Testimonium quod perhihet Tosephus Christo
The Just Judgment of God
The author asserts that those who harmed the Son of God faced divine justice for rejecting the clear evidence of His divinity.
Indeed, those who dared to lay sacrilegious hands on the Son of God suffered all these things most justly, since it was clear from the testimony of the Scriptures and the power of His miracles that He was the Lord's Christ.
The Testimony of Josephus
The chapter cites the historical witness of Josephus to confirm the life, miracles, death, and resurrection of Christ.
Josephus writes: 'At that time there was Jesus, a wise man, if it's even right to call him a man.' He performed miraculous deeds and taught those who gladly heard the truth, drawing many people to himself, both Jews and Gentiles. This was Christ. When Pilate ordered his crucifixion, those who had loved him from the beginning didn't desert him, even though the leaders of our people accused him. For he appeared to them alive again on the third day, just as the divinely inspired prophets had foretold concerning him, along with countless other miracles that were to come. But even to this day, both the name and the people of the Christians, who are named after him, continue to endure.
Read the original Latin
Et quidem haec omnia rectissime passi sunt qui in filium Dei manus sacrilegas extendere praesumpserunt, cum testimoniis scripturarum et uirtute mirabilium operum ipsum Christum Domini esse constaret. Vnde losephus: Fuit autem hisdem temporibus lesus sapiens uir, si tamen uirum eum appellare fas est. Erat enim mirabilium operum effector doctorque hominum eorum qui libenter quae uera sunt audiunt, et multos quidem ludeonim, multos etiam ex gentibus sibi adiunxit. Christus hic erat. Hunc accusatione primorum nostrae gentis uirorum, cum Pilatus in crucem agendum esse decreuissct, non deseruerunt eum hii qui ab initio eum dilexerant. Apparuit enim" eis tertia die iterum uiuus, secundum quod diuinitus inspirati prophetae uel haec uel alia de eo innumera miracula futura esse praedixerant. Sed et in hodiernum diem Christianorum, qui ab eo nuncupati sunt, et nomen perseuerat et genus.
Policraticus companion
Study the argument weekly; pray the tradition daily
Pair the outline with the Chosen Portion app, which serves short daily portions from the same royal devotional tradition — free on iOS.
John of Salisbury argued that rulers must keep the law of God before their eyes daily; Chosen Portion gives modern readers that same daily discipline in five minutes a morning.
- 8 weeks, one book per week, with the 3-4 key chapters flagged in each
- Discussion questions usable for a reading group from week one
- A daily 5-minute companion portion in the app alongside your weekly study