Martha Read Online Free PDF Page A

betrothal party so that she would not be embarrassed in front of the groom’s parents.
    Martha brought date cakes that had been packed in stone crocks, and loaves of fresh bread. Judith was a gracious hostess, and Tobias, now the head of their house, made sure each guest was made welcome. The neighbors truly rejoiced for Esther in her good fortune, but Martha wondered if it was more out of relief. Not one of them had approached Tobias on their son’s behalf after Esther’s father left the village.
    Now she observed Esther’s husband-to-be as he and Esther spoke awkwardly—aware of being watched closely by the other guests. Micah was a tall, thin, serious man with a full beard and dark eyes. Martha began to wonder if he ever laughed and her heart became concerned for her friend. Would he be good to her? Then she shrugged. At least Esther would be a bride, and hopefully one day a mother.
    â€œI hope the children look more like Esther,” she murmured to herself.

 4 
    The month of Ab with its summer heat arrived and the grapes shimmered on the vine. Like others in their village, Ephraim’s vineyard was interspersed with date palms, should the grape harvest prove to be small. It would give them another crop to harvest for the family needs.
    The vineyard usually provided enough to make wine for their family, and some years Ephraim was able to sell some of their wine in the marketplace. However, most of the proceeds went to pay the taxes. As she became more proficient in her weaving, Martha began to take her cloth into Jerusalem to trade for other needs of the household. She learned to haggle firmly with the merchants, and sometimes when she won an encounter, she would catch a brief smile on the face of the merchant, who admired her bravery.
    The grapes were picked and Martha worked hard alongside her sister to fill the baskets they moved down the rows of vines. Some grapes would be spread out on the ground on cloth to dry into raisins. As with other crops, the poor of the village were allowed to pick the grapes left behind on the vines.
    The grapes were pressed immediately by people stomping around in the soft pulp in the winepresses. Martha sent Mary first to the winepress, glad that her leg had healed well—there was now no sign Mary had been injured. Pressing the grapes was messy, but Mary and Lazarus laughed and teased each other about their red feet as they took their turn pressing the grapes. Their tunics, though tucked up in their girdles, were stained at the end of the day.
    Martha, bringing another basket of grapes, smiled at their happy faces and watched the juice run down into the bedrock vat. The juice, after the vat was sealed, remained for a short time until the yeast in the grapes turned the sugars into alcohol. Then her family would work together as they drew the juice into jugs, where it was left to settle for another month or so. Finally, her father would strain the wine to remove any sediment, and it would be stored in large jugs and sealed with beeswax.
    When Martha and Esther, taking their turn, pressed the grapes with their feet in the vats, their talk was of the wedding. Esther would wear her mother’s bridal dress, but Tobias would purchase new sandals for her. She would need them on the journey to Bethlehem.
    One Sabbath afternoon, not long after the grape harvest, Martha and Esther sat under the shade of an ancient olive tree. Esther’s wedding was approaching in a few weeks.
    Martha glanced at her friend. “Are you fearful of being a bride?”
    Esther twisted a blade of grass in her fingers and nodded slowly. “I have wondered how it is between a man and a woman on their wedding night. My mother says she will tell me about this when it is time for the wedding. Tobias said Micah is a kind man and I must do all I can to be a good wife.”
    Martha hung her head. “At least you will be a bride, Esther. I have this feeling that I shall never