The Non-Christian Who Backed Up the Bible

The Bible makes specific historical claims. It names rulers, officials, and public figures. It places events in particular cities under particular administrations. If these claims were invented, outside sources should contradict or ignore them.

Instead, the confirmation comes from someone with no interest in providing it — a man named Josephus.

Flavius Josephus (born Yosef ben Matityahu, approximately 37-100 AD) was a Jewish priest and military commander who fought against Rome in the Jewish revolt of 66 AD. After his defeat, he became a Roman citizen, adopted a Roman name, and spent the remainder of his life writing historical works for a Roman audience.

He produced two major works:

• Antiquities of the Jews — a twenty-volume history of the Jewish people from creation to his own era
• The Jewish War — a detailed account of the revolt that culminated in the destruction of the Jerusalem Temple in 70 AD

Josephus was not a Christian. He was not attempting to promote Jesus or the early church. He was writing political history for Roman elites. This is precisely what makes his references to biblical figures so significant.

John the Baptist

Josephus describes John the Baptist's execution by Herod Antipas in Antiquities 18.5.2. He explains that Herod killed John because he feared John's influence over the crowds could provoke an uprising. The Gospels describe Herod killing John due to a personal grudge held by Herodias, his brother's wife, whom John had publicly condemned.

These accounts are not contradictory — they present two perspectives on the same event. Josephus offers the political analysis. The Gospels provide the personal narrative. Both agree on the key facts: who, what, where, and when.

James, Brother of Jesus

In Antiquities 20.9.1, Josephus records that in 62 AD, the high priest Ananus convened the Sanhedrin and had "the brother of Jesus, who was called Christ, whose name was James" put to death.

This is a remarkable passage. A non-Christian Jewish historian, writing for a Roman audience, casually identifies James as the brother of Jesus "who was called Christ." He is not arguing for or against Christianity — he is simply recording events. The reference is so matter-of-fact that most scholars consider it entirely authentic.

The Herod Dynasty

Josephus provides extensive accounts of the Herods — and his descriptions align with the New Testament with striking precision:

• Herod the Great: His paranoia, his monumental building projects, his political maneuvering with Rome. The ruler who rebuilt the Temple and executed members of his own family.
• Herod Antipas: The ruler who executed John the Baptist and questioned Jesus during his trial (Luke 23). Josephus describes his marriage to Herodias — the exact controversy the Gospels reference.
• Herod Agrippa I: Acts 12 states he killed the apostle James (son of Zebedee) and then died suddenly, struck down by God. Josephus independently records Agrippa's sudden death at a public event in Caesarea, noting the crowd had been acclaiming him as a god immediately before he collapsed. The same event, from two sources.
• Agrippa II: The king before whom Paul made his defense in Acts 25-26. Josephus documents him extensively.

The Temple Destruction

Both the Gospels and Josephus describe the destruction of the Jerusalem Temple in 70 AD. Jesus predicted it in Matthew 24 and Luke 21. Josephus was an eyewitness, and his account in The Jewish War remains one of the most detailed ancient descriptions of a military siege ever recorded.

In Antiquities 18.3.3, there is a passage about Jesus himself. The version preserved in medieval manuscripts reads:

"About this time there lived Jesus, a wise man, if indeed one ought to call him a man. For he was one who performed surprising deeds... He was the Christ... he appeared to them alive on the third day."

The scholarly consensus is that Josephus — a non-Christian Jew — did not write "if indeed one ought to call him a man" or "He was the Christ." Those phrases were almost certainly inserted by later Christian scribes.

However, most scholars also reject the idea that the entire passage is fabricated. The prevailing view is that Josephus wrote something about Jesus — likely describing him as a teacher and wonder-worker who was crucified under Pontius Pilate — and Christian copyists later enhanced the theological language.

An Arabic version of the passage, preserved by a tenth-century bishop, reads more neutrally: "He was perhaps the Messiah" rather than "He was the Christ." Many scholars believe this is closer to Josephus's original wording.

Regardless of which reconstruction one accepts, even an incredibly conservative reading confirms that a non-Christian historian acknowledged Jesus as a real person who was crucified under Pontius Pilate and whose followers persisted after his death.

Josephus had no investment in the Christian movement. He was not building the church or defending the Gospel. He was writing political history for Roman patrons.

Yet his works independently confirm:

• John the Baptist was a real preacher executed by Herod Antipas
• James was the brother of Jesus "who was called Christ"
• The Herod dynasty behaved exactly as the Gospels describe
• Pontius Pilate governed Judaea during this period
• The Jerusalem Temple was destroyed in 70 AD
• Jesus existed, attracted followers, and was crucified under Pilate

This is not circular reasoning. This is an independent, non-Christian source corroborating the Bible's historical claims, one by one.

If the New Testament were fiction, outside scrutiny should expose it. Instead, the more it is cross-referenced with independent sources, the more its historical claims hold up.

Josephus is a profoundly significant example. A Jewish historian, employed by the Roman Empire, with no incentive to validate Christian claims — and his writings align with the Gospels on person after person, event after event.

He was not trying to confirm the Bible. His writings simply do.