Thank you for the question on the dating of the New Testament books, “Is the New Testament written before or after the Roman Exile, and does it mention it?”
Many modern Bible scholars and conservative Bible scholars have differing dating of the Gospels while most of Epistles are viewed before the Fall of Jerusalem in 70 CE.
The view expressed by me does not represent other Christians or churches. Here’s my observation or view of the New Testament being written before or after 70 CE.
A. The Gospels.
The Gospel of Matthew, Mark, and Luke were probably written before 70 CE while John was written after 70 CE. My reasoning is that if Matthew, Mark, and Luke were written after 70 CE, the authors would have cited the Fall of Jerusalem as the fulfillment of Jesus’ words by using the past tense instead of the future tense.
Matthew 24 says this, “Jesus left the temple and was walking away when his disciples came up to him to call his attention to its buildings. 2 “Do you see all these things?” he asked. “Truly I tell you, not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be thrown down.” 3 As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately. “Tell us,” they said, “when will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?” (A searchable online Bible in over 150 versions and 50 languages). Bible citations are in the New International Version. See parallel passages in Mark 14:1–5, Luke 21:5–6).
The Gospel of John is written after 70 CE. It is interesting to note that John does not mention the discourse with the disciples on the Temple. Can it be that he doesn’t mention the Temple because it was already in ruins by the time he wrote his letter in about 90 CE or that he felt no need to restate the Temple since the teaching was well known by the followers of Jesus?
Were the Gospel writers eyewitnesses of Jesus’ life? Here are some verses for one’s consideration:
The Apostle John says this in John 15, “When the Advocate comes, whom I will send to you from the Father—the Spirit of truth who goes out from the Father—he will testify about me. 27 And you also must testify, for you have been with me from the beginning” (NIV).
And John 14 says this, “All this I have spoken while still with you. 26 But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you” (NIV).
The Gospel writers are eyewitnesses. It would seem more plausible that the believers wanted to hear or read more about the life of Jesus from the Apostles than to ignore him until some unknown write about someone they never met. It would seem more plausible that Gentiles believers would ask the Apostles to write about the life of Jesus. In Luke’s account by the time he wrote his letter to Theophilus, others have already written about the life of Jesus as eyewitnesses (Lk. 1:1–4). His record is an orderly one from the beginning to the resurrection and ascension of Jesus.
B. The Pauline and General Epistles.
As I think through the Epistles, it appears that the Pauline epistles were written before 70 CE as scholars date the Apostle Paul’s death around 68 CE.
As to the General Epistles, Hebrews, James, I-II Peter, Jude are dated before 70 CE while I, II, III, John and Revelation are written after 70 CE.
Revelations 1:9 states that the Apostle John was on the Island of Patmos. It is likely that John was imprisoned and released between 96–98 CE under Emperor Nerva. John was a very old man at this time and probably the last living 12 Apostles. As one reads the letters of John and Revelations, his letters are not addressed to Jews but to Christians that are facing persecution not from the Jews but from the Romans. The Apostle John does not mention the destruction of Temple in Revelations but a future desecration of a Temple.
Thus the letters written after the Fall of Jerusalem are the Gospel of John, I, II, III, John, Revelations, and possibly Luke.
For more perspectives: