I read virtually all of this book in one day, so interested was I in the subject matter. I've studied ancient quotes about Jesus but there were one or two in here I'd never heard of. Plus multiple quotes from authors who witnessed or had an opinion on crucifixion.

The book is an interesting hybrid of high-brow reference material - discussed in a mostly non academic and chatty style. It takes a bit of getting used to - like feta-cheese and cranberry jelly - but once you get used to it, it's quite endearing.

I don't recall reading any book so focused on crucixion, this will form a valuable addition to a seekers ability to talk accurately about His Cross.

"Eyewitness to Crucifixion" is a collection of quotes from historical documents about crucifixion. The author used casual language when discussing the information and translated the quotes into everyday English. He included any mention of crucifixion, even if it was just in passing. The author discussed what led up to and came after the quote so that it was in context, and he also gave a brief biography about the life of the author of the quote. Some of the quotes described crucifixion rather than just commented on who was crucified, and those could get gory. The author also talked about how critics think that little about Jesus's crucifixion is actually described and how our images of his crucifixion may be wrong.

He included a section of quotes written after Jesus death which referred to crucifixion, usually a description of how the early Christians were killed during persecution. This also got gory. The author talked about what early Christians said about Jesus's crucifixion and what outside sources said. This involved a lot of discussion about what the critics say to discredit some of these quotes. He finished by talking about what the Bible actually does say about Jesus crucifixion, and then he talked about some of the comments he has gotten on his YouTube video on this topic. Overall, despite the casual tone, this really is more in-depth and academic than would interest the casual Christian. But if you really want to know this information, here it is.

Somewhere between the work of an intelligent lay-person and a scholar is where this author has nestled this book. If you are easily bothered by graphic descriptions of violence, then one would expect that going in you should be aware that crucifixion is a nasty business and expect to find things of such a nature in this title. I thought the content perfectly appropriate for the subject matter of the book. It was informative and told the reality without being grotesque.

The author has certainly covered a lot of territory in this book, citing historical sources from many different periods and geographical locations to back up his ideas on what we know and do not know about crucifixion. I was pleasantly surprised by the fairness and impartiality he displayed when discussing the Jewish role in the death of Jesus, as I am also one of those ill-fated Jews destined to be blamed eternally for an event that I came two thousand years too late to have been involved in.

I have read many of the source materials the author uses in his book but was still delighted to see that he had organised his work in such a way that it made it easier to think through the material in new ways. I hadn't really given a lot of time to thinking about how the process of crucifixion may have actually worked prior to this, and the author made me stop and think about what may have actually happened versus what we see in movies and representative artwork.

Overall, I thought this was a valuable book/ I'd recommend it to anyone interested in Roman, Christian, or Jewish history

This review is based on a complimentary copy from the publisher, provided through Netgalley. All opinions are my own.

Finally a book that I have so long wished to see. Stephen M. Miller gives us a tight compact book outlining source documents of antiquity and archeological findings that every Christian needs to know regardless of denomination. This is a perfect grounding for anyone with a Christian belief who wishes to know what the textual scholarship says about references to Christ in antiquity. It also places the current debates in context, outlining positions with impartiality. Miller is clear in his beliefs and in no way tries any underhand means to convince or force an opinion. Its open and generous in its comments on the beliefs of others. I can't recommend this book enough. As an atheist I get very tired of having to explain Christian texts and texts from antiquity that refer to Christianity to Christians. Would that all Christians were as erudite and broad in their understanding as Miller. Now they can be. Thank you Mr. Miller.

Eyewitness to Crucifixion is not what I expected when I picked it up. I expected a heavily religious book but this book has a very evidence-based approach to the act of crucifixion in general.

The first half of the book talks about the brutality of this method of execution in the words of those who witnessed it and some of it is quite brutal: " The king ordered his people to strangle the little boys who were circumsised and to strangle their mother's as well. Then he had the dead baby boys tied around the necks of their dead mother's. Together, they were hung on crosses." No one really talks about crucifixion in relation to the regular people, the brutality of this throughout history is intense. 800 Jews crucified for refusing to deny their religion. Slaves crucified for trying to survive by skimming a little extra from their masters. The number of people who died without burial eaten by birds or rotted off a cross in our history is staggering.

The second half tackles the religious aspects related to Jesus, I won't comment too much on this section other than to say it relies heavily on the Bible for "evidence." I found it all very interesting and educational.

The writing is very easy and accessible; it reminded me of an encyclopedia, Scientific American or New Scientist. Very easy to read small blips of information like a scientific magazine that can be read easily by a lay person.

The author undertakes an interesting task: to find every reference to crucifixion and put them into one book. Miller does this and includes glossy photos to further enlighten the reader. Some references are insignificant, which leads to some very short chapters. Others are quite interesting, like the chapter on the slave revolt in Rome lead by Spartacus which resulted in the crucifixion of 6,000 captured slave revolutionaries crucified every 50 yards on the 120 miles of the Appian Way from Capua to Rome.
The main take away for me in this book was the disdain Romans had for anyone who is crucified. It was the standard punishment for slaves and any Roman citizen would feel that a slave deserved such treatment. Quintilian wrote: “When we crucify people, we do it on the busiest roads. We want as many people as possible to get a good look at it, and to feel the terror of it all. The punishment of crucifixion has relatively little to do with the crime. It’s more about deterrence, and teaching people a lesson by example. “
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

In Eyewitness to Crucifixion: The Romans, the cross, and the Sacrifice of Jesus by Stephen M. Miller, we learn about what it was like witnessing crucifixion through the eyes of different Romans through their own writings. Some of which were poets, authors of history, and famous philosophers of their time. These Romans tell us how a crucifixion was staged, the reasons why people were crucified, and what happened to them afterwards. We also discover what Romans said about Jesus’ crucifixion and the cross. Plus, what the bible tells us about Jesus’ crucifixion.

I was given an ARC (Advanced Reader Copy) of the book by Our Daily Bread Publishing through Netgalley to read and to give an honest review. This book is now available and can be purchased on Amazon in both kindle and paperback formats.

I will have to give Eyewitness to Crucifixion a 3 out of 5 stars. Here’s why, I was very intrigued to read this book because I was hoping to get a deeper understanding of what Jesus went through being crucified. The first part of the book delivered on my expectations. I learned quite a bit from the different writings on not only the many different ways the Romans crucified someone, but the other means of torture the Romans used throughout history, crucifixion being the worst and most prolonged death. It was hard to read and fathom how cruel people can be towards one another. It was heart wrenching and very sad but also informative and enlightening. I now have a deeper appreciation for what Jesus went through, so that I could have a personal relationship with him and live with him for eternity. That's what I liked most about the book. Also, the first section makes me want to read more about this time period in history.

What I disliked most about Eyewitness to Crucifixion was the fact that I don’t agree with some of the second and last parts of the book. I don’t believe that the men writing the Bible presumed anything. Every word written in the Bible is the truth, written by men with the Holy Spirit within them. The pictures of the different art and sculptures that are presented throughout the book were not always clear or not visible at all in the digital format I was given, so I’d recommend getting the physical copy if you are interested in this book. The dates discussed go back and forth frequently between BC and AD and can be confusing in the digital copy. These are the reasons I give it the rating that I do.

If you are intrigued by Roman history, history in general, or have a curiosity of the crucifixion subject, this book just might be for you. I would not recommend this book for children or teens because the subject matter is mature and told in graphic detail. Some of the artwork used is also graphic.
#Eyewitnesstocrucifixion #Netgalley #Ourdailybreadpublishing

chose to read Eyewitness to Crucifixion: The Romans, the Cross, and the Sacrifice of Jesus by Stephen Miller because my husband and I have planned to visit Rome this summer. While our plans may change depending upon the current state of the coronavirus, I did enjoy reading this book. While I felt Mr. Miller’s writing was dry and sometimes disjointed, his research was and supporting documents were topnotch. If you can overlook the writing and enjoy either art or western history, then you’ll be amazed by the research Miller must have done to piece together Eyewitness.

I’ve passed the book along to my husband who earned an undergraduate degree in history. This might be a good fit for a seminarian or something to read with your teens at Easter as you consider Christ’s sacrifice on the cross.

Christians all over the world regularly proclaim the great reality of the faith: "Christ has died. Christ is risen. Christ will come again." Author Stephen Miller focuses on three angles of the crucifixion: 1) What the Romans say about crucifixion; 2) What they say about Jesus' crucifixion; and 3) what the Bible says about Jesus' death on the cross. The Bible does not say a lot about the nature and the exacting details of the crucifixion. Thus, the author goes back to several Roman characters to give us an eyewitness account of the terrible nature of the crucifixion. Seneca the Younger calls it the "worst torture of all." Cicero says that crucifixion is almost like killing one's father or brother. Horace lists some of the frivolous reasons used to send people to be crucified. Plutarch talks about criminals being asked to carry the cross enroute to their own execution. There was even a case 250 years before Christ was born where Hannibal the commanding officer of the ship was crucified by his own sailors after leading them to another defeat. Lactantius, advisor to Emperor Constantine teaches Christians not to resist death, even if it means the threat of crucifixion. With a large segment of the book devoted to the description of what crucifixion means to the Roman world, Miller aims to show us the cruelty, the humiliation, the senselessness, and inhumane nature of the execution.


Part Two of the book describes the different eyewitness accounts of Jesus' death on the cross. There is Josephus, the Jewish historian who testified of Jesus in an ancient account outside of the Bible. Tacitus the Roman senator confirms that Jesus died on the cross. Marcus Minucius Felix defends Christianity by questioning the legitimacy of other Roman gods. Finally, in Part Three, Miller brings us through the familiar biblical accounts of Jesus' crucifixion. Focusing on the four gospel narratives, he summarizes the account by placing the observations one after the other that reads like a chronological flow of the crucifixion process. This indeed is the highlight of the whole book altogether.

My Thoughts
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This book was originally pitched to publishers but was not accepted. Eventually, the author created a homemade video of the book entitled: "What the Romans Said about Crucifixion" and posted it on YouTube. This gave the author another opportunity to present his book for publishing. In his words, "YouTube raised this book from the dead." As I read the various accounts of crucifixion and Jesus' crucifixion, I notice that compared to the biblical accounts, they are not as comprehensive. They show us the dark side of such an execution process. Miller supplements each account with pictures and snippets of literature written. I am impressed at the amount of research done by Miller to give us a broad spectrum of Roman eyewitnesses. Toward the end of the book, Miller gives us an exchange he had with a skeptic. That is worth a read and shows us the depth of scepticism about Christ dying on the cross. Interested readers might want to read more of the many different exchanges to get a better idea of the challenges of even talking about the crucifixion of Jesus. Miller tries to present the evidence as is, citing the sources, and to offer a view on the crucifixion. In spite of that, there will be resistance and dismissal of these evidence. What I appreciate most is the listing of sources, both primary and secondary, the illustrations, and the large repertoire of Roman witnesses in writing. On this note, this book can be used like a primer for further research.

The way to read this book is to watch the video first as a quick introduction. Following that, read this book and ponder over the evidence Miller has uncovered in his research. True to his reputation, Miller writes this book in an easy to read manner. Readers will not get stuck on academic or linguistic details as the book is written in a direct journalistic manner. Coupled with many photos, pictures, and colourful illustrations, we get a closer look at the ancient perspectives and horror of the crucifixion process. Perhaps, for open-minded unbelievers, this book would be another piece of evidence to consider. For believers, it would be another opportunity to see the horrors of the crucifixion. It is not just the reality of Jesus' death but the way that he had to die on the cross that should lead us to a deeper devotion of love for his great sacrifice.

Stephen M. Miller is an award-winning, bestselling Christian author of easy-reading books about the Bible and Christianity. His books have sold over two million copies and include The Complete Guide to the Bible and Who’s Who and Where’s Where in the Bible. He launched his full-time freelance writing career in 1994, after working as a news reporter and later as an editor of Christian books, magazines, and Bible curriculum for a group of Christian denominations in the Wesleyan theological tradition.

Rating: 4 stars of 5.

conrade
This book has been provided courtesy of Our Daily Bread Publishing and NetGalley without requiring a positive review. All opinions offered above are mine unless otherwise stated or implied.

Love this book!!! So much detail and description. I got both the kindle version and a physical book. Prefer the physical book cuz it is really had to read the maps and tables in the kindle version.