when relations with the Roman world had further deteriorated. This again would support an earlier rather than later dating of 1 Peter. In fact, the situation presumed by 1 Peter is easy to place throughout the Roman Empire and therefore difficult to pinpoint more precisely on a timeline. Periods of hostility toward Christians, such as that experienced under Domitian, were only intensifications of a more pervasive menace toward foreigners, especially from the East, with their nontraditional religions.