Acts 17:1–16

A Short Ministry in Thessalonica

17Then they traveled through Amphipolis and Apollonia and came to Thessalonica, ^qwhere there was a Jewish synagogue. ²As usual, Paul went to the synagogue, and on three Sabbath days reasoned with them from the Scriptures, ^r3explaining and showing that the Messiah had to suffer and rise from the dead: “This Jesus I am proclaiming to you is the Messiah.” ^s4Then some of them were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, including a great number of God-fearing Greeks, as well as a number ^tof the leading women. ^u

Riot in the City

⁵But the Jews became jealous, and they brought together some scoundrels from the marketplace, formed a mob, and started a riot in the city. Attacking Jason’s house, they searched for them to bring them out to the public assembly. ^v6When they did not find them, they dragged Jason and some of the brothers before the city officials, shouting, “These men who have turned the world upside down have come here too, ⁷and Jason has received them as guests! They are all acting contrary to Caesar’s decrees, ^wsaying that there is another king—Jesus!” ^x8The Jews stirred up the crowd and the city officials who heard these things. ⁹So taking a security bond from Jason and the others, they released them.

The Bereans Search the Scriptures

¹⁰As soon as it was night, the brothers sent Paul and Silas off to Berea. ^yOn arrival, they went into the synagogue of the Jews. ¹¹The people here were more open-minded than those in Thessalonica, since they welcomed the message with eagerness and examined the Scriptures ^zdaily to see if these things were so. ¹²Consequently, many of them believed, including a number of the prominent Greek women as well as men. ¹³But when the Jews from Thessalonica found out that God’s message had been proclaimed by Paul at Berea, they came there too, agitating and disturbing ^athe crowds. ¹⁴Then the brothers immediately sent Paul away to go to the sea, but Silas and Timothy ^bstayed on there. ¹⁵Those who escorted Paul brought him as far as Athens, and after receiving instructions for Silas and Timothy to come to him as quickly as possible, they departed. ^c

Paul in Athens

¹⁶While Paul was waiting for them in Athens, his spirit was troubled within him when he saw that the city was full of idols.