Job's Comforters 1825

This print is by William Blake, who died in 1827. Blake was deeply influenced by his religious beliefs and his radical politics, which emerge in his art. Here, Blake illustrates a scene from the Book of Job, where Job is tormented while his so-called friends offer hollow comfort. Blake challenges traditional religious interpretations, as seen in the inscription above the image: "What! shall we receive Good at the hand of God & shall we not also receive Evil?" This questions the simplistic view of divine justice and hints at a more complex relationship between suffering and faith. The figures of Job's comforters are rendered with exaggerated gestures, their faces contorted in expressions of false piety or outright condemnation. Blake was deeply critical of institutionalized religion and those who used it to exert power over others. He saw them as hypocritical and lacking in genuine compassion. Through this image, Blake invites us to consider the human dimensions of suffering, the complexities of faith, and the importance of empathy in a world often defined by judgment and condemnation.