Non-Biblical Sources That Mention Jesus Christ

Summary:

• Jesus’ existence and crucifixion were independently verified by Roman authorities, Jewish historians, Greek authors, and Syrian philosophers.

• Historical records from Roman, Jewish, Greek, and Syrian sources confirm the life and influence of Jesus.

• Scholars have studied the writings of historians from different cultures, offering additional documentation of Jesus’ historical significance.

Jesus is known to most Americans based on the bible. But what was the writing of people about him in the Scripture about him? There are documented records of Roman rule, Jewish history, and the scholars of Greece who were in the first and second centuries, citing Jesus without relating him to any religious literature. These were historians, officials, and writers who documented what they saw or explored. The content of what they wrote has captured the attention of scholars over the centuries.

Rome’s Own Records

 

Tacitus was a dutiful and esteemed historian of Roman times. In his annals, which were written in 116 AD, he said that Christ had been executed by Pontius Pilate during the reign of Emperor Tiberius. That is the independent testimony of the very careful, methodical historian of Rome that often has vast historical impact and weight.

A Jewish Historian Speaks

 

It was also written around 93 AD by a Jewish historian, Flavius Josephus, employed to write to the Romans about Jesus in his historical masterpiece Antiquities of the Jews. He explained that Jesus was a wise man who drew a crowd of followers and was crucified under Pilate. A true historical centrality is generally admitted by scholars in this brilliant and very popular text.

A Governor’s Paperwork

 

 

The young Roman Governor, Pliny, was making a simple administrative report to Emperor Trajan at around 112 AD. He told how Christians in his province assembled early before sunrise and sang and worshiped Christ as a god. That official mail happened to be one of the most interesting independent sources of modern history into the early Christian worship.

Disturbances in Rome

 

Civil unrest amongst the Jewish communities in Rome was recorded by Roman historian Suetonius around a man he described as Chrestus. This was written circa 121 AD, so many historians interpreted this as an early indirect mention of the expanding influence of Christians within Rome itself, one of the first Roman recognitions of the expanding cultural influence of Christ.

A Writer Takes Notice

 

 

 

In his book, Greek author Lucian of Samosata mentions Christians and their leader in the second century. He affirmed through writing that their founder was an actual man who was executed and whom his devotees continue to honor and worship even many years later. The historical record was still the same, even in a remote cultural viewpoint.

A Father’s Letter

 

A thoughtful letter by a Syrian Philosopher known as Mara Bar-Serapion to his son mentions the unfair murder of a wise Jewish king whose influence lived on to a point of being absolute as long as the murderers remained in the world. This is generally recognized by historians as a figure of Jesus. The book was written circa the first and the third century, and it continues to be one of the most silent moving autonomous recognitions of history.

From Jewish Scholarship

 

The Jewish Talmud, which was gathered together around 200 AD, includes sections that mention a character named Yeshu who was commonly related to Jesus. What is especially interesting about these sources is that they appear within a purely academic tradition not necessarily related to Christian literature, and another level of documentation of historical importance has been offered based on a completely different cultural and religious paradigm.

Explaining the Darkness

 

There is an account of a first-century historian, Thallus, trying to explain a peculiar darkness that happened about 33 AD as a natural solar occurrence. In later history, Julius Africanus claimed that Thallus was explaining the darkness that was remembered during the crucifixion. Even though the original text of Thallus is lost, this historical dialogue is still one of the most interesting early secular sources that scholars still study today.

The Earthquake Record

 

 

The historical records of Phlegon, who was a Greek historian, c.137 AD, provided me with a solar eclipse and an earthquake recorded during the reign of Emperor Tiberius. Early Christian writers such as the scholar Origen explicitly refer to the account of Phlegon as contiguity credit of what happened on the crucifixion. Among historians across the globe, there is an active scholarly debate on the exact correlation of such events that are recorded.

What History Actually Says

 

Whitman’s theology vaporized, and the entire history is so consistent. Jesus of Nazareth was a living being. The existence, his execution under Pilate, and the great movement that went on increasing long after his death, were independently verified by Roman authorities, Jewish commentators, Greek authors, and Syrian philosophers during several centuries.