Ahimelech Giving the Sword of Goliath to David,
Painting by Aert de Gelder (1645-1727),
Painted in the 1680's,
Oil on canvas
© John Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles
Ahimelech Giving the Sword of Goliath to David,
Painting by Aert de Gelder (1645-1727),
Painted in the 1680's,
Oil on canvas
© John Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles
David went into the house of God when Abiathar was high priest
Mark 2:23-28
One sabbath day, Jesus happened to be taking a walk through the cornfields, and his disciples began to pick ears of corn as they went along. And the Pharisees said to him, ‘Look, why are they doing something on the sabbath day that is forbidden?’ And he replied, ‘Did you never read what David did in his time of need when he and his followers were hungry – how he went into the house of God when Abiathar was high priest, and ate the loaves of offering which only the priests are allowed to eat, and how he also gave some to the men with him?’
And he said to them, ‘The sabbath was made for man, not man for the sabbath; the Son of Man is master even of the sabbath.’
Reflection on the painting
Jesus mentions David and Abiathar the High Priest in our reading today. Our painting depicts Ahimelech, a priest in the city of Nob, where the unarmed David had just arrived. Ahimelech gave the sword of Goliath to David, who had won the battle defeating the giant. The sword was widely seen as a symbol of power. When King Saul heard of all this, he had Ahimelech and other priests killed at the Massacre of Nob, for helping David. Abiathar, mentioned in our reading, was the sole surviving priest of the Massacre in Nob. Fleeing to David, he remained with him throughout his wanderings and his reign.
Jesus is saying in today's reading that he and his followers are like David and his men. Actually, seventeen verses in the New Testament describe Jesus as the 'Son of David'. The title 'Son of David' is more than a statement of physical genealogy. When the New Testament refers to Jesus as the Son of David, they mean that he was the long-awaited Messiah, the fulfilment of the Old Testament prophecies. 'Son of David' is a Messianic title.
This subject matter of our painting is very rarely depicted in art. Aert de Gelder, our painter, was pupil of Rembrandt and we can can clearly see the master's influence. If you look closely at the sleeve and headdress of Ahimelech, you can see small scratches and incisions, done by the artist with a knife, to raise some of the paint from the canvas so it would catch the light in a more vivid way.
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Qué interesante! Me encantan tanto la interpretación de la lectura de hoy como el cuadro y la explicación de sus detalles. Es fascinante poder vivir el Evangelio aprendiendo arte al tiempo que extrapolamos sus magníficas observaciones Vs. la reflexión de las Escrituras. No siempre puedo revisar el sitio y/o leer los comentarios del debate, pero me parece magnífico. Muchas gracias!
Precioso cuadro…y gracias por resaltar los detalles de las incisiones por un cuchillo, en la camisa. no habia reparado en ello…
A beautiful painting. Thank you Patrick for today’s reflection and this site. You are rekindling my appreciation for art. In my younger years I used to enjoy going to the Art Institute of Chicago and spending hours appreciating all of the artwork there.
Wonderful painting – and not Rembrandt,
Sometimes Jesus is just so pragmatic ☺️ I do wonder at his ‘titles’ The Son of Man being more baffling…
In my self test, I got the date about right – and I thought it WAS a Rembrandt….
The Israelite armies saw Goliath as too big to hit.
Young David saw him as too big to miss!
At first site I thought this was a Rembrandt- then you quickly put me right Patrick! What an astonishing work of art, I shall have to find out more about this artist. The stories of David are like resounding echoes down the millennia that we see repeated, as you say, in the New Testament but also today. I’m thinking about Ukraine just now.