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Acts Chapter 17 | Wisdom and Witness in a Diverse World

Now when they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where there was a synagogue of the Jews. 2 Then Paul, as his custom was, went in to them, and for three Sabbaths 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 preach to you is the Christ.” 4 And some of them were persuaded; and a great multitude of the devout Greeks, and not a few of the leading women, joined Paul and Silas.

5 But the Jews who were not persuaded, becoming envious, took some of the evil men from the marketplace, and gathering a mob, set all the city in an uproar and attacked the house of Jason, and sought to bring them out to the people. 6 But when they did not find them, they dragged Jason and some brethren to the rulers of the city, crying out, “These who have turned the world upside down have come here too. 7 Jason has harbored them, and these are all acting contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying there is another king—Jesus.” 8 And they troubled the crowd and the rulers of the city when they heard these things. 9 So when they had taken security from Jason and the rest, they let them go.

10 Then the brethren immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Berea. When they arrived, they went into the synagogue of the Jews. 11 These were more fair-minded than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness, and searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so. 12 Therefore many of them believed, and also not a few of the Greeks, prominent women as well as men. 13 But when the Jews from Thessalonica learned that the word of God was preached by Paul at Berea, they came there also and stirred up the crowds. 14 Then immediately the brethren sent Paul away, to go to the sea; but both Silas and Timothy remained there. 15 So those who conducted Paul brought him to Athens; and receiving a command for Silas and Timothy to come to him with all speed, they departed.

16 Now while Paul waited for them at Athens, his spirit was provoked within him when he saw that the city was given over to idols. 17 Therefore he reasoned in the synagogue with the Jews and with the Gentile worshipers, and in the marketplace daily with those who happened to be there. 18 Then certain Epicurean and Stoic philosophers encountered him. And some said, “What does this babbler want to say?”

Others said, “He seems to be a proclaimer of foreign gods,” because he preached to them Jesus and the resurrection.

19 And they took him and brought him to the Areopagus, saying, “May we know what this new doctrine is of which you speak? 20 For you are bringing some strange things to our ears. Therefore we want to know what these things mean.” 21 For all the Athenians and the foreigners who were there spent their time in nothing else but either to tell or to hear some new thing.

22 Then Paul stood in the midst of the Areopagus and said, “Men of Athens, I perceive that in all things you are very religious; 23 for as I was passing through and considering the objects of your worship, I even found an altar with this inscription:

TO THE UNKNOWN GOD.

Therefore, the One whom you worship without knowing, Him I proclaim to you: 24 God, who made the world and everything in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands. 25 Nor is He worshiped with men’s hands, as though He needed anything, since He gives to all life, breath, and all things. 26 And He has made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, and has determined their preappointed times and the boundaries of their dwellings, 27 so that they should seek the Lord, in the hope that they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us; 28 for in Him we live and move and have our being, as also some of your own poets have said, ‘For we are also His offspring.’ 29 Therefore, since we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Divine Nature is like gold or silver or stone, something shaped by art and man’s devising. 30 Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent, 31 because He has appointed a day on which He will judge the world in righteousness by the Man whom He has ordained. He has given assurance of this to all by raising Him from the dead.”

32 And when they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some mocked, while others said, “We will hear you again on this matter.” 33 So Paul departed from among them. 34 However, some men joined him and believed, among them Dionysius the Areopagite, a woman named Damaris, and others with them.

使徒行傳 17章｜智慧與文化中的見證

保羅和西拉經過暗妃波里、亞波羅尼亞，來到帖撒羅尼迦，在那裡有猶太人的會堂。 2 保羅照他素常的規矩進去，一連三個安息日，本著聖經與他們辯論， 3 講解陳明基督必須受害，從死裡復活，又說：「我所傳於你們的這位耶穌，就是基督。」

4 他們中間有些人聽了勸，就附從保羅和西拉，並有許多虔敬的希臘人，尊貴的婦女也不少。 5 但那不信的猶太人心裡嫉妒，招聚了些市井匪類，搭夥成群，聳動合城的人闖進耶孫的家，要將保羅、西拉帶到百姓那裡。 6 找不著他們，就把耶孫和幾個弟兄拉到地方官那裡，喊叫說：「那攪亂天下的也到這裡來了， 7 耶孫收留他們！這些人都違背愷撒的命令，說另有一個王——耶穌。」 8 眾人和地方官聽見這話，就驚慌了， 9 於是取了耶孫和其餘之人的保狀，就釋放了他們。

10 弟兄們隨即在夜間打發保羅和西拉往庇哩亞去。二人到了，就進入猶太人的會堂。 11 這地方的人賢於帖撒羅尼迦的人，甘心領受這道，天天考查聖經，要曉得這道是與不是。 12 所以他們中間多有相信的，又有希臘尊貴的婦女，男子也不少。 13 但帖撒羅尼迦的猶太人知道保羅又在庇哩亞傳神的道，也就往那裡去，聳動攪擾眾人。 14 當時弟兄們便打發保羅往海邊去，西拉和提摩太仍住在庇哩亞。 15 送保羅的人帶他到了雅典，既領了保羅的命，叫西拉和提摩太速速到他這裡來，就回去了。

16 保羅在雅典等候他們的時候，看見滿城都是偶像，就心裡著急。 17 於是在會堂裡與猶太人和虔敬的人，並每日在市上所遇見的人辯論。 18 還有伊壁鳩魯和斯多亞兩門的學士與他爭論。有的說：「這胡言亂語的要說什麼？」有的說：「他似乎是傳說外邦鬼神的。」這話是因保羅傳講耶穌與復活的道。 19 他們就把他帶到亞略巴古，說：「你所講的這新道，我們也可以知道嗎？」 20 因為你有些奇怪的事傳到我們耳中，我們願意知道這些事是什麼意思。」 21 雅典人和住在那裡的客人都不顧別的事，只將新聞說說聽聽。

22 保羅站在亞略巴古當中，說：「眾位雅典人哪，我看你們凡事很敬畏鬼神。 23 我遊行的時候，觀看你們所敬拜的，遇見一座壇，上面寫著『未識之神』。你們所不認識而敬拜的，我現在告訴你們。 24 創造宇宙和其中萬物的神，既是天地的主，就不住人手所造的殿， 25 也不用人手服侍，好像缺少什麼，自己倒將生命、氣息、萬物賜給萬人。 26 他從一本造出萬族的人，住在全地上，並且預先定準他們的年限和所住的疆界， 27 要叫他們尋求神，或者可以揣摩而得；其實他離我們各人不遠。 28 我們生活、動作、存留，都在乎他，就如你們作詩的有人說：『我們也是他所生的。』 29 我們既是神所生的，就不當以為神的神性像人用手藝、心思所雕刻的金、銀、石。 30 世人蒙昧無知的時候，神並不監察，如今卻吩咐各處的人都要悔改。 31 因為他已經定了日子，要藉著他所設立的人按公義審判天下，並且叫他從死裡復活，給萬人做可信的憑據。」

32 眾人聽見從死裡復活的話，就有譏誚他的，又有人說：「我們再聽你講這個吧！」 33 於是保羅從他們當中出去了。 34 但有幾個人貼近他，信了主，其中有亞略巴古的官丟尼修，並一個婦人名叫大馬哩，還有別人一同信從。