The Roman Empire and the New Testament: An Essential Guide

by Warren Carter

Publisher:

Abingdon Press

, 2010

Overview

An indispensable introduction to Roman society, culture, law, politics, religion, and daily life as they relate to the study of the New Testament.The Roman Empire formed the central context in which the New Testament was written. Anyone who wishes to understand the New Testament texts must become familiar with the political, economic, societal, cultural, and religious aspects of Roman rule. Much of the New Testament deals with enabling its readers to negotiate, in an array of different manners, this pervasive imperial context. This book will help the reader see how social structures and daily practices in the Roman world illumine so much of the content of the New Testament message. For example, to grasp what Paul was saying about food offered to idols one must understand that temples in the Roman world were not “churches,” and that they functioned as political, economic, and gastronomic centers, whose religious dealings were embedded within these other functions.Brief in presentation yet broad in scope, The Roman Empire and the New Testament: An Essential Guide will introduce students to the information and ideas essential to coming to grips with the world in which early Christianity was born.

Contents

Top Highlights

“Paul was dead, probably beheaded in Rome by the emperor Nero! His appeal to and trust in the emperor had been misplaced. His submission to the emperor had shown the emperor not to be trustworthy. His appeal resulted in death. The empire did not faithfully represent justice as its propaganda claimed. It was not to be trusted. It opposed God’s purposes and endangered God’s agents.” (source)

“Taxes and rents were usually paid in goods, so a peasant farmer or fisherman literally handed over to elites an estimated 20 to 40 percent of the catch, crop, or herd. To not pay taxes was regarded as rebellion because it refused recognition of Rome’s sovereignty over land, sea, labor, and production. Rome’s military retaliation was inevitable and ruthless.” (source)

“The possibility exists, then, that 1 Peter is encouraging Christian participation in honoring the emperor (including participating in sacrifices) as a socially convenient activity while recognizing that their real commitment is to Christ. Honoring Christ in their hearts (3:15) renders the external, socially compliant actions of sacrifice harmless.” (source)

“The demon’s name is ‘Legion,’ the central unit of Rome’s military. The possessed man’s life is marked by death (5:3); by a lack of control (5:3); unshackled power (5:3-4); and violent destruction (5:5), hardly a flattering picture of Rome’s power.” (source)

“acting contrary to the decrees of the emperor, saying that there is another king named Jesus’ (Acts 17:7).” (source)

Product Details

• Title : The Roman Empire and the New Testament: An Essential Guide
• Author: Carter, Warren
• Publisher: Abingdon Press
• Publication Date: 2010
• ISBN: 9781426724886

About Warren Carter

Warren Carter is the Meinders Professor of New Testament at Phillips Theological Seminary in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He is the author of more than twenty books, including Jesus and the Empire of God, God in the New Testament, The New Testament: Methods and Meanings (with Amy-Jill Levine), Seven Events That Shaped the New Testament World, and Matthew and the Margins.