As they hauled the man over before the dais, the twenty odd priests leaned forward with interest, while one exclaimed, "It is the Prophet Abinadi!"
"Aye, Abinadi, whom I found in the plaza reviling thee, O king," exclaimed Himni, a priest, from the mob.
Noah looked down upon a tall man with straggling gray hair. In spite of his manacled hands, the buffetings of the soldiers and the jeers of the multitude, his thin lips curved in a scornful smile and his defiant face showed no sign of fear.
"What are the charges?" asked the king.
"He promises bondage and dire calamities to the people, and thy life, O King, he says, will be as a garment in a flame of fire. Who is this man that he should judge thee?"
The great, purple veins stood out on the king's forehead and he exclaimed angrily, "Take him to prison!"
The priests crowded up expectantly, for though Noah was not loved, yet he was feared; but Omner petitioned, "Let us question this pretender that we may confound him."
"Yes, surely, the Lord must confide all wisdom to his prophets," scoffed Nehor.
So they plied him with questions, and to their astonishment he answered them boldly. "Why do you, the priests of the Lord, who are supposed to teach the people, ask these things of me? You cannot teach what you do not practice. You are wine-bibbers and revelers. You set the example of sensuousness and law-breaking, and seek not the kingdom of heaven, but the riches of the world."
The king turned wearily. "Away with this fellow," he said, "and slay him, for he is mad."