ESTUDIO DEL CAPÍTULO
Tobit 5 — Tobias's Journey with a Stranger Angel
Tobias is commissioned to recover the money left with Gabael in Rages, encounters Raphael who offers to guide him, and departs with his father's blessing while Anna's tears are calmed.
Escritura
- 1.The Angel Raph′ael Then Tobi′as answered him, “Father, I will do everything that you have commanded me;
- 2.but how can I obtain the money when I do not know the man?”
- 3.Then Tobit gave him the receipt, and said to him, “Find a man to go with you and I will pay him wages as long as I live; and go and get the money.”
- 4.So he went to look for a man; and he found Raph′ael, who was an angel,
- 5.but Tobi′as did not know it. Tobi′as said to him, “Can you go with me to Rages in Media? Are you acquainted with that region?”
- 6.The angel replied, “I will go with you; I am familiar with the way, and I have stayed with our brother Gab′ael.”
- 7.Then Tobi′as said to him, “Wait for me, and I shall tell my father.”
- 8.And he said to him, “Go, and do not delay.” So he went in and said to his father, “I have found some one to go with me.” He said, “Call him to me, so that I may learn to what tribe he belongs, and whether he is a reliable man to go with you.”
- 9.So Tobi′as invited him in; he entered and they greeted each other.
- 10.Then Tobit said to him, “My brother, to what tribe and family do you belong? Tell me.”
- 11.But he answered, “Are you looking for a tribe and a family or for a man whom you will pay to go with your son?” And Tobit said to him, “I should like to know, my brother, your people and your name.”
- 12.He replied, “I am Azari′as the son of the great Anani′as, one of your relatives.”
- 13.Then Tobit said to him, “You are welcome, my brother. Do not be angry with me because I tried to learn your tribe and family. You are a relative of mine, of a good and noble lineage. For I used to know Anani′as and Jathan, the sons of the great Shema′iah, when we went together to Jerusalem to worship and offered the first-born of our flocks and the tithes of our produce. They did not go astray in the error of our brethren. My brother, you come of good stock.
- 14.But tell me, what wages am I to pay you—a drachma a day, and expenses for yourself as for my son?
- 15.And besides, I will add to your wages if you both return safe and sound.” So they agreed to these terms.
- 16.Then he said to Tobi′as, “Get ready for the journey, and good success to you both.” So his son made the preparations for the journey. And his father said to him, “Go with this man; God who dwells in heaven will prosper your way, and may his angel attend you.” So they both went out and departed, and the young man’s dog was with them.
- 17.But Anna, his mother, began to weep, and said to Tobit, “Why have you sent our child away? Is he not the staff of our hands as he goes in and out before us?
- 18.Do not add money to money, but consider it as rubbish as compared to our child.
- 19.For the life that is given to us by the Lord is enough for us.”
- 20.And Tobit said to her, “Do not worry, my sister; he will return safe and sound, and your eyes will see him.
- 21.For a good angel will go with him; his journey will be successful, and he will come back safe and sound.”
- 22.So she stopped weeping.
Qué significa este pasaje
Chapter 5 advances the plot from commission to departure. Tobit hands over the receipt and instructs Tobias to find a traveling companion who will be paid. The chapter highlights the practical side of obedience: the son must still find a trustworthy guide, and the father must still provide wages, so that faith works through ordinary arrangements rather than bypassing them.
The pivotal scene is Raphael's appearance and acceptance. He offers to travel with Tobias, claims familiarity with the road, and identifies himself as Azariah son of the great Ananias, a relative of Tobit's family. Tobit accepts him on the basis of this lineage and the shared memory of pilgrimage to Jerusalem and proper tithing. The reader is told that Tobias did not know his companion was an angel, so the meaning of the chapter depends on the gap between divine providence and human recognition.
The chapter closes with the father's benediction and the mother's grief. Tobit prays that the God who dwells in heaven will prosper the way and that 'his angel' will attend the young man, while Anna laments the loss of her son's presence. Tobit reassures her that a good angel will go with him and that her eyes will see him again, bringing her weeping to an end.
Contexto
The chapter sits at the hinge between Tobit's commission in chapter 4 and the journey proper in chapters 6–10. The earlier instruction, to go to Rages in Media and recover money left with Gabael, is now acted upon, while the trials of the road, the marriage to Sarah, and the healing of Tobit's blindness are still ahead. The chapter note simply marks it as a backfilled portion of the book outside earlier priority selections, with no further editorial framing provided.
Tobit's final blessing, that 'God who dwells in heaven will prosper your way' and that 'his angel will attend you,' is spoken before Raphael's true identity is revealed to the family. Tobit speaks these words knowing only that Azariah is a kinsman, so his benediction expresses ordinary Israelite piety about divine guardianship on a journey, while the reader knows that the 'angel' he names is in fact the traveling companion standing beside him.
Preguntas frecuentes
Why does Tobias need a companion if Raphael already knows the way?
Within the chapter, Tobit requires a guide for practical reasons: he wants a trustworthy man to travel with his son and is willing to pay wages. Tobias is sent specifically to 'find a man to go with you,' and the hiring arrangement is settled before Raphael's true nature is disclosed. The companion also serves as a narrative device, since the road to Rages becomes the occasion for the guidance Raphael will give in later chapters.
How is Raphael able to claim he is Azariah son of Ananias?
The chapter presents Raphael's self-identification as a simple statement: 'I am Azariah the son of the great Ananias, one of your relatives.' Tobit accepts this on the basis of the claimed lineage, recalling that he once knew Ananias and Nathan as fellow pilgrims to Jerusalem who kept the proper offerings. The text frames the identification as something Tobias and Tobit take at face value, while the reader has already been told that the man Tobias met was 'an angel' whose identity he did not know.
Why does Anna weep, and what ends her weeping?
Anna weeps because her son has been sent away on a long journey. She calls him 'the staff of our hands,' argues that money is not worth her child's safety, and trusts that the life given by the Lord is sufficient without the errand. Tobit responds not by retreating from the mission but by promising that Tobias will return safe and sound because 'a good angel will go with him.' It is this assurance, rooted in Tobit's faith in divine guardianship, that causes her to stop weeping.