17They took the road south through Amphipolis and Apollonia to Thessalonica, where there was a community of Jews.G1161G1353G295G2532G624G2064G1519G2332G3699G2258G4864G2453 2Paul went to their meeting place, as he usually did when he came to a town, and for three Sabbaths running he preached to them from the Scriptures.G1161G3972G2596G1486G1525G4314G846G2532G1909G5140G4521G1256G846G575G1124 3He opened up the texts so they understood what they'd been reading all their lives: that the Messiah absolutely had to be put to death and raised from the dead—there were no other options—and that "this Jesus I'm introducing you to is that Messiah."G1272G2532G3908G3754G5547G1163G3958G2532G450G1537G3498G2532G3754G3778G2424G3739G1473G2605G5213G2076G5547 4Some of them were won over and joined ranks with Paul and Silas, among them a great many God-fearing Greeks and a considerable number of women from the aristocracy.G2532G5100G1537G846G3982G2532G4345G3972G2532G4609G5037G4576G1672G4183G4128G5037G4413G1135G3756G3641 5But the hard-line Jews became furious over the conversions. Mad with jealousy, they rounded up a bunch of brawlers off the streets and soon had an ugly mob terrorizing the city as they hunted down Paul and Silas. They broke into Jason's house, thinking that Paul and Silas were there.G1161G2453G544G2206G2532G4355G5100G4190G435G60G2532G3792G2350G4172G2350G5037G2186G3614G2394G2212G71G846G1519G1218 6When they couldn't find them, they collared Jason and his friends instead and dragged them before the city fathers, yelling hysterically, "These people are out to destroy the world, and now they've shown up on our doorstep, attacking everything we hold dear!G1161G2147G846G3361G4951G2394G2532G5100G80G1909G4173G994G3754G3778G387G3625G387G3918G1759G2532 7And Jason is hiding them, these traitors and turncoats who say Jesus is king and Caesar is nothing!"G3739G2394G5264G2532G3778G3956G4238G561G1378G2541G3004G1511G2087G935G2424 8The city fathers and the crowd of people were totally alarmed by what they heard.G1161G5015G3793G2532G4173G191G5023 9They made Jason and his friends post heavy bail and let them go while they investigated the charges.G2532G2983G2425G3844G2394G2532G3062G630G846G630 10That night, under cover of darkness, their friends got Paul and Silas out of town as fast as they could. They sent them to Berea, where they again met with the Jewish community.G1161G80G2112G1599G5037G3972G2532G4609G1223G3571G1519G960G3748G3854G549G1519G4864G2453 11They were treated a lot better there than in Thessalonica. The Jews received Paul's message with enthusiasm and met with him daily, examining the Scriptures to see if they supported what he said.G1161G3778G2258G2104G1722G2332G3748G1209G3056G3326G3956G4288G350G1124G2250G2596G1487G5023G2192G3779 12A lot of them became believers, including many Greeks who were prominent in the community, women and men of influence.G3767G3303G4183G1537G846G4100G2532G2158G1135G3588G1674G2532G435G3756G3641 13But it wasn't long before reports got back to the Thessalonian hard-line Jews that Paul was at it again, preaching the Word of God, this time in Berea. They lost no time responding, and created a mob scene there, too.G1161G5613G2453G575G2332G1097G3754G2532G3056G2316G2605G5259G3972G1722G960G2064G2546G4531G3793 14With the help of his friends, Paul gave them the slip—caught a boat and put out to sea. Silas and Timothy stayed behind.G1161G5119G2112G80G1821G3972G4198G5613G1909G2281G1161G5037G4609G2532G5095G5278G1563G5278 15The men who helped Paul escape got him as far as Athens and left him there. Paul sent word back with them to Silas and Timothy: "Come as quickly as you can!"G1161G2525G3972G71G846G2193G116G2532G2983G1785G4314G4609G2532G5095G2443G2064G4314G846G5613G5033G1826 16The longer Paul waited in Athens for Silas and Timothy, the angrier he got—all those idols! The city was a junkyard of idols.G1161G3972G1551G846G1722G116G846G4151G3947G1722G846G2334G4172G5607G2712 17He discussed it with the Jews and other like-minded people at their meeting place. And every day he went out on the streets and talked with anyone who happened along.G3767G3303G1256G1722G4864G2453G2532G4576G2532G1722G58G2596G3956G2250G4314G3909 18He got to know some of the Epicurean and Stoic intellectuals pretty well through these conversations. Some of them dismissed him with sarcasm: "What an airhead!" But others, listening to him go on about Jesus and the resurrection, were intrigued: "That's a new slant on the gods. Tell us more."G1161G5100G5386G1946G2532G4770G4820G846G2532G5100G3004G5101G302G2309G3778G4691G3004G1161G1380G1511G2604G3581G1140G3754G2097G846G2424G2532G386 19These people got together and asked him to make a public presentation over at the Areopagus, where things were a little quieter. They said, "This is a new one on us. We've never heard anything quite like it. Where did you come up with this anyway?G5037G1949G846G71G1909G697G3004G1410G1097G5101G3778G2537G1322G5259G4675G2980 20Explain it so we can understand."G1063G1533G5100G3579G1519G2257G189G1014G1097G3767G5101G5023G302G2309G1511 21Downtown Athens was a great place for gossip. There were always people hanging around, natives and tourists alike, waiting for the latest tidbit on most anything.G1161G3956G117G2532G3581G3588G1927G2119G1519G3762G2087G2228G3004G2532G191G5100G2537 22So Paul took his stand in the open space at the Areopagus and laid it out for them. "It is plain to see that you Athenians take your religion seriously.G1161G3972G2476G1722G3319G697G5346G435G117G2334G5613G2596G3956G5209G1174 23When I arrived here the other day, I was fascinated with all the shrines I came across. And then I found one inscribed, TO THE GOD NOBODY KNOWS. I'm here to introduce you to this God so you can worship intelligently, know who you're dealing with.G1063G1330G2532G333G5216G4574G2532G2147G1041G1722G3739G1924G57G2316G3739G3767G50G2151G5126G2605G1473G5213 24"The God who made the world and everything in it, this Master of sky and land, doesn't live in custom-made shrinesG2316G4160G2889G2532G3956G1722G846G3778G5225G2962G3772G2532G1093G2730G3756G1722G3485G5499 25or need the human race to run errands for him, as if he couldn't take care of himself. He makes the creatures; the creatures don't make him.G3761G2323G5259G444G5495G4326G5100G846G1325G3956G2222G2532G4157G2596G3956 26Starting from scratch, he made the entire human race and made the earth hospitable, with plenty of time and space for livingG5037G4160G1537G1520G129G3956G1484G444G2730G1909G3956G4383G1093G3724G2540G4384G2532G3734G846G2733 27so we could seek after God, and not just grope around in the dark but actually find him. He doesn't play hide-and-seek with us. He's not remote; he's near.G2212G2962G1487G686G5584G846G2532G2147G2544G5225G3756G3112G575G1538G1520G2257 28We live and move in him, can't get away from him! One of your poets said it well: 'We're the God-created.'G1063G1722G846G2198G2532G2795G2532G2070G5613G5100G2532G5209G2596G4163G2046G1063G2070G2532G5120G1085 29Well, if we are the God-created, it doesn't make a lot of sense to think we could hire a sculptor to chisel a god out of stone for us, does it?G3767G5225G1085G2316G3784G3756G3543G2304G1511G3664G5557G2228G696G2228G3037G5480G5078G2532G444G1761 30"God overlooks it as long as you don't know any better—but that time is past. The unknown is now known, and he's calling for a radical life-change.G3303G3767G5550G52G2316G5237G3569G3853G3956G444G3837G3340 31He has set a day when the entire human race will be judged and everything set right. And he has already appointed the judge, confirming him before everyone by raising him from the dead."G1360G2476G2250G1722G3739G3195G2919G3625G1722G1343G1722G435G3739G3724G3930G4102G3956G450G846G1537G3498 32At the phrase "raising him from the dead," the listeners split: Some laughed at him and walked off making jokes; others said, "Let's do this again. We want to hear more."G1161G191G386G3498G3303G5512G1161G2036G191G4675G3825G4012G5127 33But that was it for the day, and Paul left.G2532G3779G3972G1831G1537G3319G846 34There were still others, it turned out, who were convinced then and there, and stuck with Paul—among them Dionysius the Areopagite and a woman named Damaris.G1161G5100G435G2853G846G4100G1722G3739G2532G1354G698G2532G1135G3686G1152G2532G2087G4862G846
The Message (MSG). All Scripture quotations are taken from THE MESSAGE, copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress. All rights reserved. Represented by Tyndale House Publishers, a Division of Tyndale House Ministries.
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