Nikolai Gogol’s work of historical fiction about Cossack life, Taras Bulba, is much more rarely a subject of scholarly scrutiny than Gogol’s other major works. The mainstream interpretation of Taras Bulba as primarily an adventure tale concerned with patriotism for Ukraine, the Russian empire, and Orthodoxy may explain the critical lacuna. The work strikes academic readers as one-dimensional, not to mention chauvinistic, and therefore is presumed to be of value only as light entertainment. This paper offers a new, alternative interpretation of Taras Bulba based on the biblical subtexts present throughout the novel, especially the triple execution of the title character and his sons. The novel is interpreted as an allegory of the classic trio of Christian virtues – faith, hope, and love – as they are invoked in Paul’s First Epistle to the Corinthians. In this interpretation, Taras Bulba is no longer heroic, but a diabolical destroyer of virtue and salvation. Indeed, the paper argues that, like so many of Gogol’s works, Taras Bulba ultimately addresses the perceived futility of the struggle for wholeness in artistic life as in spiritual life.