Archeologists Just Found the Tomb of Jesus (Again)
Justus of Tiberias might be the worst historian ever.
Justus lived in the first century, in a region called Galilee. The focus of his writing was Jewish history. Now, you'd think a historian studying Jews in Galilee in 40 BCE might mention a particular Jew born in a town in Galilee called Nazareth, who went on to inspire the biggest religion on Earth. Today, there are 2.4 billion people who believe this particular Jew is divine or divinely inspired.
But guess who Justus of Tiberias never mentions in his histories? Jesus of Nazereth.
Skeptics point to this as proof Jesus didn't actually exist. But it's actually not surprising a historian at the time overlooked the future King of Kings. In his day (between 4 BCE and 30 CE), Jesus was simply not famous. He was one of many wandering prophets and messianic figures in Judea and Galilee. He wasn't politically powerful or wealthy, and to top it off, he didn't preach that long (the Gospel of John mentions three Passovers, which suggests Jesus's time as a public figure only spanned three years). Justus of Tiberias wasn't alone in missing the story of Jesus. There was nothing written about Jesus during his lifetime -- at least nothing that has survived.
The Apostle Paul changed all that. He was highly educated with a key skill: he knew how to write. And Paul had a story to tell that would literally change the world. Safe to assume you've heard it: Paul, on the road to Damascus -- ironically on a mission to hunt down the followers of Jesus -- runs into the man himself. This should have been impossible. Jesus was dead, crucified by the Romans years before. Yet there he was, buried, then "raised on the third day". The story of the resurrection was born.
Paul's letters are the earliest written mention of Jesus we have. And while Paul refers to Jesus being buried and then returning, it wasn't until the Gospels decades later we learned that Jesus was actually placed in a tomb outside the walls of Jerusalem.
Early Christians did not mark its location for fear of persecution. That fear ended in 335 CE when Roman Emperor Constantine I legalized Christianity. Christian holy sites now had to be identified and protected. Among the most important? That tomb.
Local Christians showed Constantine where it was, insisting they still remembered the location. A basilica was built over the site. During construction, workers discovered an old tomb buried there, seeming to confirm this was the authentic location. The site became the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, and remains the most revered and traditional site of Jesus's death and resurrection.
Yet over time, skeptics doubted the location as historically authentic. Some of the faithful longed for a place that wasn't so highly ornate or richly adorned like the Emperor's Church. The Gospels describe the Tomb much simpler. John 19:41 states, "Now in the place where he was crucified there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb in which no one had yet been laid."
The Church of the Holy Sepulchre is not near a garden. It's in the middle of a dense urban area.
In 1883, British General Charles Gordon claimed to find the better site: a simple tomb carved into rock outside the city and, as described in the Bible, near lush gardens. Archeologists consider this "Garden Tomb" to be too old to have been newly cut in Jesus's time, as the Gospels describe. But the site was believable enough -- and fit the faithful's vision -- so doubt was cast as to where the accurate site was located.
This year, incredibly, scientific analysis of samples deep under the Church of the Holy Sepulchre may have erased the doubt.
The excavation began in 2022, and it was the most extensive at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in 200 years. The goal was not to answer any mysteries. Workers were just meant to replace the basilica's 19th century flooring. But luckily, religious communities permitted archaeological excavations beneath the floor.
Archaologists uncovered amazing finds deep under the basilica, including ancient pottery, oil lamps, glass, and even remnants of low stone walls dating back to the Iron Age.
But it was a niche field of scientific study called archaeobotanical analysis that delivered the breakthrough. Soil samples were collected from deep under the basilica and put through fine sieves to separate plant remains like seeds, nuts, and charcoal. Scientists then examined the plant remains to identify what plants were present at the site. What they found could have been pulled right from the Bible: olive trees and grapevines were all over this site dating back to the Christian era and before.
The Church of the Holy Sepulchre may appear overly ornate, but the tomb below exactly matched the topography described in the Gospels as the Tomb of Jesus.
Our favorite ancient historian Justus of Tiberius shouldn't feel too bad missing the story of Jesus. 2,000 years later, mainstream science is still filling in the details.
