'Jesus and His World' by Craig A. Evans.

I received an update that Craig A. Evans new book Jesus and His World: The Archaeological Evidence is ready for pre-order and available this month. I know at least one person expressed concern that this book was written to “prove Jesus’ existence” using archaeological finds. This is not so. In the introduction Evans writes the following:

“[Jesus and His World] is not written to prove that Jesus really lived or that he really was Jewish after all. It is not a book written for internet skeptics, whose pseudo-criticism is not guided by the norms of genuine research and scholarship. Rather, the book is written for those who want to know what light contemporary archaeology sheds on Jesus and his world, who want to know what aspects of Jesus’ teaching and activities we have come to better understand thanks to archaeological discoveries.”

Westminster John Knox Press provides this blurb:

In a provocative new book, world-renowned scholar Craig A. Evans presents the
most important archaeological discoveries on the world of the historical Jesus. In Jesus and His World:
The Archaeological Evidence (Westminster John Knox Press) Evans takes on many claims that have been
proposed in recent books and peddled in the media, including the popular theories that Jesus’ tomb has
been found, and he had a wife and son. Evans uses archaeological findings to uncover the truth about
these and other key pieces of Jesus’ world:

– What was the village of Nazareth actually like in the time of Jesus?
– Is there evidence to support the claim that Jesus was a Cynic?
– Did synagogues really exist, as the Gospels say?
– What does archaeology tell us about the ruling priests who condemned Jesus to death?
– Has the family tomb of Jesus really been found?
– What did Jesus look like?

Evans’s gripping prose enables readers to understand and critique the latest theories—both the sober and
the sensational—about who Jesus was and what he lived and died for.

Evans sitting on the Talpiot Tomb Seal.

Evans has stated that, “The recent claim in The Jesus Discovery that yet another tomb has been discovered, in which Jesus and/or some of his followers were buried, has no more credibility than the Talpiot Tomb publicized a few years ago.The “Patio Tomb” (I refer of course to Tabor and Jacobovici, The Jesus Discovery) is no more likely the tomb of Jesus or of some of his followers than the Talpiot Tomb, which was publicized a few years ago. I have read a quick synopsis of Tabor’s book and find the argument wholly unpersuasive. I don’t think any serious biblical scholars or archaeologists will give it any credibility.”

I have invited him to write more on the subject which we will post here if he is able, though he seems quite swamped at this point..