The Great Gospel of John
Volume 8
Jesus' Precepts and Deeds through His Three Years of Teaching
The Lord and His adversaries
- Chapter 39 -
About the ruins where ghosts are.
My scribe and friend, in your question you have mentioned spirits who are terribly aggressive in old strongholds and farms, and I tell you that there - particularly in these times - it is indeed like that, but I also can give you by that the fullest assurance that these are absolutely no dangerous spirits but often very dangerous and throughout evil men who in cooperation with pagan magicians - also Jewish ex-priests and dismissed or resigned Essenes - are playing their evil game. These men have into their service all kinds of well-paid evil rabble, and through robbery, murder and all kinds of other truly devilish deceitful tricks they gather great treasures. And the old strongholds with their subterranean tunnels are for them extremely suitable working places for their activities.
2
When an unsuspecting person comes close to these truly hellish nests, then his presence will in no way be tolerated, so that the deceit would not come to light. But through their evil tricks they frighten him so much that he himself becomes then the best protector and defender of such a hellish nest, for he tells it to 1.000 of other people from mouth to mouth and all of them are thinking that this is something terribly supernatural, and not one of those 1.000 dares then ever to come in the vicinity of such a truly hellish nest. But as I have already made the remark directly at the beginning, just let a well armed Roman army come close to such an infamous stronghold of spooky ghosts, then the spirits will not move, but will flee away as fast as they can through their secret subterranean tunnels.
3
I tell you: in such strongholds and farms that were mentioned by you, only few souls of men who have become truly devilish and who have laid down their bodies already a long time ago are residing there, but rather there are often a greater number of souls of people who are still in the flesh and are living their more than devilish evil life and are usually much worse than the absolute devils in the beyond. I think that by this explanation this matter is now clear to you. Or if ever you are still in doubt about any other thing, let us hear it."
4
Then the Roman Agricola came forward again and said: "Aha, that is how it is with such nests? It is good that I have heard this now from the mouth of the most truthful Witness. I will know how to drive these kind of spooky ghosts out. Also with us in Europe I know a great number of such infamous nests, and to the practices of such spirits of flesh and blood will soon be made an end."
5
I said: "This will be much more difficult for you there as would be the case here in the country of the Jews, because your influential pagan priests are especially interestingly involved in that evil game. As long as My teaching that has been given to you now will not have made good progress, by violence there is not much that can be done against the European spooky nests. But the best way against such extremely deceitful nonsense is the information that you can give to the better part of the people, because once they will very well know what these things really are, then the rabble will soon know it also and that is then the quickest and most important method to drive such evil spirits of flesh and blood out.
6
He who wants to catch birds should not start to hit directly into the bushes with clubs, but he should first spread out the nets and only then throw the clubs into the bushes, then a lot of birds will catch themselves at the same time into the nets.
7
When certain chief principals of a worldly government are too closely connected with its deceitful priesthood, then in the first place, open force cannot be used with success, but in a later stage it surely can be well used.
8
But here in the country of the Jews - namely in Galilee - I Myself have destroyed a couple of such deceitful places of which Cyrenius will be able to tell you more. Nevertheless, there are still a few left, of which I will soon take care, just as I also have done with the wicked temple of idolatry in Samosata at the Euphrates.
9
But with you in Europe where there is still a deep paganism, there is nothing else that you can do against such a spooky work except that which I have indicated to you.
10
One day Europe will largely exceed Asia in faith, but now it is generally still very much rude and unripe, because it is still too deeply involved in the darkest paganism, which it will not be able to give up completely, even after many hundreds of years. Yet, there will be many who will be standing in the fullest truth in My name, but who will also be more or less persecuted by the pagans. However, once I will set out a great judgment over all the heathens, no matter which, and that will then also be the finishing stroke for all heathens. But now, we still will let the scribe speak.
11
Do tell Me now, My scribe and friend, what else you do not understand. For as a true scribe you also must understand the Scripture completely, and so I am giving now to you and to the others the opportunity to receive from Me the right light about all that which is still unclear to all of you.
12
The scribe said: "Lord and Master, by Your goodness and mercy, everything which seemed to me the most important has now already been cleared up. But since You Yourself have now made mention of an extremely great judgment over all the heathens, would You still not like to indicate the time more precisely when all this will happen.
13
It is true that also Daniel and Isaiah have talked about it in obscure images, and You Yourself have explained 2 complete chapters of Isaiah that where referring to it, as well as the certain ruin of Jerusalem, but You have not mentioned anything special about a certain time. Since we have now heard already so many things of You, would You not like to tell us about it, more precisely about the last judgment over the heathens of the whole world, as well as of what kind of judgment it will be and which signs will precede it. For without certain warnings You never will bring a judgment over the people."
14
I said: "My dear scribe and friend. You truly have asked a very good question, and I will answer this for all of you, but you must not confuse the paganism of that time of which I was speaking with the paganism now in this time. The temples of idolatry of the present time will indeed have been destroyed a long time ago, but instead of them, numerous other ones will be build by the antichrist, and this even in My name. And their priests will let themselves be exceedingly honored as My replacements on Earth, and they will make effort to gather all worldly treasures. They will fatten themselves, but the people will be in great need spiritually and physically.
15
Look, when that paganism will predominate, then the great judgment will soon be poured out over the new harlot of Babylon. I will give you more details later, but let us now take some more wine."