Smoky Mountain Bible Institute
(Est. 2009) Lesson #81
Last time we ended
with the martyrdom of Peter and Paul circa 68 AD. I am not sure how big a piece
we can break off of the remaining 1948 years of history but let’s take a bite and
see how much we can chew on in this month of elections and turkey dinners.
Let’s
start with one of the single most significant events in the first century, in the
fall of 70 AD. This was the point at which Rome had had enough of the zealots
and their rebellion and decided to squash this irritating little region and
make an example of them. The troubles started in 66 AD but by fall of 70 AD, under
Tacitus, the Romans had destroyed the 500-year-old second temple. For centuries many historic things and events
were actually dated based on the number of years ‘since the destruction of the
temple in Jerusalem’.
Some
other things going on in the world in the first and second centuries were: Rome
reached its greatest geographical size under Emperor Trajan, who ruled from 98
to 116 AD; Emperor Hadrian built his wall to protect his British colonies from
122 to 127; Afghanistan is first invaded by the Huns around 200 AD; Tacitus
writes his history around 117; Pope Victor the First, Bishop of Rome, is officially
the 15th Pope (but it was not until near the end of his time in 199
that the Roman pontificate claimed the predominate position that it still
claims today); Some of the oldest known Mayan monuments date back to around 168
AD; Ptolemy drew maps of 26 countries around 170 AD; and Rome suffered a great
plague, one of the first on record from 134 to 180 AD.
We
will keep it short this month and next month we will make our way up to around
300 AD. We will also discuss how what we know as the 66 books of the Bible came
together in the first three centuries of Christianity. That will leave us about
1700 years to cover in 2017.
Till next month Pastor Portier
