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The meeting in the Bible - Tobie and Sara : a Promise !

   Sarra  Marie 1

(Akiane's painting)

I- Characters’ presentation

  • Tobit is a pious Jew living in exile in Nineveh. Deported, he kept the practice of the commandments and only frequented the Jewish community (1)
     
  • Tobit becomes blind after falling asleep under a bird's nest. Their droppings cause inflammation of the cornea which darkens. Tobit's wife then has to provide for the household and her husband irritates her with fits of scruples that lead her to doubt any input from the outside world. (2)
     
  • Tobit then prays to the Lord to be delivered from his evil, or to be able to die, because existence has become unbearable to him. (3,1-6)
     
  • The author then introduces Sara, who lives in Ecbatane and is related to Tobit. Sara is the victim of a demon, Asmodeus, who kills her suitors. Desperate, Sara also prays to the Lord to be delivered from this curious possession (3,7-15)
     
  • The Lord hears these two prayers and decides to send an angel, Raphael, to solve the double problem.
     

II – Tobit’s journey

  • Preparations for departure : Tobit gives his son many recommendations before sending him to Ecbatane to look for a debt he desperately needs. As the trip is long and dangerous, he decides to hire a guide and bodyguard. Under a human appearance, he unknowingly hires the angel Raphael himself.
     
  • To Ecbatane : along the way, Raphael encourages Tobias to catch a certain fish. Thanks to this fish, the angel will make two mysterious ingredients that will be used later ...
     
  • Tobie’s wedding : arrived in Ecbatane, Tobie falls in love with Ragouël's daughter, and who happens to be related to him. Everything would be perfect if it weren't for the threat of the demon Asmodeus. After celebrating the wedding, Tobias and Sarah pray on their wedding night so that the young man is not also a victim of the demon. Thanks to the first ingredient made from the fish, he creates a kind of fumigation that suffocates Asmodeus and forces him to flee into the desert ... where Raphael awaits him at the turn to put him out of harm's way. In the morning, Sara's father is astonished to find his son-in-law still alive. Realizing that the ordeal is over, he gives Tobias the money he owes his father.
     
  • The return :  Tobie and Sarah return to Nineveh. With the ingredient taken from the fish, Raphael shows how to make a remedy that restores Tobit's sight. All's well that ends well: Tobit got his eyesight and his money back, and his son got married properly to a close relative.

 

III- Epilogue

  • After all these adventures, Raphaël reveals his true nature. The whole family then gives thanks to the Lord for his intervention.
     
  • The story ends like all good novels: they were happy and had many children.