Of Bed and Board: Accommodations in Greco-Roman Times

In the days when the glory of Greece yet lingered and the iron hand of Rome stretched forth to the ends of the earth, men journeyed by sea and by land—merchants with their wares, pilgrims with their prayers, soldiers with their swords, and sages with their scrolls. And as they sojourned, they sought rest and sustenance, even a place to lay their head and break their bread.

Lo, in the cities of the Greeks and the provinces of Rome were inns and guesthouses, humble and grand alike. The pandocheion, as it was called in the tongue of the Greeks, was an abode open to all—traveler and trader, stranger and citizen. And the tabernae diversoriae, spoken in Latin, welcomed the wayfarer with room and meat, though not always with kindness or cleanliness.

Some lodgings were no more than a chamber, small and bare, wherein the weary might repose. Others were grand villas or houses of hospitality, wherein noble guests were received with honor. And there were also the caravanserai of the East, where travelers and their beasts found shelter within walled enclosures, and fires were kindled in the courts for warmth and fellowship.

And it came to pass that food was given as custom demanded, bread and oil, figs and wine, fish from the rivers and olives from the groves. Hospitality was a law among men, both written and unwritten, for even the stranger was to be honored, as it is written, “Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares” (Hebrews 13:2).

But not all hosts were righteous. For some inns were dens of corruption, where coin was prized above mercy, and where the poor were turned away if they could not pay the silver due. Of such places it is said in Proverbs, “He that oppresseth the poor reproacheth his Maker” (Proverbs 14:31).

And yet, in the midst of this world, the Son of Man had not where to lay His head (Matthew 8:20). For He was born in a stable, for there was no room at the inn. And He who created the stars above did sleep beneath their light, wrapped in swaddling clothes, in a manger low and poor.

So let us remember the custom of old—that to shelter the wanderer is a sacred charge, and to give bread to the hungry is to serve the Lord Himself. For He shall say in the day of judgment, “I was a stranger, and ye took Me in” (Matthew 25:35).

Thus were the beds and boards of the ancient world—a mirror of men’s hearts, whether kind or cruel, generous or greedy. And they bear witness to the faith of many and the failings of more, that we may learn wisdom and walk in righteousness in our own time. Blessed be the Lord, who is our rest and our dwelling in every generation.