The term "shroud" generally refers to a cloth used to wrap a body for burial. In biblical contexts, it is most notably associated with the burial of Jesus Christ. The shroud is a significant artifact in Christian tradition, symbolizing both the death and the resurrection of Jesus.

Biblical References

The most direct biblical reference to a burial cloth is found in the accounts of Jesus' burial. After His crucifixion, Joseph of Arimathea, a secret disciple of Jesus, requested permission from Pilate to take Jesus' body for burial. In the Gospel of Matthew, it is recorded: "So Joseph took the body, wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, and placed it in his own new tomb that he had cut out of the rock. Then he rolled a great stone across the entrance of the tomb and went away" (Matthew 27:59-60). Similarly, the Gospel of Mark states: "So Joseph bought a linen cloth, took down the body, wrapped it in the linen, and placed it in a tomb that had been cut out of the rock. Then he rolled a stone against the entrance to the tomb" (Mark 15:46).

The Gospel of Luke also mentions the linen cloth: "Then he took it down, wrapped it in linen cloth, and placed it in a tomb cut into the rock, where no one had yet been laid" (Luke 23:53). The Gospel of John provides additional details, noting that Nicodemus assisted Joseph and brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes for the burial: "They took the body of Jesus and wrapped it in linen cloths with the spices, according to the Jewish burial custom" (John 19:40).

The Shroud of Turin

The Shroud of Turin is a famous relic believed by some to be the actual burial cloth of Jesus. It bears the faint image of a man and has been the subject of extensive scientific and theological study. While the authenticity of the Shroud of Turin is debated, it remains a powerful symbol of Christ's passion and resurrection for many believers.

Symbolism and Significance

In Christian theology, the shroud represents the reality of Jesus' death and the hope of His resurrection. The act of wrapping Jesus' body in a linen cloth signifies the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecies regarding the Messiah's suffering and burial. Isaiah 53:9 prophesies, "He was assigned a grave with the wicked, and with the rich in His death, though He had done no violence, nor was any deceit in His mouth."

The empty shroud found in the tomb is a testament to the resurrection. In John 20:6-7, it is recorded: "Simon Peter arrived just after him. He entered the tomb and saw the linen cloths lying there. The face cloth that had been around Jesus’ head was rolled up, lying separate from the linen cloths." This detail underscores the miraculous nature of the resurrection, as the grave clothes were left behind, indicating that Jesus had risen bodily from the dead.

Cultural and Historical Context

In Jewish burial customs of the time, bodies were typically wrapped in linen cloths and spices to honor the deceased and to mitigate the odor of decay. The use of a shroud was a common practice, reflecting both respect for the dead and adherence to ritual purity laws.

The shroud, therefore, serves as a bridge between the historical reality of Jesus' death and the theological implications of His resurrection. It is a tangible reminder of the core Christian belief in the victory over sin and death through Jesus Christ.1. (n.) That which clothes, covers, conceals, or protects; a garment.

2. (n.) Especially, the dress for the dead; a winding sheet.

3. (n.) That which covers or shelters like a shroud.

4. (n.) A covered place used as a retreat or shelter, as a cave or den; also, a vault or crypt.

5. (n.) The branching top of a tree; foliage.

6. (n.) A set of ropes serving as stays to support the masts. The lower shrouds are secured to the sides of vessels by heavy iron bolts and are passed around the head of the lower masts.

7. (n.) One of the two annular plates at the periphery of a water wheel, which form the sides of the buckets; a shroud plate.

8. (n.) To cover with a shroud; especially, to enclose in a winding sheet; to dress for the grave.

9. (n.) To cover, as with a shroud; to protect completely; to cover so as to conceal; to hide; to veil.

10. (v. i.) To take shelter or harbor.

11. (v. t.) To lop. See Shrood.

SHROUD

shroud (choresh, "bough"): Winding-sheet for the dead. See BURIAL. Used in the King James Version, the English Revised Version Ezekiel 31:3 in the rare old sense of "shelter," "covering." the American Standard Revised Version has "a forest-like shade" choresh, "wood," "wooded height") (Isaiah 17:9, etc.). Compare Milton, Comus, 147.

2793. choresh -- wood, wooded height
... bough, forest, shroud, wood. From charash; a forest (perhaps as furnishing the material
for fabric) -- bough, forest, shroud, wood. see HEBREW charash. ...
/hebrew/2793.htm - 6k

5848. ataph -- to turn aside
... A primitive root; to shroud, ie Clothe (whether transitive or reflex.); hence (from
the idea of darkness) to languish -- cover (over), fail, faint, feebler ...
/hebrew/5848.htm - 5k

This is He who Took a Bodily Form in the virgin
... and He was being crucified; thou wast rejoicing, and He was being buried; thou wast
reclining on a soft couch, and He was watching in the grave and the shroud. ...
//christianbookshelf.org/unknown/the decretals/v this is he who.htm

A Voice from the Hartley Colliery
... As for the workers, they also are wishful to put far from them the thought
of the coffin and the shroud: God has spoken to them also. ...
/.../spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 8 1863/a voice from the hartley.htm

Humbly Inscribed to his Grace the Duke of Newcastle, one of his ...
... "Profess'd diversions! cannot these escape?". Far from it: these present us
with a shroud; And talk of death, like garlands o'er a grave. ...
/.../young/youngs night thoughts/humbly inscribed to his grace.htm

The Origin and Growth of Law.
... tempests spend their utmost skill. "Lowell (The Washers of the Shroud).
I. THE NEEDS THAT GIVE RISE TO LAW. Kipling's Law of the ...
/...//christianbookshelf.org/kent/the making of a nation/study ix the origin and.htm

Christian Ballads.
... the wink of an eye; 'tis the draft of a breath From the blossom of health to the
paleness of death, From the gilded saloon to the bier and the shroud, Oh, why ...
/.../brown/the story of the hymns and tunes/chapter vi christian ballads.htm

Hymn at Cock-Crow
... Too long did dull oblivion cloud Our motions and our senses shroud: Lulled by
her numbing touch, we stray In dreamland's ineffectual way. ...
/.../prudentius/the hymns of prudentius/i hymn at cock-crow.htm

L'envoy
... O Sister, who ere yet my task is done Art lying (my loved Sister!) in thy shroud
With a calm placid smile upon thy lips As thou wert only "taking of rest in ...
/.../burgon/the last twelve verses of the gospel according to s mark /lenvoy.htm

L'envoy
... O Sister, who ere yet my task is done Art lying (my loved Sister!) in thy shroud
With a calm placid smile upon thy lips As thou wert only "taking of rest in ...
/.../burgon/the last twelve verses of the gospel according to s mark/lenvoy.htm

Memento Mori
... MAN IS UNWILLING to consider the subject of death. The shroud, the mattock
and the grave, he labors to keep continually out of sight. ...
/.../spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 6 1860/memento mori.htm

Hypotheses Hypochondriacae {211}
... And when the sullen clouds rose thick on high Mountains on mountains rolling"and
dark mist Wrapped itself round the hill-tops like a shroud, When on her ...
/.../kingsley/andromeda and other poems/hypotheses hypochondriacae 211.htm

Shroud (6 Occurrences)
... 3. (n.) That which covers or shelters like a shroud. ... 8. (n.) To cover with a shroud;
especially, to enclose in a winding sheet; to dress for the grave. ...
/s/shroud.htm - 9k

Shrouded (2 Occurrences)
... Noah Webster's Dictionary 1. (imp. & pp) of Shroud. 2. (a.) Provided with a shroud
or shrouds. Multi-Version Concordance Shrouded (2 Occurrences). ...
/s/shrouded.htm - 7k

Collar (6 Occurrences)
... 9. (n.) An eye formed in the bight or bend of a shroud or stay to go over the masthead;
also, a rope to which certain parts of rigging, as dead-eyes, are ...
/c/collar.htm - 11k

Amidst (13 Occurrences)
... Ezekiel 31:3 Behold, Assyria was a cedar in Lebanon, with fair branches and a shadowing
shroud, and of a high stature: and his top was amidst the thick boughs. ...
/a/amidst.htm - 10k

Shadow (72 Occurrences)
... 11. (n.) To conceal; to hide; to screen. 12. (n.) To protect; to shelter from danger;
to shroud. 13. (n.) To mark with gradations of light or color; to shade. ...
/s/shadow.htm - 35k

Shadowing (3 Occurrences)
... Ezekiel 31:3 Behold, the Assyrian was a cedar in Lebanon with fair branches, and
with a shadowing shroud, and of an high stature; and his top was among the ...
/s/shadowing.htm - 10k

Shrivels (1 Occurrence)

/s/shrivels.htm - 6k

Swifter (6 Occurrences)
... 2. (n.) A rope used to encircle a boat longitudinally, to strengthen and defend
her sides. 3. (n.) The forward shroud of a lower mast. ...
/s/swifter.htm - 8k

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