Paul Before Nero.
When Paul was summoned to appear before the emperor Nero for trial, it was with the near prospect of certain death.The serious nature of the crime charged against him, and the prevailing animosity toward Christians, left little ground for hope of a favorable issue.
Among the Greeks and Romans it was customary to allow an accused person the privilege of employing an advocate to plead in his behalf before courts of justice.By force of argument, by impassioned eloquence, or by entreaties, prayers, and tears, such an advocate often secured a decision in favor of the prisoner or, failing in this, succeeded in mitigating the severity of the sentence.But when Paul was summoned before Nero, no man ventured to act as his counsel or advocate; no friend was at hand even to preserve a record of the charges brought against him, or of the arguments that 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.
The only reliable record of the occasion is given by Paul himself, in his second letter to Timothy."At my first answer," the apostle wrote, "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." 2 Timothy 4:16, 17.
Paul before Nero--how striking the contrast! The haughty monarch before whom the man of God was to answer for his faith, had reached the height of earthly power, authority, and wealth, as well as the lowest depths of crime and iniquity.In power and greatness he stood unrivaled.There were none to question his authority, none to resist his will.Kings laid their crowns at his feet.Powerful armies marched at his command, and the ensigns of his navies 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 bowed in obedience to his mandates.The name of Nero made the world tremble.To incur his displeasure was to lose property, liberty, life;and his frown was more to be dreaded than a pestilence.
Without money, without friends, without counsel, the aged prisoner stood before Nero--the countenance of the emperor bearing the shameful record of the passions that raged within; the face of the accused telling of a heart at peace with God.Paul's experience had been one of poverty, self-denial, and suffering.Notwithstanding constant misrepresentation, reproach, and abuse, by which his enemies had endeavored to intimidate him, he had fearlessly held aloft the standard of the cross.Like his Master, he had been a homeless wanderer, and like Him, he had lived to bless humanity.How could Nero, a capricious, passionate, licentious tyrant, understand or appreciate the character and motives of this son of God?
The vast hall was thronged by an eager, restless crowd that surged and pressed to the front to see and hear all that should take place.The high and the low were there, the rich and the poor, the learned and the ignorant, the proud and the humble, all alike destitute of a true knowledge of the way of life and salvation.
The Jews brought against Paul the old charges of sedition and heresy, and both Jews and Romans accused him of instigating the burning of the city.
While these accusations were urged against him, Paul preserved an unbroken serenity.The people and the judges looked at him in surprise.They had been present at many trials and had looked upon many a criminal, but never had they seen a man wear a look of such holy calmness as did the prisoner before them.The keen eyes of the judges, accustomed to read the countenances of prisoners, searched Paul's face in vain for some evidence of guilt.When he was permitted to speak in his own behalf, all listened with eager interest.
