Saint Jerome in the Wilderness, c1620-1630. The theologian St. Jerome (ca. 340-420) is shown meditating on the cross of Christ during his four years of penitence in the Syrian desert when he was in his 30s. However, his great service to the Church was his translation of the Bible, made when he was much older, when he was also said to have tamed a wild lion who became his companion. Artists often combined these compelling images.