On the 18th of July, AD64, fire broke out in the great city of Rome. The exact location of the beginning sparks of the fire and the cause of the burning of Rome remain unknown. Speculation continues the fire began either in the city’s marketplace or in the more poorly constructed slums of city. Fanned by the winds of summer, flames spread quickly through the dry, wooden structures of the city of the Caesar.

Rome in Flames

The fire seemed to take on a life of its own. For seven nights and six days, the fire meandered through the city, veraciously devouring everything in its path. When the combustion had finally run its course, more than 70% of the city lie in an ashen state of ruin. Ten of the city’s fourteen districts were completely raised to the ground. Hundreds of people died in the fire; tens of thousands left homeless.

It had its beginning in that part of the circus which adjoins the Palatine and Caelian hills, where, amid the shops containing inflammable wares, the conflagration both broke out and instantly became so fierce and so rapid from the wind that it seized in its grasp the entire length of the circus.

Tacitus, Roman historian

Rumors and Reactions

There are few better examples from history of how muddled the truth can become than the stories around the Burning of Rome. Picking through the ashes to find the truth, literally, no one knows for sure how the fire started. Here are some of the best guesses.   1. Nero Started the Fire Roman historian Cassius Dio claimed on several occasions that Nero had always wanted to see Rome burn. “He secretly sent out men who pretended to be drunk and caused them at first to set fire to one or two or even several buildings,” writes Dio. The fire spread quickly and panic ensued. “Here men while assisting their neighbors would learn that their own premises were afire; then others, before reached them that their own houses had caught fire, would be told that they were destroyed.” Most of the early Roman historians agree with Dio. Pliny the Elder, who lived through the fire called the devastation, “Nero’s conflagration.” An unknown poet, who many believe was Seneca, wrote a play in which Nero promised “the city’s buildings must fall to flames set by me.” Suetonius, another Roman historian, says that Nero didn’t even bother hiding that he was behind it.   2. It Was an Accident “It seems unlikely that Nero would have started the great fire,” says historian Eric Varner. “It destroyed his own palace.” Historian Tacitus tends to have agreed. Henry Hurst says that “as many as 100 minor fires broke out in Rome every day.”   3. Christians Started the Fire Nero blamed Christians, a conclusion most believe was simply a maneuver to shift the attention away from himself. But Gerhard Baudy thinks Nero may have been telling the truth. Baudy believes that Christians passed out pamphlets promising that Rome would be reduced to ashes. While he can’t prove such pamphlets existed, he argues Revelation promises destruction through fire. Of course, Revelation was written 30 years after the burning of Rome.   4. We Will Never Know For Sure The Jewish historian Flavius Josephus wrote a short history of Nero but didn’t even talk about the fire. The history of Nero is so filled with bias, according to Josephus, that it is impossible to tell what is true, and it’s no longer worth writing about. “These that have no regard for truth,” said Josephus, “they may write as they please.” But Josephus would not.

While the blaze was still burning, people demanded an explanation. Rumors soon spread that Nero ordered the torching of the city, desiring his own new palace and gardens. Many were telling the tale that while the city was in flames, Nero was on a private stage, strumming a citara (lyre) and singing of the destruction of Troy. Most modern historians do not blame Nero for the burning of Rome. Italy’s capitol was a city of more than a million people. Many homes were wooden or make-shift constructions. A fire in one home could engulf the entire block within moments.

Nero’s Response to Burning of Rome

When the fire broke out, Nero was at his summer palace in Antium, a setting which provided a much cooler night’s sleep. He returned to the city immediately and found the fire approaching his own mansion. He ran about the city the first night without his personal guards directing efforts to quell the spread of the angry flames. For the relief of the homeless, he threw open the Field of Mars, Agrippa’s public buildings, and his own gardens for people to live. Food was brought in from neighboring cities and either given away or dropped in cost to a quarter of its value. While Nero was an evil, uncaring man, he appeared to do what he could to respond to the city’s worst disaster.

But remember the earlier times! When you were first enlightened, you went through great struggles and suffering. 33 Sometimes you were exposed to public reproach and physical abuse. Sometimes you stood alongside people who were being treated in that way. 34 You even shared the sufferings of those who were imprisoned. When people looted your property, you actually welcomed it joyfully, because you knew that you had a better possession, a lasting one.

Hebrews 10:32-34 NASB

Hebrews 10:32-34 NCV

Hebrews 10:32-34 NKJV

Hebrews 10:32-34 ESV

Hebrews 10:32-34 NIV

Hebrews 10:32-34 NLT

Hebrews 10:32-34 MESSAGE

Hebrews 10:32-34 HCSB

Terror and a Scapegoat

National Geographic : Rome in Flames

Imagine for a moment the terror within the city. With no idea of where to go or what to do, people crowded into the streets and country roads or lay in the fields. Some who had lost everything preferred to die even though they could have escaped. Others chose to die because they had lost their loved ones. No one dared fight the flames. Attempts to do so were prevented by menacing, pillaging groups. Some even added to the flames, throwing in their own torches claiming they were under orders to do so.

Nero immediately began to search for a scapegoat. The Emperor found one in Christians, a rather new and obscure religious splinter of the Jewish faith. There was a small following of Christians in the city but their numbers were much smaller than most religions. To appease the masses, Nero had some victims fed to the lions during great public spectacles in the colosseum. To others, he set them on fire so they would understand the depth of their crime. Interestingly, Nero never officially persecuted Christians nor did he condemn them for their faith. He punished them for the fire.

Conclusions

When the dust had settled, a massive rebuilding effort was begun. From the ashes of the fire rose a more brilliant, more spectacular Rome. Marble and stone replaced wood in the building of many structures. Narrow dirt roads were transformed into wider, stone paved roadways. Pedestrian arcades and ample supplies of water lined the streets, hoping to prevent future disasters. The debris from the fire was used to fill the malaria-plagued marsh land, solving one of the city’s longest-running health hazards.

As we bring our thoughts about the travels that Paul made after the close of the book of Acts, here are some points to ponder about the concepts of today’s lesson.

  1. Nero seems to have used Christians as scapegoats to blame for the burning of Rome. Are Christians used as scapegoats for blame today?
  2. How can you respond to persecution by re-affirming your commitment to Christ? How can you honor God through your response to persecution?
  3. What did Jesus mean when He said He was sending us out like sheep among wolves (Matthew 10:16-33)? Does the principle still hold true today?