: A Jewish young man from a wealthy family, after going through trials, wants to free his people from the Romans. He meets the Messiah and becomes a Christian.

Part one

Egyptian Belshazzar, Hindu Melchior and Athenian Gaspar are found in the Arabian desert. Each of them goes to Jerusalem to witness the coming of God, who will bring good and justice to the world. A star flashes brightly in the night sky, as an omen that God is with them.

- My faith was not fruitless: God answered me!
“How He answers everyone who comes to Him in faith,” said the Hindu.
“But, alas,” the Egyptian added, “how few are there who are able to understand when He answers them!”

From Nazareth to Bethlehem are a man with a pregnant woman, Joseph and Mary. On the way, they call in Jerusalem to participate in the census of the country, which is why they find it hard to find an overnight stay in Bethlehem. At night, the audience sees a bright star in the sky - Jacob's ladder.

In a valley near Bethlehem, shepherds graze sheep. At night, the watchman sees light pouring from the open heavens. The shepherds awakening from his cry is a man of divine beauty with wings behind his back, proclaiming great joy - God Christ was born in Bethlehem.

People visit the cave where the baby lies. Throughout the country, news of the birth of a new king of the Jews is broadcast. The current king of Judea, Herod convenes a meeting at which one of the scholars confirms the birth of a new king. Herod calls to himself the Magi and asks where the newborn is, but the Magi only claim that the birth of a new king will save people from misfortune. They come to Bethlehem to bow to the baby.

Part two

Twenty-one years pass by. King Herod dies in torment, the emperor Augustus makes Judea a Roman province, appoints her procurator (ruler) and sends him from Jerusalem to Caesarea. The humiliated population is waiting for the one who will rule Israel.

Friends of childhood meet in Jerusalem - the nineteen-year-old Roman Messala, a representative of one of the noblest families of Rome who rendered service to the emperor himself, and the seventeen-year-old Jew Jude Ben-Hur.

Having lived in Rome for a long time, Messala dreams of a military career. The greater that Judas can count on is becoming a high priest. Messala offers a friend to go over to the side of the Romans, then he will achieve everything, but Judas does not want to become a traitor. The mother of Judah supports her son: the Gurov family is one of the oldest and noblest Jewish families, Judas cannot betray its people. The day will come when the Jews will reign in their land again.

Jude’s father, Prince Itamar Gur, was the most respected nobleman in Judea. He died ten years ago, leaving his wife with two children: a son, Judah, and a daughter, Tirsa. Judah wants to become a soldier. Hating the Romans, he will learn to fight them, then to fight against them.

Tires and Judah go up to the roof of the house to watch the procession of soldiers. Suddenly, the tile, on which the young man leaned, falls from the roof and falls into the procurator, which causes delight among the people. People tear the tiles from the roofs and throw at the soldiers. The prosecutor remains alive.

Judas hopes that the prosecutor will remember the merits of his father and believe that this is an accident.

If we are waiting for justice for ourselves, then we cannot be unfair to others.

But soldiers burst into the house, beat the servants and arrest the mother and sister. In vain Judas asks Messala to intercede for them. One of the officers orders to take the women to the tower and not to harm them. The house of Gurov now becomes the property of the emperor.

Near the well in Nazareth, a convoy with a haggard prisoner, Judah Ben-Hur, stops.The people look sympathetically at the young man, but no one dares to approach him. The appeared carpenter Joseph and his son find out from the escort that the prisoner was sentenced to life for the attempt on the prosecutor. Joseph's son brings a jug of water to Judah.

Part three

It takes three years. Roman stands Quintus Arrius on a ship leaves for Rome. He draws attention to one of the galley slaves - Judah Ben-Hur. The tribune impresses the calm slave, his noble beautiful face.

Pride is never as strong as in chains.

The tribune calls the slave to himself and learns his story. Arry knew and respected the father of Judah Ben-Hur.

Judas is worried that he knows nothing about his mother and sister. If the sister was with him on the roof at that fateful moment, then the mother was in the house, she was not to blame for anything. Judas asks the tribune to learn something about their fate.

Pirates attack the ship. Judah saves the life of Arria. In gratitude, the lonely Arry makes the young man his son and heir.

Part four

After a five-year absence, Judah returns home. By chance, he hears that the property of his family went to the procurator, and nobody knows where the money is. Simonides, a former representative of Gur in Antioch, opened his own business and made a huge fortune. It is believed that the initial capital is Gurov’s money. He was arrested, tortured, but he did not say anything. Now Simonid is a cripple who cannot walk.

Judah comes to Simonides in Antioch to learn about his relatives, but the merchant demands to prove that he is before him a representative of the Gurov family. The young man liked the daughter of Simonides, Esther, and she believes him. Simonides tells Esther that he was a slave to the father of Judah, then received freedom and became his right hand, but he soon married a slave and again became a slave. Prince Gur fully trusted Simonides, and the rightful owner of his wealth was Judas. But did he suffer torture for giving his fortune? Simonides instructs the merchant Malluch to determine the identity of Judah.

In Antioch, there are chariot contests, in which Judah gets acquainted with Malluch. In one of the charioteers, he recognizes Messala. Malluch and Judah visit the sacred Castal Key. Suddenly, the visitors of the spring scattered screaming: the horses of Messal were carried, and his chariot rushes right at them. Judah stops the horses and rescues visitors, one of whom is the Egyptian Belshazzar with his daughter Ira.

The Egyptian invites Judah to visit the tents of Sheikh Ilderim, in which he stopped. Mullukh, like an old acquaintance of the sheikh, goes with the young man. Ilderim hates the Romans, who once robbed him of his property. Judah asks the sheikh for horses to compete in the chariot contest. Having defeated Messala, he finds out from the Roman what happened to his mother and sister.

The prize does not get strong, but skillful, and one who is only quick, can not be equal to those who are also wise.

Malluch tells Simonides about a meeting with Judah. Esther fears for the young man and does not want him to participate in competitions. They hope that the newborn whom Belshazzar saw has already grown. Soon he will become king of the Jews and set the Jews free.

Messala is having fun with friends. He is not afraid of a mysterious rival, a Jewish youth, adopted by the Roman consul.

Ilderim trusts Judas his purebred horses. From Belshazzar Judah learns about a newborn baby. He hopes that the baby has already grown and will save people. Belshazzar is about to find him. Ilderim advises the young man to speak with Simonides, who is more sensible than the dreamer Belshazzar.

The thoughts of Judah are now occupied by two women: Esther and Ira.

Part five

Messala, who learned that the young man adopted by the consul, is Judas Ben Hur, informs the prosecutor about this in a letter. You need to be on your guard, he can return his property. Simonides asks Ilderim to take the young man under his protection. Arriving Consul Maxentius, who took the place of the dead Arria. All non-Romans need to be careful not to confiscate their property.

Ira invites Judah to take a boat ride with her on the lake. The beautiful Egyptian woman tells the young man about her country and promises to come to the contest.

Ilderim and Judah meet in the house of Simonides. The merchant wants to give the young man a fortune, but Ben-Hur returns everything to Simonides. He hopes that the merchant will help him find out the fate of his mother and sister. The youth also gives freedom to Simonides and Esther - henceforth they are no longer slaves.

With enough money, Judah can assemble an army to fight the Romans. To this end, he decides to sell the property inherited from Arria. Esther helping him, he now considers his sister instead of Tirsa.

The day of racing is coming. Messala is confident in his victory, the whole hall wears its colors, and all the spectators put on it. The presence of Ben-Hur in the competition makes him laugh.

The man they laugh at has nothing to fear.

A friend of Judah bets a large sum of money on his friend and forces Mesalla to bet the whole fortune.

During the competition, Ben-Hur and Messala first go on a par, then Messala slightly overtakes the opponent, the tension among the spectators increases, they make bets. On the last lap, Messala is mistaken, his chariot breaks, and he falls under the feet of running horses. Ben-Hur wins the match. Messala remains a cripple, now he will not be able to walk.

Ira invites the winner to visit her father’s residence. The young man is waiting for a meeting with the beautiful Egyptian, but the house is empty, and he falls into the trap. Soon there comes a Roman sent by Messala to kill him. Ben-Hur buys a killer and agrees with him to deceive his enemy.

Ben-Hur devotes Simonides to his plan. He will secretly leave for Jerusalem to find his mother and sister there, and Simonides will report his disappearance. With Esther he gently says goodbye, but not as with his sister.

Part six

The new procurator, Pontius Pilate, conducts an audit in prisons and discovers Ben-Hur's mother and sister, who are tricked away in a leper cell. Women with leprosy are released, and they, before joining other lepers, come to their home. There comes Judas who came to Jerusalem. Seeing the house of a sleeping son, the mother does not dare to seem to him - it is better if he considers her and Tirsu dead.

Neither for the return of health and wealth, nor for all kinds of joys of life, nor even for life itself, would she dare to touch her leper lips with his cheeks!

At home, Judas finds his old maid Amr, who does not know anything about his family. Hearing that they live in a valley of lepers, Amra meets with them. Mother asks her to bring them food, but not to say anything to her son.

Judas also learns the terrible truth about his family. He is trying to find a family, but the women were kicked out of the valley, and no one knows where to look for them.

Judah adjoins the rebels against the ruler, who took money from the temple to build a new water supply. Under his leadership, the people achieve their goal. Ben-Hur disappears, remaining an unknown hero and waking people up hope for a new king.

Part seven

Judah trains several legions of warriors to use weapons. He learns of the arrival of a prophet in Jerusalem. On the way to Jerusalem, he meets Belshazzar with Ira. The Egyptian woman admires the courage of Judah. Belshazzar is eager to see the Savior. At night, Judas and Ira confess their love to each other.

Drowning may be saved, but not in love.

In the valley of the Jordan River a new doctrine is preached by a certain John of Nazareth. When Judas and Belshazzar arrive there, the sermon is already over, but another person appears, whom John calls the “Lamb of God” and says that he will take upon himself the grief of the whole world. In it, Judas recognizes the young man who gave him water when he was a slave.

Part eight

It takes three years. Having settled near Jerusalem, Judas buys out his house, in which Belshazzar and Ira settle. Simonides and Esther arrive in Jerusalem and stop at the house of the Gurs.Simonides realizes the daughter’s love for his master and warns that his heart is given to the Egyptian woman. Sly and ambitious Ira, dreaming of going to Rome, laughs at Esther, whom Rome is not interested in, and tells the unfortunate girl about her love with Judas.

Judas awaits the arrival of the Savior in Jerusalem, accompanied by twelve people of the lowest class. Judas himself saw how he performed miracles, healed the paralyzed and lepers, turned water into wine and fed five thousand people with two fish and seven breads.

Amra brings food to two leprosy mutilated women living in a cave near Jerusalem. She tells them that there is an opportunity to heal them. Mother with Tirsa decide to meet a man who will help them on the road to Jerusalem. On the road Tirsa falls, she has no more strength to go. The message that the Savior is already following this road helps her to stand up.

Women meet a procession of several thousand people who salute the king of Israel. They want to stone lepers, but the Savior tells women that what they ask for will come true. The disease begins to recede.

Judas who walks in the procession meets the healed mother and sister.

People come to Jerusalem to celebrate Easter. Among them are those who are in the legions of Judah. From them he learns that they want to kill the Savior.

Ira tells Judah that she knows all his secrets. She will be silent if he rescues Messala, whom the Egyptian loved all this time, from poverty.

Each kiss of my finger that you took away from him, ‹...› must be paid, pay for the fact that I pursued you with false love and endured you for so long, although I did it for him.

Judah banishes Ira. Esther is now his love.

On the streets of Jerusalem, people celebrate Easter. Suddenly a procession of Roman legionnaires appears. Ahead, the high priest and the police chief are leading one of the Savior’s disciples, Judas Iscariot. The procession comes to the garden where the Savior stands with the disciples. Warriors bind him. Surprised by the resignation of the Savior, Judas offers help, but he refuses.

On the night of Jesus they judge, and the tree is ready for the cross. Judas wants to gather legionaries to free the Savior, but they have joined the high priests.

On a terrible day for the world, people come to Calvary, where they brought Jesus. The mob hits him with sticks, spits at him, the crowd calls for crucifixion. Judas is trying to gather his soldiers to liberate Jesus, but they refuse: this is not the king, at the entrance to Jerusalem he refused God. But they will fight for freedom.

The execution has happened. Silent all this time, Jesus says: “Father, forgive them, they do not know what they are doing!” Darkness clouds the sky, and Judas understands that the Savior is the Son of God. When the soldiers bring a vessel of wine, Judas grabs a sponge and runs up to Jesus, but it is too late. The earth shakes, and the crowd scatter in horror. Only loyal people to the Savior remain.

Belshazzar fails to survive the death of the Savior, Ira disappears.

Five years pass. Over the years, the mother of Judah dies. In the house where Judah lives with his sister, his wife Esther, and the children, the sloppy dressed Ira comes, who killed Messala. She realized that being a Roman means being a beast. Esther, who became a Christian, like the whole family of Judah, offers Ira friendship, but she leaves. Judas tries in vain to find her.

Sheikh Ilderim leaves all his property to Judah. Upon learning that Nero is persecuting Christians, Judas decides to go to Rome and bury with the honors of the dead for faith, since for the Romans the ashes of the dead and their burial places are sacred. Esther follows her husband.

In the Roman catacombs of St. Calista can be seen on what the wealth of Judah Ben-Hur is used.