Service is not always a virtue. It can be a drudgery, or an enslavement if not physical or legal, then economic. But Paul inverted this meaning to illustrate the greater commitment of the believer to God, a virtue that levels social divisions and asserts a broader community of faith. This chapter examines the ways that Shakespeare adopts or reshapes Paul’s use of service elevating it as a community virtue where one serves another, often toward no gain for oneself in order to support a greater good. Two plays illustrate this focus of Shakespeare’s, King Lear where service, though more poignant, is more brittle and precarious, and Cymbeline, a play that revels in the necessity of collective service to establish an enduring peace.

Chapter 9 surveys the biblical exempla that appear in the most example-packed section of the work, the speeches made by the narrative character Josephus before the walls of Jerusalem to his Jewish comrades (De Excidio 5.15–16). This chapter most clearly illustrates Pseudo-Hegesippus’ hermeneutical ingenuity and intensive use of biblical exempla, while also showing how he infused the examples he drew from the Jewish Scriptures (the Christian Old Testament) with not only Roman but also overtly Christian ideology.

The chapter examines political corruption, i.e. embezzlement and extortion, and explores material aspects of forgery with regard to the close connection of the scribae with public documentation. It discusses accountability and the oath of due diligence and, as a result, public perception of the scribae in light of accusations of corruption and abuse. It highlights the profiteering character of the post and discusses examples of scribal enrichment and its consequences for the individuals' social mobility.