Passage
Acts 17.1-10
1. Now when they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where was a synagogue of the Jews: 2. and Paul, as his custom was, went in unto them, and for three sabbath days reasoned with them from the scriptures, 3. opening and alleging that it... (ASV)Book: Acts · NASB95
Immediate context (±2 verses)
ASV
1. Now when they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where was a synagogue of the Jews: 2. and Paul, as his custom was, went in unto them, and for three sabbath days reasoned with them from the scriptures, 3. opening and alleging that it behooved the Christ to suffer, and to rise again from the dead; and that this Jesus, whom, said he, I proclaim unto you, is the Christ. 4. And some of them were persuaded, and consorted with Paul and Silas; and of the devout Greeks a great multitude, and of the chief women not a few. 5. But the Jews, being moved with jealousy, took unto them certain vile fellows of the rabble, and gathering a crowd, set the city on an uproar; and assaulting the house of Jason, they sought to bring them forth to the people. 6. And when they found them not, they dragged Jason and certain brethren before the rulers of the city, crying, These that have turned the world upside down are come hither also; 7. whom Jason hath received: and these all act contrary to the decrees of Cæsar, saying that there is another king, one Jesus. 8. And they troubled the multitude and the rulers of the city, when they heard these things. 9. And when they had taken security from Jason and the rest, they let them go. 10. And the brethren immediately sent away Paul and Silas by night unto Beroea: who when they were come thither went into the synagogue of the Jews.
- Now these were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, examining the scriptures daily, whether these things were so. 12. Many of them therefore believed; also of the Greek women of honorable estate, and of men, not a few. (Acts 17:1-12, ASV)
WEB
1. Now when they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where there was a Jewish synagogue. 2. Paul, as was his custom, went in to them, and for three Sabbath days reasoned with them from the Scriptures, 3. explaining and demonstrating that the Christ had to suffer and rise again from the dead, and saying, “This Jesus, whom I proclaim to you, is the Christ.” 4. Some of them were persuaded, and joined Paul and Silas, of the devout Greeks a great multitude, and not a few of the chief women. 5. But the unpersuaded Jews took along some wicked men from the marketplace, and gathering a crowd, set the city in an uproar. Assaulting the house of Jason, they sought to bring them out to the people. 6. When they didn’t find them, they dragged Jason and certain brothers before the rulers of the city, crying, “These who have turned the world upside down have come here also, 7. whom Jason has received. These all act contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, Jesus!” 8. The multitude and the rulers of the city were troubled when they heard these things. 9. When they had taken security from Jason and the rest, they let them go. 10. The brothers immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Beroea. When they arrived, they went into the Jewish synagogue.
- Now these were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, examining the Scriptures daily to see whether these things were so. 12. Many of them therefore believed; also of the prominent Greek women, and not a few men. (Acts 17:1-12, WEB)
KJV
1. Now when they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where was a synagogue of the Jews: 2. And Paul, as his manner was, went in unto them, and three sabbath days reasoned with them out of the scriptures, 3. Opening and alleging, that Christ must needs have suffered, and risen again from the dead; and that this Jesus, whom I preach unto you, is Christ. whom: or, whom, said he, I preach 4. And some of them believed, and consorted with Paul and Silas; and of the devout Greeks a great multitude, and of the chief women not a few. 5. But the Jews which believed not, moved with envy, took unto them certain lewd fellows of the baser sort, and gathered a company, and set all the city on an uproar, and assaulted the house of Jason, and sought to bring them out to the people. 6. And when they found them not, they drew Jason and certain brethren unto the rulers of the city, crying, These that have turned the world upside down are come hither also; 7. Whom Jason hath received: and these all do contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, one Jesus. 8. And they troubled the people and the rulers of the city, when they heard these things. 9. And when they had taken security of Jason, and of the other, they let them go. 10. And the brethren immediately sent away Paul and Silas by night unto Berea: who coming thither went into the synagogue of the Jews.
- These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so. 12. Therefore many of them believed; also of honourable women which were Greeks, and of men, not a few. (Acts 17:1-12, KJV)
YLT
1. And having passed through Amphipolis, and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where was the synagogue of the Jews, 2. and according to the custom of Paul, he went in unto them, and for three sabbaths he was reasoning with them from the Writings, 3. opening and alleging, 'That the Christ it behoved to suffer, and to rise again out of the dead, and that this is the Christ, Jesus whom I proclaim to you.' 4. And certain of them did believe, and attached themselves to Paul and to Silas, also of the worshipping Greeks a great multitude, of the principal women also not a few. 5. And the unbelieving Jews, having been moved with envy, and having taken to them of the loungers certain evil men, and having made a crowd, were setting the city in an uproar; having assailed also the house of Jason, they were seeking them to bring [them] to the populace, 6. and not having found them, they drew Jason and certain brethren unto the city rulers, calling aloud, 'These, having put the world in commotion, are also here present, 7. whom Jason hath received; and these all do contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying another to be king, Jesus.' 8. And they troubled the multitude and the city rulers, hearing these things, 9. and having taking security from Jason and the rest, they let them go. 10. And the brethren immediately, through the night, sent forth both Paul and Silas to Berea, who having come, went to the synagogue of the Jews;
- and these were more noble than those in Thessalonica, they received the word with all readiness of mind, every day examining the Writings whether those things were so; 12. many, indeed, therefore, of them did believe, and of the honourable Greek women and men not a few. (Acts 17:1-12, YLT)
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Setting
- Speaker: the narrator of Acts, traditionally Luke
- Audience: Theophilus (Acts 1:1) and the reader
- Location: Thessalonica, capital of the Roman province of Macedonia, reached by way of Amphipolis and Apollonia (17:1), and then Berea (17:10)
- Time period: c. AD 50, on Paul's second missionary journey, shortly before his eighteen months in Corinth (Acts 18:11)
Theological reading
Luke tells the mission at Thessalonica in three movements: argument in the synagogue (17:1-4), a riot and a legal charge (17:5-9), and a departure by night to Berea (17:10). It is a short account of a church that Paul would soon write to twice.
The method. Paul goes to the synagogue "as his custom was" and for three sabbaths "reasoned with them from the Scriptures" (17:2). "Reasoned" (Strong's G1256) is the word Luke uses for Paul's work in synagogues, marketplaces and lecture halls (17:17; 18:4; 19:8-9). The argument has two steps: first, from the Scriptures, that "it behooved the Christ to suffer, and to rise again from the dead"; then, that "this Jesus, whom, said he, I proclaim unto you, is the Christ" (17:3). It is the same order the risen Jesus used on the road to Emmaus: "Behooved it not the Christ to suffer these things, and to enter into his glory?" (Luke 24:26).
The response. Some Jews "were persuaded," along with "of the devout Greeks a great multitude, and of the chief women not a few" (17:4). Paul's later letter describes the converts as people who "turned unto God from idols, to serve a living and true God, and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead" (1 Thessalonians 1:9-10), which suggests many were Gentiles.
The charge. Opponents "being moved with jealousy" gather a crowd from the marketplace, attack the house of Jason, and drag him "before the rulers of the city" with the cry, "These that have turned the world upside down are come hither also" (17:5-6). The accusation is political: they "act contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, one Jesus" (17:7). A claim about the Messiah is restated as treason, as at the trial of Jesus: "saying that he himself is Christ a king" (Luke 23:2). Luke's title for the magistrates, politarchai (G4173), is rare in Greek literature, but inscriptions from Thessalonica and other Macedonian towns confirm it as the local title for city officials.
The exit. After taking "security from Jason and the rest" (17:9), the believers send Paul and Silas away by night, and at Berea they go straight to the synagogue again (17:10). The "three sabbath days" describe the synagogue phase; Paul's remark that the Philippians "sent once and again unto my need" while he was in Thessalonica (Philippians 4:16) suggests the stay as a whole was somewhat longer.
Key words
Theologically-loaded Greek or Hebrew words in this verse may have entries in the lexicon. Curated to roughly 100 contested terms across the corpus, not every word.
- G3498 - nekros, nekros, Strong's G3498
- G0191 - akouo, akouo, Strong's G0191
- G5547 - christos, christos, Strong's G5547
- G4314 - pros, pros, Strong's G4314
- G2424 - Iesous, Iesous, Strong's G2424
- G3956 - pas, pas, Strong's G3956
Quoted in
Arguments and defeaters:
- Acts as History (Ramsay's Verification), via Acts 17.6, Acts 17.8
- Argument from the Proportionate-Causality Convergence, via Acts 17.6
- Causal Adequacy Argument, via Acts 17.6
- Christianity Is Brainwashing Objection Defeater, via Acts 17.6
- Quirinius Census Contradiction Objection Defeater, via Acts 17.6
Concepts:
- Appeal to Emotion, via Acts 17.2-3
- Biblical Archaeology, via Acts 17.6
- Church at Thessalonica, via Acts 17.1, Acts 17.1-9, Acts 17.10, Acts 17.2-3, Acts 17.4, Acts 17.5-9, Acts 17.6, Acts 17.6-7, Acts 17.8
- Churches the Disciples Started, via Acts 17.1-2, Acts 17.1-9, Acts 17.10-14
- Messianic Prophecy, via Acts 17.2-3
- NT Geographical Reliability, via Acts 17.6
- Politarch Inscriptions, via Acts 17.6, Acts 17.8
People:
Lexicon:
- G3563 - nous, via Acts 17.2-3
- G5547 - christos, via Acts 17.3
Notes
Your annotations.
Why these four translations
ris3n chose ASV, WEB, KJV, and YLT for two reasons together. They are the most literal English translations available (formal-equivalence: word-for-word renderings that preserve the Hebrew and Greek grammar rather than smoothing it into modern dynamic-equivalence idiom). And they are in the public domain in the United States, which means fair-use quotation at any length requires no publisher license. Modern licensed translations (NASB95, ESV, NIV) restrict volume of quotation under their copyright terms, so they are not used at stub-level coverage here. NASB95 appears only on hand-curated rich passage hubs under Lockman Foundation's fair-use allowance.
The four:
- ASV (American Standard Version, 1901). The basis of the modern critical-text English tradition.
- WEB (World English Bible, contemporary). Public-domain revision in the ASV line, in current English.
- KJV (King James Version, 1611). Reformation-era, Textus Receptus base.
- YLT (Young's Literal Translation, Robert Young, 1862). Hyper-literal preservation of Hebrew and Greek grammar; useful for word-study work even where English reads stiff.
See Bibles for the full per-translation history, translators, textual basis, strengths, and weaknesses.