Psalm 137

Scene 1

(586 BCE. Night. Metatron and Lucifer stand outside Jerusalem. Metatron wraps his coat around himself tightly, as it is very windy. Lucifer’s hair whips around in the wind. In the distance the city can be seen. An unsettling glow comes from it, presumably parts of the city that are ablaze.)

Metatron: (dismal.) After everything that happened. I don’t believe it Lucifer. I simply do not believe it.

(Metatron averts his eyes and looks away. Lucifer puts an arm around Metatron as a gesture of friendship.)

Lucifer: It could be worse you know.

Metatron: (Bitterly.) How? After being messenger for so long, dealing with the drama of David, fighting off the empires, seeing the Northern Kingdom fall and now this? Tell me, Lucifer, how could it be worse?

Lucifer: It could be genocide.

(Metatron sighs.)

Metatron: Okay. You have a point.

(Lucifer looks at the city. He himself is very disturbed by what’s going on but does not look away.)

Lucifer: Are any of your people in the city right now?

Metatron: (Quietly.) Gabriel. Uriel. Duma. Michael. Everyone. Hashem just wants the mortals out of the city safely.

(Lucifer nods understandingly.)

Metatron: We’re going with them into exile. Or at least some of us are.

Lucifer: You’re following them to Babylon?

Metatron: They’re Yahweh’s chosen people. We have to.

Lucifer: You don’t have to.

Metatron: Talk like that is what got you kicked out of Heaven in the first place, Lucifer.

Lucifer: I know. (He sighed.) They’re not going to kick all the Jews out of Israel, are they?

Metatron: No, probably not. Only the important ones. They’ll be stripped of all their privileges and wealth in Babylon. No upper class. The poor will stay here and pay taxes to the Babylonians and will just have to live without their temple. I imagine it’s in ruins now.

(Metatron stops. He is clearly disturbed at this.)

Lucifer: (Worried.) Metatron?

(Metatron draws himself up and forces himself to smile.)

Metatron: I need to get to the city and help everyone evacuate.

Lucifer: (Nodding.) Okay. But if there’s anything I can do to help, please don’t hesitate for a moment to contact me.

Metatron: I won’t.

(Lucifer spreads his wings and flies off. Metatron reveals a pair of his own wings and flies towards Jerusalem.)

Scene 2

(Jerusalem, night. Metatron stands beside Michael. They both have their wings out. Michael is dressed in his military jacket and looks absolutely exhausted.)

Michael: We’ve cleared everyone out of the Temple district and Gabriel’s got the eastern area pretty much out so we’re doing well.

Metatron: (Detatched.) Good, good. How’s everyone holding up?

Michael: Sir? We’re tired, physically and emotionally. Gabriel’s broken down a few times already and I think quite a few others are also at wit’s end.

Metatron: I meant the mortals.

Michael: (Sighs.) Most of them are in shock. They aren’t questioning our commands at any rate. Uriel’s started to lead people away from the city. They trust him.

Metatron: He put in a request to stay with them in Babylon. That’s good. (He forces himself to smile.) You’ve decided to stay in Jerusalem, I read.

(Michael nods.)

Michael: We need some of our people in this country. Who else is going into Babylon?

Metatron: Gabriel, Uriel, a few of the remaining Grigori...(He trails off.) I’m sorry, I don’t remember the list. But a lot.

Michael: What about you?

Metatron: I would stay here if I could. (He looks away, quite guilty.) But I can’t, God will need me as messenger even more now.

(Michael nods slowly and looks upwards.)

Michael: Do you hear something?

(Metatron pauses for a moment and nods.)

Metatron: I’ll go check it out. Get back to work, Michael.

(Metatron runs off. Michael takes to the skies.)

Scene 3
(The Temple complex. Metatron looks around and is horrified by what he sees. The Temple has been destroyed. He flies over the debris and lands in the inner courtyard. Many of the walls have large holes in them if they aren’t knocked down and the former opulence has begun to be chipped away. He stops and fights back tears simply because what he is seeing is absolutely heartbreaking. Wiping away the tears on his coat sleeve he walks into the Holy of Holies. The room has been completely trashed, the cloth ripped away and much of the gold of the inner sanctuary missing. On the floor are two decapitated cherubs, presumably from the arc of the covenant. Stone litters the floor. He picks up a piece of the stone and stares. There’s writing on it. He then finally realizes that there’s someone else there. A middle aged man with short hair is on his knees, holding the head of one of the cherubs. There is a look of pure shock and horror on his face.)

Metatron: (Weakly.) Yahweh?

(He runs over to the figure and instinctively hugs It. God does not react at all for a moment or so but then hugs back.)

God: Everything. Destroyed. How? I tried. I tried so damn hard.

Metatron: (Sympathetically.) I know. We all know. Please. Don’t start going down the what if path, that’s not what we need right now.

God: My Temple, Metatron. Gone. Destroyed. The commandments, the ark. Smashed into rubble. Anything and everything that symbolized my contact with them is gone. And what will become of this place? Burnt to the bloody ground, I’m sure.

Metatron: I know, I know, just stop thinking down that line.

God: (Pushes away from Metatron.) Then what would you like me to do Metatron?!

Metatron: Your people are facing exile. Comfort them. Help us get them to safety. Start trying to figure out what Gods you can get to help us restore this place. We can mourn for our loss afterwards.

(God stares at Metatron for a moment or two and then nods. Metatron stands up and extends a hand to God. God takes it and the two walk out of the Holy of Holies slowly. They stare at it sadly for one last time and then depart.)

Fin.