“Later, when only Jesus and his disciples remained, he asked me to go out with him, alone, into my yard. We sat on a large rock, beneath the only tree on my property. With his arm on my shoulder, he began by reminding me of our great prophet, Isaiah, who more than seven hundred years ago spoke the word of God despite the persecutions of his enemy, King Manasseh. Isaiah had wisely foretold that some day Manasseh would put him to death, a prophecy that eventually came true when Isaiah was tied under the blade of a saw and cut in two. Yet the mighty words of Isaiah are preserved even to this day, for he had selected and instructed certain disciples to carry on his work and put their master’s words on papyrus and leather so they might live forever. Isaiah had said, ‘I will bind up my testimony and seal my teaching in the heart of my disciples.’ This, Jesus explained, was also his intention, and he would accomplish it through me.”

“You were to record his words for future generations?”

“Yes. And his deeds.”

“Including—miracles?”

“He said nothing about miracles. As we sat in the darkness, he told me that soon he would select twelve from among his followers to be his special apostles in alerting the people that the Kingdom of God was at hand. I was to be one of the twelve; however, my duty was to remain always by his side in order to record everything that transpired. He said, ‘As you have witnessed this night, in your own home, already they spy on me and seek reasons to put me away as they did John the Baptist. Even now my days are numbered. Herod, Pilate, and the officers of the Temple lie in wait with their traps, and there is no place to hide. The foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of man has no place to lay his head.’ ”

“He did say that his days were numbered?”

Matthew nodded.

“When did you commence keeping a record of his words and acts?”

“The very next morning.”

“Did you ever record Jesus personally using the word ‘messiah’ to describe himself, either to the crowds or in private?”

“No.”

“Did you ever make note of a time when Jesus called himself the ‘Son of God’?”

“No.”

“You’ve just quoted Jesus as referring to himself as the ‘Son of man.’ This is a common expression among the Jews, is it not, meaning simply a man—or any man born of men?”

Matthew smiled. “That is true. Still, those who are wise in the words of our prophet Daniel can read another meaning into that phrase if they choose, a meaning far different from its common use in the streets.”