And Then...

I saw them lift that awful tree, 

And then His face came clear-

The beating by the Roman guards

Had plainly been severe. 

His fabled, otherworldly eyes

Swelled thin from blows to them; 

And then the soldiers cursed the Jews,

And spit on Him again. 

 

He pulled and then He seized a breath,

And fell back from the pain. 

A trickle from His punctured brow 

Raced past His tongue in vain. 

So many times I’d heard Him speak; 

So much He taught seemed true...

And then- I’m not sure why- He said:

“They know not what they do.” 

 

The soldiers sat, and then began 

To gamble for His cloak. 

That some who touched it had been healed

Was bandied as a joke. 

“He lies,“ the leaders said, and then

Insulted Him in spite;

But I had seen it with my eyes- 

And knew that they weren’t right.

 

Two criminals were there as well,

Both being crucified.

They joined the others mocking that

The Christ would thus have died.

And then one seemed to soften-

Like he feared to God his vice.

He prayed, and then from Jesus

There was promised Paradise.

 

And then the countryside grew dark;

The ground began to shake;

And even the Centurion,

Great dread did overtake.

We heard Him cry, “It’s finished!” as

The earth howled in defraud,

And then we knew for certain that

This was the Son of God.

 

I searched for His disciples hard,

And then we heard it said:

“An angel’s told the women

He has risen from the dead!”

And so I sold all that I owned

And joined their company,

For He “would see them when He rose,”

And then, “in Galilee.”

 

-- K. Hartnett, April 2002

I carried the words "and then" around in my spirit for a long time before I got an idea for how to use them.  The poem obviously tells the story of the crucifixion, but also carries along a different story - the testimony of one gradually seeing and understanding that Christ was indeed the Son of God - and what effect that should have on living and believing.  Every Christian has their own "and then" story of God's gracious enlightenment and their response of faith and commitment.

Comments

[Mike Quinlisk]

What struck me instantly about this is how well the verses would sound with the music in Upward: The Bob Kauflin Hymns Project song “the Look” in the background.
Awesome poem!