Info For The Historical Jesus Revealed

By Corinne Kelley


There is plenty of secular evidence for the historical Jesus revealed. The New Testament records His words and deeds and also mentions people and events of that time. There are also numerous ancient historians who substantiate his existence as a real person. Archaeological evidence also continues to increase.

The first place to look for evidence is in the historical records of those days. A Roman historian named Tacitus wrote about the great fire that destroyed Rome in 115 AD and how Nero had blamed it on the Christians. He also explained that Christians were followers of one, Christos, who was crucified by Pontius Pilate during the rule of Emperor Tiberius. Scholars believe that Tacitus got his information from official records or even actual reports written by Pilate himself.

Another famous historian is Josephus. A Jew by birth, Josephus was the official Roman historian in the first century A. D. His interest in his homeland caused him to write in detail about the people there. He cites Jesus as a good man, who did wonders, and who was alive again three days after being crucified. Josephus died in 97 A. D. But he wondered if this was possibly the long-awaited Jewish Messiah.

Another Roman historian, Thallus, was alive around 52 A. D. And he also wrote about Him. He noted that darkness fell on the land at the time of the crucifixion. He wrote that such a phenomenon was caused by an eclipse.

Pliny the Younger was a Roman official who wrote about Him. As governor of Phrygia, a region of Asia Minor, he knew all about the people and customs there. In 112 A. D., the Christians had begun worshiping Him as a deity and Pliny mentioned that fact in his writings.

Another book that mentions Him is the Talmud, a Jewish holy book. It contains a reference to Yeshu, a man who was sentenced to death for apostasy and sorcery on the eve of Passover. Instead of being hanged according to Jewish custom, He was crucified which was the Roman form of execution. The Talmud also describes Yeshu as being about 34 years of age. Since the Jewish writers did not recognize His deity, they did not have anything to gain from writing about Him in the Talmud.

Archaeological evidence is another source of secular evidence. Until recently no one could prove that Caiaphas, who was high priest in Gospel times, actually lived. In November 1990, an antique burial cave was discovered by workers. Ancient texts in the cave proved it was owned by the family of Caiaphas. The skeleton of an old man was also found in a coffin. The inscription on the coffin proved that it was Caiaphas, the high priest.

There is a large body of secular evidence that proves the historical Jesus revealed. Although the New Testament has many points that have been proven to be historically correct, there are those who want secular proof as well. This can be found among the writings of Roman and Jewish historians as well as archaeological evidence, such as finding the burial cave of Caiaphas, the high priest.




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