© 2005 The Brotherhood of Man Library
From “The Essential Jesus” 2002, (Ed. B.W. Ball and W.G. Johnson) (Pacific Press, Idaho)
There are relatively few references to Jesus in non-Christian sources over the first two centuries A.D. One historian explains this reality in these words: “Jesus was a marginal Jew leading a marginal movement in a marginal province of the vast Roman empire.”
Fortunately however, both Jewish and pagan literature does contain significant references that bear upon the veracity of the biblical record of Jesus’ existence. And this record was not just a figment of the imagination of overly zealous followers.
Among Jewish sources the writings of the historian, Josephus, who lived from A.D. 37 to 100 are among the best known and historically reliable.
In discussing the rule of the Jewish high priest, Ananus, Josephus mentions in Book 20 of his “Jewish Antiquities” that to an assembly of the Jewish ruling body, the Sanhedrin, “He (Ananus) assembled the Sanhedrin of the judges, and brought before them James, the brother of Jesus, who was called Christ, and some others, and when he had formed an accusation against them as law breakers, he delivered them to be stoned.”
Josephus was not writing about Jesus or Christians; he was merely setting the stage for the story of the deposition of Ananus. James was a common Jewish name. Some identification was needed; thus Josephus designated James as the brrother of Jesus, who was also called Christ.
The mention of Jesus is incidental but its mention is intact in all Greek sources of Josephus’ history and is accepted by virtually all scholars as being authentic.
In his Antiquities, Book 18, in writing about Pontius Pilate, the Procurator of Judea, Josephus makes further mention of Jesus. “Now there was about this time, Jesus, a wise man for he was the doer of wonderful works, and a teacher of such men as receive the truth with pleasure. He drew over to him both many of the Jews and many of the gentiles. And when Pilate, at the suggestion of the principal men amongst us, had condemned him to the cross, those that loved him at the first did not forsake him; and the tribe of Christians, so named after him are not extinct at this day.”
An analysis of these two passages from Josephus’ Antiquities indicates that they were not later interpolations, that he did actually mention Jesus and even though they were “in passing” references, Josephus clearly acknowledged the historicity of Jesus.
An original letter dated A.D. 73 and written by a Syrian Stoic held in a Roman prison is one of the earliest non-Christian references to Jesus. Written to his son to extol the virtue of wisdom, the writer, Mara Bar Sarapion, states as follows:
"What good did it do to the Athenians to kill Socrates, for which deed they were punished with famine and pestilence? What did it avail the Samians to burn Pythagorus, since their country was entirely buried under sand in one moment? Or what did it avail the Jews to kill their wise king, since their kingdom was taken from them from that time on?
"God justly avenged these three wise men. The Athenians died of famine, the Samians were flooded by the sea, the Jews were slaughtered and driven from their kingdom, everywhere living in the dispersion. (Jerusalem was sacked by Rome in A.D. 70)
“Socrates is not dead, thanks to Plato; nor Pythagoras, because of Hera’s statue. Nor is the wise king, because of the new law he has given.”
Although Mara does not mention Jesus by name, there is little doubt that he had him in mind. It would also seem that his information came from Christian sources such as the synoptic Gospels.
Shortly after the beginning of the second century, a Roman named Pliny became the governor of the Roman provinces of Bithnia and Pontus. He conducted extensive correspondence with Rome regarding his official duties, one of his problems being what to do with Christians about whom he wrote:
“In investigations of Christians I have never taken part; hence I do not know what is the crime usually punished or investigated, or what allowances are made….I have asked them if they are Christians, and if they admit it, I repeat the question a second or third time, with a warning of the punishment awaiting them.”
He further wrote that anyone accused of being a Christian could either refute the charges by offering incense to the Gods and the emperor, else by blaspheming Christus. Pliny also pointed out that Christians gathered together before daylight to recite “by turns a form of words to Christ as a god and that they bound themselves with an oath not to commit theft or robbery or adultery, nor to break their word, and not to deny a deposit when demanded.”
While Pliny often uses the word “Christians” he uses “Christus ” only twice. His letter, written about A.D. 112, adds little to our knowledge of Christian beliefs and practices. However it does corroborate the existence of Christians whose faith was in Christ.
A Roman historian, Cornelius Tacitus (A.D.55-117) lived under several Roman emperors. His Annals and Histories filled thirty books and covered the period between A.D. 14 and 96. His account of the great fire of Rome in A.D. 64, for which Nero was blamed, contains reference to Christians and to Christ:
“Consequently to get rid of the report, Nero fastened the guilt, and inflicted the most exquisite tortures on a class hated for their abominations, called Christians by the populace. Christus, from whom the name had its origin, suffered the extreme penalty during the reign of Tiberius at the hands of one of the procurators, Pontius Pilatus, and a most mischievous superstition, thus checked for the moment, again broke out not only in Judaea, the first source of the evil, but even in Rome where all things hideous and shameful from every part of the world find their center and become popular.”
The naming of Tiberius and Pontius Pilate in this passage shows that Tacitus had his chronology clear. Christ was for Tacitus an historical person. The anti-Christian tone of the report precludes the possibility of a Christian Interpolation. Although there is no reference to sources, Tacitus had been governor of the province of Asia, where there were many Christians. He was also a close friend of Pliny, from whom he could have heard other information on Christ and the Christians. And he was also aware that the movement, temporarily checked by Jesus’ death, had spread from Judea to Rome, where an immense multitude professed its faith and were willing to die rather than recant.
In his “Life of Claudius” Suetonius, chief secretary of the Roman emperor Hadrian, writing around A.D. 125, tells of the expulsion of the Jews from Rome under Claudius (A.D. 49): “Since the Jews were constantly causing disturbances at the instigation of Christus he (Claudius) expelled them from Rome.”
This banishment is the same one as noted in Acts 18:1-2. “After these things Paul departed from Rome and came to Corinth and found a certain Jew named Aquila, born in Pontus, lately come from Italy with his wife Priscilla; because that Claudius had commanded all Jews to depart from Rome.”
Lucian, a second century satirist, derided Christians and their founder. In the “Death of the Peregrine,” he provides information on what seems to have been a common understanding regarding Christians in those times.
“The Christians, you know, worship a man to this day–the distinguished personage who introduced their novel rites, and was crucified on that account….you see, these misguided creatures start with the conviction that they are immortal for all time, which explains their contempt of death and voluntary self-devotion which are so common among them; and then it was impressed on them by their original lawgiver that they are all brothers, from the moment that they are converted, and deny the gods of Greece, and worship the crucified sage, and live after his laws.”
Note that Lucien does not use the usual word for “crucified,” but instead he uses “anaskolopisthenta” which means “impaled.” Perhaps this is because crucifixion was derived from impalement but it could be that both the name and means by which the one whom the Christians worshipped met his death were unknown to Lucien. Another section of “Peregrine” gives Palestine as the location where the one whom the Christians worship met his death, hence there can be no doubt that Lucien was referring to Jesus.
Thus from Jewish and pagan sources there exists enough references to substantiate the New Testament witness to the existence of Jesus as a real historical person.