Acts 17

Acts 17 covers the middle portion of Paul's second missionary journey. It continues the account from Acts 16, as Paul and his companions leave Philippi and move on to the cities of Macedonia and Achaia.

Outline

• Verses 1–9: In the synagogue at Thessalonica, Paul reasons from the Scriptures for three Sabbaths. When some come to believe, certain Jews stir up a riot, and Jason gives security and is released.
• Verses 10–15: The people of Berea receive the word and search the Scriptures daily. When Jews from Thessalonica follow and stir up the crowds, Paul alone goes on to Athens.
• Verses 16–21: In Athens, a city full of idols, Paul disputes in the synagogue and in the marketplace. Philosophers bring him to the Areopagus.
• Verses 22–31: The Areopagus address. Paul proclaims the Creator, the one blood of all humanity, repentance, and judgment, and he presents the resurrection of Jesus as assurance.
• Verses 32–34: The hearers divide between those who mock and those who wish to hear him again, and a few, including Dionysius and Damaris, believe.

Key Verses

• Acts 17:11 "They ... searched the scriptures daily": frequently cited as a model of how to receive the word.
• Acts 17:23 "TO THE UNKNOWN GOD": illustrates an approach to proclaiming the gospel that begins from what the audience already knows.
• Acts 17:30–31 "But now commandeth all men every where to repent": the conclusion of the address, which ties repentance and the Last Judgment to the resurrection.

People and Places

• Paul, Silas, and Timothy travel together.
• Jason: the man who received Paul and his companions in Thessalonica.
• Dionysius: a member of the Areopagus council who came to believe.
• Damaris: a woman in Athens who believed.
• Thessalonica: a city in Macedonia.
• Berea: a Macedonian city southwest of Thessalonica.
• Areopagus: the name of a hill in Athens and also of the council that met there.

Points for Reflection

• The words "For we are also his offspring" in verse 28 are generally attributed to the Greek poet Aratus.
• Interpretations of the Areopagus address differ.
• Some regard it as a model of evangelism that seeks points of contact with the culture.
• Others, comparing it with 1 Corinthians 2:2, hold that Paul later changed his approach.
• The text itself does not evaluate Paul's method.
• Verse 27, which says God acted so that people "might feel after him," is discussed together with Romans 1:18–25 in treatments of general revelation.
• The account that Dionysius became the first bishop of Athens is a later church tradition and does not appear in the text.
• The church at Thessalonica later received 1 Thessalonians.

In the Korean Church

• Verse 11 is often used in sermons encouraging Bible study and Quiet Time.
• The Korean Revised Version renders the phrase in this verse as "more gentlemanly," while the New Korean Revised Version renders it as "more broad-minded."
• Some Bible study groups take the name "Berea."