Historical References Part 4: Non Christian Sources

Perhaps even more significant are the non-Christian sources—neutral or even hostile witnesses who had no reason to fabricate evidence for Jesus. Josephus, the Jewish historian, mentions Jesus twice in his Antiquities, written around 93 CE. Tacitus, the Roman historian, confirms that Christ was executed under Pontius Pilate during the reign of Tiberius. Pliny the Younger, a Roman governor, writes to Emperor Trajan around 112 CE about Christians worshiping Christ as God. Suetonius, another Roman historian, mentions disturbances in Rome caused by ‘Chrestus’—likely a reference to Christ. These independent, non-Christian sources corroborate the basic facts of Jesus’ existence and crucifixion.