City
Rome
ROHM · Modern Rome, Italy
Rome is a city of the biblical world.
What is known
- Paul was imprisoned there under house arrest (Acts 28) and wrote several epistles from Roman custody, including Philippians, Colossians, and Philemon
- Traditional site of the martyrdom of both Paul and Peter under Emperor Nero
- Recipient of the Epistle to the Romans, written by Paul before he had ever visited the city
History
- Founded
- Traditional founding date of 753 BC
- Population
- Capital of the Roman Empire, estimated around 1 million residents — the largest city in the ancient world
- Industry
- Seat of imperial government and a massive trade hub receiving goods from across the empire
- Coordinates
- 41.9028° N, 12.4964° E
Rulers and powers
- Emperor Nero — AD 54–68
Archaeology
The Mamertine Prison (Tullianum), an underground chamber near the Roman Forum, has been associated since at least the early medieval period with the imprisonment of Peter and Paul, though this rests on later church tradition rather than firm archaeological or textual proof from the apostolic era. The Catacombs of Rome, including the Catacomb of Callixtus, are vast underground burial networks used by early Christians from the 2nd century onward and provide genuine archaeological evidence of the earliest Christian community in Rome, even though they postdate the New Testament period itself.
Scripture references
- Acts 18:2
- Acts 19:21
- Acts 23:11
- Acts 28:14-16
- Acts 28:30-31
- Romans 1:7
- 2 Timothy 1:17
On a modern map
Further reading
Reflect
Paul kept welcoming visitors and writing letters while under guard in Rome — what limitation are you living with that could still bear fruit?
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