Scripture · Romans 5:12-21
Romans 8:24–25 · An allegory of hope
Hope
For in this hope we were saved; but hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what he can already see? But if we hope for what we do not yet see, we wait for it patiently.
A blindfolded figure bends close to a lyre with one string remaining. Hope, painted in 1886 and credited by Tate to George Frederic Watts and assistants, gives its subject a fragile appearance. Beside Romans 8:24–25, that listening posture becomes a way to think about waiting without yet seeing.
What does Hope show?
The woman sits on a globe, one bare foot folded inward and the other extending down along its curve. Green fabric folds around her body as she bends toward the instrument. The blindfold covers her eyes, leaving the nearness of her ear and hands to the lyre as the picture’s most concentrated action.
Blue haze surrounds the globe and gives the figure little visible ground beyond it. The instrument is damaged, yet she remains gathered around it. Watts’s allegory allows hope to look vulnerable: its continued attention matters more than a triumphant pose.
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What does Romans 8:24–25 mean?
Romans 8 speaks of creation groaning and believers waiting for the redemption of their bodies. That promised renewal is the hope in view when Paul says that what is already seen no longer needs to be hoped for. Patient waiting belongs to a salvation whose fulfillment is still ahead.
The surrounding passage makes room for suffering and weakness, including prayer when words fail. Paired with it, the figure’s bent posture can suggest persistence within that uncertainty. This is a devotional connection with an allegorical painting, rather than evidence that it was made to illustrate these verses.
Romans 8:24–25 gives a Christian context to this allegory’s patient attention to what remains unseen.
Sources
Tate — Hope. Exact collection image, attribution to Watts and assistants, 1886 date, medium, and support dimensions.
Tate on Google Arts & Culture — Hope. Tate’s commentary identifies the blindfolded figure, globe, and lyre with one remaining string.
Romans 8 — Berean Standard Bible. Hope within the passage about creation, suffering, and future redemption.
Also from Romans:The Entombment of ChristA Huguenot, on St. Bartholomew's Day