The Repentant Rebel

So the King’s Son returned to his Father and reported on the success of his mission.· One of the prisoners was very sorry that he had rebelled against the King, especially now he knew that the King had sent his only Son to rescue him and that in so doing his Son had willingly endured great suffering.· Therefore he made up his mind to go back and ask the King to take him back as his subject once again.

It was dark when the Repentant Rebel arrived at the King’s palace and, feeling very miserable at the way he had behaved, he slunk into the great outer courtyard.· The windows of the palace were all bright with lights, but as the rebel stood out there in the dark, alone and cold and ill-clad, he knew that, after what he had done, he was not fit to be admitted to the King’s presence, let alone be welcomed back.

It was then that the palace door opened, and he saw coming out to him the King’s Son himself.· The King’s Son understood at once what the Rebel wanted and, putting his arm round his shoulder, brought him into the palace until they reached the great throne-room.· Together they walked its full length until the Repentant Rebel found himself before the King himself.· And there the King’s Son reminded his Father what he himself had suffered in order to rescue the Repentant Rebel from the Rebel Nobleman.· And so the King received the Repentant Rebel back as his loyal subject, for the sake of his Son who had loyally carried out his mission by defeating the Rebel Nobleman and who now had brought home one of the rebels he had saved.