Intro to Chapter 4: The Gospel Writers and Other Historians
The historian Flavius Josephus, born in Jerusalem in A.D. 37, left us a meticulously detailed description of the Jewish temple built by Herod the Great. He traced the career of Pontius Pilate from his appointment as procurator to his recall to Rome and the career of Herod Antipas from his appointment as tetrarch to his banishment. Josephus even mentioned Jesus, “a wise man…a doer of wonderful works.” Writing in the first century, he said that “the tribe of Christians, so named for him, are not extinct at this day.”
The gospels, whatever else they are, are historical narratives that stand alongside the writings of Josephus and others. They recount the doings of real people, who lived and died in real places. At the heart of Christian doctrine is a series of events that left their mark in the historical record.