Soon thereafter Antony arrived in Tarsus, freed those who had been enslaved, and declared Tarsus a “free Roman city.” This status of a “free city” brought many privileges with it, including local law, self-government, and exemption from the heavy provincial taxes. Tarsus still retained its “free city” status when Paul grew up there. Antony returned to Tarsus in 38 B.C. when he had a rendezvous there with the Egyptian queen Cleopatra. It must have been a colorful occasion when she sailed up into the
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