What Skin Color was Jesus Christ?

Due to the present cultural climate in America, various unwarranted claims have asserted that Jesus (and, by extension, the ancient Jews) was either black-skinned or white-skinned. The racism inherent in evolutionary philosophy should surprise no one,¹⁾see Heath Henning, “Racist Implications of Evolution,” August 4, 2016; https://truthwatchers.com/racists-implications-evolution/ yet to invoke the name of Jesus Christ in support of racial ideologies is reprehensible. Such uninformed assertions are not grounded in historical fact but arise from emotionally charged speculation. Since Abraham and his wife Sarah were the progenitors of the Jewish people, and since their origins trace back to the Mesopotamian region (Acts 7:2–4), our historical study must begin in that geographical context.

Sumerian myth suggests that the gods “had fashioned the black-headed (people),”²⁾ Ancient Near Eastern Texts Relating to the Old Testament, Third Edition (ed. James B. Pritchard) Princeton University Press (Princeton, NJ: 1969), p. 43 eferring to the original creation of humankind; thus, all people descended from these “black-headed” ones. Akkadian literature employs the same metaphor, calling humanity “the black-headed ones, his creatures”³⁾ Ancient Near Eastern Texts Relating to the Old Testament, Third Edition (ed. James B. Pritchard) Princeton University Press (Princeton, NJ: 1969) p. 69  “whom his [Agaku] hands have created.”⁴⁾ Ancient Near Eastern Texts Relating to the Old Testament, Third Edition (ed. James B. Pritchard) Princeton University Press (Princeton, NJ: 1969) p. 70 In these contexts, the phrase clearly denotes humanity as a whole.

Another Akkadian composition, A Vision of the Nether World, describes “a man (also), his body was black as pitch; his face was like that of Zu[.]”⁵⁾ Ancient Near Eastern Texts Relating to the Old Testament, Third Edition (ed. James B. Pritchard) Princeton University Press (Princeton, NJ: 1969) p. 110 he Epic of Gilgamesh describes Enkidu as “a young man whose face was dark, like unto Zu was his face.”⁶⁾ Ancient Near Eastern Texts Relating to the Old Testament, Third Edition (ed. James B. Pritchard) Princeton University Press (Princeton, NJ: 1969) p. 87 Yet Gilgamesh, when covered with dirt, had to “wash of his grime in water clean as snow[,]”⁷⁾Ancient Near Eastern Texts Relating to the Old Testament, Third Edition (ed. James B. Pritchard) Princeton University Press (Princeton, NJ: 1969) p. 96 demonstrating a contrast in complexion between the two companions.

A lamentation text concerning the destruction of Ur—the very city from which Abraham originated (Genesis 11:31; 15:7)—states: “The black-headed people do not wash themselves during the feasts, like… verily dirt has been decreed for them; verily their appearance has changed.” (ellipsis in original)⁸⁾Ancient Near Eastern Texts Relating to the Old Testament, Third Edition (ed. James B. Pritchard) Princeton University Press (Princeton, NJ: 1969) p. 462 This suggests that accumulated dirt altered their appearance, darkening their complexion; therefore, the “black-headed” metaphor most plausibly refers to hair color rather than skin tone. Solomon is likewise described as having black, bushy locks (Song of Solomon 5:11), yet he is simultaneously characterized as “white and ruddy” (Song of Solomon 5:10). The lamentation must postdate Ur’s destruction, placing its composition in the first half of the second millennium B.C., well after Abraham had departed the region.

Herod the Great—though an Idumean rather than a Jew, and therefore closely related ethnically—provides further evidence regarding natural hair color. Josephus records that Herod “colored his hair black, and tried to conceal what would reveal how old he was,”⁹⁾Josephus, Antiquity of the Jews 16.233; The New Complete Works of Josephus (Revised and Expanded) (Trans. William Whiston, Introduction and Commentary by Paul L. Maier), Kregel Publications (Grand Rapids, MI: 1999), p. 541 wrevealing that his original hair color, prior to aging, had not been black. Rabbinic literature similarly refers to Jews as “black-haired”¹⁰⁾Genesis Rabbah 59.1; Midrash Rabbah, ed. H. Freedman and Maurice Simon), Soncino Press (New York, NY: 1983), Vol. 2, p. 516 emphasizing the absence of grey hair within the congregation.

A parable in Deuteronomy Rabbah states: “this may be compared to a bride who, while standing under the bridal canopy, discovers that her hands are soiled. Should she wipe them on the wall, the wall will become dirty yet her hands will not be cleansed; if on the pavement, the pavement will become blackened and her hands will remain cleansed; if, however, she wipes them on her hair, her hair improves in appearance and her hands are cleansed.”¹¹⁾Deuteronomy Rabbah, 1.10; Midrash Rabbah, ed. H. Freedman and Maurice Simon), Soncino Press (New York, NY: 1983), Vol. 7, p. 9 Here, the blackening of the pavement indicates that her skin tone contrasts with the dirt, while her hair is improved because it is already black. Thus, she is depicted as possessing a light complexion and dark hair. In another text, Elijah is disparagingly called a”curly-haired fellow”¹²⁾Pesikta Rabbati 26.1/2; Pesikta Rabbati (trans. William G. Braude), Yale University Press (Dallas TX: 1968), Vol. 2, pp. 526-527 again reinforcing Jewish association with dark, curly hair.

Further evidence is found in the Genesis Apocryphon from Qumran (1st century B.C. to early 1st century A.D.). In its retelling of Genesis 12:14, an Egyptian observer exclaims concerning Sarah: “How fair are her breasts and how beautiful all her whiteness!”¹³⁾The Complete Dead Sea Scrolls In English (Trans. Geza Vermes), Penguin Classics (London, England: 1962, 2004, p. 486 Assuming, as before, that she shared Mesopotamia’s “black-headed” trait, Sarah would match well the later depiction of Solomon—a fair complexion paired with dark hair. Genesis Rabbah also refers to Laban, Rebekah’s brother, as “exceptionally white[,]”¹⁴⁾Genesis Rabbah 60.7; Midrash Rabbah, ed. H. Freedman and Maurice Simon), Soncino Press (New York, NY: 1983), Vol.2, p. 531; also see Numbers Rabbah 10.5; Midrash Rabbah, ed. H. Freedman and Maurice Simon), Soncino Press (New York, NY: 1983), Vol. 5, p. 362 indicating that lighter complexions were well within the natural range among Abraham’s extended family.

Rabbinic interpreters raised an early question regarding the statement of Song of Songs 1:5, “I am black, but comely.” They asked, “If ‘black,’ than how ‘comely‘? Can one be both black and comely?”¹⁵⁾Exodus Rabbah 49.2; Midrash Rabbah, ed. H. Freedman and Maurice Simon), Soncino Press (New York, NY: 1983), Vol.3, p. 554 This inquiry reflects the fact that, within ancient Judaism, “black” was not typically associated with beauty, and on one occasion was even described as “repulsive.”¹⁶⁾Songs Rabbah 5.11, § 5; Midrash Rabbah, ed. H. Freedman and Maurice Simon), Soncino Press (New York, NY: 1983), Vol. 9, p. 243 Songs Rabbah answers this interpretive problem by spiritualizing the imagery: “I am black through my own deeds, but comely through the works of my ancestors.”¹⁷⁾Songs Rabbah, 1.5, § 1; Midrash Rabbah, ed. H. Freedman and Maurice Simon), Soncino Press (New York, NY: 1983), Vol. 9, p. 51

Another midrash applies a similar symbolic approach to the term Cushite (often rendered “Ethiopian”). Concerning Ebed-Melech, the rabbis taught: “Ebed-Melech was one of four personages who were called Cushites [usually translated as Ethiopian]: Zipporah [Numbers 12:1], Israel [Amos 9:7], Saul [Psalm 7.1], and Ebed-Melech. And why was he called Cushite? Even as a Cushite stands out because of [the color of] his skin, so in the palaces of Zedekiah Ebed-Melech stood out because of his good deeds.”¹⁸⁾Pesikt Rabbati 26.5; Pesikta Rabbati (trans. William G. Braude), Yale University Press (Dallas TX: 1968), Vol. 2, p. 532 A comparable explanation is given for Zipporah, Moses’ wife, who is called a Cushite “because just as a Cushite woman is different in that her skin is black, so Zipporah was different in that her deeds were good. Likewise, Saul was different from other men because of his deeds and because of his beauty[.]”¹⁹⁾Midrash on Psalms, 7.14; The Midrash on Psalms (trans. William G. Braude) Yale University Press (New Haven, CT: 1959), Vol. 1, p. 112-113 Ethiopian proselytes, furthermore, were linguistically connected with ʾasmannim, meaning “men burnished by the sun” or “black people,” in reference to Genesis 10:6.²⁰⁾Midrash on Psalm 68.15; The Midrash on Psalms (trans. William G. Braude) Yale University Press (New Haven, CT: 1959), Vol. 1, p. 549

Song of Songs 1:6 clarifies the cause of the Shulammite’s complexion: “I am black, because the sun hath looked upon me.” The text attributes her darker appearance not to ethnicity but to sun exposure. A parallel interpretation appears in Songs Rabbah: “We will tell you what we resemble. We are like a king’s son who went out to the waste ground of the city and the sun beat down on his head so that his face became all swarthy. But when he went back to the town, with a little water and a little bathing his skin became white again and his former good appearance was restored.”²¹⁾Songs Rabbah, 1.6 § 4; Midrash Rabbah, ed. H. Freedman and Maurice Simon), Soncino Press (New York, NY: 1983), Vol. 9, p. 59 

Ancient Egyptian records likewise distinguished between population groups by complexion. A text from the Eighteenth Dynasty (ca. 1570 B.C.) differentiates clearly between “an Asiatic and a Negro,”²²⁾ Ancient Near Eastern Texts Relating to the Old Testament, Third Edition (ed. James B. Pritchard) Princeton University Press (Princeton, NJ: 1969) p. 232 A list from the reign of Ramses III (c. 1195–1164 B.C.) references “male and female slaves whom I had carried off from the lands of the Asiatics. Syrians and Negroes of the captivity” and also mentions the apiru, widely identified with the Habiru or Hebrews.²³⁾ Ancient Near Eastern Texts Relating to the Old Testament, Third Edition (ed. James B. Pritchard) Princeton University Press (Princeton, NJ: 1969) p. 261 To the Egyptians, the apiru were Asiatics. An Egyptian hymn from a papyrus dated 1550–1350 B.C. declares that the god Atum “who made the people, Distinguishing their nature, made their life, and separated colors, one from another.”²⁴⁾ Ancient Near Eastern Texts Relating to the Old Testament, Third Edition (ed. James B. Pritchard) Princeton University Press (Princeton, NJ: 1969) p. 366

Josephus similarly reports that color distinctions were noteworthy among Near Eastern populations. He describes a man named Sabinus, “a Syrian by birth… his color was black,”²⁵⁾Josephus, War of the Jews 6.54-55; The New Complete Works of Josephus (Revised and Expanded) (Trans. William Whiston, Introduction and Commentary by Paul L. Maier), Kregel Publications (Grand Rapids, MI: 1999), p. 884 implying that such a complexion was unusual enough among Syrians to merit comment. Egypt, situated in northern Africa, had extensive contact with Asiatics and Africans from the earliest periods and consistently differentiated between them.

Africans appear in the biblical narrative across many centuries (2 Chronicles 12:3; 14:9–13; 16:8; 21:16; Isaiah 20:4; Jeremiah 13:23; 38:7–12; 39:16; 46:9; Ezekiel 30:9; Daniel 11:43; Amos 9:7; Zephaniah 2:12; Acts 8:27). The term “Ethiopian” translates the Hebrew Cushite and can denote either dark skin (Jeremiah 13:23) or geographic origin. Moses’ wife is called an Ethiopian (Numbers 12:1), though she was from Midian (Exodus 2:15–21) in modern Saudi Arabia. The first-century Jewish philosopher Philo mistakenly assumed she was a black Ethiopian, stating that Moses was praised because he “received the Ethiopian woman… for as in the eye, the part which sees black, so also the part of the soul which sees what is meant by the Ethiopian woman.”²⁶⁾Philo, Allegorical Interpretation 2.67; in The Works of Philo: Complete and Unabridged New Updated Version (Trans. C. D. Yonge), (Peabody, MA: 1997), p. 45 Although Philo erred in identifying her ethnicity, his interpretation commends Moses for looking beyond skin color.

Later Jewish and pseudepigraphal literature also reflects awareness of complexion. In 3 Enoch (fifth century A.D.), angels refer to Enoch with the phrase “a white drop,” alluding to his skin tone.²⁷⁾3 Enoch 6:3; The Old Testament Pseudepigrapha (Ed. James H. Charlesworth) Doubleday (New York, NY: 1983), Vol. 1, p. 261 In the Testament of Solomon, the demon Onoskelis says she prefers to associate “with those whose skin is honey-colored,”²⁸⁾Testament of Solomon, 4:6; The Old Testament Pseudepigrapha (Ed. James H. Charlesworth) Doubleday (New York, NY: 1983), Vol. 1, p. 965 apparently distinguishing itself from Solomon’s Israelite complexion. Josephus, by contrast, describes King David as “to be of a yellow complexion[.]”²⁹⁾Josephus, Antinquity of the Jews,  6.164; The New Complete Works of Josephus (Revised and Expanded) (Trans. William Whiston, Introduction and Commentary by Paul L. Maier), Kregel Publications (Grand Rapids, MI: 1999), p. 212 He also cites the anti-Jewish Greek writer Cherilus, who claimed the Jews had “sooty” heads and “faces… like nasty horse-heads… hardened in the smoke.”³⁰⁾Josephus, Against Apion 1.174; The New Complete Works of Josephus (Revised and Expanded) (Trans. William Whiston, Introduction and Commentary by Paul L. Maier), Kregel Publications (Grand Rapids, MI: 1999), p. 947 Such caricatures deliberately exaggerate Jewish complexion in contrast to lighter-skinned Greeks.

The Mishnah (2nd century A.D.) contains explicit descriptions of skin tone. Discussing the diagnosis of leprosy, it states:

In a German the Bright Spot appears as dull white, and in an Ethiopian what is dull white appears as bright white. R. Ishmael says: The Children of Israel (may I make atonement for them!) are like boxwood, neither black nor white, but of the intermediate shade. R. Akiba says: Painters have colours wherewith they depict figures in black and white and in the intermediate shade. A man should bring paint of an intermediate shade and encompass the leprosy-sign therewith, and it will then appear as on one whose skin is of the intermediate shade.³¹⁾Negaim 2:1; The Mishnah (Trans. Herbert Danby), Hendrickson Publishers (Peabody, MA: 1933, 2016), p. 678

Biblical accounts confirm this range: Moses’ hand became “leprous, white as snow” (Exodus 4:6) and then returned to normal (Exodus 4:7), and Miriam likewise “became leprous, white as snow” (Numbers 12:10). Another Mishnah passage lists physical disqualifications for priestly service, including “If he is black-skinned or red-skinned or an Albino,”³²⁾Bekhoroth 7:6; The Mishnah (Trans. Herbert Danby), Hendrickson Publishers (Peabody, MA: 1933, 2016), p. 539 because such complexions were viewed as inconsistent with the natural, hereditary appearance expected of the priesthood.

A number of later rabbinic texts also attest to perceptions of Jewish complexion. Genesis Rabbah records: “When Nehemiah came up from the land of Exile [to Eretz Israel, he found that] the women’s faces had been blackened by the sun, so that [their husbands] had gone and married strange [i.e. heathen] wives, while these would go round the altar weeping.” (Brackets in original)³³⁾Genesis Rabbah 18.5; Midrash Rabbah, ed. H. Freedman and Maurice Simon), Soncino Press (New York, NY: 1983), Vol.1, p. 145 This passage again reflects the prevailing aesthetic ideal of lighter skin. Several derogatory statements concerning Ham further illustrate ancient Jewish associations with dark skin: “R. Huna also said in R. Joseph’s name: You have prevented me from doing something in the dark [sc. cohabitation], therefore your seed will be ugly and dark-skinned. R. Hiyya said: Ham and the dog copulated in the Ark, therefore Ham came forth black-skinned while the dog publicly exposes its copulation.” (Brackets in original)³⁴⁾Genesis Rabbah 36.7; Midrash Rabbah, ed. H. Freedman and Maurice Simon), Soncino Press (New York, NY: 1983), Vol.1, p. 293

Another text describes a woman of Sodom—likely understood as a descendant of Ham—as “so pale” due to starvation.³⁵⁾Genesis Rabbah, 49.6; Midrash Rabbah, ed. H. Freedman and Maurice Simon), Soncino Press (New York, NY: 1983), Vol.1, p. 425 Judah’s face is likewise said to have turned pale.³⁶⁾Genesis Rabbah 97; Midrash Rabbah, ed. H. Freedman and Maurice Simon), Soncino Press (New York, NY: 1983), Vol.2, p. 905 A “negress slave” is contrasted with a maid of noble birth, though the nature of this contrast is unexplained.³⁷⁾Exodus Rabbah, 3.4;  Midrash Rabbah, ed. H. Freedman and Maurice Simon), Soncino Press (New York, NY: 1983), Vol. 3, p. 62

From the period contemporary with Diocletian, it is recorded that “R. Samuel b. Nahman went down to bathe, he saw Rabbi standing before his academy with his face all pale.”Genesis Rabbah 63.8; Midrash Rabbah, ed. H. Freedman and Maurice Simon), Soncino Press (New York, NY: 1983), Vol.2, p. 563)) Commenting on the Ishmaelites’ sale of Joseph to Potiphar, another text observes: “Everywhere a white man sells an Ethiopian [blacked-skinned], while here an Ethiopian is selling a white man!”³⁸⁾Genesis Rabbah 86.3; Midrash Rabbah, ed. H. Freedman and Maurice Simon), Soncino Press (New York, NY: 1983), Vol.2, p. 802 One rabbinic account describes Abba Judan’s face turning the color of “saffron,” which prompted the inquiry, “Why is your face sickly?”³⁹⁾Leviticus Rabbah, Midrash Rabbah, ed. H. Freedman and Maurice Simon), Soncino Press (New York, NY: 1983), Vol. 4, p. 66

The ritual of the bitter water given to an adulterous wife was believed to cause dramatic physical effects, including discoloration: “If she was white it turned her black; if red, it made her green; her mouth would emit an evil odour; her neck would swell; her flesh would decay; she would be afflicted with gonorrhea; she would feel inflated and languid.”⁴⁰⁾Numbers Rabbah, 9.21; Midrash Rabbah, ed. H. Freedman and Maurice Simon), Soncino Press (New York, NY: 1983), Vol. 5, p. 278. Also see 9.31 which says “as soon as she drank, her face turned pale” Midrash Rabbah, ed. H. Freedman and Maurice Simon), Soncino Press (New York, NY: 1983), Vol. 5, p. 304 If innocent, however, she would be blessed: “if she had dark children she will now have fair; if undersized ones she will have well-grown ones; if she had a child once in two years she will now have one very year.”⁴¹⁾Numbers Rabbah, 9.25; Midrash Rabbah, ed. H. Freedman and Maurice Simon), Soncino Press (New York, NY: 1983), Vol. 5, p. 292 Once again, fair complexion is presented as aesthetically superior, as in the description of a young man whose beauty induces vanity.⁴²⁾Numbers Rabbah 10.7; Midrash Rabbah, ed. H. Freedman and Maurice Simon), Soncino Press (New York, NY: 1983), Vol. 5, p. 371

One narrative tells of an Arab king, described as black, whose black wife bore him a white child⁴³⁾Numbers Rabbah 9.34; Midrash Rabbah, ed. H. Freedman and Maurice Simon), Soncino Press (New York, NY: 1983), Vol. 5, p. 308 —a scenario biologically possible though rare. Esther Rabbah explains that Ahasuerus was so named “because he made the face of Israel black (hishhir) like the sides of a pot.”⁴⁴⁾Esther Rabbah 1.1; Midrash Rabbah, ed. H. Freedman and Maurice Simon), Soncino Press (New York, NY: 1983), Vol. 8, p. 18 Although the meaning is unstated, the implication is that Israel’s face was not originally black. Midrash on Psalms may clarify the idiom: “then their faces turned as black as the bottom of a pot, for they felt ashamed of themselves.”⁴⁵⁾Midrash on Psalm 24.10; The Midrash on Psalms (trans. William G. Braude) Yale University Press (New Haven, CT: 1959), Vol. 1, p. 344 Another text similarly states: “What is meant by Kedar? It meas that the faces of the poeple I dwell beside are black as the bottom of a pot.”⁴⁶⁾Midrash on Psalm 120:5; The Midrash on Psalms (trans. William G. Braude) Yale University Press (New Haven, CT: 1959), Vol. 2, p. 292

Advocates claiming the ancient Israelites were black often cite Lamentations 5:10: “Our skin was black like an oven because of the terrible famine.” In context, the blackening of the skin is explicitly attributed to famine conditions during the Babylonian siege (2 Kings 25:1–2), which resulted in extreme starvation—even cannibalism (Lamentations 4:10; Jeremiah 19:9). Jeremiah elsewhere states that the people “are black unto the ground” due to drought (Jeremiah 14:1–4). Diseases such as scurvy have these symptoms usually concentrated in the legs. An Irish famine was recorded with similar descriptions. Richard Lawrence a colonel in Cromwell’s army, wrote: “About the year 1652 and 1653, the plague and famine had swept away whole countries that a man might travel twenty or thirty miles and not see a living creature… [except] very aged men with women and children… [whose] skin was black like an oven because of the terrible famine.”⁴⁷⁾Leslie A. Clarkson and E. Margaret Crawford, Feast and Famine: A History of Food and Nutrition in Ireland 1500-1920, Oxford University Press (New York, NY: 2002), p. 137

Lamentations 4:7–8 makes the contrast explicit: “Her Nazarites were purer than snow, they were whiter than milk… their visage is blacker than a coal… their skin cleaveth to their bones.” This shift from past whiteness to present blackness reflects starvation, not ethnicity.⁴⁸⁾Lamentation Rabbah 4.8, § 11, states, “It was like the colour of shoe-blacking. R. Levi said: it was like the colour of soot.” Midrash Rabbah, ed. H. Freedman and Maurice Simon), Soncino Press (New York, NY: 1983), Vol. 7, p. 222 The self-description as “white” is relative, contrasting pre-famine normal complexion with post-famine deterioration. The evidence presented throughout the rabbinic corpus aligns consistently: the Jews were characterized as possessing an intermediate skin tone—neither as light as northern Europeans nor as dark as Africans, and distinct from the complexions common in Arabia or India. Isaiah 29:22 states that when a Jew is ashamed, “shall his face now wax pale,” a description incompatible with uniformly dark complexion and more consistent with a naturally lighter, though tanned, skin tone. Exodus Rabbah likewise notes that Caleb was called Ashur, “Because he made his face black (hishhiru) by fasting.”⁴⁹⁾Exodus Rabbah, 1.17;  Midrash Rabbah, ed. H. Freedman and Maurice Simon), Soncino Press (New York, NY: 1983), Vol. 3, p. 23-24

All of this bears directly upon the complexion of the Lord Jesus Christ, who was an ethnic Jew of the first century.⁵⁰⁾see my follow-up article: Heath Henning, “Was Jesus Really Black?,” Sept. 9, 2020; https://truthwatchers.com/was-jesus-really-black/ Attempts to appropriate Christ for racial superiority are not new and have always been heterodox. Christ commanded His gospel to be preached to “all nations” (Matthew 28:19), to every ethnic group (cf. Matthew 24:14; Mark 13:10; 16:15; Luke 24:47; Acts 1:8). The future Temple is described as “a house of prayer for all people” (Mark 11:17). Humanity shares a common ancestry in Adam and Eve and is of “one blood” (Acts 17:26). Early Christian writers rejected racial discrimination; Clement of Alexandria observed that the Law forbade yoking an ox and ass together to teach “not to wrong any one belonging to another race, and bring him under the yoke, when there is no cause to allege than difference of race, which is no cause at all, being neither wickedness not the effect of wickedness.”⁵¹⁾Clement of Alexandria, Stromata 2.18.8; in The Ante-Nicene Fathers, Edited by Alexander Roberts, D.D., & James, Donaldson, LL.D., Hendrickson Publishers (Peabody, MA: 2012), vol. 2. p. 368

While slavery existed globally from antiquity, it was Islam that first institutionalized a racialized slave trade:

Although black captives had appeared in Egyptian iconography in the third millennium B. C. … through Hellenistic and Romans times, the Arabs and their Muslim allies were the first people to develop a specialized, long-distance slave trade from sub-Saharan Africa. They were also the first people to view blacks as suited by nature for the lowest and most degrading forms of bondage.⁵²⁾David Brion Davis, Slavery and Human Progress, Oxford University Press (New York,NY: 1984), p. 8

When this racial ideology later entered Western society, it was Christian moral influence that drove the movement toward abolition.⁵³⁾see David Cloud, America and Slavery, August 1, 2019; https://www.wayoflife.org/reports/america_and_slavery.php God loves the whole world (John 3:16) and is “not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9). The invitation of the Gospel extends to every person, irrespective of skin color.