Acts 17
17
1 Now when they had walked through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they arrived at Thessalonica, where there was a synagogue of the Jews.
2 Then Paul, according to custom, entered to them. And for three Sabbaths he disputed with them about the Scriptures,
3 interpreting and concluding that it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise again from the dead, and that "this is the Jesus Christ, whom I am announcing to you."
4 And some of them believed and were joined to Paul and Silas, and a great number of these were from the worshipers and the Gentiles, and not a few were noble women.
5 But the Jews, being jealous, and joining with certain evildoers among the common men, caused a disturbance, and they stirred up the city. And taking up a position near the house of Jason, they sought to lead them out to the people.
6 And when they had not found them, they dragged Jason and certain brothers to the rulers of the city, crying out: "For these are the ones who have stirred up the city. And they came here,
7 and Jason has received them. And all these men act contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, Jesus."
8 And they incited the people. And the rulers of the city, upon hearing these things,
9 and having received an explanation from Jason and the others, released them.
10 Yet truly, the brothers promptly sent Paul and Silas away by night to Beroea. And when they had arrived, they entered the synagogue of the Jews.
11 But these were more noble than those who were at Thessalonica. They received the Word with all enthusiasm, daily examining the Scriptures to see if these things were so.
12 And indeed, many believed among them, as well as not a few among the honorable Gentile men and women.
13 Then, when the Jews of Thessalonica had realized that the Word of God was also preached by Paul at Beroea, they went there also, stirring up and disturbing the multitude.
14 And then the brothers quickly sent Paul away, so that he might travel by sea. But Silas and Timothy remained there.
15 Then those who were leading Paul brought him as far as Athens. And having received an order from him to Silas and Timothy, that they should come to him quickly, they set out.
16 Now while Paul waited for them at Athens, his spirit was stirred up within him, seeing the city given over to idolatry.
17 And so, he was disputing with the Jews in the synagogue, and with the worshipers, and in public places, throughout each day, with whomever was there.
18 Now certain Epicurean and Stoic philosophers were arguing with him. And some were saying, "What does this sower of the Word want to say?" Yet others were saying, "He seems to be an announcer for new demons." For he was announcing to them Jesus and the Resurrection.
19 And apprehending him, they brought him to the Areopagus, saying: "Are we able to know what this new doctrine is, about which you speak?
20 For you bring certain new ideas to our ears. And so we would like to know what these things mean."
21 (Now all the Athenians, and arriving visitors, were occupying themselves with nothing other than speaking or hearing various new ideas.)
22 But Paul, standing in the middle of the Areopagus, said: "Men of Athens, I perceive that in all things you are rather superstitious.
23 For as I was passing by and noticing your idols, I also found an altar, on which was written: TO THE UNKNOWN GOD. Therefore, what you worship in ignorance, this is what I am preaching to you:
24 the God who made the world and all that is in it, the One who is the Lord of heaven and earth, who does not live in temples made with hands.
25 Neither is he served by the hands of men, as if in need of anything, since it is he who gives to all things life and breath and all else.
26 And he has made, out of one, every family of man: to live upon the face of the entire earth, determining the appointed seasons and the limits of their habitation,
27 so as to seek God, if perhaps they may consider him or find him, though he is not far from each one of us.
28 'For in him we live, and move, and exist.' Just as some of your own poets have said. 'For we are also of his family.'
29 Therefore, since we are of the family of God, we must not consider gold or silver or precious stones, or the engravings of art and of the imagination of man, to be a representation of what is Divine.
30 And indeed, God, having looked down to see the ignorance of these times, has now announced to men that everyone everywhere should do penance.
31 For he has appointed a day on which he will judge the world in equity, through the man whom he has appointed, offering faith to all, by raising him from the dead."
32 And when they had heard about the Resurrection of the dead, indeed, some were derisive, while others said, "We will listen to you about this again."
33 So Paul departed from their midst.
34 Yet truly, certain men, adhering to him, did believe. Among these were also Dionysius the Areopagite, and a woman named Damaris, and others with them.
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Acts 17
17
Thessalonica
1-3They took the road south through Amphipolis and Apollonia to Thessalonica, where there was a community of Jews. Paul went to their meeting place, as he usually did when he came to a town, and for three Sabbaths running he preached to them from the Scriptures. He opened up the texts so they understood what they’d been reading all their lives: that the Messiah absolutely had to be put to death and raised from the dead—there were no other options—and that “this Jesus I’m introducing you to is that Messiah.”
4-5a Some of them were won over and joined ranks with Paul and Silas, among them a great many God-fearing Greeks and a considerable number of women from the aristocracy. But the hard-line Jews became furious over the conversions. Mad with jealousy, they rounded up a bunch of brawlers off the streets and soon had an ugly mob terrorizing the city as they hunted down Paul and Silas.
5b-7 They broke into Jason’s house, thinking that Paul and Silas were there. When they couldn’t find them, they collared Jason and his friends instead and dragged them before the city fathers, yelling hysterically, “These people are out to destroy the world, and now they’ve shown up on our doorstep, attacking everything we hold dear! And Jason is hiding them, these traitors and turncoats who say Jesus is king and Caesar is nothing!”
8-9The city fathers and the crowd of people were totally alarmed by what they heard. They made Jason and his friends post heavy bail and let them go while they investigated the charges.
Berea
10-12That night, under cover of darkness, their friends got Paul and Silas out of town as fast as they could. They sent them to Berea, where they again met with the Jewish community. They were treated a lot better there than in Thessalonica. The Jews received Paul’s message with enthusiasm and met with him daily, examining the Scriptures to see if they supported what he said. A lot of them became believers, including many Greeks who were prominent in the community, women and men of influence.
13-15But it wasn’t long before reports got back to the Thessalonian hard-line Jews that Paul was at it again, preaching the Word of God, this time in Berea. They lost no time responding, and created a mob scene there, too. With the help of his friends, Paul gave them the slip—caught a boat and put out to sea. Silas and Timothy stayed behind. The men who helped Paul escape got him as far as Athens and left him there. Paul sent word back with them to Silas and Timothy: “Come as quickly as you can!”
Athens
16The longer Paul waited in Athens for Silas and Timothy, the angrier he got—all those idols! The city was a junkyard of idols.
17-18He discussed it with the Jews and other like-minded people at their meeting place. And every day he went out on the streets and talked with anyone who happened along. He got to know some of the Epicurean and Stoic intellectuals pretty well through these conversations. Some of them dismissed him with sarcasm: “What a moron!” But others, listening to him go on about Jesus and the resurrection, were intrigued: “That’s a new slant on the gods. Tell us more.”
19-21These people got together and asked him to make a public presentation over at the Areopagus, where things were a little quieter. They said, “This is a new one on us. We’ve never heard anything quite like it. Where did you come up with this anyway? Explain it so we can understand.” Downtown Athens was a great place for gossip. There were always people hanging around, natives and tourists alike, waiting for the latest tidbit on most anything.
22-23So Paul took his stand in the open space at the Areopagus and laid it out for them. “It is plain to see that you Athenians take your religion seriously. When I arrived here the other day, I was fascinated with all the shrines I came across. And then I found one inscribed, to the god nobody knows. I’m here to introduce you to this God so you can worship intelligently, know who you’re dealing with.
24-29“The God who made the world and everything in it, this Master of sky and land, doesn’t live in custom-made shrines or need the human race to run errands for him, as if he couldn’t take care of himself. He makes the creatures; the creatures don’t make him. Starting from scratch, he made the entire human race and made the earth hospitable, with plenty of time and space for living so we could seek after God, and not just grope around in the dark but actually find him. He doesn’t play hide-and-seek with us. He’s not remote; he’s near. We live and move in him, can’t get away from him! One of your poets said it well: ‘We’re the God-created.’ Well, if we are the God-created, it doesn’t make a lot of sense to think we could hire a sculptor to chisel a god out of stone for us, does it?
30-31“God overlooks it as long as you don’t know any better—but that time is past. The unknown is now known, and he’s calling for a radical life-change. He has set a day when the entire human race will be judged and everything set right. And he has already appointed the judge, confirming him before everyone by raising him from the dead.”
32-34At the phrase “raising him from the dead,” the listeners split: Some laughed at him and walked off making jokes; others said, “Let’s do this again. We want to hear more.” But that was it for the day, and Paul left. There were still others, it turned out, who were convinced then and there, and stuck with Paul—among them Dionysius the Areopagite and a woman named Damaris.
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THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson. All rights reserved. Used by permission of NavPress. Represented by Tyndale House Publishers.