if I tell you that Pontius Pilate regretted his role in the death of Jesus long after the crucifixion what would you say did you know that pilate wrote a letter to the Roman Emperor Tiberius concerning Jesus discussing his miracles his trial his crucifixion and wait for it his resurrection what exactly does the letter say Pontius Pilate discussing Jesus what could he have said to the Roman Emperor about the resurrection of the Son of God did you also know that the letter contains amazing details about Jesus appearance that are not even found in the gospels this
is what this episode is about to discuss the content of this letter and what it says about Jesus now I want you to judge for yourself as we read parts of the letter that Pontius Pilate wrote to Caesar about Jesus Christ Pontius Pilate to tiberious Caesar the emperor greeting there has appeared in these our days a man of great virtue named Jesus Christ who is yet living among us and of the Gentiles is accepted as a Prophet of Truth but his own disciples call him the Son of God he raised the dead and cured all
manner of diseases a man of stature somewhat tall and comely with a very Reverend countenance such as the beholders May both love and fear his hair is of the color of a chestnut full ripe plain to his ears whence downward it is more Orient and curling and wavering about his shoulders in the midst of his head is a seam or partition of his hair after the manner of the nazarites his forehead plain and very delicate his face without spot or wrinkle beautified with a lovely red his nose and mouth so formed as nothing can be
reprehended his beard thickish in color like his hair not very long but forked his look innocent and mature his eyes gray clear and quick in reproving he is terrible in admonishing courteous and fairs spoken Pleasant in conversation mixed with gravity it cannot be remembered that any have seen him laugh but many have seen him weep in proportion of body most excellent his hands and arms most delectable to behold in speaking very temperate modest and wise a man for his singular Beauty surpassing the children of men but at length the chief priest moved with envy against
him to take away his life resorted to me with one accusatorial who betrayed him and with violence Drew him to me who being examined by me concerning the basis of their accusations answered them with much modesty and with no sign of reluctance though he was at times s adorned with great eloquence I asked him what religion he was and he replied oh Caesar I am a king but my kingdom is not of this world I then inquired of him if he were a God and he answered thou sayest it for I am the truth and
the life I am the Good Shepherd the door in the midst of these proceedings the great tumults of the Jews striving to to overthrow him I ordered that he should be crucified according to their law and in that very hour that he was crucified there was Darkness over all the world the sun being darkened at midday and the Stars appearing in their brightness and the moon as if turned into blood failed in her light the universe being thus darkened the dead that lay in their graves Rose and appeared unto many when my mind being TR
Tred I hasten to take water and wash my hands of the blood of this just person the like of whom hath never been before as you read this letter part of the report one thing that is manifestly noticeable is the great length pilate went to describe Jesus why the answer is simple at the time there were no image capturing devices so when describing someone of importance great care is given to the the physical attributes of the person with this description Jesus would have been recognized by the reader in person or in other report the letter
continues recent events in my Province have been of such a character that I thought I would give the details as they have occurred as I should not be surprised if in the course of time they may change the destiny of our nation for it seems of late that the gods have ceased to be propitious I am almost most ready to say cursed be the day that I succeeded Valerius gratus in the government of Judea it seemed to me of all conquered cities Jerusalem was the most difficult to govern so turbulent were the people that I
lived in momentary dread of an Insurrection to suppress it I had but a single Centurion and a handful of soldiers I requested a reinforcement from the prefect of Syria who informed me that he had scared scarely troops sufficient to defend his own Province an innate thirst for Conquest to extend our Empire beyond the means of Defending it I fear will be the means of destroying our Noble Empire as you can see those were the words of Pontius Pilate pause and reflect on the significance of this passage Pilot's communication to Caesar suggests a startling Revelation Jerusalem's
defense rested upon a single Centurion within his cohort typically comprised of only a few soldiers Valerius gratus the predecessor of Pontius Pilate expressed his frustrations with governing Judea he considered Jerusalem to be exceptionally difficult to govern due to the turbulent nature of its people this sets the stage for Pilot's subsequent account of the precarious situation he inherited Pilot's account reveals the inadequacy of military resources for maintaining order in Jerusalem despite the city's potential for unrest he had only a single Centurian and a handful of soldiers this shortage of troops highlights the precariousness of Roman control
in the region and the challenges of quelling potential uprisings Pilot's apprehensions about the consequences of overextension and the inadequacy of military resources affected his decision-making process including his handling of Jesus's trial and crucifixion now let's get back to Pilot's letter among the various rumors that came to my ears there was one that attracted my attention in particular a young man it was said had appeared in Galilee preaching with a noble unction a new law in the name of the gods that had sent him at first I was apprehensive about his design to stir up the
people against the Romans but soon my fears were dispelled Jesus Jesus of Nazareth spoke rather as a friend of the Romans than of the Jews one day in passing by the place of Salam where there was a great Concourse of people I observed in the midst of the group a young man who was leaning against a tree calmly addressing the multitude I was told it was Jesus this I could easily have suspected so great was the difference between him and those who were listening to him his golden colored hair and beard gave to his appearance
a Celestial aspect he appeared to be about 30 years of age never have I seen a sweeter or more Serene countenance what a contrast between him and his hearers with their black beards and tanned complexion okay let's stop to comment on this as well because I believe this is the only recorded explanation of Jesus's appearance in all historical documents ments this particular interest is the description of him as having golden colored hair and a beard in the earlier version of the letter we read it spoke of Jesus having a chestnut colored hair same thing however
the inclusion of this detail raises questions about its authenticity was it an addition made by later scribes copying the document or did Jesus indeed have lighter colored hair and beard compared to his contemporaries there are those those who believe this is an add-on by those who copied this document over the years but we don't know for sure it's certainly intriguing personally it does really matter now back to Pilot report unwilling to interrupt him by my presence I continued my walk but signified to my secretary to join the group and listen my secretary's name was manales
he was the grandson of the chief of the conspirators who encamped in atua awaiting Cataline manalus was an ancient inhabitant of Judea and well acquainted with the Hebrew language he was devoted to me and worthy of my confidence on entering the pretorium I found manalus who related to me the words that Jesus had pronounced at saloam never have I heard in the pedo nor in the works of the philosophers anything that can compare to the maxims of Jesus one of the rebellious Jews so numerous in Jerusalem having asked him if it was lawful to give
tribute to Caesar Jesus replied Render unto Caesar the things which belong to Caesar and unto God the things that are Gods it was on account of the wisdom of this saying that I granted so much Liberty to the Nazarene for it was in my power to have him arrested and exiled to pontis but this would have been contrary to the Justice which has always characterized the Romans the man was neither seditious nor rebellious I extended to him my protection unknown perhaps to himself he was at Liberty to act to speak to assemble and address the
people and to choose disciples unrestrained by any petorian mandate but this unlimited Freedom granted to Jesus provoked the Jews not the poor but the rich and Powerful it is true that Jesus was severe on the latter and this was a political reason in my opinion not to control the liberty of the Nazarene scribes and Pharisees he would say to them you are a race of vipers you resemble painted sepulchers at other times he would sneer at the proud alms of the Publican telling him that the might of the poor Widow is more precious in the
sight of God new complaints were daily made at the pretorium against the insolence of Jesus I was even informed that some Misfortune would befall him that it would not be the first time that Jerusalem had stoned those who called themselves prophets and that if the pretorium refused Justice an appeal would be made to Caesar however my conduct was approved by the Senate and I was promised a reinforcement after the termination of the parthan war being too weak to suppress a sedition I resolved upon adopting a measure that promised to establish the Tranquility of the city
without subjecting the pretorium to humiliating concession dear viewers I hope you have been listening carefully pilate knew all about Jesus for a long time but he allowed him his freedom to preach and to move about because he saw no rebellious spirit in him in spite of the pressure from the then Jewish religious leaders he did not find any reason to prosecute Jesus well until it became expedient for for him it was only when he feared an uprising from the Jews and knowing he does not have the military resources to assert control that he sacrificed Jesus
he gave Jesus up for the Peace of Jerusalem that seems poignant does it not given what we know of the mission of Jesus in any case pilate hesitated to crucify Jesus opting instead to hand him over to quell the political unrest of the time and prevent potential uprisings clearly pilate was an opportunist he only cared for his power and authority he may have washed his hands many times but the blood of the innocent will linger forever yet we are glad that he left this message for us now we know from a documentary evidentiary point that
Jesus indeed lived and was crucified before we end this episode let's look at one more piece of evidence about Jesus from Pilate let us look at what has become know as the pilot Stone what does the pilot Stone say about Jesus crucifixion the pilot Stone also known as the pilot inscription is an ancient artifact discovered near cesaria maritima in Israel it is a dedicatory inscription on a limestone block it is significant because it provides archaeological evidence of the existence of Pontius Pilate the Roman governor of Judea who is mentioned mentioned in the New Testament accounts
of Jesus's trial and crucifixion we have been reading the letter of pilate to Caesar but what is the evidence that pilate existed well this artifact the pilot Stone proves that Pontius Pilate was flesh and blood and existed during the time of Jesus the inscription on the pilot Stone reads to the Divine augusty this tiberium Pontius Pilate prefect of Judea Roman leaders tend to see themselves as Gods hence the moniker to the Divine augusty today we know that cesaria maritima is located along the Mediterranean coast of Israel it was a significant ancient city and administrative Center
during Roman times the pilot Stone was found reused in the staircase leading up to a theater at the site it was identified by archaeologists due to the Latin an inscription carved into the Limestone Block in conclusion put together both the letter of pilate and the stone of pilate shows the existence Pontius Pilate as well as prove the story about the ministry and crucifixion of Jesus Christ it also tells details about the physical appearance of Jesus that were not included in the canonical Bible thank you for watching don't forget to like this video And subscribe to
this channel God bless you amen [Music]
