What did Jesus look like ?

[Apple Sky]

What Isaiah says;.

King James Bible
As many were astonied at thee; his visage was so marred more than any man, and his form more than the sons of men: Isaiah 52:14

What the Media says.

Revealed: What Jesus REALLY looked like, according to experts

He is one of the most instantly recognisable figures in the Western world. But experts say that every image you've seen of Jesus is almost certainly inaccurate.

www.dailymail.co.uk

So what dou think ?

 

[Jerry N.]

What Isaiah says;.

King James Bible
As many were astonied at thee; his visage was so marred more than any man, and his form more than the sons of men: Isaiah 52:14

What the Media says.

Revealed: What Jesus REALLY looked like, according to experts

He is one of the most instantly recognisable figures in the Western world. But experts say that every image you've seen of Jesus is almost certainly inaccurate.

www.dailymail.co.uk

So what dou think ?

I’ve seen this sort of thing before. Most of it is probably true, but they often claim Jesus had short hair because it was the Roman style of the time. I doubt that Jesus would follow the style of the occupiers.

 

[Apple Sky]

I’ve seen this sort of thing before. Most of it is probably true, but they often claim Jesus had short hair because it was the Roman style of the time. I doubt that Jesus would follow the style of the occupiers.

I can't imagine Jesus with short hair as I can't stop imagining him as the way many images portray him to be, long hair & piercing blue eyes.

 

[Joseph G]

What Isaiah says;.

King James Bible
As many were astonied at thee; his visage was so marred more than any man, and his form more than the sons of men: Isaiah 52:14

What the Media says.

Revealed: What Jesus REALLY looked like, according to experts

He is one of the most instantly recognisable figures in the Western world. But experts say that every image you've seen of Jesus is almost certainly inaccurate.

www.dailymail.co.uk

So what dou think ?

There's another passage about His earthly visage too:

Isaiah 53:2 NIV

"He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him,
nothing in his appearance that we should desire him."

In other words, not the pretty boy good looks like Hollywood or artwork or statues portray.

What an awesome choice on the Lord's part, in utter opposition to Lucifer's apparent beauty and perfection - the first of God's creation who fell utterly in love with himself above all.

I for one avoid gazing at all fanciful man-made images of Christ. One, Scripture forbids it. Two, I don't want some image in my head when I pray to Him. I'm enjoying the blessing He placed upon us too much! "Blessed are they that have not seen, yet still believe." John 20:29 NIV

Check out the full degree Jesus went to in order to relate with us and rightfully claim His role as our High Priest and Advocate before the Father:

Bible Gateway passage: Isaiah 53 - New International Version

Who has believed our message and to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed? He grew up before him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of dry ground. He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him. He was despised and rejected by...

www.biblegateway.com

Many blessings to us all!

 

[Phil G]

I can't imagine Jesus with short hair as I can't stop imagining him as the way many images portray him to be, long hair & piercing blue eyes.

Essentially we don't know for sure but people have always tended to imagine Jesus in the context of their own culture. Personally I think Jesus would have looked Middle Eastern. This is where His human ancestry was. In human terms He was a descendant of David. So maybe olive-skinned with dark eyes and dark hair were His most likely physical features.

I don't think He would have had short hair in the sense we think of short hair, or like the Romans at the time. When Jewish men took a Nazerite vow, they did not cut their hair until their vow came to an end. But I don't see any reference to Jesus having taken such a vow. So maybe His hair would have been near shoulder length but not in such a way as to appear feminine.

With regard to His eyes, probably brown but I think if He was talking to you, those eyes would have had such depth to them that you would know that He spoke with divine authority.

Apart from that, Scripture seems to indicate that He looked ordinary.

"He has no form or comeliness; And when we see Him, There is no beauty that we should desire Him." Isaiah 53:2b NKJV

That may seem disappointing, but I reckon His "attractiveness" was in who He was, and still is. To speak with Jesus was and is to speak with the Creator. What more can we ask for!

 

[Apple Sky]

With regard to His eyes, probably brown but I think if He was talking to you, those eyes would have had such depth to them that you would know that He spoke with divine authority.

I would say that his eyes were piercing.

King James Bible
His head and his hairs were white like wool, as white as snow; and his eyes were as a flame of fire; Rev 1:14

 

[Phil G]

I would say that his eyes were piercing.

King James Bible
His head and his hairs were white like wool, as white as snow; and his eyes were as a flame of fire; Rev 1:14

Perhaps, the Revelation quote is a description of the risen Jesus in a vision. I’m not sure this would be His appearance on earth before.

I’m waiting to see Him at His return!

 

[Apple Sky]

I’m waiting to see Him at His return!

And me, I can't wait

 

[eleos1954]

What Isaiah says;.

King James Bible
As many were astonied at thee; his visage was so marred more than any man, and his form more than the sons of men: Isaiah 52:14

What the Media says.

Revealed: What Jesus REALLY looked like, according to experts

He is one of the most instantly recognisable figures in the Western world. But experts say that every image you've seen of Jesus is almost certainly inaccurate.

www.dailymail.co.uk

So what dou think ?

Nobody has any idea what he looked like .. it's all speculation.

 

[ViaCrucis]

I can't imagine Jesus with short hair as I can't stop imagining him as the way many images portray him to be, long hair & piercing blue eyes.

The long hair (by modern Western standards) is largely a result of iconic depictions of Christ from antiquity. The most famous is the Christ Pantokrator icon. It's not really possible to know what Jesus' hair was like, but it would have been something fairly typical among Jewish men of first century Palestine.

As for blue eyes, that is modern. The way Jesus gets depicted is cultural. The image of a blonde and blue-eyed Jesus is the product of how Jesus is depicted in some (not all) Eureopean art. Leave Europe and go to other parts of the world, Christians depict Jesus differently. In Ethiopian iconography and sacred art Jesus is depicted with black with dark curly hair, which is to say, Jesus looks African. In the Middle East Jesus is depicted Middle Eastern. In China or Korea, Jesus is depicted as looking East Asian.

Every culture has depicted Jesus as looking "like us", where "us" is whoever we might be. Jesus looks European in European art, Jesus looks African in African art, and Jesus looks Asian in Asian art.

None of this is wrong. Because our Lord is the Word of God made flesh, God become human, He became one of us. And therefore He bears our common and universal humanity.

Now, strictly speaking, Jesus didn't look European, or African, or East Asian. He looked like a Middle Eastern Jewish man, and we can infer that given He was from a blue-collar small town family in Galilee, and that He spent most of His time outside, He would have been dark-skinned. He would have had dark hair, dark skin, and dark eyes. We would describe Him as "brown". How tall was He? How long was His hair? How did He style His beard? We have no idea. The most we can say is that He would have looked incredibly ordinary. A brown-skinned Jewish man from Nazareth.

He is Deus Incarnatus. He is Theanthropos. The Incarnate God-Man.

-CryptoLutheran

 

[ViaCrucis]

Perhaps, the Revelation quote is a description of the risen Jesus in a vision. I’m not sure this would be His appearance on earth before.

I’m waiting to see Him at His return!

It is a vision, and it is a way of describing Jesus' appearance in glory. It's not intended as a literal physical description of Jesus human appearance. It is a description of the Glorified Christ, such as what the three Apostles experienced at the Mt. of Transfiguration.

-CryptoLutheran

 

[Lost4words]

Jesus left us His image. Its on the shroud of Turin...

 

[Jerry N.]

Jesus left us His image. Its on the shroud of Turin...

Before you posted, I wrote the following in my notes: I’m not Catholic, but I’m curious if the Shroud of Turin has an influence on what people think Jesus looked like.

 

[Joseph G]

And me, I can't wait

Amen! Three fellas were sure uniquely blessed to get a "preview"...

Matthew 17:1-2 NIV

"After six days Jesus took with him Peter, James and John the brother of James, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. There he was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as the light."

 

[Apple Sky]

Nobody has any idea what he looked like .. it's all speculation.

I bet Josephus would have known, didn't Josephus see Jesus around and about ? I think that's what he wrote in one of his books.

I have this book I'll have to check it out again.

 

[Phil G]

I bet Josephus would have known, didn't Josephus see Jesus around and about ? I think that's what he wrote in one of his books.

View attachment 358027

I have this book I'll have to check it out again.

Josephus wasn’t born until after Jesus was crucified. Although he refers to Jesus, he never describes His appearance.

 

[Apple Sky]

Josephus wasn’t born until after Jesus was crucified. Although he refers to Jesus, he never describes His appearance.

Thanks Phil G this has saved me from having to go & look it up.

 

[Aaron112]

Nobody has any idea what he looked like .. it's all speculation.

Worse than that it is mostly purposeful, willful, deception.

From Scripture , it is written Jesus did not look attractive, someone to be desired ....

 

[Gregory Thompson]

What Isaiah says;.

King James Bible
As many were astonied at thee; his visage was so marred more than any man, and his form more than the sons of men: Isaiah 52:14

What the Media says.

Revealed: What Jesus REALLY looked like, according to experts

He is one of the most instantly recognisable figures in the Western world. But experts say that every image you've seen of Jesus is almost certainly inaccurate.

www.dailymail.co.uk

So what dou think ?

Jesus looked like the Father.

 

[CoreyD]

What Isaiah says;.

King James Bible
As many were astonied at thee; his visage was so marred more than any man, and his form more than the sons of men: Isaiah 52:14

What the Media says.

Revealed: What Jesus REALLY looked like, according to experts

He is one of the most instantly recognisable figures in the Western world. But experts say that every image you've seen of Jesus is almost certainly inaccurate.

www.dailymail.co.uk

So what dou think ?

This image is so accurate, I'm amazed.
Right down to the eyes. Wow. Jesus would not have blue or green eyes.
Amazing, that secular (worldly) people get this, and Christianity today, does not!

How do you understand the scripture, though?
So many translations make it seem like Jesus was disfigured.

New American Standard Bible - His appearance was marred beyond that of a man
Christian Standard Bible - his form did not resemble a human being
Good News Translation - he was so disfigured that he hardly looked human.
New Living Translation - from his appearance, one would scarcely know he was a man.

Some seem confused.
In Isaiah 53:2 the same Greek expression mareh: Appearance, vision, sight, form is used, but some render that "beauty".

At least 9 translations on github uses the expression no stately form or majesty to attract us, no beauty that we should desire Him.
The texts appear to be showing that Jesus was ordinary and did not stand out, like a person that is decked in royalty, or dressed in such a way to attract.
The attractiveness did not refer to his face.

As a perfect man - with a body from his father, Jesus was handsome.
He did not have to be more handsome than Absolom, since his outward appearance was not the important thing about him.

Jesus was not a king Solomon, not king Sennacherib.
He certainly did not stand out like the Pharisees, and other religious leaders.
Jesus was simple, humble, and lowly.

This matches what the "experts" say.

Not only would Jesus definitely not have had flowing locks, he is also unlikely to have grown a long beard or even worn robes.​

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Instead, historians believe that Jesus would have looked like any other unremarkable member of Judean society in the first century AD.​

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One of the few things we know for certain is that Jesus was ethnically Judean and came from the region which is now modern-day Palestine.​

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This means his hair and beard would have been black and curly rather than brown and straight.​

Yes, Jesus would have kept his beard neatly trimmed. not necessarily because of the Roman, in my opinion, but because Jesus, was not a wild man, and unlike John the Baptist, was frequently in the cities among the people.

I'm still stunned at the accuracy of that image.
I'm also impressed that the "experts" were not swayed by earlier depictions - some of the very first depictions we have of Jesus show him looking distinctly well-groomed.