Joshua

Look, Caleb. It’s the Angel of the Lord!

Angel of the Lord

Be strong and courageous, Joshua!
Take the sons of Israel across this Jordan River,
and conquer the land that I promised to their fathers.

Prompter & Echoes

Lord, please go with us.

Caleb

Forty years ago, Joshua,
Moses sent twelve men to spy out Canaan,
the land that God promised to Abraham’s descendants.
Only you and I came back with courage to conquer it.
The others feared the giant sons of Anak.
I can hardly wait to face those giants in battle!

Joshua

Caleb, fear is melting the hearts of the pagan inhabitants.
Jericho’s walls are locked tight.

Caleb

Our spies report that Rahab, a harlot, hid them, Joshua,
and helped them escape from Jericho at great risk to herself.
They told her to hang a scarlet ribbon from a window,
so we could spare her family when we wipe out the city.

Joshua

Good, Caleb.
Now, Priests, carry the Ark of the Covenant across the river.
Do not hesitate because of the flooding.

Caleb

Look! When the priests’ feet touched the water,
the flood stopped and the waters are rising up in a heap!

Prompter & Echoes

They cross on dry land!

Joshua

Set up twelve large stones, one for each tribe of Israel,
as a memorial of what God did here.

Prompter & Echoes

Look! The Angel of the Lord!

Angel of the Lord

Do not fear.
March around Jericho for six days and I’ll give it to you.

Joshua

We do so. Now it’s the seventh day. Blow the trumpets.

Angel of the Lord

The city is yours, but touch no idols of gold or silver.

Prompter & Echoes

Everybody shout!

Caleb

The walls are falling down!

Joshua

Go bring Rahab and her and her family out.
Then we’ll burn the city.

Caleb

Joshua, the next city to capture is Ai.
It’s small, so only two thousand men need to attack it.

Prompter & Echoes

Careful!

Joshua

Oh no! Our soldiers are returning, defeated! Many died!
Oh Lord God, why have you punished your people this way?

Angel of the Lord

Someone took golden idols from Jericho.
Have every family pass before you,
and I’ll show you the guilty one.

Joshua

Achan of the tribe of Judah had taken idols of silver and gold.
God has us stone him to death.

Angel of the Lord

Take all the men now, and capture Ai.

Joshua

Some of you will approach it and then flee as before
to draw their soldiers out of the city.
The rest of you shall hide in ambush behind the city,
and the Lord will deliver it into your hand.

Prompter & Echoes

Victory!

Joshua

Caleb, who are these men who have come with worn-out sacks
on their donkeys, moldy bread, and worn-out sandals?

Caleb

They say they came from afar,
and want to make a covenant with us to serve us.

Joshua

I agree, but then I find that they deceived us;
they’re from Gibeon of Canaan, which we were to conquer.

Caleb

Shall I slaughter them, Joshua?

Joshua

No, Caleb. We swore not to harm them.
Let them serve us and hew our lumber.

Joshua

Now we’re fighting the Amorites.
Oh Lord, I need more time before dark.

Prompter & Echoes

The sun stands still for a day!

Caleb

Victory! I also defeat the giant sons of Anak at last.
Finally we’re at rest, Joshua.

Joshua

Not quite. The Israelites that settled east of the Jordan River
have set up a huge altar,
but Moses told us all to worship in one place of his choosing.

Caleb

We must battle our own brothers!

Prompter & Echoes

Civil war!

Joshua

I ask them why they turned against the God of Israel,
making a separate altar.
They say they did not build it to offer sacrifices,
but as a testimony of their unity before God with all the tribes.

Prompter & Echoes

We remain in peace!

Joshua

Elders of Israel, I am old and will soon die.
Choose today whom you will serve:
whether the gods that your fathers have served,
or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell,
but as for me and my family, we will serve the Lord.

Prompter & Echoes

We will all serve the Lord!

Naomi

I am Naomi. Famine has driven my family from Bethlehem,
and we settle in pagan Moab.
My husband dies there, and my sons take Moabite wives,
Orphah and Ruth.

Ruth

I am Ruth.
Soon another disaster strikes; Naomi’s two sons die also,
leaving my sister-in-law Orphah and me as widows.

Prompter & Echoes

Three desolate widows now!

Naomi

Orphah and Ruth, the famine has passed in Bethlehem.
I’m going back home.

Ruth

Orphah and I will go with you, Naomi.

Naomi

No, Ruth. Go back, my daughters, to your mother’s house.
May the Lord deal kindly with you,
as you have dealt with my sons and me.

Ruth

We will go with you, Naomi, to your people. Please!

Prompter & Echoes

Don’t send us away!

Naomi

Ruth and Orphah, even if I bore sons,
would you wait until they grew up, to marry them?
Go back. The Lord’s hand has dealt harshly with me.

Prompter & Echoes

She is bitter!

Ruth

We all weep.
Orphah kisses Naomi and starts back to her parents,
but I cling to my mother-in-law.

Naomi

Ruth, Orphah has gone back to her people. Go with her.

Ruth

Do not urge me to leave you, Naomi.
Where you go I will go, and where you live I will live.
Your people shall be my people and your God shall be my God.
Where you die, I will die. May the Lord take my life,
if anything but death should part us.

Prompter & Echoes

Precious girl!

Naomi

Ruth, we have arrived in Bethlehem, but we have nothing to eat.

Ruth

It’s the beginning of barley harvest, Naomi.
I’ll go to the fields and glean grain
that the harvesters leave behind.

Prompter & Echoes

Lord, be gracious to her!

Boaz

I am Boaz.
I ask my workers, who is the young lady
that’s gleaning my field.
They say she’s Ruth, from Moab;
she has come to Israel with her mother-in law, Naomi.
Ruth has been kind to her.

Prompter & Echoes

Very kind!

Boaz

Ruth, my daughter, I am the owner of this field.
Do not glean other fields; stay with my reapers.
I have told them not to bother you.
Eat the food I provide for them.

Ruth

Oh, thank you, kind sir! May God bless you!

Boaz

Dear girl, may the God of Israel reward your kindness,
for you have come to seek refuge under his wings.

Ruth

Why have I found favor in your sight?
I am just another poor immigrant.

Prompter & Echoes

Destitute alien!

Boaz

Rise, my daughter. No one grovels before me.

Ruth

You are very gracious, sir.

Boaz

Reapers, let this young lady glean where she chooses.
Do not rebuke her. Let handfuls fall for her.

Prompter & Echoes

Drop handfuls on purpose!

Naomi

That night I am amazed.
Ruth, how’d you glean so much barley?

Ruth

I happened to be in Boaz’ field, and he had mercy on me.

Naomi

Boaz! May God be praised!
He is a relative; our Law gives him the right to redeem
my late husband’s property, to buy it back,
and preserve your dead husband’s inheritance.

Prompter & Echoes

And so he does!

Boaz

Ruth avoids the young reaper’s attentions,
and I admire her virtue.
After celebrating a good harvest, I take her as my wife.
She is precious, and shares my faith in Israel’s God.

Naomi

Ruth bears a son, Obed, who will later bear Jesse,
father of King David.

Prompter & Echoes

Ancestors of Jesus!

Job

My name is Job; I live in ancient Israel.
Up in heaven, Satan dares quarrel with the Most Holy One
who questions Satan. Listen!

Voice

Have you noticed my servant Job?
He is upright and God-fearing.

Satan

Ha! Does Job fear you for nothing?
You made a hedge about him and prospered him.
Touch all he has, and he will curse you to your face!

Voice.

  All he has is in your power;
only do not touch his person.

Prompter & Echoes

Spare Job himself!

Job

I am Job, and it is a beautiful day.
Oh, oh! What is wrong?
Why is that servant coming, running in such a frenzy?
Oh, no! Sabeans stole my oxen and donkeys
and slew my servants, and the servant alone escaped!

Prompter & Echoes

Dreadful loss!

Satan

I have just begun, Mr. Job. (Laugh fiendishly)

Job

Here comes another messenger, running.
Oh, no! A grass fire has killed my shepherds and sheep!
Now another messenger has come gasping!
Chaldeans have stolen the camels and slain the servants!
What is this? Yet still another? (Groan)
A tornado has slain my children while they dined together!

Prompter & Echoes

His children have all died!

Job

I tear my robe, shave my head, fall and worship God.
Naked I came from my mother’s womb; naked I shall return.
The Lord gave; the Lord takes away. Blessed be his name!

Prompter & Echoes

Now back to heaven.

Voice

Satan, did you notice that my servant Job
still holds fast his integrity,
even though you incited me to ruin him without cause?

Satan

All a man has he will give for his life,
but touch his flesh and he will curse you!

Voice

He is in your power, only spare his life.

Prompter & Echoes

Do not kill him!

Job

Now I am stricken with painful sores from my feet to my scalp.
I scrape myself with broken pottery and sit among ashes.
My wife goads me, “You still hold fast to your integrity?
Curse God and die!”
I ask her, “Should we accept good things from God
and not accept adversity?”

Prompter & Echoes

Such misery!

Satan

I’ll care for you, Job. (Laugh)
I’ll send three friends to comfort you.

Eliphaz

I am Eliphaz.
I arrive with Bildad and Zophar to console our friend Job.
Seeing his plight, we tear our robes
and throw dust over our heads.

Job

Oh, my friends! Let the day perish on which I was born!
Why all this suffering, Eliphaz? Why?

Eliphaz

Confess your sins, Job, and God will stop punishing you.

Prompter & Echoes

How judgmental!

Job

I yearn to plead my case before God, in heaven’s highest court!

Bildad

Job, I am your friend, Bildad. Listen to me.
Who are you to argue with God? How arrogant!

Job

Spare me, Bildad! Let me die!
I know that my redeemer lives; someday I will see God.

Zophar

I am your pal, Zophar, Job.
Are you so smart? Do not refuse to hear our wisdom!

Job

Oh, please, Zophar! Have mercy!

Prompter & Echoes

Day after day this goes on.

Prompter & Echoes

Blah, blah, blah!

Job

Please stop buffeting me with your words!

Voice

Who is this that obscures my guidance,
multiplying empty words?
Eliphaz, Bildad and Zophar, my wrath burns against you.
You have not spoken of me what is right,
as my servant Job has.

Job

The Lord rebukes me also, for thinking I knew so much.
I fall on my face. O God, I am nothing!
I take it all back. I repent in dust and ashes.

Voice

Job, go offer burnt offerings for your friends,
and pray for them.

Job

God heals me and restores everything, even better than before.

Prompter & Echoes

Praise the Almighty!

SUPPLEMENT: A modern Job (Optional)

Joe (formerly Job)

My name is now Joe, instead of Job.
Eliphaz is now Eli,
Bildad is now Bill,
and Zophar is now Zorro.
(If women do these parts, then use feminine names
Joan, Ellie, Bianca, and Zoe.)

Eli (formerly Eliphaz)

Joe, listen to me, your friend Eli.
You never really repented from your sin,
so God does not hear your prayers.

Bill (formerly Bildad)

Hear my advice, Joe; I am your pal Bill.
Your faith is weak, and your doctrine is deficient.
My online theology deals with all this.

Zorro (formerly Zophar)

Listen, Joe, I am your friend Zorro.
You don’t pray enough!
Give it more time, at least two hours a day, with fasting;
then God will heal your cancer.
Here is a list of the proper postures and wording for prayer.

Joe

Zorro, you just erased the most precious prayers in Scripture!
They are too short for you!
Friends, your nagging pains me more than my illness.

Bill

Then repent of your sin, and your pain will cease, Joe.

Joe

Jesus and his apostles taught that believers would suffer,
but our suffering, especially if it's for Christ,
does not compare with the joy we'll have throughout eternity.
Scripture says God’s children are to count it joy
when we suffer for him.

Prompter & Echoes

A privilege to suffer!

Voice

Samuel, I have rejected Saul from being king over Israel.
He has disobeyed my commands.
Take the anointing oil and go to Jesse in Bethlehem;
I have chosen a king from among his sons.

Samuel

I go as God said, and invite Jesse and his sons to a sacrifice.
Here they come. Oh, here is Eliab, tall and handsome.

Prompter & Echoes

Surely he is the one!

Voice

No, Samuel. I reject Eliab.
Man sees the outward appearance, but I see the heart.

Samuel

Jesse has seven of his sons pass before me,
but God chooses none of them.

Prompter & Echoes

Why not?

Samuel

I ask Jesse if these are all of his sons,
and he reluctantly sends for his youngest, David,
who is tending the sheep.

David

What do you want, father?
I must get back to the flock;
I heard a wolf howling this morning.

Voice

Samuel, this is he. Anoint David.
He will someday be king of Israel.

Samuel

Soon after, the Philistine army invades
and camps in the valley of Elah.
A giant, Goliath, comes out from their army;
he is wearing armor, has a sword at his side,
and carries a huge spear.

Prompter & Echoes

He is fearsome!

Samuel

The soldiers of Israel watch in awe.

Voice

Listen to the giant taunt.

Goliath

  (Shout) Men of Israel!
Choose your champion and send him out to fight.
If he kills me, we will serve you. If I slay him, you will serve us.
I defy the ranks of Israel this day; give me a man to fight!
Who will come fight me?

Prompter & Echoes

A dreadful challenge!

Samuel

Meanwhile, Jesse gives David bread to take to his brothers
who are now serving in King Saul’s army.
Eliab, the oldest, scolds David for coming to watch the battle.

David

Oh no, Eliab! Our father sent this bread to you and your brothers.
Tell me, why do our soldiers fear that proud pagan Philistine?
I will go to King Saul and offer to go down and fight him.

Prompter & Echoes

But you’re just a boy!

Samuel

Saul tells David that he is too young and inexperienced
and that Goliath has been a warrior since his youth.

David

King Saul, your servant killed a lion and a bear
that took lambs from my father’s flock.
I will do the same to this Philistine,
since he has defied the armies of the living God.
The Lord delivered me from the lion and the bear,
and he will do the same now.

Prompter & Echoes

Courageous faith!

Samuel

Saul puts his armor on David, but it’s too heavy,
and he takes it off.
David chooses five smooth stones from a brook.
Now he faces the giant, carrying only a stick and a sling,
the kind that one swings in circles.

Goliath

  (Laugh)
Am I a dog that you come to me with sticks?
Ha! I curse you by my gods.
Come and I will give your flesh to the birds of the sky.

David

You come to me with sword, spear and javelin,
but I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts,
whom you have ridiculed.

Samuel

David runs to meet the giant. He whirls the sling.
He releases the stone. It is flying through the air!

Prompter & Echoes

Wham!

Samuel

It strikes the Philistine’s forehead.

Prompter & Echoes

The giant falls!

Samuel

David runs, grabs the Philistine’s sword and severs his head.
The Philistine soldiers see their champion fall, and they flee.

Prompter & Echoes

God delivers us!

Ahab

How dare that rebel prophet Elijah defy me?
I am Ahab, King of Israel!
Queen Jezebel, what shall I do?

Jezebel

Send your servants to go kill Elijah, Ahab!

Prompter and Echoes

How wicked!

Jezebel

Elijah has angered Baal and our other gods;
he attacks our idols! Elijah has brought on this drought.
You must find him!

Elijah

There is no need to search for me, King Ahab.
I have come to you.
You have turned all Israel away from God,
and have caused this drought and famine.

Prompter and Echoes

Idols fill the land!

Elijah

Let us have a contest to see who worships the true God.
Bring to Mount Carmel all of Baal’s prophets.

Ahab

Very well! I will gather all Israel to watch the fun.

Jezebel

Ha! Elijah, you alone are left among Jehovah’s prophets,
and Baal’s prophets number 450! You are a fool!

Prompter & Echoes

Hateful queen!

Ahab

Now, all Israel has gathered on Mount Carmel.
Let the contest begin, Elijah.

Elijah

(Shout) Hear me, people of Israel!
If the Lord is God, then follow him;
if Baal is God, then follow him.
Both the prophets of Baal and I will cut up an ox
and lay it on an altar as a burnt offering.
The God who answers by fire, he is God.

Ahab

Look! Baal’s priests have slain their ox and lain it on the altar.
Watch them leap, scream, and cut themselves,
begging Baal to answer by fire.
They keep shouting “Baal, hear us!”

Jezebel

Cry louder!

Prompter & Echoes

Hear them scream!

Elijah

Yes, call louder!
Maybe Baal is busy, or on a journey, or napping.

Prompter & Echoes

The heavens remain silent.

Ahab

Look. Elijah all alone is repairing the altar.

Elijah

Pour water on the offering and the wood.

Prompter & Echoes

Lots of water!

Elijah

Now do it again!

Prompter & Echoes

The offering is drenched!

Elijah

Now come to me, all of you, and I will pray.
God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob,
let this people know that you are God.

Jezebel

Oh, help! Fire is falling!
It consumed the ox and the wood!
It has licked up the water!

Ahab

Well, now! Servants, seize Baal’s lying prophets.
Let Elijah slay them!

Elijah

King Ahab, I hear the roar of heavy rain;
the drought is over.

Jezebel

Elijah, you have slain Baal’s prophets
who have dined at my table.
I swear to the gods, I will kill you!

Prompter & Echoes

Elijah is in trouble!

Elijah

Jezebel’s threat makes me panic, and I flee.
I run for days. I leave my servant in Beersheba,
and I go out alone way into the desert.
Fear, fatigue and loneliness now overcome me.

Prompter & Echoes

It’s your own fault!

Elijah

Dear God, Israel has forsaken you; only I still serve you.”

Prompter & Echoes

You’re not alone, Elijah.
5,000 faithful Israelites have not bowed the need to Baal.

Prompter & Echoes

5,000!

Elijah

The Lord scolds me for my foolish fear, pride and pouting.
I was stupid to leave my servant behind, and go on alone.
Frustration, fatigue and foolishness
brought on my aching loneliness.

Prompter & Echoes

God has the remedy.

Elijah

The Lord sends me to work with people again.
He assures me that he has always been with me.
Now I know that I have never been alone!

Prompter & Echoes

Never alone!

Jonah

(Walk, limping and groaning, toward Ninevite)
Hello, friend. Tell me, please, which way is Nineveh?

Ninevite

Nineveh! Hey, man, you don’t want to go there!
They’re really wicked!
I know, because I’m also a Ninevite.
What’s your name?

Jonah

I’m Jonah.
You’re right; I don’t want to go to Nineveh,
but the alternative is a bit worse.

Ninevite

Well, if you must go, there are the Ninevites!
(Point)

Jonah

Yeah, they do look really bad!
I see why the Almighty sent me to scold them.

Ninevite

Just hear them clamor!

Prompter & Echoes

More whiskey!

Ninevite

Oooo! What an odor!
You are reeking of fish, Jonah! Ugh!
You stink! Where have you been?

Jonah

If I told you, you’d not believe me.

Ninevite

Well, of course I would believe you;
it’s obvious that you’ve been somewhere weird!
You smell as if you swallowed a live fish!

Jonah

Well, it was sort of the other way around. I…
No, you’d never believe me!

Ninevite

Of course I will believe you, Jonah.

Jonah

Okay. I was sailing to Tarshish,
fleeing from where God had told me to go,
to avoid declaring God’s punishment to Nineveh.
Halfway across the sea, the Almighty sent a storm.

Prompter & Echoes

A violent storm!

Jonah

The boat was about to sink and I told the crew
that it was my fault. They threw me overboard!

Prompter & Echoes

He’ll drown!

Ninevite

So how did you survive?

Jonah

God prepared a very big fish.
It swallowed me, and God kept me alive.
On the third day it puked me up on a beach.

Ninevite

Go on! Get out of here! (Raise your fist.)

Jonah

Goodbye, sir.
Well, here is the city of Nineveh.
Hear me, all you Ninevites!
In forty days Almighty God will destroy you
and your wicked city!

Prompter & Echoes

God’s judgment is fearful!

Jonah

Now I am sitting on a hill,
waiting to watch the fire fall from heaven.

Ninevite

`But us Ninevites repent!
We turn from sin to God, and cry out to him.

Prompter & Echoes

Mercy!

Jonah

There is more to my story, but that’s enough.

Prompter & Echoes

He’s ashamed to finish it!

Ninevite

I’ll tell the rest of your story, Jonah.
You sit on a hill overlooking Nineveh,
waiting to see the fire fall on us.
But we repent; even our King puts on sackcloth.
God does not destroy us as you had predicted,
so you pout!

Jonah

And why not? I ask God to take my life.

Ninevite

However, God has a plant grow
and shield you from the hot sun.

Jonah

Yes, but a worm attacks it, and I lose my shade.

Prompter & Echoes

Now Jonah’s really sore!

Ninevite

What’s wrong with you, Jonah?
You cared more for a plant
than for the lives of thousands of people!

Jonah

That was true. God asked me,
“Should I not have compassion on Nineveh,
with its more than 120,000 persons
who do not know the difference
between their right and left hand?”

Prompter & Echoes

Thank you, God, for mercy!

Mordecai

Captain of the Guard!

Prompter & Echoes

Come quickly!

Mordecai

Captain, I overheard a plot to slay king Ahasuerus.
Sir, even though we Jews are here in exile,
we respect and obey the king that God has put over us.

Prompter & Echoes

We are loyal!

Mordecai

The captain promises to enter my report in the royal record.

Haman

Hey! You there, Mordecai, bow before me, you filthy Jew!
I am Haman, the king’s Chief-of-Staff. Bow, I say!

Mordecai

With all respect, Master Haman, God’s people bow only to him.

Haman

Oh really!
I’ll tell the king how you seditious Jews rebel against us.
Then I will hang every last Jew in the kingdom on a gallows!
(Laugh fiendishly. Then go to Esther and reach for her.)
Hi, beautiful!

Esther

(Slap Haman’s hand) Don’t touch me!

Mordecai

Esther, my niece, listen to me.
You are my daughter now that your father has died.
Now the king is furious with his insubordinate wife, Vashti,
He’s holding a beauty pageant to choose another queen.
You’ll win it!

Esther

I’m no beauty queen, uncle Mordecai, and I’ve nothing to wear!

Prompter & Echoes

We will fix you up!

Mordecai

We prepare Esther. We pray, and she is now our queen!

Prompter & Echoes

Beautiful Queen Esther!

Mordecai

Meanwhile, sneaky Haman works out his evil plot. `
  Listen to him lie.

Haman

Long live the King!
A rebellious people are plotting to destroy you, O King!
You must make a decree to exterminate them all.

King

Well done, Haman. Write the decree and I will seal it;
the law of the Medes and Persians cannot be broken.

Mordecai

Haman gleefully builds a very high gallows to hang all Jews.
He alerts all the land to slay us on the appointed day.

Prompter & Echoes

Destined to die!

Mordecai

Esther, you must intercede for us.
For this purpose God put you in the court at this time.

Esther

But anyone entering the king’s presence unbidden
is slain at once!

Mordecai

After much prayer, brave Queen Esther takes the risk.

Prompter & Echoes

Courageous girl!

King

Hey! I hear someone coming unbidden. Captain of the guard!
Bring swords!
No, wait! It’s Queen Esther!

Esther

(Approach King and bow.)
If I’ve found favor in the king’s sight, accept my invitation
to a banquet for you and Haman.

Prompter & Echoes

A private banquet!

Haman

Now see how high my gallows are for those rebel Jews! Ha!
How important I am!
Even Queen Esther invited me to a banquet
just for me and the king.

Mordecai

The king cannot sleep that night, and reads the royal records.

King

Haman! I read that Mordecai averted a seditious conspiracy.
Put my royal robe on him, and put him on my horse.
Lead him through the city!
Shout that he’s the man that the king honors.

Haman

But, my Lord, Mordecai is a Jew!

King

Do as I say, Haman! Be back in time for Esther’s banquet.

Esther

That evening, I host the King and Haman.

King

Queen Esther, I’ll grant your petition,
even to half of my kingdom.

Esther

O king, if I’ve found favor in your sight,
please rescue my people.

Prompter & Echoes

Spare our lives!

King

(Shout) What? What did you say?

Esther

We’ve been sold, my Lord. My people are to be annihilated.
If we’d just been sold as slaves,
I wouldn’t have bothered your Majesty.

King

Who dares to do such a wicked thing? Tell me!

Esther

A foe and an enemy is this wicked Haman!

Haman

(Back away) No! It’s a mistake. A mistake, I say!

King

Esther, who built those high gallows out there?

Esther

This man Haman built them to hang all of us Jews.

King

Captain, let the Jews defend themselves,
and hang Haman on his own gallows!

Prompter & Echoes

God brings justice!

Nebuchadnezzar

I am Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylonia
far to the east of Israel.
Daniel, I chose you four young Jewish captives to serve me
because you’ve proven to be wise and practical.
You refused my rich food and ate healthy vegetables instead.
I wish my sorcerers had the same common sense.

Daniel

We are here to serve you, O King!

Shadrach

I am Shadrach, Daniel’s companion.
Nebuchadnezzar is angry. Listen to him.

Nebuchadnezzar

I had a dream and I am anxious to know its meaning.
I told my sorcerers to tell me the dream
before giving its interpretation
since they claim to hear their gods’ voices.
They could not do it; their claim is a lie,
so I plan to slay them.

Prompter & Echoes

How ruthless!

Daniel

O King, let us pray to the God of heaven about this mystery,
so that we your counselors shall not be destroyed.

Prompter & Echoes

Time for serious prayer!

Nebuchadnezzar

Daniel, I have given you time as you requested.
Can you interpret my dream?

Daniel

Yes, O king. You saw an enormous and fearsome statue;
its head was gold, its arms silver, its body bronze,
its legs iron, and its feet iron and clay mixed.

Prompter & Echoes

Wow!

Daniel

A stone cut out without hands came rolling
and struck the statue’s feet of iron and clay.
The statue became as chaff carried away in the wind,
but the stone grew and filled the earth!

Nebuchadnezzar

That is what I dreamt, Daniel, but what does it mean?

Daniel

You, O King Nebuchadnezzar, are the head of gold.
The God of heaven has given you power to rule over all.
After you will arise an inferior kingdom,
then a third kingdom of bronze that will rule all nations,
and then a fourth kingdom of iron that will crush other kingdoms.
The toes of clay and iron mixed will be a divided kingdom,
partly strong and partly brittle.

Nebuchadnezzar

And the stone that smashes the statue?

Daniel

It is the eternal kingdom of God.

Nebuchadnezzar

Your God reveals mysteries! He is over all gods.
You, Daniel, will serve in my highest court.

Prompter & Echoes

Rescued!

Shadrach

We have a problem, Daniel.
King Nebuchadnezzar has grown proud;
he set up that huge golden statue for everyone to worship.
Anyone who does not fall before it when the music plays
will be thrown into a huge furnace.

Prompter & Echoes

Now the music plays!

Shadrach

We three companions of Daniel refuse to worship an idol,
and the king flies into a violent rage.

Nebuchadnezzar

Heat the furnace seven times hotter than usual!
Tie up these rebels and throw them into the flames!

Prompter & Echoes

They will burn to death!

Nebuchadnezzar

Oh! What is this? What is happening?
Were not three men thrown in the fire?
I see four walking in the fire without harm,
and the fourth looks like a son of the gods!

Prompter & Echoes

Come out of the fire!

Shadrach

This has changed things for us, Daniel!
Nebuchadnezzar decreed that anyone speaking
against our God will be torn limb from limb,
as no other God delivers in such a way.

Daniel

Unfortunately, king Nebuchadnezzar again grows arrogant,
and God drives him away from men, to be with the beasts
of the field and eat grass until he repents.

Nebuchadnezzar

O God in heaven, you have rightly punished me.
I was foolish! Ah! My reason has returned;
I am restored to my kingdom.

Prompter & Echoes

God humbles the proud!

Daniel

Now Nebuchadnezzar’s son, Belshazzar, has become King;
he is holding a great feast, using the gold vessels that his father
looted from God’s temple in Jerusalem.
He and his concubines are drinking from them,
mocking Israel’s holy God.

Prompter & Echoes

Look! A hand is writing on the wall!

Shadrach

Belshazzar sees the hand and grows pale.
His wise men cannot interpret the writing,
and he is painfully perplexed, Daniel.

Daniel

O King, our God has given me the meaning of the writing:
you have been weighed on the scales and found lacking;
your kingdom has been given to the Medes and Persians.

Prompter & Echoes

That night the king is slain!

Shadrach

The conqueror, Darius the Mede, receives the kingdom.
Daniel distinguishes himself among the new commissioners.
They envy him and set a trap in order to kill him.
They get the king to decree that anyone praying to any god
besides the king for 40 days will be fed to the lions.

Daniel

We must not obey such a godless decree, Shadrach.
I will keep praying on the roof three times a day in plain sight.

Prompter & Echoes

Lord, hear his prayers!

Shadrach

Enemies tell the king that Daniel is defying his edict.
Since the law of the Medes and Persians cannot be revoked;
the king is forced against his will to throw Daniel to the lions.
The sorrowful king hopes that Daniel’s God will save him.
At dawn the king rises and rushes to the lion’s den.

Daniel

O King, live forever!
My God sent his angel to shut the lion’s mouths.

Prompter & Echoes

The lions go hungry!

Shadrach

The king orders Daniel’s accusers to be thrown to the lions,
and they overpower the evil men before they hit the floor.

Daniel

From that time on, king Darius praises God,
and protects God’s people.

Shadrach

Daniel again foretells details about future kingdoms,
and predicts when the Messiah would be cut off
on behalf of others.

Prompter & Echoes

God keeps his word!

Baruch

My name is Baruch. I am the prophet Jeremiah’s secretary.
Come with me now back to the grim times of the Hebrew prophets.
Dark clouds of oppression gather around Judah, especially to the East.
Babylonia, Syria and Moab are all threatening us.

Prompter & Echoes

600 years before Christ.

Baruch

Oh! Here is the prophet Isaiah.
Tell us, please, how God commissioned
you to warn and console Judah’s people.

Isaiah

In King Uzziah’ final year, I see the Lord high and exalted on a throne;
the train of His robe fills the temple. Winged seraphim cry out,
“Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord of hosts, the earth is full of His glory.”
The foundations tremble, the temple fills with smoke, and I cry out.

Prompter & Echoes

Woe is me!

Isaiah

I am ruined! I have unclean lips, and I have seen the Lord of hosts.
One of the seraphim flies to me; he touches my lips with a burning coal!
He says, “Your iniquity is taken away and your sin is forgiven.”
The Lord calls “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?”
I reply, “Here am I.”

Prompter & Echoes

Send me!

Isaiah

The Lord sends me to warn both Judah and the pagan nations around her
that He will punish their wickedness and idolatry severely.

Baruch

How fearful!

Isaiah

There is a brighter side. The God of the whole earth will send a Messiah,
a descendent of David, born of a virgin, whose name will be Immanuel,
meaning God with us. He will establish God’s kingdom, and make Jerusalem a truly holy city. The word Messiah, or Christ in Greek,
means an anointed King. He will come to His people.

Baruch

I will read what you prophesied about Him.
“He bore our griefs and our sorrows; He was pierced for our crimes;
our punishment fell upon Him, and by His scourging we are healed.
All of us like sheep have gone astray,
each of us has turned to his own way;
but the Lord has caused the iniquity of us all to fall on Him.
Like a lamb led to slaughter, and a sheep that is silent
before its shearers, He did not open His mouth.”

Prompter & Echoes

Lamb of God!

Baruch

Isaiah, God has shown you things far in the future.

Isaiah

Yes, He told me, “Look, I create new heavens and a new earth;
the former things will not be remembered or come to mind.”

Baruch

We move on in time. Those dark clouds of oppression are now closer;
God’s prophets repeatedly warn the people to repent, or be punished.
Let us meet another of those holy seers.

Jeremiah

I am Jeremiah. The Holy One tells me, “I put My words in your mouth.”
His words are harsh; he condemns Judah for their sins and faithlessness.

Prompter & Echoes

And Jeremiah weeps!

Baruch

I have been recording your prophecies on this scroll, Jeremiah.
You warn that the Babylonians would capture Judah.
Our King Jehoiakim knows about it, and demands a copy of that scroll.

Jeremiah

When his scribe reads a few columns, the King cuts them with a knife,
and throws them into the fire, until it consumes the whole scroll.

Prompter & Echoes

Oh no!

Jeremiah

But God tells me to repeat those prophecies, Baruch. Write them again.

Baruch

Jeremiah suffers many abuses; adversaries throw him into a pit of miry clay.
Those dark clouds of oppression are moving closer and closer.
Jeremiah, soon King Nebuchadnezzar will capture our land and carry its inhabitants to Babylon.

Jeremiah

Yes. Everyone is selling their land for whatever they can get for it,
because it will soon be taken by the invaders.
However, I had prophesied that God would one day
bring his people back, so I bought a field for 17 shekels of silver
and preserved its deed in an earthen jar,
to show that I am confident that God will someday bring us back t
o our land; my descendants will then own that field.

Baruch

Ezekiel warns and consoles.
He sees God’s shining glory leave the temple, rise over Jerusalem,
and finally, sadly, go out of sight. Ezekiel also sees a valley of dry bones;
they come together, take on flesh and live.

Prompter & Echoes

New life!

Baruch

Ezekiel also sees a vision of Messiah entering a New Jerusalem,
but those dark clouds of oppression are now sweeping over Judah. Jerusalem falls to the Babylonians, and they march us 1000 miles away
in chains; children die along the way.

Prompter & Echoes

How painfully sad!

Baruch

Pagan soldiers make us sing for their entertainment.
They do not know what we are singing in Hebrew,
or they would run us through with their swords.
We are singing about bashing their children against the rocks!

Prompter & Echoes

How terrible!

Baruch

Yes, it is terrible. We Jews are captives in a pagan land for 70 years.
Then God brings His repentant people back,
and we will never again worship idols.
Things are not yet perfect; there still is war and oppression.

Prompter & Echoes

Come, blessed Messiah, come!

Hanani

Nehemiah, I am Hanani.
I’ve come to Babylon with good news and bad from IsraelEzra the priest arrived safely in Jerusalem.
He brought back the priceless gold and silver items
that the Chaldeans had looted from Solomon’s Temple
70 years ago.

Nehemiah

It was a miracle that Ezra made it to Jerusalem safely.
He was ashamed to request troops for protection;
he had told King Cyrus that God would protect them.

Hanani

King Cyrus gave up a vast treasure, Nehemiah.

Prompter & Echoes

That was also miracle!

Hanani

The Jewish people cheered to see God’s temple rebuilt,
but the old folk who recalled the first temple wept,
as the new temple does not compare
with the first one’s splendor.

Prompter & Echoes

And the bad news?

Hanani

Jerusalem’s walls remain broken down,
and the Jews who escaped captivity are in great distress;
they lack protection, and their enemies are powerful.

Prompter & Echoes

How sad!

Hanani

Stop weeping, Nehemiah. You can do something about it.
You are the Persian king’s cupbearer; ask him to help us.

Nehemiah

First, let me pray to the Holy One.
O Lord God of heaven, I plead on behalf of the sons of Israel.
We have sinned greatly. We beg for your mercy!
We have acted corruptly and broken your laws.

Prompter & Echoes

Repentant confession!

Nehemiah

Almighty God, you warned us that if your people
became unfaithful you would scatter us among the gentiles.
You also told us that if we returned to you
and kept your commands
you would restore us to where your name dwells.

Prompter & Echoes

Amen!

Hanani

Nehemiah, Have you asked King Artaxerxes to help us?

Nehemiah

Yes, Hanani. He asked why I came before him looking so sad;
I was very afraid and asked, “How can I not be sad
when the city of my fathers' tombs lies desolate,
and its gates have been consumed by fire?”

Prompter & Echoes

Devastation!

Nehemiah

The king then asked what my request was.
I prayed quickly to the God of heaven.

Hanani

Now, months later, God has answered your prayer,
Nehemiah. The king let you return to Judah to rebuild Jerusalem.
Here we are!

Nehemiah

Look Hanani!
Jerusalem’s walls are flattened! Let us rebuild them at once.

Hanani

Yes, but Sanballat and Tobiah will oppose us;
they are powerful men.

Nehemiah

So, I’ll go at night on my mule around the city of Jerusalem,
to survey exactly what needs to be done.

Sanballat

I am Sanballat. That fool Nehemiah plans to rebuild the city.
We will stop him, Tobiah! Spread a rumor that he is
stirring rebellion against King Cyrus.

Prompter & Echoes

Treachery!

Nehemiah

Men of Israel, Jerusalem is desolate.
Each clan will rebuild a segment of the wall near where they live.
I will assign tasks according to your skills.

Sanballat

Tobiah, we must halt the Jews’ work! Leaders of Samaria, listen.
These feeble Jews hope to restore the city and live in it.
We will attack them.

Prompter & Echoes

Look out!

Hanani

Nehemiah, the wall is halfway up; the people have a mind to work,
but Sanballat has stirred up our enemies; they plan to attack us.

Nehemiah

We will pray to our God, Hanani, and set up guards day and night.
Men, fight for your brothers, your sons,
your daughters, and your wives.

Hanani

Look, Nehemiah.
The men carry burdens in one hand and a weapon in the other.
Sanballat sent word that they’re coming to kill us and that
we had better hide in the temple with the doors locked.

Nehemiah

That’s what Sanballat wants us to do, Hanani,
cage ourselves up!
God will fight for us if we obey His commands.
Have Ezra the priest read and explain God’s Law to the entire assembly, men, women, and children who can understand.

Prompter & Echoes

Amen!

Hanani

An exchange of letters proves
that we do not rebel against the king.
Look now, Nehemiah. The people all stand
while Ezra reads the Book of the Law.
He blesses them, and they bow to the ground before God.

Nehemiah

Listen, all of you.
This day is holy to the Lord your God; do not weep.
God has forgiven us. Let there be rejoicing!
We will celebrate with a feast for seven days,
and Ezra will read from God’s Law each day.

Hanani

God is protecting us, Nehemiah! Our enemies fear to attack.

Sanballat

Those cursed Jews! They’ve built their defenses.
They have defeated me!

Nehemiah

Let us now dedicate the finished wall of Jerusalem.
Bring everyone from all the towns to celebrate
with thanksgiving, gladness and songs accompanied by
cymbals, harps and stringed instruments.

Hanani

Nehemiah, for the first time in our history,
we have all finally turned away totally and forever from idols.
That is because God punished our idolatry
by letting cruel idolaters hold us captive for70 years.
Now God lets us dwell peacefully in our own cities.

Prompter & Echoes

Hallelujah!