The Acts of the Apostles
Chapter 17
Vs 1 Paul traveled through two cities and then came to Thessalonica. Here Paul went to the Jewish church first to talk to the Jews. Paul always talked to the Jewish people first before he talked to the Gentiles.
Vs. 2 For 3 Sabbath days Paul talked to them about the Old Testament and the prophecies about the Messiah. He told how Jesus was the Messiah.
Vs. 3, 4 He told about Jesus life , death, and raising from the dead.
Some of the Jews believed. Many of the Gentiles believed. Many of the women leaders of the city believed.
Vs. 5 Some of the Jews who did not believe got some men who were willing to make trouble for Paul to come and get the people all upset.
Paul had been staying at Jason’s house. The men making trouble came to Jason’s house to get Paul. But Paul was not there, so they took Jason and some of the other believers and pulled them out of the house.
They told the people “The men staying with Jason are turning the world upside down.”
Those trouble makers were trying to say something bad about Paul and make trouble.
In a way, what they said was true. Paul was turning the world upside down with the preaching that Jesus is the Messiah and he will forgive sins and give life eternal.
The trouble makers also said that Paul was saying there was another king. And that they were teaching things that were against the laws of Caesar of Rome, the ruler.
Paul was not teaching them things against the law. But he did tell them that Jesus was a heavenly King .
Some day when Jesus comes back to earth again He will be a king over all the earth.
This “new religion” this teaching about Jesus would change the world. It would be years before it happened that people would start believing in Jesus and they would stop worshipping the idols. They would not be worshipping kings on the earth any more either. New laws and new ways of living would come because of Christianity.
Vs.. 9, 10 They kept Jason in jail for a time. Other people told Paul what happened.
They told Paul to leave town. So Paul when to Berea.
Vs. 11 The people in Berea were more willing to hear what Paul said. After they heard Paul talk they would go home and read the Old Testament books to see if what Paul said was really true.
Many of the people there believed Paul and believed in Jesus.
Vs. 13 The men of Thessalonica heard that Paul had gone to Berea and was preaching there. So they came to Berea to make trouble for Paul.
The men of Berea heard about them coming and they sent Paul by boat/ship to another place. Silas and Timothy stayed in Berea.
Vs. 15 Paul went to Athens, Greece. Then he sent for Silas and Timothy to come be with him.
Vs. 16 -24 While Paul was waiting for them to come, he walked around the city. He saw that they had temples to many different idols. One of the altars said, “To the Unknown God”. The Greeks did not want to miss someone. They had many idols they prayed to.
But they were afraid maybe they missed one and so just to be sure they made this altar to the “Unknown God.”
The Greeks loved to think about things and talk over new ideas so they wanted to hear what Paul said.
Paul began to talk to them about this “Unknown God”. Paul said, I know who this Unknown God is. He is the One who made everything. He made heaven and earth. He does not live in a temple made by man’s hands.
Vs. 25 He gives life to all living things. He made the men of earth. They are all “one blood”—-they are all humans. They are all alike inside. (The outside may look very different from others.) They live in different places. Those places have boundaries and are nations.
But they all have a “spirit” inside them. If they seek (look for) the Lord, they will find Him. He can be found. He is not far away.
Paul said , “In Him we live and move and have being.”
As Christians this is true. In Christ by the Holy Spirit we have spiritual life we have life here on earth. As we live and breathe the Holy Spirit/Jesus is in us.
Vs. 28 Paul says we are His “offspring- children”. We are the children of God because God made man. When we believe in Jesus we become the children of God in our spirits and we are true children of God.
Vs. 29 Because we are the children of God we can not think that God is made of gold, silver or some shape (idol) we make with our own hands.
Vs. 30 In times past God may have not judged men for making the idols. He may have had patience with them not knowing. Paul said, But now you will hear the truth. All men everywhere are to repent of their sin and come to God.
Vs. 31 Because God has a day he had chosen for a judgment day and he will judge the world. He will see if a person is righteous or not. He will make Jesus be the judge of the world. This man Jesus died and God raised him from the dead.
Vs. 32 When the people of Athens heard Paul talk about someone who was raised from the dead they laughed at him. Others of them walked away, but some said they would talk about this again later.
Vs. 33, 34 Paul left them then. But some of the people who heart him believed what he said. They kept on talking with Paul to learn more.