Extrabiblical Evidence of Jesus Christ
Information Related to "Extrabiblical Evidence of Jesus Christ"
Extrabiblical Evidence of Jesus Christ
References to Christ appear in more than just the Bible—secular
historians of his era talked about Him as well. The following is from
our free booklet Jesus Christ: The Real Story:
Cornelius Tacitus (ca. 56-120) was a Roman senator, consul and governor
of the Roman province of Anatolia (covering most of modern-day Turkey)
as well as one of ancient Rome's greatest historians. Late in his life
he wrote a 16-volume history of the Roman emperors, the Annals.
No friend to either Nero or Christians, Tacitus writes that Nero blamed "a
class hated for their abominations, called Christians by the populace." He
goes on to explain that "Christus [Christ], from whom the name had its
origin, suffered the extreme penalty [crucifixion] during the reign
of Tiberius at the hand of one of our procurators, Pontius Pilatus,
and a most mischievous superstition, thus checked for the moment, again
broke out not only in Judaea, the first source of the evil, but even
in Rome..." (Annals, 15:44, quoted by Lee Strobel, The
Case for Christ, 1998, p. 82).
A contemporary of Tacitus, Caius Suetonius Tranquillus (ca. 69-140),
overseer of Rome's libraries and court official to several emperors,
writes that the emperor Claudius "banished the Jews from Rome, who were
continually making disturbances, Chrestus [Christ] being their leader" (Lives
of the First Twelve Caesars: Life of Claudius, quoted by Grant
Jeffrey, Jesus: The Great Debate, 1999, p. 163). This banishment
of Jews from Rome is mentioned in Acts 18:2.
Also, "Pliny the younger, the Roman legate of Bithynia-Pontus (what
is now north-central Turkey) in the early second century, wrote to the
emperor Trajan, requesting advice on how to deal with Christians who
refused to reverence Caesar's image. Pliny noted that these Christians
met regularly and sang hymns 'to Christ as if to a god' (Letters 10:96.7).
The phrase 'as if to a God' suggests that Pliny knew Jesus had been
a person who had lived on earth but was reluctant to call him divine" (Craig
Blomberg, The Historical Reliability of the Gospels, 1987,
p. 196).
From these historical sources, none connected in any way with the Bible,
we see references to these facts:
A group called "Christians" derived its name from "Christus" (Christ).
This "Christus" was executed during the reign of Tiberius at the hands
of Pontius Pilate (Tiberius reigned A.D. 14-37; Pilate held office from
26 to 36 or 37).
This new movement involved "a most mischievous superstition," quite
possibly a reference to Christians' belief that Jesus rose from the
dead after His crucifixion.
This new movement begun by Christians started in Judea and spread
to Rome.
Early Christians considered Christ to be a divine Being.
For more information, read Jesus
Christ: The Real Story.
Comments or Questions
If you have any comments about this article or vertical-thinking questions we can help you answer please send them to info@verticalthought.org.
Contact: Info & Questions | Webmaster
© 2003-2022 Vertical Thought — a magazine
of understanding for tomorrow's leaders
Sponsored by the United Church of God, an International
Association
Related Information:
Sidebar to Proof Jesus Actually Existed
Table of Contents that includes "Extrabiblical Evidence of Jesus Christ"
Origin of article "Extrabiblical Evidence of Jesus Christ"
Keywords: Jesus' existence Jesus in history history and Jesus
Jesus' existence:
Bible historicity:
- Archaeology and Genesis: What Does the Record Show? (9/96)
- Archaeology and the Book of Judges
- The Bible: Myth or History
- Can You Believe the Bible? (3/2002)
- A Good News Interview with Bryant Wood, Ph.D.
- Archaeology in Acts, Part 1
- Archaeology in Acts, Part 2: The Message Spreads
- The Battle Over the Bible
- Can You Prove the Bible Is True?
- Confusion Over Noah
- God's Challenge to You
- God, Science and the Bible (7/05)
- Parts of the Bible Rejected by Roman Catholic Church in Britain
- God, Science and the Bible (1/06)
- Proofs of the Bible
- The Da Vinci Code, Christianity and the Bible
- Can You Believe Both the Bible and Evolution?
- Is the New Testament a Fraud?
- Can You Believe the Bible?
- Is the Bible Relevant and Reliable?
- God, Science and the Bible (9/07)
- In the News Oct/Dec 2007
- God, Science and the Bible 11/2008
- 10 Questions to Ask About Evolution,Part 2
- Answers from Genesis - Part 7
- Answers from Genesis - Part 8
- God, Science and the Bible - Discoveries at Goliath's hometown support accuracy of the Bible
- Stone Chest From the Time of Christ Authenticated
- Did Adam and Eve Really Exist?
- Prove the Bible Is True - the Easy Way!
- An Ancient Fortress Slowly Yields its Secrets
- Ancient Seal Found in Jerusalem
- Discovered: Artifacts, Possibly from King David's Era
- Discovered: Artifacts Shed Light on Biblical Era
- Ancient Inscription Found at Jerusalem
- Camels Domesticated As Bible Portrays
- Is the Bible True?
- Can We Believe the Gospels?
- Do We Have Valid Testimony to the Life of Christ?
- Can We Believe the Bible? (A)
- The Bible
- How Archaeology Confirms the Biblical Record
- Two Jigsaw Puzzles, Two Purposes
- The Bible and Archaeology
- Does Archaeology Confirm the Existence of Specific People Mentioned in the Bible?
- Does the Bible Contain Errors?
- The Bible in the Modern World
- Has Evidence of the Prophet Isaiah Been Found?
- Ring Found Bearing Name of Roman Governor Pilate
- Believe the Bible -- and Its Warnings!
- What Does Archaeology Tell Us About the Bible?
- The Location of Sodom
- Recent Holy Land Finds Support the Biblical Record
- What If Sodom Has Been Found?
- More Proof of the Bible - Mount Ebal Discoveries
- Archaeology and History Confirm Dozens of Biblical Figures
- Can We Believe the Bible? (B)
- Recent Archaeological Finds Support the Biblical Record
- Proof of God's Word Through the Universe
- More Archaeological Finds Support the Biblical Record
Key Subjects Index
General Topics Index
Biblical References Index
Home Page of this site