However, if the crucifixion were on a Wednesday or Thursday this does not seem to fit the proper timing in the Jewish Passover week. Even with the loss of the original writing, if the transposition of the original to the copy were to be altered, there would be significant doubt as to when the event occurred, or if, it even occurred. So, these historical extrabiblical sources are also consistent with the AD 33 date. There is little doubt that this information was passed from ancient source to ancient source before it reached Phlegon; however; its place in historical writings is scientifically confirmed nearly 2 millenia later. At the sixth hour the day was turned into the darkness of night, so that stars were seen in the heaven; and there was a . The Historical Jesus. Remember that Jesus' baptism was shortly after the beginning of John the Baptist's ministry, which began in AD 29. Christians claim this corroborates the Gospels; opponents say it has nothing to do with the events described during the Passion and only perpetuates a false conclusion. From the direct quote above, it is clear Phlegons source is an observer in Bithynia (in modern day Turkey), which is well over 500 miles away from Jerusalem. He lived up to the death of the emperor Augustus in 14CE and we know from Luke that his ministry began in the 15th year of Augustus successor, Tiberius. Please note, I do not believe that this eclipse is connected with the crucifixion. To recap, according to Eusebius' Chronicon tables, the 2nd year of the 202nd Olympiad is equated alongside the 16th year of Tiberius. sfnp error: no target: CITEREFRobertsDonaldsonCoxe1896 (, Learn how and when to remove this template message, https://www.tertullian.org/fathers/jerome_chronicle_03_part2.htm, http://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/SEsearch/SEsearchmap.php?Ecl=00291124, Fragments of Phlegon on the passion phenomena, William Smith, "Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology" (1870) v. 3, page 336, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Phlegon_of_Tralles&oldid=1125623921, Articles needing additional references from April 2019, All articles needing additional references, Articles containing Ancient Greek (to 1453)-language text, Articles with unsourced statements from October 2022, Wikipedia articles needing clarification from May 2013, Wikipedia articles incorporating a citation from the 1911 Encyclopaedia Britannica with Wikisource reference, Wikipedia articles incorporating text from the 1911 Encyclopdia Britannica, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 5 December 2022, at 00:29. Such is the difficulty of the argument from silence. The Romans, for example, are known to have have kept archives which included data on eclipses of the moon and sun. The Biblical Astronomer, 8(84). The earth shook, the rocks split and the tombs broke open. As explained, we believe that the darkness referred to by Phlegon is the same darkness referred to in Matthew 27:45. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) keeps a database of what are called "significant" earthquakes. The Olympiades can be used as a useful means of establishing a time-line. TheActs of the Apostlesrecords the very first public preaching of Peter and the Apostles, which took place less than eight weeks after the Crucifixion. Thus, in their mindset, Jesus could say "three days and three nights" and the Jews would not have understood that this had to be a full 72 hours. In Phlegon's Olympiades we are told it happened in the 4th year of the 202nd Olympiad which is AD 33. Now before the accusations fly about me ascribing random astronomical events to this writing, consider this: these are the only two solar eclipses that occur within the time frame reference by Phlegon, and from 20-40AD there are only 3 other eclipses that could even possibly have been seen by Rome or the Persian Gulf; one in 20AD and the other two occur after 36AD. Just for reference, Nicea is in western Turkey, approximately where the city of Bursa is. The darkness during the crucifixion. But consider how do we know anything about history? There was a great earthquake in Bithynia, and many things were overturned in Nicaea.'"1 Evidence from Africanus He was, therefore, about 4 years old at the turn from BCE to CE. 3: 32-07-28/29: Athene : 4: 32- . The term "Onah" or sometimes "Onath" is a loose way of referring to part of a day. And it cannot happen at any other time but in the interval between the first day of the new moon and the last of the old, that is, at their junction: how then should an eclipse be supposed to happen when the moon is almost diametrically opposite the sun? The last known Olympic celebration was held in the year 261 CE ( Common Era, also known as "AD" from the Latin Anno Domini which means In the Year of the Lord in English). Second, though the Passover week celebrations of the Jews are well understood, no written records exist regarding the calendar and New Moon from the time of Christ, as the Jews used them. Why would the Apostles allude to a darkness their hearers and readersknewdid not happen? And calculation makes out that the period of 70 weeks, as noted in Daniel, is completed at this time. Julius Africanus, Chronography, 18.1. Your email address will not be published. The evidence also shows it likely to have been a magnitude 5.5. Key to this text though, is that it has never been found in an original form. Unfortunately, Africanus does not quote Phlegon directly. . These historians attempt to interpret the darkness as a direct effect of a solar eclipse which we know is scientifically not possible - but they wouldn't have known that in their time. 196-7, College Press Publishing Company, 1996., 4 Tertullian, Apologeticus, Chapter 21, 19 cited in Bouw, G. D. (1998, Spring). Thus, if the quote is accurate, and Phlegons eclipse has not been conflated with one which occurred in 29 A.D., then Phlegon is another source who supports the Crucifixion darkness. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plate_tectonics#/media/File:Plates_tect2_en.svg. As several of the early Fathers quoted Phlegon, there seems no reason to doubt his word. This is what Colin Humphrey's does well in his book, considering a variety of types of information. Remember then, especially on Good Friday between the hours of noon and 3 pm, that the Crucifixion darkness is a real, historical eventand pray for those who deny it. TheActs of the Apostlesrecounts Peters words on Pentecost. And upon my servants indeed, and upon my handmaids will I pour out in those days of my spirit, and they shall prophesy. Eusebius' records of the Olympics were considered authoritative but were lost, though they are translated and preserved some in the writings of others. Jerusalem is another place where we might have expected there to be records of the events of Matthew 27, and to hope that individual residents of Jerusalemcontemporaneous to the eventsmight have commented on these wondrous happenings in personal records, etc. Each recounts a fantastical or paranormal event. It was calculated in four-year intervals. Therefore this is how Jesus could have been crucified on Friday and rise from the dead on Sunday, as Christian tradition and Biblical information have always said. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); This is a text widget. Yes, to God, nothing is impossible. Jesus was born whilst Herod, the Great, was still alive; we know he died in BCE and on 1st April 4BCE. It is important to readThallus comments to completely understand the issue. I did a search for the years 25 through 35 AD for the nation of Israel. Thus, upon closer examination, theforce of the skeptics objection inevitably dissolves away into nothingness as we examine the works of other ancient writers who the skeptic would cite as asilentwitness for their case. This historical puzzle shows the historical accuracy of the New Testament in a number of ways. For example a time-line can be established from his famous works called The Olympiades as follows: "In the 4th year of the 202nd Olympiad, there was a great eclipse of the Sun, greater than had ever been known before, for at the sixth hour the day was changed into night, and the stars were seen in the heavens. In reply. Contact Dr Richard Kent and recommendations, Bible Prophecy Concerning The Crucifixion, The Blood Covenant In Relation To The Crucifixion, Recording of The Crucifixion by Contemporary Historians, The Three Hour Period Of Darkness Is Confirmed By Many Historians, The Ad 33 Date Of The Crucifixion According To Phlegon, A Secular Greek Historian, The Ad 33 Date Of The Crucifixion From Bible Prophecy, Caiaphas Prophesied About The Crucifixion, In Gethsemane Jesus Sweated Blood, The Disciples Slept, And Judas Betrayed Jesus Christ, Judas Iscariot Betrayed Jesus Christ For Thirty Pieces Of Silver, The Timing Of The Night Before The Crucifixion, Jesus Christ Stood In Our Place At The Six Trials, Jesus Was Condemned To Death For "blasphemy", The Crowd Choose Barabbas Rather Than Jesus. 1996. p. 217. But what has an eclipse in common with an earthquake, the rending rocks, and the resurrection of the dead, and so great a perturbation throughout the universe? The darkness and earthquake were evident not just in Jerusalem but also in Nicea which is over 300 miles away from Jerusalem! And I will shew wonders in the heaven above, and signs on the earth beneath: blood and fire, and vapour of smoke. Only one earthquake in this span of years came up in the results, in 33 AD The database showed two published geological sources regarding this earthquake. When the Moon "lines up" with the Sun it is referred to by astronomers as being at conjunction (which is the New Moon). Jeremiah 9:23-24. Regarding thissame2nd century historian, Africanus also wrote: Phlegon records that, in the time of Tiberius Caesar, at full moon, there was a full eclipse of the sun from the sixth hour to the ninth manifestly that one of which we speak(Sextus Africanus,Fragment 18. "In the 4th year of the 202nd Olympiad, there was a great eclipse of the Sun, greater than had ever been known before, for at the sixth hour the day was changed into night, and the stars were seen in the heavens. Required fields are marked *. Jesus baptism was apparently not long after the beginning of John the Baptist's ministry. Last Olympiad: Next Olympiad: 1st year: Begins 29-07-01/02: Hekatombaion 29 Metageitnion 29 Boedromion 30 Puanepsion 29 Maimakterion 30 Poseideon . The timing of this "eclipse" referred to by Phlegon is similar to the event described in the Gospels. https://creation.com/darkness-at-the-crucifixion-metaphor-or-real-history, http://www.icr.org/article/greatest-earthquakes-bible/, http://www.nbcnews.com/id/47555983/ns/technology_and_science-science/t/quake-reveals-day-jesus-crucifixion-researchers-believe/#.Wiu9sUqWaUk, http://www.wall.org/~aron/blog/darkness-at-noon/. These aspects of the problem are critical and it shows the Jewish mindset about the calendar and counting days was quite different than our modern mindset. We know that Jesus was crucified in the Spring, at the time of the Passover. Now consider if this were either all fake or unauthentic; Christian historians have used this writing to cite as an extra-biblical account of the Gospel accounts and opponents have used the writing to discredit the theory as contrived. In October, I will perform a miracle here so that all may believe. The New Testament in Matthew 27:45 records that while Jesus was on the cross there was darkness over all the land for three hours. Why has it been so difficult to determine the exact date of Jesus' death and the dates of the last week of his life? Among these is a very interesting quote below from a Christian scholar quoting an earlier Roman historian named Phlegon (first and second century). Phlegon was a Greek historian who wrote an extensive chronology around AD 137. Indeed Phlegon, who is an excellent calculator of olympiads, also writes about this, in his 13th book writing thus: "However in the fourth year of the 202nd olympiad [32 CE], an eclipse of the sun happened, greater and more excellent than any that had happened before it; at the sixth hour [around noon] day turned into dark night, so that the . Then the other speaker, also a minister, stepped forward. He was a Greek historian who lived in Asia Minor during the first century. Martinus Nijhoff. Check it out for yourselfhttp://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/SEcat5/SE0001-0100.html. Dont Panic! (LogOut/ There are few historical records that are actually from the time of Christ but there are some records from historians from the second century AD. Next, we consider the Gospel of Matthew. The written testimony from outside the Bible confirms some of the main events, people, and places mentioned in the New Testament. Conservative Christian speakers were a rarity on their campus and they wanted to make it rarer. 2004. On this basis the Fourth year of the 202nd Olympiad would commence in July A.D.32 and finish in June A.D.33. Here, too, we see an Apostle feared not to mention the event precisely because it was already widely known among his readers. Part II: The Role of the Church, Roma Locuta Est Considers: Benepapism and the Munus vs. Ministerium (EpisodeV), Is the Culture of Death creating the Remnant: Part 1 Declining births and life expectancy, Roma Locuta Est Considers: Benepapism and the Munus vs. Ministerium (EpisodeIV), Roma Locuta Est Considers: Benepapism and the Munus vs. Ministerium (EpisodeIII), 10th Anniversary of Benedict XVIs Renunciation of the Papacy, A Rebuttal of Dr. Mazzas book on Pope Benedicts Resignation, Valid? Well, for starters, it places a high degree of scientific precision for a writing that could considered to be hearsay or speculative because of its inference from another source. It is an important event to all Christians. This is the first of the gospels, written some time between38 and 45 A.D. These historians even mention the darkening of the sky and the earthquake which the gospels describe at the time of the crucifixion. In the Jewish calendar, the first month of a new year was called Nisan. Another issue to notice in Jerome's quote above is regarding an earthquake that took place at the same time as the mysterious darkening of the sky. 4th year of the 202nd Olympiad, in the 18th year of Tiberius. Other works ascribed to Phlegon in the Suda are a description of Sicily, a work on the Roman festivals in three books, and a topography of Rome: Origen of Alexandria (182-254 AD), in Against Celsus (Book II, Chap. . It is believed to be an 8.2-magnitude earthquake. We also know from the New Testament that at that time Caiaphas was the Jewish High Priest (Caiaphas is mentioned in Jewish writings) and Pilate was the Roman governor of Judea. Thus the darkening of the sky at the crucifixion is very extraordinary. Moon phase and solar year events are shown on the day in Athens. But Peter standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and spoke to them: Ye men of Judea, and all you that dwell in Jerusalem, be this known to you, and with your ears receive my words. Early Christian writers, such as Origen, Africanus and Eusebius, also cited a 2nd century writer, Phlegon, as having written of the Crucifixion darkness. This earthquake did not center near Jerusalem exactly but it was strong enough to be very noticable in effects at Jerusalem if it did damage in Nicea. There are a variety of opinions on this question. Edit them in the Widget section of the, Repost: The Historicity of the Crucifixion Darkness. I believe Colin Humphreys is probably correct that the date of the crucifixion of Christ was Friday April 3, A.D. 33. Some evidence suggests that Jesus was born in 2 BC and Herod died shortly after. When they could see the new crescent Moon in the evening (only visible for a short time in the early evening) they would send runners to announce that the new month had begun. Trallianus, Olympiades: In the fourth year of the 202nd Olympiad, [AD 32-33] a failure of the Sun took place greater than any previously known, and night came on at the sixth hour of the day [noon], so that stars actually appeared in the sky; and a great earthquake took place in Bithynia and overthrew the greater part of Niceaea," In 70 A.D., just forty years after the Crucifixion and Resurrection of Jesus Christ, the city of Jerusalem and the Temple were utterly destroyed by the Romans and the surviving population carried off into captivity. Unfortunately for the skepticand a sign of his desperation as wellthe argument from silence is, perhaps, one of the most difficult types of arguments to make. But it is a challenging issue to unravel. Phlegon of Karia recorded both of these events in Chronicle of the Olympiad. Sure, there is a degree of speculation as to whether this actually was an occurrence during the Crucifixion (I fully realize there a 10-year swing is 3650-ish days according to modern calendar, which means a .0274% chance that it was on the actual day), but here again is evidence that the transcription from ancient origins thatPhlegon relied on and passed to writers who referenced his collected materials is scientifically plausible. However, the sixth hour in Bithynia is also at the same time as the sixth hour in Jerusalem. So how should we understand the statement about Jesus being dead three days and three nights? Retrieved November 30, 2006 from [2]. Every person needs to deal with the questions of who Jesus is and what his death means. Phlegon of Tralles was a first century secular Greek historian born not long after the Crucifixion. If your sunset occurs later than sunset in Athens, the event may occur on . Those who heard Peter preach in Rome would have previously known about this darkness in several ways, including: (1) having witnessed it firsthand in Rome if it had been a universal darkness; (2) hearing of it from travelers to Rome; and or (3) through letters or official reports received from the provinces, the latter of which were kept in the Roman archives. Change). On the whole world there pressed a most fearful darkness; and the rocks were rent by an earthquake, and many places in Judea and other districts were thrown down. You can use a text widget to display text, links, images, HTML, or a combination of these. The Bible is a book that is a record of facts and not myths. However, what concerning the bottom line? The expression "three days and three nights" then becomes a special idiom that had a different meaning to the Jews than the way we would use it today. The Historical Jesus, pp. This argument is sufficient to diffuse the skeptics argument with regard to Pliny. It is significant that Jesus be crucified on a Friday because that is the normal time when the passover lamb was sacrificed by the Jews. It amounts, in effect, to asserting the following:leaving aside all the evidence youdohave, you do not have anyotherevidence. Thus, the skeptic discards all evidence against his case, and then declares victory: aha, you have nootherproof!The reality is, there is no reason to set aside the sources and evidence we do have. [CDATA[*/ var d = new Date(); var n = d.getFullYear(); document.getElementById('getYear').innerHTML = n; /*]]>*/ Christian Evidence. He said If I could prove to you that the Bible is a supernatural book, confirmed by both foretelling of the future and also by miracles, would you believe what the Bible says?. Phlegon provides powerful confirmation, identifying the year and the exact time of day. The Formal Correction is on the way! To God nothing is impossible. No one has ever met a literary device walking down the street or stubbed their toe on one, thus we should not expect that any early Christian would have suffered martyrdom for one. A solar eclipse supposedly occurred during a full moon. . One such quotation is as follows, "In the 4th year of the 202nd Olympiad, there was a great eclipse of the Sun, greater than had ever been known before, for at the sixth hour the day was changed into night, and the stars were seen in the heavens. This is especially significant I think because no other significant earthquakes turned up in Israel for the entire range of years from 25 to 35 AD. This information was considered reliable at the time because Origen (in 248 CE) quoted it to refute Celsus (Against Celsus II:14,33,59), a Greek philosopher very critical of Christianity but familiar with history. April 3 would be the Julian Calendar date; the same day on today's Gregorian calendar is April 1, 33 A.D. Julian dates are usually used by historians and Bible scholars for events in this time in history. . The next piece of the puzzle is to determine if Jesus indeed was crucified on a Friday. This example underlines the point that Matthew did not have a similar need to defend the truth of the three hour darkness, precisely because it was a well known, accepted and indisputablefact. The placement in time within the text is just too precise. [The word Christ in Hebrew is Messiah.] Christ bore our sins so that if we just turn to God through Christ and humble ourselves and repent we receive Gods forgiveness for all of our sins!! In addition, he writes of an earthquake accompanying the darkness, which is specifically recorded in Matthews Gospel (Matthew 27:51): Secular Geologist, Jefferson Williams of Supersonic Geophysical, and colleagues Markus Schwab and Achim Brauer of the German Research Center for Geosciences, researched the Dead Sea and revealed that at least two major earthquakes occurred: A widespread earthquake in 31 B.C. Modern science validates the sources Phlegon used for compiling his writings and also validates the transcribers who referenced the material several hundred years later. Pliny then proceeds and gives only two examples. "[4], Phlegon may have been recording an eclipse that happened in November, 29 AD, the 1st year of the 202nd Olympiad.[5]. Does this necessarily mean that Phlegon was referencing the seismic activity, if you dare to call it that, that occurred during the Crucifixion in the Gospel accounts? It even mentions buildings collapsing in Nicea, which would be over 1,000 miles Northwest from Jerusalem by land. A solar eclipse can occur only at new moon, but we know that Jesus was crucified at the time of Passover (Matthew 26:2; Mark 14:12,12; Luke 22:12, 7; John 13:1), and that the Passover is at the time of full moon (Exodus 12:111; Leviticus 23:5). . The reality is, Plinys statement is not evidence against the Crucifixion darkness. In the same hour, too, the light of day was withdrawn, when the sun at the very time was in his meridian blaze. The ancient Olympic Games were held every four years for almost 1,100 years. Passover occurred on either Nisan 14 or 15 about two weeks after the New Moon. I am not convinced by this even though I believe in the darkness over the land when Jesus was crucified. "In the fourth year of the 202nd Olympiad (i.e., AD 33) there was 'the greatest eclipse of the sun' and that 'it became night in the sixth hour of the day [i.e., noon] so that stars even appeared in the heavens. Sure, its certainly possible to wildly claim an earthquake happened somewhere, at some time, as they occur on Earth all the time; I could generalize that a major earthquake hit San Francisco in 1900, as I was born approximately 80 years later and have no direct source, but would I be inaccurate in claiming that? The fourth year of the 202nd Olympiad was in 33 A.D.!!! The time from Friday 3 PM to sunset was counted as one day. It was not until the sixteenth century that the Jewish calendar was formally defined precisely. There was a great earthquake in Bithynia, and many things were overturned in Nicaea. 27:39-40, Matt. The fourth year of the 202nd Olympiad I believe would include some of the same year as the 203rd Olympiad but the new Olympiad did not start till the Olympics event took place in the Summer. Your email address will not be published. Zero as a mathematical number in the Greco-Roman world was a later invention. The Cancellation Of The Curse Of Death, And The Free Gift Of Eternal Life, The Cancellation Of The Curse Of Sickness, And The Availability Of Supernatural Health, The Cancellation Of The Curse Of Poverty, And The Availability Of Gods Supernatural Abundance, Victory Over Satan Won At The Crucifixion, Accreditation, Acknowledgements and Legal notices for Crucifixion, Contact Dr Richard Kent and Recommendation. The first of the two speakers stepped forward again. And the sun was darkened, and the veil of the temple was rent in the midst. (Luke 23:44-45 ). and this is shown by the historical account of Tiberius Caesar. Philopon, De. In the fourth year, however, of Olympiad 202, an eclipse of the sun happened, greater and more excellent than any that had happened before it; at the sixth hour, day turned into dark night, so that the stars were seen in the sky, and an earthquake in Bithynia toppled many buildings of the city of Nicaea. Phlegons 13th book quoted in Jeromes translation of Eusebius Chronicle, 202 Olympad. Africanus does this by noting that the eve of Passover falls on a date of a near full moon, i.e., when the moon is opposite the sun in relation to the earth. Of all these verses, only Matt. Read more . Again, modern science has corroborated that not only is the Persian Gulf was a seismically-active area, but that a major earthquake did hit the region between 26-36AD: source :http://www.deadseaquake.info/was-there-really-an-earthquake-on-the-day-that-jesus-died/. We have already cited the Acts of the Apostles, the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke, Tertullian, Africanus, the 1st century historian Thallus, and the 2nd century historian, Phlegon, and these sufficiently demonstrate the historicity of the Crucifixion darkness. (Sextus Julius Africanus,Fragment 18. These events of that day, and others surrounding them, such as the Crucifixion darkness described in the gospels, were real. Why preach something that was manifestly untrue? The website for this is the National Geophysical Data Center (http://www.ngdc.noaa.gov). (LogOut/ I am a follower of Jesus Christ, the One who saved me, and my goal is to spread the gospel and all the evidence for Christianity! Phlegon's greatest work was the writing of a history book, called The Olympiades. This is a clear Bible prophecy foretelling that God would cause the punishment for our sins to fall upon Jesus. Solar eclipses during this time frame that were visible to that part of the world were rare, which puts obvious delimiters on when they occurred. Bursa is approximately 600 miles from Jerusalem. And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord, shall be saved. First, is what I would call deduction from all available information. (LogOut/ Thus the New Moon is not visible. source:http://www.numachi.com/~ccount/hmepa/calendars/202.html. The astronomical science tells us there was no solar eclipse over Bithynia in that year. While the actual words used by Thallus no longer survive, the response of Africanus (below) give us a sense of what he must have said: As to His (i.e., Jesus Christ) works severally, and His cures effected upon body and soul, and the mysteries of His doctrine, and the resurrection from the dead, these have been most authoritatively set forth by His disciples and apostles before us. /* Nye County School District Pay Scale, Articles F