Pictures from the Exodus journey

The Jewish holiday of Sukkot - also referred to as the 'Feast of Tabernacles' or 'Festival of Booths' ended recently which is fitting because during this time I was completing work on our latest picture set which depicts how God provided for the children of Israel during their 40 years in the wilderness. During the Feast of Tabernacles today, Jewish people all around the world build temporary booths/shelters, which they live in for seven days, as a reminder of the temporary dwellings erected by their forefathers during the Exodus wanderings. It's a time of thanksgiving for Gods faithfulness and provision!

Picture 1 shows the children of Israel sojourning through the wilderness. All the rocks/mountains have been drawn from photographic references taken in the Sinai peninsula. I noticed that the rocks have a pinkish tinge when compared to the rock colour which I normally use so I've tried to match all the rock colours to the reference photos. Every mountain in these pictures exists although I can't give you an exact location! ;0)

Picture 2 shows the people complaining to Moses that they have no food. Picture 3 is set in the evening and shows a great bevy of quail landing in the Israelite camp. Picture 4 is set in the morning and shows the people gathering manna in pots. I've tried to show the different ways that manna could be eaten - there's a pot of manna on-the-boil, some of it has been baked into buns and some children are eating it fresh off the ground! There have been a number of attempts to explain away manna as a naturally occurring substance - not something miraculous. However, even though there isn't a particularly detailed description contained in scripture, there's enough to rule out a natural occurrence! Remember that this substance appeared every morning, was enough to feed around 2 million people, and only lasted for a day except when collected the day before the Sabbath!

Picture 5 shows the people complaining to Moses again! When we read this account we are often amazed at how much complaining the Israelites did, even after they had seen God deliver them in so many miraculous ways. but the fact is that we are all stubborn and rebellious against God - it's in our nature. What is truly amazing is Gods goodness and patience with us! By nature we are far away from God. This means that the transformation from rebels into worshipers is always going to be a painful one! Our desire for a closer walk with God will lead us into a wilderness journey simply because we need to be changed! In fact, so radical are the changes that need to be made in us - only God can make them! God wants the very best for us, and He knows that the very best for us is God!
We also need to learn to wait on God daily, just as the Israelites did, for anything that's going to be of true value in this life.

Picture 6 shows Moses striking the rock and water bursting forth as the elders watch in amazement! Picture 7 (above) shows the israelites filling water pots and drinking from the newly flowing stream. Remember that this stream/river was enough to quench the thirst of a great multitude so it's unlikely that the water trickled from the rock as we sometimes see in Bible pictures. The lady stood on the right of the picture above is the English illustrator and Bible artist Cicely Mary Barker (when she was young). This is my little tribute to her!

There are 7 pictures in this set which I will link to as soon as they're uploaded to the Bible picture website.
Look forward to your comments.

Bible Artist News!

I've received a few updates recently from Bible artists around the globe that I would like to share with you. There are also a number of new children's Bibles about to be released which I'm sure you'll find interesting.

'The ICB Big Red Holy Bible, Contemporary 3D Art Edition', (not sure who came up with the snappy title), is due to be published next month and is illustrated by A friend of mine Graeme Hewitson. Graeme tells me that the cover of this bible has a "really cool 3d effect" which should be interesting. The Bible contains Graeme's very cool 3D artwork which the publisher Tommy Nelson is hoping will appeal to 'today's video-game generation'. This is a bold move away from traditional Bible art, and if its successful, will no doubt have other publishers following their lead. This will be good news for all the CG artists out there. There's a facebook movie promoting the ICB Big Red Holy Bible...etc etc here. Graeme has promised me a signed copy which I look forward very much to seeing. (Thanks Graeme)

Keith Neely has finally completed the ICB Illustrated Bible series and the first copies should be back from the printer early October. More details about the new 'ICB Illustrated Bible' can be found at Keith's new website www.freeillustratedbible.com which is packed with information including a very interesting 'How we created the Illustrated Bible' page.
Keith is looking for a publisher/distributor in the U.K. to distribute copies here, so if you're interested contact Keith.

As I've previously mentioned in the 'Shanah Tova' post, the latest volume of the Modern Hebrew Children's Bible will be on its way to the printer next month also. This will be the fourth out of five volumes and includes the books of Job, Psalms and Proverbs. The Modern Hebrew Children's Bible has been illustrated by our friend Diana Shimon in Israel.

Balage Balogh has launched a new website Archaeologyillustrated.com which is devoted entirely to his Bible Art. Balagh sent me his latest picture (above) which I'm sure you'll all enjoy. (Click on the picture for a bigger version). Balage describes the scene as "...an illustration of Herod the Great's temple from inside the Royal Stoa during a major Hag, maybe Pesach." Don't forget to check out Archaeologyillustrated.com, you won't be disappointed.

I was also contacted last week by Ed Olson who has been working on a new book project with his wife Linda which is based on Creation. To learn more about this project and to see a dummy of the book click here! Ed and Linda are looking for a publisher - so, if you're interested contact Ed.

In closing, I'm hoping to be interviewing CEF's Bible artist Tim Shirey over the weekend for the Bible illustration blog so I'm looking forward to that. Tim is one of our regular contributors to the B.I.B and is based in Switzerland. Jewish Bible artist Nahum HaLevi will shortly be adding his latest painting titled 'Ezekiel' to his website. As usual, this will be accompanied by a lengthy and informative description which I've had the privilege of reading already, (Thanks Nahum).
As always, I look forward to your comments!

Graphically illustrated children's Bibles

I had an email this week from a 'Jenny' in Indiana who is trying to get hold of a children's Bible which she owned as a child in the 70's. She describes the Bible in question as having "..the most graphic illustrations imaginable. By this, I mean that our mother eventually cut out the picture of John the Baptist’s head being served on a platter!" Jenny goes on to describe a picture of "Solomon holding a baby up by the heel with a sword ready to cut it in half." also a "...dreadful illustration of the murdered babies in the slaughter of the innocents."
They don't illustrate Bibles like that anymore! No, really, they don't!

Jenny, who wants to get a copy of this Bible for her brother who's now a pastor, closes her email by saying "Now that I have kids (ages 4 and 6), I am pretty sure I’m glad that most of the Bible story books we have now are much more tame!" If you think you might know which children's Bible Jenny is describing, or how she might get hold of a copy, please leave a comment or send me an email which I can pass on to her.

The early 80's was probably the last time that we see really graphic images in children's Bibles. The image above of David holding Goliath's severed head is from The Great Bible Discovery series published in 1983. It's hard to imagine a publisher re-printing images like this today, but will the sugar-coated Bible illustrations of today be as memorable? I also wonder if the trend to move away from a realistic Bible illustration style is because the publishers today associate this style with the more explicitly illustrated Bibles of the past?
Look forward to hearing your comments.
Image © OM Publishing 2010

Shanah Tova - Happy New Year!

'Shana Tova' to all our Jewish readers! Yes, Rosh HaShanah (The Feast of Trumpets) is here again so I thought that I would take this opportunity to give a plug to HaGefen Publishing's new calendar which runs from September 2010 to September 2011 (covering the Jewish year 5771). The calendar features devotional Bible verses and vibrant illustrations by our good friend Diana Shimon.

The illustrations are taken from the Modern Hebrew Children's Bible which Diana continues to work on. Volume four, which includes Job, Psalms and Proverbs, is due to be with the printer in October. The fifth and final volume, which will include the final books of the Hebrew canon - Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, Daniel and the two books of Chronicles, is due to be completed in the next two to three years. For more information on the Modern Hebrew Children's Bible or to order a calendar, contact HaGefen publishing in Israel.

L'Shana Tova Tikosevu! (May you be inscribed for a good year!).

Pictures of the Passover

I have finished the pictures for the Passover story at last! There are 18 pictures in this set which has taken months to complete due to all the detailed Egyptian settings and the sheer amount of people (and insects) involved in the story. The pictures retell the story beginning from when Moses and Aaron first came before Pharaoh, and ending when the Egyptian army is destroyed in the Red Sea.

One of the first questions I needed an answer to was "Do we know how old the Exodus-pharaoh was?" Dr Douglas Petrovich from 'Associates for Biblical Research' has written a very interesting article titled 'AMENHOTEP II AND THE HISTORICITY OF THE EXODUS PHARAOH' which you can read here. Amenhotep II does seem to be the most likely candidate for the exodus-pharaoh. Regarding the age of Amenhotep II at the time of the exodus Dr Petrovich told me....
"I am very confident of the age of Amenhotep II at the time of the exodus, given the synchronism between biblical and ancient Egyptian history, both of which provide us quite accurate and detailed information. I follow Wente and Van Siclen in assigning a reign of 37 1/3 years to this pharaoh, and concluding that he lived 55 years.

 They are confident of his age at death, because the ancient source known as the Sphinx Stele declares that he was 18 years of age when he ascended the throne. There is no reason to doubt this. Redford, Der Manuelian and other Egyptologists argue convincingly that his coregency with his father lasted 2 1/3 years, which I have documented in my article.

 Since the dating of Amenhotep II's reign begins at the inception of his coregency, thus when he was 18 years old, and his reign was numbered without interruption through the coregency and into his sole reign, we know that he would have been approximately 26 years old during his Regnal Year 9, the year of the exodus, with a variance of only 1 year possible. Of this we can be very confident."

Regarding the age of Amenhotep's firstborn son Dr Petrovich says....
"As for the age of his firstborn son at this time, Thutmose, unfortunately I have virtually no confidence. I wish we could know more. The chance always exists that a new discovery WILL answer this for us, but only time will tell.
 
What we can be sure about is how old he was not. Given that his father was 26 (or so) when he died, this son could not have been more than 9 years old or so. Most likely, his father would have wed between 18 and 22 years of age, so Thutmose most likely was 3 to 7 years of age--at the oldest--at the time of his death; perhaps "5" would be our most logical supposition. Obviously, he may have been less than a year old, so this cannot be ruled out. What we can rule out is the chance that he was an adolescent or young adult."

We have a fairly good idea of what Amenhotep II looked like. There are a number of stone sculptures, monuments and tomb paintings which record both his physical features and his accomplishments as a hunter, archer and charioteer. He is often shown wearing a nemes headcloth which features a prominent uraeus, (upright spitting cobra), on the front. The body of the cobra undulates up and over the top of the headcloth. In picture 1 we see Moses and Aaron before pharaoh. Aaron's rod has become a serpent and is swallowing the snakes conjured up by the Egyptian magicians. This spectacle is being watched with interest by Amenhotep's hunting dogs! These dogs, which are thought to have been either greyhounds or Ibizan hounds, appeared with Amenhotep II on wall paintings and were not only regarded as hunting dogs - they were highly regarded pets of the ancient Egyptians and were often mummified and buried with their owners.
On the subject of hunting there is also evidence from tomb paintings that tame cheetah's were used by the huntsmen also.

Picture 2 (above) depicts the first plague as the Nile, which itself was considered a deity by the Egyptians, is turned to blood. The dogs appear again in this picture as does Thutmose who I portray as being 5-6 years old as per Dr Petrovich's comments above. Picture 3 shows the plague of frogs. Egyptian handmaidens are rooted to the spot screaming as frogs leap around their feet. The frogs show no regard for the Egyptian deities as they clamber over the image of the Egyptian god Anubis! picture 4 depicts the plague of gnats. Thutmose is shown standing on his fathers throne using his father's giraffe tail fly swatter to battle the insects. This is the only time he will ascend to his father's throne which is the reason why a number never appears after his name. Thutmose III was the father of Amenhotep II. He was Egypt's most-powerful, imperialistic pharaoh. He would have been pharaoh when Moses left Egypt to go to Midian.

Picture 5 illustrates the plague of flies. On special occasions the egyptian women wore cones made of animal fat on top of their heads. These cones of fat were scented with spices and herbs and as the fat melted the hair became perfumed and greasy! The cones were often worn pierced through with a flower. The flies in this picture are particularly interested in these scented domes to the horror of the wearers! Picture 6 depicts the plague which killed the Egyptians livestock, and picture 7 shows the plague of boils. Picture 8 depicts the plague of hail stones and lightning and I show both the crops of flax and barley being destroyed. Picture 9 shows the plague of locusts and picture 10 shows the approaching plague of darkness. I've tried to show this darkness approaching in full day light to illustrate its all consuming nature. I don't believe that this darkness could be compared to night time - the Bible describes it as a darkness that could be felt! It also sounds like this darkness couldn't be dispelled by interior lamps either. It's interesting that this darkness comes just before the death of the Passover lamb because the next time we see an inky blackness to compare with this is just before the sacrifice of the Lamb of God on the cross. Young Thutmose is holding a toy horse which is based on an actual ancient Egyptian toy from this period.

Picture 11 shows the family preparing the Passover lamb which can be seen lying on the table in the background. The father of the house is applying the blood to the door lintel and posts as the mother prepares to roast the lamb. The daughter is standing outside holding a bunch of hyssop for her dad. modern Bible scholars still express uncertainty about the actual identity of the hyssop plant mentioned here, but as it was used on this occasion almost like a paintbrush, and in the levitical purification rituals for sprinkling, it does suggest that the plant was able to hold moisture. For this reason some have suggested that the plant Origanum syriacum, (Syrian hyssop) seems the most likely candidate. This is the one I decided to use in the picture.
The little girl is not happy as the lamb whom she had cared for during the last four days has been slain. (Ex 12:3-7) The mother too is holding back the tears and is being comforted by her little son. This is a reminder of the awful consequences of sin and the necessity of a blood sacrifice. Without the shedding of blood there is no remission of sin. Hebrews 9:22

Picture 12 shows the death of the firstborn. It's not long past midnight and the lifeless body of Thutmose lies in the lap of his mother. Moses and Aaron have been told to take the Israelites and leave Egypt. Various bottles of lotions and potions are scattered around the floor that were used in a vain attempt to revive the young boy. Picture 13 shows the children of Israel nearing the end of their 25 mile journey from Rameses to Succoth. This journey began in the night and would have taken around 5 hours. The sun is just starting to rise over the sea of Israelites who by conservative estimates were around 2 million in number! Moses is leading them and he is surrounded by excited children. One boy to the right of Moses is carrying a kneading trough which holds a lump of unleavened dough partly covered by a damp cloth. The girl to the left of Moses is the same girl from picture 11. She's not sad anymore though. she's wearing a beautiful golden Egyptian necklace which is part of the bounty of Gold, silver and clothing given to the children of Israel by the Egyptians. She is walking along pretending to be an Egyptian princess with a bulrush head in her hand. The death and shed blood of her little lamb which she mourned so deeply for has both secured her freedom from captivity and provided her with a new garment to wear also! These are all significant illustrations of the Gospel.

Picture 14 (above left) shows the Egyptian chariots pouring forth from Egypt in hot pursuit of the Israelites! Incidentally, the wheels of Egyptian chariots had six spokes, not four as is sometimes suggested. Picture 15 depicts the parting of the Red Sea which we've talked about in more detail here. Picture 16 shows the nation of Israel passing through the sea on dry land. The scene is flooded with light from the pillar of fire and cloud. As the people pass through the deepest part of the sea some of them have lit torches. In the far distance you can just make out the crowds coming up onto the opposite shore bathed in moonlight. Picture 17 shows the Egyptian chariots charging into the divided waters. Pharaoh's chariot however is perched on a rock overlooking the scene as Amenhotep II later returned to Egypt, without his army, to reign for a few more years. The chariots are being driven into a dense black cloud and chariot wheels are starting to break off. The pillar of dark cloud which is holding back the Egyptians is struggling to conceal the brilliance of the Shekinah fire on the opposite side which is providing light to the Israelites. Towards the top of the pillar shafts of blinding light are piercing through the cloud like volcanic lightning! Just behind the pillar of cloud you can see that the opposite shore is lit by the Shekinah fire.

The final picture shows the water crashing down onto the Egyptian chariots! As soon as this set is uploaded to the Bible picture website
I will add a link so that you can view all the pictures.
© G D Kennedy 2010

Moses in the Bulrushes

Recently finished the picture set retelling the story of 'Moses in the Bulrushes'. Picture one shows the Israelites hard at work under their Egyptian task masters. I wanted to include in this picture some of the ancient Egyptian building methods such as the splitting of rocks using wooden wedges and water, and the methods used to transport the huge stone blocks. Picture two shows the midwifes before Pharaoh. Picture 3 (right) shows Jochebed placing baby Moses into the bulrushes. I talk more about egyptian bulrushes here. Jochebed is holding back the tears as she places Moses into the providential care of God. Miriam places a comforting hand on her mothers shoulder. Aaron was 3 years old at this time, (Exodus 7:7), and other sources place miriam at around seven years old. There seems to be some confusion amongst Bible illustrators concerning the age difference between Moses and Aaron, particularly later on in the story when they stand before Pharaoh (which I'm illustrating at the moment). Some children's Bibles show Aaron to be much younger than Moses, and in one I own he's about 40 years older! So, just to clarify this, around the time of the ten plagues Moses was 80, and Aaron was 83 years old. I show Aaron with a slightly more receding hairline!

In picture 4 baby Moses is found by the egyptian princess. I've mentioned before that baby Moses was crying at this point which few artists show. Are there any other points that artists should be aware of concerning baby Moses? Yes, he was a fine looking baby! (Exodus 2:2) If you look closely at picture 4 you can also see Miriam hiding in the bulrushes! In picture 5 Miriam is speaking to the princess, and in picture 6 Jochebed and Miriam come to take baby Moses into their care. Jochebed is walking away, with her back to the princess trying to hide her delight, and Miriam is looking up at her mum, daring not to speak, but with a "we got away with it!" look on her face. In picture 7, Jochebed presents a young toddler Moses to the princess. Moses has brought a little gift for the princess - not a flower, but a bulrush head as a reminder of when she first found him. (that's not in the Bible by the way, it's artist's license!) Picture 8 shows Moses, now a young man, enjoying the privileges of living in the grand Egyptian palace.

There are 8 pictures in this set which brings our total picture count to 840. Look forward to your comments as always.

Related posts
Baby in a Basket

Balage Balogh: Merging Art and Archaeology

One of the many tasks of the Bible artist is to recreate the ancient civilizations of Bible times. In our attempts to accurately portray scenes which are set in ancient Egypt, Babylon, Israel, Assyria or Rome etc, we utilize all the latest archaeological evidence available to us. We have often discussed the question "How important is it to add lots of historical detail into our Bible pictures?" The consensus was, that so long as it doesn't slow us down too much, (as we sometimes have many pictures to illustrate in one story), adding well researched historical details does help to make a scene that bit more convincing. I'm not saying that we need to go to the same lengths as Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema as he sought to "bring antiquity back to life," but I think that we should try, to the best of our abilities, to present each story in its correct setting.

Having said that, for a small number of Bible artists it's immensely important that all historical details are absolutely accurate! These are the Bible artists whose job it is to illustrate Study Bibles, and of course those very helpful illustrated Bible Encyclopedias and dictionaries that we use. These artists have the great privilege of working alongside Bible scholars, Archaeologists and Archaeological Architects like Dr Leen Ritmeyer, all experts in their respective fields. One such artist, Balage Balogh, contacted me a few weeks ago, and gave me permission to share some of his wonderful artwork on the B.I.B.

Balage, was born in Budapest, Hungary and attended art school there. As an immigrant he settled in New York before traveling extensively in the Mediterranean, the Middle East and the Orient. Balage has worked for many years with archaeologists, scholars and museums creating archaeological reconstructions, and shares our passion for Bible Art! He was excited to find "a community of Bible artists who hang out together on the B.I.B", and is looking forward to joining with us as we discuss the various issues surrounding Bible illustration. You can see more of Balage's Bible art at his website, but before you rush off there, check out the samples below. Enjoy!

King David's balcony 10thcBCJosiahNebuchadnezar's palaceNehemiahSolomon's Temple
All pictures on this post are © Balage Balogh 2010

Happy Easter!

Happy Easter to all our readers!
The picture (right) is taken from our picture set which depicts 'The Resurrection'. Although the setting of this picture is fairly dark, you can still make out the chalk and water whitewash that was used on tomb exteriors in Israel.
I talk more about this in the
'Raising Lazarus' post.

Below is a short poem titled 'Easter Day' written by missionary to India, Amy Carmichael. Hope you like it.

Easter Day

The Lord is risen indeed, Alleluia!
Lord Christ of Easter Day, Christ the victorious,
On this most radiant of all radiant days,
Thee do we worship, Redeemer, all-glorious,
Offer Thee hearts' adoration and praise.

Sealed was the stone, and the rock did enfold Him,
There in the silence of moonlight and stars,
Till the hour struck; then the tomb could not hold Him,
Snapped like a straw death's omnipotent bars.

Evil may triumph to-day, but To-morrow,
Seeth the end of satanical strife.
Fear not and falter not; sin pain and sorrow
Fall when He cometh, the Christ, Prince of Life.

Sound the word over the land and the waters,
Let it sound over the air once again;
Christ hath arisen. His sons and His daughters,
Lift up your heads, for He cometh to reign.


Taken from the book 'Edges of His Ways'. Amy Carmichael was the founder of the Dohnavur Fellowship.

Classic Bible Stories

When I first wrote about the Bible art of Frank Hampson I received emails from a number of people all asking if I knew where they could obtain a copy of 'Jesus: The Road of Courage' from. My answer was always the same, "Sorry, copies are very hard to find." That was the case up until now!
A few weeks ago, John Freeman, who works for Titan books, left a blog comment on the Frank Hampson post informing readers that, at the end of this month (March), Titan books will be releasing 'Classic Bible Stories' which combines both 'Jesus: The Road of Courage' and 'Mark: The youngest Disciple'. John says that "Both strips have been scanned from good quality issues of Eagle.......the collection will also include Hampson's beautiful Nativity illustration from the 1957 Eagle Annual".

(Before you rush to order a copy, you might want to read the Update/Review below). I haven't seen any of the artwork from 'Mark: The youngest Disciple' as yet, or Hampson's Nativity art, so I'm really looking forward to seeing this new book.
For me, the visual interpretation of Jesus, (see cover) is my only complaint. Some of Hampson's character designs look very 'British' and his interpretation of Jesus would perhaps fit better in a 'Robin Hood' graphic novel than in one based on the New Testament. Having said that, most of his other character designs are superb!
if it's dynamic, lavishly illustrated Bible artwork you're looking for, it doesn't get better than this! Does anyone know if Hampson illustrated any of the Old Testament stories for Eagle comic?

Update/Review:12 March 2010
Just received my copy of 'Classic Bible stories' and I have to say I'm disappointed. I need to quickly clear up a couple of misleading comments in the post above. Firstly, I was led to believe, by John Freemans's post comment, that there was additional Frank Hampson artwork, based on the Nativity, that had been included in this book. There isn't! The 'Road of courage' already includes the Nativity story, which I should have realized!
Secondly, you will notice on the book cover above, which appears on Amazon, the name 'Frank Hampson'. Well, that name doesn't appear on the cover of the actual book, and there's a good reason why it doesn't. The story of 'Mark: The youngest disciple' isn't illustrated by Hampson! It's illustrated by Giorgio Bellavitis. While Bellavitis' work is pleasant, it's not in the same league as Hampson's. So, if you're a Hampson fan, and you already own a copy of 'The Road of Courage' and you were hoping to find some new Hampson Bible Art in this book, (as I was), you will be disappointed.

That wasn't what disappointed me most about the book though. The worst thing about this book is the print quality. My copy of 'The Road of Courage' published by 'Dragon's Dream' was printed 29 years ago in the Netherlands and it's superb! All Hampson's fine line work and his subtle color work is all there to be admired. In this new version however, the fine black line work has filled in to a solid black and the subtle colors are harsh or bleached out! I'm not sure if it's the scanning or the printing, or both, that's at fault, but whoever O.K.'d the printing proofs was not a Hampson fan! I would certainly not have passed them!
The question remains, "If you don't already own a copy of 'The Road of Courage', should you buy this one?" I hate to say no but, If you really want to appreciate Hampson's Bible art, then you need to see an earlier version! If this book was produced for fans of Hampson's art, or the Eagle comic, no expense should have been spared when reproducing the original art.

Traditional Life and Customs in the Holy Land

You may remember me commenting some time ago how Bible artists, who travelled to the Holy Land in the late 1800's - early 1900's to gather references for their Bible pictures, were "too heavily influenced by what they saw" and photographed. (See Margaret Tarrant and William Hole). Well, having now seen the newly released collection of photo's titled 'Traditional Life and Customs' available from lifeintheholyland.com, I can now understand the reasons why these artists illustrated exactly what they witnessed! For instance, when you look at how primitive the farming methods recorded in these photos are, it's hard to imagine how they could have changed from Bible times. This collection of picture cd's will be an excellent resource for Bible artists. Many thanks to Professor Todd Bolen for making them available.

The following description is taken from Todd Bolen's website:
Founded in 1881 by Horatio Spafford (author of the famous hymn, It is Well With My Soul), the American Colony in Jerusalem operated a thriving photographic enterprise for almost four decades. Their images document the land and its people, with a special emphasis on biblical and archaeological sites, inspirational scenes, and historic events. One of the photographers, G. Eric Matson, inherited the archive, adding to it his own later work through the “Matson Photo Service.” He eventually donated all the negatives to the U.S. Library of Congress, which has made them available to the public.

This CD includes more than 600 selected photographs of life practices of native people in Palestine in the early 20th century, including scenes of the agricultural cycle, locust plagues, shepherds, fishermen, religious observances, and home life. All of the images are included in pre-made PowerPoint® files for quick and easy use, as well as in high-resolution jpg format, suitable for projecting or printing. Quotations from 19th-century travelers give additional context to the photographs.
Sample picture. (click on picture for larger image).
Amongst other subjects, the collection includes:
Agricultural Life: Plowing, Sowing, Water, Vineyards, Locust Plague, Grain Harvest and Olive Harvest (185 photos total)
Home Life: Food Preparation, Women at Work, and Weddings (100 photos total)
Religious Life: Christian, Jewish, Muslim, and Samaritan (110 photos total)
Work Life: Clothes Making, Fishing, Pottery Making, Shepherds, Trades, and Travel (150 photos total)

For more information on this excellent collection click here. One final word of advice, artists should still use discretion when using early photos for reference as Arab style clothing will be predominantly seen in photos from this period, and there may be some buildings seen in the photos which show architectural features which were not found in Bible times.

Images © lifeintheholyland.com 2010

The Tower of Babel

There are many weird and wonderful interpretations of the Tower of Babel that can be found in both picture books and paintings, so how do we go about finding out what the Tower of Babel actually looked like? The best way to find out is to look at the earliest examples of large-scale buildings found in roughly the same area. These are of course the Ziggurat's of Mesopotamia. Most biblical scholars and archaeologists agree that the Tower of Babel was most likely an early, if not the earliest, form of Ziggurat. Ziggurats were a type of tower which were commonly found in the Sumerian, Babylonian and Assyrian cities of Mesopotamia. Mesopotamia means "the land between two rivers" and was located between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers in present day Iraq.

The picture above is my drawing of a ziggurat before I added all the people busy in construction. Many Bible artists show the Tower of Babel towering up into the clouds, but the Bible does give the impression that the tower, due to Gods intervention, was left unfinished, as was the city. It's been suggested that the reason why there are no remains of such a sizable structure to be found today is because God frustrated their work in the very early stages.
As I was planning on showing the tower unfinished (at 3 levels), I also needed a way of showing how high the tower was intended to be when finished, (7 levels). The only way that I could think of doing this was to show the people gathered around a plan of the intended tower drawn onto a stretched animal skin, which we see in picture one. (left)

Ziggurats
Ziggurats were huge stepped structures that were 2 to 7 tiers high, and usually found in the centre of a city. On the highest platform a temple was built to worship the various deities of the time. Because ziggurats were considered to be the dwelling place of a particular deity, only priests were permitted on them. The Mesopotamians believed that these ziggurat temples connected heaven and earth. The highest ziggurats went up to 300 feet high, which is equivalent to a 30 story office block today! They were built from mud bricks as there were few trees and little rock to quarry in the area. Unlike todays buildings, ziggurats were solid. The ancient architects did not have the know-how to build tall hollow structures, and so they filled them with earth. They were in effect man-made mountains! This is best seen in picture 3 which is an ariel view of the partly built ziggurat. The fact that ziggurats were solid would do away with the need for scaffolding which you do sometimes see in pictures of the tower of Babel.
Each flat terrace was paved with kiln-baked bricks. Some Bible artists have shown these flat terraces planted up with plants and trees. This is interesting because these ziggurats were like giant planters complete with drainage holes! You can see how the ancient architects later developed the idea of planting up these raised platforms in the hanging gardens of Babylon.The holes which look a little like windows in the walls of the ziggurat were there to allow water trapped inside to evaporate. The British archaeologist Leonard Woolley (1880-1969), who was well known for his excavations of the ziggurat at Ur, called these holes 'Weeper holes'.

Ziggurat Bricks
Ziggurats were built with two layers of brick. The inner layer was built of sun-dried bricks, and the outer layer was built of kiln-baked bricks which were less porous. The wooden brick molds seen in picture 2 are loosely based on the Egyptian ones that I've seen in Manchester museum. The bricks that were baked, to make them water resistant, were baked in dome shaped kilns made from, (yes you've guessed it), mud! These kilns had holes in the sides which dry twigs could be fed through to keep the fire going. When the bricks had cooled, they were removed from the dome and ready for use.
Bricks were also glazed in many different colors, I've chosen terra cotta and blue, but other colors were also available such as white and indigo. The temples constructed on the top tier were built entirely out of blue or indigo glazed bricks. The mortar used to hold the bricks together was bitumen (Gen 11:3). This was found in natural pits in Mesopotamia. In the photo on the right you can see a close up of the bricks and bitumen mortar used on the ziggurat at Ur. Bitumen or pitch was also used for other purposes during Bible times such as coating the outside of vessels. (See the Noah's Ark post).

There are 5 pictures in the 'Tower of Babel' set which can be viewed here. This brings our Bible picture count to 832!

New Bible Picture website Launched!

Our brand new website is finally live! Click here to visit the new 'Bible Picture website'. You can now view every picture in each picture set, in large format!
We are asking all of our previous 'Visual Impact Resources' customers, (and all new customers), to register on the new 'Foundation Matters' website. Registration only takes a minute to complete, and we can then keep you up-to-date with news of each new picture set as it becomes available.

All of our new picture sets which have been completed over the last two years are now ready to view. We've had one or two teething problems where the thumbnail pictures have jumped out of sequence but don't worry, when you receive each powerpoint all the pictures will be in the correct order!

Those of you who are familiar with the old 'Visual Impact Resources' website will be wondering where all the older picture sets have gone. (We had over 100 Bible stories already illustrated but in a less detailed, or cartoon, style). All these picture sets are still available and will be slowly added back onto the new site under the heading 'Previous Series'. So, if you can't find the story you're looking for, drop a quick email to Jem Hudson.
We wanted to concentrate first of all in getting all the recent pictures, (done over the last two years), onto the web for the first time!

The picture above is from our recently finished picture set which tells the story of 'Abraham and Isaac'.
There are six pictures in this set which brings our total Bible picture count to 827. Don't forget to check out the new website here!

Biblical Art on the WWW

I received an email this morning from Rolf Stærk in Norway. Rolf runs the website 'Biblical Art on the WWW'.
After 10 years and around 8,000 hours work on the website, which displays small thumbnail images of biblical art, he has been informed by one of the copyright holders that his website infringes copyright law.

Rolf was not aware of this and is unsure of where he legally stands on the matter. He could use some advice from a copyright lawyer but he's not in a position to pay for one, so if there are any christian copyright lawyers out there who might be willing to give Rolf some advice I'm sure that he would greatly appreciate it.
This is a well used site with 1,500 visitors a day, so it would be a great shame if Rolf was unable to continue. You can contact Rolf here.

Image above from www.artbible.info

How do you draw a 65 year old man?

The question above is a little misleading - the question should read "How would you draw a 65 year old man from the early Old Testament period?" (but that was a little too long for a post title!) I was pondering this question as I was illustrating the story of Enoch with his newborn baby Methuselah. The problem is, Enoch, (who was 65 years old), lived for another 300 years after the birth of Methuselah and before God took him. So, how old would Enoch have looked at age 65 bearing in mind that he was going to live another 300 years? I'm just wondering if the aging process at this time was much slower. The Bible tells us that the average life span was much greater up until, and just after, the flood. So, let's say for example that a man lived to be 500 years old. When he died, would his physical appearance have been like that of a typical 100 year old man today? Would this then mean that when he was 250 years old he would have the physical appearance of a 50 year old? And when he was 125 would he have looked like a 25 year old? In other words, could the whole aging process have been much slower? This might explain why so many first children were born to those over 100! For example, Enoch's father Jared was 162 when his first child Enoch was born. Methuselah was 187 when his first child Lamech was born, and Lamech was 182 when his first child Noah was born, etc.

A similar thought arose again last week as I was illustrating the story of 'Abraham and Sarah'. (picture 2 right). We've all heard how, when in Egypt, Abram asked Sarai to pretend to be his sister. Abram's fear was that, because Sarai was so "fair to look upon", If the men in Egypt knew that they were man and wife, they would kill Abram just to be with Sarai. Most Bible artists who have illustrated this scene depict Sarai to be in her twenties, when actually she was 65! Did she look younger though? More surprisingly, when the same thing happened again some time later with King Abimelech, Sarah was in her 90's! Now, I know that many ladies age well, for instance the actress Julie Newmar who played Catwoman in the original Batman TV series still looks amazing at 76, but how many men would kill off the husband of a 90 year old lady just to be with her? This is what was happening with Sarah! Was this because the aging process was slower then? I don't know, it's just a theory! The down side to slow aging would be that parents would have those difficult teenage daughters to cope with for about 30 years! :0p

I doubt that many theologians have lost any sleep over this question but it does have a relevance for Bible artists and illustrators who are seeking to accurately portray biblical events. I decided to depict Enoch looking as a youngish 65 year old man might look today. The reason being that if the pictures are used with children, and the person telling the story mentions Enoch's age, it might be confusing to the child if he looks a lot younger than 65. Drawing Sarah was more of a challenge! Most artists who show Sarah at 90 depict an old lady, but Sarah was still very "fair to look upon!"
Looking forward to your comments on this interesting subject.
There are two pictures in the 'Enoch' set and seven in the 'Abraham and Sarah' set which brings our total Bible picture count to 821.
At the end of this month we will be launching a brand new website! The new website will display every picture done over the last 14 months. as well as all our previous pictures from the old website. As soon as the website goes live I'll pass on the link via this blog. You will also be able to view all the pictures in large format too!

Holocaust Memorial Day

Today is 'Holocaust Memorial Day'.

Holocaust Memorial Day (HMD) is commemorated internationally on 27th January each year. This date was chosen as it is the anniversary of the day in 1945 on which the Soviet Army liberated the largest Nazi concentration camp – Auschwitz-Birkenau.

Thanks to everyone who followed the link to the HMD website and lit the virtual candle in memory of those who suffered.

Happy Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Happy Christmas to all the readers of the Bible illustration blog. I hope that this is a time of Peace and blessing for you.

My apologies that this is a very short post, but it's been a very long day!!! zzzzzzzzzzzzzz!

Update: 1 January 2010
Happy New Year!

Guest Bible Artist Interview #6

Kelly Kozumi Shinozawa
There's no denying the worldwide appeal of Japan's 'Manga' art form, and, in an attempt to appeal to the younger reader, Bible publishers have been quick to respond to the demand by producing Bible based manga! If you check out the manga forums, out of all the various attempts at biblical manga produced, the fans give the 'thumbs up' to the 'Manga Messiah' series of books. The reason for this might be due to the fact that NEXT, (the publisher), have employed genuine Japanese manga-ka's, (manga artists) to produce all the artwork. NEXT is a non profit corporation that was set up in 2006 for the purpose of producing biblically based manga. Three out of the five books planned in the 'Manga Messiah' series are already available, the fourth, 'Manga Melech' , is in production. The first two books, illustrated by Kozumi Shinozawa cover the New Testament, and the remaining three books, 'Manga Mutiny', ' Manga Melech' and 'Manga Messengers' cover the Old Testament. So far these books have been incredibly popular and NEXT have already produced and distributed over 1.5 million copies worldwide, available in 16 languages!

Due to its popularity, Manga is likely to be playing a big part in Bible story telling for some time to come so the Bible illustration blog wouldn't be complete without an interview with a 'Bible Manga-ka'. Many thanks to Nate Butler of Christian Comics International for putting me in touch with Kozumi Shinozawa, illustrator of the first two books in the 'Manga Messiah' series. The interview follows:

Kozumi, Have you always wanted to be a Manga-ka?
Yes. My mother said I started to draw very well when I was in kindergarten. I loved to draw and I especially loved to imitate Anime characters like Takahashi Rumiko's, who is a very famous Manga-ka in Japan. After I graduated elementary school, I was influenced by Hayao Miyazaki's animations.
At that time, my dream was to become a professional Manga-ka. However I thought it was impossible because I knew that it is very difficult to become a Manga-ka.

When did you first become a professional Manga-ka?
When I was 19 years old, still a college student, I became a Shojo Manga-ka which is a Manga artist for girls.

You mentioned Takahashi Rumiko and Hayao Miyazaki. Have they influenced your style?
I have been a big fan of Hayao Miyazaki and Rumiko Takahashi since I was an elementary school student. I was affected and influenced by their pen touch and story but now, my style has become more personal and my own.

How did you first become interested in the Bible?
Actually, I started to read the bible when I was a child. ( about 10 years old) This is very unusual in Japan because our culture is Buddhist.  Commonly, children and adults don't know the bible.
However my father was really interested in Western culture because he used to go to the USA for his business. One day, he suddenly gave me a bible and he said,"all American people know the bible story, perhaps all western people. You should read it and increase your general bible knowledge." His idea was just for my education. Actually I couldn't read the bible because it's a very thick book and looks difficult for children. Finally my father gave me a kind of picture bible, so I could understand almost all the stories in the bible.

Were you excited when you were approached to produce a Manga version of the Bible?
I want to tell you about my father again. When I became professional cartoonist, I was 19 years old, and my father said "Why don't you draw comics for the bible?"  I said "I don't want to do it because I just became a shojomanga-ka (a Manga for girls) and shojomanga-kas usually draw pretty girls and handsome boys. I don't want to draw old men with beards".
So many years passed, and I became a Christian when I was 33 years old in NY. When I came back to Japan, I was 35 years old. At that time, my father was terminally ill.  I still hadn't started drawing Manga again, when suddenly a Christian publishing company contacted me and told me about a Manga bible project.  When I heard that news, I remembered what my father had said 16 years before. I was very surprised and I immediately understood that it was God's work.

God has clearly used your father to guide you to where you are now. We have often discussed the question on the blog "What did Jesus look like?" Was it difficult to arrive at a finished design that everyone was happy with?
Yes... I struggled and suffered thinking about how to describe Jesus. I saw many pictures of Jesus  but it didn't give me an answer. I was reading the bible and studying Jewish culture.... I didn't want to draw Jesus like a Caucasian man, however I also didn't want to draw Jesus with a long beard in a typical Jewish rabbi style. Many people gave me advice but it made me confused. There was a lot of debating about his appearance. Finally I decided on a Japanese style because my boss said "Draw a real Japanese manga style all children can understand. I agreed with my boss.


Were there any Bible characters or stories that you found difficult to illustrate, and why?
The crucifixion was the most difficult scene for me.  When I drew it, I was moved. It was difficult to draw pages 242 to 268 and I could not stop crying. I felt like that I saw a real crucifixion. I said many times "I am sorry Jesus. Your suffering for all of my sin. I am sorry". I could understand how Jesus suffered on the cross because, at that time I had just lost my father from cancer, and he lost a lot of blood from his mouth and he was suffering badly until he died. For several hours I cried thinking about Jesus on the cross and  prayed. All of my experiences gave me the energy for drawing the crucifixion. I believe that it was God's timing for drawing Manga Messiah.

Thanks for sharing that Kozumi. As you were designing all the Bible characters and scenery, how did you go about your research?
Of course I researched bible history and culture very diligently.  Actually, I went to Israel to study it. I went to all the places in Israel that are mentioned in the Bible. I took a lot of pictures. You can see my photograph on p.276 of the lake of Galilee in the Garden where Peter received His call. Moreover I used many photos for Manga Messiah and I even processed photos in Manga style.
Finally I chose my characters' hair style and color from Japanese Manga style because my priority was that children should like it.  Manga is for children. I wanted to draw so more children would like it. Clothing and buildings I tried to draw realistically.

I believe that most Japanese Manga is produced in black and white. Was there a reason why you added color on this occasion, and did you add the color to the pictures yourself?
Yes, my assistant and I added all the color.  It was hard work. Usually Japanese manga is black and white, but I heard foreign children like colored manga. My boss decided to add color; however it was not easy for me. Actually I started drawing it April 2004 and finished it in August 2005. Every day I couldn't sleep very well.  We spend a lot of time painting and coloring and it took about 1 year to finish Manga Messiah.   

I'm glad that you added the color! Do you have any other Bible related projects in the pipeline?
Last summer I went to Finland for manga mission. The Finnish Bible Society and I joined the comic market, called Fincom, and we sold a lot of Manga Messiah to non Christian people. At that time I did a presentation and drew many pictures in front of people. They liked it. It was a good experience for me.
Recently, I talked to the director of Japan campus crusade for Christ. He asked me to draw "four spiritual laws" in manga style. This is a difficult work because the four spiritual laws doesn't have stories. However I tried to study the four spiritual laws. Finally I made an original story that is easy for people to understand.   

I look forward to seeing that. When you started work on the 'Manga Messiah' project were you expecting it to be as successful as it has been?
No. I didn't expect it to be so successful.

What advice would you give to a young person reading this interview who wants to become a Manga-ka or Bible Artist?
If someone wants to draw Manga for Christ, I want to say why don't you come to my office? I really want to talk about what we will do for our God and what kind of Manga God wants to produce with young foreign people. I want to work with God and many people.

Thank you so much Kozumi for taking the time to speak to us, and I'm sure that many artists will be lining up to come and visit you!
If you would like to contact Kozumi, (or Kelly), you can visit her blog here.
There is also a wonderful filmed interview with Kozumi (which is sub-titled for English readers) made by Harvest Internet TV in Japan. The interview shows Kozumi at work in her studio and includes her moving testimony. To view the movie Click here.
Look forward to your comments!

All pictures © NEXT 2009. Used with kind permission.
 

Happy Hanukkah!

Happy Hanukkah to all our Jewish readers!

My apologies that things have been quiet on the blog. This has been due to me having extra responsibilities recently looking after elderly relatives. This has meant that I've had no spare time to blog! However, I now have about seven posts ready to type up when I get a minute, (hopefully this weekend), so watch this space! My apologies also for being slow in answering your emails and comments on the blog. I will get around to this! Thanks for your patience.

Biblical Illustrator Magazine

Have you had a look along the shelfs of your local newsagents shop recently?
It's amazing just how many different topics are covered by magazines nowadays. There seems to be a magazine for literally every taste!
I was very excited last week when I came across 'Biblical illustrator' magazine!
My first thoughts were "Wow! They've brought out a magazine for Bible illustrators!" However, on closer inspection, I realized that 'Biblical illustrator magazine' is not actually intended for Bible illustrators, It's for anyone interested in Bible study. (Which is just as well as there are not that many Bible illustrators around!) Having said that, It is most likely a great magazine for Bible illustrators.
'Biblical Illustrator' Magazine, (which has been in existence since 1974), is available quarterly and contains "vivid portraits of Bible lands, people and customs. Maps, and breathtaking color photos!" The magazine is published by Lifeway, and also includes "well-researched articles related to Lifeway Sunday School lessons".

See some sample articles in pdf format here, and here.
This looks like a really interesting magazine! Also available is 'Biblical illustrator plus' which is a CD-ROM "that provides content identical to the magazine, plus quick access to more than 200 pages of study material and much more".
I'm ordering my copy now!

Bibleartist.com update!

I've just updated Bibleartist.com with some new photos under the post title 'Carpenters and Shepherds'.
After much thought, I have decided to change the focus of Bibleartist.com from being a blog that contains picture references of everything Bible related, to a blog that contains purely Bible costume and figure reference. My reason for this is that there are already a number of good websites that contain a large collection of picture references relating to Bible times buildings, animals, plants, tools etc, (see right hand column), but not many that contain good costume or figure references.
The new photos were taken by a relative of Bible artist Graeme Hewitson while visiting the 'Nazareth Village Project'. Many thanks again Graeme!

Graeme Hewitson has recently set up Eikon Bible Art in conjunction with Ritchie Christian Media, so we wish him all the best with this new venture!

Eastern Coin Headdresses

There was an interesting comment left by 'OneGod' on 'The Lost Coin' post that I thought I would share with you.

Or what woman having ten pieces of silver, if she lose one piece, doth not light a lamp, and sweep the house, and seek diligently until she find it?
Luke 5:8

“This little bit of silver must have been one of the coins which Jewish, and indeed other Eastern women, sew on to their head-dresses.
Decent women were not seen, even much at home, without these snoods, which is why the loosened hair of the woman, or women, at the Master’s feet is noted.
There were no bank accounts or post-office savings banks for women in those days; their economic earnings were very small.
Till lately, Chinese women put any little bit of money which came their way into buying a silver bangle, or a thin sheet of gold-leaf worn in a bag within their bosoms.
In Judea, a bride came to her husband with at least ten silver coins sewn round her head-band, and often more: and her husband knew just how many there were, for he could see them.
They belonged to him, as she did, although the Law did not allow his creditors to seize these personal coins on his wife’s head.
In fact, a crafty might give his wife many such coins, yet owe much to a creditor, which was very annoying to the latter.
Nevertheless, woe betide the woman who lost her coins: her husband immediately suspected her of a wrong use of them; and the laws of divorce in the Master’s day were so heavily loaded against the wife that a man might divorce his wife if but one of those marital coins was missing from her headgear.
That was why that woman in the Master’s sharply drawn tale of sweeping so desperately; taking broom and candle in an agony of dismay.
She was sweeping, not only for a bit of metal, but for home and shelter and respectability; for her right to a safe and honorable place in society, perhaps even for her right to her children.” – Lady Hoise, in Peloubet’s Select Notes on the International Bible Lessons 1956.

The pictures above are taken from the 'Great Bible Discovery' series. © OM Publishing. Speaking of the 'Great Bible Discovery' series, I had an email a couple of days ago from Stefan Koelewijn in the Netherlands who has now reduced his collection of books to €5 each! Click here For more details.

Pictures of Noah's Ark

The picture set of Noah's Ark is finished. There are 17 pictures in this set which is why it's taken so long to complete! I am indebted to all the model makers, (who I link to in the 'Bible Models' link list), who have spent many hours building replica models of Noah's Ark. I have used both interior and exterior photos of these excellent models for reference.

I have tried to include scenes from the Biblical account of Noah that you don't normally see illustrated in children's Bibles such as the arrival of the animals in picture 4, (above). It was suggested in one article that I read that, during the 100 or so years that it took Noah to build the Ark, that Noah purchased all the animals from passing merchants. But, Gen 6:20 does suggest that the arrival of the animals was a divinely orchestrated event. I wanted to try to capture the fear and awe of those who witnessed the arrival of this 'Supernatural Tsunami' of animals as they silently approached the ark. My inspiration for this picture came from the wonderful painting below titled 'Noah's Ark' © Haruo Takino.

Picture 5 shows the animals entering the ark. included in this picture is a flock of sheep. This is to point out that only the unclean animals went into the ark in pairs. The clean animals, (and birds), such as sheep, oxen, quail etc which were used for sacrifice, breeding and food, entered the ark in sevens. Rapid multiplication of these breeds was of the highest importance! Some commentators suggest that there were six for breeding and one for the sacrifice to God, which took place in Gen 8:20. Some translations say that every type of clean animal went into the ark in pairs of seven, (14 of each). Maybe our readers who are fluent in Hebrew can shed some light on this one?
Also in this picture we see that the ark is covered in pitch. For some reason, we rarely see depictions of Noah's ark covered with pitch. We mentioned in the 'Baby in a Basket' post that the basket which held baby Moses is also rarely shown to be covered in pitch. I think that the reasons for this might be the same; It just doesn't look nice! This is probably the reason why model makers never cover their models of Noah's ark with pitch. In picture 6, which is an interior view showing the door of the ark being shut by God, we can see all the animal hoof and paw prints in the pitch that overlaps into the doorway of the ark.
In picture 3, (right), we see the arks interior as Noah's sons and daughter-in-laws load the supplies. The early narrow bottomed jars that would not stand in a swaying boat are hanging by ropes along with the oil lamps and the ingenious ceramic water feeders believed to have originated from this period.

In picture two, Noah is preaching. It may be a surprise to some readers to find out that both the preaching by Noah, (that we have often heard about in Sunday school), and the subsequent rejection of his message by the jeering crowd, is not recorded in the Old Testament! We only know that Noah was a 'preacher of righteousness' from 2 Peter 2:5. If we were being faithful to the Old Testament account, we would not include a picture of Noah preaching to a jeering mob! I came across a website where this was the subject of discussion. This discussion does have a bearing on how we should illustrate this story. Do we show Noah preaching at all? Did Noah only preach before or during the arks construction?

One person suggested that Noah stopped preaching at the point where God told him to build the ark. The reason given was "If you read Genesis chapter 6 carefully, you'll see that 3 times God says he is going to destroy man, plus the rest of creation (verses 7, 13 & 17). In other words, He had already passed judgement so it was now too late for any one else to repent. Then in v18, He tells Noah about the covenant He is going to establish but it's only for him and his immediate family". It is hard to imagine though, that there were not those who questioned Noah during the building of the ark as to why he was building it, and even harder to imagine that Noah, who was a preacher of righteousness, was not compelled to give them an answer, (or in effect preach!) Whatever our thoughts are on Election or Predestination, the preaching does not stop. Also, experts on the ark tell us that the ark was not full to capacity, so there was still room.

During this discussion someone else commented ...according to Hebrews 11:7, Noah built the ark for his family, not for the whole world. Yes, he condemned the world, and he did preach (2Pet 2:5). But his preaching was not to get into the ark. IF THEY HAD REPENTED, THEN GOD WOULD NOT HAVE HAD TO DESTROY THEM. Remember Nineveh was spared when repented?"
The problem with this argument is that Peter mentions the ark, (in 2 Peter 2:5), when speaking about the certainty of God's judgement. Unlike Ninevah, God's judgement was certain, and the ark was the only way of escape! This is why we believe that Noah's Ark is a type of Christ. Just as in Noah's day, the only way to escape God's certain judgement (the flood) was to enter through the only door into the ark, the only way that we can escape from the certain coming judgement of God on our sin and rebellion against Him is to turn away from our sins (repent), and enter into Christ, which we do by faith in Him as the 'Perfect Lamb' sacrificed for the sins of the world. (John 3:16). Jesus said "I am the door. by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved" (John 10:9).

This set brings our total Bible picture count to 812! (All of our more recent Bible picture sets will be available soon at the Bible Picture website).
As always, your comments are welcome!