Acts 17:1-15

¹After passing through Amphipolis and Apollonia, Paul and Silas came to Thessalonica. Here the Jews had a synagogue;

²and, following his usual custom, Paul joined them, and for three Sabbaths addressed them, drawing his arguments from the scriptures.

³He laid before them and explained that the Christ must undergo suffering and rise from the dead; and “It is this man,” he declared, “who is the Christ — this Jesus about whom I am telling you.”

⁴Some of the people were convinced, and threw in their lot with Paul and Silas, as did also a large body of Greeks who were accustomed to join in the Jewish services, and a great number of leading women.

⁵But the Jewish leaders, becoming jealous, engaged some worthless fellows from the streets, and, getting a mob together, kept the city in an uproar. They attacked Jason's house, with the intention of bringing Paul and Silas before the Popular Assembly;

⁶and, not finding them there, they proceeded to drag Jason and some of the Lord's followers before the city magistrates, shouting out, “These men, who have turned the world upside down, have now come here,

⁷and have been harbored by Jason! They are all defying the decrees of the Emperor. They say that someone else is king — a man called Jesus!”

⁸On hearing this, the people and the city magistrates were much concerned;

⁹and, before letting them go, they took bail from Jason and the others.

¹⁰That very night the followers sent Paul and Silas off to Beroea; and on reaching that place, they went to the Jewish synagogue.

¹¹These Jews of Beroea were better disposed than those in Thessalonica, for they welcomed the message with great readiness, and daily examined the scriptures to see if what was said was true.

¹²As a consequence, many of them became believers in Christ, besides a considerable number of Greek women of position, and of men also.

¹³But, when the Jewish leaders in Thessalonica found out that God's message had been delivered by Paul at Beroea, they came there too, exciting and disturbing the minds of the people.

¹⁴The followers immediately arranged for Paul to go away to the coast, but both Silas and Timothy stayed behind in Beroea.

¹⁵The friends who escorted Paul took him as far as Athens, and, after receiving a message for Silas and Timothy to join him as quickly as possible, they started on their return.