Images of holy people and of stories from the Gospels were the object of veneration that the Reformation was intended to ban. Biblical heroes for which no cult existed were found in the Jewish Bible. The patriarchs Abraham and Joseph, Samson the judge, King David, Queen Esther, the pious old and young Tobit: this cast of characters provided Rembrandt with material for moral dramas throughout his life.

Rembrandt started to paint Old Testament stories and figures shortly after he had set up as an independent artist in Leiden in 1625. His early work shows the powerful influence of his master's, Pieter Lastman's, broad, colourful style.

Late in the 1640s Rembrandt began to watch Jews more carefully, and to characterize them more deeply than before. Rembrandt had the opportunity to study the Jewish population of Amsterdam. From the time he purchased his large house in the Sint-Anthonisbreestraat (later the Jodenbreestraat) in 1639 until he was forced to sell it in 1658 he lived on the edge of the largest Jewish community in Holland. To Rembrandt the Jews were the people of the Bible, and with his deepening realism he wanted to become more authentic in his biblical representations.

Preview	Picture Data	File Info	Comment
	Tobit Accusing Anna of Stealing the Kid 1626 Oil on panel, 40 x 30 cm Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam	1066*1400 True Color 197 Kb
	Balaam's Ass 1626 Oil on panel, 63 x 47 cm Musée Cognacq-Jay, Paris	1095*1500 True Color 254 Kb
	Samson and Delilah 1626-27 Oil on oak panel, 28 x 24 cm Rijksmuseum. Amsterdam	871*1000 True Color 133 Kb
	Samson and Delilah 1628 Oil on oak, 61 x 50 cm Staatliche Museen, Berlin	828*1001 True Color 80 Kb
	David Presenting the Head of Goliath to King Saul 1627 Oil on panel, 27 x 38 cm Öffentliche Kunstsammlung, Basel	1157*800 True Color 147 Kb
	Jeremiah Lamenting the Destruction of Jerusalem 1630 Oil on panel, 58 x 46 cm Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam	1038*1300 True Color 78 Kb
	Esther Preparing for the Meeting with Ahasuerus c. 1633 Oil on canvas, 110 x 94 cm National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa	1038*1200 True Color 98 Kb
	Joseph Telling his Dreams to his Parents and Brothers c. 1633 Oil on paper on cardboard, 51 x 39 cm Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam	1000*1304 True Color 179 Kb
	The Angel Stopping Abraham from Sacrificing Isaac 1635 Oil on canvas, 193 x 132 cm The Hermitage, St. Petersburg	850*1255 True Color 113 Kb
	The Angel Stopping Abraham from Sacrificing Isaac 1636 Oil on canvas, 195 x 132 cm Alte Pinakothek, Munich	941*1400 True Color 135 Kb
	Samson Accusing his Father-in-Law 1635 Oil on canvas, 159 x 131 cm Staatliche Museen, Berlin	1072*1300 True Color 142 Kb
	The Blinding of Samson 1636 Oil on canvas, 236 x 302 cm Städelsches Kunstinstitut, Frankfurt	1600*1226 True Color 168 Kb
	The Blinding of Samson (detail) 1636 Oil on canvas Städelsches Kunstinstitut, Frankfurt	1400*1226 True Color 222 Kb
	Belshazzar's Feast c. 1636 Oil on canvas, 168 x 209 cm National Gallery, London	1400*1128 True Color 204 Kb
	Tobit is Healed by His Son 1636 Oil on panel, 47 x 39 cm Staatsgalerie, Stuttgart	1064*1300 True Color 144 Kb
	The Archangel Leaving the Family of Tobias 1637 Oil on wood, 68 x 52 cm Musée du Louvre, Paris	1104*1400 True Color 121 Kb
	The Wedding of Samson 1638 Oil on canvas, 127 x 178 cm Gemäldegalerie, Dresden	1373*1000 True Color 178 Kb
	David's Farewell to Jonathan 1642 Oil on wood, 73 x 62 cm The Hermitage, St. Petersburg	1113*1300 True Color 177 Kb
	The Toilet of Bathsheba 1643 Oil on wood, 57 x 76 cm Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York	1505*1100 True Color 163 Kb
	Tobit's Wife with the Goat 1645 Oil on mahogany panel, 20 x 27 cm Staatliche Museen, Berlin	1300*969 True Color 128 Kb
	Susanna and the Elders 1647 Oil on mahogany panel, 77 x 93 cm Staatliche Museen, Berlin	1600*1305 True Color 196 Kb
	Susanna and the Elders (detail) 1647 Oil on mahogany panel Staatliche Museen, Berlin	1100*1529 True Color 221 Kb
	Bathsheba at her Bath 1654 Oil on canvas, 142 x 142 cm Musée du Louvre, Paris	1400*1415 True Color 170 Kb
	Bathsheba at her Bath 1654 Oil on canvas, 142 x 142 cm Musée du Louvre, Paris	1200*1214 True Color 156 Kb
	Joseph Accused by Potiphar's Wife 1655 Oil on canvas, 106 x 98 cm National Gallery of Art, Washington	1200*1265 True Color 141 Kb
	Jacob Blessing the Children of Joseph 1656 Oil on canvas, 173 x 209 cm Staatliche Museen, Kassel	1225*1000 True Color 113 Kb
	Saul and David c. 1655 Oil on canvas, 131 x 164 cm Mauritshuis, The Hague	1500*1179 True Color 110 Kb
	Moses Smashing the Tablets of the Law 1659 Oil on canvas, 169 x 137 cm Staatliche Museen, Berlin	1000*1227 True Color 143 Kb
	Moses Smashing the Tablets of the Law (detail) 1659 Oil on canvas, 169 x 137 cm Staatliche Museen, Berlin	900*904 True Color 130 Kb
	David and Uriah 1665 Oil on canvas, 127 x 117 cm The Hermitage, St. Petersburg	1122*1253 True Color 122 Kb
	David and Uriah (detail) 1665 Oil on canvas The Hermitage, St. Petersburg	453*620 True Color 43 Kb
	David and Uriah (detail) 1665 Oil on canvas The Hermitage, St. Petersburg	614*852 True Color 90 Kb