What Do Historians Accept in the New Testament?
Historians ( I love history as you may know) doubt everything until it is proven. They tend to throw out the miraculous and look for objective evidence to show that some fact is true before they accept it. We do not need to follow historians, but they influence the people around us. What do historians accept in the New Testament?
For example, historians think everything about Jesus is doubtful as he is so miraculous. However, if someone writes that they leapt tall buildings, it is understandable they doubt. If someone says their hero was captured and killed, they tend to believe that as it is something unpleasant.
So present historians usually believe that Jesus lived and was baptized by John the Baptist and crucified and died under Pontius Pilate circa 30 AD. Getting baptized and dying as a criminal are humiliating things that people do not usually share about their heros. Thus, they are believable to historians. See also Theology By Experience Who Started That?
50 years ago they totally did not accept Jesus, so this is great progress. Mohamed said Jesus did not die on the cross which historians say is unbelievable. Thus historians place high doubt on Mohamed. They doubt Gospel writers as they write about so many miracles.
There is some history around what Paul said that convinces historians that Paul existed and did in fact write 7 letters. Now, take a look below at what letters historians accept.
More on What Do Historians Accept in the New Testament
Seven letters (with consensus dates)[8] considered genuine by most scholars:
- First Thessalonians (c. 50 AD)
- Galatians (c. 53)
- First Corinthians (c. 53–54)
- Philippians (c. 55)
- Philemon (c. 55)
- Second Corinthians (c. 55–56)
- Romans (c. 57)
The letters on which scholars are about evenly divided:[2]
- Colossians (c. 62)
- Second Thessalonians (c. 49–51)
The letters thought to be pseudepigraphic by many scholars (traditional dating given):[2]
- Ephesians (c. 62)
- First Timothy (c. 62–64)
- Second Timothy (c. 62–64)
- Titus (c. 62–64)
Shocking progress. Especially since no one can easily convince historians of anything. So to have this much that historians accept is amazing. I will come back to this topic, but 100 years ago, most historians threw out the whole New Testament. Step by step the confirmed historicity of the Bible is developing. We live by faith, but we live among many who need something more.
