Are We Following The Roman Empire’s Path of Decline? Part 3: An Increased Desire to Live off the State

A Widening Gap Between Rich and Poor

In Parts I and II, I explained historian Edward Gibbon’s first three reasons why the Roman Empire fell. The first involved the decline of art, which really showed a deeper problem – an increased immorality that led to the taste of the good and the beautiful to drastically decline. The second involved a fixation with entertainment and luxury, where the Empire’s priorities were focused on the shallow rather than what really mattered. We will now look at Gibbon’s fourth reason for the Roman Empire’s decline and eventual fall: An Increased Desire to Live Off the State. 

During the fall of the Roman Empire, there was an increasing gap between the very rich and the very poor, which led to the desire and the necessity to live off the state. As one author noted, “The disparity in wealth and power between the elite and the masses became increasingly stark, contributing to social unrest and instability.” Gibbon also observed that “many citizens, particularly the poor, increasingly relied on government handouts and benefits, rather than contributing to the economy.” 

This unhealthy environment that developed in the Roman Empire was both a problem of corruption and macroeconomics. When powerful elites run the country and do not consider the needs of the common people, this is the recipe for destruction. The goal is not economic flourishing but giving more power, more wealth, and more comfort to those in charge. The period of Pax Romana was a two-hundred-year period of economic flourishing. There were certainly evil emperors during that period, but they cared enough that the common man had the opportunity to succeed financially. As time went on, that changed, leading to economic peril.

God Desires Human Economic Flourishing

A strong empire or nation has a strong economy. A nation cannot be strong without one. God’s design is that when individuals, businesses, and nations use his means of productivity, there will be prosperity. If we work hard, good fruit comes to the one who is productive. The book of Proverbs makes this clear. As King Solomon wrote, “A slack hand causes poverty, but the hand of the diligent makes rich. He who gathers in summer is a prudent son, but he who sleeps in harvest is a son who brings shame” (Proverbs 10:4-5). In another place, he wrote, “The blessing of the Lord makes rich, and he adds no sorrow with it” (Proverbs 10:22). Providing further instruction, he wrote, “In all toil there is profit, but mere talk tends only to poverty” (Proverbs 14:23).

The apostle Paul also encouraged hard work, “Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need” (Ephesians 4:28) and “It is the hard-working farmer who ought to have the first share of the crops” (2 Timothy 2:6). It is the one that works hard that deserves an income, “For the Scripture says, “You shall not muzzle an ox when it treads out the grain,” and, “The laborer deserves his wages” (1 Timothy 5:18). But for the one unwilling to work the apostle Paul gives a blunt rebuke, “If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat” (2 Thessalonians 3:10). The Word of God commends hard work and the profit that comes from it, and those that have gain are to be generous (1 Timothy 6:17-19). 

When a nation full of individuals follows these principles of work and the gain it brings, an empire or nation will be strong. The conditions exist where everyone who works hard can achieve economic prosperity. When the government leaders create this environment, then it is the responsibility of the populace to work hard and make a living. 

Government Overreach in the Roman Empire

But if those in charge tax their citizens heavily and produce an excessive amount of money, expanding the reach of government, they are creating a rotten economic environment. Excessive taxation creates a gap between the elite governing class and the citizens. Excessive taxation enriches and expands the government beyond the means given by God. Scripture tells us that the basic responsibility of government is to punish evil and to promote good (Romans 13:1-7). While it needs to produce a certain amount of revenue through taxes to provide necessary services (i.e., roads and bridges) for the populace, it is not to enrich itself that inevitably makes the citizens poorer.  

Another downfall of governments getting too powerful is that they begin to persecute those who oppose them. This happened in the Roman Empire during the period of the Pax Romana. The government set up an environment for strong economic progress, but where that group of leaders consistently went beyond their bounds was in persecuting Christians. 

The later Roman Empire under Constantine allowed religious liberty with the Edict of Milan in 313 AD. But it did not create a strong economic environment, rather giving itself too much power through excessive taxation, and the common citizens were left behind. This created the gap between the elite government class and the average Roman citizens. 

Government Overreach in America

What we have seen in America over the last number of decades is excessive taxation and excessive money printing. The taxation that we have today is far more than what the colonists went to war over during the Revolutionary War. To be a middle-class American has been to live like a king and queen when the economy was strong. The strong middle class started in the first half of the twentieth century. The economy was strong enough that the average citizen was able to prosper economically through hard work. This was until taxation started to increase and the money printing got out of control. The middle class has gotten progressively poorer. 

Inflation has also been rising. This occurs at a macro level when too much money is in the system, and the value of money drops. When the dollar’s value goes down, everything becomes more expensive. As the saying goes, it is “too much money chasing too few goods.” This means is that the demand for products and services is not able to keep up with the supply of those goods and services. 

Since 2020, inflation has increased 24% in the US. This has increased the power of the central government and made the population more dependent on economic assistance. In the present environment, it is not only the poor that are receiving money but also much of the middle class. Over time, America has become more and more a welfare state, with much of the populace relying on government handouts to make ends meet. An elite class has formed (government, large businesses, media, etc.) that continues to enrich itself.  

When this environment exists, an animosity is built between the rich and the poor. This is Gibbon’s point concerning the economic climate that was created in the Roman Empire. The economic conditions created by the government were bad, which increased the gap between the rich and the poor, leading to greater animosity. The rich look down upon the poor, while the poor disdain the rich. This creates a lack of unity, constant infighting, and the conflict can easily turn physical. Obviously, this was an environment where the Roman Empire was not going to thrive. 

When the common people believe that the government leadership is not for them, but exists solely for its own benefit, societal division and instability are unavoidable. 

The Gap After Failed American Leadership

This rotten economic situation, this gap between the very rich and the very poor, created the conditions for the Roman Empire to crumble. We see this in our own country. Over the years, ordinary Americans have become increasingly frustrated with the oligarchy that has formed over them. This is why Trump won the 2016 election. The people were angry at the elite establishment. This is also why he won again in 2024. But even with Trump in office, the establishment is still there. There is still great tension between the establishment and the common American. Truly, the elite establishment in America, operating for decades now, has governed for its own sake and not for the sake of the American people. This tension has led to strong disunity, and even when the tension lessens, it still remains. 

The Need for Economic Correction

We need to learn from history. We need to learn that the gap between the elite class and the common people, which was created by the elite class, leads to a nation’s end.

We don’t know what the end will look like. But the decline that we have already experienced is likely to continue unless something drastically changes. The only way there can be change is if the government operates for the people. And if they are for the people, this will be seen in the creation of an economic environment where everyone who works hard can and will prosper.