How Old Was Jesus When He Died?

How old was Jesus at His death?

Jesus Came to Die

Jesus came to be born of a virgin as Isaiah prophesied that “the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel” (7:14) which Matthew (1:23) also quotes in his gospel. Immanuel means “God with us” as the Word of God came to be dwell in the flesh (John 1:1, 14). By dying for sinners (John 3:16), “God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Rom 5:8) even while still enemies of God (Rom 5:10).

Jesus’ Purpose

Jesus was never taken by force, nor was He taken against His will because He said “No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father” (John 10:18) and “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep” (John 10:11) for “just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep” (John 10:15). Jesus had been trying to tell His “disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised” (Matt 16:21) but they just didn’t understand it…at least yet. Yes, it was the greatest travesty of justice ever but Jesus knew this would happen as the week before Calvary He said “See, we are going up to Jerusalem. And the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and scribes, and they will condemn him to death” (Matt 20:18).

Jesus Begins His Ministry

The Bible tells us that “Jesus, when he began his ministry, was about thirty years of age, being the son (as was supposed) of Joseph, the son of Heli” (Luke 3:23) which was the same age that David became king of Israel (2nd Sam 5:4) and it was “From that time on Jesus began to preach, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near” (Mark 4:17). This was also the age that those who served in the temple had to be as it was written “From thirty years and upward, even to fifty years old, all who enter the service to do the work in the tent of meeting” (Num 4:3). Since Jesus began His ministry at age thirty and He came preaching for the need for repentance and belief (Mark 1:15), the first thing He spoke when He began His earthly ministry.

Jesus Dies

When Jesus went to the cross to die for sinners, Bible scholars believe He was about age thirty-three and so most Christian scholars agree that Jesus’ ministry lasted 3 & ½ years and since we know He began His earthly ministry at age thirty, He was of the age of thirty-three when He died on the cross. We also know that Luke, although a physician, was also an extraordinarily great historian as he had an eye for finite, minute details with names, places, and dates. A good example is when he wrote that it was “In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar . . . the word of God came to John the son of Zechariah in the wilderness” (Luke 3:1-2), which we know is a historical reference of time and of a person and that would be the year A.D. 29. Knowing that Jesus’ ministry lasted about 3 & ½ years, Jesus must have died at age thirty-three or so, but not less than thirty-three.

Now What?

Now that you know when Jesus began His ministry and ended His earthly ministry, what will you do with this knowledge? Jesus tells us that “Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends” (John 15:13) and that’s exactly what Jesus did and in fact, He died for the wicked and ungodly who were natural enemies of God (Rom 5:8. 10). You will either die in your sins or you will have them placed on Christ on your behalf. He reminds all who refuse to repent that “unless you repent, you will all likewise perish” (Luke 13:3).

Conclusion

Today, I plead with you to repent and believe in Christ or you will have the wrath of God abiding on you forever (John 3:36b) and your fate is beyond human description (Rev 21:8) so today, while there is still time, put your trust in Christ (2nd Cor 6:2) while it is still called “today.”

Article by Jack Wellman

Jack Wellman is Pastor of the Mulvane Brethren Church in Mulvane Kansas. Jack is also the Senior Writer at What Christians Want To Know whose mission is to equip, encourage, and energize Christians and to address questions about the believer’s daily walk with God and the Bible. You can follow Jack on Google Plus or check out his book Teaching Children the Gospel available on Amazon.