Three Dead Rulers… One Risen King

Pilate was prefect of

the Roman province
of Judea from AD 26-
36 and presided at the
trial of Jesus

Pontius Pilate Coin

(Mt 27; Mk 15, Lu 3:1;
13:1; 23; Jn 18-19).
A copper ring
bearing the
inscription “of
Pilatus”
Herodium, a
fortress built
by Herod the
Great. The
“Pilatus” ring
was found
here.
 Caesarea

Then he [the
commander] called two
of his centurions and
ordered them “…go to
Caesarea…Provide
mounts for Paul so that
he may be taken safely
to Governor Felix.”
(Acts 23:23, 24)
Theater at Caesarea
They bound Him,
led him away
and handed Him
over to Pilate...

(Matthew 27:2)
 …TIBERIUM
…PONTIUS PILATE
…PREFECT [of] JUDEA
 Those who had arrested
Jesus took Him to
Caiaphas, the high priest,
where the teachers of the
law and the elders had
assembled. (Matt. 26:57)
Ossuary, or bone box.

Sometime in the middle of the

reign of Herod I (37–4 BC),
ossuaries appeared in rock-cut
tombs around Jerusalem, but
disappear by about 70 AD and
the Roman destruction.
Those who had arrested
Jesus took Him to
Caiaphas, the high
priest, where the
teachers of the law and
the elders had
assembled. (Matt. 26:57)
Caiaphas Ossuary, ca. A.D. 50
A man in Roman England, possibly a slave, died brutally
when he was crucified in the third or fourth century A.D.,
according to the archaeologists who found his remains,
including a nail hammered through one of his heel bones.
Yehohanan: First Century Crucifixion Victim
 The
Nazareth
Inscription
1. Decree by Emperor Claudius
pronouncing the death
penalty in Israel proper for
anyone caught specifically
robbing bodies from tombs.
2. The Nazareth Inscription
dates to the early reign of
the Emperor Claudius

Ruled: 41-54 A.D.

Born: 1 August 10 BC

Died: 13 October AD 54
 3. Refers specifically to “sepulcher sealing tombs”
a specific type used in Jewish, but not Greco-Roman burials.
4. Bodies were
being moved “with
wicked intent.”
5. The Greek
title reads:
“Diatagma
Kaisaros” or
“Decree of
Caesar.”
6. The inscription was
probably posted
publicly, common for
such decrees. It is likely
abridged.

7. The text fits both the

style and structure of
other known rescripts of
Claudius.
Summary

1. Date: 41-54 AD
2. Jewish Tomb Type
3. In Israel
4. Royal decree
5. Stealing bodies
6. Wicked Intent
7. Death Penalty
Matthew records the first attempt by
Jewish authorities to explain away the
empty tomb.

While they were going, behold, some of the

guard went into the city and told the chief
priests all that had taken place. And when they
had assembled with the elders and taken
counsel, they gave a sufficient sum of money to
the soldiers and said, “Tell people, ‘His disciples
came by night and stole him away while we
were asleep.’”
-(Matthew 28:11-13 ESV)
The Nazareth Inscription
appears to be evidence
of the Gentile authorities
attempting to explain
away the empty tomb.
 • Aristotle
• Plato
• Every Pope
• Every Caesar
• Every King of England
• Saddam Hussein
• Joseph Stalin
• Adolf Hitler
• Mussolini
• Albert Kinsey
• Sigmund Freud
• Karl Marx
• Margaret Sanger
• Charles Darwin
 I Corinthians 15:14, 17

If Christ is not raised

from the dead...

your faith is in vain...

and you are still in your sins.

 He is not here; he has risen,
just as he said... Matthew 28:6