Historical Jesus Archives - Page 8 of 34 - The Bart Ehrman Blog

Did Jesus Collaborate with the Romans to Produce His Movement? Platinum Guest Post by Ryan Fleming

Here now is the second of Ryan Fleming's posts arguing that the Jesus movement emerged from a collaboration with the Romans. It is for you Platinum members only. Are you interested in coming up with a post? It can be on any topic related to the blog. It does not have to be scholarly. It can be your own reflections. You can get some good feed back from others. Go for it! For now, here is Ryan going for it. ********************* This second in a series of three posts proposes a theory that Christianity was born from Roman manipulation of the religious heart of Jewish resistance to their authority in Judea. It discusses Jesus’ ministries, how they were conducive to Roman rule, and the role of “miracles”. Jesus offered teachings very different from Judaism. Jesus was consistently critical of the Jewish religious order; the keepers of the Mosaic Law (Luke 11:45-47 11:52), the scribes (Matt 15:1-7 23:2-3 23:13-29, Mark 12:38-40, Luke 20:46), the chief priests (Matt 21:23 21:31), the Pharisees (Matt 15:1-7 16:6 16:11-12 [...]

BDEhrman2025-09-10T12:59:21-04:00August 26th, 2022|Historical Jesus|

Did the Romans Help Create the Jesus’ Movement? Platinum Guest Post by Ryan Fleming

Platinum member Ryan Fleming has come up with three posts that may strike you as highly controversial. Very interesting ideas. What do you think? Ryan will be able to engage your questions and comments. This is the first of three posts; the others will be posted -- just for you Platinum members -- over the course of the next eight days. ******************* This series of three posts proposes a theory that Christianity was born from Roman manipulation of the religious heart of Jewish resistance to their authority in Judea. Jesus’ ministries were a collaboration with local Roman authority to change the culture of the Jewish people to be more conducive to Roman rule, collection of taxes, acceptance of gentiles, submissiveness, etc. The miracles attributed to Jesus were staged with clandestine support from Rome to enhance the popularity of the movement. The Jewish people saw through Jesus’ teachings as not being divine from their god, saw his teachings as blasphemous, and as such, rejected him and called for his execution. The Roman Prefect, Pontius Pilate, did [...]

BDEhrman2025-09-10T12:59:21-04:00August 22nd, 2022|Historical Jesus|

The Birth of (the Messiah?) John the Baptist? Anniversary Guest Post by James F. McGrath

I continue now with a post that was produced for us by a fellow scholar in celebration of the ten-year anniversary of the blog. James McGrath has made several intriguing posts for us, and this one is particularly interesting. Is it possible that stories about Jesus -- especially in the birth narratives were *originally* told about the future messiah, John the Baptist?? That the followers of Jesus took accounts originally told of John and edited them so that they now refer to Jesus? Very intriguing! Here's James's post. ******************* The Birth of John the Baptist: Detecting a Source from John’s Followers Behind Three Early Christian Gospels James F. McGrath, Clarence L. Goodwin Chair in New Testament Language and Literature, Butler University, Indianapolis Anyone who has read my previous guest posts here, or who has read academic publications by Bart and myself, will know we share a great many interests in common: the historical Jesus, the development of Christology, extracanonical texts, and many more. As I have begun to turn my attention to my next major [...]

Diane2025-09-10T12:58:36-04:00August 18th, 2022|Canonical Gospels, Historical Jesus|

Did Jesus Insist on Voluntary Poverty?

I am returning now to my discussion of understandings of wealth and charity in the early Christian tradition, as I think through how I want to draft my prospectus on a book on that topic for my publisher. If you want to see the earlier posts on views of wealth and giving in the Roman world (which stand in stark contrast with what arose in Christianity), just do a word search for “wealth” on the blog and you’ll see all the recent articles. Now I move to the views of the historical Jesus and his followers; after that, in subsequent posts, I’ll talk about how these views changed significantly over (Christian) time, and consider the real life practical effects they had in understanding the importance of helping the poor in the Western world. ************************ The later Christian discourse appealed to such traditions as found in the Hebrew Bible, but it found yet greater impetus in the recorded teachings of Jesus. For the purposes of my analysis, it is important to remember that historical scholars can [...]

BDEhrman2025-09-10T12:58:36-04:00July 10th, 2022|Canonical Gospels, Historical Jesus|

Another Historical Scholar’s Understanding of the Resurrection

I am reposting the ten blog posts made on April 18 (or thereabouts) in celebration of our tenth anniversary of the blog. Here now is a particularly important one from 2017; at the time I was working on my book How Jesus Became God and thinking hard about how to understand the early Christian claims that Jesus had been raised from the dead. ****************************** One of the first books that I have re-read in thinking about how it is the man Jesus came to be thought of as God is Gerd Lüdemann’s, The Resurrection of Christ: A Historical Inquiry (2004). Lüdemann is an important and interesting scholar. He was professor of New Testament at Göttingen in Germany, and for a number of years split his time between there and Vanderbilt Divinity School in Nashville. He is a major figure in scholarship, and is noteworthy for not being a Christian. He does not believe Jesus was literally, physically, raised from the dead, and he thinks that apart from belief in Jesus’ physical resurrection, it is not [...]

BDEhrman2025-09-10T12:58:21-04:00June 14th, 2022|Book Discussions, Historical Jesus|

Lazarus and the Rich Man: What To Do with Wealth

I’ve been thinking a good bit about the problem of wealth in the teachings of Jesus. Among the passages that are obviously relevant is the famous parable of Lazarus and the Rich Man. I talked about the story in my book Heaven and Hell (Simon and Schuster, 2020). The following is a revised version of what I say there. The story appears in Luke 16:19-31 in the context of a number of parables and other sayings of Jesus. In the parable Jesus contrasts the life and afterlife of an anonymous rich man and a destitute beggar named Lazarus. The wealthy many is dressed in fine clothes and enjoys sumptuous meals every day. Lazarus lies outside his gate, starving, desperate even to get the scraps off the rich man’s table. The scene is pathetic: dogs come up and lick Lazarus’s wounds. Both men die at about the same time. Lazarus is Members of the blog get five posts a week in exchange for a small membership fee -- every penny of which goes to charity. So [...]

BDEhrman2025-09-10T12:58:20-04:00June 5th, 2022|Canonical Gospels, Historical Jesus|

Concerns for the Poor in the Jewish Tradition

I have begun to contrast the Christian views of wealth and the need for the rich to help the poor with typical pagan views that placed almost no emphasis on helping those in need. It is impossible to understand the Christian emphasis on almsgiving without situating it in its originating context – the Jewish tradition, going all the way back in the oldest Scriptures of Israel. Unlike the pagan tradition, the Hebrew Bible consistently pronounces God’s concern for the poor and repeatedly instructs those who have means to assist them. Thus in the Torah itself: “Give liberally and be ungrudging […], for on this account the Lord your God will bless you in all your work and in all that you undertake. Since there will never cease to be some in need on the earth, I therefore command you, ‘Open your hand to the poor and needy neighbor in your land.’” (Deut. 15:9-11). Many of the most emphatic passages occur, as one might expect, in the prophets: Blog members get beefy posts five times a [...]

BDEhrman2025-09-10T12:58:20-04:00May 28th, 2022|Canonical Gospels, Hebrew Bible/Old Testament, Historical Jesus|

The Plausibility of the Fourth Gospel: The Sayings of Jesus. Guest Post by Dennis Folds

Here is the second of a two-part Platinum-guest-post by Dennis Folds, who makes the controversial argument that *John* is the more accurate Gospel and that it is *Mark* who has changed the historical facts. This time he focuses on the teachings of Jesus and, relatedly, the reasons for his condemnation to execution. Interesting stuff. Let us know what you think! And feel free to write a post or two in response! Or write a post on anything else related to what we do on the blog. Your input is welcome! ****************************** In Part 1 of this two-part post, I described the vast differences between the gospels of John and Mark in the chronology of events of Jesus’s ministry. Matthew and Luke follow Mark’s chronology, and these three (the Synoptic Gospels) are thought to be more accurate. I argued that the narrative in John is more credible, as it spread the action over two-plus years, had Jesus going back and forth to Jerusalem for major religious festivals, and had a growing conflict with the religious authorities. [...]

BDEhrman2025-09-10T12:58:06-04:00May 6th, 2022|Canonical Gospels, Historical Jesus|

Why Romans Crucified People and Who Was Crucifixion Reserved For?
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Why Romans Crucified People and Who Was Crucifixion Reserved For?

Bart's Critics, Historical Jesus

Why Romans Crucified People and Who Was Crucifixion Reserved For?

Why Romans crucified people.....and who was crucifixion reserved for? Most people acquire their knowledge about ancient Roman crucifixions from the accounts of Jesus' crucifixion in the Gospels. They learn the stories about the cross, the nails, the "King of the Jews" sign nailed above Jesus' head, and the agony he endured. But there's another side to the story. By studying the facts of Roman crucifixions, including their methods and process, you'll find that crucifixion was about a lot more than pain and punishment. Their goal was absolute humiliation. This is part 5 in a thread of my responses to Craig Evans, who has argued against the positions I take in How Jesus Became God. Here's the beginning of the thread. Why Romans Crucified People - Why it's Important Because you must understand the REASON the Romans crucified people in order to understand an important position I take in my book, How Jesus Became God, which Craig Evans attacked. In the book, I argue that it is likely that Jesus was not given a decent burial, [...]

BDEhrman2025-09-10T12:25:48-04:00May 1st, 2022|Bart's Critics, Historical Jesus|

Was The Messiah Supposed to Be Born of a Virgin?
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Was The Messiah Supposed to Be Born of a Virgin?

Canonical Gospels, Hebrew Bible/Old Testament, Historical Jesus

Was The Messiah Supposed to Be Born of a Virgin?

Here in the lead-up to December 25, I am discussing some issues related to Jesus' birth. As I mentioned in my previous post, in the entire New Testament, the story of the virgin birth is found only in Matthew and Luke. Luke has a pretty straightforward explanation of why Jesus had to be born of a virgin: it's because he was (literally) the "Son of God." That is, God is the one who got Mary pregnant, as the angel tells her at the Annunciation: read Luke 1:31-35, and notice the angels' explanation: the Spirit of God will "come upon her ... SO THAT" the child born of her will be called "The Son of God." Matthew, though, has a different explanation. For Matthew Jesus had to be born of a virgin because that is what was predicted in the Old Testament. This view fits in very well with Matthew's entire birth narrative of chapters 1-2. Everything happens "to fulfill Scripture." Why was Jesus’ mother a virgin? To fulfill what the prophet said (he quotes Isaiah [...]

BDEhrman2025-09-10T12:51:41-04:00May 1st, 2022|Canonical Gospels, Hebrew Bible/Old Testament, Historical Jesus|

Pilate Released Barabbas. Really??
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Pilate Released Barabbas. Really??

Canonical Gospels, Historical Jesus, Reader’s Questions

Pilate Released Barabbas. Really??

I received recently the following question, which deals with an issue I had long puzzled over. It involves the episode in the Gospels where Pilate offers to release a prisoner to the crowds at Passover, hoping they will choose Jesus. But instead, they choose a Jewish insurrectionist and murderer, Barabbas. Could that have happened? Here's the Question and my Response: Did Pilate Release Barabbas? QUESTION: Pilate condemns Jesus to execution for treason against Rome. Pilate gives the Jewish crowds the option of releasing Jesus or a Jewish insurgent, Barabbas (15:6–15). I did a quick search to see if this was an attested practice in the Roman Empire and couldn’t’ find any relevant information. So, I have two questions: Do you think this detail is accurate? Is there any evidence that Roman officials actually freed condemned prisoners at certain local festival times? RESPONSE: This was an issue I worked on while writing my book Jesus Before the Gospels. After doing my research I came to a definite conclusion, that I state rather strongly (!). Here is [...]

BDEhrman2025-09-10T12:44:04-04:00April 30th, 2022|Canonical Gospels, Historical Jesus, Reader’s Questions|

The Plausibility of the Fourth Gospel: The Chronology of Jesus’s Ministry. Platinum Guest Post by Dennis Folds

I'm pleased to publish this guest post by Dennis Folds, dealing with one of the most important issues in the study of the Gospels: how do we know which (if any) is the most, and the least, accurate? Usually it is argued that John is the latest, most theological, and least reliable account. But is it? Dennis takes on the question. See what you think! Then let him know! He'll be dealing with comments. And remember: you too can submit a post. It does NOT have to be highly academic and "expert" -- at all. Why not post something just saying what you think about a topic? Let me know! ****************************** The fourth gospel – John – is quite different than the other three in its narration of the events of Jesus’s ministry, and in its rendering of what Jesus taught. The other three tell the same basic story; that’s why they are called the Synoptic Gospels. The differences between the Synoptics and John are so stark that since antiquity John has been thought to [...]

BDEhrman2025-09-10T12:58:06-04:00April 29th, 2022|Canonical Gospels, Historical Jesus|

Richard Carrier: A Fuller Reply to His Criticisms, Beliefs, and Claims about Jesus
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Richard Carrier: A Fuller Reply to His Criticisms, Beliefs, and Claims about Jesus

Bart's Critics, Book Discussions, Historical Jesus, Mythicism, Public Forum

Richard Carrier: A Fuller Reply to His Criticisms, Beliefs, and Claims about Jesus

Richard Carrier - My Response to His Criticisms Richard Carrier is one of the new breeds of mythicists. He is trained in ancient history and classics, with a PhD from Columbia University – an impressive credential. In my book Did Jesus Exist I speak of him as a smart scholar with bona fide credentials. I do, of course, heartily disagree with him on issues relating to the historical Jesus, but I have tried to take his views seriously and give him the respect he deserves. Richard Carrier, as many of you know, has written a scathing review of Did Jesus Exist on his Freethought Blog. He indicates that my book is “full of errors,” that it “misinforms more than it informs” that it provides “false information” that it is “worse than bad” and that “it officially sucks.” The attacks are sustained throughout his lengthy post, and they often become personal. He indicates that “Ehrman doesn’t actually know what he is talking about,” he claims that I speak with “absurd” hyperbole, that my argument “makes [me] [...]

BDEhrman2025-09-10T12:17:00-04:00April 25th, 2022|Bart's Critics, Book Discussions, Historical Jesus, Mythicism, Public Forum|

Was Paul the Founder of Christianity? Or Was it Mary, Peter…or Jesus?
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Was Paul the Founder of Christianity? Or Was it Mary, Peter…or Jesus?

Historical Jesus, Paul and His Letters, Public Forum

Was Paul the Founder of Christianity? Or Was it Mary, Peter…or Jesus?

Who is the founder of Christianity? It is often claimed that the Founder of Christianity was the apostle Paul – or at least that he was the co-Founder, along with Jesus. The idea behind this claim is that Christianity is not really about the historical Jesus. Yes, his words are hugely important, and yes it is also important to know that he did all those miraculous deeds. But his public ministry is not the core of Christian belief. Instead, the core of Christianity is the belief in his death and resurrection. And this is what Paul preached, not what Jesus preached. So that even if Jesus’ life and teachings are important, they are not really what Christianity is about. Christianity is about believing in his death and resurrection for salvation. And since, in this view, it was Paul who first formulated that belief, he is the founder of the Christianity religion (or co-founder). Paul vs. Jesus: Who is the Christianity Creator? I have never found this line of argument convincing, for two reasons. The first [...]

BDEhrman2025-09-10T12:33:23-04:00April 24th, 2022|Historical Jesus, Paul and His Letters, Public Forum|

Why Was Jesus Crucified: Bart Ehrman Crucifixion Thoughts
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Why Was Jesus Crucified: Bart Ehrman Crucifixion Thoughts

Historical Jesus

Why Was Jesus Crucified: Bart Ehrman Crucifixion Thoughts

Why was Jesus Crucified? All the questions I get from members of the blog are good and interesting and deserve lengthy posts. Every now and then I get one that is absolutely fundamental to understanding Jesus, the New Testament, and the history of early Christianity. Here is one of them, from many years ago, with an issue that everyone interested in these topics really needs to have a reasoned view about. Here's the question, and my view Why Was Jesus Crucified? QUESTION: I don’t see the rationale for the Romans to crucify Jesus. It doesn’t appear that he verbalized any anti-Roman propaganda nor was anything anti-Roman alluded to in Josephus’s couple of lines on Jesus. Pilate probably didn’t even know who Jesus was (possibly the bouncing back and forth between Herod was legend). RESPONSE: Yes, it’s a great question and completely central to the story of Jesus: why was he crucified? First off, I agree the Herod story is almost certainly not historical. It’s found only in Luke and is part of Luke’s attempt to [...]

BDEhrman2025-09-10T12:46:48-04:00April 18th, 2022|Historical Jesus|

More on Nazareth (Or: Why Non-Archaeologists Should Definitely Not Claim to Be Experts)

In my post yesterday I began to explain why René Salm’s claim that Nazareth did not exist in the days of Jesus is dead wrong and is rejected by every recognized authority – whether archaeologist, textual scholar, or historian; whether Jewish, Christian, agnostic, or other. Here is my second and final post on the subject, again, from my treatment in Did Jesus Exist? ****************************** Salm also claims that the pottery found on the site that is dated to the time of Jesus is not really from this period, even though he is not an expert on pottery. Two archaeologists who reply to Salm’s protestations say the following: “Salm’s personal evaluation of the pottery … reveals his lack of expertise in the area as well as his lack of serious research in the sources.” They go on to state: “By ignoring or dismissing solid ceramic, numismatic [that is, coins], and literary evidence for Nazareth’s existence during the Late Hellenistic and Early Roman period, it would appear that the analysis which René Salm includes in his review, [...]

BDEhrman2025-09-10T12:57:54-04:00April 17th, 2022|Historical Jesus, Mythicism|

Did Nazareth Even Exist in the Days of Jesus? The Weird Claims of Rene Salm

Some people who claim that Jesus did not even exist argue that there never was a town of Nazareth. So hey, how could he be from there? It didn't exist and he didn't either. It's all a myth. Really. They base this claim on a book written by a fellow named Rene Salm. I was asked about Salm's book a couple of weeks ago, and remembered I had posted on the issue, and Salm's book, in 2012 (!). Here's the (current) question and my (previous) answer. QUESTION: Rene Salm’s 2008 book “The Myth of Nazareth: The Invented Town of Jesus (Scholar’s Edition)” makes an archaeological argument that Nazareth was not settled until after the First Jewish War, c. 70CE. It goes into great detail and appears to be quite scholarly, but I don’t know what to make of it. Bart, are you aware of this book or its author? ANSWER When I dealt with Salm's book in 2012, it was because he presented a paper at the Society of Biblical Literature meeting and [...]

BDEhrman2025-09-10T12:57:54-04:00April 16th, 2022|Historical Jesus, Mythicism|

Jesus and Sexual Immorality
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Jesus and Sexual Immorality

Canonical Gospels, Historical Jesus, Sex and Sexuality in the Bible

Jesus and Sexual Immorality

Jesus and sexual immorality. I began to discuss yesterday the interesting case that NT scholar Scot McKnight advances for thinking that maybe Jesus *does* speak of same-sex relations in the Gospels. The last (group) of his three references are the ones he thinks are the most likely instances: Matthew 5:32 But I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, makes her the victim of adultery, and anyone who marries a divorced woman commits adultery. Matthew 15:19 For out of the heart come evil thoughts—murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander. The Greek word for “sexual immorality” here is porneia. It is a broad term that probably does mean something like “sexual immorality.” Scot argues that any Jew in the first century who wanted to know what sexual immorality was would automatically think and turn to Leviticus 18, the passage I referred to in an earlier post, a passage that considers sex with certain others is not just inappropriate but an “abomination.” Included in the list is “men with men.” Jesus, therefore, [...]

BDEhrman2025-09-10T12:47:06-04:00April 13th, 2022|Canonical Gospels, Historical Jesus, Sex and Sexuality in the Bible|

Does Paul Know That Judas Iscariot Betrayed Jesus?

I sometimes get asked about Paul and Judas Iscariot: did Paul know Jesus was betrayed? I was asked it again a couple of weeks ago and have decided to repost an answer from some years ago. SO: QUESTION: Do you think that Paul, without naming him, is referring to Judas in 1 Corinthians 11:23-24? (The verse in the NRSV: “For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, ‘This is my body which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.”) RESPONSE: Ah, it’s a great question. Paul never explicitly mentions Judas Iscariot or indicates that Jesus was betrayed by one of his own disciples. But couldn’t this verse contain a reference to Judas? It refers to the night on which Jesus was betrayed! One reason the question matters is that Paul says almost *NOTHING* about the events of Jesus’ lifetime. That seems weird to [...]

BDEhrman2025-09-10T12:57:34-04:00April 10th, 2022|Historical Jesus, Paul and His Letters, Reader’s Questions|

The Apocalypse of John and the Gospel of Jesus: My Final Thoughts

Here now is the conclusion to my lecture on the ideology of domination in the book of Revelation. ****************************** I conclude with several more focused reflections on whether the Revelation of John represents the Gospel of Jesus. To sum up what I have been emphasizing: there is not a single word in all of Revelation about God loving others and no instruction to the followers of Christ to do so either. Instead, they are called to be “conquerors” – and once they overwhelm the rest of the earth with divine military might, they become its rulers, kings who control “the nations with a rod of iron.” Whether John meant this literally is beside the point. This is how he sees God, Christ, his followers, and the rest of the human race: powerful rulers and abject subjects. Is this what Jesus meant when he told his followers to abandon all desire for greatness? To live lives of service to others? To become slaves? In the book of Revelation Christ’s followers are slaves, but only to God. [...]

BDEhrman2025-09-10T12:57:34-04:00April 9th, 2022|Historical Jesus, Revelation of John|

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