Chapter 30—Paul Before Nero
When Paul was summoned to appear before the emperor for his
trial, it was with the near prospect of certain death. The aggravated
nature of the crime charged against him, and the prevailing animosity
toward the Christians, left little ground for hope of a favorable issue.
It was the practice among the Greeks and Romans to allow an
accused person an advocate to present his case in a court of justice,
and to plead in his behalf. By force of argument, by his impassioned
eloquence, or by entreaties, prayers, and tears, such an advocate would
often secure a decision in favor of the prisoner, or failing in this, would
mitigate the severity of his sentence. But no man ventured to act as
Paul’s counsel or advocate; no friend was at hand, even to preserve a
record of the charges brought against him by his accusers, or of the
arguments which he urged in his own defense. Among the Christians
at Rome, there was not one who came forward to stand by him in that
trying hour.
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The only record of the occasion is given in the words of Paul
himself, in the second letter to Timothy: “At my first answer no man
stood with me, but all men forsook me; I pray God that it may not be
laid to their charge. Notwithstanding, the Lord stood with me, and
strengthened me; that by me the preaching might be fully known, and
that all the Gentiles might hear; and I was delivered out of the mouth
of the lion.”
Paul before Nero—how striking the contrast! The very height
of earthly power, authority, and wealth, as well as the lowest depths
of crime and iniquity, had been reached by the haughty monarch
before whom the man of God answered for his faith. In his power and
greatness, Nero stood unrivaled, unapproached. There were none to
question his authority, none to resist his will. The kings of the earth
laid their crowns at his feet. The most powerful armies marched at his
command. The ensigns of his navies upon the seas betokened victory.
His statue was set up in the halls of justice, and the decrees of senators
and the decisions of judges were but the echo of his will. Millions
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