The fourth year of the 202nd Olympiad was in 33 A.D.!!! He was athletically built and his firm, steady voice brought the audience to a hush. It was calculated in four-year intervals. Roman historical sources confirm that Jesus Christ lived on Earth and died by crucifixion. The audience was quieter now and gave the speakers the respectful hearing that they deserved. One day it occurred to me that there were physical events that were extraordinary that WOULD most likely be preserved in historyand here are some very awesome references. I will go into more detail about this process below. This year would be AD 29 from Roman historical sources. The Romans, for example, are known to have have kept archives which included data on eclipses of the moon and sun. . While Pliny tells us there have been unusually long eclipses, he then says such asindicating he means to giveexamplesandnota comprehensive list of them. There was a great earthquake in Bithynia, and many things were overturned in Nicaea.' Annular (ring) eclipse. Therefore, it is possible Phlegons source witnessed the Crucifixion darkness from there at the same hoursuggesting the darkness and earthquakes reached far beyond the region around Jerusalem. Thankfully we have a more detailed fragment from Phlegon's Olympiades: We know from the Bible that on the day of Crucifixion the Sun was darkened for three hours, and there was a great earthquake. Therefore, he relied on transcribed information; either written or oral. Between 3 PM and sunset the Jews had to prepare the body and get it into the tomb, because the Sabbath started Friday evening around sunset. If his ministry was for 3 years, then he was crucified aged 36, and the darkness and earthquake would have occurred in that year of 36CE. 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). It even mentions buildings collapsing in Nicea, which would be over 1,000 miles Northwest from Jerusalem by land. Volume 2 contains the quotes on this webpage. It was recorded by a Pagan author who had no desire to promote Christianity yet he confirmed the Bible record! mund. Well, Phlegon does mention this guy named Jesus. 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? 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. Jesus was ABOUT 30 years old when He began His ministry. Felix Jacoby. The span of distance between Bythnia and Jerusalem would have put the earthquake in a cataclysmic category, and the evidence confirmed by science supports that conclusion. Have you ever heard of Phlegon of Karia? The dramatic story recorded above is fictional but the facts presented, namely Bible prophecy, Phlegon and Thallius writings, etc., are very true. It does however, place Phlegons writing, transposed hundreds of years later by Christian writers, as a scientifically-accurate writing. This comes from how Jewish scholars would interpret passages such as in Jonah where Jonah was in the belly of the fish for 3 days and also in Esther where Esther prayed and fasted for 3 days when she went to speak with King Xerxes. The heavens are telling of the glory of God; And their expanse is declaring the work of His hands. However, unlike the New Testament, of which there are 25,366 early copies, many of these ancient writer's manuscripts are fragmented. The first of the two speakers stepped forward again. This darkness Thallus, in the third book of his History, calls, as appears to me without reason, an eclipse of the sun. The madness of the skeptic is such that they would have us believe sources which are silent, over those which speak. Required fields are marked *. It is also interesting to note that Sextus Julius Africanus (160-240 A.D.), a Christian historian who had established a library in Rome for Emperor Severus Alexander, referred to the Crucifixion darkness as a portent of the world. Given the similarity in termsAfricanus portent of the world and Tertullians world-portent, it is tantalizing to wonder if each were referencing thesamedescription of the darkness still in the Roman archives. We pass over this speculation to consider Tertullians words, quoted earlier, which suggested that there were those who attempted to explain away the Crucifixion darkness as being a normal solar eclipse. Here, the skeptics case isseeminglymore plausible on first glance. Steven OReilly is a graduate of the University of Dallas and the Georgia Institute of Technology. 2004. One problem with AD 30 being the crucifixion is that it does not allow enough time for Jesus ministry. The sedimentation rate puts this second earthquake about 65 years after the 31 B.C. The speaker continued The 53rd chapter of Isaiah, written over 700 years before the birth of Christ, describes the most important aspect of the ministry of Jesus Christ!! I will follow the work of Cambridge professor Colin Humphreys based on his book, "The Mystery of the Last Supper," published in 2011 [1]. Is there historical evidence for the darkness & earthquake at the crucifixion? (LogOut/ To home he may gobut, it must be with his tail between his legs. The Crucifixion is widely reported by numerous ancient writers. Thank You Father :). Your email address will not be published. Change), You are commenting using your Twitter account. Here, too, we see an Apostle feared not to mention the event precisely because it was already widely known among his readers. The former says: "In the fourth year of the 202nd Olympiad, there was an extraordinary eclipse of the sun: at the sixth hour, the day was turned into dark night, so that the stars in heaven were seen; and there was an earthquake in Bithynia, which overthrew many houses in the city of Nice." (Julius Africanus, Chronography, 18.1) [4]. 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? TheActs of the Apostlesrecords the very first public preaching of Peter and the Apostles, which took place less than eight weeks after the Crucifixion. An earthquake occurred in Bythinia and overthrew a great part of the city of Nicaea" Each recounts a fantastical or paranormal event. We only have fragments left to us of this monumental work and quotations of it from other writers. Phlegon, born about A.D. 80, was a secular historian who lived in the second century. Though it is almost impossible to deny that this strange event truly happened, on the same day our Lord died on the Cross, I strived for years to find a natural astronomical explanation about it but in vain. The Jewish calendar is a lunar calendar and thus months start with the New Moon. Pure speculation. 2. The above said, the skeptics objection appears strongest when they allege thatPliny the Elder an ancient Roman writer who penned a natural historywould surely have have mentioned the Crucifixion darkness. There are also complicated issues about various calendar systems in use at the time of Christ that create confusion. 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. Yet there has not been a good consensus among scholars about the exact date of the crucifixion. This argument is sufficient to diffuse the skeptics argument with regard to Pliny. So a 24 hour daily cycle was from sunset to sunset. For from Nehemiah, who was sent by Artaxerxes to resettle Jerusalem in the 115 th year of the Persian empire, the twentieth year of Artaxerxes, the fourth year of the 83rd Olympiad, until this time, which was the second year of the 202nd Olympiad, the sixteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, there is a total of 475 years. 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. He was a Greek historian who lived in Asia Minor during the first century. Astronomical calculation will help with this, but we first need to answer the day of the week question. EARTHQUAKE AND DARKNESS THAT OCCURRED AT JESUS DEATH WAS RECORDED IN SECULAR HISTORY. 26:61, Matt. Assume Jesus died Friday afternoon about 3 PM as we reckon time today. Some Christian scholars argue Jesus was crucified on Thursday and some even hold to a Wednesday crucifixion. !, The audience was rowdy now. Last Olympiad: Next Olympiad: 1st year: Begins 29-07-01/02: Hekatombaion 29 Metageitnion 29 Boedromion 30 Puanepsion 29 Maimakterion 30 Poseideon . 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. This may seem hard to accept for some. 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. A solar eclipse supposedly occurred during a full moon. However, we might venture to reasonably speculate why Plinyif he had known of the Crucifixion darknesschosenot to include it in his examples. It would be absurd to think that Peter would have asserted that his hearers had witnessed the darkening of the sun if they in fact had not. Clearly, Peter and his hearers had seen the sun darken. We do not know what other sources that Africanuswho established a library for Severus Alexander might have had at his disposal with regard to Phlegons writings. 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. 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/. You can be sure that faith in God is not blind faith. How could the science not possibly confirm this level of coincidence? . Thus says the LORD, Let not a wise man boast of his wisdom, and let not the mighty man boast of his might, let not a rich man boast of his riches; but let him who boasts boast of this, that he understands and knows Me . Retrieved November 30, 2006 from [2]. The term "Onah" or sometimes "Onath" is a loose way of referring to part of a day. Tradition informs us that Marks gospel derives directly from Peters oral preaching in Rome (seehere). Archeological study of artifacts or buried structures is helpful but archeologists would often consider an ancient written source to be more important than an artifact because you need to know something to give the artifact a context. Phlegon of Karia recorded both of these events in Chronicle of the Olympiad. The crucifixion darkness, even if a natural phenomena, would still be miraculous for its timing, ordained by God. A secondline of argument for the crucifixion date comes from historical testimony and the weight of opinion of Christian scholars through history. [3]. However, Eusebius, in book 2 of Chronicle (Chronicon, quoted by Jerome), actually quotes Phlegon, with no mention of Jesus or a three hour darkness. The year given by Phlegon for this eclipse is the fourth year of the 202nd Olympiad (i.e., 33 A.D.), which is consistent with one of the possible dates of the Crucifixion (i.e., April 3, 33 A.D.). This sediment outcrop is a distinctive one-foot thick mixed layer of sediment that is tied strongly to the Qumran earthquakes onshore ground ruptures of 31 B.C. 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?. 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. "However in the fourth year of the 202nd olympiad, 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." Picking on Pliny Having provided an argument for the historicity of a three hour darkness based on historical sources and reason, we may now address the objection made to it by skeptics, which may be stated as follows. From historical sources telling when these individuals were in office you can show that the possible range of years of the crucifixion to be from AD 26 to AD 36. . Origen, Against Celsus, Book 2.33, Phlegon mentioned the eclipse which took place during the crucifixion of the Lord Jesus Christ, and no other (eclipse); it is clear that he did not know from his sources about any (similar) eclipse in previous times . On this day, Christians recall especially that part of the Creed in which we affirm of Jesus Christ: for our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate, he suffered, died and was buried. These things we affirm to be historical facts. However, history provides a sufficient answer as to why such documentary evidence has not survived on these topics of great interest. There were Jewish, Christian, and Roman writers from the first and second centuries that refer to Christ and the crucifixion. [CDATA[*/ var d = new Date(); var n = d.getFullYear(); document.getElementById('getYear').innerHTML = n; /*]]>*/ Christian Evidence. 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? The 4th year of the 202nd Olympiad was 32-33AD: HMEPA Hellenic Month Established Per Athens The 202nd Olympiad Last Olympiad Next Olympiad Last Olympiad source: http://www.numachi.com/~ccount/hmepa/calendars/202.html Modern context of the calendar of ancient Olympics would put the 4 th year of the 202 nd Olympiad at July 32-33AD. 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. Dont Panic! 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. The Text Widget allows you to add text or HTML to your sidebar. He was, therefore, about 4 years old at the turn from BCE to CE. On Marvels consists of "anecdotes culled from sources as diverse as the Greek poet Hesiod and the Roman natural historian Pliny the Elder. The second quote is recorded by Philopon. Are you positive in regards to the source? Thepoint is that thedestruction of the discovered earthquake had to be catastrophic in order to destroy buildings there, which leads to the conclusion that the big one that hit Jerusalem also hit Turkey along the fault line at the same time. And the sun was darkened, and the veil of the temple was rent in the midst. (Luke 23:44-45 ). Jesus Christ's crucifixion is one of the most important events in the history of the world. Ye men of Israel, hear these words:Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you, by miracles, and wonders, and signs, which God did by him, in the midst of you,as you also know: This same being delivered up, by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, you by the hands of wicked men have crucified and slain. Many authors have suggested various means of resolving all the mysteries about the date of the crucifixion. Unfortunately, no one of those three pairs, that is, recorded event vs. eclipse, is a perfect fit or a harmonious pair. Then the other speaker, also a minister, stepped forward. Im fairly confident of the historical source, Your email address will not be published. Is there any evidence of global or regional darkness in 36CE? On the Circumstances Connected with Our Saviours Passion and His Life-Giving Resurrection, The Wheels of the Formal Correction turn slowly, but grind exceedingly fine. To me it seems the place to start with deduction from all the available information is with John the Baptist. What constitutes good historical evidence? The 12 Foundation Stones in New Jerusalem. Pliny then proceeds and gives only two examples. Suffice it to say that the Jewish Sabbath was on Saturday and remember that the Jews considered a 24 hour day cycle to begin at sunset in the evening. First, is what I would call deduction from all available information. 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. This information would be every unlikely to have been added at a later time due to its specificity in time. In the same hour, too, the light of day was withdrawn, when the sun at the very time was in his meridian blaze. This firmly connects Jesus and the gospels to Roman history. April 13, 2017 (Steven OReilly) Good Friday approaches. An earthquake occurred in Bythinia . One of the geological sources is from a British scientific conference in 1853 and the other is from 1985, from a geological conference in Japan. Therefore the year of the crucifixion is A.D 33. Is this a powerful confirmation of the events described in the New Testament? From Friday evening at sunset to Saturday evening at sunset was an entire 24 hour day cycle, so it also counted as a day and a night. According to NASA, there WAS an actual solar eclipse in the fourth year of the 202nd Olympiad: http://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/5MCSEmap/0001-0100/33-09-12.gif. whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. At His own free-will, He with a word dismissed from Him His spirit, anticipating the executioners work. source:http://earthquaketrack.com/il-06-jerusalem/recent. 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. For example, the first year of Olympiad 140 began in the summer of 220 BC and lasted until the middle of . If your sunset occurs later than sunset in Athens, the event may occur on the previous day . When the Moon "lines up" with the Sun it is referred to by astronomers as being at conjunction (which is the New Moon). Last month: Next month: new 02:44 32/07/26 UTC : 1: 32-07-26/27: Noumenia : 2: 32-07-27/28: Noumenia kata Selene Agathos Daimon: Herakleia? In fact, it is also quite impossible for a solar eclipse to last for 3 hours. Phlegon of Tralles (Ancient Greek: Flegon o Trallianos) was a Greek writer and freedman of the emperor Hadrian, who lived in the 2nd century AD. The source from Jerome above is interesting in that it dates the unusual darkening of the sky by the Olympiad numbering system. The Jews counted days and nights as if a portion counted like the whole, they did not think in terms of ellapsed time as we do today. Two short works by him are extant. I will also point out that the Roman historian Thallius also recorded these events. And accurate. An earthquake occurred in Bythinia and overthrew a great part of the city of Nica. (Jerome) [4]. The darkness and earthquake were evident not just in Jerusalem but also in Nicea which is over 300 miles away from Jerusalem! Thesestatements reveal several key things: 1. I will not go through all the information in Colin Humphrey's book but I will try to summarize the evidence as I see it. The question is: should we accept the historicity of this Crucifixion darkness? event bed is another distinctive mixed layer less than one inch thick. Someone shouted Show me a Bible miracle thats recorded in SECULAR history!!. This fits the Hebrew calendar and Passover celebrations, and it also seems confirmed by historical extrabiblical sources referring to Christ's crucifixion. Why would the Apostles allude to a darkness their hearers and readersknewdid not happen?
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