Acts Chapter 17
Paul in Thessalonica
1 They traveled through Amphipolis and Apollonia to Thessalonica. A Jewish synagogue was there. 2 As usual, Paul went in and for three Sabbaths reasoned with them from the scriptures. 3 He showed from predictions that the Messiah had to suffer and arise from the dead, and that, “This Jesus I’m presenting to you is the Messiah.”
4 Some were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas—a good number of God-fearers and prominent women. 5 The Jews got jealous and took some riffraff from the marketplace to form a mob. They set the city in an uproar and assaulted Jason’s house, intending to bring Paul and Silas out to the public assembly. 6 When they didn’t find them, they dragged Jason and some other converts to the city authorities, shouting, “These insurgents against the empire elsewhere have come here too. 7 Jason has welcomed them. They act contrary to Caesar’s decrees, saying there’s another king—Jesus.” 8 That stirred up the crowd and the authorities, 9 who made Jason and the rest post bond, then released them.
Acts 17:1-9
Paul in Berea
10 That night their converts sent Paul and Silas to Berea. When they arrived, they went into the Jews’ synagogue. 11 These Jews were more open-minded than the ones in Thessalonica. They welcomed the message and examined the scriptures daily to check these things out. 12 Many of them believed, together with quite a few prominent Greek men and women.
13 When Jews from Thessalonica heard Paul was presenting God’s message in Berea, they went there, too, and upset the crowds. 14 Right away the converts sent Paul away as far as the sea, but Silas and Timothy stayed. 15 The ones that went with Paul conducted him to Athens and brought back word for Silas and Timothy to join him as soon as they could.
Acts 17:10-15
Paul Goes to Athens
16 While Paul waited for them in Athens, seeing the city full of idols upset him. 17 He reasoned with the Jews and God-fearers in the synagogues and every day with people in the marketplace. 18 Some Epicurean and Stoic philosophers were bantering with him, “What’s this scavenger trying to say?” Others commented, “He seems to be presenting foreign gods” (because he was presenting Jesus and the resurrection).
19 They escorted him to the Areopagus, “Can we know what this new teaching is you’re talking about? 20 You’re bringing some strange things to us. We want to know what they mean.” ( 21 Athenians and foreign visitors typically spent their time telling or hearing something new.)
Acts 17:16-21
Paul’s Sermon on the Areopagus
22 Paul stood up in the Areopagus and said,
“Athenians, I observe that you’re quite religious in every way. 23 As I was looking at your objects of worship, I ran across an altar inscribed, ‘To the Unknown God.’ What I’m presenting to you then is what you worship without knowing him. 24 The God who made the world and everything in it, is LORD of earth and sky; 25 so he doesn’t live in handmade sanctuaries. People don’t serve him as if he needs anything; he gives everybody life, breath, and everything. 26 He made the whole human race with one nature to live all over the world, and appointed their times when and boundaries where they live. 27 People are to look for God if by chance they grope around and find him, though he’s not far from any of us.
Acts 17:22-27
28 We live and move and exist in him, like some of your poets have said,
‘We’re his offspring.’
29 Since we’re God’s offspring, we shouldn’t think of deity as like gold or silver or stone or an image made from human art and imagination. 30 God has overlooked the times of ignorance, but now he tells people everywhere to repent. 31 So he has established a time to judge the world in regard to goodness as measured by the man he’s appointed. He’s given assurance to everybody by resurrecting him.”
32 When they heard “resurrection,” some made fun of it; others said, “We’ll hear you again about this.” 33 So Paul left them. 34 Some listeners joined him and believed. Among them was Dionysius the Areopagite, a woman named Damaris, and some others.
Acts 17:28-34