Sometimes figuring out dates in the Bible can take a little investigating because events are not necessarily written in chronological order. You kind of have to dig in, take notes, and pay attention to details to get the big picture. So let's do a little research and see what clues we can find about the length of Jesus' ministry.
John the Baptist was Jesus' cousin. He was the first prophet called by God in 400 years, and his job was to prepare the way for the coming Messiah (John 1:23; Matthew 14:5). According to Luke 3:1, John the Baptist began his earthly ministry in the 15th year of Tiberius Caesar, which would be around AD 29 because Tiberius was appointed emperor in AD 14 (AD 14 + 15 years = AD 29).
John publicly proclaimed that the Messiah was coming soon and called people to repentance and baptism by water (Matthew 3:5-12). John's message was short and to the point: "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand" (Matthew 3:2). Those who were baptized did so to announce that they were repenting their sin, which showed that their hearts were ready to receive the Savior.
The beginning of Jesus' ministry is marked by His arrival at the river Jordan, where John was baptizing the people in its waters (Matthew 3:13-15). While the others were baptized as an act of repentance for sin, Jesus was without sin, so He had no need for repentance. Jesus said His baptism would "fulfill all righteousness," which simply means that He was doing as God commanded. Later, it became clear that the act of His baptism mirrored how He would become the perfect sacrifice for the sins of humanity.
"For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God." —2 Corinthians 5:21
When Jesus came up out of the water, the Spirit of God (God, the Holy Spirit) descended on Him like a dove, and a voice from Heaven (God, the Father) said, "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased" (Matthew 3:16-17). This was an outward manifestation of the Godhead and was a message to announce that Jesus is God, the Son. So the baptism of Jesus by John the Baptist marked the beginning of Jesus' earthly ministry (John 3:23), which was around AD 29, based on when John the Baptist began his ministry.
Now that we know the date for the BEGINNING of Jesus' ministry, we can investigate how much time passed DURING His ministry. One way to track how much time passed during Jesus' time on earth is to count how many Passover feasts took place. The Passover was an annual celebration that the Jews participated in to celebrate when the angel of death passed over them in Egypt because of the blood that was painted on their doorpost (Exodus 12:21-28).
According to John's Gospel, Jesus attended three Passover feasts during His ministry, which means that His ministry would have lasted at least two years. The three recorded Passovers are found first in John 2:13 (AD 30), then in John 6:4, and the last one in John 11:55-57, before His crucifixion (AD 33). But many scholars believe that there is one more Passover feast that happened during Jesus' ministry (between John 2 and John 6) that was not recorded due to the number of things Jesus accomplished and where He traveled. This would lengthen Jesus' ministry to three years.
The END of Jesus' ministry culminates with His crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension to Heaven. Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor who approved Jesus' execution, is historically known to have ruled from AD 26-36. Jesus' crucifixion took place during the Passover and right before the Sabbath (John 19:31). The year that coincides with the reign of Pontius Pilate, the time of the Passover, the eve of the Sabbath, and the crucifixion of Jesus, puts these events most likely during AD 331. After Jesus' resurrection, He appeared to His disciples for a period of 40 days and then ascended to Heaven before their very eyes (Acts 1:3).
So based on what we have investigated, the length of Jesus ministry, from His baptism to His ascension, would have been about 3-1/2 years (late AD 29 to the spring of AD 33). Case closed!
REFERENCES: 1. Wallace, J. Warner. "Dating Jesus: When Did He Rise from the Grave? | Cold Case Christianity." Coldcasechristianity.com, 23 Apr. 2018, coldcasechristianity.com/writings/dating-jesus-when-did-he-rise-from-the-grave/. Accessed 19 Oct. 2023.
Sometimes figuring out dates in the Bible can take a little investigating. To calculate the length of Jesus' ministry, consider these facts: 1. The start of His ministry was in AD 29 (based on historical dates concerning John the Baptist and Tiberius Caesar); 2. The yearly progression of Jesus' ministry can be marked by the annual Passover feasts, and there were at least three, potentially four (John 2:13; John 6:4; John 11:55-57); 3. Jesus was crucified in AD 33 (based on coordinating historical records). So based on these events, the total length of Jesus' ministry would be about 3-1/2 years (late AD 29 to the spring of AD 33).
Hanna loves spending time with kids and teens. She enjoys being detectives with them to investigate God's Word to discover truths to answer any questions. She is the co-author of a newly published apologetics curriculum for children and teaches one online for highschoolers-adults. To learn more about her ministry you can visit networkerstec.com. For fun, she likes to play Ultimate Frisbee, read historical fiction, and paint.
