"Abraham Serving the Three Angels"

T his small panel by Rembrandt has remained in private hands for over a century and a half. It is one of the most well-documented paintings by the artist and it has the distinction of never having been doubted in the literature. The renowned Rembrandt scholar, Ernst van de Wetering, has indicated that this painting, with its reliable signature and date, as well as the “unmistakably Rembrandtesque character of its conception and execution,” is unquestionably authentic. 

Rembrandt is known for his biblical scenes, but only 29 of the more than 300 paintings he executed depict scenes drawn from the Old Testament. This panel reveals the moment when Abraham, who generously offered nourishment to three complete strangers, recognizes that two of them are in fact angels, and that the third is the Lord himself, indicated here by a luminescent figure of an angel who is the principal source of light in the scene. We are witnessing the precise instant when God reveals himself to Abraham and prophesizes that his elderly wife Sarah will bear him a son within a year. This son was to become Isaac, patriarch of the Israelites and according to Matthew (1: 1-17) a link in the lineage from David and Abraham to Christ. Abraham is also one of the most important prophets in Islam and is seen as a father of the Muslim people through his first child, Ishmael.