How Long was the Ministry of Jesus?
Did Jesus’ ministry last three and one-half years? Did Jesus begin his ministry in the fall of the year? Did Jesus’ ministry begin in AD 27 during the reign of Tiberius Caesar? Celebrating Jesus’ birth in the winter season of the year is a commonly observed Christian tradition, even though there is no biblical evidence that Jesus was born in the winter, and certainly there is no historical evidence that the celebration of Jesus’ birth was observed by the early 1st century church of God. However, there is sufficient biblical evidence to determine the season and length of Jesus’ ministry that began at Jerusalem, and by using the acceptable practice of “backdating” we can reasonably determine the season of Jesus’ baptism, and the possible seasons that can be associated with his birth at Bethlehem. Typically, the practice of backdating to certain events in Jesus’ life requires an historical marker that can be correlated with Jesus’ baptism and the beginning of his ministry at Jerusalem. However, the practice of backdating from the time of Jesus’ baptism and the beginning of his ministry is not without some dispute because there is a lack of consensus among expositors in determining the validity of the historical markers associated with the life of Jesus. Leaving us to carefully sift through the biblical and historical evidence surrounding the baptism and ministry of Jesus, and to reasonably use this evidence to determine the season of Jesus’ birth in the time of Herod the Great. Now, according to Mark we see that Jesus’ ministry is associated with his baptism and Mark tells us that: “in those days, Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. And going up from the water, immediately He saw the heavens being torn, and the Spirit coming down as a dove upon Him. And there was a voice out of the heavens, You are My Son, the Beloved, in whom I have been delighting. And the Spirit at once drove Him out into the wilderness” (Mk. 1:9-12, LITV). [Author’s emphasis throughout.] So Mark tells us that after Jesus was baptized and received the holy spirit he was compelled to go into the Judean wilderness where he fasted for 40 days, being at some time tempted by Satan, and after this Jesus returned to the area of Galilee. Mark also states that Jesus came into Galilee preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God “after” the prophet John was put into prison, which indicates to us—by the additional evidence of Matthew, Luke and John—that Mark’s account does not address a period of time that began after the 40 days in the wilderness and ended when the prophet John was put into prison by Herod Antipas (the Tetrarch) (Mk. 1:13-15). Something that is also evident in Luke’s account who added that the prophet John received his mission to teach and baptize in the 15th year of Tiberius Caesar who was the adopted son and eventual successor to Caesar Augustus (Octavian) who died in the summer of AD 14. Noting that the 15th regnal year of Tiberius is understandably the year Jesus began his ministry at Jerusalem, and from this regnal year and season we can reasonably backdate—assuming 30 years—to determine the season of Jesus’ birth at Bethlehem (Lk. 3:1-4, 20). Now, some biblical expositors conclude that Luke reckoned the 15th year of Tiberius from the beginning of his coregency with Caesar Augustus beginning at some time in AD 12, which by a general reckoning places the 15th regnal year of Tiberius in AD 26/27. With the understanding that this regnal dating is not without some problems, because it is possible to reason that Luke was using various methods to determine the 15th year of Tiberius. (Both AD 26 and AD 27 are commonly accepted as possible years for the beginning of Jesus’ ministry.) What then needs to be understood is that Luke would have certainly chosen a verifiable event and date that would have had a universal public acceptance, one that would also set an historical precedent based on official recognition that could be associated—beyond dispute—with the time of Jesus’ baptism and the beginning of his ministry. Which leads us to say that the greater weight of the historical evidence—when it is associated with Luke’s presentation—gives us the confidence to conclude that Luke was using a dynastic/regnal reckoning for the rule of Tiberius. Meaning that Luke used the years of Tiberius’ sole reign to reckon the emperor’s 15th year, which means that Luke correlated Jesus’ baptism with the regnal year of AD 28/29, giving us not only an historical marker we can associate with Tiberius, but also an historical marker we can associate with Caesar Augustus. (Tiberius became emperor in August of AD 14 and was confirmed as such by the Senate in September of AD 14, even though he apparently did not assume the title of “Augustus.”). So, with this in mind, we see that Luke tells us that Jesus was not yet 30 years of age at the time of his baptism, and this baptism occurred just before Jesus went into the wilderness and before Jesus would have begun his ministry at age 30. Realizing, of course, that Luke does not tell us that Jesus began his ministry at age 30, only that he was baptized before he was 30 years of age, which means that Jesus’ baptism may or may not fall in the same year or season as Jesus’ ministry (Mt. 3:1-17; 4:1). Having then implications for determining the season of Jesus’ birth in Bethlehem. Now, Luke tells us that in regard to the year of Jesus’ birth there was a registration—an enrollment—being conducted by decree of Caesar Augustus, which is historically correlated with the Jubilee Year of Augustus. Being the 25th anniversary of his reign and the 750th anniversary of the founding of Rome, when the Roman Senate conferred the titles of “Prince of Peace” and “Father of his Country” upon Caesar Augustus.