Unseen, unnoticed, at the very moment that the High-Priest fell, slain by the false Prophet, there had entered the Temple, Cohen, who had been High-Priest for the first year of this new Temple's history.
He slipped away as the image uttered its speech. He met many of the priests of other of the Courses, as they were approaching the Temple, also numbers of the devout Jews of the city and its suburbs, and many from other parts of the world, who had been specially drawn hither by the news that had been flashed world-wide, as to some great event about to happen in Jerusalem.
"Stay!" he cried. His looks told of something serious, and in an instant he was the centre of an eager, anxious, enquiring crowd of Jews.
"Jehovah help us!" he went on. "For those who would be true to Him now, must be prepared for flight or for death. Apleon, is a traitor! 'He hath put forth his hands against such as be at peace with him; he hath broken his covenant.' Psalm lv. 20. 'He confirmed a covenant with us for seven years.' Daniel ix. 27. 'The words of his mouth were smoother than butter, but war was in his heart: his words were softer than oil, yet were drawn swords.' Psalm lv. 21."
Cohen, even while he had been speaking had led the crowding Jews away from that main road, and now, in a cul-de-sac, he was continuing his words.
"Blind! Blind! that we were, all of us, I, especially, for my Gentile friend, the editor of 'The Courier'—London daily paper—warned me. He told me of the meaning of our own prophet Daniel's words, 'In the midst of the week (the seven years of the covenant we made with that apostate) he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease.'
"This he has done this morning. The priests were stopped in their preparations for the morning sacrifice.
"'And,' said our father, Daniel, 'for the over-spreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation.' Daniel ix. 27.
"Brethren, of the House of Israel, the Lord our God is one God. I am no Mehushmad, but in common with many of our rabbis, I have read the Gentile New Testament, and there, in the words of the Nazarene Prophet, (Matt. xxiv. 15, 16.) He prophesied exactly what has come to pass this morning in our beautiful Temple, for he said:
"'When ye (that is we of the House of Israel) therefore, shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place (of the Temple)—whoso readeth, let him understand:—then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains … and pray ye that your flight be not on the sabbath day. For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, nor ever shall be.'