The past days had been fast, hard and exhausting for Ayo-the funeral, the important things for him to know about his new responsibility, decisions to make, people to meet and see. Often Ayo cried behind his eyes and if the days had not been so busy the grief he felt would have destroyed him. It was always on his mind the change that had come over Beida, for the though old man, the unreligious, to suddenly became a disciple of Jesus, was beyond his understanding. One thing troubled him beyond all else. The lawyer had given to Ayo a small strip of parchment upon which were the words that the Baba tribesmen had given to Beida. The lawyer said the tribesmen had explained it to Beida and that Beida had wanted the words. It was as follows:
“For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him.
He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief; and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
Surely he hath borne our griefs and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God and afflicted.
But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.
All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.
He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.
He was taken from prison and from judgement: and who shall declare his generation? For he was cut off out of the land of the living; for the transgressions of my people was he stricken.
And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth.
Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him; he hath put him to grief; when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand.
He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied; by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.
Therefore will divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.” Isaiah 53:2-12
All this trouble Ayo. Surely it was about Jesus, but what about the suffering, the sorrow, the death. He thought Jesus was to take away all this, yet from this it appeared he would suffer more that anyone else. He wondered if anyone had showed this to Jesus and what Jesus would say about it. He kept it and vowed if he ever saw this man he would ask him about this writing… but there was much to do.
