Bible Dictionaries
Province

Holman Bible Dictionary

A Roman political region. During New Testament times there were three types of provinces. Imperial districts were governed directly by the emperor. Senatorial provinces answered to the senate. A special type province were those composed of rugged terrain or newly conquered people. These demanded more strict control and were under the control of an imperial procurator. Judea was a special province because the Jews so fiercely hated the Roman domination.

Israel practiced a type of provincial system during Ahab's reign (1 Kings 20:14-15 ). Later, the Babylonians and Persians used such districts in Palestine (Esther 4:11 ). The Romans refined the system dramatically and used it to maintain control over their vast empire. See Government; Rome.