CaBsar (Grsecized ILaiaap ; hence the Germ, title KcAter^ Bussian Czar\ a name assumed by or conferred upon all the Boman emperors after Julius Cnsar (who is said to have been so named fhnn his having been bom by a surgical operation, ceeftw). In this way
C^ESAREA 8
it became a sort of title, like Pheraoh, and, as such, is usuallj applied to the emperors in ttie New Testa- ment, as the sovereign of Judssa (John zix, 16 ; Acts XTii, 7), without their distinctive proper names. See also AuouBTUS. It was to him that tlie Jews paid trib- ute (Matt xzii, 17 ; Luke xz, 22; xxiii, 2), and to him that such Jews as were cives Romam had the right of appeal (Acts XXV, 11; xxvi,82; xxviii, 19) ; in which case, if their cause was a criminal one, they were sent to Rome (Acts xxv, 12, 21 ; oomp. Pliny, Epp. x, 97), where was the court of the emperor (Phil, iv, 22). The Cssars mentioned in the New Testament are Au- gustus (Luke ii, 1), Tiberius (Luke iii, 1; xx, 22), CUmdius (Acts xi, 28), Nero (AcU xxv, 8); Caligula, who succeeded Tiberius, is not mentioned. See each On Phil, iv, 22, see Household.
Ceesare'a OLaurdpiuij In the Targum I'^^iD'^p), the name of several cities under the Roman rule, given to them in compliment of some of the emperors ; espe- cially of two important towns in Palestine.
1. COSABiA PALiBSTlNJE (Kaiffoptta Tf TIoXoiffTl'
vi}c)i or **Cssarea of Palestine" (so called to distin- guish it from the other Cesarea), or simply Csssarea (without addition, firom its eminence as the Roman metropolis of Palestine, and the residence of the procu- rator). The numerous passages in which it occurs rActsviii,40; ix, 80 ; x, 1, 24 ; xi,ll; xii,19; xvlii, 22; xxi, 8, 16; xxiii, 28, 83; xxv, 1, 4, 6, 18) show how important a place this city occupies in the Acts of the Apostles. It was situated on the coast of Pales- tine, on the line of the great road from Tyre to Egypt, and about halfway between Joppa and Dora (Josephus, Wcar^ i, 21, 5). The Journey of the apostle Peter from Joppa (Acts X, 24) occupied rather more than a day. On the other hand, Paul's journey fh>m Ptolemais (Acts xxi, 8) was accomplished within the day. The distance from Jerusalem is stated by Josephus in round numbers as 600 stadia (^Ani, xiii, 11, 2; War, i, 8, 5). The Jerusalem Itinerary gives 8ixt}'-eight miles ( Wes- teling, p. 600 ; see Robinson, Bib. Ret, iii, 45). It has been ascertained, however, that there was a shorter road by Aniipatrii than that which is given in the Itinerary — a point of some importance in reference to the night-journey of Acts xxiii. See Antipatris. The actual distance in a direct line is forty-seven Eng- lish miles.
In Strabo*s time there was on this point of the coast merely a town called ** Strato*s Tower," with a land- ing-place (frp6(ropfAov cx<^^)» whereas, in the time of Tacitus, Cssafea is spoken of as being the head of Ju- dsa O'JudaBS caput," Tac Hkt, ii, 79). It was in this interval that the city was built by Herod the Great (Josephus, Ant, xv, 9, 6 ; Strabo, xvi, 2, 27 ; Pliny, ff. N. v, 15). The work was, in fact, accom- plished in ten years. The utmost care and expense were lavished on the building of Caesarea. It was a proud monument of the reign of Herod, who named it in honor of the Emperor Augustus. The full name was CcBtarea Sebatte (Katedptia £«/3a9r^, Joseph. Ant, xvi, 5, 1). It was sometimes called CcBsarea Slratomt, and sometimes also (from its position) MariUme Catarea (vapaki&Q, Joseph. WaVy iii, 9, 1, or jy ivi Qakarrg, ib, vii, 1, 8). The magnificence of Cssarea is described in detail by Josephus in two places (Ant, xv, 9 ; War, i, 21). The chief fsatures were connected with the harbor (itself called £c/3aor^c ^H^V^^ on coins and by Josephus, Ant. xvii, 5, 1), which was equal in size to the Pineus of Athens. The whole coast of Palestine may be said to be extremely inhospitable, exposed as it is to the fury of the western storms, with no natural port affording adequate shelter to the vessels resorting to it. To remedy this defect, Herod, who, though an arbitrary tyrant, did much for the improvement of Ju- djBa, set about erecting, at immense cost and labor, one of the most stupendous works of antiquity. He threw out a semicircular mole, which protected the
C^SAREA
port of C—uw en the south and west, laavliig only a suflicient opening for vesseb to enter from the nordi; so tliat, within the enclosed space, a fleet might ride at all weathers in perfect security. This breakwater was constructed of immense blocks of stone broui^ from a great distance, and sunk to the depth of 20£itb- oms in the sea. Broad landing-wharves surrounded the harbor, and conspicuous from the sea was a tem- ple dedicated to Ciesar and to Rome, and contaming colossal statues of the emperor and the imperial city. Besides this, Herod added a theatre and an amphithe- atre; and, when the whole was finished, he fixed his residence there, and thus elevated the city to the rank of the civil and militaxy capital of Judna, which rank it continued to ei\joy as long as the country remained a province of the Roman empire (see Dr. Mansford, Script, GauUeer), Vespasian was first declared em- peror at Casar^ and he raised it to the rank of a Ro- man '*colony"(q. v.), granting it, first, exemption from the capitation tax, and afterward from the ground tax- es (the real jus ItaKetm), The place was, however, inhabited chiefly by Gentiles, though some thousands of Jews lived in it (Joseph. War, iii, 9, 1 ; ill, 14 ; AnL XX, 8, 7 ; Life, 11). It seems there was a standing dispute between the Jewish and Gentile inhabitants of Cnsarea to which of them the city really belonged. The former claimed it as having been built by a Jew, meaning King Herod; the latter admitted this, but contended that he built it for them, and not for Jews, seeing that he had filled it with statues and temples of thehr gods, which the latter abominated (Joseph. War, ii, 18, 7). This quarrel sometimes came to blows, and eventually the matter was referred to the Emperor Nero, whose decision in favor of the Gentiles, and the behavior of the latter thereupon, gave deep ofl^nce to the Jews generally, and afforded occasion for the first outbreaks, which led to the war with the Romans (Jo- seph. War, ii, 14). One of the first acts of that war was the massacre of all the Jewish inhabitants by the Gentiles to the number of 20,000 (ib, ii, 18, 1). This city was the head-quarters of one of the Roman co- horts (q. V.) in Palestine.