Jesus' "Competition" - Tiberius, the Roman Emperor

Statue of Tiberius

Jesus had lots of competition. When he traveled around Judea and Galilee preaching about the “Kingdom of God,” his listeners had to evaluate this message in the context of their own political realities. As I shared with you in my last entry, the names of Herod the Great and his sons would immediately come to mind, because this powerful man and his family claimed to be “King of the Jews” and he had the power to back up his claims.

But there was another dominant power that people in 1st century Palestine lived under and they must have wondered what this rabbi was talking about when he described the “Kingdom of God.” How did this Kingdom match up with that of Rome?

It’s time for a short history lesson. For several hundred years, Rome had been increasing in power and prestige and expanding its borders throughout the Mediterranean region. While there had been tyrants in Rome when it first emerged as a political power, Roman leaders eventually developed a system of checks and balances that ensured no one would gain absolute control.

But this changed in the century before Jesus’ birth. Julius Caesar became a military hero on the battlefield and, at the height of his military success, he returned to Rome with his army and established himself as emperor. He also encouraged Romans to think of him as a divine ruler.

Opponents had him assassinated in 44 BC and a long and bloody civil war followed. The winner of this civil war was Caesar’s adopted son, Octavian. He took the title “Augustus” (which means “majestic”) and became known as “Caesar Augustus.” Caesar Augustus declared that his adoptive father, Julius, was divine, so this meant that he was the “son of god.” Anywhere you traveled in the Roman Empire during this time, the politically correct answer to the question “Who is the son of god?” was “Caesar Augustus.”

Caesar Augustus also took on a priestly role and became known as pontifex maximus (“chief priest” in Latin). N. T. Wright points out that court poets during this time made Caesar Augustus out to be an emperor who would bring in a “golden age.” By the way, the writers of the American constitution borrowed a phrase from these Roman poets – novus ordo seclorum, “a new order of the ages” – and this appears on the Great Seal of the United States and on our one dollar bill!

Roman coin with Tiberius' image

When Caesar Augustus died in 14 AD, his successor Tiberius worked hard to continue the memory of his predecessor as a divine figure, so he could make the same claims to be the “son of god.” Roman coins in Jesus’ day showed Tiberius on one side as Caesar and on the other side as “chief priest.” When Jewish leaders asked Jesus what to do about paying taxes to Rome and showed him a coin with these two engravings, you can now better appreciate the challenge this presented.

There is no way Jesus could have avoided this “competition.” He was proclaiming the coming of a new kingdom, but any potential new kingdom would be viewed as a threat by Herod and his supporting elites, as well as by Tiberius and his regional political appointees. Like today’s Middle East, Palestine in the 1st century was a cauldron of political movements with loyal supporters of the status quo, diverse oppositional parties, and those who tried to simply survive the harsh character of their life under foreign occupation. Jesus’ claims added new questions to all of this!

I had the chance this week to talk about some of these issues with Michael Card, the composer/writer/biblical scholar, and we discussed how this situation is not unlike what we face today. Jesus was preaching about the “Kingdom of God” and encouraging his followers to find their identity in this “Kingdom.” They had a identity crisis facing them – were they going to worship the “son of god” from Rome (Tiberius) or the powerful regional ruler (Herod the Great and his surviving sons) or this new rabbi Jesus? To whom would they attach their identity?

Jesus made it clear that God the Father wanted his people to identify with his plans, his “Kingdom,” and he told them what this meant. He laid out his radical “kingdom message” that, among other things, included not just the healthy and wealthy, but also the poor and disadvantaged, Gentiles, women, Roman centurions, tax collectors, and people who suffered with sicknesses and blindness. This same invitation has been extended to us!

So What?

• Whether we live in America or Russia or anywhere else, there are many pressures on us to place our identity - our meaning - on some person, some ideology, or some political party; or maybe just on our family or ethnic community. Jesus’ “kingdom message” is to place our primary identity here – as a citizen of the “Kingdom of God.” Any other claims on us, if we are followers of Jesus, simply don’t match up to this!


• What would it mean if we began to live as “Kingdom citizens” and no longer found our primary identity in a political party, a social group, or our professional achievements? Of course we find some comfort (at least at times!) in being identified with the country where we live, but Jesus’ message of the “Kingdom of God” teaches us to lay this identity aside and put our true commitments into building God’s Kingdom “on earth, as it is in heaven.”


• I hope these last few entries have helped you to see the importance of biblical context in understanding biblical content. This study has helped me and I have enjoyed sharing what I learned with you. Your response or comments are welcomed.


• Jesus’ response to the Jewish leaders about paying taxes was brilliant. We need to remember this on April 15 and throughout the year as we pay our government taxes owed and consider our contributions to “Kingdom of God” ministries.

Jesus' "Competition" - Herod the Great

When Jesus began his public ministry and gathered his group of twelve disciples around him, the Gospels tell us that his message was the “good news” of a new kingdom – the Kingdom of God (Matthew 4:23-25; Luke 4:42-44).  What did this mean to people living in first century Palestine?

Herod the Great

If you take a tour of the “Holy Land” today, it is remarkable how often the name of Herod the Great comes up.  Many tourists who come to Israel to learn more about Jesus often are surprised that they hear more about Herod the Great and see evidence of his many incredible building projects.  During Jesus’ time, if anyone was “King of the Jews,” it was Herod!

When the Romans conquered Palestine and seized Jerusalem in 63 BC, lead by their famous general Pompey, they chose to identify local elites who would rule new territories for them and collect taxes on their behalf.  When Pompey was killed several years later and Julius Caesar was assassinated, a civil war erupted and Caesar’s adopted son, Octavian, emerged as the Roman emperor.  

Herod was a shrewd political leader and he seized this opportunity -- choosing to ally himself with the winning side in this Roman civil war -- and was appointed by Octavian as “King of Judea.”  Once the civil war ended and political stability was restored, Herod had all the political backing he needed from Rome and he launched a series of amazing public building projects that clearly established him as the primary political force in Palestine.   Remnants of these remarkable creations tourists are shown when they travel to Israel hoping to experience the “Holy Land” during Jesus’ time.

Herod’s rebuilding of the Temple was clearly one major achievement, designed to firm up his political support among Jewish leaders.  Solomon’s temple, built one thousand years earlier, was now recreated by Herod who employed 1,000 priests as masons and carpenters.  Today only the four retaining walls remain standing, including the Western wall, often called the Wailing Wall.

Masada

In addition, Herod built fortresses, such as Masada and Herodium – both amazing architectural achievements, constructed aquaducts that brought water to Jerusalem, and founded a new port city, Caesarea, on the Mediterranean coast where no city previously stood and where obstacles to building on a barren shore needed to be creatively overcome.

Herod’s career gradually went into decline and, having gained absolute power, the power corrupted him absolutely; like many dictators, he became increasingly paranoid.  Not only did he order the murder of all the babies in Bethlehem in a cruel effort to eliminate a potential new king he had heard about through wise men from the East, he also ordered the execution of his own wife and children.  Following his death at 70 years of age, two of his remaining sons became the rulers of regions in Palestine – Herod Archelaus in Judea and Samaria and Herod Antipas in Galilee.

The story of Herod the Great and his sons is important background to the life of Jesus because when Jesus traveled through Judea and Galilee preaching about a new kingdom, the people knew he was directly competing with Herod who was clearly “King of the Jews.”  Herod rebuilt the Temple – could Jesus match this?  Herod brought peace and stability, at least for the ruling elites – could Jesus do this?

The Kingdom of God that Jesus announced was a threat to Jewish leaders who had become collaborators with their Roman overlords.  Jesus was making clear links to Old Testament prophecies that said when God establishes his Kingdom on earth, the result will be justice, peace (shalom), and the removal of corruption and oppression.  This made them increasingly nervous and fearful that the people would rally behind this new teacher.

Jesus did not start a new political movement. He did preach about the Kingdom of God and taught his followers to put their allegiance, their faith, in God, not in authoritarian political rulers who oppressed the poor and vulnerable.  His was a risky campaign – to declare that a new Kingdom was established and that God, not Herod or the Romans, was the true and only sovereign ruler.

So What?

• Although Jesus’ teaching and commandments to his followers were not designed to create a political movement, Christians throughout history have often suffered for their faith when living under authoritarian rulers.  Dictators, such as Adolf Hitler, Joseph Stalin, and Mao Tse-tung, were threatened because Christians refused to make them the sovereign authority in their lives.  Many followers of Jesus died as a result.  The same is true with today’s dictators.

• Even in our democratic system, followers of Jesus can be viewed as a threat by others because they refuse to “bow down” to political leaders and their fanatical supporters.  If we declare that “Jesus is Lord,” all other claims on our allegiance are limited.

• Our challenge, as followers of Jesus, is to put our confidence in God alone and to reject any personal tendency or push from others to make a political ideology – of the left or the right – the place where we put our hopes.

Foreign Occupation

Caesar Augustus

One of the most important realities that sets the context for Jesus’ life and ministry is the fact that Jews in Palestine in the first century were living under foreign military rule. Palestine was part of the Roman Empire. The powerful presence of military forces and political rules closely tied it to Rome. Rome’s constant demand for more taxation was a feature of Jewish life that Jesus knew very well.

Historical reminder: 150 years out of 2,000 years of Old Testament history, the Jews were a marginalized, powerless people, often caught between hostile and aggressive empires in Egypt, Persia and Greece. The last books in the Old Testament dealt with this region as part of the Persian Empire. The New Testament, which picks up the story of the Jews 400 years later, presupposes the dominating presence of the Romans.

Here are some examples that highlight this Roman dominance in Jesus’ life and New Testament times:

• Luke tells us that Jesus’ birth was connected with the decree by Emperor Augustus “that all the world should be enrolled.”

• Jesus grew up in a land where the propriety of paying taxes to Rome was a live and contentious political and theological issue.

• It was a Roman magistrate who sentenced Jesus to death.

• Jesus’ execution was carried out in a brutal Roman style normally reserved for rebels and political enemies of Rome.

• Paul, a Roman citizen by birth, was a carrier of the gospel throughout the Roman Empire, even to Rome itself, where he was executed.

• The early church faced terrible persecution from Rome, as the Apostle Paul warned would happen.

• Finally, Revelations -- authored by John, one of Jesus’ disciples -- presents an image of the Roman Empire as a seven-headed monster waging war against the people of God!

Siege of Jerusalem by the Romans

The first major encounter Jews had with the Romans occurred in 63 B.C. when the Roman army, under the leadership of Pompey, besieged Jerusalem. After three months, they breached its massive walls, stormed the Temple grounds, slaughtered the priests who continued their worship in the Temple as if no war were underway, and then entered the sacred “Holy of Holies,” an event the Jews refer to as the “Abomination.”

Following the occupation of Palestine, Rome initially granted freedom of religion, but over time “the Imperial Cult of Rome” took over and “No God but Caesar” became the reality of the day.

We need to keep this in mind as we consider Jesus’ life and times. Because those of us in modern North America have never experienced foreign military rule like this, it is hard for us to imagine what it was like and what challenges it presented to people trying hard to eke out a living, pay burdensome taxes, and were now hearing the “gospel of peace (shalom)” from Jesus.

For the people who lived in Palestine, their land had been ruled for 650 years by the empires of Babylon, Persia, Greece and Rome. There was a deep longing for liberation among the Jews, for a king who would break the chains of their oppression and end the occupation. When would God hear their prayers and give them freedom, like God did when their ancestors were slaves in Egypt? When would a new “King David” appear? In this context, how was Jesus’ message heard?

So What?

• As many of you know, I love history and politics – these were my undergraduate majors and I did a doctorate in this field as well.  But that’s not why I am highlighting this facet of Jesus’ life.  My concern is that we often read the Bible without seriously considering the context of the stories we read.  Jesus was a Jew whose life unfolded in turbulent times and he was not oblivious to this reality.  I will try to illustrate the importance of this in the weeks to come.

• It is a joy for me to see new dimensions of the biblical story when I learn more about the world in which Jesus lived. It’s amazing to see how it opens up new (to me) biblical truths in my own, very different context. I hope you have the same experience! I would love to have you share with me some of the insights you gain.