The practice of buying, selling, and trading goods is well
attested in both Testaments. Listed among the items of trade in the
Bible are textiles (Ezek. 27:24), metals (1 Kings 9:28; Ezek.
27:13; Rev. 18:12), spices (Jer. 6:20; Rev. 18:13), corn (1 Kings
5:11; Ezek. 27:17), animals (1 Kings 10:29), and wine (2 Chron.
2:15; Rev. 18:13).
Old
Testament
Palestine
rests in a strategic position between Egypt and Mesopotamia. Thus,
major trade routes that predate the biblical writings are found
throughout Palestine. That certain forms of commerce seem to just
appear on the scene in the biblical narrative attests to the
significance of commerce during the OT era. One such incident
involves a caravan of Ishmaelites traveling from Gilead to Egypt
(Gen. 37:25). Although the narrative is primarily interested in
showing how Joseph ended up in Egypt, the reality that Ishmaelites
(later called “Midianites” [Gen. 37:28]) travel at such
great lengths for goods attests to the far-reaching impact of
commerce at that time.
Traveling
by land.
By biblical times, three major north-south highways crossed
Palestine. On the coast was the international coastal highway,
sometimes referred to as the Way of the Sea (Lat. Via Maris) (see
Isa. 9:1), although this is somewhat of a misnomer. This route began
in Egypt and continued through to Gaza, Aphek, Megiddo, Hazor, Dan,
and Damascus. Mentioned three times in the Bible (Num. 20:17; 21:22;
Deut. 2:27), the King’s Highway began in the Gulf of Aqaba at
Elath (northernmost point of the Red Sea) and ran north to Damascus.
A major trade route in ancient times, the road eventually was lined
with fortresses and rebuilt by the Roman emperor Trajan during the
second century AD. The third major road was interregional but not
international. This central interregional route ran from Shechem in
the north to Beersheba in the south, making stops in Shiloh, Bethel,
Ramah, Jerusalem, Bethlehem, and Hebron along the way.
The
indication that Solomon had “seven hundred wives of royal birth
and three hundred concubines” (1 Kings 11:3) evidences
various lines of commerce, both regionally and internationally.
Marriage, particularly for kings, was arranged often for strategic
purposes. One way to formalize an agreement of peace, safe passage,
or commerce agreements was to offer a daughter in marriage. Solomon’s
wives from Egypt, Moab, Ammon, Edom, Sidon, and Hittite areas
(1 Kings 11:1) probably served both political and economic
functions.
Traveling
by sea.
Although travel and trade by water (rivers and sea) cannot be ruled
out, particularly in Egypt, the most significant commercial endeavors
in the OT concern the main trade routes through Palestine. However,
numerous examples of maritime commerce are evidenced in the OT. Among
the most interesting examples of maritime commerce are the ships of
Solomon, which would return intermittently with “gold, silver
and ivory, and apes and baboons” (1 Kings 10:22). Despite
the admonition given to the Israelite kings (Deut. 17:15–20),
Solomon acquired horses and chariots from Egypt (1 Kings
10:28–29) by way of Kue (cf. Cilicia in the southeast of
present-day Turkey). Thus, trade appeared to be international by both
land and sea (cf. Gen. 37:25–28; 1 Kings 10:15; Isa. 23:8;
Ezek. 27).
Revelation.
The centralized geographical orientation of Palestine ensured that it
had a unique role in the commercial trade of the ancient Near
East. Perhaps this is why God gave specific revelation to Israel that
applied to commercial affairs. The exhortation to “use honest
scales and honest weights” when conducting business would have
demonstrated the integrity of both Israel and Israel’s God
(Lev. 19:35–36).
New
Testament
The
conquests of Alexander the Great catalyzed trade relationships
between West and East (c. fourth century BC). Yet it would not be
until the Roman consolidation of power in the western Mediterranean
(Third Punic War, 149–146 BC) that commerce was greatly
improved. The two-century period of peace, referred to as the Pax
Romana (cf. Philo, Embassy 47; Plutarch, Mor. 317B), was one of the
abiding legacies of the emperor Augustus (r. 27 BC–AD 14).
Among the positive outcomes of Augustus’s rule were economic
prosperity, improved communications, and stabilized government. The
growing network of Roman roads and strict regulation on the seas
improved the quality and conditions of travel between locations, thus
improving communications and commercial opportunity throughout the
empire (cf. Pliny the Elder, Nat. 14.1.2).
Contributing
to the development of commerce was the creation of a fully monetized
economy throughout the Roman Empire. Although bartering continued to
function, coinage had come into heavy usage after and on account of
the policies of Alexander the Great. Strabo even goes so far as to
mention that the lack of the use of coinage was a characteristic of
barbarism (Geogr. 7.5.5).
Merchants
include shippers, entrepreneurs, and their agents, who traveled about
making contracts and supervising the shipment of goods. Although the
typical source of income for an aristocrat was agriculture, the
enticement of potential profits of commerce led some to engage in the
merchant trade or appoint their slaves to do so. Jesus seems to
allude to the latter practice in Matthew’s Gospel when he tells
a parable of a master who goes on a long journey and expects his
servants to handle his affairs (Matt. 25:14–27). A slave might
be entrusted with a message or a business transaction abroad. Thus,
it would not have been uncommon to see a slave traveling and handling
his master’s business. Perhaps this gives insight into
Onesimus, the slave whom Paul encounters, who belongs to Philemon
(see Philem. 10–18).
Due
to slow travel times, most foods were not transported very far. But
the high demand for grain grew the commerce industry from a generally
localized phenomenon to an international operation. Aside from the
well-documented import/export of grain, items such as wine, dried
fruits, spices, and other luxury items were shipped longer distances.
Commerce was undertaken by both land and sea.
Traveling
by land.
Nothing like the massive infrastructure of modern nations existed in
antiquity. Yet, by the time of the NT, Roman roads made shipping and
land travel more efficient and possible than ever before. The extent
of these road systems expanded from modern-day Scotland to the
Euphrates and provided strategic value for the empire but also
profoundly revolutionized commerce and travel. Many of these roads
are still in use. Even with the improved conditions of the road
systems, however, land commerce was slow and costly. Most commercial
traffic, therefore, was localized. Maritime commercial enterprise,
however, allowed for quicker, more economical shipping.
There
were two principal land trade routes in the Roman world. First, the
Appian Way (Lat. Via Appia) ran south from Rome to Capua, crossing
Italy and extending to Brundisium on the Adriatic coast. Stretches of
this road were traversed by Paul and his companions as they went to
Rome (Acts 28:15–16). The second, the Egnatian Way (Lat. Via
Egnatia), begins in Dyrrachium and spans across Macedonia and
eventually to Byzantium (Istanbul). A stretch of Paul’s second
and third missionary journeys would have used this path as he
traveled to Thessalonica (cf. Acts 17:1).
To
the east, in Asia Minor (present-day Turkey), the well-traveled
east-west roadway was known as the Common Way. Anyone familiar with
Paul’s missionary journeys will recognize some of the stops
along the Common Way: Ephesus, Laodicea, Pisidian Antioch, Iconium,
and Tarsus (to name a few).
Traveling
by sea.
The presence of maritime commerce is well documented in the NT.
Virtually no travel industry existed in its own right; rather, travel
followed the established trade routes. If one wished to travel by
sea, one sought a cargo vessel heading to the appropriate locale.
Thus, when the NT records sea travel, it is in the context of
commerce ships (cf. Acts 27:38). Most ships stayed close to land and
ventured between ports (cf. 20:13–15; 21:1–8; 27:2),
although if the prevailing western winds could be utilized, a large
ship would take to the open sea.
Although
commerce was not an industry of the elite (cf. Cicero, Off.
1.150–151; Homer, Od. 8.14ff.), the importance of maritime
trade cannot be overlooked. This industry provided a way to
redistribute essential resources and goods throughout the Roman
world, potentially eliminating temporary shortages. Both Athens and
Rome depended highly upon imports of grain from Egypt to feed their
urban population and maintain armies. In fact, much of the large
commercial travel on the Mediterranean was undertaken to supply grain
to Rome. The book of Acts mentions two such grain ships from
Alexandria (27:6, 38; 28:11).
Large-scale
sea commerce could transport vast amounts of goods between locations.
Acts mentions 276 persons traveling on a grain ship destined for Rome
(27:37). Likewise, Josephus records his ill-fated journey to Rome on
a ship carrying 600 passengers (Life 15). This number of passengers
provides some insight into the size of these sea vessels and the
amount of cargo that could be carried. It is thought that an
Alexandrian commerce ship could be up to two hundred feet long.
There
were two principal maritime trade routes in the Roman world. First,
the sea route from Puteoli (southeast of Rome) to Alexandria was used
by merchant ships that took advantage of the prevailing winds on the
Mediterranean as they traveled to Egypt for grain. This passage, of
nearly one thousand nautical miles, could be made in less than two
weeks. Conversely, the journey back could take up to three months and
followed the Palestinian coast north, passing several significant
ports: Lydda, Joppa, Caesarea, Ptolemais, Tyre, Sidon, and Antioch.
Although
Roman peace ushered in an era of safer travel by land and by sea,
maritime transit remained quite dangerous. Paul is recorded to have
undergone four shipwrecks (see Acts 27:39–44; 2 Cor.
11:25–26). Josephus records his own journey to Rome “through
a great number of hazards, by sea” (Life 14). Weather patterns
and sea conditions could change quickly, and it was generally
acknowledged that certain times of the year were better for traveling
(Cod. theod. 13.9.3.3; Tacitus, Hist. 4.81; Acts 27:9–12; cf.
2 Tim. 4:13). Nevertheless, the Roman imperium offered generous
incentives to merchants who risked the season and brought supplies of
grain to Rome from Egypt (Suetonius, Claud. 18–19; Cassius Dio,
Hist. 60.11). Such a ship provided the context for the apostle Paul’s
journey to Rome, which ended in shipwreck and the loss of the grain
product, but remarkably without any loss of life (see Acts 27:13–44).
Trade
associations.
Trade associations of various kinds existed in the ancient world.
Such a group consisted of merchants or artisans who shared a common
trade. These groups typically exerted no political, social, or
economic influence. Rather, they existed to protect the merchants and
artisans and their economic interests. Such was the case when the
artisans of Ephesus incited a riot over the actions of Paul and his
companions when they preached against the idolatry of Artemis worship
(Acts 19:26). The statement that “all Asia and the world”
worship Artemis (19:27) certainly is hyperbolic; yet the
pervasiveness of the Artemis cult is recorded in other sources
(Pausanias, Descr. 4.31.8; Strabo, Geogr. 4.1.5) and suggests that
the artisans who fashioned these silver shrines made good money in
the local economy.
Likewise,
the bronze trade from Corinth is well documented in antiquity (e.g.,
Vitruvius, De arch. 8.41; Pliny the Elder, Nat. 34.6). Bronze
was used to produce various goods: bowls, jewelry, and
sound-enhancing vessels for the theater at Corinth. The latter may be
what Paul alludes to when he writes of a “resounding gong”
(1 Cor. 13:1). The recognition of the beauty and value of
Corinthian bronze resulted in it being sought after by other markets.
Pliny the Elder reports, “There has been a wonderful mania
among many people for possessing this metal” (Nat. 34.6).
Located on the Greek Peloponnesus, Corinth was in a strategic
position to distribute its goods throughout the Roman Empire. It was
to this port city that Paul came and spent significant time planting
a church (Acts 18:1, 18).
