the Week of Proper 28 / Ordinary 33
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Bible Dictionaries
Rome
Bridgeway Bible Dictionary
or Within a hundred years of the rise of Greek power under Alexander the Great (334-331 BC), Rome had begun to overrun colonies of the Greek Empire and form them into outlying provinces of Rome. Rome first came into prominence in the affairs of Palestine when the Roman general Pompey seized control of Jerusalem and brought Judea under Roman control (63 BC).
The Roman Empire
After the assassination of Julius Caesar (44 BC), Rome went through a disastrous time of civil war, political confusion and social turmoil. Thousands of people were poor and unable to find work. There was little law and order, corruption was widespread, and ambitious army commanders were constantly plotting for more power.
Out of this instability and tension there arose a leader who was able firstly to control and then to correct the disorders. In 27 BC he took the name Caesar Augustus and became the first ruler of what became known as the Roman Empire (Luke 2:1). The people held him in such honour that rulers of the Roman Empire after him took his name Caesar as the title of the Emperor (Luke 3:1; Luke 20:22; Acts 17:7; Acts 25:11; Acts 25:25).
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