Thessalonica to Athens
TRANSLATION
(1) When Paul and his companions had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica where there was a Jewish synagogue. (2) As was his custom, Paul went to the synagogue, and on three consecutive sabbaths he reasoned with them from the Scriptures, (3) explaining and proving that the Messiah had to suffer and rise again from the dead. He told them, “This Jesus whom I am telling you about is indeed the Messiah.” (4) Some of them were convinced and joined Paul and Silas as did many devout Greeks and not a few of the leading women. (5) However, other Jews, motivated by jealousy, rounded up some bad characters from the marketplace and, forming a mob, started a riot in the city. They rushed to Jason’s house, seeking to bring Paul and Silas out to face the crowd. (6) When they didn’t find them, they dragged Jason and some of the other brothers before the city authorities crying, “These men who have turned the world upside down have come here also, (7) and Jason has welcomed them. They are all defying Caesar’s decrees, claiming that there is another king called Jesus.” (8) When they heard this, the crowd and the city authorities were greatly troubled. (9) They forced Jason and the others to post bond, and then they let them go.
(10) That night the believers sent Paul and Silas to Berea. On arriving there, they went to the synagogue. (11) Now the Jews in Berea were more noble than those in Thessalonica. They received the Word with eager minds and examining the Scriptures daily to see whether these things were so. (12) Many of them therefore believed as did some Greek women of high standing and quite a few of the Greek men. (13) When the Jews in Thessalonica learned that the Word of God was being proclaimed by Paul at Berea, they went there as well, agitating and stirring up the crowds. (14) The believers immediately sent Paul to the coast while Silas and Timothy remained in Berea. (15) Those who accompanied Paul brought him as far as Athens, and after receiving his instruction that Silas and Timothy should join him as soon as possible, they departed for Berea.
OBSERVATIONS
During the next segment of their second missionary journey, Paul and Silas encountered both acceptance and rejection in Thessalonica and Berea. They had learned that when the situation became too threatening, it was time to move on. Repetitions again help us grasp the essence of this portion of Acts. In addition to personal names (“Paul and Silas” in vss. 4 & 10, “Silas and Timothy” in vss. 14 & 15, “Paul” alone in vss. 2, 13, 14, & 15), “Christ” (both in vs. 3), “Jesus” (vss. 3 & 7), and “Jason” (vss. 5, 6, 7, & 9), “Thessalonica” occurred three times (vss. 1, 11, & 13) and “Berea” twice (vss. 10 & 13). Other repeated words included “synagogue” (vss. 1 & 10), “Jews/Jewish” (vss. 1, 5, 10, 11, & 13), and “the Scriptures” (vss. 2 & 11).
OUTLINE
I. Paul and Silas planted a church in Thessalonica despite opposition. (1-9)
II. Because of threats from the Jews, Paul and Silas were forced to move on to Berea. (10-14)
III. When the situation in Berea became untenable, Paul traveled on to Athens. (15)
IDEA STATEMENT
Despite strong opposition which limited the duration of their visits, Paul and Silas were able to plant churches in Thessalonica and Berea.
APPLICATION
The power of the Gospel, summarized by the statement, “…that it was necessary for this Jesus, the Christ, to suffer and to rise from the dead…” (vs. 3), was clearly seen in the accusation made against Paul and Silas by the Jewish-inspired mob in Thessalonica: “These men who have turned the world upside down have come here also…” (vs. 6). This opposition arose after Paul had proclaimed the Gospel in the synagogue for only three Sabbaths. The same heated reaction occurred in Berea after Jews from Thessalonica arrived and stirred up opposition among the Jews there.
At the time this accusation of “turning the world upside down” was little more than a gross exaggeration since Paul and Silas in their second missionary journey had visited only a few cities in Asia Minor and southern Europe. However, it served as a prophecy of things to come. Within a few short years, the good news of Jesus Christ would be carried by faithful witnesses to every part of the known world and would produce thousands of converts everywhere it went. Paul in writing his epistle to the Romans would describe his message in these words: “For I am not ashamed of the Gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith, as it is written, ‘The righteous shall live by faith’” (Rom. 1:16 & 17). So powerful was this message of salvation that the world in which it was proclaimed would never be the same.