Did you know that King David was a redhead?

Many ancient paintings of King David picture him with dark black hair, however, most people don’t realize that King David was probably a redhead, with movie star good looks and beautiful eyes:

¹²And he sent and brought him in. Now he was ruddy and had beautiful eyes and was handsome. And the Lord said, “Arise, anoint him, for this is he.” (1 Samuel 16:12 ESV)

I am not sure what they meant by beautiful eyes, but the word ruddy means red, and though it refers to complexion, it also often describes hair (Genesis 25:24-15). And even today, there are many Jews with red hair.

In fact, King David’s movie-star looks was mentioned more than once:

⁴²And when the Philistine looked and saw David, he disdained him, for he was but a youth, ruddy and handsome in appearance. (1 Samuel 17:42 ESV)

And similar to what often happens today, the Philistines looked down upon David because of his red hair.

And it is also interesting to note that the only sample of human hair ever discovered in an ancient Jewish tomb was actually red. The Bible Archaeological Society writes:

One of the more fascinating finds in this tomb, one that has not received much attention, was the preservation of a sample of Jewish male hair. The hair was lice-free, and was trimmed or cut evenly, probably indicating that the family buried in this tomb practiced good hygiene and grooming. The length of the hair was medium to short, averaging 3-4 inches. The color was reddish.

READ: The Only Ancient Jewish Male Hair Ever Found

And as a comparison, God made Jesus with average looks, so that people would not be attracted to Him because of His physical qualities: