The Contest of the Three Guardsmen
One interesting story which appears for the first time in the apocryphal Book of Esdras is that of the contest among the three young guardsmen at the Persian court. This introduces Zerubbabel the Jewish prince of the house of David, who led his compatriots back to Jerusalem. It is a peculiarly oriental tale. Three youths, traditionally three Jews, were guarding King Darius while he slept. They agreed to write each a wise saying on the subject of “strength,” and then to ask the king to decide which had written best.
Naturally each of the contestants had an eye to the tastes of their selected judge. The first, knowing Darius as a reckless carouser, wrote, “Wine is the strongest.” This text he upheld before king and court. The second wrote, “The king is strongest.” But the third, who was Zerubbabel, wrote, “Women are strongest: But above all things truth beareth away the victory.” In his argument, he pictured even the mighty Darius as yielding to his women’s coaxing. Then in a noble apostrophe, he described truth as conquering women, wine and king.
“And with that he held his peace. And all the people then shouted and said, Great is truth, and mighty above all things.”
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