There were two reasons Jesus (c. 6 B.C.–C. A.D. 30) was feared by Palestine’s leaders. First, as an advocate of the poor, he was an outspoken critic of the privileged as well as of Palestine’s oppressive Roman rulers. (Palestine was part of the Roman province of Syria during the lifetime of Jesus.) Jesus openly accused the ruling class of hypocrisy and injustices. Second, some feared that if Jesus was the Messiah, he would lead a revolution. So the governors viewed him and his teachings as a threat to their authority.