A HIGHWAY IN THE HEART

A Play for Easter by

JEWELL ELLEN SMITH

   © Copyright 1985 Jewell Ellen Smith

All Scripture quotations are from the King James Version. Nonprofit groups may perform this play without payment, but if you plan to perform it Jewell’s children ask that you e-mail her older son David at DSmith1204@aol.com.

 "I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness 'Make straight the way of the Lord!' as said the Prophet Elijah ... The glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together... And I (John the Baptist) saw, and bare record that this is the Son of God."

John 1:23, Isaiah 40:3-5, John 1:34

Return to the Jewell Ellen Smith Home Page

TIME: About 30AD

PLACE: The countryside near the River Jordan, villages in Galilee, and the remote fortress of Herod Antipas, Machaerus, east of the Dead Sea.

THEME and PURPOSE:

To show the coming of the Christ, as revealed by John the Baptist, and, To say as clearly as did Isaiah: "Behold your God!"

This, by portraying Jesus of Nazareth and his teachings and deeds, especially those in which "The blind receive their sight, and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear; the dead are raised up, and the poor have the gospel preached to them."--Matthew 11:5; Cf. Isaiah 35:5-7

LENGTH OF DRAMA: About one hour. (4 acts, 9 scenes)

PLAYERS:  Some 16 men, 12 women, one woman dancer, 16 boys all at least 12 years old, one 5-year-old girl, no teenagers.

Synopsis of A HIGHWAY IN THE HEART

ACT I opens at a camp site on the east side of the River Jordan, where John the Baptist has been baptizing and proclaiming: "Repent! For the kingdom of heaven is at hand!"

As John and his disciple Andrew prepare for supper, Philip, another disciple, arrives, bringing a delegation from Jerusalem. Sent by the Pharisees, the three messengers demand of John: "Who art thou?"

John assures them that he is not "that prophet which is to come," nor Elijah, nor the long awaited Messiah. Instead, he declares: "I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, 'Make straight a highway for our God' ... I baptize with water, but there is now in Galilee One who will baptize with the Holy Spirit, and with Fire!"

Amazed at this, and other things John says of Jesus of Nazareth, the three leave hurriedly to return to Jerusalem.

Minutes later, John, Andrew and Philip are surprised by two Roman soldiers, who seize John on orders from Herod Antipas. (Herod and his wife Herodias are irate with John because earlier he had told Herod that he should not have divorced his Arabian wife to marry Herodias, who is his niece and the former wife of his half-brother Phillip.)

As John is led away to prison, he sends Andrew and Philip on a mission into Galilee to find Jesus and to ask him this question: "Art thou he who is to come, or look we for another?"

On the Sabbath, several weeks later, Andrew and Philip find Jesus teaching in a village synagogue in south Galilee, and they see him heal a woman who has been bent double for 18 years.

To answer John's question, Jesus invites Andrew and Philip to travel with him for three days and then to report back to John what they have seen and heard.

ACT II takes place in the city of Nain, on that same Sabbath. Tobias, the son of a poverty-stricken widow, lies near death. As friends attend him, his mother brings in the Nain doctor, who prescribes an ancient folk remedy. But next morning the friends discover Tobias has died; and they begin preparations for the traditional funeral march.

ACT III shows Jesus and his companions en route to Nain. They encounter a crowd of people, many of them sick, lame, blind, deaf and dumb--all waiting for the "great physician." Andrew and Philip watch with awe as Jesus heals each one.

Jesus, Andrew and Philip reach Nain just at the funeral procession for the widow's son gets underway. Jesus stops the procession, raises the boy from the dead, and declares to the crowd:

"I am the resurrection and the life. He that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live."

From Nain, Jesus goes to the next village and Andrew and Philip start their long journey back to John the Baptist.

In ACT IV Andrew and Philip arrive at Herod's isolated fortress on Herod's birthday. John's guards permit them to talk to John for only one minute. He rejoices greatly over their report.

Before John is dragged back to the dungeon, he talks with Herod--about the highway Herod wants Rome to build, about the straight road John says every man should prepare for his God.

That evening when Herod's birthday banquet is in full sway, Herodias has her daughter Salome dance for Herod. Herod is so pleased, and so drunk, he promises to give Salome any prize she wants, even half his kingdom. Herodias tells her daughter to ask for the head of John the Baptist on a silver platter. She does.

At the play's end, the two Roman soldiers who have been John's guards walk toward the banquet hall, carrying a blood stained sword and the prize. They talk of John's last words:

"... Every man should make straight in the desert a highway for our God:

A HIGHWAY IN THE HEART."

* * *

SCRIPTURE BACKGROUND

Study of these passages will help players interpret their roles and effectively present the Biblical events in the plot.

Witness of John the Baptist to delegation from Jerusalem: John 1:15-34, Matthew 3:1-17, Mark 1:1-11, Luke 3:1-18

John's question, Jesus' answer: Luke 7:19-28, Matthew 11:2-13

Herod imprisons John: Luke 3:19-20

Jesus heals bent-over woman: Luke 13:10-17

Two blind men receive their sight: Matthew 9:27-31

Nain Widow's son raised: Luke 7:11-18

The banquet, how John was slain: Matthew 14:3-12 (See additional references in script), Mark 6:14-29

SETS:

(1) Outdoor camp site, with tent and fire.

(2) Village synagogue, with plain low benches, Menorah, lectern, low table with scrolls and colorful cloth.

(3) Bedroom, low narrow bed, couch, table, bench, lamp, bowl. (This scene requires a small live goat and a very large, freshly caught fish.)

(4) Roadside place, low trees, shrubbery, rocks.

(5) Village well in Nain, bench, shrubbery, water containers.

(6) Fortress courtyard, cage for prisoner, plants, flowers.

(7) Banquet hall, elaborately appointed table, benches, recorded music for dancer.

CAST OF CHARACTERS (in order of appearance and according to Acts and Scenes):

Act I

John the Baptist, the cousin and forerunner of Jesus, who has come out of the wilderness to herald the coming of the Messiah.

Andrew and Phillip, disciples of John

Delegation from Jerusalem:

Sismai, a priest assigned to the Temple.

Pallu, a Levite and Temple guard.

Menahem, a Levite and member of Temple choir

First Roman Soldier, Atticus, a guard for Herod Antipas.

Second Roman Soldier, Claudius, a guard for Herod Antipas.

Ruler of the Synagogue

Christ Figure

Synagogue Congregation:

Seven Fathers and Grandfathers (no lines)

Five Sons, Grandsons (no lines; must be at least 12 yrs. old)

Merchant

Bent-over Woman, who has been afflicted 18 years.

Brother and Daughter of Bent Over Woman

ACT II, Scenes 1 and 2

First and Second Friend of Widow of Nain

Tobias, son and only child of Widow of Nain

Nain Doctor

Widow of Nain, a poor and devout woman named Myra.

ACT III, Scene 1

Crowd of People waiting by roadside for Jesus:

Old Man from Endor village

First and Second Wives

Father of Sarah

Sarah, a little crippled girl

Deaf and Dumb Woman

Sister of Deaf and Dumb Woman

First and Second Blind Men

Woman with leprosy

Scene 2

Mourners in Funeral Procession:

Cymbal Player

Chime Player

Four Stretcher Bearers

Four Women in Sackcloth

Many Nain Residents (5 or more, no children)

Gong Player

ACT IV Scenes 1, 2, 3

Three Servants (no lines)

Old Man Servant

Herod Antipas, ruler of Galilee and Perea, under Roman authority

Herodias, wife of Herod Antipas and mother of Salome

Salome, step-daughter of Herod Antipas

Banquet Guests (10 or more men, 4 women)

Note to Directors: The scenes are so arranged that many players can do two or more bit parts and also appear where a large group is required. Examples are these:

(1) Three men from Jerusalem can be in the Synagogue.

(2) Bent Over Woman and her Daughter can be Mourners in Sackcloth, servants for Herod's banquet.

(3) Deaf and Dumb Woman and Sister and Woman with Leprosy can be mourners in the Funeral Procession, guests at Herod's Banquet.

(4) The Merchant (ACT I, Sc. 2) can be a Stretcher-Bearer and Banquet Guest.

(5) Old Man from Endor (ACT III, Sc. 1) Can be Old Man Servant in ACT IV.

(6) Ruler of the Synagogue can be in Funeral Procession and a Banquet Guest.

(7) Nain Doctor can be a Banquet Guest.

(8) Brother of Bent Over Woman could be Father of crippled girl, Cymbal Player, and Banquet Guest.

SCRIPT

ACT I, Scene 1

Sc. 1--Late in the afternoon at the camp site of John the Baptist, near Beth-ab-a-ra beyond the River Jordan. Andrew, a young fisherman and disciple of John, tends a fire and sweeps the ground around a tent where there are crude stools and three bedrolls. Now and then Andrew stops to stir an earthen pot of locust beans on the fire. Three utensils near the fire indicate that he is preparing supper for three persons.

John the Baptist, clad in a rough tunic of "camel's hair" with a leather girdle, comes striding up. He is exuberant. He carries a staff, a scripture scroll (Isaiah) and his worn out sandals. One sandal has a broken thong.

JOHN: Ah, Andrew, this has been a perfect day! lays aside scroll and staff  Simply wonderful! Even breaking my shoe latchet starts trying to fix broken sandal, tosses good one aside didn't matter. At times, I wished the Jordan River were twice as wide!

ANDREW: much interested, and in a tone of approval Then you baptized many people today?

JOHN: Scores of people. From all over Galilee, from Jerusalem, and up and down the Jordan Valley! I must have baptized a hundred men!

ANDREW: Sir, that's great!

JOHN: I baptized rich men, and beggars! Tax collectors, even Roman soldiers! I couldn't believe it!

ANDREW: I'm glad for you. And for them!

JOHN: Maybe I'm not a failure. Maybe my crying in the wilderness to "make a highway for our God" is finally being heard.

ANDREW: Of course your voice is heard. For what you say is true. The kingdom of heaven is at hand. And men must repent.

JOHN: lifting cover off pot on fire I see you have our locust beans cooking. gives beans a stir with the spoon Andrew has been using and laughs lightly at the same time Andrew, I much suspect people laugh about me. They think I'm some sort of wild prophet come out of the desert. They say "his clothes are old, ragged camel's hair, and he eats nothing but locust and wild honey!" replaces pot cover and stands erect again Where's Philip? I thought he was with you today.

ANDREW: He was, but he went into Beth-ab-a-ra to get--

Andrew stops abruptly as he sees Philip and three companions approaching. Philip wears the garb of an ordinary young man of Galilee, while the priest and two Levites--all elderly men--are richly robed. Their headdresses are turbans rather than the common headdresses worn by rural men. Sismai wears a priest's prayer shawl. Menahem carries an unlighted lantern.

Players, please read John 1:15-34 for details of the interview, which follows.

ANDREW: Here's Philip coming now! With strangers. Or, at least they're strangers to me.

JOHN: I never saw them before, either. But I see by their clothes they're not fishermen or merchants. The one wearing the prayer shawl is surely a priest.

My father Zechariah used to wear such a shawl, when I was a child. I remember begging my father to let me put on his shawl and play that I was in the Temple, burning incense as he did.

But he would say changes tone to imitate voice of Zechariah: "No, no, Child. You are not to grow up to be a priest. You are to grow up to be 'the prophet of the Most High!' You will go before the face of the Lord to prepare his ways."

--Luke 1:67-80

I didn't know the meaning of my father's words then. But I would listen, and he would keep talking. again imitates voice of Zechariah

"My child, it will be as Isaiah prophesied. There must be the voice of one crying in the wilderness 'Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.' You will be that voice, John!" See Isaiah 40:3-5

ANDREW: with awe Then you've known, all your life, that you would be a prophet?

Philip and companions are now quite near.

JOHN: Yes, Andrew, all my life. turns slightly and goes to meet Philip and his companions. John still holds broken sandal.

Ah, Philip, you bring visitors! bows to guests Welcome, gentlemen!

PHILIP: These honorable men have come up from Jerusalem, to speak to you. First, is Sismai, a venerable priest assigned to the Temple.

Sismai bows

And this is the chief of the Temple guards. turning to Pallu Sir, I believe you said your name is, uh-- uh-- Pallu?

PALLU: as he bows to John and Andrew Yes, I am Pallu, master of the Temple guards. A Levite, of the old order.

PHILIP: And this waving his hand toward Menahem is Menahem, who is a member of the Temple choir.

Menahem bows

MENAHEM: Yes. I am Menahem. And I am proud to say that I, too, am a Levite.

JOHN: with wave of hand toward Andrew This young man here is Andrew, a fisherman from Beth-sa-i-da; and, like Philip, he is one of my disciples.

Andrew and Jerusalem men exchange bows.

As Sismai steps forward to speak directly to John, Andrew and Philip withdraw to background, busy themselves with the campfire and keep backs to audience.

SISMAI: in brisk, business-like tone John the Baptizer--for that's what you're being called, as you well know--we came here to ask you this question: WHO ARE YOU?

JOHN: with considerable surprise Who am I?

SISMAI: Yes! Our leaders of the Pharisees sent us to ask you--in all frankness--to tell us who you are, where you came from, and what all this baptizing in the Jordan means!

PALLU: You and your baptizing are all the talk in Jerusalem. And we understand people are flocking up here, in droves, to get you to baptize them in the River Jordan!

JOHN: Yes. Many come. From Jerusalem, and other places.

MENAHEM: It is reported that even our ruler, Herod Antipas, is interested in your teaching.

JOHN: Ah, that scoundrel, Herod Antipas! He is part of this generation of vipers! I told him so. I told him he has done more evils than his wicked father before him.

Men from Jerusalem gasp in astonishment that John was brave enough to say such a thing.

SISMAI: with disbelief You said those words to the powerful Herod Antipas?

JOHN: I did--this afternoon, not more than three hours ago. I told him he should not have divorced his wife, daughter of the King of Arabia, to marry this-- this-- this Herodias! She is his niece! By law, he is forbidden to marry her. Besides that, I understand she was the wife of his half-brother!

SISMAI: Shaking his head Ah, John the Baptizer--and I say this kindly, as an old man to a young man--I doubt the wisdom of your trying to show Herod Antipas his errors or to even mention his marriages. We all know Herod Antipas is idle, vicious and extravagant.

Changes tone But, we stray from our subject. We three were sent here to talk about you, not the tetrarch of Galilee and Perea. Who are you? Did you spring up out of the desert, as people say?

JOHN: with sincerity You know my name. It is John. It is true that I have spent much time in the desert, but I was born in the hill country of Judaea, in the village of Ein Karem.

My father was Zechariah, a priest, like you. And he served in the Temple, as you do. My father was descended from the "Sons of Aaron." My mother was Elizabeth, also of the house of Aaron.

SISMAI: much pleased Well, then, if you are the son of a priest, you must know our ancient writings of Moses and the prophets.

JOHN: Many of them, yes.

SISMAI: There is one prophecy which says this: "The Lord thy God will raise up unto thee a Prophet from the midst of thee, of thy brethren, like unto Moses. Unto him ye shall hearken... I shall put my words in his mouth; and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him." Players, see: Deut. 15:15 John the Baptizer, are you that prophet?

JOHN: No, I am not that prophet.

PALLU: Many people are saying that you might be the prophet Elijah, come back. Sismai, here, was telling us--as we journeyed today--that the holy writings foretell how Elijah will return "before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord!" See Malachi 4:5

JOHN: No. I am not Elijah. I long, though, to have Elijah's spirit and power--to turn the hearts of the people and prepare them for the Lord. Cf. Luke 1:17 No, do not call me Elijah. I am more "a reed shaken in the wind."

MENAHEM: One of our venerable leaders in Jerusalem believes you are the CHRIST!

JOHN: No. I am not the Christ. I am not so much as worthy to unfasten the latchet of his shoes. looks at sandal in his hand, fingers the broken latchet

MENAHEM: That is an odd thing for you to say. Just what do you mean?

JOHN: The Christ is far greater than I. He is like the bridegroom; I am like the bridegroom's friend.

I am his forerunner, come to prepare the way.

I am the voice of one crying in the Wilderness: "Prepare the way of the Lord! Make straight a highway for our God! Isaiah prophesied this. see Isaiah 40:3

SISMAI: with a hint of a taunt in his voice Make a highway? Now, just where is this road you speak of supposed to be made? Did Isaiah foretell that?

JOHN: Man is to make the highway for God IN HIS HEART.

Man's heart is like a wild desert, a wilderness place. This, man must change for the coming of the Lord. "Every valley must be exalted, and every mountain and hill made low; and the crooked made straight, and the rough places plain!" Isaiah 40:4

SISMAI: with some anxiety Come, come, John the Baptizer! Your answers to our questions sound like the poetic words of old Isaiah; and that's highly interesting. But, y