Herod said, "I have heard very much of thee by
common report and have longed to see the man that has created such a
sensation in this country."

"He is a deceiver," said the rabbi; "an enemy of the holy law."

"I have heard," said Herod, taking no notice of the interruption, "that
thou canst interpret all mysteries and achieve feats which set at
defiance the laws of nature. Let us have an example of thy skill and
mighty power; then we will honor thee like the people and believe in
thee."

"O king," said Zadok, "do not let him lead thee astray, for he is in
league with Beelzebub."

"That is all the same to me," said Herod. Then, addressing Jesus, he
said, "I had last night a wonderful dream. If thou canst tell me what
I have dreamed of I will esteem thee as a first-class reader of hearts."

Herod paused, but Christ remained motionless and silent. "Thou canst
not do so much as that," continued Herod, "but perhaps thou
understandest how to explain the dream if I tell thee what it was. I
dreamt I stood upon the battlements of my palace at Herodium and saw
the sun go down. There stood suddenly a man who stretched out his hand
and pointed to the setting sun and said, 'See there, there is Hesperia
in thy bedchamber.' Hardly had he said this when his form melted into
mist. I started and woke up. If thou desirest to be like Joseph when
he stood before the King of Egypt interpret to thy king this dream."
Christ remained silent, looking sadly at Herod.

"Art thou not experienced in this branch of the business? Well, then,
show some of thy famous magic art. Cause it suddenly to become dark in
this hall, or raise thyself and depart from us without touching the
ground, or convert the roll on which thy death sentence is written into
a snake. Thou wilt not, or thou canst not? Any of these things ought
to be easy to thee; they relate much more wondrous miracles of thine."
Then turning to the courtiers Herod said, "He does not stir. Ah, I see
well that what has made him so notorious was only idle tittle-tattle.
He knows nothing and can do nothing."

"It is easy," said Naason, "to make believe before the foolish mob; it
is another thing to stand before a wise and powerful king."

Then said Manasses to Jesus, "Why should you not display your wisdom
here? Why should your power vanish before the eyes of the king, even
as a soap bubble?"

Then said Herod scornfully, "There is nothing remarkable about him. He
is a c