The Wife of Jeroboam and the Blind Prophet (1888)

George Henry Grenville Manton’s (1855-1932) The Wife of Jeroboam and the Blind Prophet (1888) hangs at London’s Guildhall Gallery. His later works were inspired by the Pre-Raphaelite movement, drawing inspiration from their popular subjects, in this case, their penchant for Biblical scenes.

This work illustrates a narrative from 1 Kings in the Old Testament. The tortured-looking woman is King Jeroboam's wife. She has sought the prophet Ahijah (on the right) to discover the fate of her sick child. Depicted is the harrowing moment when the prophet reveals that she will find her son dead upon returning home. Her anguish is articulated through her deeply furrowed brow and clenched fist, while her extended leg pulls her towards the city, where she will make the grim discovery. Here is one who rejected the Living God throughout life, and can now expect nothing from Him:

But [he] hast done evil above all that were before thee (for thou hast gone and made thee other gods, and molten images, to provoke me, and hast cast me behind thy back.) Therefore behold, I will bring evil upon the house of Jeroboam, and will cut off from Jeroboam him that pisseth against the wall, as well him that is shut up, as him that is left in Israel, and will sweep away the remnant of the house of Jeroboam, as a man sweepeth away dung till it be all gone. 1 Kings 14:9-10, Geneva Bible

If you follow false gods, seek them when you need help and favour. The Lord is not a servant to be called upon in times of need and then dismissed when all is well, but a great God to be worshipped and served, all the year round.