NEUOFFENBARUNG← Gifts of Heaven · Volume 1 · Contents
The external appearance of Jesus
1st June 1840, afternoon
[1] As for the pious desire the painter W. has had for a long time, more in his head than in his chest and it’s viscera, I say that no image, neither of paint, even less made of wood or even metal or stone, is pleasant to Me.
[2] For see, all this is nothing but matter and therefore dead. But when you now represent Me figuratively in matter, then you represent Me in death as a being similar to My outer-flesh-form – which has often already drawn the life out of your heart and has attached in it’s place a dead picture of My flesh.
[3] Therefore, you should strive much more for the living image of My Love and My Grace in your hearts than for a faithful imprint of My Flesh! For just as your life does not dwell in the flesh but only in the heart, therefore also from Me, all life does not pass from My flesh but from My deepest depths into you – just as naturally all light and all warmth of the sun emanates from it’s center, where a small spark of My grace and merciful love dwells at rest. Behold, this is the truth!
[4] But if you still want an image of My flesh, I will also give it to you as I gave a king to the Israelite people. But woe to those who want to worship it! Their soul will become dull, and their spirit will hardly find My Life more fully within themselves.
[5] But this is the shape of My flesh, and this is the shape of the head, hair, eyes, nose, mouth, ears, chin and neck:
[6] Let the head be 10 inches high, without the hair, and 7 inches at it’s widest, without the hair. The forehead is 2/5 of the full length of the face, and then the nose is 1 1/2 fifth, and so from the nose to the end of the chin is also 1 1/2 fifth.
[7] The forehead is curved in an oval shape, without wrinkles, very light in color, full of divine majesty against the hair, which is said to be light golden blond.
[8] The eyes should be large. The iris is blue. The pupil very black in relation to the blue. The angles are pure. The eyelashes fresh, the brows strong and dark brown.
[9] The nose should be straight and noble, soft and not too broad, not too narrow either.
[10] The mouth full of dignity and grace, half open as when a lover speaks to his bride, not too narrow, nor too wide, but just right, so the upper and so the lower lip, soft in the corners and gentle in the middle.
[11] A slightly prominent chin, not too broad, nor too narrow, well adorned with a beard slightly darker than the hair, the latter divided in the middle of the chin. The beard should diminish slightly along the two jaws and should not take up more than 1/5 of the cheek. The upper mustache should also be fair, so that neither the lips nor the two corners of the mouth are impaired.
[12] The ear, however, shall be exactly according to the proportions of the nose, and shall be free (uncovered) from hair, which shall fall a hand-width behind it, gently curled over the neck.
[13] But the neck shall be of medium length, perfect, like that of a virgin.
[14] The expression of the face should represent a bridegroom full of love in the melancholy sight of his unfaithful bride, similar to the one saying farewell with the most loving heart, with a tear of pure and true love.
[15] The figure is dressed in a sky-blue, Israelite, wide pleated garment with white, finger-width bands, standing, barefoot, with the right hand outstretched towards you sinners – as if saying:, "Come to Me all you who are toilsome and burdened! I will give you rest!" – and placing the left
hand on your heart, as if saying: "Children, there is the way of life, there is the door to the Father! "He who does not pass through it will not come to the Father."
[16] This now precisely described picture should stand as if on a hill, behind which a great glory rises. To My right and left side shall be two great pillars, adorned with two fiery cherubim. And in the middle of the pillars there is a stone tablet, held by a seraphim. From these two pillars on the left and on the right, a strong wall extends.
[17] Below the hill in the plain, however, several groups of people are to be depicted, a few of whom turn their eyes towards Me, but most of them, turning away from Me, stand on small broken prayer tablets. On the left, at an angle, there is a group of people, who are putting ladders on the walls and want to storm them, while the ladders are much too short and too weak, and several broken pieces are meant to testify to this.
[18] Behind My Head, parts of the new City of God's Holiness, which has just begun to descend before you, appear very faintly, as if enveloped in a light haze.
[19] Behold, this is then a perfect image when it will be presented as I have faithfully indicated. But it will be difficult to do it justice without My grace. But if the painter W., the iron painter, wants to do it out of pure love for Me, then grace will not be withheld and the image will astonish everyone who will look at it, even if only out of curiosity, and will break many a stony heart, because it will then not be a mere image, but as such a substantial initial letter of the new Jerusalem, which it should only be regarded as! – Amen.
[20] I, Jesus, the true Christ full of love and wisdom! Amen.