_Forth on his errands_ _Fly his red legions;_ _Domes of his dwelling_ _Glow in the dawn._ _Fire—fire_ _Forgeth his empire;_ _Slaves—slaves_ _Rear his dominion;_ _Sowing and harvest_ _Bleed in his furrows;_ _Peace is his footstool,_ _War is his crown._ _Herod—Herod—Herod—Herod, the mighty_ _Lord of the world!_ (Beside the gate, the CAPTAIN of the HOST strikes a deep-toned gong and calls aloud.) CAPTAIN Herod! Herod, the most High! (HEROD comes forth with his Followers. Clad in long robe of Tyrian purple, he wears on his head a gold helmet. In his hand, he holds a great staff, surmounted by a globe of the world.) HEROD Who calls so loud at my gate? CAPTAIN I, Captain of the Host of Herod. HEROD Why do you cry on my name? CAPTAIN For I am come at your bidding, King of Men. Lo, we are here to do your command. HEROD My command I gave you, to bring unto me three Wise Men, Kings of the East. Show them before me now. CAPTAIN Most High, they are not here. We have made far searching But they are vanished away. HEROD Where are they gone? CAPTAIN No man has seen. HEROD Where shines their star? CAPTAIN Heaven has no sign. HEROD Where was he found—the child they worshipped? CAPTAIN Lowly he lay, in a poor manger. HEROD Now bring him before me! CAPTAIN He too has departed. HEROD My command! My command! My command! Have ye not slain him? Speak! CAPTAIN Herod, most High, how shall the vanished be slain? No sign gives us token Where child and mother and manger and guiding star Are vanished away. HEROD Powers of my crown and throne! Am I not Herod, Herod, the Mighty? Who shall defeat my power? [Sidenote: _Fifth Chorus: B,2 & A,4. The Wrath of Herod._] (Close by, from the Place of Empire, deep CHORAL VOICES reiterate HEROD’S boasts of triumph; far off, from the Place of Outcasts, they are answered in antiphony by high, sweet CHOIRS, affirming his defeat.) [Sidenote: _B,2, Reiterative_] _CHORUS B_ _Herod, our lord and king! Who shall defy his command?_ [Sidenote: _A,4, Antiphonal_] _CHORUS A_ _A star! A star shall confound him._ HEROD Am I the Sword of the World, and shall a weakling disarm me? [Sidenote: _B,2, Reiterative_] _CHORUS B_ _How shall the crook of a shepherd shatter the sword of a king?_ [Sidenote: _A,4, Antiphonal_] _CHORUS A_ _A child! A child shall disarm him!_ HEROD Hath God anointed me, yea, and shall a babe disinherit? [Sidenote: _B,2, Reiterative_] _CHORUS B_ _Lo, shall the light of a manger outshine his glory of palaces?_ [Sidenote: _A,4, Antiphonal_]