, glorifying God. After this, and with the three denials by Peter forgiven by the disciple's three confessions of love and the three subsequent commissions given to Peter, Jesus completed the restoration of Peter by giving him the same command He had given him years before:
"Follow Me."