THE STORYTELLER'S BIBLE
Act VIII - General Epistles and Revelation
Script by Bob Allen
For four voices
VOICE ONE: In the beginning—
VOICE TWO: When God the Master Conductor swung His baton to orchestrate the symphony of creation, the resultant musical masterpiece resounded in perfect harmony. From the percussive hoof beats of the multitudes of loping bison to the shrill piccolo calls of the seagull, from the soulful sighing of the night wind to the joyful hurdy gurdy of the rippling brook—all creation sang His praise in complete unity. Never a missed entrance, never a note out of tune, never a wrong accent.
VOICE THREE: When God the Master Conductor handed His baton over to man, made in the image of God, chosen to exercise dominion—the perfect harmony continued.
VOICE FOUR: “If God has chosen man to direct the chorus,” said the angels, “we will sing for man the way we would sing for God. We will be man’s ministering spirits, sent to serve those who will inherit salvation.”
VOICE ONE: “If God has chosen man to direct the symphony of the skies,” said the sun, moon and stars, “we will shine forth in praise to God under his direction just as we have under the supervision of God Himself.”
VOICE TWO: “If God has chosen man to orchestrate the movements of the material world,” said the string section of plants and the wind section of animals, “we will blend our voices in the production of a never-ending aria of agriculture.”
VOICE THREE: And then—discord! The section leader, the celebrated soloist of the heavenly choir refused to follow God’s score. In a pre- meditated and calculated attempt to discredit the very character of God, Lucifer, son of the morning, began to improvise. Deliberately disregarding the God-written manuscript, he changed the harmony of creation into dissonance.
VOICE FOUR: “I’ll make my entrances when I choose to enter. I’ll play out of tune if I feel like it. I’ll use accent to draw attention to myself instead of to God.”
VOICE ONE: The created cosmos must have watched in absolute amazement that fateful day when Satan tried to wrest the baton of dominion from God’s chosen rulers. The elephants were willing to follow Adam and Eve. The eagles were willing to be ruled.
VOICE TWO: But not the serpent.
VOICE THREE: And so the world watched in wonder as Satan grabbed for the baton and it snapped in two—leaving the orchestra of the universe without a conductor.
VOICE FOUR: (KNEEL) “So sin entered the world, and death by sin.”
VOICE ONE: (KNEEL) It took the cross to restore man to the place of dominion.
VOICE TWO: (KNEEL) “God hath highly exalted Him and given Him a name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee shall bow, of things in heaven and things in earth, and things under the earth.”
VOICE THREE: (KNEEL) A man will reign for all eternity.
VOICE FOUR: A perfect man, a God-man, has accepted the baton.
VOICE ONE: Once again the entire creation which has been groaning and travailing under the pain of the discordant results of sin will experience the glory of resounding praise to the One who first created and then redeemed the world from destruction.
VOICE TWO: Worthy is the Lamb that was slain.
VOICE THREE: Worthy to receive power
VOICE FOUR: And riches
VOICE ONE: And wisdom
VOICE TWO: And might
VOICE THREE: And honor
VOICE FOUR: And glory
VOICE ONE: And blessing!
VOICE TWO: To Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, be blessing and honor and glory and dominion forever and ever.
ALL: Amen! Amen!
(READERS STAND AND MOVE TO NEXT POSITION.)
VOICE TWO: In the beginning, the resounding glory of the finale of God’s magnificent concert of creation echoed through the corridors of newly created time, ricocheted off the sounding boards of six-day- old matter, and faded away as it journeyed further and further into the infinite reaches of infant space.
VOICE THREE: A gasp of awe and amazement and wonder, and then as one, the orchestra became the audience and exploded into thunderous applause for their Conductor, their Composer, their Creator. The entire universe rose to its feet in a standing ovation, lauding the One whose infinitely artistic mind had completed in six days the complex design and composition of a perfect world.
VOICE FOUR: It seemed as if the applause would never end—but end it did.
VOICE ONE: And in the end—another conductor stepped to the podium.
VOICE TWO: (STEP FORWARD TO CENTER) I will be like God.
VOICE THREE: (CROSS TO CENTER AND SHOVE #2 AWAY) I will ascend into heaven.
VOICE FOUR: (CROSS TO CENTER AND SHOVE # 3) I will exalt my throne above the stars of God.
VOICE ONE: (CROSS TO CENTER AND PUSH BETWEEN # 3 AND # 4.) I will sit in His place on the sides of the north.
VOICE TWO: (PUSH # 1 DOWN TO FLOOR) I will ascend above the heights of the clouds.
VOICE THREE: (STEP IN FRONT OF TWO) I will be like the most High.
(DURING THE NEXT TEN LINES ALL READERS SHOVE AND JOCKEY FOR POSITION.)
VOICE FOUR: The new conductor swung his baton, and the orchestra of the universe responded.
VOICE ONE: Snare drums led the charge with the percussive beat of horses hooves. Strobe lights flashed white and then red, black and then pale grey as the sound of stallions in battle gear echoed through the corridors of time.
VOICE TWO: The compositions of the imposter celebrated not life, but death.
VOICE THREE: The deep tones of the contra bass thundered out the theme— conquering, and to conquer.
VOICE FOUR: Hordes of bloodthirsty men attacked one another as peace fled in terror before the battle fanfares of belligerent trumpets.
VOICE ONE: Famine stalked the land to the haunting tones of the double reeds.
VOICE TWO: “Death” blared the trombones. “Hell” echoed the English horns. “Kill” sang the cornets. “Destroy” responded the euphonium.
VOICE THREE: And all the beasts of the field, who once had lived in joyful subservience under the rule of God’s appointed representatives, accepted with glee their permission to join in the slaughter.
VOICE FOUR: Kill with the sword.
VOICE ONE: Kill with famine.
VOICE TWO: Kill with pestilence.
VOICE THREE: Kill with the wild beasts of the earth.
VOICE FOUR: The music swelled, growing into a crescendo of quaking that spread through all the orchestra of the universe.
VOICE ONE: The lights went out as the sun became as black as sackcloth.
(ALL READERS FREEZE IN PLACE.)
VOICE TWO: A blood-red moon bathed the entire scene in translucent crimson, the color of carnage and gore. (CROSS UP LEFT WITH BACK TO AUDIENCE AFTER LINE.)
VOICE THREE: Unending passages of tonal slides traced the descent of the falling stars in the most dreadful display of cosmic destruction the world had ever seen.(CROSS UP RIGHT WITH BACK TO AUDIENCE AFTER LINE.)
VOICE FOUR: The roar of rending earth and the howl of cyclonic winds underscored the increasing vehemence of the entire creation groaning and travailing in pain. The sounds of Satan’s orchestra paled in comparison to the magnitude of the reverberations coming from the echo of the wrath of Almighty God. (CROSS UP CENTER WITH BACK TO AUDIENCE AFTER LINE.)
VOICE ONE: Men who had been applauding the uniquely original compositions of the upstart conductor now cowered in their seats, afraid that the mountains overshadowing the amphitheater would crash about their heads, and yet even more afraid that the mountains would not come down and hide them from the great day of the wrath of God. (CROSS UP RIGHT WITH BACK TO AUDIENCE AFTER LINE.)
VOICE TWO: The conductor only thought he was in charge.
(ALL TURN TOWARD AUDIENCE AND SIT.)
VOICE THREE: The amphitheatre belonged to the One who had created its natural beauty, carving it out of the solid rock of the mountains He had also brought forth from nothing.
VOICE FOUR: The horses of destruction and the wild beasts of the killing fields who Satan thought he was sending on their way, were actually performing according to God’s arrangements. They were His instruments of judgment upon a wayward and sin-cursed earth.
VOICE ONE: From far across the valley, marching in time to a beat that bore no resemblance to the cacophony of Satan’s music, paraded a vast, numberless chorus, dressed in white robes. Rank upon rank they assembled in never-ending tiers before the throne and before the Lamb.
ALL: Salvation to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.
VOICE TWO: Blessing
VOICE TWO/ONE: And glory.
VOICE THREE: Wisdom
VOICE THREE/FOUR: And thanksgiving!
VOICE ONE: Honor
VOICES ONE/TWO: And power
VOICES ONE/TWO/THREE: And might!
VOICE FOUR: Be unto our God
ALL: Forever
VOICE TWO: And ever!
VOICE ONE: Amen!
VOICE THREE: With the mountains crashing all around him, and his strident, discordant music nearly obscured by the clear voices of praise to God, the pretender swung his baton vigorously in an attempt to challenge his musicians to greater volume.
VOICE FOUR: The peals of thunder, flashes of lighting and booming fractures of rock upon rock that shook the earth in the resultant earthquake drowned out any raucous noise the orchestra might have generated, but the anti-conductor still took his bow as if he were the only one on the podium. (CROSS TO CENTER AND PANTOMIME THE ACTION OF THE NEXT LINES.)
VOICE ONE: He hammered his baton on the conductor’s stand and screamed for attention—but at that very moment a single trumpet blast from an angel unleashed a fire storm of hail mixed with blood, destroying one third of the land over which Satan claimed to hold dominion.
VOICE TWO: He frantically signaled his brass section to trumpet their defiance of God—but a single blast from the horn of a second angel eclipsed them all. This time a burning mountain fell into the sea and decimated one-third of the seas which the Beast said was under his power.
VOICE THREE: In complete frustration the anti-conductor called on the tympani to drown out the invasive sounds of the angel trumpets, but the third blast reduced even the percussion to silence. This time a star called Wormwood contaminated a third of all the fresh water on earth.
VOICE FOUR: The conductor unleashed his entire string section, but the angel trumpet made them sound like the weak cries of a sickly kitten. This time the sun, moon, and stars were diminished by a third. The antichrist’s claims to dominion were proving as weak as the sounds of his orchestra.
VOICE ONE: The trumpet blast of the fifth angel stole the spotlight from the combined volume of the entire orchestra. And suddenly the entire contest was over. The bottomless pit spewed forth a venomous pack of horrendous locusts with scorpion tails. Even though they were ruled by Appolyon, a demon from the pit, they obeyed God.
VOICE TWO: “Hurt only the men who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads.”
VOICE THREE: The anti-conductor’s orchestra fled in terror under the attack of creatures with teeth like lions, stings like scorpions and a mission to make life miserable for five months.
VOICE FOUR: The sixth angel’s blast released a swarm of hostile combatants two-hundred-million strong. Fire, smoke and brimstone were their weapons, and anything that moved or breathed was their target. One third of all mankind died in the attack, but the rest still remained loyal to their counterfeit conductor.
VOICE ONE: (CROSS TO CENTER TO JOIN # 4.) They refused to repent.
VOICE TWO: (CROSS TO CENTER TO JOIN # 1 AND # 4.) They continued to worship demons.
VOICE THREE: (JOIN OTHERS AT CENTER WITH # 1 KNEELING AND OTHERS GATHERED CLOSE.) They showed no remorse for their murders—
VOICE FOUR: Immorality—
VOICE ONE: Nor thefts.
VOICE TWO: They believed the Liar.
VOICE THREE: The father of lies.
VOICE FOUR: The one who, when he lies, speaks his native language.
VOICE ONE: When the seventh angel sounded his trumpet, they heard the truth.
(ALL READERS MOVE AS A GROUP DOWN RIGHT.)
VOICE TWO: The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord, and of His Christ.
VOICE THREE: And He will reign forever and ever.
VOICE FOUR: Christ is the sovereign Conductor of the all the music of the universe. None other has the right to take the baton, to stand on the podium, to direct the affairs of all time, space and matter. A Man will reign in righteousness—Jesus the Son of God.
VOICE ONE: The majestic transcendence of the omnipotent God engulfed the amphitheatre where the anti-conductor’s music had been emerging. Even though his musicians had fled, and his loyal followers were hiding in the caves from the wrath of God, he still swaggered in his defiance, threatening war against the host of heaven.
VOICE TWO: Seven more angels stepped to the battlements of heaven, armed with bowls filled to overflowing with the boiling wrath of a God angered by the destructive accumulation of wickedness, spawned by generations enslaved in sin.
(ALL READERS MOVE AS A GROUP DOWN LEFT.)
VOICE THREE: Malignant sores covering the skin of every man who had taken the mark of loyalty to the Beast.
VOICE FOUR: Coagulating blood clogging all the oceans of the entire continent.
VOICE ONE: Coagulating blood clogging all the fresh water rivers and streams.
VOICE TWO: Potent escalation of the destructive rays of the sun.
VOICE THREE: Darkness intense enough to cause pain.
VOICE FOUR: Dehydration of the Euphrates River to prepare a way for the invasion of the kings from the east.
VOICE ONE: War against the host of heaven. Armageddon. Called together by the dragon, the beast and the false prophet. But even so it was an angel of God who prepared the way for them to come. Not even in his moment of greatest rebellion is the antichrist anything other than a pawn in the hands of the Sovereign God.
VOICE TWO: It is done! (WANDER AIIMLESSLY)
VOICE THREE: The bowl of the seventh angel. (WANDER AIMLESSLY.)
VOICE FOUR: Babylon the Great. The symbol of man’s rebellion against the kingdom of God. The seat of the power of all Satan-inspired revolt. (WANDER)
VOICE ONE: The mother of harlots and of the abominations of the earth. (WANDER.)
VOICE TWO: A dwelling place of demons.
VOICE THREE: A haunt for every unclean spirit.
VOICE FOUR: A prison for every unclean and hateful bird.
VOICE ONE: “All the nations have drunk of the wine of the passion of her immorality.”
VOICE TWO: “Fallen, fallen is Babylon the Great.”
VOICE THREE: “Give back to her double according to her deeds.”
VOICE FOUR: “The Lord God who judges her is strong.”
VOICE ONE: The orchestra of sin is ended.
VOICE TWO: The sound of harpists,
VOICE THREE: musicians,
VOICE FOUR: flute-players,
VOICE ONE: trumpeters,
VOICE TWO: will not be heard in you any longer.
VOICE THREE: The anti-conductor has been evicted from the podium.
(ALL READERS FREEZE IN PLACE.)
VOICE FOUR: The final battle for the right to reign over the kingdoms of the earth would be totally inconsequential if it were not for the involvement of mankind.
VOICE ONE: Antichrist and the vast army he assembles in rebellion against God never pose a danger to the Almighty, although they wreak great havoc and destruction upon earth.
VOICE TWO: The earth will run red with the blood of those the beast and false prophet have deceived.
VOICE THREE: The army of God will not lose one soldier among those who follow the King of kings into battle. (TURN BACK TO AUDIENCE AFTER LINE.)
VOICE FOUR: It will only take a sharp sword in the mouth of the Lord to destroy the nations who gather to make war at Armageddon. (TURN BACK TO AUDIENCE AFTER LINE.)
VOICE ONE: It will take only one angel to bind Satan in the abyss for a thousand years. (TURN BACK TO AUDIENCE AFTER LINE.)
VOICE TWO: It will only take a fire from heaven to annihilate those he deceives after his release from that thousand-year prison sentence.
VOICE FOUR: As the weight of his chain drags the pretender deeper and deeper into the bottomless pit, on an unending journey through darkness— there will be silence.
VOICE ONE: And then—
VOICE TWO: (TURN FORWARD.) The music begins again.
VOICE THREE: (TURN FORWARD.) Softly at first, like the faintest echo of the singing of the morning stars that celebrated the original creation.
VOICE FOUR: (TURN FORWARD.) The source of the sound will be uncertain, not because it lacks direction, but because it arises from within and without, emanating from all creation simultaneously.
VOICE ONE: Spontaneously.
VOICE TWO: Those who listen will detect the swelling of the chords as instruments join the soft singing tones of the morning stars. The sound magnifies rapidly, growing in intensity until the most thunderous passages they could ever remember hearing fade away like the distant hoot of an owl. The magnitude of the music heightens until the hearers feel they will need new eardrums to fully appreciate the mounting volume.
VOICE THREE: The flutes and piccolos trill with the clearest of tones.
VOICE FOUR: Extraordinarily rapid cadenzas erupt from clarinets with faultless precision.
VOICE ONE: (CROSS TO CENTER.) Fingers fly over the strings of harps and violas and cellos. New fingers, capable of executing passages which before had been only a wistful dream.
VOICE TWO: (CROSS TO CENTER.) The further the divine orchestra progresses into the new symphony, the more the performers realize that they are playing beyond their ability. Yet, each new accomplishment simply paves the way for a greater one to follow. Music itself is being recreated, the new song of eternity, and they participate joyfully in the process.
VOICE THREE: (CROSS TO CENTER.) Multitudes who join in the vocal chorus of praise sense the expansion of their ability to produce a more harmonious blending of voices. The approach to an absolute precision of perfect pitch increases until every new harmonic transition produces countless overtones which dance over their singing like exhuberant musical sprites.
VOICE FOUR: (CROSSS TO CENTER.) God has returned the baton to its rightful Owner and He makes all things new.
VOICE ONE: Hallelujah!
VOICE TWO: The birches hold up their branches and wave them wildly in worship.
VOICE THREE: The nightingale sings softly in praise.
VOICE FOUR: The lightning flashes its approval and calls forth a response from the thunder which echoes its acclaim.
VOICE ONE: The mountains form a trap-set for the hooves of the deer and the elk and the antelope as they stamp out their approbation like a group of teenagers beating on the bleachers to celebrate a winning season.
VOICE TWO: Salvation and glory and power belong to our God.
VOICE THREE: The rivers and brooks and streams laugh and splash with glee, having been delivered “from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the sons of God.”
VOICE FOUR: The wind whistles in tribute and sheer delight. Roosters crow their compliments to the accompaniment of the elephant’s trumpeted praise. Swans and swallows and cormorants and eagles swarm through the heavens beating the air with their wings in joyful recognition of the King of kings.
VOICE ONE: “Give praise to our God, all you His bond-servants, you who fear Him, the small and the great.”
VOICE TWO: Beavers slap their tails in unison like the simultaneous clapping of a European crowd enjoying a first-class ice-skating performance.
VOICE THREE: Roses and lilies, chrysanthemums and lilacs display their blossoms in humble adoration of their designer.
VOICE FOUR: All of the universe had been created to give Him glory—and give Him glory they do.
VOICE ONE: “Hallelujah, for the Lord our God, the Almighty, reigns.”
VOICE TWO: “Let us rejoice and be glad and give the glory to Him.”
VOICE THREE: The kingdom of the world will become the kingdom of our Lord, and of His Christ, and He will reign forever and ever.
VOICE FOUR: Every knee will bow.
VOICE ONE: Every tongue will confess.
ALL: Jesus Christ is Lord!
VOICE TWO: To the glory of God the Father.
VOICE THREE: Even so come, Lord Jesus.
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