The Bible In Paintings: ADORATION OF THE MAGI, Part 1

[Hebrews 11:6]

The Bible In Paintings 2
ENCOURAGEMENT FOR APPRECIATING AND APPLYING GOD'S WORD

ADORATION
OF THE MAGI

M A T T H E W
CHAPTER 2

After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him.”

The star they had seen in the east went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and THEY BOWED DOWN AND WORSHIPED HIM. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold and of incense and of myrrh. And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route.

1
JAMES TISSOT
"The Adoration of the Magi"
Typical Title

2
GENTILE DA FABRIANO
Source

3
Detail

4
MATTHIAS STOMER
Source

5
JACOB JORDAENS
Source

6
PIETER FRANSZ DE GREBBER
Source

7
JACOPO BASSANO
Source

8
HIPPOLYTE FLANDRIN
Source

9
EDWARD BURNE-JONES
Source

10
DANIELE CRESPI
Source

11
ORAZIO DE FERRARI
Source

12
FRANCESCO DI SIMONE DA SANTACROCE
Source

13
ANDREA MANTEGNA
Source

14
BONIFAZIO VERONESE
Source

15
HIERONYMUS BOSCH
Source

16
Source

17
ABRAHAM BLOEMAERT
Source

18
GIUSEPPE PERONI
Source

19
CENNI DI FRANCESCO
Source

20
PETER PAUL RUBENS
Source

21
LUIS DE MORALES
Source

22
LUCA GIORDANO
Source

23
GUIDOCCIO COZZARELLI
Source

24
RUELAND FRUEAUF the Elder
Source

25
JAN MOSTAERT
Source

26
CHARLES-ANDRE VAN LOO
Source

27
EUGENIO CAJES
Source

28
BERNARD VAN ORLEY
Source

29
HENDRICK TER BRUGGHEN
Source

30
GASPAR VAN DEN HOECKE
Source

31
SIMON BENING
Source

→ a n d... f i n a l l y ←

32
ZANOBI STROZZI
Source

To be continued…

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[Hebrews 11:6]

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[Hebrews 11:6]

ADORATION
OF THE MAGI

[Red Badger]

“...coming to the house...”

Jesus was not in the manger when the Magi came to see him.

He could have been as much as 3 years old by that time............

[SisterK]

not a fan of halos, but #8 is refreshing and elegant in its clean lines, subdued color and simplicity

The Magi are not even Jews, are they?

[Hebrews 11:6]

Yes. Between the manger and his appearance in the Temple at age 12, we have undated visits: first by the Magi, and then by the Holy Family to Egypt during Herod’s Massacre of the Innocents.

[Hebrews 11:6]

They’re usually presumed to be Babylonian Gentiles.

[Red Badger]

All we know for certain is Jesus was born sometime during the reign of Caesar Augustus, 31 BC – 14 AD.

And was crucified during the reign or Tiberius, 14 – 37 AD.

If we ever find documents that pinpoint the time of the Census that Augustus ordered, we may clarify the birthdate to some extent.

The date of the crucifixion is fairly well documented by the time of the Passover and the Sabbaths and High Holy Days and New moon cycles of the Jewish calendar.................

[left that other site]

Good Morning, Dan. :-)

[Hebrews 11:6]

Lately, derived dates for Jesus’ earthly sojourn seem to be ~4BC - ~29AD.

[Hebrews 11:6]

Mary-Lou, may I introduce you to our visitors Belthasar, Gaspar and Melchior. Gentlemen, this is our beloved Mary-Lou.

[etabeta]

All very beautifully painted but my favorite is Tissot. Love the semi darkness of the scene, the only light emanating from the baby Jesus. Mary and Joseph seem to disappear in the background, the focus is on the Magi, signaling the coming to Jesus of Jews and Gentiles. The gift they bring have a specific symbolism: the gold represents Christ’s kingship; frankincense, his priesthood; and myrrh, an ointment used in burial, foreshadows his death.

[Hebrews 11:6]

Precisely why I placed it first.

Time and again Tissot captured the essence of the Scripture, evidencing a responsiveness, I think, to the Holy Spirit's guidance. That's why he's my favorite. Indeed, when I gather the art for each individual Scripture event, I always make sure to check whether Tissot contributed his take, too.

[SouthernClaire]

#6: What a blessing!

Thanks, Dan.

[Hebrews 11:6]

That is marvelous, Claire. The Magi certainly dressed up for the occasion! And Jesus returned their appreciation.

[thepoodlebites]

Jesus was not in the manger when the Magi came to see him.

He could have been as much as 3 years old by that time............
____
Correct, Jesus was a toddler. If Jesus was born on June 17, 2 BC and the Magi visited on Dec. 25, Jesus was six months old. We don’t know how many wise men from the East were present but three gifts suggest three Magi.

The paintings are absolutely wonderful. Many triangles are represented, either directly or indirect; the Trinity.

[InkStone]

Good Morning Dan, and hello to all!
Wonderful and exciting works, every one. Thank you.
#4 Stomer, #8 Flandrin (simple, muted style) and #26 Van Loo, of vibrant colors.

But what about the ‘star’ that brought the Magi? It seems that Jerusalem wasn’t aware of a change in the night sky. Some say that these Magi ‘astronomers’ saw a new star, but one so small to go unnoticed by a ‘non-professional’.

[InkStone]

Appreciate your analysis.

[InkStone]

Great Bio!
Love the story about your college paper...

[Hebrews 11:6]

a new star, but one so small to go unnoticed by a ‘non-professional’

Well-noticed, Leon! You and Pete might enjoy reading this brief synopsis of Christian astrophysicist Hugh Ross' proposal of a "recurring nova" as the most likely explanation.

[etabeta]

Thank you, InkStone!