God hears her prayer, and sends the angel Raphael to resolve both Sarah's problem and that of an Israelite named Tobit, among exiles in the Assyrian capital of Nineveh. Tobit is blind, having gotten bird droppings in his eyes, and is reproached by Anna his wife. Like Sarah in Ecbatana, Tobit in Nineveh has prayed to God for death. Not wanting to leave his family in poverty, Tobit sends his son Tobias to the Median town of Rages, to get some money that Tobit left in trust there years earlier. A man who calls himself Azarias is hired to go with Tobias. Little do Tobit and Tobias know that the man is actually the angel Raphael.
On the way to Media, Tobias, on Raphael's instructions, catches a fish, which they cook and eat after removing and keeping the heart, liver, and gall. At Ecbatana the angel informs Tobias that they will stay with a cousin of Tobit's named Raguel. This Raguel, he adds, has an only daughter, of whom Tobias is the only eligible kinsman, and Raphael will suggest to Raguel that Tobias marry her.
Tobias knows all about Raguel's daughter, and expresses to Raphael his fear of being the next husband to die in her bridal chamber. But Raphael tells Tobias what to do to rid Sarah of her jealous demon-lover. With that knowledge, Tobias is in love with her even before Sarah greets them at her father's door.
When a marriage is proposed over supper, Raguel tells Tobias, "Eat, drink, and be merry, for you have a right to take my child," but Raguel then warns him about Sarah's dead husbands. When Tobias refuses to eat till they have a binding agreement on the matter, Raguel says, "Take her right now."
A marriage contract is signed, they eat, then the bridal chamber is prepared, and there Sarah is taken to wait. Sarah fearfully weeps, but when Tobias enters the chamber, he knows just what to do. He burns the fish heart and liver on incense coals, creating a foul-smelling smoke. It so repels the demon Asmodeus that he flees to the farthest parts of Egypt, where Raphael binds him. Tobias and Sarah, after praying that they grow old together, now consummate their marriage.
Raguel sends a maid into the chamber to see if the man's still alive. She reports back that the couple is asleep. Raguel, giving thanks to God, sends servants out to fill in a grave that he had already dug for Tobias.
The jubilant Raguel now hosts a fourteen-day wedding feast, with Tobias of course obliged to attend, while Tobias's parents back home are wondering what has become of him. When Tobias finally comes home with Sarah, he uses the fish gall, as Raphael has instructed him, to restore his father Tobit's sight. (Apocrypha: Tobit) (On to JEREMIAH)
No penalty for transvestism is prescribed, but those who transgress--or cross-dress--are called "abominable to the Lord your God" (Deut. 22:5).
Pieter Lastman
The Wedding Night of Tobias and Sarah
1611
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
