One Intriguing Story (1) ...A Woman Called Susanna

There lived a man named Joakim who married to Susanna. Susanna was a beautiful woman and deeply religious. Her parents were devout Jews. Her husband Joakim was very wealthy. Lovely gardens surrounded his house, and the other Jews often gathered there for meetings. Everone who had a legal case to present would also go to Joakim's house, whre 2 judges held court. These 2 leaders of the Jewish community had recently been appointed to office.
Everyday at noon, when all the people left for lunch, Susanna used to take a walk in the gardens. The 2 judges were so attracted to her that they would wait around and watch her. They became so obsessed with their desire for her that they lost interest both in prayer and in their responsibility as judges. They each wanted Susanna, but neither told the other how he felt, for each was ashamed to admit his lust.
One day Susanna went into the garden as usual with her 2 servant girls. No one else was there, except the 2 judges, who had hidden themselves and were watching Susanna. It was very hot and she decided to take a bath. So she said to her servants, "Bring me some bath oil and some perfume, and lock the gates, so that I won't be disturbed." The girls did what Susanna asked, and they did not notice the 2men.
As soon as the servants left, the 2 judges jumped out from their hiding place, ran to Susanna, and said, "The gates are locked and no one will see us. We are burning to have sex with you, so give us what we want. If you don't, we will go to court and swear that we saw you send your servants away, so that you could be alone with a young man.
"There is no way out," Susanna moaned. "If I give in to you, I could be put to death for adultery. If I refuse, you will still have me trapped. But I would rather be your innocent victim than sin against the Lord. So she started screaming as loud as she could and the 2 judges began shouting accusations, while one of them ran and unlocked the gates.
As soon as the servants in the house heard all the noise, they ran into the gardens thru' the side door to find out what happened. The judges told their story, and the servants werre shocked and ashamed.
The next day, in front of all the people assembled at Joakim's house, they said "Send for Joakim's wife Susanna." When she was called, she came in with her parents, cildren and other relatives. Susanna was so graceful and beautiful that the 2 wicked men ordered her veil to be removed, so that they might enjoy looking at her. Her family and everyone else were in tears.
The 2 judges started their accusations against her. She was crying, but she looked up to heaven because she trusted the Lord. "We were walking in the gardens when this woman came in with her 2 servant girls. She locked the main gates and asked the servants to leave. Then a young man who had been hiding in the gardens came to her, and they lay down together. We swear that our testimony is true." Because the 2 men were not only leaders in the community but also judges, the people believed their story and condemned Susanna to death.
Then Susanna cried out in a loud voice, "Eternal God, nothing can be kept secret from you; you know everything before it happens. Here I am about to die, but you know that I am innocent, that these men are lying. Why must I die?"
The Lord heard her prayer and led a yound man named Daniel to speak out, just as Susanna was being taken away to her death.
Daniel stood up before them and said, "People of Israel, how foolish can you be? Are you going to condemn an Israelite woman to death on this kind of evidence? You haven't even tried to find out the truth. Reopen the case...
So all the people hurried back to where the trial had taken place...
Daniel said them, "Separate the 2 judges, and let me question them one at a time. The Daniel called the 1st judge and said "...Now if you really did see this couple making love, tell me, what tree were they under?"
"Under a small gum tree," he answered.
Then the first judge was led away and the 2nd one was brought before Daniel. "...Now tell me what tree you saw them under?"
"Under a large oak tree,"he answered.

Read the Bible to enjoy the rest of the story.