Someone shouted Show me a Bible miracle thats recorded in SECULAR history!!. We can therefore calculate with great accuracy that the three hour period of darkness, and also the Crucifixion, had to be in the Spring of A.D. 33. 27:63, Mark 8:31, Mark 9:31, Mark 10:33-34, and John 2:19. There was a great earthquake in Bithynia, and many things were overturned in Nicaea.'"1 Evidence from Africanus I believe Colin Humphreys is probably correct that the date of the crucifixion of Christ was Friday April 3, A.D. 33. Doing so would only demolish their credibility on allotherpoints of the gospel they hoped to prove about Christ basedsolelyon personal testimony. Thus the New Moon is not visible. The Text Widget allows you to add text or HTML to your sidebar. Edit them in the Widget section of the, Repost: The Historicity of the Crucifixion Darkness. This eliminates most of the years in the range from AD 26 to 36, leaving primarily just AD 30 and AD 33 as candidates. Bugnolan Conclave in surprise move, elects Bergoglio! Phlegon had specifically stated in his Olympiades: "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 6th hour the day was changed into night and the stars were seen in the heavens.". Key to this text though, is that it has never been found in an original form. 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. 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. Another historian, Philipon (with Origen), confirms the historicity of Phlegon's statement by writing, "And about this darkness - Phlegon recalls it in the OlympiadsPhlegon mentioned the eclipse which took place during the crucifixion of the Lord Christ, and no other (eclipse), it is clear that he did not know from his sources about any (similar) eclipse in previous times and this is shown by the historical account of Tiberius Caesar.". The fourth year of the 202nd Olympiad was in 33 A.D.!!! Thirteen inches above the 31 B.C. 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. 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. (LogOut/ 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. 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. Next, we consider the Gospel of Matthew. Copyright Like The Master Ministries. Here, the skeptics case isseeminglymore plausible on first glance. I will go into more detail about this process below. We will analyze from two perspectives: one that asserts both Phlegons writing to be uncompromised and authentic, and one that assumes Phlegon has been compromised and is unauthentic. It also gives a link to download Lightfoot's entire New Testament commentaries in four volumes as free PDF files. The Crucifixion is widely reported by numerous ancient writers. Now let us consider how he might have categorized the Crucifixion darkness. The reader should note that Phlegons comment that an eclipse of the sun occurred during Jesus death was impossible (see Thallus) since the Jewish Passover occurs during a full moon. Thus, if the quote is accurate, and Phlegon's eclipse has . In the verses above, Peter cites a scripture which speaks of various signs which God did by Him, inclusive of thesun being darkenedand the moon turning red. The Historical Jesus, pp. 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? Thus, a solar eclipse, which happens when the moon passes between the earth and sun cannot be a valid explanation for the Crucifixion darkness. Zero as a mathematical number in the Greco-Roman world was a later invention. To recap, according to Eusebius' Chronicon tables, the 2nd year of the 202nd Olympiad is equated alongside the 16th year of Tiberius. 4th year of the 202nd Olympiad, in the 18th year of Tiberius. 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. Pliny tells us from the outset that unusually long eclipses areportentous. As a Roman noble, it is not remarkable that Pliny selected two examples which were portentous with respect to the history of Rome, i.e., the eclipses at the times of Caesars death and the war against Antony. Gary R. Habermas. He stated that in the 19th year of Tiberius and the fourth year of the 202nd Olympiad (i.e., AD 33), a large eclipse occurred which turned day to night around the sixth hour (noon), and an earthquake destroyed many houses in the city of Nicaea. (The Olympics began in 776 B.C., and by counting every fourth year you come to the 202 nd Olympiad, and the fourth year of same is 33 A.D.) Most "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." [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!! Therefore the year of the crucifixion is A.D 33. 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. The first of the two speakers stepped forward again. The source from Jerome above is interesting in that it dates the unusual darkening of the sky by the Olympiad numbering system. Thus geological data seem to confirm the 33 AD date. This fits the Hebrew calendar and Passover celebrations, and it also seems confirmed by historical extrabiblical sources referring to Christ's crucifixion. /* And God Said I Will Send Them Without Wings Verse, Articles F