From the start of Christianity, believers have asked this question: What does the Bible say God looks like? Well, God’s true glory and form can never be seen with human eyes; however, the Bible speaks metaphorically in multiple ways of what God looks like.
Genesis 1:26 paints a picture of an awesome God, saying that He is a being of power, form, and shape. It says, “Let us make man in our image, in our likeness.” This is the clearest reference in the Bible on what God looks like. According to this passage, God looks like man because He created him in His own image. Additionally, other passages refer to God’s greatness, His marvelous appearance, and His Holiness.
The Bible does not offer a physical description of what God looks like. Rather, it describes God as a being with a presence that can be felt, experienced, and variously described by many names and titles. For example, the Old Testament often refers to God as a powerful King, an all-knowing Shepherd, a living Rock, and a present Father. The New Testament offers similar descriptions from Jesus, who referred to God as a loving Father.
The Bible also opens with the account of the Creation story. This suggests that God, according to nature’s blueprints, created life in accordance with His own image and likeness. This would include a physical form, as well as exclusive spiritual powers, a supernatural essence, and a perfect heart. As such, God is infinitely more beautiful, majestic, and powerful than anything we can conceive in our minds.
Theologians have said that at the moment of creation God’s form became visible. However, since then, His true glory can only be glimpsed through a spiritual lens. Through Scripture, people of faith can perceive a greater approximation of what God looks like and tap into His eternal beauty and power. In addition, believers can comprehend that with love, justice, and righteousness, God reveals His majestic will for the world.
Truth of His Majesty
In Isaiah 33:17 we can read: “Your eyes will see the King in his beauty.” This speaks of the truth of His Majesty and is a vivid description from the Bible of what God looks like. One of the strongest traits of God according to the Bible is His transcendent beauty, which is something that human eyes can behold but has no comparison.
In Revelation 4:3, the prophet John describes his perception of God: “And He that sat was to look upon like a jasper and a sardine stone and there was a rainbow round about the throne, in sight like an emerald.” This passage speaks of an array of cosmic beauty that begins to portray the scene of what it is like to be in the presence of God. Because Isaiah 6:3 tells us that His “train filled the Temple,” we can understand that the splendor and glory of God is infinitely beyond our human capacity to truly comprehend.
Ultimately, we are given glimpses of what God looks like from passages that talk about His power, majesty, and beauty. We cannot ultimately understand the true nature of God, but we can grow in understanding of Him as we allow Him to shape our lives in accordance to His will.
His Immensity
The Bible starts off with an account of creation. These passages speak not only of God’s immense power but also of its immensity – that before He even said the world into existence, He had already planned it out.
God looks upon the heavens and the earth, omniscient and omnipotent, and His image is not limited by physical parameters. Isaiah 55:9 says that “as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” The Bible also invites us to meditate on His majesty and extend our thoughts beyond our imaginations, as we learn about who He is and what He looks like.
Psalm 99:10 speaks of His divine beauty, that “all the people of the earth shall revere you. Let them give glory to you and declare your greatness.” His greatness is not just apportioned by size but by His reputation, by people’s hearts, and by the way He interacts with us and the world around us. Psalm 19:1-2 put it beautifully: “The heavens declare the glory of God and the sky proclaims the work of his hands.”
There are many ways in which we can understand God’s immensity, but to truly believe in His greatness and power, it requires faith and submission to His will. As we look to Scripture to gain further understanding, He will reveal more of Himself and how we can live lives in love and obedience to Him.
His Within Us
The Bible reveals that God is not bound by a physical form, but rather, He manifests Himself through the hearts and souls of those that are His children. Colossians 3:10 is an example of this: “And have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its Creator.”
God looks for ways to make Himself known in our lives, ways that we can respond to Him and recognize His presence within us. For the believer, Colossians 3:12-13 says that “Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive.” In other words, we all carry a part of God’s character within us. So, if we seek to do what is good and right, it is the direct reflection of who God is.
His Deep Impact
God’s presence in our lives has a deep impact. He looks out for our wellbeing and desires that we serve Him with faithfulness and obedience. By reflecting His character, we can make an impact on others’ lives for the better. This is because God’s love for us makes us feel accepted, valued, and seen by Him.
We can experience God’s presence in different ways from feeling His hope to finding Him in nature. For some, they may feel His love as a sense of warmth, while others may have tangible experiences of him speaking to them. We can also find comfort in knowing that we are never alone and that He is constantly with us, watching over us and guiding us.
God’s perfect love never fails and He looks out for our welfare, providing protection and strength to those who lean on Him. He wants us to enjoy life, live to the fullest, and keep faith. The Bible encourages us to find God’s rest and refuge, so we can experience true peace and joy in our lives.
His Being Everywhere
The Bible also speaks of God in terms of omnipresence – He is everywhere. In Psalm 139:7-12 we can read about his attributes and how He “fills all in all”. He is not limited by space, size or time. In Isaiah 57:15 He is described as a “God who inhabits eternity”, which gives us insight into His divine nature, and helps us better understand His presence all around us.
The Bible shows us God in all of His glory, and reveals Him to us as a sovereign, wise, and powerful ruler. With His infinite knowledge and power, God works all things according to His plan. He is holy, His opinions are final, and His will cannot be changed or thwarted. He is a God who looks upon all things with grace, mercy, and justice.
This is not only shown in the way He looks at individuals, but also in the way He looks upon nations. He is a God of justice and righteousness, who looks upon all people with respect and love. He looks upon all with a common purpose to lay down His divine will for the sake of mankind. He gives us glimpses of who He is and what He looks like and invites us to embrace Him and His manifest presence.
His Goodness Inside Us
The Bible gives us a solid description of what God looks like and His relationship with mankind. His divine goodness is apparent in his actions and personality as portrayed in Scripture. In 1 John 4:8 we are reminded that “God is love” and His infinite patience and eternal mercy towards us is something that is seen throughout all of Scripture.
His goodness is found within us too. He looks for ways to reach out to us, to show His presence and to encourage us to respond in love. As the Bible states, “He who is the beginning and the end, the God of compassion and mercy, lives forever, and his goodness to all will endure.” (Ecclesiastes 3:14).
God desires us to join Him in His kingdom as His most treasured possession. Therefore, He looks for us to want to live a life of humility and gratitude, guided by His Word， ultimately preparing us for an eternity spent with Him in His heavenly home.
