Birika la Kondoo au Birika la Bethesda (La piscine probatique ou de Bethesda)

James Tissot · 1886–1894
Brooklyn Museum, New York

Tissot alilichora birika la Bethesda kama hodhi la mawe lenye giza chini ya matao marefu, na wagonjwa waliovaa nyeupe wakiwa wameketi na kulala kando ya ukingo wake, wakisubiri.

Katika maji meusi aliongeza jambo la ajabu: mikono miwili myeupe inashuka kutoka juu na kuyatibua maji, hivi kwamba miduara inaenea juu yake. Alifuata maneno marefu zaidi yanayopatikana katika Biblia nyingi za zamani, yanayosema juu ya malaika aliyeyatibua maji — Biblia hii ya Kiswahili inayaweka pia, pamoja na maelezo kwamba hayamo katika nakala nzuri za kale (Yohana 5:3–4); BSB ya Kiingereza na tafsiri nyingine za kisasa zinauacha mstari huo.

Kutoka maandiko

Birika lenye matao matano, liitwalo Bethzatha (Yohana 5:2)

“Idadi kubwa ya wagonjwa ilikuwemo, vipofu, viwete, au waliopooza” (Yohana 5:3)

Maji “yanapotibuliwa” (Yohana 5:7)

Ubunifu wa msanii

Mikono tu ya malaika, ikifika majini

Matao ya mawe juu ya birika

Maelezo ya karibu

Mikono majini

Mikono miwili myeupe inashuka na kugusa maji meusi.

Wakisubiri

Wagonjwa wameketi wamejifunika nyeupe kando ya ukingo wa birika.

Chini ya tao

Mtu amelala nyuma, ameegemea mkono wake.

Mawimbi

Miduara inaenea juu ya uso wa maji.

James Tissot, French, 1836–1902. Brooklyn Museum, New York (Purchased by public subscription, 00.159.68) · Opaque watercolor over graphite on gray wove paper · Brooklyn Museum (Commons file page, «Permission»): "This image was uploaded by the Brooklyn Museum as a content partnership, and is considered to have no known copyright restrictions by the institutions of the Brooklyn Museum." — "No known copyright restrictions".