Christians, along with most other parts of the Jewish ceremonial. By
that time the church itself was mostly Gentile.

_"We" portions_. There are certain passages in the Book of Acts where
the word "we" is used. It is believed that Luke himself, the author of
the book, was present when this pronoun is used.

_The Roman Provincial Government and Army_. The whole New Testament
history takes place within the Roman Empire. There was a petty king in
Judea, subject to Rome, but the real governor was the proconsul or
procurator. These officials were in charge of the various districts of
the Empire and Paul frequently came in contact with them. Paul also came
in contact very frequently with the Roman army, and some of his
strongest illustrations are drawn from that organization. Three legions
were garrisoned in Palestine--the 5th, the 10th, and the 15th. These
legions corresponded to our brigade, mustering about 6,000 infantry and
a detachment of cavalry. The legion was divided into ten companies of
600 men called cohorts. These also had names, and reference is made to
the Italian and the Augustan cohorts. The captain of a cohort was called
a centurion. It is probable that the troops under whose escort Paul went
to Rome were a part of the Praetorian Guard, the emperor's special
soldiers stationed at Rome and rarely sent to the provinces.

{495}

_Prison_. The Roman prison had usually three parts: the outer part,
where the prisoners had light and air; the inner part, shut off by iron
gates and bars, more secure than the outer part; and a dungeon, probably
a place of execution. The sufferings and barbarities of all ancient
prisons were such as would not be allowed to-day.

_Cyprus_. The greatest island of the Eastern Mediterranean. The seat of
government was Paphos, though Salamis, the seaport, was the largest and
most important town. Many Jews were in the island. Copper, which word
comes from Cyprus, was mined there from early time, and in all ancient
history the island was an important place.

_Galatia_ was the name both of an ancient kingdom, and, in the time of
Paul, of a Roman province. There is a difference of opinion as to which
is its meaning in the New Testament. If it is used for the old kingdom
only, the cities of Galatia are in the north central part of Asia Minor;
Ancyra and Tavium are cities not mentioned in the New Testament. If it
is used for the new Roman province, as seems probable to many, the
citi