1 In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, and Herod was tetrarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip tetrarch of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias was tetrarch of Abilene, 2 during the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John the son of Zechariah in the desert.

The chronological data of these verses reflects the conventions of Greco-Roman historiography as well as a pattern found in some Jewish prophetic books (Jer 1:1-3; Ezek 1:1-3; Hos 1:1; Isa 1:1). Luke seeks to place his “orderly account” (Lk 1:1) within the context of “world” history. In addition, this writing, addressed to “Most Excellent Theophilus” (Lk 1:3), places the events within the context of the rulers and times (and some historiographic forms) that Theophilus would know. It is likely that he was some type of Roman official.

Even though six different people are named, that doesn’t allow us to pinpoint the exact date that John began his ministry. First of all, our standard time reckoning of “year of the Lord” (A.D.) did not begin until 533 AD. Our year of 365+ days and 12 months was not standard in the first century. There were at least four different calendars back then. Each reckoned the years differently. We can’t be sure how long “15 years” would have been.

Secondly, we are not sure when Tiberius began his reign or when Luke started counting the years. There were two or three years when Tiberius was co-regency with Augustus starting in 11 or 12 AD. Augustus died in 14 AD. Did the counting start in the year 11 or 12 or 14? Our best guess is that Luke refers to a time around 28 AD.

The date ranges of the other rulers (from Culpepper, Luke New Interpreter’s Bible):

• Pontius Pilate 26-36 AD
• Herod Antipas 4 BC-39 AD
• Philip 4 BC-34 AD
• Lysanias ruler of Abilene is unknown
• Annas was high priest from 6-15 AD
• Caiaphas was high priest from 18-36 AD [p. 40]

Note that Luke includes both civil and religious leaders in his list. There is also a sense of narrowing the focus: starting with the ruler of the Roman Empire — nearly the whole world — and ending up at the temple in Jerusalem — where the high priests did their work.

What is the significance of this information? First of all, they indicate that the historical context was important to Luke. Secondly, I think that Luke tries to show to Theophilus (and all Roman rulers) that Jesus and the Christians were not subversive to Rome. The charges that Jesus was putting himself up against Caesar were created by Jesus’ enemies (see Lk 23:2; compare to 20:21-25). Thirdly, Luke seeks to speak in a form (language) that Theophilus (Luke’s patron) will understand. He places his Gospel in the form and in the historical context that will make sense to his audience.

Image credit: John the Baptist Preaching | Pietre Lastman | 1219 | Chicago Museum of Art | PD-US