Augustus Caesar: The Roman Empire
The general setting in the New Testament is the Roman Empire. This is the world that the writings of the New Testament are born in and interact with. The Roman Empire provides a political, economic, societal, and religious framework for the New Testament’s claims, language, structure, and scenes.
The Roman Empire was being run by Augustus Caesar around the time of Jesus’ birth, around 5 or 6 B.C. Luke 2:1 tells us, “And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be taxed.” Caesar is one of the earliest Romans that the New Testament mentions. Mark 15:25-39 mentions the provincial governor and Acts 10 mentions the Roman soldiers.
Augustus Caesar was known as a hero to the Roman Empire,
after he defeated the enemies of Rome and conquered the surrounding area. Others saw him as a dictator only spreading the borders in an attempt to make himself wealthier by expanding trade routes and acquiring slaves during the military conquests; his new basis for Roman government primarily benefitted the wealthy. Caesar also granted many benefits to those who served in his militia, such as discharge payments, full Roman citizenship, and land grants, on top of their full monthly salaries.
Jesus was born to a family from Nazareth, which at the time was a village near the Sea of Galilee that was under the rule of Augustus Caesar.
The Synoptics suggest that Jesus’ ministry takes place in the area of Galilee, with the primary city of Capernaum. In Matthew 4:13, Jesus leaves his home in Nazareth to find a new one in Capernaum. Mark 3:8 reports that people from Judea, Jerusalem, Idumea, beyond the Jordan, and regions of Tyre and Sidon, all come to hear Jesus. All four Gospels agree that Jesus spent the last days of his life in and around Jerusalem. Jerusalem is one city that is particularly important in the wider context of the New Testament times. Jesus was betrayed, crucified, and buried in Jerusalem. The earliest Church and activity of the apostles was centered in Jerusalem, and it was from Jerusalem where the expansion of Christianity started to spread. The New Testament records this spread of Christianity through the Greek speaking domains of the Roman Empire.
The Roman Empire was being run by Augustus Caesar around the time of Jesus’ birth, around 5 or 6 B.C. Luke 2:1 tells us, “And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be taxed.” Caesar is one of the earliest Romans that the New Testament mentions. Mark 15:25-39 mentions the provincial governor and Acts 10 mentions the Roman soldiers.
Augustus Caesar was known as a hero to the Roman Empire,
after he defeated the enemies of Rome and conquered the surrounding area. Others saw him as a dictator only spreading the borders in an attempt to make himself wealthier by expanding trade routes and acquiring slaves during the military conquests; his new basis for Roman government primarily benefitted the wealthy. Caesar also granted many benefits to those who served in his militia, such as discharge payments, full Roman citizenship, and land grants, on top of their full monthly salaries.
Jesus was born to a family from Nazareth, which at the time was a village near the Sea of Galilee that was under the rule of Augustus Caesar.
The Synoptics suggest that Jesus’ ministry takes place in the area of Galilee, with the primary city of Capernaum. In Matthew 4:13, Jesus leaves his home in Nazareth to find a new one in Capernaum. Mark 3:8 reports that people from Judea, Jerusalem, Idumea, beyond the Jordan, and regions of Tyre and Sidon, all come to hear Jesus. All four Gospels agree that Jesus spent the last days of his life in and around Jerusalem. Jerusalem is one city that is particularly important in the wider context of the New Testament times. Jesus was betrayed, crucified, and buried in Jerusalem. The earliest Church and activity of the apostles was centered in Jerusalem, and it was from Jerusalem where the expansion of Christianity started to spread. The New Testament records this spread of Christianity through the Greek speaking domains of the Roman Empire.