![]() |
![]() |
|
| ||
![]() |
![]() |

(1)
"irwerben" and unexpected Death . . .: It sounds like a reference to the apocryphal Book of Syrach:
Sirach 11,17: The gift of the Lord remaineth with the ungodly, and his favour bringeth prosperity for ever.
Sirach 11,18: There is that waxeth rich by his wariness and pinching, and this his the portion of his reward: (German: doch verwirkt er seinen Erwerb)
Sirach 11,19: Whereas he saith, I have found rest, and now will eat continually of my goods; and yet he knoweth not what time shall come upon him, and that he must leave those things to others, and die.
A few hundred years later, Jesus recycled the story:
Luke 12,16: And he spake a parable unto them, saying, The ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully:
Luke 12,17: And he thought within himself, saying, What shall I do, because I have no room where to bestow my fruits?
Luke 12,18: And he said, This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow all my fruits and my goods.
Luke 12,19: And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry.
Luke 12,20: But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided?
Luke 12,21: So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.
(2) Now Death has disdained my gift . . .: Notice on the picture, how Death takes the merchant by the hand so he drops the money sack.