The Life of Jesus in Harmony |
Index
Tiberius
TIBERIUS (14-37 AD) The Emperor Tiberius was the son of Livia, the empress,
by a previous
marriage. Though an able soldier, his dour personality did not impress
Augustus. For his part Tiberius resented the shabby manner in which he was treated, in
particular by being forced to
divorce his beloved Vipsania to marry Augustus' adulterous daughter Julia. Tiberius'
reign was marred by a glut of treason trials. In 26 AD, at the age of 67, he
was persuaded by Sejanus, the sinister chief of the praetorian guard, to retire
to his luxurious villa on the island of Capri, near the bay of Naples. According
to the scandalous stories repeated by the writer Suetonius, the emperor
indulged himself with orgies and sadistic displays, and rarely ventured back to
mainland
Italy.
In 31 AD the treachery of Sejanus was uncovered and he was summarily
executed. In either 30 or 33 AD,
Jesus was
crucified under Sejanus' protégé,
Pontius Pilate, prefect of
Judea, a fact which was known to the historian, Tacitus.