Evidence Demands A Verdict Sampler

EVIDENCE
THAT DEMANDS
A VERDICT
LIFE- CHANGING TRUTH FOR
A SKEPTICAL WORLD
JOSH McDOWELL
AND
SEAN McDOWELL, PhD
9781401676704_EvidenceDemandsVerdict_1p.indd 5 5/31/17 2:58 PM

2017 Josh McDowell Ministry.
Substantial portions of this material were previously published as The New Evidence That Demands a Verdict by
Thomas Nelson in 1999, Evidence That Demands a Verdict, Vols. I andII, by Thomas Nelson 1992, and Evidence
That Demands a Verdict by Thomas Nelson in 1984. Those editions included material originally published by
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To my wife, Dottie of 46 years. My inspiration, my counselor, and
the greatest encourager in my life to stay true to my calling and
mission. Without her patience, love, encouragement, and constructive
criticism this project could never have been completed.
Josh McDowell
This book is dedicated to the scholars who compiled the

initialresearch that challenged my father to consider the claims of
Christ. My personal thanks to John Warwick Montgomery, Wilbur
M. Smith, George Eldon Ladd, Norman Geisler, Bernard Ramm,
Carl Henry, F. F. Bruce, and many more. Your efforts have echoed
into my life, the life of my family, and many others yet to come.
Sean McDowell

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
W
e would like to thank the following people for their research, editing, and writing
contributions for the following chapters:
A Theistic Universe Danny MacDonald

How we Got the Bible Arthur Young
Is the New Testament Historically Reliable? James Johansen & Matthew Tingblad
Has the Old Testament Been Transmitted Reliably? Troy Peiffer & Anthony Costello
The Historical Existence of Jesus Cisco Cotto
The Lofty Claims of Jesus James Kaufman
The TrilemmaLord, Liar, or Lunatic? Adam Kingston
Old Testament Prophecies Fulfilled in Jesus Christ Jonathan McLatchie
The Resurrection: Hoax or History? Shawn White
The Deity of Jesus: An Investigation Rob Bowman & Randall Wilson
Dr.Joseph Holden, President of Veritas
Archaeology and the Old Testament
Evangelical Seminary
The Old Testament and Ancient Near East Influences William Conner
Biblically Faithful Approaches to Genesis 1 Barrie Winn
The Historical Adam Barrie Winn
The Historicity of the Patriarchs Aaron Bond
The Historicity of the Exodus Cisco Cotto
The Historicity of the Conquest (Judges, Jericho/Ai) Robert Ryals
The Historicity of the United Monarch (Character of David) Rick Miller
The Historicity of Divided Monarchy and Exilic Period (Minimalism) Stephen Royce
The Composition of Pentateuch (Documentary Hypothesis) Cliff Feggert
The Composition of the Book of Isaiah, The Historicity of Daniel Nathan Richards
xvii

xviii Evidence That Demands a Verdict
Alleged Contradictions in the Old Testament Aaron Heinrich

Gnostic Gospels and Other Non-Biblical Texts Timothy Fox
Responding to the Challenges of Bart Ehrman Ben Whittington
Is Christianity a Copycat Religion? Shawn White
The Nature of Truth Brian Collins & Gabriel Pagel
The Knowability of Truth Nathan Hollister
Answering Postmodernism John Barnwell
Answering Skepticism Emily Stevens
Are Miracles Possible? Jerilyn Valentine & Derrick Jahn
Is History Knowable? Scott Bootman
We would also like to express our appreci- the call of duty to help make these chapters
ation to the following scholars who helped both high quality and relevant for today.
provide critical feedback and editing for We would like to draw special attention
chapters that fell within their expertise. Our to the efforts and sacrifice of Don and Judy
thanks to Ken Turner, Charlie Trimm, Scott Kencke. The two of you truly put in tireless
Carroll, Paul Rhodes Eddy, Daniel Wallace, and countless hours reading, editing, and
Michael Licona, Rob Bowman, Michael updating content throughout the entire
Brown, Jeff Zweerink, Casey Luskin, Tim- manuscript. We truly believe God prepared
othy Pickavance, Ann Gauger, John Bloom, you for such a time as this. And we will be
Fuz Rana, David Talley, Craig Blomberg, and forever grateful for how much energy and
Scott Smith. focus you put into making this manuscript
Our thanks to Carlos Delgado for his the quality that it is. There is no way we could
careful and insightful edits of the entire have done this without you.
manuscript. And we deeply appreciate Jona- And we would also like to offer our
than McLatchie for his extra research to find gratitude to Daniel Marrs, our editor from
some of the most common objections raised Thomas Nelson, for guiding this project from
against the last version of Evidence (1999) and start to finish. You have truly cared about
for providing helpful responses to include in the little details and the big details, which
this updated version. make a project like this a success. Thanks for
Many thanks to Charlie Trimm, David gently pushing back when necessary, and also
Talley, and Ken Turner in particular for so for the extra effort you put into this entire
much work updating and expanding the project. You are truly a blessing and exactly
chapters pertaining to the Old Testament. the right person for the job.
All three of you went far above and beyond

PARTII
EVIDENCE
FOR JESUS

CHAPTER6
THE HISTORICAL EXISTENCE OF JESUS
OVERVIEW
I. Introduction III. Christian Sources

II. Non-Christian Sources NT Documents
Sources of Little or No Value Early Christian Creeds
Sources of Limited Value Apostolic Fathers
Sources of Significant Value IV. Archaeology
Summary of Non- Christian Sources V. Concluding Remarks
I. Introduction legends of their founding by this or that

apostle: the apostle (or Jesus) could not be
Before we examine the evidence for the deity much older than the organization for which he
of Christ, the fulfillment of prophecy, and the is being appropriated as founder and authority.
historical resurrection, we begin by investi- (Price, JVP, 81)
gating whether, in fact, a man named Jesus
lived in and around Jerusalem approximately Price believes, then, that the early church,
two thousand years ago. Is Jesus just a myth in order to support their claim that Jesus
created solely for the benefit of those looking founded Christianity, may have fabricated
to start a new religious group? Theologian a Jesus who not only really lived, but lived
and self-defined atheist Robert Price believes in their day.
so, continuing the work of Arthur Drews Conclusions such as those reached by
from the early twentieth century: Price are in the scholarly minority. New
Testament scholar Craig Blomberg offers the
The urgency for historicizing Jesus was the following analysis:
need of a consolidating institution for an
authoritative figurehead who had appointed An inordinate number of websites and blogs
successors and set policy.... It was exactly the make the wholly unjustified claim that Jesus
logic whereby competing churches fabricated never existed. Biblical scholars and historians
143

144 Evidence That Demands a Verdict
who have investigated this issue in detail are However, Meier expresses the challenge of
virtually unanimous today in rejecting this looking to these documents for independent,
view, regardless of their theological or ideolog- historically reliable information about the
ical perspectives (Blomberg, JN, 439). historical Jesus:
However, rather than simply dismiss the Their primary value is as witnesses to the
idea of Jesus as myth because of scholarly ongoing life of ancient and early medieval
consensus, we want to explore for ourselves Judaism, and to ask them about Jesus of Naz-
the evidence for the historicity of Jesus Christ. areth is, in almost all cases, to ask the wrong
question of a body of literature with its own
II. Non-Christian Sources valid concerns. (Meier, MJ, 94)
In evaluating non-Christian sources for the Biblical scholar Paul Eddy and theologian
historicity of Jesus, New Testament scholar Gregory Boyd provide a concise, but detailed
Craig Evans says distinctions should be made analysis of the rabbinic literatures value to
when considering the quality of the sources. a study of whether Jesus existed. They find
(Evans, JNCS, 443) We should understand three considerations that lead them to con-
that not every ancient mention of Jesus aids clude the rabbinic tradition is not valuable
an investigation into whether he really lived. for this study:
Similar to Evans, we discuss three catego-
ries of non-Christian sources: sources with First, the earliest rabbinic sources date from
little or no value, sources of some value, and the late second to the third century and the
sources of significant value. most celebrated material even later than this.
This alone raises questions about the historical
A. Sources of Little or No Value value of this material. To illustrate, we pos-
Just because the name Jesus shows up sess a rabbinic account of Jesuss life (Toledot
in an ancient document does not mean that Yeshu) that claims, among other things, that
it is helpful for someone trying to determine Jesus was born out of wedlock, grew up acting
whether the founder of Christianity ever disrespectful toward Jewish leaders, and mas-
really lived. Sources that purport to discuss tered magical practices to gain a following. It
Jesus of Nazareth can be unhelpful for vari- also claims that Jesuss body was found after
ous reasons. It is to those that we turn first. his death. Were this a first-or even second-
century document, it might be of historical
1. Rabbinic Tradition interest. However, the Toledot Yeshu was com-
The large collection of ancient rabbinic piled in the fifth century. True, Toledot Yeshu
literature may seem promising for a study of and other Jewish literature contain traditions
the historical Jesus. As biblical scholar and that predate them, but the relatively late date
Roman Catholic priest John P. Meier notes: and clear polemical focus of Toledot Yeshu
and other rabbinic references to Jesus render
These huge collections of centuries- old them suspect as historical sources. They tell us
traditions are treasure houses of Jewish laws, something about Jewish polemics against the
customs, homilies, legends, anecdotes, and early Christian movement, but nothing relia-
axioms. (Meier, MJ, 94) bly about Jesus. (Eddy and Boyd, JL, 170171)

The Historical Existence of Jesus 145
Well return to Eddy and Boyd in a Third, in those instances where it seems
moment, but this is a good point to bring in certain that an author is [italics theirs] refer-
some other views of Toledot Yeshu. We begin ring to Jesus, there are textual indications
with Craig Evans, who writes: that the material is dependent upon earlier
Christian claims and/or anti-Christian prop-
[It] is nothing more than a late collection of aganda. For example, Jesus is presented as
traditions, from Christian as well as from Jew- being illegitimately born of a tryst between
ish sources. Besides the obvious anachronisms, Mary and a Roman soldier named Panthera.
the account is full of fictions assembled for the It is significant that Panthera appears to be a
primary purpose of anti- Christian polemic play on the Greek word for virgin (parthenos).
and propaganda. The work has nothing to Hence, many scholars conclude that this story
offer serious Jesus research. (Evans, JNCS, 450) is nothing more than a contrived attack on the
Christian claim that Jesus was born of a virgin.
Theologian Robert Van Voorst adds some While the rabbinic material gives us
more specific reasons Toledot Yeshu is of no insight into how some Jews reacted polemi-
use to our study: cally against the Jesus tradition, it does not
represent early, independent, or historically
Because of its medieval date, its lack of a fixed reliable information about Jesus. The only
form, its popular orientation, and its highly truly significant point about this literature
polemical purpose, the Toledot Yeshu is most is that, though it sometimes credits Jesuss
unlikely to give us any independent, reliable power to sorcery, magic, or the devil himself, it
information about Jesus. It may contain a few never denies that Jesus performed miracles
older traditions from ancient Jewish polemic let alone that Jesus existed. (Eddy and Boyd,
against Christians, but we learn nothing new JL, 171)
or significant from it. Scholarly consensus is
correct to discount it as a reliable source for Therefore we place rabbinic materials in
the historical Jesus. (Van Voorst, JONT, 128) the sources of little or no value category.
Eddy and Boyd continue with their three 2. The Quran*

reasons to disregard rabbinic tradition in a A person who has never studied Islam or
discussion about the historical Jesus: read the Quran may be surprised to discover
there are several references to Jesus contained
Second, in a number of instances it is not in the book. The Quran presents Jesus as
entirely clear that the rabbinic text is even a miracle worker (3:49; 5:110) who brings
talking about Jesus. For example, some have signs (2:87, 253; possibly 5:75; 43:63; 61:6)
tried to argue that Ben Pandera (or Pantere), and even speaks as an infant to establish
Ben Stada, and even Balaam, referred to in var- himself as a prophet sent from God (19:29,
ious rabbinic writings, are actually references 30). The Quran also affirms the virgin birth
to Jesus (e.g., Babylonian Talmud Sanhedrin (3:4547; 19:1721; 21:91). In general, this
67a; Shabbat 104b). But there is simply no solid could show Quranic agreement with the
evidence to support these speculations. teaching of the Bible.
* All quotes from the Quran are taken from M. A. S. Abdel Haleem, The Quran (New York: Oxford University Press, 2004).

However, the Quran very clearly teaches c. Denial of Jesus Crucifixion

that Jesus was not God, rejects the idea of One of the most problematic claims about
God as Trinity, and denies that Jesus was Jesus in the Quran is the assertion that he
crucified. didnt die. The Quran seems to acknowl-
edge the widespread belief that Jesus died
a. Jesus Was Not God on a cross in the way it strongly refutes that
The first instance of an emphasis on the belief. The Quranic account states that
denial of Jesus divinity includes the direct people believed this claim (i.e. Jesus death
statement, there is no god but God (3:62), on a cross) because they were sealed in their
which comes right after, In Gods eyes Jesus unbelief by God as a penalty for breaking
is just like Adam: He created him from dust, a pledge, rejecting Gods revelations, and
said to him, Be, and he was (3:59). The unjustly killing prophets (4:155). ...they dis-
obvious point in these verses is Jesus was a believed and uttered a terrible slander against
created human being, not God. Mary, and said, We have killed the Messiah,
People are warned of going to excess in Jesus, son of Mary, the messenger of God
your religion by believing Jesus was anything (4:156, 157). It goes on to say in no uncertain
more than a messenger of God (4:171). They terms, They did not kill him, nor did they
are reminded, God is only one God, He is far crucify him, though it was made to appear
above having a son, everything in the heavens like that to them. Those that disagreed about
and earth belongs to Him and He is sufficient him are full of doubt, with no knowledge to
protector (4:171). Those who say, God is follow, only supposition: they certainly did
the Messiah, the son of Mary, are defying not kill him (4:157).
the truth (5:17). A similar description adds,
no one will help such evildoers (5:72). The d. Conclusion Regarding the Quran
Quran discusses Christians who said, The So, which book is right, the Bible or
Messiah is the son of God: they said this with the Quran? Should we weigh the Quranic
their own mouths, repeating what earlier teachings about Jesus equally with the Bible?
disbelievers had said. May God confound What does the Quran say about the historical
them! They take their rabbis, their monks, existence of Jesus? Consider three important
and Christ, the son of Mary, as lords beside observations:.
God. But they were commanded to serve only
one God; there is no god but Him (9:30, 31). If the accounts of Jesus contained in
the Quran are true, they would only
b. Rejection of the Trinity further prove the existence of a his-
There are two places where the Trinity torical Jesus. The Quran doesnt deny
is specifically denied. So believe in God Jesus existed, just that he was God.
and His messengers and do not speak of a Therefore, even someone who affirms
Trinity-stop [this], that is better for you the truth of the Quran must admit that
(4:171). Also, those people who say that God it presumes the existence of an actual
is the third of three are defying [the truth]. historical Jesus.
Why do they not turn to God and ask His The Quran was written and compiled
forgiveness, when God is most forgiving, much later than the New Testament
most merciful? (5:73, 74). accounts of Jesus life. The definitive

text that makes up the Quran was com- Suetonius is writing about a contemporary
piled in about AD 653. (Watt, ISH, 48) man. However, we have a record of the name
This makes it much too late to contain Chrestus being used among Gentiles but
any reliable independent information not Jews (Van Voorst, JONT, 33). This makes
about Jesus. it highly unlikely that Jews would be incited
Since the Quran denies Jesus crucifix- to the point of being kicked out of the city by
ion, which is widely affirmed to have someone named Chrestus.
taken place, it raises serious questions In those days the name Chrestus was
about the historical reliability of any a popular name among the Gentiles. The
claim it makes about Jesus. (Eddy and most logical explanation is that Suetonius
Boyd, JL, 172) simply spelled the word with an e because
that was the familiar and customary spell-
We place the Quran, then, in the category ing. However, there is no general agreement
of evidence that provides little or no value in among scholars as to which explanation is
an investigation into the historicity of Jesus. the correct one.
B. Sources of Limited Value b. Neros Fire

1. Suetonius Suetonius also wrote about the fire that
Suetonius was a Roman historian and swept through Rome in AD 64 under the
court official under the emperor Hadrian. reign of Nero. Suetonius recounts, Pun-
His Lives of the Caesars was published around ishment was inflicted on the Christians, a
AD 120 and describes events in the lives of class of men given to a new and mischievous
the first twelve Roman emperors. superstition. (Suetonius, 110)
In The Deified Claudius 25.4 he writes: Therefore we know he was at least
Since the Jews constantly made disturbances somewhat familiar with the sect known
at the instigation of Chrestus, he expelled as Christians, but he may not have been as
them from Rome. (Suetonius, 51) In Acts familiar with their leader, Christus.
18:2, Luke reports this event, which took
place in AD 49. c. Conclusion Regarding Suetoniuss Accounts
Eddy and Boyd describe the value of
a. Chrestus or Christus? Suetonius:
The Latin word for Christ is Christus,
not Chrestus. Is Suetonius writing about It is very easy to surmise that Suetonius (or
someone other than Christ? Or did he make his source) mistakenly understood a riot that
a spelling mistake? Some scholars argue that had broken out over the preaching of Christ
Suetonius is referring to an agitator in Rome as being instigated by Christ himself, whom,
who is unknown to us. Perhaps he was a Jew- as we have suggested, he mistook to be the
ish radical who anticipated the kingdom to proper Greek name Chrestus. While certainty
come through violence (Benko, EC, 406418, is impossible, at the very least we have here
esp.413). There are some who believe the an early non-Christian source that confirms
passage is better translated because of the Lukes accuracy about the expulsion of Jews by
instigator Chrestus (Van Voorst, JONT, 31). Claudius (Eddy and Boyd, JL, 177).
This would only enhance the possibility that

2. Pliny the Younger Christians singing to Christ as if to a god,

Pliny the Younger was Governor of Bithy- which suggests that Pliny thought Christ was
nia from 111113 CE. He was a prolific writer something other than a god. (Ehrman, DJE,
who published nine books of letters and is 52) Though it is not concrete, clearly this
often credited with creating the genre of lit- suggests that he believed Christ was once a
erary letter. (Van Voorst, JONT, 23) His final man. (Van Voorst, JONT, 28)
book, Book 10, was published after his death. While this letter gives us great insight
Book 10 Letter 96 is correspondence into early Christian worship practices and
between Pliny and the Emperor Trajan. Pliny martyrdom, it does not present us with an
was punishing Christians who refused to independent first-person account of the his-
renounce their faith, and he wrote to get torical Jesus. It helps us understand, however,
direction from the emperor as to whether the significant size of early Christianity in
he should continue punishing in the same Asia Minor in the early second century. Even
way or make some changes. Roman Chris- so, Pliny offers us only limited evidence
tians who refused to recant were sent to for considering Jesus as a historical figure.
Rome for trial. Non-Roman Christians who (France, EJ, 43)
maintained their allegiance to Christ were
executed. Letter 96 contains information 3. Lucian of Samosata
Pliny gleaned from Christians who recanted A Greek satirist of the latter half of the
their faith and began expressing allegiance second century, Lucian spoke scornfully of
to Roman gods. Pliny writes that those who Christ and the Christians, but never assumed
deny Christ or argued that Christ did not really exist. His
The Death of Peregrinus tells the story of a
all venerated your image and the images of man who converted away from Christianity
the gods as the others did, and reviled Christ. before taking his own life in AD 165. Without
They also maintained that the sum total of using Jesus name he writes of
their guilt or error was no more than the fol-
lowing. They had met regularly before dawn that one whom they still worship today, the
on a determined day, and sung antiphonally a man in Palestine who was crucified because
hymn to Christ as if to a god. They also took he brought this new form of initiation into the
an oath not for any crime, but to keep from world (Van Voorst, JONT, 59).
theft, robbery, and adultery, not to break any
promise, and not to withhold a deposit when Lucian says Christians consider them-
reclaimed. (quoted in Van Voorst, JONT, 25) selves brothers the moment they stop
worshiping the Greek gods and begin wor-
The fact that lapsed Christians were shipping that crucified sophist and living by
encouraged to revile or curse Christ likely his laws (Van Voorst, JONT, 59).
reflects the fact that they and Pliny believed It may be significant that Lucian uses
he was a historical person. Ancient historian the Greek word anaskolopizein (translated
and New Testament scholar Paul Barnett crucified) instead of the common one used
notes that ancients would not have cursed in the Gospels (stauroun). Anaskolopizein
gods. (Barnett, FHC, 61) should be literally translated, to impale.
Furthermore, Pliny the Younger describes Eddy and Boyd believe this might show that

Lucian is not relying on Christian termi- Even though the two were written approxi-
nology but on independent tradition (Eddy mately seventy-five years apart, most scholars
and Boyd, JL, 178). However, this is not believe Origen quotes Celsus with accuracy
really definitive. Therefore we conclude that (Van Voorst, JONT, 65).
Lucians writings do not conclusively verify Celsus argues against the virgin birth,
Christs existence by documenting specific alleging Jesus was conceived as the result of
details of his life. an affair between Mary and a Roman soldier.
He presents Jesus miracles as the result of
4. Thallus magic or sorcery that he learned in Egypt. He
Around AD 55, the historian Thallus says Jesus taught his followers to beg and rob.
wrote a three-volume account of the eastern (Van Voorst, JONT, 6667) It is likely that
Mediterranean world from the fall of Troy Celsus had access to several New Testament
to approximately AD 50. Though most of texts and other Christian writings. Therefore
his work has been lost, a quotation remains it is unlikely he had access to any independ-
in History of the World, written by Julius ent reports of the historical Jesus. Add to
Africanus around AD 220. This work by this the fact that his writing is an attack on
Africanus has also been lost, but a citation Christianity often resorting to caricature
was included in Chronicle, written around and lampooning, and it becomes obvious
AD 800 by the Byzantine historian Georgius there is little of historical value to help prove
Syncellus. (Van Voorst, JONT, 20) Jesus existence. (Eddy and Boyd, JL, 177)
Each of the Synoptic Gospels includes an
account of the darkness that was visible at 6. Mara bar Serapion
Jesus crucifixion (Matt. 27:45; Mark 15:33; Sometime after 70 CE, Mara bar Serapion,
Luke 23:44, 45). According to Syncellus, a Syrian and probably Stoic philosopher,
Africanus writes: In the third book of his wrote a letter from prison to his son encour-
history Thallus calls this darkness an eclipse aging him to pursue wisdom. In his letter he
of the sunwrongly in my opinion. (Eddy compares Jesus to the philosophers Socrates
and Boyd, JL, 173) and Pythagoras and discusses the foolishness
It is striking that at such an early date, of persecuting wise people:
Thallus already knew of the reported dark-
ness in Jerusalem and felt it was important What good did it do the Athenians to kill
enough to come up with a refutation. How- Socrates, for which deed they were punished
ever, he is likely responding to Christians with famine and pestilence? What did it avail
or Christian sources. Because his account the Samians to burn Pythagoras, since their
does not present independent evidence of a country was entirely buried under sand in one
historical Jesus, it therefore adds only limited moment? Or what did it avail the Jews to kill
value to our study their wise king, since their kingdom was taken
away from them from that time on? God justly
5. Celsus avenged these three wise men. The Athenians
Around AD 175, the thinker Celsus wrote died of famine, the Samians were flooded by
an attack on Christianity. His True Doctrine the sea, the Jews were slaughtered and driven
has been lost, but most of it was included in from their kingdom, everywhere living in the
Origens Against Celsus, written around 250. dispersion. Socrates is not dead, thanks to

Plato; nor Pythagoras, because of Heras statue. for which many people believed Nero was
Nor is the wise king, because of the new law responsible. In order to put a stop to the
which he has given. (cited in Bock, SHJ, 53) public outcry, Nero blamed the Christians.
Tacitus explains what happened:
Though Mara never uses Jesus name, we
can be certain he is referring to him because Therefore, to squelch the rumor, Nero cre-
no one else at that point in history would ated scapegoats and subjected to the most
fulfill the requirements of being known as refined tortures those whom the common
a wise king who was killed by the Jews people called Christians, hated for their
shortly before they were driven from the land. abominable crimes. Their name comes from
Jesus is obviously in view. Christ, who, during the reign of Tiberius,
Mara certainly was not a Christian, since had been executed by the procurator Pontius
he puts Jesus on equal footing with Socrates Pilate. Suppressed for the moment, the deadly
and Pythagoras. Also, he has Jesus living on superstition broke out again, not only in Judea,
in his teaching rather than because he rose to the land which originated this evil, but also in
life after his execution. It is interesting that a the city of Rome, where all sorts of horrendous
writer from outside the Roman Empire has and shameful practices from every part of the
a positive view of Christianity; however, his world converge and are fervently cultivated.
letter says more about Christianity than (quoted in Meier, MJ, 8990)
about Christ. (Van Voorst, JONT, 5758)
Nevertheless, what he has written does pro- Paul Barnett says it is difficult to over-
vide information that is somewhat helpful state the importance of Tacituss text for the
as we continue our study of the historical study of Christian origins. (Barnett, FHC,
existence of Jesus Christ. 58) However, several potential objections to
the authenticity and trustworthiness of this
C. Sources of Significant Value text require a response.
Tacitus and Josephus , two ancient
non- Christian writers, present us with a. Potential Objections
information that is very valuable to our study. 1) Could Tacituss text be a forgery? Or,
at the very least, could Christians have
1. Tacitus subsequently placed into it information
Cornelius Tacitus was a Roman historian locating Jesus as a historical person? This is
who lived approximately between AD 56 highly unlikely. One reason is Tacitus clearly
and 120. Robert Van Voorst says Tacitus, despises Christians. As explained by Barnett,
is generally considered the greatest Roman
historian and his Annals is his finest work No Christian would have described his fel-
and generally acknowledged by modern lows in Rome as a foreign cult needing to be
historians as our best source of information checked, a disease belonging to the horrible
about this period. (Van Voorst, JONT, 39) and shameful things of the world that gravi-
His Annals date back to the time of Augustus tate to Rome, a people hated for their vices,
through Nero. Though not all of Annals sur- who have a hatred of the human race and
vive, one passage that does is key to our study. whose terrible punishment under Nero is
In AD 64 there was a devastating fire justified. (Barnett, FCH, 57)

If someone were altering the document, For example, though the Pilate stone
surely that forger, if a Christian, would have discovered at Caesarea Maritima gives Pilate
softened the offending rhetoric. Another the title prefect, both Philo (Legat. 38) and
feature pointing to the authenticity of this Josephus (Jewish War 2.9.2.169) refer to him as
passage is the fact that it doesnt specifically procurator (Greek epitropos), just as Tacitus
mention the resurrection, something a does. In fact, Josephus sometimes uses the
Christian editor would have been expected two terms interchangeably. (Eddy and Boyd,
to include. Finally, the text is stylistically JL, 181182)
seamless. (Barnett, FHC, 57) There does not
appear to be any evidence of another writer 3) Finally, does the fact that Tacitus refers
editing the text. to Christ instead of Jesus show that he
2) Is there a challenge to the reliability of relies on Christian testimony instead of
this passage by his use of the word procura- independent witnesses? If so, reliance upon
tor? One might argue against the reliability Christian hearsay could go a long way toward
of Tacituss account based on the fact that he discrediting him as a source of independent
refers to Pilate as procurator (the term used information about Jesus. On this question
in Tacituss day) instead of prefect (the title Eddy and Boyd are helpful:
that would have been used in Pilates time).
We know from the discovery of an ancient No compelling case can be made that Tacitus
stone that Pilate was referred to as a prefect. is relying on hearsay in this passage simply
(Eddy and Boyd, TJL, 180181) Could this because he referred to the founder of the Chris-
anachronism call into question other things tian movement as Christ rather than by his
that Tacitus wrote? proper name. For one thing, it is improbable
Tacitus is generally considered to be a that Tacitus, who elsewhere proves himself to
reliably accurate historian. (See the final be a reliable historian who routinely consults
paragraph of section C1.) Beyond the general sources, would at this point rely solely on the
trustworthiness of Tacituss writing, the rea- hearsay of a group he himself identifies as a
son for this anachronism in particular can be pernicious superstition and as evil. More-
effectively explained, as Eddy and Boyd offer: over, by the early second century, Christ
and Jesus could be used interchangeably,
Regarding the ascription itself, it is entirely both by Christians and non-Christians. Thus
possible that Tacitus was intentionally we need not suppose that Tacituss use of the
anachronistic for the sake of clarity. Since title Christ reflects a sole dependency on
procurator was the accepted title of Pilates Christians as his source of information. (Eddy
position among Tacituss audience, he may and Boyd, JL, 182)
have used the term knowing full well that the
position used to be titled prefect. But it is Boyd and Eddy continue concerning the
even more likely that we are making too much reliability of this passage:
of the distinction between procurator and
prefect in the ancient world, for the evidence In fact, three considerations lead us to con-
suggest that these terms were rather fluid in clude that, if anything, Tacitus would have
the first century. been more motivated than usual to check out
his sources on this topic.

First, the subject of the passage is an official in Annals, we know he had access to the
action taken by a Roman emperor. Second, Acta Senatus, the Roman Senates archives
Tacitus consistently ref lects an unusual of its activities. (Eddy and Boyd, JL, 184)
fascination with, and animosity toward, pre- Those Roman records could have contained
tenders and superstitions, particularly those reports of Jesus crucifixion, and he could
connected with claims of having been raised have retrieved the details from there. Or he
from the dead. And third, throughout his work could have learned the facts while he was
Tacitus is very concerned with the happenings proconsul in Asia. (Barnett, FHC, 59)
of members of the royal court and there is some
indication that several members of the royal b. Value of Tacitus
family had aligned themselves with this cult. The writings of Tacitus confirm the New
All of this explains why Tacitus speaks so Testament accounts that Jesus crucifixion
acrimoniously about the pernicious supersti- happened when Tiberius was emperor and
tion of the Christian movement, even though Pilate was his appointed leader in Judea. Tac-
he is clearly moved by the horrendous pain itus also confirms the spread of Christianity
Nero inflicted on them. But it also suggests after Christs death, writing, Suppressed for
that, if ever Tacitus would have been concerned the moment, the deadly superstition broke
to check out his information, it would have out again. While the term superstition
been in a context such as the one we are con- may or may not be a vague reference to the
sidering. (Eddy and Boyd, JL, 183) resurrection, Tacitus surely points to the
continued growth of Christianity in the years
Van Voorst adds to the discussion con- shortly after Jesus died as reported in the
cerning where Tacitus got this information New Testament book of Acts.
about Christ: Tacitus provides independent historical
reporting that affirms important events
To say where he did not get his information recorded in the New Testament. His writings
is easier than to show where he did. First, provide a source of significant value toward
Tacitus certainly did not draw, directly or confirming the existence of the historical
indirectly, on writings that came to form the Jesus. As Eddy and Boyd write:
New Testament. No literary or oral dependence
can be demonstrated between his description All these considerations suggest Tacitus is
and the Gospel accounts. The wording is too an independentand thus importantnon-
different; the only commonality is the name Christian source about Jesus. Tacituss report
Pontius Pilate, and this could easily come demonstrated that a mere thirty years after
from elsewhere. Nor did Tacitus likely draw Jesus died (hence while many living witnesses
his information from another Christian docu- of the founder were still alive) his followers
ment, if his contempt for Christianity is any were willing to be put to death for their faith,
indication. Second, Tacitus does not seem to and in ways that were so barbaric it moved a
have drawn on general hearsay. (Van Voorst, very unsympathetic Roman historian to pity
JONT, 49) them. Thus, Tacituss report provides solid,
independent, non-Christian evidence for the
Finally, while we are not sure where life and death of Jesus, the remarkable resolve
Tacitus obtained the information he used of his earliest followers, and the astounding

growth of the movement he founded. (Eddy road; so he assembled the Sanhedrin of judges,
and Boyd, JL, 184) and brought before them the brother of Jesus,
who was called Christ, whose name was James,
We must observe the high esteem in which and some others... he delivered them to be
Tacitus is held as a historian. Arnaldo Momi- stoned. (Josephus, CW, 645)
gliano, one of the foremost historiographers
of the twentieth century, considered Tacitus In order to understand why this entry is
a writer whose reliability cannot be seriously importantundoubtedly one of the most
questioned. (Momigliano, CFMH, 111112) significant non-Christian passages relating
Historian Ronald Mellor refers to him as to the historical Jesuswe must grasp Jose-
the most accurate of all Roman historians. phuss history. He was born in Jerusalem
(Mellor, Tacitus, 40) In short, Tacitus can be shortly after the death of Jesus. His father
trusted. was a respected high priest named Matthias,
which not only places Josephus in Jerusalem
2. Josephus right at the time the book of Acts says the new
Flavius Josephus was a Jewish politician, Christian church was flourishing there, but
soldier, and historian who lived around AD he would have been in a family that would
37100. He is the single most important have been acutely aware of a new religious
Jewish historian of the ancient world. (Eddy movement that was seen as a threat to Juda-
and Boyd, JL, 184) Antiquities of the Jews ism. (Licona, RJ, 235) He was in Israel until
was written by Josephus to explain the Jew- he went over to the Roman side after losing to
ish people and their beliefs to Romans in them in battle when Rome invaded Israel in
an effort to reduce anti-Jewish bigotry. His AD 66. (Barrett, FHC, 47) It is likely during
writing is so influential that all discussions these decades in Israel that Josephus heard
regarding the Pharisees, Sadducees, Essenes, about Christianity (and Jesus) through a vast
and Qumran community must take Josephus network of contacts, and he may have even
into account. (Grossman, JF, 406) heard some of the apostles preach in person.
Two passages in Antiquities are important (Licona, RJ, 237) Therefore, Josephus is not
in our investigation of the historicity of Jesus. writing purely based on hearsay.
The substance of the James passage quoted
a. Antiquities 20.200 above is clear. Josephus verifies that a man
In Antiquities 20.200, Josephus writes named James was put to death, that he was
about the death of Jesus brother James at Jesus brother, and this Jesus was called the
the instigation of the high priest Ananus, Christ. Still, a minority of scholars argue
against its authenticity, including evangelical
a bold man in his temper, and very insolent; Graham Twelftree, who claims Christians
he was also of the sect of the Sadducees, who inserted this (or portions of it) into Antiqui-
are very rigid in judging offenders, above ties after Josephus wrote it. (Twelftree, JJT,
all the rest of the Jews, as we have already 297301) However, good reasons support why
observed; when, therefore, Ananus was of this a large majority of scholars do not question
disposition, he thought he had now a proper this passages authenticity and consider it
opportunity [to exercise his authority]. Festus strong evidence for the historicity of Jesus.
was now dead, and Albinus was but upon the Apologist and historian Michael Licona

summarizes five reasons offered by John formidable, they draw the conclusion that
P. Meier supporting the authenticity of the the authenticity of the passage is solid. The
James passage: following is a synopsis of material contained
in Eddy and Boyd, The Jesus Legend, 185190:
First, it appears in all of the Greek manuscripts
of Antiquities of the Jews 20 without any There is little manuscript evidence for
notable variation. Second, the text provides Antiquities. However, it is not less so
a passing and blas reference to James, who than for other ancient works.
is here of little consequence, since Josephus Josephus only mentions Christos in
is more interested in the illegal behavior of connection with Jesus, even though he
Ananus (and Jesus is even less of a subject, only writes about other messianic figures.
inserted to identify James.) Thus it fits well Josephus mentions twenty-one other
in the context of Ananuss removal from the people named Jesus. This makes it likely
office of high priest. Third, no New Testament Josephus simply mentions that Jamess
or early Christian writer wrote of James in a brother was called Christ in order to
matter-of-fact way as the brother of Jesus identify which James was killed.
(ho adelphos Iesou), but ratherwith the rev- Some argue the term legomenos can be
erence we would expectthe brother of the translated as called or said to be.
Lord (ho adelphos tou kyriou) or the brother As it is used of Jesus in this passage
of the Savior (ho adelphos tou soteros). The and that gives it a link with the New
words tou legomenou Xristou (the one called Testament, it could mean a Christian
Christ) are neutral and appear to be employed wrote it. However, if a Christian had
to distinguish Jesus from others in his writings made a later addition they likely would
by the same name. have referred to Jesus as the Christ
Fourth, Josephuss account of Jamess not called Christ.
execution differs significantly in its time Jesus is mentioned before James in the
and manner from that offered by the second- passage, which raises the question in
century Christian author Hegesippus and, in the minds of some skeptics as to why
the third century, Clement of Alexandria. If Josephus would choose to structure the
Josephuss account was invented by a Chris- passage in this way. The structure does
tian, we would expect it to better reflect the not elevate Jesus in a drastic way as to
Christian accounts. Fifth, Josephuss account make him the focus of the passage. This
is short and matter of fact compared to the appears to be a simple construction
Christian accounts by Hegesippus and Clem- used by Josephus for clarity.
ent of Alexandria. This passage involves a negative view of
In short, this text gives no indication of Ananus the high priest, even though in
tampering by Christians and the large major- Jewish Wars Josephus presents a posi-
ity of scholars regard the entire passage as tive view of him. Tessa Rajak finds this
the authentic words of Josephus. (Licona, RJ, difference startling. (Rajak, Josephus,
236237) 131) However, given the fact that we
often find tension between accounts of
In spite of the fact that Eddy and Boyd view the same event as they appear in Jew-
the skeptic case against the James passage as ish Wars and Antiquities, this is not a

strong argument. Also, there is a shift The literature on this passage is enormous.
between those two works in the way Leading Josephus scholar Louis Feldman lists
Josephus writes about Jewish leaders eighty-seven discussions on the authenticity of
between those two works. this passage between 1937 and 1980. Scholars
The third-century theologian Origen hold three general positions on this passage: (1)
wrote that Josephus believed the fall the entire text is authentic; (2) the entire text
of Jerusalem was Gods punishment is a Christian interpolation; or (3) Josephus
of the Jews for killing James. However, mentions Jesus in this text but it was subse-
no existing text of Antiquities contains quently doctored by a Christian interpolator.
this. Skeptics may argue against the The first two positions have few adherents; the
authenticity of the Antiquities passage third enjoys a majority. (Licona, RJ, 237238)
because if Christians had tampered
with it by the time of Origen, then how Here is the debated passage:
can we trust what we currently have?
However, Origen would likely not have At this time there appeared Jesus, a wise man,
asserted this haphazardly unless it was if indeed one should call him a man. For he was
in other manuscripts because they were a doer of startling deeds, a teacher of people
freely available in the Roman public who receive the truth with pleasure. And he
library at the time he wrote. gained a following both among many Jews
The flow of the passage would not be and among many of Greek origin. He was
interrupted if the information about the Messiah. And when Pilate, because of an
Jesus was removed. While this may be accusation made by the leading men among
true, it is hardly proof of a later Chris- us, condemned him to the cross, those who
tian insertion. had loved him previously did not cease to do
so. For he appeared to them on the third day,
This helps us to understand why Barnett living again, just as the divine prophets had
can say, The authenticity of this passage is spoken of these and countless other wondrous
not in doubt and does not require emending. things about him. And up until this very day
(Barnett, FHC, 52) the tribe of Christians, named after him, has
Josephus offers a clear non- Christian not died out. (quoted in Meier, MJ, 60)
attestation of the historicity of Jesus and the
New Testament assertion that James was i) The Textual Challenge
Jesus brother. New Testament scholar Mau- As Licona points out:
rice Casey offers an understatement when
writing this passage is as clear as could be. The text leads one to believe that Josephus
(Casey, Jesus, 10) must have converted to Christianity. However,
in the early third century, Origen claimed that
b. Antiquities 18.63 Josephus was not a Christian. This creates a
In Antiquities 18.63 we have a passage that problem. If Origen is correct, it would be odd
is much more open to debate concerning that a non-Christian Jew would say some of
authenticity. It is commonly referred to as the the things reported in this passage. Three parts
Testimonium Flavianum. Licona describes stand out as candidates for interpolations: (1)
the challenge for scholars: if indeed one should call him a man, (2) He

was the Messiah and (3) For he appeared to explain more about Jesus. Third, the vocab-
to them on the third day, living again, just as ulary and grammar of Meiers modified passage
the divine prophets had spoken of these and cohere well with Josephus style and language;
countless other wondrous things about him. the same cannot be said when the texts vocab-
(Licona, RJ, 238) ulary and grammar are compared with that of
the NT... In fact, most of the vocabulary turns
There have been several efforts by scholars out to be characteristic of Josephus. Meier also
to attempt to discern what is authentic in this contends that his modified Testimonium is a
passage and what is interpolation. simpler move than omitting it in its entirety,
which to him is sometimes on flimsy grounds.
ii) Textual Options For him, A basic rule of method is that, all
Meier offers his take on what the authentic things being equal, the simplest explanation
Josephus passage would have looked like: that also covers the largest amount of data is to
be preferred. (Licona, RJ, 239240)
At this time there appeared Jesus, a wise man.
For he was a doer of startling deeds, a teacher Licona also trims the Josephus passage in
of people who receive the truth with pleasure. an effort to discern what is authentic, but not
And he gained a following both among many as much as Meier. Liconas version is:
Jews and among many of Greek origin. And
when Pilate, because of an accusation made by And when Pilate, because of an accusation made
the leading men among us, condemned him to by the leading men among us, condemned him
the cross, those who had loved him previously to the cross, those who had loved him previ-
did not cease to do so. And up until this very ously did not cease to do so. For they reported
day the tribe of Christians (named after him) that he appears to them alive. And up until this
has not died out. (Meier, MJ, 61) very day the tribe of Christians (named after
him) has not died out. (Licona, RJ, 240)
Meier offers a number of arguments for
the authenticity of this modified Josephus Licona offers a defense of his less trimmed
passage, as summarized by Licona: version:
First, the passage appears in every Greek and It is more closely represented in all of the extant
Latin manuscript of Antiquities of the Jews manuscripts while maintaining neutrality
18. It must be admitted that there are only toward Jesus and his followers. Moreover, it
three Greek manuscripts, the earliest of which provides an insight concerning why [italics his]
appears to have been written in the eleventh the tribe of Christians had not died out: they
century. However, there are numerous Latin were convinced that their spiritual leader had
manuscripts dating to the sixth century. It risen from the dead. (Licona, RJ, 241)
must also be noted that the passage is not men-
tioned by any church fathers prior to Eusebius Leading scholar James Charlesworth of
of Caesarea in the fourth century. Second, Princeton University offers the final amended
given Josephuss later mention of Jesus who alternative that we mention here, providing a
was called Christ, some earlier reference to full translation of the passage and placing items
Jesus becomes likely, since he does not pause in italics that he believes are interpolations:

About this time there lives Jesus, a wise man, if should become more obvious. (Charlesworth,
indeed one ought to call him a man. For he was HJ, 34)
one who wrought surprising feats (and) was a
teacher of such people as accept truth gladly. He c. Conclusion Regarding Josephuss Accounts
won over many Jews and many of the Greeks. Regardless of which words a scholar
He was the Messiah. When Pilate, upon hearing chooses to classify as interpolations, the bulk
him accused by men of the highest standing of the passage is seen by many scholars as
amongst us, had condemned him to be cruci- authentic to Josephus. Craig Evans elaborates:
fied, those who had in the first place come to
love him did not give up their affection for him. A number of careful, respected scholars have
On the third day he appeared to them restored to concluded that this passage, minus a few obvi-
life, for the prophets of God had prophesied these ous interpolations, is authentic, demonstrating
and countless other marvelous things about him. that Josephus... was well aware that Jesus was
And the tribe of the Christians, so called after the founder of the Christian movement and
him, has still to this day not (yet?) disappeared. that he had been condemned by the ruling
(Charlesworth, HJ, 34) priests and crucified by the Roman governor
Pontius Pilate. The testimony of Josephus is
Charlesworth sees two notable aspects of in fact very important, even if it is not crucial.
this passage: (Evans, JHW, 9)
First, there is no reason to doubt why a scribe D. Summary of Non-Christian Sources

who was a Christian would feel the need to We close this section by observing that
elevate the reference and evaluation of Jesus. many of these non-Christian sources were in
Perhaps these additions were first placed in fact hostile to Christianity. New Testament
the margins and subsequent scribes imagined scholar Darrell Bock notes the important fact
the notes were parts of the text that should not that, though they disliked and may have even
be left out. wanted to get rid of Christians: There is no
Second, no Christian would have written evidence that those who opposed the move-
this testimony to Jesus as it is preserved. ment attributed to him denied his existence.
No Christian would have categorized Jesus (Bock, HJ, 253)
miracles as surprising works, or reported that We can reasonably believe, then, that most
Jesus was condemned because he was accused of Antiquities 18.63 is authentic. But even if
by the first-rate men among us. That statement its not, we have substantial evidence from
implies that Jesus was rightly condemned to Tacitus and from Josephuss James passage
crucifixion. Also the final sentence implies that that Jesus truly lived.
this tribe will not endure. Professor Casey Elledge of Gustavus
The reader should read the testimony [the Adolphus College wraps up an analysis that
amended alternative] two more times: once includes Tacitus, Josephus, and Suetonius
without the italicized words, observing how the with a strong affirmation of the truth of the
statement flows with grammatical accuracy and fact that Jesus was a real person:
with historical clarity, and another time stress-
ing only the Christian additions. The intent of The testimonies of ancient historians offer
the Jew Josephus and then of Christian scribes strong evidence against a purely mythical

reading of Jesus. In contrast to those who have ancient texts as well as the thousands of cita-
denied the historical existence of Jesus altogether, tions of them by early Christian writers. This
judging him merely to have been a mythological section will address issues that specifically
construct of early Christian thought, the tes- relate to the historicity of Jesus.
timonies of the ancient historians reveal how
even those outside the early church regarded 1. Gospels
Jesus to have been a historical person. It remains As Blomberg writes, By far the most
difficult, therefore, if not impossible, to deny the important historical information about Jesus
historical existence of Jesus when the earliest of Nazareth appears in the four Gospels of the
Christian, Jewish, and pagan evidence mention New Testament. (Blomberg, JN, 441)
him. (Elledge, JTS, 717) The authors of the four gospels present
Jesus in a manner that assumes his existence.
Charlesworth discusses both Tacitus and Though they want the reader to know their
Josephus: The references to Jesus by a Roman accounts are reliable (e.g., John 21:24), the
historian and a Jewish historian disprove the writers are not primarily attempting to prove
absurd contention that Jesus never lived. he existed. Instead they are trying to convince
(Charlesworth, HJ, 35) readers that the man Jesus whom they knew
is God and should be followed. As Blomberg
III. Christian Sources explains:
Skeptics may be leery of using Christian sources We may affirm that the Synoptic Gospel writers
to prove the existence of Jesus because of the would have wanted to preserve accurate history
assumed bias of the documents in favor of a according to the standards of their day, that
historical Christ. However, as Blomberg states: they had every likelihood of being able to do
so, and that the overall pattern of widespread
It is, of course, historically prejudicial to exclude agreement on the essential contours of Jesus
automatically all Christian evidence, as if no life and ministry coupled with enough vari-
one who became a follower of Jesus could ever ation of details to demonstrate at least some
report accurately about his life and teachings, independent sources and tradents on which
or to assume that all non- Christian evidence each drew makes it very probable that they
was necessarily more objective. (Blomberg, did in fact compose trustworthy historical and
JN, 439) biographical documents. (Blomberg, JN, 456)
Therefore, we examine the Christian Leading New Testament scholar Richard

sources with a mind open to the possibility Bauckham presents the Gospels as eyewitness
that they are historically reliable testimony to testimony, pointing to the short distance
the historicity of Jesus. between their writing and the people who
would have seen Jesus in person:
A. NT Documents
Chapter3 discussed the clear case for the The Gospels were written within living memory
general reliability of the New Testament docu- of the events they recount. Marks Gospel was
ments in terms of the number and dating of written well within the lifetime of many of the
their manuscripts in comparison to other eyewitnesses, while the other three canonical

Gospels were written in the period when living We are not dealing with just one Gospel that
eyewitnesses were becoming scarce, exactly at reports what Jesus said and did from sometime
the point in time when their testimony would near the end of the first century. We have a
perish with them were it not put in writing. number of surviving GospelsI named seven
This is a highly significant fact, entailed not by [Ehrman considers non-canonical gospels in his
unusually early datings of the Gospels but by study] that are either completely independent of
the generally accepted ones. (Bauckham, JE, 7) one another or independent in a large number of
their traditions. These all attest to the existence
Bauckham here observes that this analysis of Jesus. Moreover, these independent witnesses
relies upon a generally accepted early dating corroborate many of the same basic sets of data
for the Gospels. for example, that Jesus not only lived but that he
Many skeptical scholars question whether was a Jewish teacher who was crucified by the
every story about Jesus contained in the Romans at the instigation of Jewish authorities
Gospels actually took place. Robert Price in Jerusalem.... The vast network of these tradi-
argues that there is nothing analogous in tions, numerically significant, widely dispersed,
our contemporary world or anywhere else and largely independent of one another, makes
to Jesus miracles as a plausible reason for it almost certain that whatever one wants to say
denying they happened (and, further, that about Jesus, at the very least one must say that
Jesus existed): Which is more likely: that he existed. (Ehrman, DJE, 9293)
a man walked on water, glowed like the sun
and rose from the dead, or that someone has Princeton scholar James Charlesworth is
rewritten a bunch of well-known miracle emphatic:
stories? (Price, JVP, 75) For Price, in essence,
if it hasnt happened before or since, it must It would be foolish to continue to foster the illu-
not have happened at all. sion that the Gospels are merely fictional stories
However, even those who do not believe like the legends of Hercules and Asclepius. The
in the authenticity of every story in the Gos- theologies in the New Testament are grounded
pels can still draw the conclusion that Jesus on interpretation of real historical events, espe-
truly existed. Agnostic Bible scholar Bart cially the crucifixion of Jesus, at a particular
Ehrman shares Prices skepticism concern- time and place. (Charlesworth, HJBA, 694)
ing the supernatural accounts surrounding
Jesus life. However, this does not lead him to Beyond the manuscript evidence, Craig
conclude that Jesus never existed. He writes Evans says archaeological evidence helps to
specifically concerning the gospel accounts: authentic the gospel narratives:
It would be foolish to continue to foster the illusion that the Gospels are
merely fictional stories like the legends of Hercules and Asclepius. The theol-
ogies in the New Testament are grounded on interpretation of real historical
events, especially the crucifixion of Jesus, at a particular time and place.
James Charlesworth

If the New Testament Gospels were nothing descended from David according to the flesh
more than fictions and fables about a man (esv). Maurice Casey believes these two pas-
who never lived, one must wonder how it is sages provide evidence that Paul was making
they possess so much verisimilitude and why clear Jesus human birth. (Casey, Jesus, 174)
they talk so much about people we know lived
and about so many things we know happened. ii) Paul believed Jesus spoke.
After all, the Gospels say Jesus was condemned In 1Corinthians 7:1012 Paul writes, To
to the cross by a Roman governor named Pon- the married I give this charge (not I, but the
tius Pilate. Not only is this man mentioned by Lord): the wife should not separate from her
historical sources outside the New Testament husband (but if she does, she should remain
but we have found an inscribed stone on which unmarried or else be reconciled to her hus-
his name appears. Indeed, we may have found band), and the husband should not divorce his
the name of the Jewish high priest who con- wife. To the rest I say (I, not the Lord) that if
demned Jesus inscribed on a bone box. It seems any brother has a wife who is an unbeliever,
these people were realI suspect Jesus was too. and she consents to live with him, he should
(Evans, JHW, 10) not divorce her (esv). Paul is expressing
his awareness of Jesus teaching on divorce.
The gospel accounts alone provide ample Casey details why this saying cant be original
New Testament evidence that Jesus truly to Paul:
existed. But there is more.
It makes no sense as a saying of a Christian
2. Paul prophet. If Jesus was not responsible for the
The apostle Paul, once a persecutor of prohibition of divorce, no Christian prophet in
Christians, changed dramatically into a the diaspora would have dared to invent such
missionary who tried to bring more people disruptive teaching.... If Paul had originated
into the faith. His letters do not contain a such teaching, which he was not likely to do
complete picture of Jesus life because they because it was contradictory to the Jewish
are occasional letters designed to address traditions which Paul normally drew on for
specific concerns within the churches to his ethical teaching, he would have attributed
which he wrote. Still, clearly Paul based many it to himself and not to the Lord. Jesus of Naz-
arguments on the assumption that Jesus did areth, however, was an original teacher within
exist. Pauls writings are important because the prophetic tradition, and this teaching fits
they are the earliest Christian documents and perfectly into his efforts to foster good relation-
the earliest writings we have concerning Jesus ships among the Jews of first-century Galilee.
as a historical person. (Casey, Jesus, 179)
a. What Paul Believed iii) Paul believed Jesus died (e.g., 1Cor. 15:3;
Paul specifically affirms five things: 2Cor. 4:10; Rom; 1:4; Col. 1:22; Gal. 1:1)
This is a very significant theme in Pauls
i) Paul believed Jesus was born. writings with direct claims or allusions
In Galatians 4:4 Paul writes, God sent appearing in all of his epistles except for
forth His Son, born of a woman, born under 2Thessalonians and Philemon. This was not
the law. In Romans 1:3 Paul writes Jesus was, an ancillary thought in Pauls writings. He

saw it as central to the Christian faith, as Joel expectation was not for a crucified criminal
Green, professor of New Testament inter- but for a victorious ruler, thereby increasing
pretation at Fuller Theological Seminary, the likelihood that Paul did not fabricate the
describes: story:
For Paul, the cross of Christ was critical to Ancient Jews at the turn of the era held a vari-
reflection and life, especially as the means ety of expectations of what the future messiah
by which God has provided for salvation and would be like. But all these expectations had
as the instrument and measure of new life in several things in common. In all of them the
Christ. (Green, DC, 201) messiah would be a future ruler of the people
of Israel, leading a real kingdom here on earth.
First Corinthians 1:2223 helps us under- He would be visibly and openly known to be
stand how unlikely it would have been for Gods special emissary, the anointed one.
Paul to make up the story of Jesus. In parti- And he would be high and mighty, a figure of
cular, the crucifixion aspect of the story made grandeur and power.
missionary activity a challenge because of And who was Jesus? In all our early
how it was received by Jew and Gentile alike: traditions he was a lower-class peasant from
Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, rural Galilee who was thought by some to be
but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling the future ruler of Israel but who instead of
block to Jews and folly to Gentiles (esv). If establishing the kingdom on earth came to
Pauls account of Christ were an invention, he be crucified. That Jesus died by crucifixion
would not have included details that would is almost universally attested in our sources,
make his missionary work that much harder. early and late.... The crucifixion of Jesus
N. T. Wright elaborates on the challenge is the core of Pauls message and is attested
for Gentiles: abundantly in his writings as one of theif
not theearliest things that he knew about
It flew in the face of all Hellenistic wisdom: the man.
part of the point of crucifixion was that it Who would make up the idea of a crucified
completely degraded the sufferer. It denied messiah? No Jew that we know of. And who
him any chance of a noble death, a consider- were Jesuss followers in the year immediately
able preoccupation n among pagans. It also, following his death? Jews living in Palestine.
in the normal run of things, denied him a It is no wonder that Paul found their views so
proper burial as well, since the body would offensive [before his conversion (Acts 89)].
be eaten by birds, rats, or other carrion and If it is hard to imagine Jews inventing the
any final remains dumped in a common pit. idea of a crucified messiah, where did the idea
The complete helplessness of crucifixion stood come from? It came from historical realities.
in sharp contrast to the Stoic, and indeed There really was a man Jesus.
Socratic, ideal of the person who, perhaps Since no one would have made up the idea
through committing suicide, remained in of a crucified messiah, Jesus must really have
control of their own fate. (Wright, PFG, 407) existed, must really have raised messianic
expectations, and must really have been
Ehrman discusses the challenge for Jews, crucified. No Jew would have invented him.
specifically that the ancient Jewish messianic (Ehrman, DJE, 162164)

James D. G. Dunn sees the specific impor- historicalJesus were still alive. You could
tance of Pauls early report of the crucifixion talk with them if you doubted whether He
in 1Corinthians 15:3: was real. Paul included himself in the group
of people who had encounters with the risen
Where Paul recites the foundational belief Jesus (1Cor. 15:8).
which he himself had received and which was In 1Corinthians 15:13, 14 Paul writes, But
evidently taught to converts as the earliest if there is no resurrection of the dead, then
Christian catechetical instruction: that Christ not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ
died. The point is that Paul was probably has not been raised, then our preaching is in
converted about two years following the vain and your faith is in vain (esv). And in
event confessed and probably received this 15:16, 17, For if the dead are not raised, not
foundational instruction at that time. In other even Christ has been raised. And if Christ
words, in the early 30s Paul was being told has not been raised, your faith is futile and
about a Jesus who had died two or so years you are still in your sins (esv). Paul is clearly
earlier. (Dunn, JR, 142143) assuming a historical Jesus when he reassures
the Corinthians that Christs resurrection
The proximity to the time Jesus was actually happened. If it were not true, then
reported to have died would have made it their faith would be invalid. If Jesus had
easy to prove Paul wrong if his teaching was, never lived then Paul couldnt assure the
in fact, wrong. If Paul was looking for an easy Corinthians he had truly died. And without
way to get a new religion started, choosing to a historical Jesus, Paul wouldnt have told the
preach about a crucified Christ (who never Corinthians it was the fact of his resurrection
existed in the first place) was not a way to that formed the reason for their hope.
do it. The only reasonable conclusion is that N. T. Wright takes a broad look at res-
Paul preached about the crucifixion because urrection in all of Pauls writings before
he knew that Jesus truly existed and was put concluding:
to death.
Pauls many and varied statements about
iv) Paul believed Jesus rose from the dead. future and present resurrection thus pose a
Paul includes specific references to Jesus historical question to which the only satisfac-
resurrection in nine of his thirteen letters. tory answer, for him and for the historian, is
(Only 2Thessalonians, 1Timothy, Titus, and his firm and sharply delineated belief in a past
Philemon contain no explicit references. We event, the resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth.
will discuss 1Corinthians 15 more fully in (Wright, RSG, 374)
chapter10, but we should point out here the
importance of what Paul asserts in two por- And Wright points out how unlikely it is
tions of that section of the letter. that the first Christians, as a whole, decided
In 1Corinthians15:6 Paul writes, Then to confess that Jesus not only rose from the
he [Jesus] appeared to more than five hun- dead but that the resurrection was also the
dred brothers at one time, most of whom are destiny for his followers:
still alive, though some have fallen asleep
(esv). Paul was stating that many who One of the most striking features of the early
claimed to have seen the risenand clearly Christian movement is its virtual unanimity

about the future hope. We might have expected We can add to that our discussion on the
that the first Christians would quickly have resurrection from 1Corinthians 15:68, in
developed a spectrum of beliefs about life after which Paul tells the Corinthians that there
death, corresponding to the spectrums we have are witnesses to Jesus resurrection who are
observed in the Judaism from within which still alive.
Christianity emerged and the paganism into
which it went as a missionary movement: but b. Conclusion
they did not. (Wright, RSG, 209) We conclude the study of Paul with Barnett
offering three observations in building a case
There was no development of that idea. for the historicity of Jesus from a broad view
It was there from the beginning in Paul and of Pauls writings to the Thessalonians and
among the first Christians. What could Corinthians:
explain this except that Paul truly believed
that Jesus really existed, really was crucified One is that the churches in Thessalonica and
unto death, and really rose from the dead? Corinth came into existence as a result of Pauls
Wright succinctly states: proclamation to them about Jesus Christ. The
second is that this proclaimed figure was exalted;
They all took the resurrection of Jesus to be a he is the Christ, the Son of God the Lord. Yet,
solid, concrete event, leaving an empty tomb thirdly, this person, Jesus, was one about whom
behind it, with Jesus body being thoroughly biographical information was known, probably
transformed so as to leave behind forever the though [sic] the process of the initial preaching
possibility of corruption and death (Wright, and handing over of various received tradi-
PFG, 408). tions to the churches, and from their questions
and his answers. Jesus Christ as proclaimed
v) Paul believed there are the impulse for the formation of the churches
contemporary witnesses to Jesus. in Thessalonica and Corinthwas anchored
James D. G. Dunn references Galatians to a historical figure, Jesus. (Barnett, JLH, 50)
1:1820:
Paul and the people to whom he witnessed
Where Paul records his first visit to Jerusalem believed in a literal, historical Jesus who lived,
after his conversion. If his conversion is to be died, rose again, and is planning a return.
reckoned about two years after Jesus crucifix-
ion, then his visit to Jerusalem will have to be 3. Other NT Writings
dated no more than about five years after the a. Epistles
crucifixion (mid-30s). On that visit he recalls Barnett offers analysis of the importance of
that he met with James, the Lords brother. the epistles of James, Hebrews, and 1Peter for
Later on he refers to the brothers of the Lord the study of the historicity of Jesus:
(1Cor. 9:5).
It is a work of some desperation which The letters of James, Hebrews, and 1 Peter
denies the obvious deduction from these indicate that the churches associated with
references, that there was a man called Jesus these leaders also arose from the proclamation
whose brothers were well known in the 30s to of Jesus. Again, it is a historical figure to whom
60s. (Dunn, JR, 142143) they refer. (Barnett, JLH, 50)

To be sure, James makes no explicit refer- equally strong sense of the historical Jesus.
ence to the person of the historical Jesus. There The author knows that Jesus was from the
are, however, a number of ethical teachings tribe of Judah, and therefore not a member
which appear to echo the teachings of Jesus of the priestly caste. He writes, We see Jesus,
from a source which the gospel of Matthew who for a little while was made lower than
seems to have employed. Moreover, his ref- the angels... who partook in flesh and
erence to the wisdom... from above and blood so as to be like his brethren in every
the righteous man whom the Jews killed respect. This Jesus was tempted in every
may be oblique references to Jesus personified, way as we are, yet without sin, suggesting
as it were, as wisdom and righteousness. In a knowledge of specific occasions of temp-
short, it is clear enough that those who became tation faced and overcome by him. He is a
attached to Jesus through proclamation about compassionate heavenly high priest who in
him were given instruction in the teachings of the days of his flesh... offered up prayers
the historical Jesus. Andin all likelihood and supplications, with loud cries and tears,
about his person as well. (Barnett, JLH, 51) and who learned obedience through what he
Peter alludes to the historical Jesus, under suffered. We sense that, although he speaks
the rubric, the sufferings of Christ. He writes in non-specific terms, both the writer and
that Christ was made manifest at the end of the readers know the circumstances of Jesus
the times and that he suffered in the flesh, sufferings. Again, without giving details, he
but that in those sufferings he did not sin by refers to the hostility which Jesus suffered. The
guileful, vengeful or threatening behaviour. author repeatedly writes of Jesus obedience to
His footprints they were to follow closely. Peter God, expressed in his sacrificial death offered
writes to those who have not seen Christ, but as up for the salvation of others.... The allusions
one who had himself seen Christ.... Peter had to the historical Jesus emphasize his humanity
first-hand physical knowledge of Christ. He and his perseverance in the face of sufferings
has been a witness to the sufferings of Jesus.... for the very understandable reason that his
As with other writers who make reference to readers needed to persevere in the face of grave
Jesus, the details are selected as appropriate difficulties at that time. His very lack of detail
to the circumstances of the readers; in parti- by way of elaboration suggests that both he and
cular, in their faithful witness to Jesus in they knew about the circumstances of Jesus
circumstances of hostility. Such details are sufferings. In short, this remarkable docu-
given no elaboration or justification. Evidently ment reflects both the fact of the proclamation
both writer and readers knew and accepted of the gospel which had come to them and a
the underlying facts about Jesus to which the presumed knowledge of the historical Jesus.
references apply. (Barnett, JLH, 5253) (Barnett, JLH, 5354)
No letter in the New Testament so clearly
proclaims the gospel on one hand, and the Barnett concludes by discussing James,
reality of Jesus as a figure of history on the Hebrews, 1Peter, and Pauls epistles:
other, as does the letter to the Hebrews.
The unknown author, who was not among Unless historians of the New Testament take
the original followers of Jesus, writes as seriously the letters in regard to both the fact
one who heard their proclamation.... This of proclamation and the connection of the
powerful sense of proclamation is tied to an proclaimed figure to the historical figure of

Jesus, then the engine driving the New Tes- that God might actually touch physical
tament from withinJesus the teacher who, matter. The idea of God becoming human,
as risen from the dead, was proclaimed as from a Greek philosophical point of view,
Jesus the Lordwill remain unrecognized. was outrageous. So some people began to
Failing to discern the inner dynamic which argue that Jesus wasnt really human. Jesus
gives the New Testament story its impulse, was an apparition from God who appeared to
scholars will continue to tinker at the edges, be human when he came among us. Equally,
absorbed in background studies, social and they claimed, Jesus didnt die, he just appeared
psychological analyses and various forms of to die. What these letters underline is that it is
textual reconstruction, missing the action in absolutely crucial that Jesus is human as well as
the centre which explains everything. This Lord and Christ, and that Christians confess
is the logic of history. (Barnett, JLH, 5657) him as having come in the flesh. (Burridge
and Gould, JTN, 102103)
In the letters of John, Richard Burridge
and Graham Gould see the argument as one On the non-Pauline New Testament
over the significance that Jesus, God himself, epistles as a whole, Burridge and Gould
actually became human: conclude they take it for granted that [Jesus]
is Lord, human and divine, Son of God the
Clearly the debate here was not about what it Father. (Burridge and Gould, JTN, 105)
means to call Jesus God, or Lord, or Christ,
since that is taken for granted (see, for example, b. Revelation
1John 4:1315; 2John 3, 9). Instead in these On Revelation, Burridge and Gould write:
letters the question was the extent to which
Jesus was human. The letters reveal a bitter This incredibly rich picture, although in very
argument within these churches about which different language from the rest of the books in
group had the right ideas about Jesusand the New Testament, is saying again that all our
which were wrong. John suggests in 1John 4:2 hopes, all our dreams, are made real by God
what the test should be: How do we know if in Christ, changing the world by his death,
somebody is giving a prophecy from God? By shedding his bloodand making possible the
this we know the Spirit of God: every spirit new age of life with God. (Burridge and Gould,
which confesses that Jesus Christ has come JTN, 104105)
in the flesh is of God, but every spirit which
does not confess Jesus, is not of God. In c. Conclusion
other words, it is the recognition that Jesus The New Testament epistles and book of
came as a human being among us which is Revelation make no sense if they are writ-
crucial. Similarly in 2John 7, Many deceivers ten about a figure who never existed. The
have gone out who do not confess that Jesus writings attempt to root the Christian faith
Christ has come in the flesh. Such a person is squarely in Jesus life, death, resurrection,
a deceiver and an antichrist. He is referring and promised return. Without those things
here to a group which became known in the there is no reason to continue in the faith.
second century as docetics. The writers (and their readers) clearly and
This idea arises from the fact that within firmly believed that Jesus lived and died and
Greek thought it was extraordinary to think rose again.

B. Early Christian Creeds creed. It juxtaposes the man Jesus made of

In a discussion of creeds, we do not mean the seed of David according to the flesh with
the cherished belief statements often recited the divine Jesus whose claims were vindicated
in churches such as the Apostles Creed or by his rising from the dead. For our present
the Nicene Creed. We instead refer to bits purposes, we need only note the early interest
of information that would have been trans- in Jesus earthly, physical connections, as he
mitted orally before the writing of the New was born of a descendent of Davids family. As
Testament, later to be included in the New [C. F. D.] Moule relates, it was the same human
Testament. These are especially seen in Pauls Jesus who lived, died, and was later vindicated.
writings and are fragments enshrining car- (Habermas, HJ, 144145)
dinal beliefs present in the hymns, baptismal
responses and eucharistic forms which Paul- 3. First Timothy 3:16
ine research has brought to light. (Martin, This creed is brief:
Creed, 190) Licona points out these oral
traditions would have played a large role in He was manifested in the flesh, vindicated by
the Greco-Roman world, since only a small the Spirit, seen by angels, proclaimed among
minority, perhaps less than 10 percent, could the nations, believed on in the world, taken up
read and write. (Licona, RJ, 220) in glory (esv).
1. Philippians 2:611 Like the others, this ancient creed begins

New Testament scholar and philosopher by affirming that Jesus became a human,
of religion Gary Habermas writes: showing how Jesus humanity was an
important aspect of Christianity from the
The earliest Christians were confident that beginning. And Habermas takes a close look
Jesus Christ is come in the flesh, as pro- at these and other early reports of events in
claimed in the confession found in 1John the life of Jesus and notices several facts that
4:2. Seldom was Jesus incarnation expressed emerge from an analysis:
more clearly than in the pre-Pauline hymn
of Philippians 2:6ff., which speaks of both We are told that Jesus was really born in
Jesus human and divine natures. His humble human flesh (Phil. 2:6; 1Tim. 3:16; 1John 4:2)
life on earth is clearly contrasted with his of the lineage and family of David (Rom. 1:3,
heavenly position in the form of God and 4; 2Tim. 2:8). We find an implication of his
his later exaltation and worship. (Habermas, baptism (Rom. 10:9) and that his word was
HJ, 144145) preached, resulting in persons believing his
message (1Tim. 3:16). (Habermas, HJ, 146)
2. Second Timothy 2:8
Another ancient creed which expresses a con- 4. First Corinthians 15:38
trast between aspects of Jesus life is 2Timothy Perhaps 1Corinthians 15:38 contains
2:8. Here Jesus birth in the lineage of David the most important New Testament creed for
is contrasted with his resurrection from the the study of the historical existence of Jesus:
dead, again showing the early Christians
interest in linking Jesus to history. Similarly, For I delivered to you as of first importance
Romans 1:34 is also an ancient, pre-Pauline what I also received: that Christ died for our

sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he words delivered and received in setting
was buried, that he was raised on the third day up his report:
in accordance with the Scriptures, and that he
appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. Then he Paul asserts that he is about to impart content
appeared to more than five hundred brothers at he received from another; in other words,
one time, most of whom are still alive, though tradition handed down to him. Numerous
some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to Pauline passages inform us that the impor-
James, then to all the apostles. Last of all, as to tance of tradition to Paul and the authority
one untimely born, he appeared also to me (esv). it carried cannot be overstated. Mark and
Josephus report that a zeal for tradition was
Habermas recognizes the striking and standard for Pharisees, a group to which Paul
important fact: That this confession is an had belonged. (Licona, RJ, 224)
early Christian, pre-Pauline creed is recog-
nized by virtually all critical scholars across a But where did Paul get the oral traditions
very wide theological spectrum. (Habermas, used in 1Corinthians 15:38? Habermas
HJ, 153) offers a solid theory:
Licona looks at the passage specifically
for an examination of the claims of Jesus A number of scholars have arrived at the same
resurrection, but his conclusions are valid scenario. Dating Jesus crucifixion around AD
for a broader examination of the historicity 30, Pauls conversion would have occurred
of Jesus as well: shortly afterwards, about AD 3335. Three
years after his conversion (AD 3638) he
In nearly every historical investigation of the visited Jerusalem and specifically met with
resurrection of Jesus, 1Corinthians 15:38 Peter and James (Gal. 1:1819). It is therefore
weighs heavily and is perhaps the most impor- reasoned that the gospel of the death and
tant and valuable passage for use by historians resurrection of Jesus would in all likelihood
when discussing the historicity of the resurrec- be the normal center of discussion, and that
tion of Jesus. Its first valuable quality is that it the presence of both Peter and James in the
is early... we have what seems to be tradition list of appearances (1Cor. 15:5, 7) indicates
that predates the letter in which it appears. It the probability that Paul received this creed
is believed that Paul wrote the letter we now from these apostles when he visited them in
refer to as 1Corinthians in AD 54 or 55. If Jesus Jerusalem.
died in AD 30, we are reading a letter that was A Jerusalem location would date Pauls
written within twenty-five years of Jesus death reception of the creed at about five to seven
by a major church leader who knew a number of years after the crucifixion. But we can actu-
those who had walked with Jesus. If this letter ally proceed back two stages earlier. Since the
contains tradition that Paul has preserved, we tradition would actually have been formu-
are even closer than twenty-five years to the lated before Paul first heard it, the creed itself
events it claims to report. (Licona, RJ, 223224) would be dated even earlier. Additionally,
the independent beliefs themselves, which
A major reason Licona says there is wide- later composed the formalized creed, would
spread support for the fact that in this passage then date back to the actual historical events.
Paul is using an ancient creed is his use of the Therefore, we are dealing with material that

proceeds directly [italics his] from the events RJ, 249250) It includes a reference to Jesus
in question and this creed is thus crucial in and the early church:
our discussion of the death and resurrection
of Jesus. (Habermas, HJ, 155156) The Apostles received the Gospel for us from
the Lord Jesus Christ; Jesus Christ was sent
And there can be no true discussion of forth from God. So then Christ is from God,
the death and resurrection of Jesus unless He and the Apostles are from Christ. Both there-
was, in fact, an actual man who walked the fore came of the will of God in the appointed
earth. As Habermas summarizes: order. Having therefore received a charge,
and having been fully assured through the
The importance of the creed in 1Corinthians resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ and con-
15:3ff. can hardly be overestimated. No longer firmed in the word of God with full assurance
can it be charged that there is no demonstrable of the Holy Ghost, they went forth with the
early, eyewitness testimony for the resurrec- glad tidings that the kingdom of God should
tion or for the other most important tenets of come. So preaching everywhere in country
Christianity [such as the fact that Jesus truly and town, they appointed their first-fruits,
lived], for this creed provides just such evi- when they had proved them by the Spirit, to
dential data concerning the facts of the gospel, be bishops and deacons unto them that should
which are the very center of the Christian faith. believe. (quoted by Habermas, HJ, 230)
It links the events themselves with those who
actually participated in time and space. As In this passage we have a description of
such this creed yields strong factual basis for movement from the delivery of the gospel
Christianity through the early and eyewitness to the apostles, to Jesus resurrection, to the
reports of the death, burial, and resurrection beginning of the fulfillment of the Great
of Jesus. (Habermas, HJ, 157) Commission where the apostles began mis-
sionary activity. Habermas writes:
C. Apostolic Fathers
The collection of writings from first and This certification of a chain of authority from
second century Christian leaders, known God to Jesus to the apostles to the early Chris-
collectively as the Apostolic Fathers, provide tian elders is interesting not only in that it was
significant information not only about the the basis for early doctrinal proclamation and
early church, but several of them can be church organization. Additionally, Clement
traced back to the apostles, providing helpful of Rome anchors this authority in the belief
information for this study. We examine two that Jesus was raised from the dead and in
of them. the Scripture. A miraculous event in history
was thus taken as the basic sign of authority
1. Clement of Rome behind the preaching of the earliest Christian
First Clement is a letter written to the message. (Habermas, HJ, 230231)
church at Corinth in the late first or early
second century from the church at Rome. It Ehrman is less sure the letter was actually
is widely believed Clement knew the apostles, written by Clement, but still sees solid value
including Peter and Paul, and may even be the for a study of the historical Jesus:
man mentioned in Philippians 4:3. (Licona,

We have an independent witness not just to the In his letter to the Magnesians Ignatius
life of Jesus as a historical figure but to some of attempts to sway their opinion:
his teachings and deeds. Like all sources that
mention Jesus from outside the New Testament, Be ye fully persuaded concerning the birth
the author of I Clement had no doubt about and the passion and the resurrection, which
his real existence and no reason to defend it. took place in the time of the governorship
Everyone knew he existed. (Ehrman, DJE, 105) of Pontius Pilate; for these things were truly
and certainly done by Jesus Christ our hope.
2. Ignatius (quoted by Habermas, HJ, 233)
Ignatius was the bishop of Antioch who
was condemned to death in Rome in the early Habermas summarizes what Ignatius is
second century. There are several historical trying to do in these letters:
references to Jesus included in letters written
by Ignatius including in one to the Trallians: Ignatius attempts to place such events firmly
in the realm of history. His purpose, at least
Jesus Christ who was of the race of David, who partially, is to provide an answer to the threat
was the Son of Mary, who was truly born and of Gnosticism, which often denied physical
ate and drank, was truly persecuted under interpretations of some of these events.
Pontius Pilate, was truly crucified and died (Habermas, HJ, 233)
in the sight of those in heaven and on earth
and those under the earth; who moreover was Ehrman sees Ignatius as a significant
truly raised from the dead, His Father having witness:
raised Him, who in the like fashion will so
raise us also who believe on Him. (quoted in Ignatius, then, provides us yet with another
Habermas, HJ, 231) independent witness to the life of Jesus. Again,
it should not be objected that he is writing too
Here we have Ignatius laying out several late to be of any value in our quest. He cannot
significant Christian doctrines, including that be shown to have been relying on the Gospels.
Jesus truly lived (was truly born and ate and And he was bishop in Antioch, the city where
drank), died, and rose from the dead. both Peter and Paul spent considerable time
In his epistle to the Smyrneans he writes: in the preceding generation, as Paul himself
tells us in Galatians. His views too can trace
He is truly of the race of David according to a lineage straight back to apostolic times.
the flesh, but Son of God by the Divine will (Ehrman, DJE, 103104)
and power, truly born of a virgin and baptized
by John.... 3. Conclusion Regarding the
For I know and believe that He was in the Apostolic Fathers Testimony
flesh even after the resurrection... and strait- Clement and Ignatius not only assume
way they [the apostles] touched him and they a historical Jesus, but go to great lengths to
believed, being joined unto His flesh and His affirm key facts about his life on earth. While
blood.... And after His resurrection He ate not as important as writings from direct wit-
with them and drank with them. (quoted in nesses to the life of Jesus, they are still early,
Habermas, HJ, 232) independent, and trustworthy.

IV. Archaeology place or a major event, but little detail is

provided. The precise meaning of the text is
While he doesnt claim there is a smoking unclear. Then an archaeological discovery is
gun piece of evidence that clearly proves the made and we understand the story much better.
existence of Jesus, James Charlesworth sum- Of course, archaeology sometimes does
marizes significant evidence that expresses the prove things. For instance, lets consider what
importance of archaeology for Jesus research is called biblical minimalism, which is usually
today. Researchers now have discovered Naza- in reference to the Old Testament or Hebrew
reth, Cana, Bethsaida, and ancient synagogues, Bible. Here I have in mind especially those
and there has been even more excavation of minimalists who have argued that David and
first-century Jerusalem. Charlesworth states: Solomon are fictional characters, that there was
no kingdom of Israel reaching back to the tenth
Biblical scholars ultimately no longer have the century BCE and that if they existed, there was
presumed luxury of avoiding data from the not the level of literacy required to record the
times and places in which the biblical records chronicles of such persons and their deeds.
took shape and were edited. For a New Tes- Some of these minimalists think the narratives
tament scholar to disavow the importance of of the Hebrew Bible do not date any earlier than
archaeology for New Testament studies, includ- the fifth century BCE. As it turns outthanks
ing Jesus research, is a form of myopia. It leaves to archaeologythe minimalists are wrong on
the Gospels as mere stories or relics of ancient all these points. (Evans, JHW, 1)
rhetoric. Archaeological work, perhaps unin-
tentionally, helps the biblical scholar to rethink Evans then spends the rest of his book
and re-create the past.... The ancient world detailing several pieces of significant archaeo-
known to Jesus and his fellow Jews is beginning logical evidence before concluding:
to appear before our eyes. (Charlesworth, HJ,
694) The ideal is to have access to both artifact and
text, and that is usually what we have in the
Craig Evans writes concerning archaeo- study of the Mediterranean world of Jesus
logical research: of Nazareth and a number of other figures;
we have a number of other first-and second-
If archaeologists and historians could not find century documents that provide additional
correlation between archaeology and the biblical information. Every major city mentioned in the
text, there would be no such thing as biblical Gospels and Acts has been excavated; so have
archaeology. But of course they do find such several villages. We have recovered a number
correlation, and lots of it. (Evans, JHW, 1) of amazing inscriptions, including one that
mentions Pilate, the Roman authority who
However, like Charlesworth, Evans is open condemned Jesus to the cross, and another
about the lack of clear, direct archaeological one inscribed on a burial box that may be the
evidence for the historical Jesus: name of the Jewish high priest Caiaphas, who
interviewed Jesus. (Evans, JHW, 141)
Often what archaeologists uncover is not so
much proof, but clarification [italics his]. The While no archaeological evidence
Bible may talk about a given people, a particular clearly points us to proof that Jesus existed,

significant evidence supports cities and the foundation of the Christian faith actually
people described in the Bible. Therefore, lived in ancient Israel:
one should give weight to the Bibles claim
that Jesus actually existed (not to mention The reality is that every single author who
its claims about what he did). As archaeology mentions Jesuspagan, Christian, or Jewish
continues to support the Bible in other ways, was fully convinced that he at least lived. Even
it lends credence to a belief in the historical the enemies of the Jesus movement thought so;
existence of Jesus Christ. among their many slurs against the religion,
his nonexistence is never one of them.... Jesus
V. Concluding Remarks certainly existed. (Ehrman, DJE, 171173)
Both Christian and secular scholars from Mark Allan Powell, a New Testament
a large cross-section of theological schools scholar at Trinity Lutheran Seminary,
have concluded that the evidence we have understands the widespread acceptance of
presented here provides an adequate basis the existence of the historical Jesus among
to affirm with confidence that Jesus truly scholars:
existed.
Maurice Casey was a non- Christian Most historical scholars (Christian or not)
scholar who denied Jesus virgin birth and find the attempt to explain away all apparent
resurrection. However, he believed Jesus references to Jesus in Roman writings, much
actually existed. He writes that there is less New Testament epistles, to be an uncon-
abundant evidence that Jesus was a first- vincing tour de force that lapses into special
century Jewish prophet. (Casey, JN, 499) pleading. (Powell, JFH, 254)
As mentioned earlier, Bart Ehrman is
extremely skeptical about many things However, proving that Jesus existed is not
affirmed by conservative Christian scholars. the same as proving he is God, who deserves
However, even he sees overwhelming evi- worship. It is to the subject of his divinity that
dence that a man named Jesus who served as we turn next.
The reality is that every single author who mentions Jesuspagan, Christian,
or Jewishwas fully convinced that he at least lived. Even the enemies of
the Jesus movement thought so; among their many slurs against the reli-
gion, his nonexistence is never one of them.... Jesus certainly existed.
Bart Ehrman

Evidence Demands A Verdict Sampler

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EVIDENCE

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ISBN 9781401676711 (eBook)

ISBN 9781401676704 (HC)

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Printed in the United States of America

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This book is dedicated to the scholars who compiled the

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A Theistic Universe Danny MacDonald

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Alleged Contradictions in the Old Testament Aaron Heinrich

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THE HISTORICAL EXISTENCE OF JESUS

I. Introduction III. Christian Sources

I. Introduction legends of their founding by this or that

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Eddy and Boyd continue with their three 2. The Quran*

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However, the Quran very clearly teaches c. Denial of Jesus Crucifixion

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B. Sources of Limited Value b. Neros Fire

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2. Pliny the Younger Christians singing to Christ as if to a god,

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First, there is no reason to doubt why a scribe D. Summary of Non-Christian Sources

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Therefore, we examine the Christian Leading New Testament scholar Richard

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B. Early Christian Creeds creed. It juxtaposes the man Jesus made of

1. Philippians 2:611 Like the others, this ancient creed begins

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IV. Archaeology place or a major event, but little detail is

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