08-Rabban Gamaliel

It soon became evident in the High Priest’s household and among his followers that freeing the disciples of the Galilean had been a mistake, especially since he himself had provided dignity to the proceedings with his presence. The story was being spread that the simple Galilean fisherman had dared to stand up to the High Priest and was none the worse for it. This unpunished courage was seen as proof that the Galileans were protected by higher powers. If that were so, then there must be some truth to what they said.

Regretting his leniency, the High Priest issued orders that if the blasphemers appeared in the Temple court, they were to be arrested and imprisoned, not in the Temple dungeon, but in a special fortress in the heart of the city.

Simon and John appeared right on time and the orders were carried out, but the incident didn’t go smoothly. A large crowd tried to prevent the arrest, and there was a scuffle. Some Pharisees nearby also raised their voices in protest, and even more remarkable, there were several priests who also tried to interfere.

But this was nothing compared to what followed. The next morning came the astounding news that Simon and John, who been placed under lock and key, were back in the Temple courts preaching their dangerous doctrine. An immediate investigation was ordered, during which the guards naturally denied any complicity in the escape. Being under fire, they suggested that perhaps a band of angels had freed them. This was an even more dangerous suggestion than to believe that they had secret admirers among the guards, since the High Priests denied the existence of angels. And since the culprits couldn’t be identified, they contented themselves with warning the guards to make no mention of angels or miracles.

This proved to be just as futile as the investigation, for the story of a miracle spread through the crowds with lightning speed. The disciples themselves confirmed it, and their standing with the people was greatly strengthened. It soon became obvious that if another arrest were to be made, it had to be done with the utmost skill.

This time the guards were told to wait until evening when the Galileans were leaving the Temple courts and the crowd would be smaller. Their arrest this time was so swift and silent, that it was over almost before the people even realized it was happening. Simon and John were thrown into the prison room on the premises of the High Priest’s court, and a double guard of hand picked men surrounded it. The Small Sanhedrin was quickly convened.

The High Priests knew they would receive opposition in the case from the Pharisees, but old Annas reminded them that without the presence of Gamaliel, the prince of the Pharisees, the trial would have no effect. But if he could be persuaded to participate and lend his authority to a negative judgment, the new movement would receive a deathblow. Thus he was invited to attend.

After receiving the invitation, Gamaliel immediately sent for rabbi Nicodemus and for the rich Joseph of Arimathea, both of whom had known Jesus of Nazareth. They met in the special office of the Master of the Pharisees, located above the cedar roof over one of the alleys of pillars in the Temple court. He questioned them closely concerning what kind of man the rabbi had been, what he taught, and also what had happened at his trial. He felt he needed this information in order to be able to pass proper judgment on the men who called him Messiah.

Gamaliel’s pupil Saul heard about the trial and became passionately interested. His fellow students were amazed at the feverish manner he used in discussing it. Even more startling, he broke several rules that normally governed these situations. For example, whenever a rabbi was called in to pass judgment on someone accused of committing a crime, his pupils were allowed to aid in the defense, but they were not allowed to join in the prosecution. But Paul did much more than aid the prosecution. He carried on a public campaign against the Galileans in the Hellenist synagogues and in the public markets. He even went so far as to reproach his fellow students who were preparing materials for the trial. This was regarded not only as tactless, but also as a serious breach of discipline.


By the time the day of the trial came, Gamaliel had decided that what was taking place couldn’t properly be called a trial, because no witnesses would be called. He decided this was nothing more than an investigation, and therefore he did not ask any of his students to accompany him, as he would have had it been an actual trial. He only took a few scholars with him as a matter of dignity. Saul was bitterly disappointed.

He remained behind in the study house, hoping against hope that his rabbi would at least have the right attitude toward the blasphemers and lend his prestige to their condemnation.

But in this hope too he was bitterly disappointed. Not just disappointed, he was amazed and even frightened. The “trial” ended in the disciples’ vindication and every other student in the school interpreted it as a victory for the Pharisees over the High Priest. Even worse, they saw it as a great demonstration of religious freedom, the principle that every son of Israel had the right to interpret and preach whatever he wished as long as it remained within the framework of Jewish laws, and the Jewish constitution.

To Saul’s way of thinking, this judgment was a frightening and dangerous precedent. A sharp knife had been delivered into the hands of the Evil One, and its edge was pressing against the thread that held Israel to his Father in heaven. So Saul openly rebelled against the action of his teacher.


One day a message was delivered to Saul that said that the master wanted Saul to attend to him and wait on him the following day. This puzzled him, for it was a high and unexpected honor to be called to service out of turn. And Saul was delighted to obey.

The next morning he was up before dawn, bathed his whole body, and anointed himself with oil, a luxury he rarely allowed himself. He combed his hair and beard, put on fresh linen, and covered himself with the black mantle, the uniform of the Jewish scholar. Then he rubbed his hands with a special salve, to take out some of the roughness from the loom, and hurried to the door of the rabbi’s house.

Now Gamaliel’s house reflected his double dignity as the master of the Pharisees and as a descendant of the royal house of David. It was large with rich furnishings, according to the saying, “Fine vessels and ornaments enlarge the spirit of man.” But the master cared little for these things himself. They were there more for the important public functions and receptions that took place there than for his personal tastes.

When Saul appeared at the door of the great hall, the master, an old man whose face was overshadowed by vast white eyebrows and covered in part by the long beard that reached down to his waist, personally greeted him. His beard was not anointed and curled, like the High Priest’s, but grew naturally, following the custom of the Pharisees. Nevertheless, since he was a representative of the Torah, Pharisee law required the utmost attention to personal detail. Thus, his beard was combed with extreme care, so that every silver thread seemed to lie separately on his breast.

He was covered with a finely woven black mantle, and he wore a covering of black silk on his head as an insignia of his rank. He walked with a stoop, as if carrying a world of invisible burdens, and he looked like a man in his eighties, though, truth be told, he wasn’t yet seventy.

He approached Saul with an outstretched hand. “Peace to you, my beloved pupil, and peace to the whole house of Israel.”

“Peace to you, my rabbi, and to Israel,” answered Saul, bowing before his teacher.

“I didn’t send for you, Saul, while the trial of the just men was pending, because I knew of your strong opinions, and I feared the pressure of your will on mine. But I have wanted to see you, and so I sent for you as soon as I could after the trial was over.”

“I too have desired to see your face, my lord and rabbi,” answered Saul, bowing again.

“You are a faithful son of our father Abraham. May there be many like you in Israel.”

Formal greetings having thus been exchanged, a servant now stepped forward and handed Saul his “instruments” of service, a garb of white Sidonian linen and a cruse of oil. Carrying these marks of distinction, Saul accompanied his master to the bathhouse for the ceremony of washing and anointing. Afterwards, he helped him put on the white linen garment and went back with him to the large chamber set apart for the master. There they repeated the morning Shema together.

After the prayer, the overseer of Gamaliel’s house reported that the needs of all the members of the house had been met. The servants had eaten their morning meal, the animals had been led to drink, and their bins had been filled with fodder. It was only after this report that the master sat down to his morning meal, which consisted of a few olives, a light salad, a morsel of bread barely large enough to justify the blessing, and a cup of wine.

Now the purpose of this “service” was to create more personal contact between teacher and pupil than was possible in any other setting. The student could observe the daily conduct and bearing of his teacher, and the teacher could use the opportunity to give personal instruction by way of private conversation as opposed to lecture. Perhaps a kindly correction was needed and a parable or everyday incident could be used to indirectly hint at the object. It could be a personal or impersonal application, but either way, the pupil would likely proudly repeat the words to his fellows later.

As Saul was filling his rabbi’s wine cup, he saw an insect circling the rim. Afraid that it would put a blot on his “service” if it fell in, Saul caught it with his free hand, crushed it, and threw it away.

Rabban Gamaliel, who was seated at his sparse meal, called out, “Saul, Saul, make good the damage you’ve done to the Creator.”

Saul paused in astonishment and said, “What do you mean, rabbi?”

“Does not a creature belong to the One who created it?”

“Certainly, rabbi.”

“Then you’ve inflicted damage on the Creator, for you destroyed one of his creatures. Quickly, then, repair the damage.”

“But how can I bring the dead to life? Am I coequal with the Lord of the world?”

“Then let no one ever cause damage that he can’t undo. And if this is true with such a trivial creature as an insect, how much truer is it of the higher creatures, who are created in the image of God? Who dares, then, to take it on himself to destroy a man? Keep this always in mind, Saul.”

“But may it not be, rabbi, that I was just the instrument of the Almighty and was sent to destroy the insect because its time had come?”

“The Lord has many instruments, all prepared to do His will. Therefore choose those purposes that will benefit man and bring peace to the world. Leave the other purposes of the Lord to others.”

“Tell me, rabbi, who are these ‘others?’ Aren’t we all part of the whole? And if there is anything that needs to be done, regardless of its nature, why should I leave it to my friend to do? How am I better than he?”

“The sages have taught that God sends good through good men and bad through wicked men. So determine to be God’s instrument for good.”

Here the conversation ended for it was time to repeat the after meal grace, and start the day’s work.


Saul accompanied Gamaliel while he made the rounds of the various offices of his institution. They went to the special office over the cedar roof in the Temple court for a meeting of scholars and teachers of the Pharisees. The master often consulted them regarding questions he received from Jews of the Diaspora. A resolution was adopted with little debate that morning to intercalate an extra month in the calendar, so that the festivals would revert to the regular cycle and the Jews of all parts of the world could celebrate them at the same time. John, the scribe, took his bronze stylus, dipped it into a box of dye, and began to write on parchment as Rabban Gamaliel dictated.

“To all our brothers in the dispersion of Israel, let peace be with you forever. Know that it has been found good in the eyes of the sages, to increase by one the number of months of this year…”

Saul listened carefully and his heart was moved. Here, from this little room and this little table, the master spoke to the Jews of the world in all their exiles. In fact, the messengers were already waiting outside the office to carry the letters to the scattered communities of Israel. These threads would go out to Asia, to Macedonia and the Greek islands, to Egypt and to Rome, and then all return here to this office above the Temple court. All Israel was knit into a single body.

The scene sank deeply into Saul’s memory.


After completing the day’s labors, between the afternoon and evening prayers, Gamaliel was able to devote a little more time to his student in service. The rest of the day would then be taken up with dinner, at which it was customary for the master to entertain important visitors.

Resting on his couch in the office, Rabban Gamaliel said, “Saul, my beloved pupil, in what path shall a man choose to walk?”

“My rabbi, has not David sung, ‘I have chosen the way of righteousness’?”

“What is the righteousness of man, my pupil? ‘Only God is righteous in all His ways.’ Man’s righteousness is but a short garment and is one-sided. ‘God seeks the heart of man.’ Only the heart can guide us along the right path, for the heart is our eye in the darkness.”

“If that’s so, then why has God given us laws and commandments? If the heart is our chief guide, why not follow the heart alone?”

“Consider what God desires of us, Saul. Is he like a king of flesh and blood, who rules over us by strength? No, my son. Laws and commandments were meant for our good, to help us in our search for the right path. Man’s inclination is evil. But God granted this much grace, that He created man in His image, that man might lift himself towards higher worlds. He set posts and markers on the way in the form of laws and commandments. But that’s not the chief thing. We are the chief thing.

“The laws and commandments have just one purpose, to purify and train us until we can unite our hearts with God and with His will. The Torah consists of just one sentence, as spoken by the venerable Hillel. ‘Whatever you desire should not be done to you, do not to another. This is the whole Torah. The rest is commentary.’”

The things Saul learned from Gamaliel that day sank deep into his soul, like a seed, to bear fruit in time to come. But in the hour of planting, he wasn’t aware of it. In fact, he went home heavy hearted and disappointed.