(CLAMORING)
The man I came here with
was a dependable, ambitious diplomat.
What's happening to you?
Caiaphas must be replaced.
Don't play politics unless you're good at it.
We must push away our fear as we recognize the persecution we face!
(CHEERING) Yeah!
I'm Saul. I have come to remove these blasphemers.
Do whatever is necessary.
Take what you can!
I will not be cowed by this man and his threats.
This was my land. I'm staying.
And me.
See you in Jerusalem.
There! Take him!
No!
I will crush you!
You will try!
(INDISTINCT SHOUTING AND SCREAMS)
(GRUNTS)
ASHER: Saul!
The Nazarene followers are hiding in this area.
Where are they?
(MUFFLED INDISTINCT SHOUTING)
Jesus told us
that this wine
was his blood.
(CRIES)
(GRUNTS)
And this bread
his body.
(INDISTINCT SHOUTING)
Son! Mum!
PETER: We eat and drink them now
to give us the strength
to bear witness to Him
and to live in unity with Him.
(SHOUTING)
(POTTERY SHATTERS)
PHILIP: The Holy Spirit tells me
I must go to Samaria.
(SIGHS) The word needs to be heard everywhere.
I don't think it'll be any better in Samaria, Philip.
If they discover you're from Jerusalem,
they'll tear you apart.
I'm sure there're some good Samaritans.
I'll find them.
SAUL: Break it down.
(GRUNTS)
(DOOR CLATTERS)
Search everywhere.
(THUDS)
Go.
(CLATTERS)
(GRUNTS)
Let's go.
Your loyalty is to God and the Temple,
not your Jesus.
Take 'em away. Move.
(WOMEN CRYING)
MAN: I've children.
For every five people you talk to,
they'll talk to five more.
Soon, we'll be as numerous as the stars.
(SOFT THUD)
(TRAPDOOR CREAKS OPEN)
(FOOTSTEPS)
Mary.
Their parents were arrested by Saul.
We'll keep them safe.
You should think about leaving, too, while Saul is off the streets.
It's you he's after.
People are coming to us all the time.
What would they do if we weren't here to give shelter?
PHILIP: I should go while I can.
Take care, all of you.
(RETREATING FOOTSTEPS)
(EAGLE CRIES)
(HORSE WHINNIES)
(WAGON WHEELS RATTLE)
PILATE: The Emperor is coming.
To Jerusalem?
I've had no warning either.
His arrival is imminent.
Why is he coming?
I don't know.
But if he finds fault in either of us, he will take action.
He has no power over the Temple.
Caiaphas, he's the Emperor.
If he decides to strip us both of our positions, he will.
If he decides to burn the Temple to the ground with you inside it, he will.
We stand or fall together on this.
I expect your full support.
PILATE: The violence on the streets has to cease.
Rounding up the followers of the Nazarene is a Jewish matter.
For the duration of the Emperor's visit, dear lady,
it's very much a Roman one.
CAIAPHAS: You also expect us to help pay for his visit?
I do.
I can't use Temple funds for anything other than God's work.
You're the High Priest!
The arrests I can curtail.
As for these extra funds, they can't come from the Temple.
But they could come from a private source.
I'll send Cornelius to collect.
We're to lavish money on Tiberius,
the man who expelled thousands of our people
from their homes in Rome on a whim?
How far will you go to keep Rome happy?
We don't have the money.
We don't, no.
(MOANS)
(SIGHS)
Let me help you.
(GRUNTS)
(EXHALES)
As I understood it, you'd banned me from this house.
I had.
But in discussion with your daughter,
I felt compelled to offer the hand of reconciliation.
This is for the good of us all.
Your clumsy attempt to unseat me can be forgiven.
60,000 denarii? Are you insane?
I'll be bankrupt. Hmm.
Is this money bound for Pilate, or worse, Tiberius?
CAIAPHAS: It's bound for wherever I choose to send it.
ANNAS: I know you have a special relationship with Rome,
but don't presume that everyone is happy about it.
Happiness comes at a price, Annas.
This is yours.
MARY: With the Emperor coming, households are taking on more staff.
You told me it was too dangerous for us to stay in Jerusalem,
and now you want to work for the Romans?
Most of the city's food's been taken in to feed them.
If I'm part of a household, I'll have access to the kitchens.
I'm glad you're on our side.
Hmm?
(GRUNTS)
YITZHAK: Can I help you, friend?
A kind face at last.
(EXHALES)
(BREATHES HEAVILY)
My name is Yitzhak.
Philip.
Where have you come from, Philip?
Jerusalem.
Most people who come from Jerusalem
avoid Samaritan cities, too dangerous.
They took your shoes.
Yeah, and a pendant.
Belonged to my mother, meant a lot to me.
Come to the marketplace.
Wonders are about to be performed.
(INDISTINCT CONVERSATIONS)
(DRUMS BEATING)
(CLAPPING)
You're here to witness
the great powers
of one man.
The power to amaze,
the power to cure all ills,
the power of God himself!
Simon
the Sorcerer!
(CROWD GASPS)
(EXCITED MURMURING)
(CROWD GASPS)
(CHEERS AND APPLAUSE)
(YELLS)
SAUL: Tell me where Peter is,
and we'll stop.
Again.
(WHIP CRACKS)
What do you want?
(WHIMPERS)
What is that?
Pilate demands that the arrests stop. Caiaphas agrees.
(SIGHS)
But I'm doing God's work.
Not in Jerusalem, you're not.
At least not while the Emperor's here.
(SIGHS)
JULIUS: Those with serving experience, raise your hands.
MAN: Over here! (PEOPLE CALL OUT)
You, here.
What does this mean?
It means you're working in the governor's household.
(STAMMERS) No, I can't. Hmm?
WOMAN: My family is hungry, please.
JULIUS: You will work where you're told. Who else?
WOMAN: I will work!
(EXCITED CONVERSATIONS)
Philip
from Jerusalem?
(CROWD BOOING)
Is Philip here?
SIMON: You're in need of my help.
Know my gift is for all. Let him pass.
(CROWD MURMURING)
You have fallen into misfortune,
and you have lost something
of great personal value.
Yes?
A pendant
given to me by my late mother.
Uh-huh.
It's no longer lost.
(LAUGHING)
(APPLAUSE)
How much did you pay for this?
(CROWD BOOS)
Or do the robbers work for you?
(CLEARS THROAT)
You see?
Not everyone is grateful for the gifts that I bring.
You have no gift,
no power from God.
Just cheap trickery.
(CROWD SHOUTING)
(INDISTINCT CONVERSATIONS)
BOY: Wait for me!
Good catch?
Hey, you can't just walk in here. This is my home.
If you're looking for my father, he's not here.
Who are you?
I don't suppose I could trouble you for some water.
Please.
(SCOFFS)
(SIGHS)
If Peter is in Jerusalem,
I will find him.
If he stays there or comes here,
doesn't make a difference.
He knows who I am.
He knows what I'm capable of.
My name is Saul.
(CROWD CHEERING)
CORNELIUS: Cheer for the Emperor!
Cheer for your Emperor!
You'll welcome Tiberius!
Cheer for your Emperor! That's it. Come on.
Stop expecting the worst
and smile.
Emperor Tiberius.
We are honored by your visit.
I need a bath.
My wife, Claudia, will take care of you for the duration of your stay.
A bath.
My uncle's always like this after a long journey.
In Campania, he didn't speak for three days.
Isn't that right, Caligula?
Don't call me that, Agrippa.
It's Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus Germanicus.
Your father was a great Roman.
Welcome to Jerusalem.
You may not be so keen to welcome us
when you find out why we're here.
Saul said he would find you.
Did he hurt you?
(VOICE BREAKS) No.
But he threatened you?
(VOICE BREAKS) He scared me.
(EXHALES)
I'm sorry.
I am so sorry.
You shouldn't have come.
Jerusalem is too dangerous.
But I had to warn you.
We have to do something.
I know.
We have arranged a banquet for tonight.
TIBERIUS: No banquets.
But you have to eat.
No banquets, no proclamations, no addresses and no gifts.
CLAUDIA: A simple meal then.
And when you wish to leave, I will show you back to your rooms.
I'll see the Emperor to his rooms.
Is there anything in particular
you wish to see while you are here?
Just you and anyone else who claims to be running this province.
If the Emperor has come to remove you,
we must avoid dishonor by cultivating goodwill with his successor.
You mean Caligula?
And we must indulge his friend, too,
even if he is the brother of Herodias.
(LAUGHS)
SIMON: I have the power of God.
I can cure your mother.
(INDISTINCT CONVERSATIONS)
(EXCLAIMS)
Her demons are strong.
They keep her far from my reach.
(WHISPERS)
(SIMON GRUNTS)
Have her carried back to my tent.
(EXCITED CONVERSATIONS)
Wait!
(CROWD MURMURING)
PHILIP: Let me try.
SIMON: No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no.
Let him pass.
He thinks he can do what I can't.
Eh?
Huh?
If you fail,
they'll kill you.
(WIND BLOWS)
In the name of Jesus, the Son of God,
I release you from your prison.
(GASP)
(APPLAUSE)
PHILIP: There is the true power,
the power of Jesus.
(CROWD CHEERING)
(CHUCKLES) Not as solid as the Roman whores,
but still enough flesh to satisfy a future emperor.
(LAUGHING)
I... (CLEARS THROAT)
I take it you are happy with your rooms.
They're passable.
AURELIUS: I was just telling these pups
about the last time the Jews crossed you in Rome. (CHUCKLES)
Those we didn't expel or put to the sword
we conscripted and sent to the furthest limits of the empire.
That's how you deal with these people, with a firm hand.
Do you have a firm hand?
Do you still harbor ambitions, Pilate?
Show me an unambitious Roman, and I'll show you a dead one.
And yet you struggle to control a minor province like Judaea.
There are unique problems here, Caesar,
managing the Sanhedrin, the Temple, the priests...
Priests?
In Syria, the governor has invading Parthians to contend with.
With all due respect, anyone can wield a sword.
Judaea requires diplomacy and tact.
These are qualities I believe my husband has in abundance,
qualities that have led to a respect and esteem
seldom seen in these situations.
I baptize you in the name of the Father
and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
(CHEERING)
Do you repent your sins?
I do.
I baptize you
in the name of the Father and of the Son,
Jesus Christ, and of the Holy Spirit.
(GASPS) (CROWD CHEERING)
(BOTH LAUGHING)
Thank you.
It's not the first time there's been unrest in Jerusalem.
What is it about this place?
(SIGHS) People are drawn here from all over,
people of many faiths and beliefs.
That's the energy you feel.
Hmm. It's what made me curious.
You like it here?
The best thing about this city
is that it's one day's journey to our home on the coast.
You are safe here.
I'm the Emperor.
I'm not safe anywhere.
PETER: You might stoop to scaring children,
but your persecution only makes
the Holy Spirit burn stronger within us.
All the more reason to put an end to you.
(SCOFFS)
You can't put an end to me, Saul.
It's God's will I'm here,
and it'll be God's will where and when I am to die.
Perhaps it is God's will that I am here, too, yes?
I'm sure
we'll find out who is to live
and who is to die soon enough!
(CHUCKLES LIGHTLY)
What? Wait!
You're just going to talk to him?
Peter!
It's enough.
No! No!
PETER: We are not men of violence.
JAMES: But, Peter, we finally got him.
You'd have thought that God would have given you all a clearer vision
if, in fact, He was guiding you.
Good to know you're still in Jerusalem, Peter.
Do you feel any different?
Give me your knife.
Ah!
It's all right. I've been baptized.
I'll heal it.
Ow.
(BREATHING HEAVILY)
YITZHAK: Ah!
Why? Why have I not been given the same power as Philip?
Can I bandage my hand now?
I trust the condemned man ate a hearty breakfast.
CLAUDIA: Did you rest well last night?
Oh, yes, we did.
Herod Antipas and Herodias.
What're you doing here?
The Emperor summoned me.
We thought you would have paid us a visit on your way to Jerusalem, brother.
He insisted,
but I forced him to stay with the caravan.
Herod. ANTIPAS: Welcome to Judaea.
(MURMURS INDISTINCTLY)
I thought I recognized you.
You're a follower of the Nazarene.
What are you doing here?
Uh...
I needed a job.
To help your friends? They here, too?
Everyone's gone. I'm on my own.
You tell me why I shouldn't have you arrested right here, right now.
Do what you have to do.
You're not scared?
I have been taught to love my enemies
and to bless those who curse me.
Don't let me see you near the governor again.
Understood?
(SIGHS)
I believe
I have handled the situation here as well as anyone could.
How many Romans have been killed in this insurrection?
Just one.
And his killer has been caught and executed.
How many zealots have been eliminated? Many.
Some might say people were rounded up indiscriminately.
I thought you'd have been happy, Antipas,
having given over responsibility for Jesus to me.
Jesus the rebel,
whom the High Priest claimed was stirring up trouble for the Temple,
has been crucified
and his followers scattered.
A small fanatic faction.
A faction no longer
thanks to me.
What would you have done had you been ruling?
Oh, I'd have been more decisive sooner.
No offense to the governor,
but I would have killed this movement at its birth
and used the military might of Rome
to annihilate any signs of rebellion.
(BANG ON TABLE)
Smashed their bones and crushed their skulls.
(CHUCKLES LIGHTLY)
PILATE: Can I call someone to speak?
Go ahead.
Emperor Tiberius.
You call a Jew to plead for you?
(EXHALES)
It may appear as if I'm here to plead for the governor,
but we united to protect
the people and the city from a contagion.
Over the years, I believe Pilate and I have come to an understanding
on how best to deal with these situations.
You mean, he executes rebels for you
when they're a threat to your status.
CAIAPHAS: And Jesus was a danger to us all.
He stirred the people with lies and blasphemy.
He wanted to tear down all institutions,
all authority, including yours.
He had to be stopped, and he was.
But you also had to preserve
your Holy of Holies, am I right?
Didn't the great General Pompey find his way into that chamber
and say there was nothing there?
We need no idols or images because we know He's there.
Who? God.
I've never met a Jewish god. Maybe I could pay him a visit.
Keep your idiotic thoughts to yourself.
PILATE: It would take years, Caesar, for any new administration
to reach the level of understanding the High Priest and I have.
If you need more...
You may leave.
Caesar, it would be helpful to know
in which direction you intend to turn next.
You'll be told.
Caesar.
(DOOR CLOSES)
MAN: You, come back! (PEOPLE SCREAMING)
(GRUNTS)
MAN 2: You, stop!
(GRUNTS)
ASHER: It's not Peter.
LEAH: You stood in front of Tiberius
and pleaded Pilate's cause?
I had to.
And what if, despite everything,
the Emperor decides to replace Pilate?
Where will that leave us? I don't know.
I haven't risked my relationship
with my family for "I don't know."
You need to be certain this will fall our way!
Well, we'll soon find out, won't we?
What?
We have a problem. Solve it.
Solve it!
It's Saul.
(SIGHS)
He's back arresting people.
(EXHALES)
Take him to the cell, Asher.
Whoa! Whoa.
Stop.
What's going on here?
We're arresting heretics.
Followers of Jesus.
(BOTH LAUGHING)
To prison! AGRIPPA: To prison!
(LAUGHING)
What're you doing?
(GRUNTS)
CALIGULA: I am a Roman!
You dare to touch me?
(CHOKES)
You're right about this place.
It does have a kind of energy.
And a spirit, too.
CLAUDIA: It gets inside,
changes you in some way.
I saw four vultures
on the coast road, riding the air.
My augur tells me not to worry.
Vultures can be good omens.
And yet on the journey here,
I dreamt of a funeral procession.
This place gives you visions.
Some of my dreams have come true,
including one about the Nazarene, Jesus.
But I haven't dreamt about anyone dying tonight. (SIGHS)
Good night, Emperor.
(SIGHS)
Last chance. Come with us while it's quiet.
You know we can't.
But we would be free.
Free to preach and baptize again.
If I go with you, I'll just drag Saul after you.
And, anyway, there's much to do here.
Some of us have to stay in Jerusalem.
Look after this one.
I think she'll be the one looking after me.
Goodbye, brother. Take care.
You, too. God be with you.
(DOOR CREAKS CLOSES)
But what if it seems to Tiberius
that I'm incapable of ruling
without the help of my High Priest?
And with Antipas waiting to take advantage.
Antipas is a self-serving viper.
But he is necessary for maintaining order.
But what he fails to realize is that if one of us falters,
Tiberius could tear us all down.
He's a tired old man
who's starting to feel the shadows closing in.
But he is still capable of expelling me from Judaea.
And what happens then?
We can't go back to Rome. We'll be a laughingstock.
Your record here is exemplary.
I think Tiberius is starting to see for himself
the unique problems that Jerusalem presents.
We just have to hold our nerve.
(INDISTINCT CONVERSATIONS)
RUEBEN: Saul.
I need you to follow me.
There's something you should hear.
(CHAINS RATTLE)
Tell these men what you told us earlier about Peter.
Speak up, man, or I'll flay you again.
Peter's gone.
Where?
(GROANS)
He headed north.
Where?
Damascus, Damascus.
(BREATHES RAGGEDLY)
Cut him down.
You've earned that.
He took the bait.
Tell a man what he's dying to hear, and they always will.
You're becoming quite the politician.