The Chosen (2017–…): Season 1, Episode 7 - Invitations - full transcript

- Joshua.

How many more in the night?

- Some 300, sir.

- Where will you bury them?

- The men are
trying to dig a trench,

but the ground
is hard and rocky.

With respect, Moses, my
concern is not for the dead,

but for the dying.

Hundreds fall by the day.

And for every serpent
we kill another ten appear.

- Maybe we should leave
the bodies here, in this tent.



- At the rate people are dying,

there would not be enough room,

even if we stack
them to the top.

- Then we'll have to leave
and find someplace else.

- We're not leaving
anytime soon.

Too many are sick
and cannot walk.

- After today, the only
Hebrews too sick to walk

will be those who
choose to remain so.

- Is there medicine
in that bronze?

You told the people
that you would ask God

to forgive their rebellion, to
heal their serpent wounds...

- I did.

- Then why are
you hiding in a tent.

- It wasn't my idea, Joshua!



- That is a pagan symbol.

You did not ask
Him if He was sure?

Maybe you misunderstood Him.

- I've learned to do what
He says without questioning.

You remember what
happened at Meribah.

- Just to be sure,

we could send a messenger
to Ezion-Geber, beg for aid...

- That pole...
Hand me that pole.

- The people will
say it is a cruel joke.

- Let them say that.

- Help me understand.

None of this makes any sense.

- How do you
explain the Red Sea?

The manna and the quail?

The pillar of fire?

Joshua, any Israelite who
looks upon this bronze serpent

and believes in the power
of Adonai will be healed.

It's an act of
faith... not reason.

Faith.

♪ Oh, child, come on in. ♪

♪ Jump in the water.

♪ Got no trouble with
the mess you been. ♪

♪ Walk on the water.

♪ Walk on the water.

♪ Walk on the water.

♪ Oh, child... ♪
Walk on the water.

♪ Got no trouble.

♪ Walk on the water.

♪ Walk on the water. ♪

- Gaius.

Why are you here?

- I'm escorting you.

- Because you feel
indebted for your promotion.

- You're complaining about
safely walking the streets?

- I didn't help Quintus for you.

- Oh, I know.

You couldn't help yourself.

- I spoke up
because I was right.

- You got lucky.

- Luck doesn't exist.

- So, you knew Quintus
would not kill you?

- He was smart to
go after fishermen,

but he must have been
desperate to enlist Simon.

- I don't buy it.

You were terrified.

- Gaius, what if
you were suddenly

the only Roman in Capernaum?

- I think I'd change clothes.

- Exactly.

When you realize that
nobody else in the world

cares what happens to you,
you think only about yourself.

- For a fool, your
brain has taken you far.

I admit it.

- I thought so, too.

- Praise Adonai,
he's healthy and alive!

- What are you talking about?

- I received word
from Jerusalem.

Havilah gave birth to a son.

You're a grandfather again!

- So soon?

- A month early,
but all is well.

Oh, blessed be He!

We'll have the rest
of our things sent.

- What? No, no, no!

My research here
is not completed.

- But, we have to make
it back in time for the bris,

we have only eight days.

Less than eight.

- The circumcision
can be performed

by any number of people, Zohara.

- Nico, this is your
own grandson!

- Fifth grandson.

Havilah will understand.

- Do you know what people
will say when they learn

that the Great Nicodemus missed
his own grandson's name day

because he was doing research
in Capernaum, of all places?

- Research that concerns
not just one Jewish boy

but all of Israel, past,
present and future.

- There is nothing in Capernaum

but demoniacs and
insolent school boys.

Come to your senses.

- I have never been
closer to my senses.

- That is not how it
looks from the outside.

- Many things are not.

- I am ready to
leave this place, Nico.

I miss my children
and my grandchildren,

including the one I
haven't even met yet.

- Oh, Zohara... You
can't just barge...

- Oh, I believe I can.

- Praetor Quintus.

- Zohara, is it?

A pleasure to see you again.

- I trust all is well.

- Why would you trust that?

- Please, please, do
make yourself at home.

- We really will have to
discuss the people's tithing.

- This is why you've come?

- I need to know if we
have a problem, Nicodemus.

- I have complied
with every request

Rome has made of my office,

even when it
infringed on custom.

- Let me rephrase.

You and I want the same thing.

We want rules
followed, we want order.

Soldiers, money,
votes, that's my world.

Demons, prayers,
oddballs, that's yours.

I need to know if our worlds
are on a collision course.

The so-called miracle worker.

- Jesus of Nazareth.

- Don't even know what
Nazareth is, but yes, Him.

- Anecdotes and rumors.

- And a stampede
in the eastern ghetto

that delayed Herod's envoy.

That really made me look bad.

I hate that.

- The unrest began
when your soldiers

waded into the crowd
brandishing weapons.

- It isn't an isolated event.

I've heard reports,

and my source has an
unwavering knack for accuracy

and a compulsion for the truth.

So, again I ask you...
is there a problem?

- No.

- You don't seem sure.

Maybe I could get better
information from this...

Shmuel?

He's very eager to see me.

- The only way to learn
this Preacher's intentions

is to speak with Him directly.

- So speak to Him.

I hate crowds, they
take time and resources

and then the cleanup is a pain.

When you arrange
a private meeting,

I want to know when and where.

Understand?

- What troubles
you about this Man?

- Preachers have a habit
of becoming politicians.

They sprout up like
weeds and spread.

Your wife is a gardener.

She understands.

- Some flora spread
their seeds when trampled.

Who's to say you wouldn't
be creating a martyr?

- I'll take my chances.

- You sympathize
with this Preacher.

- Will we be safe here?

- What do you mean, safe?

- They'll be looking for us

because of what you
said about forgiving sins.

- Ah, we won't
be here very long.

After what happened yesterday,

we'll keep moving
from town to town.

- Is that what you want?

- What do you mean?

- To roam about,

not be able to
stay in one place?

- I want to do the
will of my Father.

And I want to spread
the message of salvation.

So, yes, I am happy
to not stay in one place.

- Rabbi?

- Yes, Thad.

- I should prepare firewood
for how many days?

- Uh... five, I think.

- I thought you said that we
wouldn't be here very long.

- Leaving some for
the next weary traveler.

Hospitality isn't only for
people who own homes, John.

- Mary?

- Are you all right?

- Me? Yes, thank you.

Uh, may I speak with you, Rabbi?

- Yes, of course.

Keep going.

- I wanted to
apologize for yesterday.

- For what?

- I was trying to
help those people

get closer to the
sound of Your voice.

I had no idea they
would open the roof

and disrupt Your teaching.

I truly...

- You regret that a paralytic
is enjoying his first full day

on his own feet, huh?

- No, just that I caused a scene
and cut short Your teaching.

- Who's to say it was cut short?

With their faith,

they would have found a way

whether you brought
them to the roof or not.

- But, there's more.

When we were leaving,
a Pharisee stopped me

and asked for a private
meeting with You.

I told him I would ask.

- A Pharisee.

- Do you know this man?

- He visited me... before.

- A Pharisee in the
Red Quarter, hmm?

- Rome sent him.

I doubt he wanted to be there.

No, I wouldn't think so.

- But I saw him again,
after I was better,

and he wanted to
know how I was healed.

Of course I didn't tell
him who You were,

but, he seemed...

- What?

- Earnest.

He wasn't offended to learn
that someone else had succeeded

where he had failed.

There was... there was a
hunger in his eyes, not fear.

- Not like the Pharisees at
the window yesterday, huh?

- I am sorry to have
brought all this on You.

- No, no.

No, there is a reason
you met this Pharisee.

- Nicodemus.

- Nicodemus; of course.

I've heard of him.

- Oh, I don't know who
is known and who is not.

This is all new to me.

- Don't worry about which
men others think are important.

Send word to Nicodemus.

I will meet with him.

Little James will
know the location.

Thank you, Mary.

- Yes, Teacher.

Where are you going?

- To be alone.

I need to think.

And to pray.

- I will pray also.

That I have not put
You in terrible danger.

You have not.

In fact, I have
made plans already

for tomorrow night.

- Plans?

- Yes, spread the word.

A dinner party.

In the northern district,

the tall house
just past the arch.

- But that row of homes...

- I know the kind of
people who live there.

Trust Me.

- I will tell the others.

- Matthew?

- Hello, Eema...

Or... or... or Elisheva, I mean.

Hello.

- Matthew.

- I don't receive
visitors, myself.

Is this a custom?

- If your father were
here, I couldn't do this.

- Where is Alphaeus?

- I think a dog followed you.

- He's with me.

He'll stay out here
if you'll let me in.

- Will Alphaeus be home soon?

- He's away on a work trip.

- Where would work take him?

Does he no longer
make leather goods?

- His shop was robbed.

Many of the shops have been.

Crime is rampant.

It makes it very
difficult to reopen.

- He loved his shop.

- But we still have a
roof over our heads,

which is more than
some people can say.

- You can ask me for
money if you ever need it.

- How can you say that?

- It's quite common.

I've seen many parents
entirely dependent on...

- Your father would sooner
die than take your blood money.

- I know you are ashamed of me,

but your decision is irrational.

Rome will continue to
collect taxes no matter what.

I'm skilled with numbers...

- Did you come here
to justify yourself?

- No! No!

Everything's like
sand... in a flood.

The things I thought
I knew to be true...

- Are you in trouble?

- Do you think that
impossible things can happen?

That overturn the
laws of nature?

That cannot be explained?

- That is what people
asked when you were a boy.

Even the rabbis were astonished

at your talent
for reading, math,

the way you could think
faster than any other child.

They thought you would
become someone great.

- Great at what?

I'm rich.

I have an armed escort.

I am trusted by the
Praetor of Galilee...

- We never dreamed

you would use the
talent God gave you

to bleed your people dry!

- But have you ever
seen anything miraculous?

- Matthew...
- My whole world...

everything I thought I knew...

What if it's wrong?!

- I think you should go.

You never even
asked about your sister.

- She looks well.

I came to celebrate
Shabbat a few weeks ago.

But then I left.

Good-bye, Eema.

- Well, I'm not sure
this is a good idea.

Why not?

- Well, it could be a trap.

Nicodemus cooperates with Rome.

They're the ones
who sent him to Mary

when she was possessed
in the Red Quarter.

- I'm well-acquainted
with risk, Simon.

So are you,

if I remember our first
meeting correctly, huh?

- Risk is his oldest
friend, I'm afraid.

Simon...

Mary is an excellent
judge of character.

She has known some
of the worst kinds of men

in this world, and
she finds him earnest.

You should trust her instincts.

And Mine.

- Um...

Rabbi... I've got it.

- Ah, let's take a look.

- Can you keep
her quiet, please?

No one needs to
know Eema is sick.

- I can't tell her not
to cough, Simon.

- I just don't want our
burdens to become His, okay.

I don't want to be the
one to distract Him.

- He's made up
His mind about you.

He's not going to kick
you out of the group.

It's perfect!

Well done.

Though I think I could fit all
of you in here with Me, huh.

- You won't be
recognized in that.

- Has the owner of the
house given permission?

- It's all arranged, Rabbi.

And I'll be waiting at the door.

Thank you, Andrew.

You go on ahead.

But remember to relax.

You are there to
guide our guest,

not to be My protector.

Are you sure you
don't want me to come?

The more eyes watching the
streets for trouble, the better.

- Not tonight, Simon.

Stay here with your wife,
and your mother-in-law.

- You see?

- Mm...

Welcome, Nicodemus.

Don't be alarmed.

He's waiting for you.

- I asked the owner of this
house for more lanterns,

but he said they
would draw attention.

- Yes, I imagine they would.

- The human eye
is drawn to light.

We can't help it,
it just happens.

- There are many
things we are drawn to

without our thinking,

or our ability to explain why.

Thank You for agreeing to meet.

- Thank you for trying to
help Mary when you did.

- I was no help.

- You were meant to be there.

- Me?

So I could fail
miserably at an exorcism

in the Red Quarter?

- If you had not
been there that day,

would you be on
this roof tonight?

- I don't know where to start,

I have so many questions I...

- Shall we sit first?

- Oh, yes, of course.

The eastern slums.

- Mm.

- Many wandering preachers
have succeeded in gathering crowds

with their rhetoric
and fiery tone.

- I heard a few of them
over the years Myself.

- So You know the type.

- Mm-hmm.

- But I have never heard
anyone tell a paralytic

to get up and walk,

much less it actually happens.

- So, what is your conclusion?

- I believe You are
not... acting... alone.

No one can do these signs You do

without having... God in Him.

Only Someone Who
has come from... God.

- And how is that belief
going over in the synagogue?

Which is why we're
here at this hour.

What else?

- What have You
come here to show us?

- A kingdom.

- That is what our
rulers are worried about.

- No, not that kind.

- Then, what?

- A sort of kingdom
that a person cannot see

unless he is born again.

- Born... again?

- Yes.

- You mean like a new creature,

a conversion from
Gentile to Jewish?

- No... no, that's not
what I'm talking about.

- Then, what is "born again"?

I hope You don't mean
return to the womb,

because that would
be a problem for me.

My mother, may she
rest in peace, is dead.

- Truly, I say to you,

unless one is born
of water and the Spirit,

he cannot enter
the kingdom of God.

That which is born
of the flesh is flesh,

and that which is born
of the Spirit is spirit.

That part of you,

that is what must
be reborn to new life.

- How can these things be?

- A teacher of Israel,

and yet you do not
understand these things.

- I'm trying, Rabbi.

- I know, I know.

Do you hear this?

- What?

- Listen...

What do you hear?

- The wind.

- How do you know it's the wind?

- Because I can feel it,

and I hear its sound.

- Do you know
where it comes from?

- No.

- Do you know where it's going?

- No.

- That's what it is to be
born again of the Spirit.

The Spirit may work in a
way that is a mystery to you,

and while you
cannot see the Spirit,

you can recognize His effect.

- My mind is
consumed with thoughts

of what a stir these
words would cause

among the teachers of the Law.

- Yes, and I do not
expect otherwise.

I speak of what I
know and have seen,

and it's not been received
by the religious leaders.

- It is hard to receive.

- So, if I have told
you of earthly things,

and you do not believe,

how can I tell you
heavenly things?

- I believe Your words,

I just fear You may
not have a chance

to speak many more of
them before You are silenced.

- I have come to do more
than speak words, Nicodemus.

- More miracles?

- Yes, but even more than that.

Do you remember when
the children of Israel

complained against
God and against Moses

in the wilderness of Paran?

- Yes; they wanted
to return to Egypt,

and they cursed the
manna that God sent them.

- And then?

- They were bitten by
serpents and they were dying.

- But...

- But, God made a way
for them to be healed.

- Moses lifted
the bronze serpent

in the desert,

and people only
needed to look at it.

So will the Son
of Man be lifted up

so that whoever believes in Him

may have eternal life.

- Our people are not
dying from snake bites.

They're dying from
taxation and oppression.

- I'm sorry to disappoint you,

but I did not come to deliver
the people from Rome.

- Then from what?

- From sin.

From spiritual death.

God loves the
world in this way...

that He gave His only Son,

that whoever believes in Him

shall not perish
but have eternal life.

- So this has nothing
to do with Rome?

It's... all about... sin.

- God did not send
His Son into the world

to condemn it, Nicodemus,

He sent Him to
save it through Him.

It's as simple as Moses'
serpent on the pole.

Whoever believes in Him
will not be condemned,

but whoever does not believe
stands condemned already.

- Have you ever heard
anything like this before?

- Shhhhh.

- When I met Lilith...
Mary... that day...

I told my wife
and my students...

she was beyond human aid.

Only God could have healed her.

And then I saw her... healed.

And here You are... the Healer.

My whole life I have wondered

if I would see this day.

- Follow Me... and
you'll see more.

- Follow You?

- Join Me and My students.

In two days' time
we leave Capernaum.

Come see the kingdom I
am bringing into this world.

- But I can't...

- "I have a position
in the Sanhedrin,

You have family."

You are getting
advanced in years.

I understand,

but the invitation
is still open.

- Invitation to what, exactly?

To lead a nomadic life?

To... to give up who I am?

- It's true.

There is a lot
you would give up.

But what you would gain is
far greater and more lasting.

- Is this another one of
your "born again" mysteries?

- Ah, maybe.

I know mysteries
aren't easy for a scholar.

Think about it, hmm?

Take your time.

On the morning of
the fifth day, we leave,

and we'll meet by the
well in the southern quarter

at dawn.

- Is this...

Is the kingdom of
God really coming?

- What does your heart tell you?

- Oh...

My heart is swollen with
fear and... and wonder

and can tell me nothing

except that I am
standing on holy ground.

Holy roof anyway.

- I do hope you'll come
with us, Nicodemus.

You don't have to do that.

What are you doing?

- "Kiss the Son,

lest he be angry and
you perish in the way."

- And "Blessed are all
who take refuge in him."

Did you see the Parthian
foot races last night?

Darius ran like a gazelle.

- Jews don't go
to the foot races.

- Your old friend Simon himself

used to run the wagering tables.

- We're not friends.

Next.

- Okay, fine, so you
did not go to the races.

You stay home?

- I went to see my mother.

- Ugh... that would
put me out, too.

She ask when you're going
to give her grandchildren?

- She didn't ask.

- I thought your parents
don't speak to you.

- I had questions I
couldn't ask anyone else.

- A mother of a son
with talent like yours

should be proud.

- She's ashamed that I would
use a talent God gave me

against God.

Next.

- You're good at something.

You found a way to
make a living doing it.

It's that simple.

- It must be nice to live in
a world so simply ordered.

- We live in the
same world, Matthew.

- Next.

- Besides, what else
are you going to do

with a mind like yours?

- Matthew.

- Matthew, son of Alphaeus.

- Yes?

- Follow Me.

- Me?

- Yes, you.

- Whoa, whoa, whoa...
What are You doing?

- You want me to join You?

- Keep moving, street Preacher.

- Do You have any idea
what this guy's done?

Do You even know him?

- Yes.

- Listen, I said...

What are you doing?

Where do you think you're going?

- Gaius, let me go.

- Have you lost your mind?

You have money.

Quintus protects you.

No Jew lives as good as you.

You're gonna throw it all away?

- Yes.

- I don't get it.

- You didn't get it when
I chose you, either.

- But this is different.

I'm not a tax collector.

- Get used to different.

I'm glad we passed by
your booth today, Matthew.

- Yes.

- Shall we?

We have a celebration
to prepare for.

- You will regret this, Matthew!

- What's the tablet for?

- I grabbed it without thinking.

I can put it back.

- No, no, keep it.

You may yet find use for it.

- Where are we going?

- A dinner party.

- I'm not welcome
at dinner parties.

- Well, that's not going
to be a problem tonight.

You're the host.