Monument
Bema of Corinth (Judgment Seat)
BEE-muh of KOR-inth · Modern Ancient Corinth, Corinthia, Greece · Also called Bema of Corinth · 37.9051° N, 22.8803° E
A large raised stone platform (the Latin rostra, Greek bema) standing near the center of Corinth's Roman forum, rising roughly 7.5 feet above the pavement and originally faced in marble. This is traditionally identified as the site where "the Jews made a united attack on Paul and brought him before the judgment seat (bema)" before the proconsul Gallio, who dismissed the charges as an internal Jewish religious dispute (Acts 18:12-17).
Archaeology
Excavated by the American School of Classical Studies at Athens as part of its ongoing work in the Corinth forum. The platform's identification as the specific bema of Acts 18 rests on its prominent, central position in the forum and the known Roman practice of provincial governors holding court in a city's main public square — not on an inscription naming it, so the precise identification, while very plausible, is an inference from location and function rather than an epigraphic certainty.
On a modern map
Further reading
Reflect
At this platform, the case against Paul was dismissed and the work went on — what opposition have you been bracing for that may never land?
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