NLT Illustrated Study Bible - Book of Acts - Flipbook - Page 53
A cts 1 7 : 2 1
2009
17:6
Acts 16:20, 21
17:7
Luke 23:2
John 19:12
17:11
John 5:39
17:13
Acts 14:19
17:14
Matt 10:23
17:15
Acts 18:5
1 Thes 3:1
17:17
Acts 18:19
17:18
1 Cor 1:22
They attacked the home of Jason, search
ing for Paul and Silas so they could drag
them out to the crowd.* 6 Not finding them
there, they dragged out Jason and some of
the other believers* instead and took them
before the city council. “Paul and Silas have
caused trouble all over the world,” they
shouted, “and now they are here disturbing
our city, too. 7 And Jason has welcomed them
into his home. They are all guilty of treason
against Caesar, for they profess allegiance to
another king, named Jesus.”
8 The people of the city, as well as the city
council, were thrown into turmoil by these
reports. 9 So the officials forced Jason and
the other believers to post bond, and then
they released them.
Paul and Silas in Berea
10 That very night the believers sent Paul
and Silas to Berea. When they arrived
there, they went to the Jewish synagogue.
11 And the people of Berea were more open-
minded than those in Thessalonica, and
they listened eagerly to Paul’s message.
They searched the Scriptures day after day
to see if Paul and Silas were teaching the
truth. 12 As a result, many Jews believed, as
did many of the prominent Greek women
and men.
13 But when some Jews in Thessalonica
learned that Paul was preaching the word
of God in Berea, they went there and stirred
up trouble. 14 The believers acted at once,
sending Paul on to the coast, while Silas and
Timothy remained behind. 15 Those escort
ing Paul went with him all the way to Athens;
then they returned to Berea with instruc
tions for Silas and Timot hy to hurry and join
him.
Paul Preaches in Athens
16 While Paul was waiting for them in Ath
ens, he was deeply troubled by all the idols
he saw everywhere in the city. 17 He went to
the synagogue to reason with the Jews and
the God-fearing Gentiles, and he spoke daily
in the public square to all who happened to
be there.
18 He also had a debate with some of the
Epicurean and Stoic philosophers. When
he told them about Jesus and his resurrec
tion, they said, “What’s this babbler trying
to say with these strange ideas he’s picked
up?” Others said, “He seems to be preaching
about some foreign gods.”
19 Then they took him to the high council
of the city.* “Come and tell us about this new
teaching,” they said. 20 “You are saying some
rather strange things, and we want to know
what it’s all about.” 21 (It should be explained
that all the Athenians as well as the foreign
ers in Athens seemed to spend all their time
discussing the latest ideas.)
7:5 Or the city council. 17:6 Greek brothers; also in 17:10, 14. 17:19 Or the most learned society of philosophers in the city.
1
Greek reads the Areopagus.
17:89 The charges did not hold up
under scrutiny, so the officials released
Paul and Silas after Jason and the other
believers posted bond. Christianity, Luke
contended, was politically harmless to
the Roman empire and should therefore
be recognized as a permitted religion
and not subjected to political attack.
17:1012 In light of the strong opposi
tion in Thessalonica, the believers sent
Paul and Silas to Berea, located about
nineteen miles (30 km) west of Thes
salonica. There the missionaries had a
better reception than in Thessalonica.
Many Jews came to faith, as well as
many of the prominent Greek women
and men. The Bereans were exem
plary in their attitude, for they were
open-minded and eager to learn, good
listeners, diligent Bible students, and
thoughtful people. Their resulting faith
had a strong foundation.
17:1315 Paul acknowledged the
determination and persistence of this
persecution when he wrote to the Thes
salonians (1 Thes 2:1416).
17:1634 In this chapter, we see Paul
presented as a model witness for Christ,
engaging the thinkers of his day and
challenging them with the Christian
PROPHETS OF ISRAEL
message. Paul quoted writers his
audience would be familiar with and
showed the relevance of the gospel by
dialoguing with them, critiquing their
assumptions, and offering Jesus as a
constructive alternative (see Col 1:28).
Paul reminded these proud intellectuals
that there is a living God to whom all
human beings are answerable; that they
will be judged by him through Jesus,
whom God raised from the dead; and
that they should therefore repent and
put their faith in Jesus.
17:1617 Athens, like Alexandria and
Tarsus, prided itself on its intellectual
sophistication in examining ideas and
considering the different philosophies
that were current at the time.
17:18 Epicurean . . . philosophers:
Epicureanism was a popular school of
Greek philosophy, founded by Epicurus
(341–270 bc). Epicureans believed that
the principal aim of life was to secure
happiness. They thought of pleasure
not in terms of sensual indulgence, as
their critics charged, but in terms of
tranquility. Their contemporaries often
called them atheists; in their view, there
were no gods to fear, and death simply
marked the end of human existence.
GOSPELS & ACTS
They sought their security in organized
communities where they could live in
contentment apart from society. • Stoic
philosophers: Stoicism was founded
by Zeno of Citium (335–263 bc) and
became the most influential philosophy
in the Greco-Roman world. It viewed
the universe as permeated by Reason
(sometimes referred to as God or Provi
dence). Stoicism saw divine Reason as
expressed in human reason and held
that as humans made progress, they
could advance from ignorance (the
source of vice) to true knowledge (the
source of virtue). They developed
extensive lists of virtues and vices and
produced detailed household codes to
guide family behavior. Paul’s teaching
resembles that of the Stoics in his use
of household codes and lists of virtues
and vices (Gal 5:1923; Eph 5:2233;
Col 3:18–4:1; 1 Tim 3:113; 5:1–6:1).
However, Paul’s message of Good
News—focusing on the life, death,
and resurrection of Jesus Christ—was
strange and foreign to these Greek phi
losophers. • The air of superiority with
which they addressed Paul as this babbler indicates their arrogance.
L E T T E R S O F PAU L
OTHER LET TERS
