IN THESSALONICA AND BEREA

Passage: Acts 17:1-15

Key verse: 11

NIV


Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Source: BibleGateway

ESV

Paul and Silas in Thessalonica

17 Now when they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to (A)Thessalonica, where there was a synagogue of the Jews. And Paul went in, (B)as was his custom, and on three Sabbath days he reasoned with them (C)from the Scriptures, (D)explaining and proving that it was necessary for (E)the Christ to suffer and (F)to rise from the dead, and saying, “This Jesus, whom I proclaim to you, is the Christ.” And (G)some of them were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, as did (H)a great many of the devout (I)Greeks and not a few of the leading women. (J)But the Jews[a] (K)were jealous, and taking (L)some wicked men of the rabble, they formed a mob, set the city in an uproar, and attacked the house of Jason, seeking to bring them out to the crowd. And when they could not find them, (M)they dragged Jason and some of the brothers before the city authorities, shouting, “These men who have turned the world upside down have come here also, and Jason has received them, and they are all acting against (N)the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is (O)another king, Jesus.” And the people and the city authorities were disturbed when they heard these things. And when they had taken money as security from Jason and the rest, they let them go.

Paul and Silas in Berea

10 (P)The brothers[b] immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Berea, and when they arrived they (Q)went into the Jewish synagogue. 11 Now these Jews were more noble than those in Thessalonica; they received the word with all eagerness, (R)examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so. 12 (S)Many of them therefore believed, with not a few Greek (T)women of high standing as well as men. 13 But when the Jews from Thessalonica learned that the word of God was proclaimed by Paul at Berea also, they came there too, (U)agitating and stirring up the crowds. 14 Then the brothers (V)immediately sent Paul off on his way to the sea, but Silas and (W)Timothy remained there. 15 (X)Those who conducted Paul brought him as far as (Y)Athens, and after receiving a command (Z)for Silas and Timothy to come to him as soon as possible, they departed.

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Footnotes
  1. Acts 17:5 Greek Ioudaioi probably refers here to Jewish religious leaders, and others under their influence, in that time; also verse 13
  2. Acts 17:10 Or brothers and sisters; also verse 14

The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
Source: BibleGateway

As Paul traveled, he came to Thessalonica. Paul’s custom was to find a synagogue in the area where he would reason with others from the Scriptures. He proclaimed that Jesus was the Messiah, promised by God in the Old Testament. Some of the Jews as well as some prominent Greeks joined Paul, but other Jews stirred up trouble. They accused Jason of harboring Paul, and they accused Paul of defying Caesar by promoting Jesus as king. The city was thrown into such turmoil that Paul and Silas left for Berea. The Jews in Thessalonica were not willing to listen to reason or the Scriptures. They could not serve Jesus as their king.

Paul and Silas went to Berea, going to the Jewish synagogue there. The Berean Jews were described as having noble character. They looked into the Scriptures intensely. They eagerly sought to verify the truth of the gospel Paul preached. The result of their seeking God in the Scriptures resulted in many of them believing. The people who had agitated in Thessalonica now did the same in Berea. Paul left for Athens, but Silas and Timothy stayed in Berea for a while. They took care of those who had such eagerness for the word of God.

Prayer: Lord, help me to have a noble and right attitude toward your word—to seek God, worship Jesus as king and call others to faith.

One Word: Study the Scriptures every day