4 = St. Michael the Archangel

.     .     .

6 = The Head of John the Baptist

.     .     .

8 = Elijah and the priests of Baal

As the two other Elian paintings that are located on the sides of the columns show that they are later works; both paintings are dated to 1658 and must have been sent from Seville where the artist lived at that time, having obtained important work in competition with Murillo and Zurbarán. Elijah with the Angel appears somewhat attached to the traditional arrangements of composition, however its technique is much more evolutionary than in the earlier paintings.

The iconographic representation of Elija and the Prophets of Baal was inspired by the Book of Kings (1 Kgs 18:20-40), a selection that tells of the confrontation that Elijah had before the people of Israel with the false prophet of Baal, to proclaim the superiority of Yahweh over all other gods. This comes from a passage of the Bible that is very difficult to get across in a painting. The figure of Elijah is truly great and noble, solemnly, unusual to think that it is telling the story of a truly violent and provocative situation.