The Crucifixion of Jesus Christ 

    When Tiberius was named successor to the emperor, he received the name of Caesar. From his birth, his 

name was Tiberius Claudius Nero. When he was adopted as the son of Augustus (he was actually Augustus' 

stepson) and chosen as his successor, his name was changed to Tiberius Julius Caesar. Later, when he finally 

became emperor, his name was changed again to Tiberius Caesar Augustus.

74

 Tiberius was given the name 

Tiberius Julius Caesar to indicate to everyone that he was to be the next emperor of Rome. His new name was 

an indication of the new power he was given in the Roman empire. 

    Also, during the ten years between the adoption of Tiberius and the death of Augustus, Augustus was 

undoubtedly feeling the effects of his advanced age. According to Dio, Augustus died at the age of 75 years, 10 

months and 26 days.

75

 So Augustus was about 65 years old when he chose Tiberius as his successor (about ten 

years before his death). Dio also tells us that Augustus adopted Tiberius and gave him power partly because he 

needed the assistance of a successor and supporter. 

     Later, when a German war broke out and Augustus was worn out in body, by reason of old age and illness, 

and incapable of taking the field, he yielded and not only adopted Tiberius, but also sent him out against the 

Germans . After this he took courage, feeling that he had successors and supporters . 

76

    Notice that Augustus placed Tiberius in command of the war against the Germans, when previously it was 

Augustus himself who had that role. Tiberius had a great deal of power during the ten years preceding the 

death of Augustus, partly because, at his age, Augustus could not rule the entire Roman empire without strong 

support from a chosen heir. 

    At that time in history, it was not uncommon for rulers to date the beginning of their reigns from as early a 

date as possible. They believed that great leaders had long reigns: the longer the reign, the greater the leader. 

So each king or emperor sought to count the beginning of his reign from as early a date as possible.

77

 This 

practice is called  antedating.  Therefore, it is possible that Tiberius Caesar also counted the beginning of his 

reign as emperor from the earliest possible date, from about the time that he was chosen as the heir to the 

throne and given the name of Caesar. Many scholars hold that Tiberius did antedate his reign, but to a point in 

time two years before the death of Augustus. So, the idea that Tiberius may have antedated his reign already 

has some degree of acceptance among scholars. 

    The generally accepted date of 

A.D.

 14 for the death of Augustus would place Tiberius Caesar's adoption as 

son and heir about the year 

A.D.

 4, and Tiberius' 15th year could then be counted as 

A.D.

 18 or 19. However, 

if we begin with the assumption that the generally accepted historical dates for this time period are correct, 

every idea about the date of the Crucifixion would be limited by that assumption. In chapters 12, 13, and 14 of 

this book, I argue that the generally accepted dates for the reigns of various Roman emperors and rulers during 

this time period are in error. My conclusion is that Augustus Caesar died in 

A.D.

 10, not 

A.D.

 14, and that a 

complete revision of the dates for the reigns of first century Roman emperors is required (see Appendix II, 

Section B for a summary of dates). 

    If Augustus died in 

A.D.

 10, then Tiberius' sudden rise to power began in mid 1 

B.C.

 Tiberius was adopted 

as heir to Augustus on June 26.

78

 The 15th year of Tiberius Caesar's reign would then be 

A.D.

 15, with 

A.D.

 1 

counted as the first full year of Tiberius' Caesar's reign. 

    If the first partial year (1 

B.C.

) of Tiberius' reign was counted as a full year, then Tiberius' 15th year would 

be 

A.D.

 14. This method was commonly used by the Jews in counting the years of a king's reign. They counted 

the first partial year of a king's reign the same as full years.

79

 However, it was the Romans who numbered the 

years by the reigns of the Roman emperors, and they did not count a partial year as a whole year, as did the 

Jews. Since God chose, in the Gospel of Luke, to tell us the time of the beginning of John the Baptist's 

ministry by means of the reigns of various Roman rulers, the method of counting the years would be according 

to Roman practice. Roman historians often counted the years of a rulers reign beginning with the first whole 

calendar year.

80

 So the first full year of Tiberius' reign would be 

A.D.

 1 (with the first partial year not being 

counted),

 81

 and the 15th year of Tiberius' reign would be the full year of 

A.D.

 15.

82

    Since it was the Roman practice to count the first year of an emperors reign from the first full year, Tiberius' 

first year would then be 

A.D.

 1. John the Baptist's ministry began during Tiberius' 15th year, about 5 6 months 

before Christ's Ministry began. Christ's Ministry was 3  years long, ending in spring and therefore beginning 

in the fall. Therefore, John the Baptist's ministry began in spring of 

A.D.

 15. This date for the beginning of 

John the Baptist's ministry is consistent with a date of 

A.D.

 19 for the Crucifixion. In that year, Nisan 14 

33