Sunday, February 4, 2024

Nothing new under the sun and moon

William Blake, Job's Evil Dreams
Plate 11Illustrations to the Book of Job
English, Watercolor, 1805-1810
New York, Pierpont Morgan Library

Job spoke, saying:

Is not man's life on earth a drudgery?
Are not his days those of hirelings?
He is a slave who longs for the shade,
a hireling who waits for his wages.
So I have been assigned months of misery,
and troubled nights have been allotted to me.
If in bed I say, "When shall I arise?"
then the night drags on;
I am filled with restlessness until the dawn.
My days are swifter than a weaver's shuttle;
they come to an end without hope.
Remember that my life is like the wind;
I shall not see happiness again.
Job 7:1-4, 6-7 
(First Reading, Fifth Sunday of Ordinary Time, Year B)

The first reading from the Mass for the Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B should remind us that illness, job stress and nighttime worry is nothing new. And don’t our days frequently feel like this?

This passage also brings to mind an image, taken from some verses further on in the same chapter of Job (Job 7:13-15), from William Blake’s  Illustrations to the Book of Job, issued first as a series of watercolors for his patron, Thomas Butts.  They were later engraved  and published in 1826. Called "Job's Evil Dreams" it well illustrates the sometimes terrifying world of the nightmare. Job lies on his bed, surrounded by flames and tormented by Satan (identified by his cloven foot) and other demons. They press upon him from above and reach up to bind him in chains from below. Truly, they are visions that terrify.

When I say, "My bed shall comfort me, my couch shall ease my complaint,"
Then you affright me with dreams and with visions terrify me,
So that I should prefer choking and death rather than my pains.
Job 7:13-15

William Blake, Job's Evil Dreams
from Illustrations of the Book of Job
English, 1826
New York, Metropolitan Museum of Art

However, Blake’s image and our own reactions are not the only responses possible to Job’s situation. Indeed, they come very late in the history of Christian interpretations of the Book of Job.


The Story of Job
From a Bible historiale  by Gerard des Moulins 
French (St. Omer), mid-14th century
Paris, Bibliotheque nationale de France
MS Francais 152, fol. 234



The Old or Jewish Testament was embraced by Christians from the very beginning. St. Paul’s letters are filled with references from the Jewish Scriptures, and the slightly later canonical Gospels make constant references to them, in quotes used by Jesus, in subtle allusions to situations and events that reflect back to the Scriptures.

Some of the earliest Christian art includes an illustration of Job's sufferings.  For example, it appears on the Sarcophagus of Junius Bassus, dating to 359, only a few decades after the legalization of Christianity by the Roman Emperor Constantine (in 315).  

Job on the Dunghill
Detail from the Sarcophagus of Junius Bassus
Roman, c. 359
Vatican City, Vatican Museums, Museo Storico del Tesoro della Basilica di San Pietro



Surviving early manuscripts from what is now Iraq and from Greece also include scenes from the Book of Job.

Job, His Wife and Friends
From a Bible
Syriac (Iraq), c. 500-700
Paris, Bibliotheque nationale de France
MS Syriaque 341, fol. 16r



The Affliction of Job
From a Bible
Greek, c. 8th-9th Century
Vatican City, Biblioteca apostolica vaticana
MS Vat. gr. 749, Part 1, fol. 25r




Job Arguing with His Friends
From a Bible
Greek, c. 8th-9th Century
Vatican City, Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana
MS Vat.gr.749, Part 2, fol. 126r




In these early works and in the subsequent medieval and later periods artists had what might be called an external vision of Job’s trials. Images detailed the destruction of his possessions and his family, his torments (often personifying Satan as the agent of them), his conversations with his three “friends”, Eliphaz, Bildad and Zophar.  The "friends" attempt to explain the misfortunes of Job as a punishment from God for having sinned in some way, while Job denies their assertions and maintains his own rightousness, blaming God for his sufferings.  He points out that frequently it is those who fear and obey God who are the ones who suffer, while the evil seem to be rewarded with the good things of the world.  This exploration of the inequality of suffering has always been a valuable one for believers to consider, since the same conditions apply today just as they applied when Job was written.


Eliphaz Addressing Job
From a Bible
Greek, 9th Century
Patmos, Monastery of Saint John the Theologian
MS Codex 171, fol. 75



Job and His Friends
From a Bible
Greek, 905
Venice, Biblioteca Marciana
MS Gr. 538, fol. 27r



Job
Marble Capital
From Notre-Dame des Doms
French, c. 1150
Avignon,  Musée du Petit Palais



Job and His Friends
From a Moralia in Job by Saint Gregory the Great
Italian (Perugia), c. 1200-1250
Paris, Bibliotheque nationale de France
MS Latin 2232, fol. 14r



Job, His Wife and Friends
From a Breviary
French (Montieramey), c. 1250
Paris, Bibliotheque nationale de France
MS Latin 796, fol. 200v



Master of the Bréviary of Senlis, Job and His Friends
From a Bible historiale by Giuard des Moulins
French (Paris), c. 1350
Paris, Bibliotheque nationale de France
MS Francais 161, fol. 226v





Jean Bandol and Others, Job on the Dunghill with His Wife and Friends
From a Grande Bible Historiale Completee by Guiard des Moulins
French (Paris), c. 1371-1372
The Hague, Meermano Museum
MS RMMW 10 B 23, fol. 245v



Job Admonished By His Friends and His Wife
From a Bible historiale by Guiard des Moulins 
France, Paris, Early 15th century
Paris, Bibliotheque nationale de France
MS Francais 3, fol. 255r




Jean Fouquet, Job on the Dunghill and His Friends
From the Book of Hours of Etienne Chevalier
French, c. 1452-1460
Chantilly, Musée Condé




Job on the Dunghill with His Friends
From a Book of Hours
French (Paris), c. 1490-1500
The Hague, Koninklijk Bibliotheek
MS KB 76 F 14, fol. 78r


Job and His Friends
Russian, c. 1500
Moscow, Cathedral of the Annunciation




Jean Bourdichon, Job and His Friends
From a Book of Hours
French (Tours), c. 1503-1508
Paris, Bibliotheque nationale de France
MS Latin 9474, fol. 119v



William Blake, Job Rebuked by His Friends
English, c. 1805-1810
New York, Pierpont Morgan Library and Museum



An interesting feature of the images I located in my search is that, in the main, they come not from Latin language texts (i.e., from illustrations of the Vulgate, works of the Fathers [for instance the Moralia in Job of St. Gregory the Great] or from Books of Hours), but from books written in the vernacular languages of Europe or popular picture books such as illustrated Bibles or the Speculum humanae salvationis, that is from books available to and read by literate lay persons.



Master of the Hours of Johannette Ravenelle, Job tormented in His Sleep
From a Bible historiale by Giuard des Moulins
French (Paris), c. 1395-1400
Paris, Bibliotheque nationale de France
MS Francais 159, fol.225r




William Blake, Satan Smiting Job with Sore Boils
English c. 1805-1810
New York, Pierpont Morgan Library and Museum





A favorite image was of Job being nagged by his wife. This last is from the same strain of “comic relief” that saw other Biblical nagging wives feature in medieval mystery and morality plays. Mrs. Noah, Mrs. Lot and Mrs. Job were popular characters, their assaults on their husbands moments of fun for the audience.


The Christina Workshop, Job and His Wife
From a Bible
French (Paris), c. 1245-1255
New York, Pierpont Morgan Library
MS G 31, fol. 156r



Master of Fauvel, Job with His Wife and Friends
From a Bible historiale completée by Guiard des Moulins
French (Paris), c. 1320-1340
The Hague, Koninklijk Bibliotheek
MS KB 71 A 23, fol.204v



Job Visited by His Wife and Musicians
From a Book of Hours
Flemish (Bruges), c. 1465-1475
New York, Pierpont Morgan Library
MS M 285, fol. 261v


Albrecht Durer, Job and His Wife
German, c. 1504
Frankfurt, Stadelsches Kunstinstitut




Master of the Getty Epistles, Job with His Wife and Friends
From a Book of Hours
French (Paris), c. 1547-1559
Paris, Bibliotheque nationale de France
MS Latin 1429, fol. 73v




Georges de la Tour, Job Mocked By His Wife
French, 1630s
Épinal, Musée  departmentale des Vosges


 


Attributed to David Ryckaert III, Job Tormented by His Wife
Flemish, c. 1630-1331
Paris, Musée du Louvre




Jusepe Ribera, Job on the Ash Heap
Spanish, c. 1630
Private Collection


Gaspare Traversi, Job Mocked by His Wife
Italian, c. 1750-1770
Warsaw, National Museum




Sometimes, however, Mrs. Job is not so much a stock figure of the nagging wife, she is actually a willing participant in the torments being heaped upon Job.  She is often shown as an onlooker, or even a participant, in the work of Satan.



Job Tormented by Satan and His Wife
From a Speculum humanae salvationis
French (Alsace), c. 1370-1380
Paris, Bibliotheque nationale de France
MS Latin 511, fol. 21r




Job Tormented By Satan, By His Wife and By Boils
From Speculum humanae salvationis
France, Mid-15th century
Paris, Bibliotheque nationale de France
MS Francais 188, fol. 25





Master of the Feathery Clouds, Job on the Dunghill Tormented by Satan, His Wife and His Friends
From a History Bible
Dutch (Utrecht), c. 1467
The Hague, Koninklijk Bibliotheek
MS KB 78 D 39, fol. 308r




Master of Edward IV, Job Tormented
From a Speculum humanae salvationis
Flemish (Bruges), c. 1485
Paris, Bibliotheque nationale de France
MS Francais 6275, fol. 22r




After a lost painting by Peter Paul Rubens, Job Tormented by Demons and Mocked by His Wife
Flemish, 17th Century
Paris, Musée du Louvre






For these time periods Job was the symbol of patience, of trials patiently endured. He became the model for Everyman.



Job as a Leper Seated on the Dunghill
From a Bible historiale by Guiard des Moulins
French (Paris), c. 1400
Paris, Bibliotheque nationale de France
MS Francais 9, fol. 244r



Maitre de Lucon and Collaborators, Allegory of Patience
From Livre des bons meurs by Jacques Legrand 
France, Paris, c. 1410
Paris, Bibliotheque nationale de France
MS Francais 1023, fol. 15v
In this image a harried mother or nursemaid receives inspiration from the patience of Job as he lies on his dunghill.  (The obviously wriggling children are another reminder that not much actually changes in everyday human life.)


Jabob Jordaens, Job
Flemish, c. 1620
Detroit, Institute of Arts




It was only later, beginning in the last decades of the eighteenth century, when the artists of the Romantic period with their emphasis on the interior emotions and the self, that such works as Blake’s could have appeared. Although the words of the Biblical text were always there and always available for illustration, they were only looked at when such emotions became attractive to artists and to the public.


William Blake, Job, His Wife and His Friends
English, c. 1785
London, Tate Gallery



William Blake, Job's Despair
English, c. 1805-1810
New York, Pierpont Morgan Library and Museum




Leon Joseph Bonnat, Job
French, 1880
Bayonne (FR), Musee Bonnat


Job with His Wife and Friends
American, 1882
Boston, Trinity Church




Felix Desruelles, Job
French, 1896
Valenciennes, Musée des Beaux-Arts



James Tissot, Job and His Friends
From the Old Testament Series
French, c. 1896-1902
New York, The Jewish Museum


James Tissot, Job Lying on the Heap of Refuse
French, c. 1896-1902
New York, The Jewish Museum



© M. Duffy, Originally published 2012, revised with additional material 2024.