17:1 After they traveled through¹ Amphipolis² and Apollonia,³ they came to Thessalonica,⁴ where there was a Jewish synagogue. 17:2 Paul went to the Jews in the synagogue,⁵ as he customarily did, and on three Sabbath days he addressed⁶ them from the scriptures, 17:3 explaining and demonstrating⁷ that the Christ⁸ had to suffer and to rise from the dead,⁹ saying,¹⁰ “This Jesus I am proclaiming to you is the Christ.”¹¹ 17:4 Some of them were persuaded¹² and joined Paul and Silas, along with a large group¹³ of God-fearing Greeks¹⁴ and quite a few¹⁵ prominent women. 17:5 But the Jews became jealous,¹⁶ and gathering together some worthless men from the rabble in the marketplace,¹⁷ they formed a mob¹⁸ and set the city in an uproar.¹⁹ They attacked Jason’s house,²⁰ trying to find Paul and Silas²¹ to bring them out to the assembly.²² 17:6 When they did not find them, they dragged²³ Jason and some of the brothers before the city officials,²⁴ screaming, “These people who have stirred up trouble²⁵ throughout the world²⁶ have come here too, 17:7 and²⁷ Jason has welcomed them as guests! They²⁸ are all acting against Caesar’s²⁹ decrees, saying there is another king named³⁰ Jesus!”³¹ 17:8 They caused confusion among³² the crowd and the city officials³³ who heard these things. 17:9 After³⁴ the city officials³⁵ had received bail³⁶ from Jason and the others, they released them.

17:10 The brothers sent Paul and Silas off to Berea³⁷ at once, during the night. When they arrived,³⁸ they went to the Jewish synagogue. 17:11 These Jews³⁹ were more open-minded⁴⁰ than those in Thessalonica;⁴¹ for they eagerly⁴² received⁴³ the message, examining⁴⁴ the scriptures carefully every day⁴⁵ to see if these things were so. 17:12 Therefore many of them believed, along with quite a few⁴⁶ prominent⁴⁷ Greek women and men. 17:13 But when the Jews from Thessalonica⁴⁸ heard that Paul had also proclaimed the word of God⁴⁹ in Berea,⁵⁰ they came there too, inciting⁵¹ and disturbing⁵² the crowds. 17:14 Then the brothers sent Paul away to the coast⁵³ at once, but Silas and Timothy remained in Berea.⁵⁴ 17:15 Those who accompanied Paul escorted him as far as Athens, and after receiving an order for Silas and Timothy to come to him as soon as possible, they left.⁵⁵

17:16 While Paul was waiting⁵⁶ for them in Athens, his spirit was greatly upset⁵⁷ because he saw⁵⁸ the city was full of idols. 17:17 So he was addressing⁵⁹ the Jews and the God-fearing Gentiles⁶⁰ in the synagogue and in the marketplace every day⁶¹ those who happened to be there. 17:18 Also some of the Epicurean⁶² and Stoic⁶³ philosophers were conversing⁶⁴ with him, and some were asking,⁶⁵ “What does this foolish babbler⁶⁶ want to say?” Others said, “He seems to be a proclaimer of foreign gods.”⁶⁷ (They said this because he was proclaiming the good news about Jesus and the resurrection.)⁶⁸ 17:19 So they took Paul and⁶⁹ brought him to the Areopagus,⁷⁰ saying, “May we know what this new teaching is that you are proclaiming? 17:20 For you are bringing some surprising things⁷¹ to our ears, so we want to know what they⁷² mean.” 17:21 (All the Athenians and the foreigners who lived there used to spend their time⁷³ in nothing else than telling⁷⁴ or listening to something new.)⁷⁵

17:22 So Paul stood⁷⁶ before the Areopagus⁷⁷ and said, “Men of Athens, I see that you are very religious⁷⁸ in all respects.⁷⁹ 17:23 For as I went around and observed closely your objects of worship,⁸⁰ I even found an altar with this inscription:⁸¹ ‘To an unknown god.’ Therefore what you worship without knowing it,⁸² this I proclaim to you. 17:24 The God who made the world and everything in it,⁸³ who is⁸⁴ Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by human hands,⁸⁵ 17:25 nor is he served by human hands, as if he needed anything,⁸⁶ because he himself gives life and breath and everything to everyone.⁸⁷ 17:26 From one man⁸⁸ he made every nation of the human race⁸⁹ to inhabit the entire earth,⁹⁰ determining their set times⁹¹ and the fixed limits of the places where they would live,⁹² 17:27 so that they would search for God and perhaps grope around⁹³ for him and find him,⁹⁴ though he is⁹⁵ not far from each one of us. 17:28 For in him we live and move about⁹⁶ and exist, as even some of your own poets have said, ‘For we too are his offspring.’⁹⁷ 17:29 So since we are God’s offspring, we should not think the deity⁹⁸ is like gold or silver or stone, an image⁹⁹ made by human¹⁰⁰ skill¹⁰¹ and imagination.¹⁰² 17:30 Therefore, although God has overlooked¹⁰³ such times of ignorance,¹⁰⁴ he now commands all people everywhere to repent,¹⁰⁵ 17:31 because he has set¹⁰⁶ a day on which he is going to judge the world¹⁰⁷ in righteousness, by a man whom he designated,¹⁰⁸ having provided proof to all by raising¹⁰⁹ him from the dead.”

17:32 Now when they heard about¹¹⁰ the resurrection from the dead, some began to scoff,¹¹¹ but others said, “We will hear you again about this.” 17:33 So Paul left the Areopagus.¹¹² 17:34 But some people¹¹³ joined him¹¹⁴ and believed. Among them¹¹⁵ were Dionysius, who was a member of the Areopagus,¹¹⁶ a woman¹¹⁷ named Damaris, and others with them.