The King Nobody Wanted

by Norman F. Langford, John Lear (Illustrator)

In a very real and interesting way, The King Nobody Wanted tells the story of Jesus. Where the actual words of the Bible are used, they are from the King James Version. But the greater part of the story is told in the words of every day. Illustrated.

Genres: Christian

192 pages, Hardcover

Published January 1, 1948

Reviews

[booklady]

I really wanted to love this book. It is after all about my Savior and King, Jesus Christ. However, there were too many things, granted they weren’t huge, but they were significant, which are wrong about this book that spoiled it for me.

The first one was how it ignored, slighted and misrepresented, Jesus’ Mother, Mary. From the beginning to the end, significant stories about Mary (the Annunciation, Visitation, the Wedding at Cana) which also figured into Jesus’ ministry were entirely omitted. Nothing was even mentioned about these events.

In the Finding of the Child Jesus in the Temple, ‘Mary’s surprise turned to anger. She pushed her way through the crowd and took Jesus by the arm. “Why did you do this?” she cried. “Your father and I have been looking for you everywhere.”’ I don’t know what Mary’s feelings were when she and Joseph found Jesus in the Temple but I don’t believe from the words we have in Sacred Scripture we can infer she was angry, nor that she ‘pushed’ or ‘took Jesus by the arm’. While such reactions might be natural for some women today, they are not universal for all women and certainly do not seem typical of a proper Jewish wife and mother of that era. Most of all, they do not fit Mary, the Mother of God. Would Jesus have chosen such a mother as His own?

Later, the author has Jesus refusing to go back to Nazareth ever because of what happened at the synagogue when he declared Himself the Messiah. ‘Jesus never went back to Nazareth anymore.’ Never? He didn’t go back to see his mother and the rest of His family because of what happened with the town?! That’s what the text says. What about forgiveness? That doesn’t sound like the Jesus I know.

And because Jesus refused to come back home, the author goes on to write: ‘Once when he was preaching in another town, someone came and told him that his mother and brothers had come to take him home. They thought that he ought to stop this nonsense of pretending to be the Messiah. But Jesus would not go home with them, for they did not believe in him. It was better to stay with his disciples. He was at home with those who trusted him. “My mother?” he said. “My brothers?” He looked around at his disciples and said: “These are my mother and brothers—my own disciples. Anybody who obeys the will of God is my brother and my sister and my mother, all in one. That's the kind of family I want!”’

The italics are mine, but the words are the authors. He subtly changes Scripture to fit his own message. A good exegete explains the meaning of the words are they ARE. There is so much wrong with the paragraph I hardly know where to begin. There is nothing in the actual Gospel account about Mary and Jesus’ brethren coming to ‘take Jesus home’. They came to speak to Jesus. We do not know why they wanted to speak to Him; the actual Scripture text does not say. Probably they wanted to spend some time with Him when He finished speaking, but it definitely does NOT say that they wanted to take Him home! Or that they did not believe in Him. His Mother, Mary was His First Disciple and she never stopped believing in Him. Jesus said what He did to illustrate that the most important thing about being a disciple was doing the Father’s Will, which Mary always did perfectly. If this was the only case where the author slanted or twisted the words of Scripture, I might be able to ignore it, but it happened other times as well, just not so egregiously.

There were good and interesting things which the author included, such as describing the terrain the pilgrims crossed traveling from Nazareth to Jerusalem and their first impressions when they arrived in the city at Passover. Unfortunately, giving false portrayals of Christ and Mary and messing around with Scripture, even a version I don’t usually read are definite no-nos.

I really dislike giving low ratings especially to books about my Lord and Savior, but I have to stand up for the truth about Him. I do not recommend this book even if it is free on kindle. I probably should give it one star for the things which are wrong, but there is still much that is right with the book and for that reason, I have to give it two stars.

[Mary Ann]

A Librivox recording. Downloaded Free fr: Audiobooks app -- Cross Forward Consulting, LLC

[Suwandy Tjin]

A great read, basically tells you the story of the birth of Jesus till His death, resurrection and ascension.

[Cheryl]

Simple narrative incorporating all 4 Gospels into one cohesive story. Excellent for kids and even young adults.

[Morgan Shae]

I found a gorgeous illustrated version in a thrift shop and decided to give it a try. It tells the life of Jesus Christ in narrative form at a middle grade reading level.

Sometimes it's nice to have a narrative retelling with gorgeous art to help immerse you in the story. I loved this. I'm debating either giving this to my kids when they are in middle school to read through or doing it as a read aloud when they are elementary school aged. Maybe both.

[Emily Peterson]

A simple straightforward telling of the life of Jesus in a structure easy for young readers to understand. However, there were a few points in it we felt the writing was a bit theologically problematic.

[Jo]

It seems to be written for children, but Jesus comes across as mean and impatient in many of his interactions with others. P

[Pam Sarver]

1948 Edition