Jesus and Caesar—there are a number of striking similarities between these historical figures, and some differences. We will cover 10 of them. The Priene calendar inscription sparked on a renewal of Caesar studies in relation to the Christian gospel when it was first discovered in Anatolia (1899). In this inscription, Caesar Augustus’s birthday is considered good news in a sacred context: “The birthday of the emperor god opened up for the world a series of good tidings in his favor” (Ernst Käsemann, Romans, 1980:7; cf. Orientis Graeci Inscriptiones Selectae II.458.40–41).
The message of Jesus, of course, is also good news—the gospel. Here are ten comparisons between Caesar’s imperial rule and the message about Jesus Christ.
10 Comparisons Between Imperial Ideology and Christian Gospel
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- As the son of the deified Julius, Augustus is son of God/
Jesus is both son of David and son of God (Rom 1:3–4).
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- Caesar is Lord and deity/
Jesus is Lord and the image of God (1 Cor 8:4–6; 2 Cor 4:4; Phil 2:6–10).
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- The emperor in the imperial cult is worshipped/
This is considered idolatry by Christ’s followers (1 Thess 1:9–10). Jesus is to be venerated, prayed to, and confessed (Phil 2:9–10; 1 Cor 1:2; Rom 10:9–13).
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- The emperor is the savior of the ancient world/
Jesus is Savior of the world (Phil 3:20; Titus 2:13).
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- The world is under the control of imperial Rome/
All things are to be placed under the control of Jesus, and the believers’ citizenship is in heaven (1 Cor 15:24–28; Phil 3:20–21).
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- Good news involves the birth of Augustus and a new era/
Good news involves the birth of Jesus the Messiah, his death and resurrection, and the new era he brings (Luke 2:10–11; Rom 1:2–4; 1 Cor 15:1–4).
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- All nations are brought into unification under imperial rule/
In Christ, all peoples, Jews and gentiles together, are one (Gal 3:28; Col 3:11; 1 Cor 12:13).
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- The Roman empire establishes peace in the world, the Pax Romana/
The peace of Rome is illusive and fleeting (1 Thess 5:3); Jesus provides true peace (Luke 2:10–14; John 14:27 cf. 1 Thess 5:23).
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- Rebels and criminals were executed and crucified under Roman rule/
Jesus’s crucifixion was vindicated by God—he rose from the dead. The instrument of death, punishment, and weakness, is turned upside down to be the instrument of power, wisdom, and salvation from sin through Christ (1 Cor 1:18–24; 2:2, 6–9; Gal 1:4).
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- Caesar and Roman empire was sovereign under Jupiter and the gods/
The God of Israel is sovereign and God’s kingdom reigns forever through Christ (1 Cor 15:24–28; 1 Thess 2:12; Rom 16:26).*
Allegiance to Caesar and Christ
Another comparison has to do with the level of commitment the followers of Caesar give to this emperor, and commitment to Jesus. An inscription from Paphlagonia (in north-central Anatolia/Asia Minor) provides an example of swearing allegiance to Caesar Augustus:
“I swear by Zeus, Earth, Sun, all the gods [and] goddesses, and by Augustus himself that I will be loyal to Caesar Augustus and his children and descendants for all the time of my [life], in word, deed and thought, considering as friends whomever they consider so, and reckoning as enemies whomsoever they themselves judge to be so; and that in their interests I shall spare neither body nor soul nor life nor children, but in every way for those things that pertain to them I shall endure every danger; and that if I see or hear anything hostile to them being either said or planned or carried out, this I will reveal and shall be the enemy of [the man] who is saying or planning or doing any of these things. And whomsoever they themselves may judge to be their enemies, these I will pursue and defend them against, by land and sea, by sword and steel. But if I do anything contrary to this [oath] or do not conform to the letter with the oath I swore, I myself bring down on myself and my body, soul and life, and on my children and all my family all that belongs to me utter and utter destruction down to my every last connection [and] all my descendants.”**
This type of loyalty reflects a total commitment to Caesar. Such oaths, if read by early Christ followers, may have challenged their own faith to reflect a similar allegiance to Jesus, minus the violence towards enemies. Such commitments ended up clashing with Roman emperors persecuting Christians in later centuries.
Persecution of Jews and Christians
The emperors of Rome who lived during the days of Jesus and his disciples in the Book of Acts included the Caesars Augustus, Tiberius, Gaius Caligula, Claudius, and Nero. They are also known in history as the Julio-Claudian emperors—their dynasty started with Julius Caesar, who adopted Octavius (Augustus).
Punishment on Jewish people took place in the days of emperors Tiberius and Claudius. Tiberius banished Jews from Rome in 19 CE (Tacitus Annals 2.85; Josephus, Antiquities, 18:3, 5). During Claudius’s reign, he did not permit Jews to assemble (Cassius Dio Hist. Rom. 60.6.6). Then he apparently banished Jews from Rome on account of a disturbance instigated by a person named “Chrestus,” a name that may refer to Christ (Suetonius, Claud. 25). Many think this to be a misspelling of Christ. In other words, this banishment probably targeted Jews who proclaimed Christ in Rome. This banishment included a married couple named Aquila and Priscilla, who befriended Paul in Corinth (Acts 18:1–3).
An emperor-instigated persecution against Christians did not happen until the days of Nero (64 CE; Tacitus, Annals 15.44). Nero found a scapegoat with Christians whom he blamed for a fire in Rome. According to church traditions, both Peter and Paul were martyred under Nero.
Good News of Caesar and Christ
The good news related to other emperors beside Augustus included, for example:
- Vespasian’s military success as a general, which is seen as divinely providential (Josephus, Jewish Wars, 143–44).
- The accession of Vespasian to the imperial power, which is celebrated with sacrifices (Jewish Wars 618; cf. 4.656).
- Likewise, good news is tied to Prince Titus who brings down a revolt (Jewish Wars 503).
- Philo likewise speaks of the accession of Gaius Caligula to imperial power as good news (Embassy to Gaius [Legat.] 231).
- Differently, there is good news regarding Tiberius’s death! The good news is due to Tiberius’s oppressive behavior towards his nobles (Antiquities 228–29).
In a far humbler setting, there is good news of Jesus’s birth, the Messiah and Lord. Angels deliver glad tidings to the shepherds that in the city of David, a savior is born, who is Christ the Lord (Luke 2:10–11). Early Messianic beliefs are rooted in Jewish prophetic Scripture, not imperialism. The good news comes full circle from Jesus as the future king of Israel, to Jesus himself proclaiming God’s kingdom and repentance, and to Jesus’s death and resurrection. His disciples proclaim good news about Jesus as Messiah, son of God, Lord, and that he rose again from the dead. Jesus’s kingdom is one that overcomes sin, Satan, and worldly non-god powers.
Notes
* These points, with certain alterations, are derived from Longenecker and Still, Thinking Through Paul, 337–38.
** Inscriptiones Latinae Selectae 8781, reprinted in Longenecker and Still, Thinking Through Paul, 339.
On Caesar and the good news, see further, Ulrich Becker, “Gospel, Evangelize, Evangelist,” New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology, ed. Colin Brown (Grand Rapids: Zondervan/Regency Reference Library, 1976) 2:108. Adolf Deissmann, Light from the Ancient East, 366–367. Gerhard Friedrich, Theological Dictionary of the New Testament, 2.722–25. Otto Michel, “Evangelium,” Reallexikon für Antike und Christentum, ed. Theodor Klauser (Stuttgart: Anton Hiersemann), VI:1107–60 (1107–1108). J. H. Moulton and G. Milligan, Vocabulary of the Greek Testament, 259. B. J. Oropeza, “The Gospel According Paul: Over A Hundred Years of Interpretation.” Religions 14 (2024) 1-45. Celas Spicq, Theological Lexicon of the New Testament (tr. James Ernest; Peabody: Hendrikson, 1994), 2.84. Gerhard Strecker, Exegetical Dictionary of the New Testament, ed. Horst Balz and Gerhard Schneider (Edinburgh: T.&T. Clark, 1990), 2:71. Peter Stuhlmacher, Das Paulinische Evangelium: I. Vorgeschichte (Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprect, 1968), 196–206. Graham Twelftree, The Gospel According to Paul (Eugene: Cascade, 2019), 34–35.
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