Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn was a Dutch 17th century painter and etcher born in 1606 who helped shape the Dutch Golden Age. He is known for his contemporary portraits, self-portraits, use of light and dark, and biblical scenes, as you can see here in this drawing. He went to elementary school in the Netherlands, then switched to a Latin school where he studied the biblical classics. He then studied under two master painters, using his newfound skills to become a very skilled artist, specializing in, at the time, hell and the underworld, because he was so well able to portray fire and its reflections. in 1625, Rembrandt settled in Leiden, and this is when he laid the foundation of his work. He would often disassemble his masters’ works and reassemble them, something his future students would continue to do. He created his first etches the next year. In 1634, he married his wife, Saskia Uylenburgh, his master’s daugher. In 1631, Rembrandt began to do work with a man named Hendrick Uylenburgh, who was an entrepreneur. This is when he started painting biblical scenes. In the 10 years after he released The Night Watch, one of his famous portraits, Rembrandt was completely ignored, and stopped releasing work. in 1656, Rembrandt narrowly avoided bankruptcy but selling all of his artwork. His wife eventually died of an illness, and he had two other lovers in between her illness and had a couple children. All of them died except for one daughter, who was still alive when Rembrandt died himself in 1667.
The Painting:
Moses and the Burning Bush
Made in 1655 in the Netherlands
Drawing with pen and brush
17×25 cm.

This drawing portrays many different aspects of Exodus 3, primarily of Moses at the burning bush and god’s call upon Moses and the future. Initially, you can see all of the lambs in front of Moses, giving the audience an idea of what he does for a living, even without reading the text. Moses is in fact a shepherd leading his lambs, as one can see he is on a path with trees and a forrest behind him, as it says in the text that he was in the wilderness, when he is called upon by God. God comes to him in the form of a burning bush, but in Rembrandt’s version, it is more of a burning tree, which could be a symbol of greatness, given that a tree is typically bigger and stronger than a bush. That would portray’s the greatness of God’s power over Moses and the entire earth, having a giant tree ablaze yet not burning. This section of the chapter, and book as a whole, is one of the earlier ways that humanity interacted with the extraordinary. Moses is initially curious at the bush consumed in flames, but it is not actually burning. This is a turning point for Moses in his life, as it is out with the old shepherding life, and in with the new one, shepherding people out of Egypt. While one can’t really see the actual flames, the audience can observe that it is burning by looking at Moses’s face. His expression is terror and confusion, and he is pulling back and scared of the situation. Although in the text it states that he immediately answered God and approached the bush, upon finding out who is calling on him, he hides in terror, which is what the audience can depict from this drawing. One could assume he is confused because he is unaware of how to address God when he gets to Egypt. One could also assume he is scared at such a task given to him by the one who goes by “I AM WHO I AM”. What is especially interesting about this piece is that when looking at it from a bigger and more extended perspective, this drawing is a giant preview of the exodus as a whole. Moses is leading the people, represented as the lambs, throughout the wilderness for the 40 years. He does all of this while consistently being called upon by God for survival, and being terrified for all of those years. The wilderness is a big part of the book of Exodus, and is mentioned early on, in this chapter. First, it is mentioned when Moses is walking with his herd of sheep through the wilderness and where he is called upon my God, then again towards the end of the chapter, when God is commanding Moses to bring his people into the wilderness. Both aspects can be seen in this drawing, whether one is looking at it at the smaller or bigger perspective. There are lines leading towards Moses’s staff that could indicate a flame reaching out towards him to call on him. Although Moses appears to be unsure and scared, he remains steadfast and carries out God’s word, and if readers look at it from the bigger perspective, one can assume that Moses follows through with God’s command because he is continuing to lead the lambs through the wilderness until they reach their final destination, and prove Moses’s loyalty to God that day on the mountain.

Maddie Thiebault