THE Evidence of Jesus outside the Bible (through the supernatural event of the sun darkening)
What to Know
Multiple Outside Accounts: Rufinus, Phlegon of Tralles, and Tertullian—all non-biblical writers—corroborate the biblical narrative of a sudden darkness immediately following Jesus’ crucifixion, underscoring its historicity.
Significance of Darkness: For the ancient Jewish audience, darkness often symbolized God’s judgment (e.g., Genesis 1:2, Exodus 10:22). This alignment with Jewish tradition amplifies the event’s importance, especially surrounding Jesus’ controversial death.
Roman Archive References: Tertullian mentions that Roman records documented this phenomenon. Although those archives were likely destroyed in the Roman sacking of Jerusalem (70 A.D.), his testimony shows the official recognition of the crucifixion’s extraordinary circumstances.
Not a Natural Eclipse: Phlegon describes an eclipse during a full moon—impossible for a standard solar eclipse—while Tertullian highlights the same timing, reaffirming the supernatural nature of the darkness and cementing its consistency with the biblical accounts.
Let's now look at a particularly remarkable and supernatural event recorded in the Gospels immediately after Jesus' death. While we'll reference the Bible to highlight this event, our primary aim is to examine it from a historical perspective through non-Biblical sources and accounts. We'll compare the biblical account to other non-biblical sources to demonstrate that this event wasn't only recorded in the Scriptures — others witnessed and documented it as well making it indisputable, historical fact.
We'll examine the darkness that covered the land right after Jesus Christ died. This event, occurring immediately after the death of someone as controversial as Jesus, is highly significant. For ancient peoples, notably the Jews, darkness often symbolized divine judgment on the Earth. This is seen in biblical examples such as Genesis 1:2, where the Earth was formless and dark, and Exodus 10:22, where darkness served as a judgment against the Egyptians. These examples underscore that the concept of darkness as a sign of judgment was well-established and would have been especially meaningful to the people of that time, especially the Jews. Historical records show that this event did not go unnoticed; it was recorded exactly as it happened.
The Greek historian Rufinus notes:
"Search your writings, and you shall find that in Pilate's time, when Christ suffered, the sun was suddenly withdrawn and darkness followed."
This account corresponds precisely with what is written in Matthew 27:45-46:
"Now from the sixth hour (Noon) until the ninth hour (3 p.m.), there was darkness over all the land. And about the ninth hour, Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, 'Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?' that is, 'My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?'"
Phlegon of Tralles, a historian from the reign of Tiberius Caesar, provides a second-century record describing a solar eclipse during the time of the full moon, "from the sixth to the ninth hour," just as the Gospels record. He states:
"This eclipse was visible from Jerusalem at moonrise… first visible from Jerusalem at about 6:20 p.m. (the start of the Jewish Sabbath and also the start of Passover day in 33 AD) with about 20% of its disc in the umbra of the earth's shadow… the eclipse finished thirty minutes later, at 6:50 p.m."
Quintus Septimius Florens Tertullian, in his work Apologeticus, comments that many witnesses of Jesus's crucifixion were unaware of the prophecies in Amos and Isaiah predicting darkness and thus believed the darkness was an eclipse. Tertullian wrote that evidence of this event was still available in the Roman archives. This claim is particularly significant, suggesting that records of Jesus's life, death, and resurrection were documented in Rome as early as the first century. These documents would have most likely been destroyed when Rome burned Jerusalem to the ground during the Jewish revolt in 70 A.D. However, before that occurred we have historical proof from Tertullian that such documents existed and were being stored there.
In another writing, Tertullian describes the darkness surrounding the crucifixion as occurring precisely when Jesus was on the cross. He writes:
"In the same hour (as the crucifixion), too, the light of day was withdrawn, when the sun at that very time was in his meridian blaze. Those unaware that this had been prophesied about Christ no doubt thought it an eclipse. You yourselves have an account of the world portent still in your archives."
Tertullian's acknowledgment that this event could not have been an eclipse is crucial, especially in light of the record from Julius Africanus, who stated that a solar eclipse could not have caused the darkness. The Passover Feast is always observed on the 14th day of Nisan, during a full moon. An eclipse can only occur when the moon is new and under the sun, making it scientifically impossible for a total solar eclipse to coincide with a full moon. This crucial detail as acknowledged by Tertullian and Julius Africanus through the historical record, shows that this darkness following Jesus Christ’s crucifixion was truly remarkable and miraculous. Despite the widespread persecution and hostility toward Christianity during this time period, the accounts of these non-biblical sources align perfectly with that of the Bible and synoptic Gospels.
Sources
Rufinus of Aquileia: Rufinus's Ecclesiastical History contains references to events surrounding early Christian history, including the supernatural events reported at the time of Jesus’s crucifixion. His work is particularly noted for continuing Eusebius's Historia Ecclesiastica, and it's a valuable source for understanding how early Christians perceived these events(Tertullian) (Wikipedia).
Phlegon of Tralles: Phlegon, a historian during the reign of Tiberius Caesar, is known for his Chronicles, where he mentions unusual astronomical phenomena, including the darkness during the crucifixion. This account is often cited in discussions about non-Christian references to events described in the Gospels (Princeton University Library Catalog).
Tertullian: Tertullian, in his Apologeticus and other writings, discusses the darkness at the crucifixion and asserts that records of this event were kept in Roman archives. His works are among the earliest to argue for the historicity of Jesus's life and the supernatural events surrounding His death from a non-biblical perspective (academic.oup).
Julius Africanus: Julius Africanus, in his Chronographiae, critiques the idea that the darkness was caused by a solar eclipse, noting the impossibility of such an event during a full moon, which is when Passover is observed. This argument is crucial for establishing the event's supernatural nature rather than a natural phenomenon (Princeton University Library Catalog).