I found Rome a city of bricks and left it a city of marble.
Augustus
We romped around Rome for the last few days of our tour. We had reached the heart of the Roman empire, a city of eminent emperors and striking structures, where the arteries of imperial roads joined. The city has layers of occupation from numerous eras from before the Roman Republic to the Roman Empire to the Renaissance to modern times.
Caesar Augustus transformed the Republic into the Empire. After years of civil wars in Rome, he ended the squabbles and ushered in an era devoid of large-scale wars called the Pax Romana (Roman Peace). His adopted father, Julius Caesar, was deified upon death, which gave Augustus the title the Son of the Divine. He transformed the political as well as the architectural landscape. Later emperors built upon his foundation.
We had been following the Apostle Paul since his shipwreck on Malta. He was under arrest in Rome for two years before trial. While not documented in the Bible, he was released after that and journeyed around a couple more years before being arrested again. This time the trial did not go so well and he was beheaded. He had preached that Jesus was the Messiah, the true bringer of peace and Son of the God. Preaching about Jesus in that world was very controversial, as it is today.
Perhaps someday I’ll write more details about Rome. During Augustus’ day, there was a little, insignificant territory in the province of Syria: the land of Israel. I’ve written much about it in the past and I have more to write again…