Acts 17
1 After passing through Amphipolis and Apollonia, Paul and Silas came to Thessalonica. Here the Jews had a synagogue;
Now when they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where there was a synagogue of the Jews.
2 and, following his usual custom, Paul joined them, and for three Sabbaths addressed them, drawing his arguments from the scriptures.
And according to his custom Paul went in among them, and for three sabbath-days discoursed to them from the scriptures;
3 He laid before them and explained that the Christ must undergo suffering and rise from the dead; and ‘It is this man,’ he declared, ‘who is the Christ – this Jesus about whom I am telling you.’
opening them and shewing, that the Messiah was to suffer and rise again from the dead: and that this is the Christ even, Jesus, whom, said he, I preach unto you.
4 Some of the people were convinced, and threw in their lot with Paul and Silas, as did also a large body of Greeks who were accustomed to join in the Jewish services, and a great number of leading women.
And some of them believed and joined themselves to Paul and Silas, and a great number of the devout Greeks, and of the women of distinction not a few.
5 But the Jewish leaders, becoming jealous, engaged some worthless fellows from the streets, and, getting a mob together, kept the city in an uproar. They attacked Jason’s house, with the intention of bringing Paul and Silas before the Popular Assembly;
But the unbelieving Jews being filled with envy, collected some loose profligate fellows, and making a tumult set all the city in an uproar: and assaulting Jason's house, they sought for them in order to bring them out to the populace.
6 and, not finding them there, they proceeded to drag Jason and some of the Lord’s followers before the city magistrates, shouting out, ‘These men, who have turned the world upside down, have now come here,
But not finding them, they dragged Jason and some of the brethren to the rulers of the city, crying out, these men that have turned the world upside down,
7 and have been harboured by Jason! They are all defying the decrees of the Emperor. They say that someone else is king – a man called Jesus!’
are come hither also, and Jason has privately received them. And they all act contrary to the decrees of Cesar, saying, there is another king, one Jesus.
8 On hearing this, the people and the city magistrates were much concerned;
And they alarmed the people, and the rulers of the city upon hearing these things:
9 and, before letting them go, they took bail from Jason and the others.
but they taking security of Jason and the rest, let them go.
10 That very night the followers sent Paul and Silas off to Beroea; and on reaching that place, they went to the Jewish synagogue.
And the brethren immediately sent away Paul and Silas by night to Berea: who, when they were come thither, went into the synagogue of the Jews.
11 These Jews of Beroea were better disposed than those in Thessalonica, for they welcomed the message with great readiness, and daily examined the scriptures to see if what was said was true.
These were more ingenuous than those at Thessalonica; for they received the word with all readiness of mind, searching the scriptures daily, whether these things were so.
12 As a consequence, many of them became believers in Christ, besides a considerable number of Greek women of position, and of men also.
And therefore many of them believed: and of the Grecian women of quality, and of men likewise not a few.
13 But, when the Jewish leaders in Thessalonica found out that God’s message had been delivered by Paul at Beroea, they came there too, exciting and disturbing the minds of the people.
But when the Jews of Thessalonica knew that the word of God was preached by Paul at Berea, they came thither also, to stir up the people.
14 The followers immediately arranged for Paul to go away to the coast, but both Silas and Timothy stayed behind in Beroea.
Then the brethren immediately sent away Paul towards the sea: but Silas and Timothy remained there.
15 The friends who escorted Paul took him as far as Athens, and, after receiving a message for Silas and Timothy to join him as quickly as possible, they started on their return.
And they that conducted Paul attended him to Athens: and receiving an order to Silas and Timothy, to come to him as soon as possible, they departed.
16 While Paul was waiting for them at Athens, his heart was stirred at seeing the whole city full of idols.
Now while Paul was waiting for them at Athens, his Spirit was greatly moved, when he saw the city wholly given up to idolatry.
17 So he argued in the synagogue with the Jews and with those who joined in their worship, as well as daily in the public Square with those who happened to be there.
He therefore disputed in the synagogue with the Jews and other devout persons on the sabbath-day, and with whomsoever he met in public every day.
18 Among others, some Epicurean and Stoic Philosophers joined issue with him. Some asked ‘What is this prater wanting to make out?’, while others said ‘He seems to be a preacher of foreign Deities.’ (This was because he was telling the good news about Jesus and the resurrection).
But some of the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers encountered him; and some said, What would this babler say? and others, He seemeth to be a proclaimer of foreign deities: because he preached to them Jesus and the resurrection.
19 So they laid hold of him and took him to the Court of Areopagus. ‘May we hear,’ they asked, ‘what new teaching this is which you are giving?
And they took and brought him to the Areopagus, and said, May we know what this new doctrine is, of which thou speakest?
20 For you are bringing some strange things to our notice, and we should like to know what they mean.’
For thou bringest strange things to our ears; we would therefore know what these things mean.
21 (All Athenians and the foreigners staying in the city found no time for anything else but telling, or listening to, the last new thing.)
(Now all the Athenians, and strangers sojourning among them, spent their time in nothing else, but to tell or to hear something new.)
22 So Paul took his stand in the middle of the Court, and said – ‘People of Athens, on every hand I see signs of your being very devout.
Then Paul stood up in the midst of the Areopagus and said, Ye men of Athens, I perceive that you are indeed over-much religious:
23 For as I was going about, looking at your sacred shrines, I came upon an altar with this inscription – “To an Unknown God.” What, therefore, you worship in ignorance, that I am now proclaiming to you.
for as I was passing along, and looking at what ye worshipped, I found an altar on which there was inscribed, "To the unknown God." Whom therefore ye worship unknown, Him do I declare unto you.
24 The God who made the world and all things that are in it – he, Lord as he is of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by hands,
The God that made the world and all things therein, being lord of heaven and earth dwelleth not in temples made with hands:
25 neither do human hands minister to his wants, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives, to all, life, and breath, and all things.
nor is He served by the hands of men, as needing any thing: for He giveth to all life, and breath, and all things;
26 He made all races of the earth’s surface – fixing a time for their rise and fall, and the limits of their settlements –
and hath made of one blood every nation of men to dwell upon all the face of the earth, having determined the seasons before-appointed them, and the bounds of their habitation;
27 That they might search for God, if by any means they might feel their way to him and find him. And yet he is not really far from any one of us;
that they might seek the Lord, if possibly they might trace Him, and find Him: though indeed He is not far from every one of us.
28 for in him we live and move and are. To use the words of some of your own poets – “His offspring, too, are we.”
For in Him we live and move, and exist; as some also of your own poets have said, "For we his offspring are."
29 Therefore, as the offspring of God, we must not think that the Deity has any resemblance to anything made of gold, or silver, or stone – a work of human art and imagination.
Being then the offspring of God, we ought not to imagine that the Deity is like to gold, or silver, or stone, carved by the art and device of man.
30 True, God looked with indulgence on the days of people’s ignorance, but now he is announcing to everyone everywhere the need for repentance,
Wherefore though God overlooked the times of this ignorance, He now requireth all men every where to repent.
31 because he has fixed a day on which he intends to judge the world with justice, by a man whom he has appointed – and of this he has given all people a pledge by raising this man from the dead.’
Because He hath fixed a day, in which He will judge the world in righteousness, by that man whom He hath appointed thereto; having given assurance of it to all men, by raising Him from the dead.
32 On hearing of a resurrection of the dead, some began jeering, but others said that they wanted to hear what he had to say about that another time.
And when they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some laughed at it: and others said, We will hear thee again concerning this matter.
33 And so Paul left the Court.
So Paul went out of the assembly.
34 There were, however, some people who joined him, and became believers in Christ. Among them were Dionysius, a member of the Court of Areopagus, a woman named Damaris, and several others.
Some however adhered to him, and believed: among whom was Dionysius the Areopagite, and a woman named Damaris, and others with them.
