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 493 Christians at Rome there was not one who came forward to stand by him in that trying hour.

Det var blandt grækerne og romerne skik at indrømme en anklaget ret til at benytte en sagfører til at tale hans sag for domstolen. Ved kraftige argumenter, ved lidenskabelig veltalenhed eller ved bønner, tryglen og tårer lykkedes det ofte en sådan talsmand at skaffe en afgørelse, der faldt ud til gunst for fangen, eller hvis dette ikke lykkedes, kunne fangen måske opnå en mildere dom. Men da Paulus blev fremstillet for Nero, vovede ingen at tale til hans forsvar. Ingen ven var til stede for dog at kunne bevare en redegørelse for de anklager, der var rejst imod ham, eller af de beviser, han selv fremførte til sit forsvar. Ikke en eneste af de kristne i Rom stod frem for at stå ham bi i denne prøvelsens time.