To-day, however, thanks to the researches of Sir William Ramsay, we are in possession

of the facts that reveal the extent of the Galatian Province, and we now know that the

churches founded in Acts 13: and 14: at Antioch, Iconium, Lystra and Derbe, were the

original churches of Galatia. The testimonies of Ptolemy and Tacitus, together with the

evidence provided by the monuments, make it quite clear that it is the larger province of

Galatia, and not the small and original kingdom of Galatia, that is referred to in the N.T.

The two maps given below show the relative positions of the earlier kingdom and the

later province, in relation to the missionary journey of Acts 13: and 14:

We will conclude this account of the Roman Provinces with a note on Egypt, as the

"Granary" of Rome. The corn vessels sailed from Alexandria to Puteoli, occupying

about 12 days on the voyage. In such a vessel Paul sailed from Melita to Puteoli as

recorded in Acts 28: 11-13. The governor of Egypt ranked above all other rulers of

provinces, being styled Praefectus Augustatis;  and it was from Egypt that Herod

obtained supplies of corn during the famine that prevailed in Judæa.

We trust that the reader has caught something of the character and atmosphere of this

extensive empire, in which the gospel was first proclaimed in the days of Augustus and

Tiberius. Anyone who wishes to follow up this study further is recommended to read

"The Church in the Roman Empire" by Sir William Ramsay. In this book the author

seeks to prove that Paul planned his itinerary along the lines of Roman development, and

conceived of the Roman Empire particularly as the first great field for evangelization.

Whatever view one may hold as to the corrections of this theory, it is certainly true that

the trend of the gospel was Westward rather than to the East, and that Paul planted his

footsteps, not in obscure and out-of-the-way places, but in the chief cities and colonies of

the Empire.