Historical reliability of the Gospels Historical reliability of the Gospels The historical reliability of the Gospels refers to the reliability and historic character of the four New Testament gospels as historical documents. Some believe that all four canonical gospels meet the five criteria for historical reliability; and others say that little in the gospels is considered to be historically reliable. Almost all scholars of antiquity agree that Jesus existed, but scholars differ on the historicity of specific episodes described in the Biblical accounts of Jesus, and the only two events subject to "almost universal assent" are that Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist and
Phillips New Testament in Modern English in bomb shelters. These he published in 1947 under the title "Letters to Young Churches". In 1952 he added the Gospels. In 1955 he added Acts and titled it "The Young Church in Action". In 1957 he added "The Book of Revelation". Later he finished the whole of the New Testament, first publishing it in 1958, revising it and republishing it in 1961 and 1972. Phillips worked entirely from the Greek Testament. Many editions of the translation were printed without verse numbers, and those with verse numbers can be hard to use, due to Phillip's rephrasing. The early editions are