Among the many atrocities the Nazis committed during WW2 was the plundering of priceless Jewish heirlooms. They raided the homes of affluent Jewish families, deported them to camps, then looted their jewelry and fine art. They stole works by artists such as Van Gogh, Manet, and Rembrandt, to name just a few. This is considered the greatest art theft in modern history.
Hitler was especially fond of the classics, but some of his officers had an eye for the avant-garde. One in particular enjoyed the work of Art Nouveau artist Gustav Klimt. The officer stole a Klimt portrait of a Jewish woman named Adele Bloch-Bauer.
After the war, the painting ended up in the Belvedere Gallery in Vienna. It became Klimt’s “Mona Lisa” and the pride of the nation, not to mention a huge tourist attraction. The museum renamed the painting The Woman in Gold to mask the true horror behind the portrait’s being in the gallery. For decades, the provenance of the painting remained hidden.
However, in 1998 Austria passed a law stating that property stolen by the Nazis should be returned to the rightful Jewish owners. In the case of Klimt’s portrait of Adele, her niece, Maria Altmann, was still living. Maria and her husband fled Austria during the war and ended up settling in the United States. She sought to reclaim the rights to the painting, but also offered to let it remain in Austria if it would recognize her family’s rightful claims.
Sadly, Austria refused and fought in court to deny her family’s rights to the painting. After battling for many years, Maria won her case in 2005. Due to Austria’s mistreatment and its unwillingness to work with Maria, she decided to bring the painting to the United States, where it is now on display at the Neue Galerie in Manhattan.
While it cannot atone for the countless losses she and her family suffered, Maria received at least a small measure of justice. Now Adele’s full name and history are on display for the world to see.
This story is reminiscent of the words of the prophet in Isa 33:1:
Woe to you who plunder, though you have not been plundered;
And you who deal treacherously, though they have not dealt treacherously with you!
When you cease plundering,
You will be plundered;
When you make an end of dealing treacherously,
They will deal treacherously with you.
Isaiah is speaking about the Assyrians, who plundered Judah during their invasion of the land. They are rebuked for their treacherous dealings. This likely refers to 2 Kgs 18:13-17, when the Assyrian king Sennacherib willingly took the treasures offered to him by Judah’s king Hezekiah as a peace deal.
In subsequent chapters of Isaiah, Sennacherib’s commander comes to Jerusalem to seek Hezekiah’s surrender and the downfall of the city (Isaiah 36). With Assyria at the door, the faithful within Jerusalem pray to the Lord, seeking deliverance from this time of trouble (33:2). The faithful anticipated the Lord’s intervention, at which time Assyria would be defeated and the Judeans would be left to gather the plunder of the Assyrians. Thus, in a twist of irony, much like the experience of Maria and the Belvedere Gallery, the plunderers were plundered (33:4; 37:36-38).
There are many parallels between this event and the second coming of Christ. During the seven-year Tribulation, the Man of Sin will break his covenant with the Jews. The believing remnant will then wait upon the Lord and pray for deliverance. The Lord will return to Zion, where He will defeat the nations and armies of the Man of Sin and rule with justice and righteousness. Isaiah 33 ends with a description of this event (Isa 33:17-24).
In the millennial kingdom, the people of Israel will recall the days of terror (v 18) when the Gentiles sought to claim their land, but they will no longer see these oppressors (v 19). Furthermore, peaceful worship will be reinstated. Their city, historically marred by religious conflict, will be able to celebrate its appointed feasts, and the tabernacle will be secure, never to be taken down again (v 20). The people will know the Lord as the Judge, Lawgiver, and King who saved His chosen people from oppressors, rebellion, and even extermination (v 22).
The chapter closes as it began. Those who sought to plunder the nation (vv 1, 23) will find the spoils divided among the remnant. Whether it be Assyria, the Nazis, Hamas, or eventually the Man of Sin, one thing stands the test of time: The God of Israel is faithful to His promises to Abraham (Gen 12:2-3). As Dave Hunt once stated: “God’s integrity is tied to Israel.”
Therefore, the plunderers will be plundered. The portrait of Adele provides but a small foretaste of the glory that is to come for the God of Israel in the coming age.
