“And now,” the rabbi continued, after a brief pause, “it is apparent that the Lord has been your guide from the beginning. You were becoming indifferent--without knowing it, perhaps--indifferent to your religion. You had not zeal enough. You dwelt in a Christian community; and the Christian atmosphere was infecting you, was corrupting you. You were, so to speak, drifting away. The Lord saw it. He wished to call you back. He wished to awaken your slumbering soul, to revive your flagging Judaism, to rekindle your ardor, which had burned down to a tiny spark. Well, in His wisdom, this was the means that He devised. He caused you to fancy yourself attached to a Christian woman. He allowed you to harden yourself to the thought of committing the extreme sin--to the thought of marrying her. Then, at the last moment, He manifested Himself. He rescued you from your danger. And thus He gave such new vitality to your faith, that there is now no possibility of its ever becoming faint again. Oh, have you not reason in this to praise the Lord, and to thank Him, from the depths of your spirit? Oh, my son, son of my sister, how signally He has blessed you!” “It is true,” Elias answered, “the Lord has shown me great mercy--greater than I deserved. I shall never doubt again. I shall always be a good Jew after this.” “And as for the--the _love_ you talked about--” “Oh, don't speak of it. It is dead, quite dead. The Lord has struck it dead in my heart. It is as though it had never been--as though I had never seen her, or known her.” “I was sure it would be.” “The Lord has burned it out of my heart.” “He has breathed upon your heart and purified it. I am glad you recognize it. I am glad, too, that you seem calmer now, and more like yourself again.” “Yes, I am more like myself. I see that I had no reason for getting so wrought up. But--oh, it was frightful.” Elias shuddered. In a minute he asked, “Can you forgive me?” “Forgive you? For what?” “You know--the way I acted.” “It isn't a question of forgiveness. You didn't understand. I could not have expected you to act otherwise.” “You are very generous. I was, as you say, ignorant. I acted like a brute.” “You acted according to your light--which was dim. I understood. The Lord gave me to understand. When you first came into my study last night, and told me what you meant to do, the Lord gave me to understand. He assured me that it would all come out well in the end--that the marriage would never take place. That is why I spoke as I did. I felt perfectly sure. I did not fear for an instant. But now, Elias, we must stop talking. You must go to bed, and sleep.” “I don't believe I shall be able to sleep tonight.” “Yes, you will; for I am going to give you a sleeping potion.” The potion had a speedy effect. Elias buried his face in the pillow, and was soon sound asleep. *****