Original subtitles

[Music]

ah

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so

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so

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so

[Applause]

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foreign

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[Applause]

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[Applause]

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oh ah

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what a nightmare i just had oh what a

horrible nightmare

your majesty your majesty what is it

it's a matter what's happening

what's happened

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is

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hey

in the year 16 bc heron

the king of judea conquered the city of

jerusalem with the help of the roman

army

and took the throne for himself in a

dream which to him

is a terrible nightmare he has foreseen

the birth of christ

and is filled with terror the people of

jerusalem

burn with anticipation they eagerly

[Music]

what's going on what is it

can't bear this commotion any longer

hurry up and inform issachar we have a

potential riot on our hands

yes right away oh god help us god help

us

this is a tragedy

[Music]

oh it's a god oh it's a car

[Music]

now why are you so flustered michael you

mean you don't know about it

what am i supposed to know is a car why

do you always like to get others to

speak your mind for you

are you oblivious to the commotion

outside the gates

[Music]

i hear it i hear it better than anyone

else

tonight is the night christ is to be

born

the son of imran

iran passed away a few months ago

already

and now we're stuck with this dangerous

notion the people foster

i'm afraid this commotion is quickly

turning into a people's uprising

woe to us you're right afridi you're

here isaka

have you heard it do you know what's

going on outside

the people are gathering outside the

temple gate now you have to think of

something is a car

what do you want me to do tell me

you want me to go and stop imran's wife

from giving birth

you hold the great responsibility for

the management of this sacred temple

you must say something to them to

quieten them down at least

and we'll only be putting ourselves at

further risk by staying silent

not too long ago as i recall back when

imran claimed to be a prophet

and spoke repeatedly of divine

revelations back

when he announced among other things

that his own child would be christ the

jewish savior

did i not warn you of the dangers of his

so-called prophecy

i told you then to nip this sedition in

the bud

did i not huh did i not i told you to

get the order for his execution from the

city council

yet you sadducees you pity them didn't

you you said

god himself will reveal imran's true

colors

well i ask you how long must we wait for

god to pull his sword from a chief then

huh the mystery

is the degradation of the jews

this will be the end of the degradation

of the jews tonight

[Music]

release

now speak freely listen tell us why

you've gathered here be quiet how is

that going to help us

exactly the messiah the messiah he will

arrive tonight

our savior will arrive this night the

degradation of the jewish people will

end tonight

the israelites are all god's chosen

people and therefore we the israelites

will never succumb to any degradation

calm yourselves can we be calm

in the knowledge that our savior is on

his way and that he will bring an end to

allah

for years the rabbis at this temple

including myself

have anxiously awaited the arrival of

the messiah

we all spend every waking hour every

night

and every day praying to god to hasten

his arrival

now i on your behalf will kneel down to

pray once again

for our mighty god to send us the jewish

savior

and deliver us all from misfortune so

what about this baby that's on the way

they say this child will be our savior

right

sure they say that they say that people

do say a lot of things

you should look to us the rabbis for

god's message

[Music]

you're getting excited over nothing

there have been simply none of the signs

of christ's imminent arrival tonight

that event has its own special signs

none of which have been seen to this day

and now believe me in this the rabbis in

solomon's temple will be the first to

know of christ's birth

and when it happens we will be the ones

to give you the good news

[Music]

where is he he was supposed to be here

ages ago

may i present his majesty king herod the

great king of jerusalem

oh if it isn't my dear pericles

greetings to the great king herod

what is it why do you seem so worried

pericles forgive me for disturbing you

at this time of nightside

i'm sorry nonsense

kings have nothing better to do than

talk now sit down have a seat

so what's the news from rome i was not

in rome your majesty

so why have i not seen you around lately

i was busy attending to a protracted and

violent riot on the border with titnies

your majesty

oh so the long journey must be the

reason why you're looking so weary

no sire it is the disturbing news which

is just reached

i see so tell me have the slaves in rome

rebelled against emperor gustos

no sire rome remains a strong and

peaceful place

the news is about jerusalem

jerusalem the capital of our empire

you know what is happening in jerusalem

better than anyone else your majesty

a group of sadducee extremists have been

holding private meetings inside and

outside the city and meanwhile a group

of fanatics have gathered near the

temple and are discussing who knows what

about yes they're discussing the

appearance of the messiah

[Laughter]

so you know about this side

[Laughter]

messiahs prophets and saints and so on

how many times a week do you think we we

hear

about the appearance of fake prophet's

parents

surely you should be used to all the

superstitious talk by now

but don't the jews believe that the

messiah will one day rule the world

though

and do they not speak of christ coming

and leading the jews to victory

over all the other peoples of the world

surely you have heard this talk

they believe that no one has the power

to stand in his way and they are waiting

for their messiah to help them take

revenge on rome your majesty

it seems that the beliefs of the

israelites have also influenced the

beliefs of the romans

peace be upon the great herod but these

matters will continue to create problems

you should follow our example and leave

these matters to the rabbis

kings don't have time to discuss such

small trifles

we have rather more important things on

our minds you see

have you heard the news yet herod

they say that the messiah will be born

this very evening

miriam my darling please don't start

with this again

it's as if the people have nothing

better to do than await the coming of

christ

oh but what if the rumor is true though

will he not then be the savior of the

jewish people

i am the savior of the jewish people

it's me herod the king of judea

the most powerful man ever to walk among

the jews herod please

please stop this talk at once or you

will make me angry

pericles and i are discussing something

very important at the moment

i think you should go and take a rest

don't you miriam

the course of history is going to change

tonight while you two are wasting your

time talking about nothing

can you believe her believe me i'd

happily give up being an

emperor actually i'd rather be a farmer

any day

imagine sitting in the shade protected

from the harsh sun

let me tell you something about myself

i've been educated in both egyptian and

greek philosophy

i'm fascinated by the triangle of art

and of love

and of beauty one of those sites leads

to death side

but fate comes to us all eventually you

need to stop worrying my dear man

tomorrow we'll sit down and talk about

security and the extremists in more

detail it's late now after all and we're

all very tired

rest assured i will give it my full

attention so

until tomorrow this time

come

your majesty we've deployed more guards

in the city as you ordered

we've also placed guards among the

people near zechariah's house and

galileo

it's not enough it's not nearly enough

you need to keep a close eye on the

priests you need to control the gates

and monitor everyone who enters and

leaves

arrest and question any stranger who

sets foot in the city do you understand

i don't want one word spoken without our

guards hearing recording what was said

and i want you to go to galileo yourself

i want you standing with the guards in

zechariah's house

[Applause]

i do not want that boy to ever see the

light of day

what are you waiting for get moving

[Music]

they are conspiring to strip you of your

crown and your title

no i won't let them do that to me

i won't let them do

gonna it

such a long time

you're late golovk a group of the

faithful have gathered outside the house

at this time of night they have no

regard for sick people at all

they're here because they're waiting for

hannah's child to be born oh

why can't they come back in the morning

my sister's skin is turning yellow and

she's she'll let your anxiety add to her

pain

mothers share their distress with their

children it's not your place

i wish zachariah was here to say a

prayer i'm so frightened

it's all right stay calm there's not

long to go

dear lord please allow her to have an

easy delivery

it's hard enough giving birth when

you're a young woman never mind a woman

of hannah's age

she should never have gotten pregnant

elizabeth

elizabeth i'm here it's all right stay

calm sister

i envy you right now i really do you are

the chosen mother and a very holy woman

elizabeth i'm so frightened right now i

know but you have to be patient hannah

listen i i'm afraid that that i might

not live through this

tell your husband zachariah

the prophet of god that he must fulfill

my promise to the lord

just calm down everything is all right

you'll send your son christ to the

temple yourself

most of the people in galilee have not

slept a wink the whole night

my lord why are you crying father

because my dear son our worries will

soon be over

the reason our worries will be over is

because a precious child will soon enter

this world of ours

what should we do with these poor people

they are so simple-minded

tonight's an important night for jewish

people they live in hope you see

jeroboam

tell me why did you come here anyway

because um

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the good news

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the child has been born everyone has

gathered around the house

that is the child that herod wants but

we'll wait for the crowd to disperse

first

the population of the monastery is

congregated outside the temple in

jerusalem to seek a solution for the

rabbis

but we took our weapons and came here to

pledge allegiance to you

imran's successor our dear zechariah oh

prophet of god

we humbly promise to obey any order that

you give to us

any order at all this timber belongs to

the temple don't get it mixed up with

the rest

why are you so quiet zechariah you're

being a purist why don't you talk to us

that's right zechariah we stand before

you ready to follow you

give us your command we will stand by

you till our last breath

you know we speak the truth

calm down calm down my dear friends

please come down

please tell me what do you seek my

friends

why do you have swords with you

[Music]

did imran tell us to take up arms

did imran tell us to take up arms and

prepare for bloodshed

i recall no such order but zechariah

it is our dream to drive out the roman

idolaters and the other pagans from this

land is that not the case sir

are god's chosen people supposed to rule

the earth is this not their everlasting

destiny sir

[Music]

my brothers please be patient i would

like to ask you

can i entrust you with a secret of

[Music]

with just one strike this blade can

spill the blood

of anybody romans jews believers and

polytheists alike

so let me ask you which weapon should we

be holding

the best weapon is one that has been

polished with purity and piety

a weapon that validates the cries of the

oppressed

[Music]

you must nurture virtue within

yourselves and it will grow there

give credence to honesty and ensure that

you reward kindness

and ensure that you all purify your

hearts

for the beating will then be heard

across the entire universe

[Music]

[Applause]

where are you master zechariah there you

are dear master

i have good news the best news the best

news you have ever heard

has he been born yet he has i heard his

cries with my own ears

it was beautiful

he has arrived thank you god

the messiah is here

wow

[Music]

oh

what is the matter cousin what do you

think is the matter

there is no water left for our family no

honor whatsoever

what do you mean i mean that all your

prophesizing has poisoned people's minds

can you not see that look around you

zechariah and you will see that i speak

the truth

stop speaking with such malice and speak

clearly to me

it's better to see the scandal with your

own eyes

it's all wrong what are you hold on

what else do you people want what else

are you waiting for

return your homes at once people walk

away from this disaster at once

no races had more false prophets than

ours what an embarrassment this

is go you people go get out of here

go

anna please tell me what's going on here

the the baby is a girl

zechariah what should we say to all

those spiteful people

who wish us harm we were all worried

about

the agony you'd feel after finding out

that imran and hannah's child

was a girl the birth of a girl is a

disgrace

and a complete embarrassment for any

family

zechariah what about imran's prophecy

and now what do we do about this shame

close the curtains now and don't leave

the house for a while

stay in here and stay out of sight until

the disgrace of having a girl fades from

people's minds

cut off all ties with your friends and

your extended family until the fury of

the town's people dies down

that may be a while why should we be

ashamed of god's blessing

i'm thinking about our family's dignity

you are the head of the family remember

zechariah

and so i shall answer to the people's

queries

be off with you

tell me is the baby well hannah yes she

is thank god

she's fine

so where is the child right now

[Music]

[Applause]

[Music]

[Applause]

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uh

[Music]

i bring news for the rabbis

great news where is zedekiah

zedekiah i bring news for you zedekiah

and michael

i have lose your honor what is all this

fuss about

why are you panting and so out of breath

because i ran here

all the way from galileo do you bring

news of zechariah's household didn't run

his wife kimberly

yes she did the child that was

supposed to be the messiah was born but

that

well that child was a girl it was a girl

a girl you see yes a girl

if only you were there to see the look

on everyone's face

when they found out it was a girl sir it

was incredible

i'll never forget

we must inform issachar about this

development at once

this is good very good

i have news for you it's a car this is

hardly the time zerkaya

there is no better time for this i bring

good news from galileo

you will want to give me a great reward

when you hear it what is it

don't tell me the mother and child died

in childbirth

no they're both doing well

so what is this good news you'll bring

did the baby turn out to be a girl

they've attacked you incompetent

may god have mercy on your souls did i

not instruct you to protect the northern

borders with every ounce of your

strength did you not hear that

apparently not you fell asleep

and while you were dozing they managed

to surround you all and now this is the

end result

they ambushed us from above and caught

us off guard sir

there is no way we could have prepared

for that and how many of them were there

they had fewer soldiers than us but they

fought like wild dogs rumors about the

messiah's birth had boosted their

spirits you see

they were the most ferocious fighters i

have ever seen we sent a message to the

romans beforehand

but we never heard back from them the

problem side

is that your agreement with emperor

augustus states that the troops i

control should not interfere in such

matters

the concern i expressed last night

regarding the jews

was neither unfounded nor unreasonable

but you did not take it seriously i told

you those rumors would cause trouble for

us

your majesty i have good news for you

the child is a female

um

men it is time to make preparations have

you been given good news about the

messiah

indeed the messiah has been born

let the rebels know this the messiah

they've been waiting for

and placing all their hope in

has turned out to be a girl

words cannot express how happy i am

you know why because

i was afraid afraid that this messiah

would remove me from power and take over

as king of the jews

but all that fear and worry turned out

to be for no reason at all

just just look how it turned out

i never thought for a moment that my

successor would turn out to be this

a girl child

[Music]

dear sister please don't worry so much

and may god give his blessings

oh my dear lord i wanted with all my

heart

to send my child to your house so he

could serve you

and i'm still determined to but what can

i do

i've lost all hope there is no hope left

my dearest hannah did imran not tell you

that you would give birth to a child who

would heal the leprous and the blind

as well as raise the dead at god's

command

that is precisely what imran had

predicted is it not

hannah yes it is

and you know that the prophets only say

what god tells them to say

they are the messengers of the divine

word after all

yes i know that he did not lie to you

hannah

the boy we await will be a great man

however he has to be born to a great and

pious mother

a woman even more virtuous than you

hannah

he will be born to a mother whose flesh

skin and very blood is infused with

faith

do you understand hannah

so the messiah's mother

is that girl the girl in your arms

the promised messiah will be born to

your daughter

this is what you asked the lord for

god knows there is no other human being

like the girl in your arms

she has greatness within her much more

greatness than anybody realizes my dear

we have to take very good care of her

because if the israelites find out about

this

her life will be in danger and they will

never let us be

[Music]

jehovah please accept this offering from

us the town of galilea has narrowly

averted a disaster

[Music]

i can say with no doubt ishika it was

the tact which you demonstrated last

night

that saved us from this calamity dear

god we

thank you for this

a boy who will become the savior of the

jews

what a lie that turned out to be what

boy

is this what prophet is this may god

curse everyone who creates divisions

in his religion and now

all those poor people will turn away

from zechariah

isn't that just all so terribly sad

zachariah left alone in downtrodden

if zechariah is god's prophet then maybe

i

am one of heaven's angels it's possible

is it not

but where have my wings gone i wonder

perhaps my wife is repairing them

i see some sad faces some people seem to

be upset

what is it david and you jihosh

do you not approve of our sense of humor

well we'll come to those who ridicule

and laugh at the prophets

this is not something you want to do

until only yesterday

you all spoke loudly about the virtues

of the prophets

what's more you urged us to follow them

and obey them without question did you

not

nobody doubts the virtues of the

prophets you misunderstand

but the piety of false prophets is an

entirely different

matter what does zechariah gain from

being a prophet though

he works hard as a carpenter he provides

for his family

shares food with his neighbors he has

not taken a single thing from herod

ask yourselves has he taken anything no

the

answer is no but this is how any poor

rag clad beggar lives is it not

if he was truly god's prophet why does

he not have any wealth to show for it

why are there no angels by his side

are you not tired of zechariah's lies

i know i am what is your definition of a

lie afronen

until now i have heard nothing but the

truth from him and i have never seen him

sin

he clearly does not speak of religion

merely to line his pockets

you are being extremely defiant and in

the presence of issachar

i am sorry my friend but i doubt that

issachar the high priest of the temple

would approve of anyone stabbing his

pious cousin zechariah

in the back he is our role model after

all

is he not or am i making the wrong

assumption that's enough quarreling for

today

get back to work all of you

what is it nathan why are you so silent

it's david and johash i thought that

they always spoke the truth

the truth it seems

we are members of zachariah's family yet

we are his greatest enemy

yes that is what people say

but why and what does he want from us

he wants to humiliate us it's that

simple

have you forgotten that zacharias

imran's

successor and the head of our family

we're obliged to heed his word

these conversations are getting ties the

old days of men like imran and zechariah

are over

tell me something did you know that a

lot of people are angry that you've

become an instrument of herod and the

romans

an instrument you say politics is a

complicated business

nathan the jews

they see no middle ground between faith

and blasphemy that is a dangerous

position

for the time being however we've

succeeded in deceiving the romans and

taking control of the temple

which i should not have to remind you

means that we can practice our religion

under the protection of herod and his

soldiers is anything wrong with that

huh or is it the greatest blessing ever

bestowed on the israelites

what we are doing serves the interests

of the jewish nation

i have complete faith in your insight

and management skills

but yet everything you just said

contradicts what i've been taught

you know i was zechariah's disciple and

i was imran's follower

i truly believed him to be god's prophet

there was no doubt in my mind whatsoever

but now nathan

there is no doubt in my mind that you

are a very intelligent person

have you ever heard of a prophet who has

made false predictions

everybody here knows the prophets simply

do not lie

nathan did you not feel embarrassed when

you heard

what people are saying about your family

did not you feel bad nathan

when are you going to stop ruining your

image and reputation

stop being a child you should have

become head teacher of the temple a long

time ago

you know that you should be respected

for having the best position in the

temple

you cannot afford to be listening to all

this idle talk

you're young you should be enjoying your

youth you should have the best wives and

the best houses

listen iska will help you to achieve all

that

he is your brother-in-law after all

don't forget that

you have every right to benefit from his

support you won't stay young forever

you know just think about your old age

when you have nothing at all to live on

nobody will help you then nathan

remember that

and please don't tell me you're thinking

that you'll just go and beg on the

town's streets

or adopt a lowly profession like

zachariah has done with his carpentry

do not tell me that

you cannot talk about zechariah that way

i know he is a good man good men who

lack diplomacy jeopardize the future

they jeopardize the future for all

jewish people

they think wisely but act foolishly you

need to think about that nathan

think about that carefully

my people why do you lose faith in god's

mercy

when faced with the smallest test

remember we need god god does not

need us we are the needy ones and he is

the almighty one

so it does not hurt him when you lose

hope in him

by turning away from him in this way he

will not be harmed

only we will be harmed there is hidden

wisdom

in the birth of this girl it's not fair

that you fooled us by claiming to be a

prophet all these years

and distracting these poor people with

your lies exactly

we have our own problems you know and

yet here you are encouraging us to

nurture false hopes like this

how can a girl be our savior that's

right

why must we be subjected to degradation

and humiliation by our own religion

why don't you just leave us alone to get

on with our miserable lives can't you do

that

how can you have the heart to lie to us

like this time and again

shame on you for claiming to be a

prophet shame on you for playing with

the emotions of poor people

shame on you shame on you

such ungrateful people what is wrong

with you you turn your back on god's

profit at the slightest sign of trouble

and on top of that

you disrespect him in the most

disgusting and cowardly way how could

you

respect us have its limits you know

describing yourself as a prophet has

made you

a sinner throw down your staff and

turn it into a python command the river

nile to split into two with your staff

crush a bird into little pieces and then

make it fly in

four different directions give us a

miracle that's what we need

you need to do something in front of

these people something that

no one else can do if you can manage to

do that

then zechariah will become your

disciples

a prophet's credibility is not

determined by the number of his

followers

many prophets in the past performed

miracles only to be turned on by their

people later

everyone knows that a miracle can only

be performed with god's permission

and will only be accepted by those

believers who are pure at heart

i am with you the truth is that even if

i performed a miracle for you in

solomon's temple

you would probably then go on to accuse

me of being a sorcerer

and execute me please zechariah

i suggest you stay out of the sun from

now on

and hire someone else to be your

spokesperson

i can honestly say that i truly cannot

bear seen noble men reduced

to insane rambling idiots

dear lord have mercy on us

i am afraid of what might befall these

people

[Music]

dear god i thank you for the blessing

the blessing in my arms you have

bestowed upon me

[Music]

i wanted to devote to you has turned out

to be a girl

you know better than anybody but i

love this little child with all my heart

but i will fulfill my promise to you i

swear

[Music]

the people of this town have all

abandoned us

i don't know whether the rabbis

or even accept her or not

i have named a child mary

[Music]

she is your servant your humble servant

[Music]

this is mary

[Music]

she will be faithful to you

until what your prophet imran has said

to pass until she gives birth

to the christ child as it should be

[Music]

[Applause]

[Music]

ah

[Music]

oh