To Judas (Upon Receiving Thirty Pieces)
Thirty pieces of silver.
Enough to sell the only one who ever cared.
Although I suspect it wasn't for the money,
You managed well, and always saw ends meet.
You had hoped for so much more.
An end to the persecution forever,
At last, we could be free
And victorious in our conquests!
But those were the hopes of man.
And he was different from the men you knew,
One look in his eyes told you that.
One look, and you could not stay the same.
So much potential in this teacher.
So much to offer - the Rabbi - the Messiah,
Our people have watied so long,
Now vengeance is - will be ours!
Except that he mentions nothing of revenge.
No tales of heroic deeds,
No promises of riches to come,
Only a gentle urging to love one another,
And be a servant to all in need.
My God, he sups with tax collectors and prostitutes
And embraces the unclean.
How "unprincely".
Not at all how you would have him act.
Could you have been wrong?
Could you all have been wrong?
One final opportunity in the Holy City,
Surely now was the time for action,
And yet, he lowers himself to wash the feet of others.
What other choice did you have?
Better to end the charade now and cut losses.
"Betrayed With A Kiss", was how he put it.
And even now, as the noose tightens,
there is justification for every action you took.
But those eyes...those eyes....
-- Ronnie Hicks
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