Acts 17:1-20

Paul and Silas at Thessalonica

17:1 After they traveled through ¹  Amphipolis ²  and Apollonia, ³  they came to Thessalonica, ⁴  where there was a Jewish synagogue. ⁵  17:2 Paul went to the Jews in the synagogue, ⁶  as he customarily did, and on three Sabbath days he addressed ⁷  them from the scriptures, 17:3 explaining and demonstrating ⁸  that the Christ ⁹  had to suffer and to rise from the dead, ¹⁰  saying, ¹¹  “This Jesus I am proclaiming to you is the Christ.” ¹²  17:4 Some of them were persuaded ¹³  and joined Paul and Silas, along with a large group ¹⁴  of God-fearing Greeks ¹⁵  and quite a few ¹⁶  prominent women. 17:5 But the Jews became jealous, ¹⁷  and gathering together some worthless men from the rabble in the marketplace, ¹⁸  they formed a mob ¹⁹  and set the city in an uproar. ²⁰  They attacked Jason’s house, ²¹  trying to find Paul and Silas ²²  to bring them out to the assembly. ²³  17:6 When they did not find them, they dragged ²⁴  Jason and some of the brothers before the city officials, ²⁵  screaming, “These people who have stirred up trouble ²⁶  throughout the world ²⁷  have come here too, 17:7 and ²⁸  Jason has welcomed them as guests! They ²⁹  are all acting against Caesar’s ³⁰  decrees, saying there is another king named ³¹  Jesus!” ³²  17:8 They caused confusion among ³³  the crowd and the city officials ³⁴  who heard these things. 17:9 After ³⁵  the city officials ³⁶  had received bail ³⁷  from Jason and the others, they released them.

Paul and Silas at Berea

17:10 The brothers sent Paul and Silas off to Berea ³⁸  at once, during the night. When they arrived, ³⁹  they went to the Jewish synagogue. ⁴⁰  17:11 These Jews ⁴¹  were more open-minded ⁴²  than those in Thessalonica, ⁴³  for they eagerly ⁴⁴  received ⁴⁵  the message, examining ⁴⁶  the scriptures carefully every day ⁴⁷  to see if these things were so. 17:12 Therefore many of them believed, along with quite a few ⁴⁸  prominent ⁴⁹  Greek women and men. 17:13 But when the Jews from Thessalonica ⁵⁰  heard that Paul had also proclaimed the word of God ⁵¹  in Berea, ⁵²  they came there too, inciting ⁵³  and disturbing ⁵⁴  the crowds. 17:14 Then the brothers sent Paul away to the coast ⁵⁵  at once, but Silas and Timothy remained in Berea. ⁵⁶  17:15 Those who accompanied Paul escorted him as far as Athens, ⁵⁷  and after receiving an order for Silas and Timothy to come to him as soon as possible, they left. ⁵⁸ 

Paul at Athens

17:16 While Paul was waiting for them in Athens, ⁵⁹  his spirit was greatly upset ⁶⁰  because he saw ⁶¹  the city was full of idols. 17:17 So he was addressing ⁶²  the Jews and the God-fearing Gentiles ⁶³  in the synagogue, ⁶⁴  and in the marketplace every day ⁶⁵  those who happened to be there. 17:18 Also some of the Epicurean ⁶⁶  and Stoic ⁶⁷  philosophers were conversing ⁶⁸  with him, and some were asking, ⁶⁹  “What does this foolish babbler ⁷⁰  want to say?” Others said, “He seems to be a proclaimer of foreign gods.” ⁷¹  (They said this because he was proclaiming the good news about Jesus and the resurrection.) ⁷²  17:19 So they took Paul and ⁷³  brought him to the Areopagus, ⁷⁴  saying, “May we know what this new teaching is that you are proclaiming? 17:20 For you are bringing some surprising things ⁷⁵  to our ears, so we want to know what they ⁷⁶  mean.”

[17:1]  ¹ tn BDAG 250 s.v. διοδεύω 1 has “go, travel through” for this verse.

[17:1]  ² sn Amphipolis. The capital city of the southeastern district of Macedonia (BDAG 55 s.v. ᾿Αμφίπολις). It was a military post. From Philippi this was about 33 mi (53 km).

[17:1]  ³ sn Apollonia was a city in Macedonia about 27 mi (43 km) west southwest of Amphipolis.

[17:1]  ⁴ sn Thessalonica (modern Salonica) was a city in Macedonia about 33 mi (53 km) west of Apollonia. It was the capital of Macedonia. The road they traveled over was called the Via Egnatia. It is likely they rode horses, given their condition in Philippi. The implication of v. 1 is that the two previously mentioned cities lacked a synagogue.

[17:1]  ⁵ sn See the note on synagogue in 6:9.

[17:2]  ⁶ tn Grk “he went in to them”; the referent (the Jews in the synagogue) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[17:2]  ⁷ tn Although the word διελέξατο (dielexato; from διαλέγομαι, dialegomai) is frequently translated “reasoned,” “disputed,” or “argued,” this sense comes from its classical meaning where it was used of philosophical disputation, including the Socratic method of questions and answers. However, there does not seem to be contextual evidence for this kind of debate in Acts 17:2. As G. Schrenk (TDNT 2:94-95) points out, “What is at issue is the address which any qualified member of a synagogue might give.” Other examples of this may be found in the NT in Matt 4:23 and Mark 1:21.

[17:3]  ⁸ tn BDAG 772 s.v. παρατίθημι 2.b has “demonstrate, point out” here.

[17:3]  ⁹ tn Or “Messiah”; both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.”

[17:3]  ¹⁰ sn The Christ had to suffer and to rise from the dead. These two points (suffering and resurrection) would have been among the more controversial aspects of Paul’s messianic preaching. The term translated “had to” (δεῖ, dei) shows how divine design and scripture corresponded here.

[17:3]  ¹¹ tn The Greek words used here (καὶ ὅτι, kai {oti, “and that”) mark the switch from indirect to direct discourse. Contemporary English requires the use of an introductory verb of speaking or saying to make this transition.

[17:3]  ¹² tn Or “Messiah”; both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.”

[17:4]  ¹³ tn Or “convinced.”

[17:4]  ¹⁴ tn Or “a large crowd.”

[17:4]  ¹⁵ tn Or “of devout Greeks,” but this is practically a technical term for the category called God-fearers, Gentiles who worshiped the God of Israel and in many cases kept the Mosaic law, but did not take the final step of circumcision necessary to become a proselyte to Judaism. See further K. G. Kuhn, TDNT 6:732-34, 743-44. Luke frequently mentions such people (Acts 13:43, 50; 16:14; 17:17; 18:7).

[17:4]  ¹⁶ tn Grk “not a few”; this use of negation could be misleading to the modern English reader, however, and so has been translated as “quite a few” (which is the actual meaning of the expression).

[17:5]  ¹⁷ tn Grk “becoming jealous.” The participle ζηλώσαντες (zhlwsante") has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style. So elsewhere in Acts (5:17; 7:9; 13:45).

[17:5]  ¹⁸ tn Literally ἀγοραῖος (agoraio") refers to the crowd in the marketplace, although BDAG 14-15 s.v. ἀγοραῖος 1 gives the meaning, by extension, as “rabble.” Such a description is certainly appropriate in this context. L&N 15.127 translates the phrase “worthless men from the streets.”

[17:5]  ¹⁹ tn On this term, which is a NT hapax legomenon, see BDAG 745 s.v. ὀχλοποιέω.

[17:5]  ²⁰ tn BDAG 458 s.v. θορυβέω 1 has “set the city in an uproar, start a riot in the city” for the meaning of ἐθορύβουν (eqoruboun) in this verse.

[17:5]  ²¹ sn The attack took place at Jason’s house because this was probably the location of the new house church.

[17:5]  ²² tn Grk “them”; the referents (Paul and Silas) have been specified in the translation for clarity.

[17:5]  ²³ tn BDAG 223 s.v. δῆμος 2 has “in a Hellenistic city, a convocation of citizens called together for the purpose of transacting official business, popular assembly προάγειν εἰς τὸν δ. Ac 17:5.”

[17:6]  ²⁴ tn See BDAG 977-78 s.v. σύρω on this verb. It was used in everyday speech of dragging in fish by a net, or dragging away someone’s (presumably) dead body (Paul in Acts 14:19).

[17:6]  ²⁵ tn L&N 37.93 defines πολιτάρχης (politarch") as “a public official responsible for administrative matters within a town or city and a member of the ruling council of such a political unit – ‘city official’” (see also BDAG 845 s.v.).

[17:6]  ²⁶ tn Or “rebellion.” BDAG 72 s.v. ἀναστατόω has “disturb, trouble, upset,” but in light of the references in the following verse to political insurrection, “stirred up rebellion” would also be appropriate.

[17:6]  ²⁷ tn Or “the empire.” This was a way of referring to the Roman empire (BDAG 699 s.v. οἰκουμένη 2.b).

[17:7]  ²⁸ tn Grk “whom.” Because of the awkwardness in English of having two relative clauses follow one another (“who have stirred up trouble…whom Jason has welcomed”) the relative pronoun here (“whom”) has been replaced by the conjunction “and,” creating a clause that is grammatically coordinate but logically subordinate in the translation.

[17:7]  ²⁹ tn Grk “and they.” Because of the length of the Greek sentence, the conjunction καί (kai) has not been translated here. Instead a new English sentence is begun.

[17:7]  ³⁰ tn Or “the emperor’s” (“Caesar” is a title for the Roman emperor).

[17:7]  ³¹ tn The word “named” is not in the Greek text, but is supplied for clarity.

[17:7]  ³² sn Acting…saying…Jesus. The charges are serious, involving sedition (Luke 23:2). If the political charges were true, Rome would have to react.

[17:8]  ³³ tn Grk “They troubled the crowd and the city officials”; but this could be understood to mean “they bothered” or “they annoyed.” In reality the Jewish instigators managed to instill doubt and confusion into both the mob and the officials by their false charges of treason. Verse 8 suggests the charges raised again Paul, Silas, Jason, and the others were false.

[17:8]  ³⁴ tn L&N 37.93 defines πολιτάρχης (politarch") as “a public official responsible for administrative matters within a town or city and a member of the ruling council of such a political unit – ‘city official.’”

[17:9]  ³⁵ tn Grk “And after.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, καί (kai) has not been translated here.

[17:9]  ³⁶ tn Grk “they”; the referent (the city officials) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[17:9]  ³⁷ tn That is, “a payment” or “a pledge of security” (BDAG 472 s.v. ἱκανός 1) for which “bail” is the most common contemporary English equivalent.

[17:10]  ³⁸ sn Berea (alternate spelling in NRSV Beroea; Greek Beroia) was a very old city in Macedonia on the river Astraeus about 45 mi (75 km) west of Thessalonica.

[17:10]  ³⁹ tn Grk “who arriving there, went to.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, the relative pronoun (οἵτινες, Joitine") has been left untranslated and a new English sentence begun. The participle παραγενόμενοι (paragenomenoi) has been taken temporally.

[17:10]  ⁴⁰ sn See the note on synagogue in 6:9.

[17:11]  ⁴¹ tn Grk “These”; the referent (the Jews in the synagogue at Berea) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[17:11]  ⁴² tn Or “more willing to learn.” L&N 27.48 and BDAG 404 s.v. εὐγενής 2 both use the term “open-minded” here. The point is that they were more receptive to Paul’s message.

[17:11]  ⁴³ sn Thessalonica was a city in Macedonia (modern Salonica).

[17:11]  ⁴⁴ tn Or “willingly,” “readily”; Grk “with all eagerness.”

[17:11]  ⁴⁵ tn Grk “who received.” Here the relative pronoun (“who”) has been translated as a pronoun (“they”) preceded by a semicolon, which is less awkward in contemporary English than a relative clause at this point.

[17:11]  ⁴⁶ tn This verb (BDAG 66 s.v. ἀνακρίνω 1) refers to careful examination.

[17:11]  ⁴⁷ tn BDAG 437 s.v. ἡμέρα 2.c has “every day” for this phrase in this verse.

[17:12]  ⁴⁸ tn Grk “not a few”; this use of negation could be misleading to the modern English reader, however, and so has been translated as “quite a few” (which is the actual meaning of the expression).

[17:12]  ⁴⁹ tn Or “respected.”

[17:13]  ⁵⁰ sn Thessalonica was a city in Macedonia (modern Salonica).

[17:13]  ⁵¹ tn Grk “that the word of God had also been proclaimed by Paul.” This passive construction has been converted to an active one in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[17:13]  ⁵² sn Berea (alternate spelling in NRSV Beroea; Greek Beroia) was a very old city in Macedonia on the river Astraeus about 45 mi (75 km) from Thessalonica.

[17:13]  ⁵³ tn BDAG 911 s.v. σαλεύω 2 has “incite” for σαλεύοντες (saleuonte") in Acts 17:13.

[17:13]  ⁵⁴ tn Or “stirring up” (BDAG 990-91 s.v. ταράσσω 2). The point is the agitation of the crowds.

[17:14]  ⁵⁵ tn Grk “to the sea.” Here ἕως ἐπὶ τὴν θάλασσαν ({ew" epi thn qalassan) must mean “to the edge of the sea,” that is, “to the coast.” Since there is no mention of Paul taking a ship to Athens, he presumably traveled overland. The journey would have been about 340 mi (550 km).

[17:14]  ⁵⁶ tn Grk “remained there”; the referent (Berea) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[17:15]  ⁵⁷ map For location see JP1 C2; JP2 C2; JP3 C2; JP4 C2.

[17:15]  ⁵⁸ sn They left. See 1 Thess 3:1-2, which shows they went from here to Thessalonica.

[17:16]  ⁵⁹ map For location see JP1 C2; JP2 C2; JP3 C2; JP4 C2.

[17:16]  ⁶⁰ tn Grk “greatly upset within him,” but the words “within him” were not included in the translation because they are redundant in English. See L&N 88.189. The term could also be rendered “infuriated.”

[17:16]  ⁶¹ tn Or “when he saw.” The participle θεωροῦντος (qewrounto") has been translated as a causal adverbial participle; it could also be translated as temporal.

[17:17]  ⁶² tn Although the word διελέξατο (dielexato; from διαλέγομαι, dialegomai) is frequently translated “reasoned,” “disputed,” or “argued,” this sense comes from its classical meaning where it was used of philosophical disputation, including the Socratic method of questions and answers. However, there does not seem to be contextual evidence for this kind of debate in Acts 17:17. As G. Schrenk (TDNT 2:94-95) points out, “What is at issue is the address which any qualified member of a synagogue might give.” Other examples of this may be found in the NT in Matt 4:23 and Mark 1:21.

[17:17]  ⁶³ tn Or “and the devout,” but this is practically a technical term for the category called God-fearers, Gentiles who worshiped the God of Israel and in many cases kept the Mosaic law, but did not take the final step of circumcision necessary to become a proselyte to Judaism. See further K. G. Kuhn, TDNT 6:732-34, 743-44, and the note on the phrase “God-fearing Greeks” in 17:4.

[17:17]  ⁶⁴ sn See the note on synagogue in 6:9.

[17:17]  ⁶⁵ tn BDAG 437 s.v. ἡμέρα 2.c has “every day” for this phrase in this verse.

[17:18]  ⁶⁶ sn An Epicurean was a follower of the philosophy of Epicurus, who founded a school in Athens about 300 b.c. Although the Epicureans saw the aim of life as pleasure, they were not strictly hedonists, because they defined pleasure as the absence of pain. Along with this, they desired the avoidance of trouble and freedom from annoyances. They saw organized religion as evil, especially the belief that the gods punished evildoers in an afterlife. In keeping with this, they were unable to accept Paul’s teaching about the resurrection.

[17:18]  ⁶⁷ sn A Stoic was a follower of the philosophy founded by Zeno (342-270 b.c.), a Phoenician who came to Athens and modified the philosophical system of the Cynics he found there. The Stoics rejected the Epicurean ideal of pleasure, stressing virtue instead. The Stoics emphasized responsibility for voluntary actions and believed risks were worth taking, but thought the actual attainment of virtue was difficult. They also believed in providence.

[17:18]  ⁶⁸ tn BDAG 956 s.v. συμβάλλω 1 has “converse, confer” here.

[17:18]  ⁶⁹ tn Grk “saying.”

[17:18]  ⁷⁰ tn Or “ignorant show-off.” The traditional English translation of σπερμολόγος (spermologo") is given in L&N 33.381 as “foolish babbler.” However, an alternate view is presented in L&N 27.19, “(a figurative extension of meaning of a term based on the practice of birds in picking up seeds) one who acquires bits and pieces of relatively extraneous information and proceeds to pass them off with pretense and show – ‘ignorant show-off, charlatan.’” A similar view is given in BDAG 937 s.v. σπερμολόγος: “in pejorative imagery of persons whose communication lacks sophistication and seems to pick up scraps of information here and there scrapmonger, scavenger…Engl. synonyms include ‘gossip’, ‘babbler’, chatterer’; but these terms miss the imagery of unsystematic gathering.”

[17:18]  ⁷¹ tn The meaning of this phrase is not clear. Literally it reads “strange deities” (see BDAG 210 s.v. δαιμόνιον 1). The note of not being customary is important. In the ancient world what was new was suspicious. The plural δαιμονίων (daimoniwn, “deities”) shows the audience grappling with Paul’s teaching that God was working through Jesus.

[17:18]  ⁷² sn This is a parenthetical note by the author.

[17:19]  ⁷³ tn Grk “him”; the referent (Paul) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[17:19]  ⁷⁴ tn Or “to the council of the Areopagus.” See also the term in v. 22.

[17:20]  ⁷⁵ tn BDAG 684 s.v. ξενίζω 2 translates the substantival participle ξενίζοντα (xenizonta) as “astonishing things Ac 17:20.”

[17:20]  ⁷⁶ tn Grk “these things”; but since the referent (“surprising things”) is so close, the repetition of “these things” sounds redundant in English, so the pronoun “they” was substituted in the translation.