Then, when hunger came upon him as he wandered, thinking of past events
and those to come, he met the aged man and was addressed by him.
"Sir, how came you hither, where none who ventures alone escapes alive? I
ask because you look not unlike the man I lately saw baptized by John and
declared the Son of God."
"I need no guide," replied the Son. "The Power who brought me here will
bring me forth."
"Not otherwise than by miracle. Here we subsist only upon dry roots and
must often endure parching thirst. If thou art indeed the Son of God, save
thyself and relieve us wretched people by changing these stones to bread."
"Men live not by bread alone," replied the Son, "but by the word of God.
Moses in the Mount was without food and drink for forty days. Elijah also
wandered fasting in the wilderness. Thou knowest who I am as I know who
thou art; why shouldest thou suggest distrust to me?"
"'Tis true that I am that unfortunate spirit who fell from Heaven, but I
have been permitted to roam around the earth and have not been altogether
excluded from Heaven. God allowed me to test Job and prove his worth and
to draw Ahab into fraud. Though I have lost much of my original brightness
I can still admire all that is illustrious and good. The sons of men
should not regard me as an enemy, for I have oft given them aid by
oracles, dreams, and portents.
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