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<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8" /><meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1" /><title>Acts 17 NIV</title><link rel="stylesheet" href="/chapnew2.css" type="text/css" media="Screen" /><link rel="stylesheet" href="../spec.css" type="text/css" media="Screen" /><link rel="stylesheet" href="/print.css" type="text/css" media="Print" /></head><body><div id="fx"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" id="fx2"><tr><td><iframe width="100%" height="30" scrolling="no" src="../cmenus/acts/17.htm" align="left" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div><div id="blnk"></div><div align="center"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" class="maintable"><tr><td><div id="fx5"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" id="fx6"><tr><td><iframe width="100%" height="245" scrolling="no" src="../topmenuchap/acts/17-1.htm" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div></td></tr></table></div><div align="center"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" class="maintable3"><tr><td><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center" id="announce"><tr><td><div id="l1"><div id="breadcrumbs"><a href="http://biblehub.com">Bible</a> > <a href="../">NIV</a> > Acts 17</div><div id="anc"><iframe src="/anc.htm" width="100%" height="27" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"></iframe></div><div id="anc2"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"><tr><td><iframe src="/anc2.htm" width="100%" height="27" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div></div></td></tr></table><div id="movebox2"><table border="0" align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"><tr><td><div id="topheading"><a href="../acts/16.htm" title="Acts 16">◄</a> Acts 17 <a href="../acts/18.htm" title="Acts 18">►</a></div></td></tr></table></div><div align="center" class="maintable2"><table border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"><tr><td><div id="leftbox"><div class="padleft"><div class="vheading"><table width="100%"><tr><td width="99%" valign="top">New International Version</td><td width="1%" valign="top"><a href="/p/niv/esv/acts/17.shtml" style="color:#001320" title="Parallel Chapters"> Par ▾ </a></tr></table></div><div class="chap"><p class="sectionhead">In Thessalonica</p><p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/acts/17-1.htm"><b>1</b></a></span>When Paul and his companions had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where there was a Jewish synagogue. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/acts/17-2.htm"><b>2</b></a></span>As was his custom, Paul went into the synagogue, and on three Sabbath days he reasoned with them from the Scriptures, <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/acts/17-3.htm"><b>3</b></a></span>explaining and proving that the Messiah had to suffer and rise from the dead. “This Jesus I am proclaiming to you is the Messiah,” he said. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/acts/17-4.htm"><b>4</b></a></span>Some of the Jews were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, as did a large number of God-fearing Greeks and quite a few prominent women.</p> <p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/acts/17-5.htm"><b>5</b></a></span>But other Jews were jealous; so they rounded up some bad characters from the marketplace, formed a mob and started a riot in the city. They rushed to Jason’s house in search of Paul and Silas in order to bring them out to the crowd. <span class="nivfootnote"><sup><a href="#footnotes" title="Or the assembly of the people">a</a></sup></span> <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/acts/17-6.htm"><b>6</b></a></span>But when they did not find them, they dragged Jason and some other believers before the city officials, shouting: “These men who have caused trouble all over the world have now come here, <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/acts/17-7.htm"><b>7</b></a></span>and Jason has welcomed them into his house. They are all defying Caesar’s decrees, saying that there is another king, one called Jesus.” <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/acts/17-8.htm"><b>8</b></a></span>When they heard this, the crowd and the city officials were thrown into turmoil. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/acts/17-9.htm"><b>9</b></a></span>Then they made Jason and the others post bond and let them go.</p> <p class="sectionhead">In Berea</p><p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/acts/17-10.htm"><b>10</b></a></span>As soon as it was night, the believers sent Paul and Silas away to Berea. On arriving there, they went to the Jewish synagogue. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/acts/17-11.htm"><b>11</b></a></span>Now the Berean Jews were of more noble character than those in Thessalonica, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/acts/17-12.htm"><b>12</b></a></span>As a result, many of them believed, as did also a number of prominent Greek women and many Greek men.</p> <p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/acts/17-13.htm"><b>13</b></a></span>But when the Jews in Thessalonica learned that Paul was preaching the word of God at Berea, some of them went there too, agitating the crowds and stirring them up. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/acts/17-14.htm"><b>14</b></a></span>The believers immediately sent Paul to the coast, but Silas and Timothy stayed at Berea. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/acts/17-15.htm"><b>15</b></a></span>Those who escorted Paul brought him to Athens and then left with instructions for Silas and Timothy to join him as soon as possible.</p> <p class="sectionhead">In Athens</p><p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/acts/17-16.htm"><b>16</b></a></span>While Paul was waiting for them in Athens, he was greatly distressed to see that the city was full of idols. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/acts/17-17.htm"><b>17</b></a></span>So he reasoned in the synagogue with both Jews and God-fearing Greeks, as well as in the marketplace day by day with those who happened to be there. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/acts/17-18.htm"><b>18</b></a></span>A group of Epicurean and Stoic philosophers began to debate with him. Some of them asked, “What is this babbler trying to say?” Others remarked, “He seems to be advocating foreign gods.” They said this because Paul was preaching the good news about Jesus and the resurrection. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/acts/17-19.htm"><b>19</b></a></span>Then they took him and brought him to a meeting of the Areopagus, where they said to him, “May we know what this new teaching is that you are presenting? <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/acts/17-20.htm"><b>20</b></a></span>You are bringing some strange ideas to our ears, and we would like to know what they mean.” <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/acts/17-21.htm"><b>21</b></a></span>(All the Athenians and the foreigners who lived there spent their time doing nothing but talking about and listening to the latest ideas.)</p> <p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/acts/17-22.htm"><b>22</b></a></span>Paul then stood up in the meeting of the Areopagus and said: “People of Athens! I see that in every way you are very religious. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/acts/17-23.htm"><b>23</b></a></span>For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: <span class="inscription">to an unknown god</span>. So you are ignorant of the very thing you worship—and this is what I am going to proclaim to you.</p> <p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/acts/17-24.htm"><b>24</b></a></span>“The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by human hands. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/acts/17-25.htm"><b>25</b></a></span>And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything. Rather, he himself gives everyone life and breath and everything else. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/acts/17-26.htm"><b>26</b></a></span>From one man he made all the nations, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he marked out their appointed times in history and the boundaries of their lands. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/acts/17-27.htm"><b>27</b></a></span>God did this so that they would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from any one of us. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/acts/17-28.htm"><b>28</b></a></span>‘For in him we live and move and have our being.’ <span class="nivfootnote"><sup><a href="#footnotes" title="From the Cretan philosopher Epimenides">b</a></sup></span> As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are his offspring.’ <span class="nivfootnote"><sup><a href="#footnotes" title="From the Cilician Stoic philosopher Aratus">c</a></sup></span> </p> <p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/acts/17-29.htm"><b>29</b></a></span>“Therefore since we are God’s offspring, we should not think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone—an image made by human design and skill. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/acts/17-30.htm"><b>30</b></a></span>In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/acts/17-31.htm"><b>31</b></a></span>For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to everyone by raising him from the dead.”</p> <p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/acts/17-32.htm"><b>32</b></a></span>When they heard about the resurrection of the dead, some of them sneered, but others said, “We want to hear you again on this subject.” <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/acts/17-33.htm"><b>33</b></a></span>At that, Paul left the Council. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/acts/17-34.htm"><b>34</b></a></span>Some of the people became followers of Paul and believed. Among them was Dionysius, a member of the Areopagus, also a woman named Damaris, and a number of others.</p><hr size="1" color="DDEEFF"><span class="mainfootnotes"><A name="footnotes"></a><span class="mainfootnoteshdg">Footnotes:</span><br><span class="nivfootnotesbot">a</span> <span class="fnverse">5</span> <span class="footnotebot">Or <i>the assembly of the people</i></span><br><span class="nivfootnotesbot">b</span> <span class="fnverse">28</span> <span class="footnotebot">From the Cretan philosopher Epimenides</span><br><span class="nivfootnotesbot">c</span> <span class="fnverse">28</span> <span class="footnotebot">From the Cilician Stoic philosopher Aratus</span><br><hr size="1" color="DDEEFF"></div></div><div id="botbox"><div class="padbot"><div align="center"><p class="ntext"><a href="http://niv.scripturetext.com/version.htm">New International Version</a> (NIV)</p><p class="ntext2">Holy Bible, New International Version&reg, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by <a href="http://biblica.com">Biblica, Inc.</a>® Used by permission. 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