CHAPTER I.
THE ROMAN EMPIRE AT THE TIME OF THE BIRTH OF CHRIST.
PAGE
The boundaries of the Empire, 3
Its population, strength, and grandeur, ib.
Its orators, poets, and philosophers, 5
The influence of Rome upon the provinces, ib.
The languages most extensively spoken, 6
The moral condition of the Empire, ib.
The influence of the philosophical sects—the Epicureans, the
Stoics, the Academics, and Plato, 7
The influence of the current Polytheism, 9
The state of the Jews—the Pharisees, the Sadducees, and the Essenes, ib.
Preparations for a great Deliverer, and expectation of His appearance, 11