Macedonia

An ancient kingdom in the edge of classical Greece which became the centre of the Hellenistic empire. Its dominance grew during the reign of Philip II of Macedon (359-336 BC), the father of Alexander the Great (356-323 BC). Alexander went on to conquer, first the rest of Greece and then the whole of the Persian empire. He invaded India in 326 BC. During the time of the New Testament, Macedonia was a Roman province and a man from Macedonia appeared to Paul in a dream. This was the start of Paul's mission in Greece. Philippi was one of the major Macedonian cities in the Roman period.