Jesus Falls the Third Time

What does Jesus Falls the Third Time show?

Fugel sets the pale folds of Jesus’ robe against dark timber and a shadowed background. His crowned head rests close to the earth, and one hand reaches forward along the ground. The two men above him remain upright, forming a sharp contrast with his collapsed body.

The man in the red cap gathers the garment in both hands, while the other holds the cross. Their work of lifting and pulling gives the scene its harsh movement. Jesus’ face is largely hidden; the extended arm and crumpled fabric carry much of the expression.

This is the ninth Station in Fugel’s 1921 cycle at St. Antonius in Bad Saulgau, Germany. The third fall belongs to the traditional Way of the Cross, a devotional meditation on the journey to Calvary.

What does Psalm 22:14 mean?

Psalm 22:14 gives suffering a bodily language: water poured out, bones disjointed, a heart melting like wax. The next verse carries that weakness into the dust of death. These images occur within a prayer that continues to address God even while help feels far away.

The pairing reads Fugel’s traditional Passion scene through that lament. The psalm does not narrate a third fall; it supplies words for the helplessness the painting makes visible. Later in the psalm, the cry for help turns toward an answer and praise.

The fallen body in Fugel’s ninth Station gives a visual form to the exhaustion voiced in Psalm 22:14.

Sources

St. Antonius — parish history. The parish dates Fugel’s Stations of the Cross to 1921.

Andreas Praefcke — photograph of the ninth Station. A photograph of this painting in St. Antonius.

Vatican — the ninth Station. The traditional devotion to Jesus’ third fall.

Psalm 22 — Berean Standard Bible. The lament of physical weakness and the continuing appeal to God.