DOCSLIB.ORG

The Bible Is Unique #17 (New Testament Is True Based on Historical Confirmation) One of the Tests for Any Document of History T

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
The Bible Is Unique #17 (New Testament Is True Based on Historical Confirmation) One of the Tests for Any Document of History T The Bible Is Unique #17 (New Testament is True Based on Historical Confirmation) One of the tests for any document of history to see if internally it is trustworthy and accurate is this: Are there references literary, historical, or archaeological, apart from the document under investigation, that confirms the inner testimony of it? I would like to go to Suetonius AD 120. Suetonius wrote, “He expelled the Jews from Rome on account of the riots in which they were constantly indulging at the instigation of Christus [referring to Christ].” Suetonius text is very significant for this reason. Because it shows that within in a few decades, the movement of He, the Christ, spread all the way from Jerusalem to Rome. And this is confirming the existence of Christ and the Christian message totally apart from the Scriptures. And then Tacitus. Many people consider Tacitus one of the best and most accurate of Roman historians who wrote the Annals. Tacitus says this, now a Roman historian totally apart from the Scriptures, “Therefore to squelch the rumor, Nero created scapegoats and subjected them to the most refined tortures those whom the common people call Christians. They were hated for their abdominal crimes. The author of this name Christ, during the rein of Tiberius had been executed by the procurator, Pontius Pilot, suppressed for the moment, the deadly superstition broke out again not only in Judea, but in the land which originated this evil, but also in the city of Rome where all sorts of horrendous and shameful practices from every part of the World converged and are fervently cultivated.” Wow, that is what people consider one of the most accurate Romans historians confirming the inner testimony of the Scriptures about Christ, about when He lived, who crucified Him, everything. Folks, when it comes to the external evidence test of any historiography, the principles that determine authenticity, the New Testament stands strong. I can hold the New Testament in my hand and say, “What I have is what was written down, and second, what was written down was true. Jesus actually did that, and he actually said that.” Folks, that is just a little tip of the iceberg of all the historical confirmations of the New Testament. Summary: The writings of Suetonius and Tacitus, both eminent Roman historians, add further credence for the trustworthiness of the New Testament. They provide evidence, apart from the Bible, about the existence of Jesus and his influence in the world. Suetonius documents how quickly Christianity spread from Jerusalem to Rome within a few decades after Jesus’ death and resurrection. Tacitus, author of Annals, and one of Rome’s most accurate historians, describes how Nero tortured Christians, hoping to suppress Jesus’ influence from Judea all the way to Rome and beyond. Josh states that based on the external evidence test, the New Testament stands strong and the Scriptures are accurate and true in what is written about Jesus. Questions: 1. How do Suetonius and Tacitus help prove the truth of what the Scriptures state about Jesus and the spread of Christianity? 2. How does the New Testament measure up when put to the external evidence test? 3. Have we exhausted all of the historical confirmations for the New Testament? 4. Did Jesus actually do and say what the Bible says. 5. How does Josh know that? .
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Hadrian and the Greek East
    HADRIAN AND THE GREEK EAST: IMPERIAL POLICY AND COMMUNICATION DISSERTATION Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy in the Graduate School of the Ohio State University By Demetrios Kritsotakis, B.A, M.A. * * * * * The Ohio State University 2008 Dissertation Committee: Approved by Professor Fritz Graf, Adviser Professor Tom Hawkins ____________________________ Professor Anthony Kaldellis Adviser Greek and Latin Graduate Program Copyright by Demetrios Kritsotakis 2008 ABSTRACT The Roman Emperor Hadrian pursued a policy of unification of the vast Empire. After his accession, he abandoned the expansionist policy of his predecessor Trajan and focused on securing the frontiers of the empire and on maintaining its stability. Of the utmost importance was the further integration and participation in his program of the peoples of the Greek East, especially of the Greek mainland and Asia Minor. Hadrian now invited them to become active members of the empire. By his lengthy travels and benefactions to the people of the region and by the creation of the Panhellenion, Hadrian attempted to create a second center of the Empire. Rome, in the West, was the first center; now a second one, in the East, would draw together the Greek people on both sides of the Aegean Sea. Thus he could accelerate the unification of the empire by focusing on its two most important elements, Romans and Greeks. Hadrian channeled his intentions in a number of ways, including the use of specific iconographical types on the coinage of his reign and religious language and themes in his interactions with the Greeks. In both cases it becomes evident that the Greeks not only understood his messages, but they also reacted in a positive way.
    [Show full text]
  • Domitian's Arae Incendii Neroniani in New Flavian Rome
    Rising from the Ashes: Domitian’s Arae Incendii Neroniani in New Flavian Rome Lea K. Cline In the August 1888 edition of the Notizie degli Scavi, profes- on a base of two steps; it is a long, solid rectangle, 6.25 m sors Guliermo Gatti and Rodolfo Lanciani announced the deep, 3.25 m wide, and 1.26 m high (lacking its crown). rediscovery of a Domitianic altar on the Quirinal hill during These dimensions make it the second largest public altar to the construction of the Casa Reale (Figures 1 and 2).1 This survive in the ancient capital. Built of travertine and revet- altar, found in situ on the southeast side of the Alta Semita ted in marble, this altar lacks sculptural decoration. Only its (an important northern thoroughfare) adjacent to the church inscription identifies it as an Ara Incendii Neroniani, an altar of San Andrea al Quirinale, was not unknown to scholars.2 erected in fulfillment of a vow made after the great fire of The site was discovered, but not excavated, in 1644 when Nero (A.D. 64).7 Pope Urban VIII (Maffeo Barberini) and Gianlorenzo Bernini Archaeological evidence attests to two other altars, laid the foundations of San Andrea al Quirinale; at that time, bearing identical inscriptions, excavated in the sixteenth the inscription was removed to the Vatican, and then the and seventeenth centuries; the Ara Incendii Neroniani found altar was essentially forgotten.3 Lanciani’s notes from May on the Quirinal was the last of the three to be discovered.8 22, 1889, describe a fairly intact structure—a travertine block Little is known of the two other altars; one, presumably altar with remnants of a marble base molding on two sides.4 found on the Vatican plain, was reportedly used as building Although the altar’s inscription was not in situ, Lanciani refers material for the basilica of St.
    [Show full text]
  • The Supernatural in Tacitus When Compared with His Predecessor Livy, Tacitus Has Been Said to Be Less Interested in the “Super
    The Supernatural in Tacitus When compared with his predecessor Livy, Tacitus has been said to be less interested in the “supernatural,” a rubric under which we include the prodigies and omens of traditional Roman religion; characters’ participation in forms of religious expression, both traditional and non-normative; and nebulous superhuman forces such as fate and fortune. In this panel, we seek to modify this perception by investigating aspects of the superhuman, religious, and/or inexplicable in Tacitus’ works that contribute in important ways to his historiographical project and to our view of Tacitus as an historian. As the most recent contribution on this topic shows (K. Shannon-Henderson, Religion and Memory in Tacitus’ Annals. Oxford, 2019), religion and its related fields are extremely important to Tacitus’ narrative technique, and ‘irrational’ elements such as fatum and fortuna are constantly at play in Tacitus’ works, particularly, but not exclusively, in his historical narratives. Each of the five papers that we have gathered for this panel addresses these topics from different angles, whether focusing more on the literary, historical, or linguistic elements of the Tacitean narrative under examination. Two papers focus on omens and other ways of predicting the future; two examine religious experiences of Tacitus’ characters; and one considers the role of fortuna in the world of the Dialogus. In the first paper, Contributor #1 examines the value of observing supernatural signs for decision-making in the Histories. In particular, s/he looks at the practical value of observing and interpreting supernatural signs as predictors of the future success or failure of military leaders.
    [Show full text]
  • Fantasy As History in Annals Book 4
    Histos Working Papers 2015.05 FANTASY AS HISTORY IN ANNALS BOOK 4 Aujourd’hui, je ne suis pas sûre que ce que j’ai écrit soit vrai. Je suis sûre que c’est véridique. —Today I am not sure that what I wrote is true. I am certain it is truthful. —This is why I say today that while knowing perfectly well that it corresponds to the facts, I no longer know if it is real.1 efore I begin to talk specifically about Annals Book 4, I should like to address the larger question of what we are talking about in the disci- Bplines of Classical history and historiography when we talk about truth, as it is one that has been for some time well-examined in other genres of his- torical inquiry.2 The theories and debates that have marked these other dis- cussions will be useful in opening up what has become repetitious in the querelle between historians and historiography scholars of antiquity; namely whether the literary interest of an ancient historian’s work has much or anything to do with uncovering the past events it relays. In particular Holocaust studies finds it urgent to discover a satisfactory way of thinking about this problem that does justice to the testimony of survivors. This testimony is not always congruent with what historians have discovered to be the ‘facts’ of the testimony, and the debate over the ‘truth’ of the testimony has much in common with the divide between Classical historians and we who take a more ‘literary’ approach.
    [Show full text]
  • Vespasian's Apotheosis
    VESPASIAN’S APOTHEOSIS Andrew B. Gallia* In the study of the divinization of Roman emperors, a great deal depends upon the sequence of events. According to the model of consecratio proposed by Bickermann, apotheosis was supposed to be accomplished during the deceased emperor’s public funeral, after which the senate acknowledged what had transpired by decreeing appropriate honours for the new divus.1 Contradictory evidence has turned up in the Fasti Ostienses, however, which seem to indicate that both Marciana and Faustina were declared divae before their funerals took place.2 This suggests a shift * Published in The Classical Quarterly 69.1 (2019). 1 E. Bickermann, ‘Die römische Kaiserapotheosie’, in A. Wlosok (ed.), Römischer Kaiserkult (Darmstadt, 1978), 82-121, at 100-106 (= Archiv für ReligionswissenschaftW 27 [1929], 1-31, at 15-19); id., ‘Consecratio’, in W. den Boer (ed.), Le culte des souverains dans l’empire romain. Entretiens Hardt 19 (Geneva, 1973), 1-37, at 13-25. 2 L. Vidman, Fasti Ostienses (Prague, 19822), 48 J 39-43: IIII k. Septembr. | [Marciana Aug]usta excessit divaq(ue) cognominata. | [Eodem die Mati]dia Augusta cognominata. III | [non. Sept. Marc]iana Augusta funere censorio | [elata est.], 49 O 11-14: X[— k. Nov. Fausti]na Aug[usta excessit eodemq(ue) die a] | senatu diva app[ellata et s(enatus) c(onsultum) fact]um fun[ere censorio eam efferendam.] | Ludi et circenses [delati sunt. — i]dus N[ov. Faustina Augusta funere] | censorio elata e[st]. Against this interpretation of the Marciana fragment (as published by A. Degrassi, Inscr. It. 13.1 [1947], 201) see E.
    [Show full text]
  • Frontinus and Domitian: the Politics of the Strategemata
    View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by Nottingham ePrints Malloch, S.J.V. (2015) Frontinus and Domitian: the politics of the Strategemata. Chiron, 45 . pp. 77-100. ISSN 0069-3715 Access from the University of Nottingham repository: http://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/32812/1/Chiron45_003_Malloch_final.pdf Copyright and reuse: The Nottingham ePrints service makes this work by researchers of the University of Nottingham available open access under the following conditions. This article is made available under the Creative Commons Attribution Non-commercial No Derivatives licence and may be reused according to the conditions of the licence. For more details see: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.5/ A note on versions: The version presented here may differ from the published version or from the version of record. If you wish to cite this item you are advised to consult the publisher’s version. Please see the repository url above for details on accessing the published version and note that access may require a subscription. For more information, please contact [email protected] CHIRON MITTEILUNGEN DER KOMMISSION FÜR ALTE GESCHICHTE UND EPIGRAPHIK DES DEUTSCHEN ARCHÄOLOGISCHEN INSTITUTS Sonderdruck aus Band 45 · 2015 DE GRUYTER INHALT DES 45. BANDES (2015) Rodney Ast – Roger S. Bagnall, The Receivers of Berenike. New Inscriptions from the 2015 Season Denis Feissel – Michael Wörrle, Eine Ehrung des Älteren Theodosius und ein spätantikes Edikt zur Steuererhebung in Limyra Christopher P. Jones, The Earthquake of 26 BCE in Decrees of Mytilene and Chios J. E. Lendon, Rhetoric and Nymphaea in the Roman Empire Andrew Lepke – Christof Schuler – Klaus Zimmermann, Neue Inschriften aus Patara III: Elitenrepräsentation und Politik in Hellenismus und Kaiserzeit Peter Londey, Making up Delphic history – the 1st Sacred War revisited S.
    [Show full text]
  • The Portrayal of the Generals and the Armies in Tacitus' Annals
    THE PORTRAYAL OF THE GENERALS AND THE ARMIES IN TACITUS’ ANNALS. Elizabeth Mary Boldy Bachelor of Arts (Hons.1) A thesis submitted for the degree of Master of Philosophy at The University of Queensland in 2014 School of History, Philosophy, Religion and Classics. ABSTRACT Tacitus began the Annals with the death of Augustus in order to emphasize the moment when the autocratic system of government he had established became a permanent fixture in the Roman state when it was passed on to his successors, the Julio-Claudian Emperors.1 Tacitus chose the annalistic form to present his history in order to record the major events of political, military and constitutional importance within these formative years of the empire.2 This thesis offers a historiographical study of Tacitus‟ Annals in order to demonstrate how he utilises the Roman army and its generals as a means of emphasising the political environment in these embryonic years of the empire. This study is valuable in that it shows how, by use of various literary devices, Tacitus gives his opinions of the emperors by contrasting their actions and behaviours with their generals and armies. His descriptions of res externae, the actions of the armies, is designed to counterbalance what he claimed was sorrowful res internae within the Roman state itself. Scholars‟ views on Tacitus qualities as an historian range from the belief that he was truthful and reliable to the view that the Annals was mostly a work of literature and of little value for historical fact. Woodman, Kajanto and Haynes argue that Tacitus‟ work was more a work of rhetorical invention, like that of the poets.3 Mellor likens him to such historical novelists as Tolstoy and George Eliot.4 Syme, Mendell and Martin express their belief that Tacitus was a reliable and honest historian.5 In this thesis, I examine Tacitus‟ style and language in order to show how his method of writing plays a crucial role in developing the themes of the Annals.
    [Show full text]
  • The Alleged Persecution of the Roman Christians by the Emperor Domitian
    Edith Cowan University Research Online Theses: Doctorates and Masters Theses 1-1-2005 The alleged persecution of the Roman Christians by the emperor Domitian Ken Laffer Edith Cowan University Follow this and additional works at: https://ro.ecu.edu.au/theses Part of the Religion Commons Recommended Citation Laffer, K. (2005). The alleged persecution of the Roman Christians by the emperor Domitian. https://ro.ecu.edu.au/theses/639 This Thesis is posted at Research Online. https://ro.ecu.edu.au/theses/639 Edith Cowan University Copyright Warning You may print or download ONE copy of this document for the purpose of your own research or study. The University does not authorize you to copy, communicate or otherwise make available electronically to any other person any copyright material contained on this site. You are reminded of the following: Copyright owners are entitled to take legal action against persons who infringe their copyright. A reproduction of material that is protected by copyright may be a copyright infringement. Where the reproduction of such material is done without attribution of authorship, with false attribution of authorship or the authorship is treated in a derogatory manner, this may be a breach of the author’s moral rights contained in Part IX of the Copyright Act 1968 (Cth). Courts have the power to impose a wide range of civil and criminal sanctions for infringement of copyright, infringement of moral rights and other offences under the Copyright Act 1968 (Cth). Higher penalties may apply, and higher damages may be awarded, for offences and infringements involving the conversion of material into digital or electronic form.
    [Show full text]
  • UC Berkeley Berkeley Undergraduate Journal of Classics
    UC Berkeley Berkeley Undergraduate Journal of Classics Title Discovering Sources by Discerning Methods: Evidence for Tacitus' Annals I-VI Permalink https://escholarship.org/uc/item/6xh8g291 Journal Berkeley Undergraduate Journal of Classics, 3(2) ISSN 2373-7115 Author MacKay, Michael Publication Date 2015 Peer reviewed|Undergraduate eScholarship.org Powered by the California Digital Library University of California Discovering Sources by Discerning Methods: Evidence for Tacitus’ Annals I-VI Michael MacKay Columbia University Classics Department Class of 2015 Abstract: Tacitus' Annals begins with an allusion to Sallust's Bellum Catilinae that makes manifest the Sallustian disposition of the historian. Tacitus declares, "Urbem Romam a principio reges habuere," and Sallust prefaces his monograph by stating, "Urbem Romam, sicuti ego accepi, condidere atque habuere initio Troiani." Yet, what is the role of facts, if Tacitus' delineation of a tyrant comports to Sallust's delineation of a conspirator? The purpose of this paper is to explore Tacitus' sources by interrogating his narrative technique. “But since truth grows strong with examina tio n and delay, falsehood with haste and uncertainties, he was forsaking the story or arriving before it.” Annals II.39 Tacitus admonishe s the mass hysteria in the aftermath of a political assassination, but to what extent does Tacitus suspend his own preconceptions about the events of Annals I-VI? Surely, Tacitus resembles Sallust in terms of narrative structure, when he introduces the first hexad with
    [Show full text]
  • The Annals of Imperial Rome
    The Annals of Imperial Rome 321 The Annals of Imperial Rome Tacitus (A.D. c.56-c.120), the greatest of the Roman historians, chronicles the early Roman Empire, from the death of the first emperor Augustus (in A.D. 14) up to the years of the First Jewish-Roman War (A.D. 63-73). The Annals is his final work. It portrays the pathological souls of tyrants, the psychology of power politics, and the preciousness and precariousness of liberty. 323 Tacitus Book I The city of Rome was originally in the hands of kings; liberty and the consulship were instituted by Lucius Brutus. Dictatorships were as- sumed temporarily. The Board of Ten did not exercise control beyond a two-year period, nor was the military tribunes’ consular authority long prevalent. Neither Cinna’s regime nor Sulla’s was lengthy. The power of Pompey and Crassus quickly gave way to Caesar, likewise the armies of Lepidus and Antony to Augustus, who as ‘first citizen’ re- ceived everything, weary as it was from civil strife, into his command. For the Roman people of old – their successes and misfortunes – writ- ers of renown produced a record, and the tale of Augustus’ times did not lack reputable talents until the spread of flattery proved a deter- rent. The affairs of Tiberius and Gaius, Claudius and Nero, in their prosperity, were falsified through fear and after their fall were written with hatreds still fresh. Thus my plan is to report a few final things about Augustus, then Tiberius’ principate and the rest, without anger or favour, from whose causes I consider myself distant.
    [Show full text]
  • Livy, Folklore, and Magic: a Reappraisal of Rome's Foundational Mythology
    LIVY, FOLKLORE, AND MAGIC: A REAPPRAISAL OF ROME'S FOUNDATIONAL MYTHOLOGY Jeremy Leonard Albrecht A Thesis Submitted to the Graduate College of Bowling Green State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF ARTS May 2020 Committee: Casey Stark, Advisor Amilcar Challu James Pfundstein © 2020 Jeremy Albrecht All Rights Reserved iii ABSTRACT Casey Stark, Advisor This paper argues for an additional manner in which the social and cultural history of Rome can be both examined and understand through the implementation of folkloric practices. While folklore and history are two distinct academic traditions, there exists a certain amount of overlap between the fields and this overlap is worth exploring in more detail. In the course of this paper, it is argued that many aspects of Roman social and cultural history can be understood and examined through folkloric means. In chapter one, a working definition of folklore is established and shown to apply to the foundational mythology of Rome as portrayed by Livy in his Ab Urbe Condita. Chapter two continues to examine Livy and provides an argument that, in the process of his writing, Livy himself was more concerned with a folkloric interpretation of Rome’s history than he was in staying firmly within the bounds of historical accuracy. Finally, chapter three branches off from Livy and focuses on the arcane and magical traditions which were prevalent in Rome to show that not only were folkloric traditions present in Rome’s traditional mythology, but can also be seen throughout the Republic and even into the early Empire.
    [Show full text]
  • Publications
    Publications Tacitus Annals 15 (Cambridge University Press 2018) Cambridge Greek and Latin Classics commentary. ‘Rhetoric and Roman Historiography’, in M. MacDonald (ed.), The Oxford Handbook of Rhetorical Studies (Oxford University Press 2017), 195-204. ‘The Biter Bit? Sejanus and Tiberius in Tacitus’ Annals, Omnibus 74 (2017). 'Tacitus and the Poets: In Nemora et Lucos … Secedendum est (Dialogus 9.6)?', 13-35 in P. Mitsis and I. Ziogas (eds), Wordplay and Powerplay in Latin Poetry (De Gruyter 2016). 'Drip-Feed Invective: Pliny, Self-Fashioning, and the Regulus Letters', in A. Marmodoro and J. Hill (eds), The Author's Voice in Classical Antiquity (Oxford University Press 2016). 'Never Say Die! Assassinating Emperors in Suetonius Lives of the Caesars', in K. De Temmerman and K. Demoen (eds.), Fictional Lives. Ancient Biography and Fictionality, (Cambridge University Press 2016). 'At the End of the Rainbow: Nero and Dido's Gold (Tacitus Annals 16.1-3)', 269-84 in R. Ash, J. Mossman and F. Titchener (eds), Fame and Infamy: Essays on Characterization in Greek and Roman Biography and Historiography (Oxford University Press 2015). Fame and Infamy: Essays on Characterization in Greek and Roman Biography and Historiography (Oxford University Press 2015) edited by R. Ash, J. Mossman and F. Titchener. ‘Shadow-Boxing in the East: The Spectacle of Romano-Parthian Conflict in Tacitus’, 139-56 in V. Hope and A. Bakogianni (eds.), War as Spectacle (Bloomsbury, London 2015) 'Fractured Vision: Josephus and Tacitus on Triumph and Civil War', in R. Rees and J. Madsen J (eds.) Double Vision (Brill 2014). ‘Act like a German! Tacitus’ Germania and National Characterisation in the Historical Works’, 183-98 in O.
    [Show full text]