Jesus' Physical Appearance
Biography, Christology, Philosophy
Jesus' Physical Appearance
Biography, Christology, Philosophy
Description
John Nelson presents the first full length study of the Gospels' treatment of Jesus' appearance, exploring precisely why, though Christ's image is recognised throughout the modern world, he is not physically described in the texts. Nelson argues that while the Gospels resemble Graeco-Roman biographies in their focus on a single individual, they also frequently depart from the genre's conventions; one of their most glaring omissions, picked up in recent scholarship, is their total silence on what Jesus looked like.
Nelson thus explores how the evangelists as Jewish authors might have uniquely engaged both the genre of the Gospels and the topic of Jesus' physical appearance. He makes clear the distinction between two broad attitudes Jewish authors took to Greek genres: to assimilate that genre's conventions, and to 'indigenise,' or adopt the conventions of Jewish narrative prototypes in their adaption of Greek forms. Utilising genre theory, masculinity studies and post-colonial theory, Nelson consequently argues against the common view that Jewish writers simply adopted the same obsession with appearances that their gentile neighbours expressed, suggesting instead that the Gospels' reticence to describe Jesus' body may have been influenced by the reticence of biblical texts to describe the Lord's body.
Accessibility Information
Additional accessibility information
- EPUB 3.0
- Conforms with the requirements of EPUB Accessibility Spec v1.1
- WCAG level AA
- WCAG v2.2 compliant
- accessibility@bloomsbury.com
Hazards
The publication contains no hazards
Support for non-visual reading
- No accessibility features offered by the reading system, device or reading software are disabled or otherwise unusable with the product
- Has alternative text descriptions for images
Visual adjustments
Appearance of the text and page layout can be modified according to the capabilities of the reading system (font family and size, spaces, as well as color of background and text)
Navigation
- Page list to go to pages from the print source version
- Elements such as headings, tables, etc for structured navigation
- All or substantially all textual matter is arranged in a single logical reading order
- Content is enhanced with ARIA roles to optimize organization and facilitate navigation
- Purposes of all links are made clear
Rich content
Language tagging provided
Table of Contents
Acknowledgements
List of Abbreviations
Chapter One: Introduction: Behold the Man: The Puzzle of Jesus' Missing Appearance
Chapter Two: The Topos of Physical Appearance in Ancient Biography
Chapter Three: Adapting Biography: The Gospels' Indigenising Techniques
Chapter Four: The Christology of Appearances: King, Servant, Lord
Chapter Five: Keeping Up Appearances? Dress, Stature and Physiognomy in the Gospels
Conclusion: Behold the Man: Solving the Puzzle of Jesus' Missing Appearance
Appendix: Towards Re-Imagining Christ in the Silence
Bibliography
Index
Product details
| Published | 13 Nov 2025 |
|---|---|
| Format | Ebook (Epub & Mobi) |
| Edition | 1st |
| Pages | 264 |
| ISBN | 9780567723239 |
| Imprint | T&T Clark |
| Series | The Library of New Testament Studies |
| Publisher | Bloomsbury Publishing |
ONLINE RESOURCES
Bloomsbury Collections
This book is available on Bloomsbury Collections where your library has access.
Related Titles
