Acts 17

Paul and Silas in Thessalonica

1Now when they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to #ch. 20:4; Phil. 4:16; 1 Thess. 1:1Thessalonica, where there was a synagogue of the Jews. 2And Paul went in, #See ch. 13:5 as was his custom, and on three Sabbath days he reasoned with them #See ch. 8:35from the Scriptures, 3#Luke 24:26, 32 explaining and proving that it was necessary for #See ch. 3:18 the Christ to suffer and #See John 20:9to rise from the dead, and saying, “This Jesus, whom I proclaim to you, is the Christ.” 4And #[1 Thess. 2:1, 2]; See ch. 14:4 some of them were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, as did #ver. 12 a great many of the devout #See John 7:35Greeks and not a few of the leading women. 5#1 Thess. 2:14-16; See ch. 13:50 But the Jews#17:5 Greek Ioudaioi probably refers here to Jewish religious leaders, and others under their influence, in that time; also verse 13 #See ch. 5:17 were jealous, and taking #[Judg. 9:4; 11:3; 2 Chr. 13:7]some wicked men of the rabble, they formed a mob, set the city in an uproar, and attacked the house of Jason, seeking to bring them out to the crowd. 6And when they could not find them, #ch. 16:19-21they dragged Jason and some of the brothers before the city authorities, shouting, “These men who have turned the world upside down have come here also, 7and Jason has received them, and they are all acting against #ch. 16:4; Luke 2:1 the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is #See Luke 23:2another king, Jesus.” 8And the people and the city authorities were disturbed when they heard these things. 9And when they had taken money as security from Jason and the rest, they let them go.

Paul and Silas in Berea

10 # ver. 14; See John 21:23 The brothers#17:10 Or brothers and sisters; also verse 14 immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Berea, and when they arrived they #ver. 2went into the Jewish synagogue. 11Now these Jews were more noble than those in Thessalonica; they received the word with all eagerness, #[Isa. 34:16; John 5:39]examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so. 12#ver. 4 Many of them therefore believed, with not a few Greek #ch. 13:50women of high standing as well as men. 13But when the Jews from Thessalonica learned that the word of God was proclaimed by Paul at Berea also, they came there too, #ver. 8agitating and stirring up the crowds. 14Then the brothers #ver. 10; See Matt. 10:23 immediately sent Paul off on his way to the sea, but Silas and #See ch. 16:1Timothy remained there. 15#[ch. 15:3] Those who conducted Paul brought him as far as #ch. 18:1; 1 Thess. 3:1 Athens, and after receiving a command #ch. 18:5for Silas and Timothy to come to him as soon as possible, they departed.

Paul in Athens

16Now while Paul was waiting for them at Athens, his spirit was #[2 Pet. 2:8] provoked within him as he saw that the city was #[Isa. 2:8]full of idols. 17So #See ch. 13:5he reasoned in the synagogue with the Jews and the devout persons, and in the marketplace every day with those who happened to be there. 18Some of the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers also conversed with him. And some said, #[1 Cor. 4:10] “What does this babbler wish to say?” Others said, “He seems to be a preacher of foreign divinities”—because #See ch. 5:42 he was preaching #ver. 31, 32; ch. 4:2; [1 Cor. 15:12]Jesus and the resurrection. 19And they took him and brought him to #ver. 22; [ver. 34] the Areopagus, saying, “May we know what this #Mark 1:27; [John 7:16; Heb. 13:9]new teaching is that you are presenting? 20For you bring some #1 Pet. 4:4, 12; [Hos. 8:12]strange things to our ears. We wish to know therefore what these things mean.” 21Now all the Athenians and the foreigners who lived there would spend their time in nothing except telling or hearing something new.

Paul Addresses the Areopagus

22So Paul, standing in the midst of the Areopagus, said: “Men of Athens, I perceive that in every way you are very religious. 23For as I passed along and observed the objects of your worship, I found also an altar with this inscription: #[John 4:22; 1 Cor. 15:34] ‘To the unknown god.’ #[John 4:22; 1 Cor. 15:34] What therefore you worship #[ver. 30]as unknown, this I proclaim to you. 24#Isa. 42:5; See ch. 14:15 The God who made the world and everything in it, being #Matt. 11:25; [Deut. 10:14; Ps. 115:16] Lord of heaven and earth, #See ch. 7:48does not live in temples made by man,#17:24 Greek made by hands 25nor is he served by human hands, #Ps. 50:8-12; [1 Chr. 29:14, 16; Job 22:2] as though he needed anything, since he himself #1 Tim. 6:17; James 1:5, 17 gives to all mankind #Gen. 2:7; 7:22; Job 33:4; [Job 27:3; Eccles. 12:7; Zech. 12:1]; See ver. 28life and breath and everything. 26And #[Gen. 3:20; Mal. 2:10] he made from one man every nation of mankind to live #Gen. 11:8; Luke 21:35 on all the face of the earth, #[Job 12:23; 14:5] having determined allotted periods and #Deut. 32:8; [Ps. 74:17]the boundaries of their dwelling place, 27#[ch. 15:17] that they should seek God, #[Job 23:3, 8, 9] and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him. #[Deut. 4:7; Ps. 145:18; Jer. 23:23, 24]; See ch. 14:17Yet he is actually not far from each one of us, 28for

# Job 12:10; Dan. 5:23; [Heb. 2:11] “‘In him we live and move and have our being’;#17:28 Probably from Epimenides of Crete

as even some of #[Titus 1:12]your own poets have said,

“‘For we are indeed his offspring.’#17:28 From Aratus’s poem “Phainomena”

29 # [Luke 3:38; Heb. 12:9] Being then God’s offspring, #Isa. 40:18, 19, 25; 46:5; [Rom. 1:23]we ought not to think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by the art and imagination of man. 30#Eph. 4:18; 1 Pet. 1:14; [ver. 23] The times of ignorance #[Rom. 3:25]; See ch. 14:16 God overlooked, but #[Mark 1:15; Titus 2:11, 12; 1 Pet. 4:3] now he #Mark 6:12commands all people everywhere to repent, 31because he has fixed #Matt. 12:36; Rom. 2:16; 1 Cor. 3:13; 2 Pet. 2:9; 1 John 4:17; [Isa. 2:12] a day on which #2 Tim. 4:8; See ch. 10:42 he will judge the world #Ps. 9:8; 96:13; 98:9; 1 Pet. 2:23; [Rom. 3:6] in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed; and #[John 16:10, 11; Rom. 1:4] of this he has given assurance to all #See ch. 2:24by raising him from the dead.”

32Now when they heard of #Heb. 6:2; See ver. 18 the resurrection of the dead, #[ch. 2:13; 26:8] some mocked. But others said, #ch. 24:25“We will hear you again about this.” 33So Paul went out from their midst. 34But some men joined him and believed, among whom also were Dionysius #ver. 19, 22the Areopagite and a woman named Damaris and others with them.

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