The Mystery of His Will

The Mystery of His Will Commentary by Clover Xuesong Zhou and John Camden Cite Share Show Bible Passage In an overt representation of Jesus’s crucifixion along with two thieves, Damien Hirst hung three dissected sheep in opulent tanks filled with formaldehyde. The shocking misappropriation of a sacred subject presents an immediate impression of anti-religious hostility; but in this work, the offensive mingling of the grotesque and the sacred, not unlike the original crucifixion of Christ, belies a profound message of faith. In this regard, Hirst adds to a tradition of art inspired by Rembrandt’s Slaughtered Ox which uses butchered animals to represent the crucifixion of Jesus. The gold engraved captions under the tanks read, ‘HERE IS THE NIGHT’, ‘IT IS A REFLECTION OF THE HOPEFUL TERROR OF THE DAY’, and ‘BE NOT AFRAID’. These captions correspond respectively to the unrepentant thief, Jesus Himself, and the thief who dares to hope in Jesus. The elements of the dissected sheep and formaldehyde inject a scientific theme into the lavish gold and marble display. ‘What have we sacrificed in the name of supposed prosperity and progress?’, the splayed sheep seem to demand. God Alone Knows, Hirst dubs this work, but the viewer’s reflection in the mirror-lined tank suggests at least one disturbing response. Human beings are both perpetrators and victims of sin. ‘God alone knows’ the extent of the sin which underlies our modern comforts, and God alone knows the full price of ‘redemption through his blood’ (v.7 ESV); but by the same token, as the tortured Messiah bore the full weight of that sin in agony upon a cross, ‘God alone’ foreknew the resurrection. As a result, Ephesians can now proclaim a new revelation of that which God alone knew: those whom ‘he chose before the foundation of the world’ (v.4 ESV), whom (as this opening chapter of the letter says twice) he ‘predestined’ (vv.5, 11). In this light, viewers of this work, who see their reflections juxtaposed with the slaughtered carcasses, may dare to entertain hope. To that end, the prayer in this first chapter of Ephesians, offered with and for its recipients, is that God ‘may give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you’ (vv.17–18), ‘in all wisdom and insight making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ’ (vv.8–9). The hope which ‘God alone knows’ is now being revealed to those who ‘hope in Christ’ (v.12; all ESV).