When Was the New Testament Written?

The New Testament was not written hundreds of years after Jesus. Paul tells the Corinthians he passed on a summary of Christ’s death, burial, and appearances while most of a group of more than five hundred witnesses were still alive. Acts ends with Paul alive in Rome. A fragment of John was already being copied in the second century. Clement, Ignatius, and Polycarp use Paul’s letters and the Lord’s teaching. A date in the fourth century, or later, is too late for those facts.

Key points

• 1 Corinthians 15:3–8Close^15:3 For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; ^15:4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures: ^15:5 And that he was seen of Cephas, then of the twelve: ^15:6 After that, he was seen of above five hundred brethren at once; of whom the greater part remain unto this present, but some are fallen asleep. ^15:7 After that, he was seen of James; then of all the apostles. ^15:8 And last of all he was seen of me also, as of one born out of due time.1 Corinthians 15:3–8 · King James VersionOpen source (1) is a summary Paul says he received: Christ died, was buried, was raised, and was seen, and most of the five hundred were still alive.
• Galatians 1:18–19Close^1:18 Then after three years I went up to Jerusalem to see Peter, and abode with him fifteen days. ^1:19 But other of the apostles saw I none, save James the Lord’s brother.Galatians 1:18–19 · King James VersionOpen source (2) says Paul went to Jerusalem and saw James, the Lord’s brother.
• Acts 28:30CloseAnd Paul dwelt two whole years in his own hired house, and received all that came in unto him,Acts 28:30 · King James VersionOpen source (3) leaves Paul in his own rented house in Rome. The book does not narrate his death. Silence is not itself a year.
• The John Rylands fragment of John 18 was dated by its first editor to 100–150, and the library’s page says recent research points nearer to 200. (4) A copy is later than the book.
• Clement tells Corinth to take up the epistle of Paul. (5) Ignatius says Jesus was truly nailed under Pontius Pilate. (6) Polycarp quotes the Lord’s teaching and says Paul wrote Philippi a letter. (7)
• This page does not assign a year to every book. A decade in the 50s for Paul’s letters was not taken from an inscription opened here.

What “hundreds of years later” would require

If the books were first written centuries after Jesus, Paul could not tell a church that most of the five hundred witnesses were still alive, and he could not name a brother of the Lord as a man he had met. A scrap of John could not be copied in the second century. A letter to Corinth could not tell that church to pick up the letter Paul had already sent them. Those are the checks. Who Wrote the Bible? is who held the pen. Is the Bible True? is whether the books are received as God’s word. This page is when the writing sits relative to the people it names.

What can be said, book by book

Paul’s letters, and the summary he received

1 Corinthians 15:3–8Close^15:3 For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; ^15:4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures: ^15:5 And that he was seen of Cephas, then of the twelve: ^15:6 After that, he was seen of above five hundred brethren at once; of whom the greater part remain unto this present, but some are fallen asleep. ^15:7 After that, he was seen of James; then of all the apostles. ^15:8 And last of all he was seen of me also, as of one born out of due time.1 Corinthians 15:3–8 · King James VersionOpen source is the paragraph. Paul says he delivered first what he also received: Christ died for our sins, was buried, rose the third day, and was seen by Cephas, the twelve, more than five hundred at once, James, all the apostles, and last of all Paul. He says the greater part of the five hundred remain to that present, though some have died. (1)

The summary is older than the sentence that introduces it, because Paul says he received it. He writes as if a reader in Corinth could still ask those people. Galatians 1:18–19Close^1:18 Then after three years I went up to Jerusalem to see Peter, and abode with him fifteen days. ^1:19 But other of the apostles saw I none, save James the Lord’s brother.Galatians 1:18–19 · King James VersionOpen source says that three years after his call he went up to Jerusalem, stayed with Peter fifteen days, and saw none of the other apostles except James, the Lord’s brother. (2) James is not a symbol invented a century later. He is a man Paul says he met.

A common statement puts these letters in the 50s. Acts 18:12CloseAnd when Gallio was the deputy of Achaia, the Jews made insurrection with one accord against Paul, and brought him to the judgment seat,Acts 18:12 · King James VersionOpen source places Paul in Corinth before Gallio, proconsul of Achaia. This page does not turn that scene into a year. The inscription from Delphi that is often used for Gallio’s date was not opened here, so a decade is not printed. What the letters themselves show is enough to answer “hundreds of years later”: the witnesses and the brother are still in the writer’s world. Did Jesus Really Exist? is that man. Did Paul invent Christianity? is the claim that his message replaced Jesus.

Acts ends with Paul alive

Acts 28:30–31Close^28:30 And Paul dwelt two whole years in his own hired house, and received all that came in unto him, ^28:31 Preaching the kingdom of God, and teaching those things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ, with all confidence, no man forbidding him.Acts 28:30–31 · King James VersionOpen source says Paul dwelt two whole years in his own hired house and received all who came in, preaching the kingdom of God. The book stops. It does not describe his death, and it does not describe the temple’s destruction. (3) Who Wrote the Book of Acts? already says that silence is not a date. A writer can know an event and leave it out.

Clement of Rome, in the same letter quoted below, says Paul suffered martyrdom under the prefects after preaching in the east and the west. Acts does not tell that death. The narrative’s last scene is a living Paul. That is an argument about the shape of the book, not a year stamped on it. The book of Acts is the narrative. The letters are the earlier voice.

The John fragment

The oldest piece of a New Testament book that this site’s pages cite is Greek Papyrus 457 in the John Rylands Library, Manchester, a fragment of John 18:31–33 and 37–38. The library’s page says the first editor dated it to the first half of the second century, between 100 and 150, and that recent research points nearer to 200, with no convincing evidence that any earlier New Testament fragment survives. (4) Who Wrote the Gospel of John? uses both dates. Is the Bible True? uses them too.

A suggested range of about 125–175 is not what the library’s page says. This page stays with the two dates the library prints. Either date is a date of a copy, not of the autograph. John was already in circulation before someone copied chapter 18 onto that scrap. The scrap is not a signature, and it is not a book written in the fourth century.

Clement, Ignatius, and Polycarp

First ClementCloseTake up the epistle of the blessed Apostle Paul. What did he write to you at the time when the gospel first began to be preached? Truly, under the inspiration of the Spirit, he wrote to you concerning himself, and Cephas, and Apollos, because even then parties had been formed among you.First Clement 47 · Ante-Nicene Fathers, New AdventOpen source tells the church at Corinth to take up the epistle of the blessed apostle Paul, and says that Paul wrote to them about himself, Cephas, and Apollos when parties had already formed. (5) That is 1 Corinthians 1, used as a letter the Corinthians already had. The same letter also recalls words of the Lord Jesus about a stumbling-block and a millstone. The New Advent page does not print a year for Clement. This page does not invent one. What it shows is that Paul’s letter to Corinth was already a text a later writer could tell that church to reread.

Ignatius to the SmyrnaeansClosetruly born of a virgin, was baptized by John, in order that all righteousness might be fulfilled by Him; and was truly, under Pontius Pilate and Herod the tetrarch, nailed [to the cross] for us in His flesh.Ignatius to the Smyrnaeans 1 · Ante-Nicene Fathers, New AdventOpen source says he is fully persuaded that the Lord was truly of the seed of David according to the flesh, truly born of a virgin, baptized by John, and truly nailed in the flesh under Pontius Pilate and Herod the tetrarch. (6) He says Jesus suffered truly, not in appearance only, and that after the resurrection he was still possessed of flesh. He tells the church to give heed to the Gospel, in which the passion has been revealed and the resurrection proved. The page does not date the letter. The sentences already assume the birth, the baptism, the cross under Pilate, and a Gospel a church can heed.

Polycarp to the PhilippiansCloseJudge not, that you be not judged; forgive, and it shall be forgiven unto you; be merciful, that you may obtain mercy; with what measure you measure, it shall be measured to you again; and once more, Blessed are the poor, and those that are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of God.Polycarp to the Philippians 2 · Ante-Nicene Fathers, New AdventOpen source says that when Paul was absent he wrote them a letter, and that they should study it. He also says he is mindful of what the Lord said: judge not, that you be not judged; forgive, and it shall be forgiven; be merciful; with what measure you measure, it shall be measured to you again; blessed are the poor, and those persecuted for righteousness’ sake. (7) Those lines sit close to Matthew 7:1–2CloseJudge not, that ye be not judged.Matthew 7:1 · King James VersionOpen source and Luke 6:36–38Close^6:36 Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful. ^6:37 Judge not, and ye shall not be judged: condemn not, and ye shall not be condemned: forgive, and ye shall be forgiven: ^6:38 Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again.Luke 6:36–38 · King James VersionOpen source. Polycarp does not name the Gospels in that sentence. He does treat the teaching and Paul’s letter to Philippi as already in hand. The page does not date him. Who Wrote Matthew, Mark, and Luke? is where Papias and Irenaeus attach names to the three Gospels. This page does not repeat those quotations.

The books this page does not date

Matthew, Mark, Luke, John’s composition as distinct from P52, the letters besides the ones Paul himself frames, Hebrews, and Revelation do not receive a year here. A textbook date was not copied from a page opened for this article. The early attributions are on Who Wrote Matthew, Mark, and Luke?, Who Wrote the Gospel of John?, Who Wrote the Book of Acts?, and Who Wrote the Book of Revelation?. How Many New Testament Manuscripts Are There? is the later copies, including Codex Sinaiticus in the middle of the fourth century. A complete New Testament in the fourth century is a copy. It is not the first time the books were written.

Frequently asked questions

Were the Gospels written hundreds of years later?

The evidence opened here says no. Paul’s summary and his meeting with James are in his own letters, while he says the witnesses remain. John was being copied in the second century on the library’s dates. Clement, Ignatius, and Polycarp already use the letters and the Lord’s teaching. A gap of hundreds of years does not fit those pages.

Does Acts prove it was written before Paul died?

No. The book’s last scene is a living Paul. Who Wrote the Book of Acts? says silence is not a date. Clement knows a martyrdom Acts does not narrate. The point is the shape of the narrative, not a year.

What is the earliest copy of a New Testament book?

On the pages this site uses, it is the John Rylands fragment of John 18. The library gives a first-editor date of 100–150 and a recent date nearer 200. Who Wrote the Gospel of John? explains both.

Why not print a date for every book?

Because a date this page did not take from an opened catalog would be an invention. The who-wrote articles give the early names. This article answers the claim that the books are centuries late, with the checks that claim has to face.

Keep reading

• Did Jesus Really Exist?
• What Do Non-Christian Sources Say about Jesus?
• How Many New Testament Manuscripts Are There?
• Who Wrote the Gospel of John?
• Who Wrote the Book of Acts?
• Who Wrote Matthew, Mark, and Luke?
• First Letter to the Corinthians
• Gospel of John
• Does God exist?
• What Do Atheists Believe?