World English Bible · Under Rome
Revelation 15
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I saw another great and marvelous sign in : seven having the seven last plagues, for in them is finished. I saw something like a sea of glass mixed with , and those who overcame , his , and the number of his name, standing on the sea of glass, having harps of . They sang the song of , the , and the song of , saying, "Great and marvelous are your works, , ! and true are your ways, you King of the nations. Who wouldn't fear you, , and your name? For you only are . For all the nations will come and before you. For your acts have been ." After these things I looked, and of the of the in was opened. The seven who had the seven plagues came out, clothed with pure, bright linen, and wearing golden sashes around their chests. One of gave to the seven seven golden bowls full of , who lives and ever. was filled with smoke from the of and from his . No one was able to enter into until the seven plagues of the seven would be finished.
A public domain modern English translation, free to read and share. Notes and cards are EKLI’s own.
The world at this moment · Under Rome, 63 BC to AD 100 ›
Judea as a client kingdom and then a province. Roads, garrisons, taxes, crucifixion, and a common Greek language that let a message travel the empire faster than any before it.
- Rome
- The republic tears itself apart in civil war and comes out as an empire under Augustus. What follows is two centuries of relative peace across the whole Mediterranean, enforced by legions and paid for by taxes, with safe roads and safe sea lanes. Every one of Paul's journeys depends on that.
- Judea
- Governed first through Herod the Great, a client king of enormous ability and enormous brutality who rebuilds the temple into one of the wonders of the ancient world, then directly by Roman prefects. Crucifixion is the standard penalty for sedition and is used often and publicly.
- The wider world
- Greek is spoken from Spain to Syria, which means a letter written in Corinth can be read in Rome without translation. Jewish communities already exist in most major cities, which is where the first Christian preaching lands. Mystery religions, imperial cult, and philosophy all compete in the same marketplace.
- Further afield
- The Han dynasty rules China and trades silk westward along routes that touch the Roman world at second hand. In Britain the Roman conquest begins within a decade of the crucifixion.