CRITICAL REMARKS
Acts 17:1. They.—Paul, Silas, and Timothy, Luke having remained behind at Philippi. (See on Acts 16:40.) Passed through.—The road traversed was the Via Egnatia, a great military road, the Macedonian continuation of the Appian Way. Amphipolis.—Thirty miles southwest of Philippi, on the eastern bank of the Strymon, “which flowed almost round it and gave to it its name” (Hackett). Apollonia.—To be distinguished from a town of the same name in Galatia (Ramsay). Thirty miles south-west of Amphipolis. At each of these towns the travellers most likely passed a night, but not more, “as it appears the Jews were not at either town in sufficient numbers to maintain a synagogue, or perhaps even an oratory” (Lewin). Thessalonica.—Now Saloniki. The capital of the second division of Macedonia; a rich commercial city near the mouth of the Ecedorus, on the Thermaic Gulf, about twenty-eight miles west of Apollonia. Weizsäcker, badly off for an objection to the historic credibility of the Thessalonian visit, finds it strange that Paul “went, of all places, to the capital of the province which had just given him such a bad reception”; from which it may presumably be inferred that the German critic would not have proved so courageous as the Christian apostle. A (according to the best MSS. the definite article is wanting, though Hackett and Alford favour its retention) synagogue of the Jews.—Doubtless the only one in town.
Acts 17:2. As his manner was.—Compare Acts 13:5-14, Acts 14:1. Out of, or from the Scriptures.—The source whence Paul drew his teaching (compare Acts 28:23).
Acts 17:3. Opening.—I.e., giving the sense of Scripture, and alleging—i.e., propounding, maintaining, or setting forth as the sum of their teaching. Christ should be the Christ. That this Jesus, etc, should be, that this is the Christ—viz., the Jesus whom I preach or proclaim unto you.
Acts 17:4. Believed.—Rather, were persuaded. Consorted with.—Attached themselves to (Olshausen, Hackett), though the more correct interpretation is were added by lot to (Winer, De Wette, Meyer, Alford, Holtzmann, Zöckler)—viz., by God (compare Acts 13:48; John 6:44; John 17:6). Of the devout Greeks reads in the Alexandrine Codex of the devout and of Greeks, which, however, is not to be preferred (see Acts 13:43). Of the chief, or first women.—See on Acts 13:50.
Acts 17:5. The Jews who believed not.—The best MSS. omit the relative clause, as an insertion from Acts 14:2. Lewd fellows of the baser sort.—Lit., certain disreputable men of the market idlers—such as Cicero calls subrostrani, Plautus sub-basilicani, Xenophon the market-place mob, τὸν�, and Demosthenes the knaves of the market, περίτριμμα�. Jason was Paul’s host (Acts 17:7), as Lydia had been his hostess at Philippi. Whether this Jason was Paul’s kinsman (Romans 16:21) cannot be determined.
Acts 17:6. When they found them not.—Probably because Paul and Silas were then absent from their lodging. The rulers of the city, politarchs = the ἅρχοντες of Acts 16:19.—Not in this case, as in that of Philippi, prœtors, because Thessalonica was not a colony, but a free city, possessing the right of self-government in all its internal affairs, within the territory that might be assigned to it, and having magistrates with whose jurisdiction the provincial governor had no right to intermeddle. An inscription found on an arch at Thessalonica mentions that the city magistrates were called politarchs, and gives as three of these individuals bearing the names of three of Paul’s friends—Sosipater (Acts 20:4), Gaius (Acts 19:29), and Secundus (Acts 20:4).
Acts 17:7. Another King, one Jesus.—Virtually a charge of high treason, a more alarming charge than that preferred against them at Philippi (Acts 16:21), and recalling the accusation of the Jerusalem Jews against Christ (John 19:15).
Acts 17:9. When they had taken security.—Lit., having taken the sufficient (sum or pledge) = satisdatione accepta, either by sureties or money. They let them go ἀπέλυσαν (compare Acts 13:3).—Paul’s language in 1 Thessalonians 2:14-16 appears to contain a reminiscence of his experience in Thessalonica.
HOMILETICAL ANALYSIS.—Acts 17:1-9
Paul and Silas at Thessalonica; or, Mixed Experiences
I. Their arrival in the city.—
1. How they reached it. By passing through Amphipolis and Apollonia, towards which they directed their steps on departing from the house of Lydia (Acts 16:40). The first of these towns lay thirty-three miles from Philippi in a south-westerly direction, the second thirty from Amphipolis and thirty-seven from Thessalonica. In all a journey of a hundred miles was undertaken, which might easily have been performed in three or four days. The first town, anciently called the “Nine Ways,” from the number of Thracian and Macedonian roads which converged at it, stood back three miles from the sea, on the east bank of the Strymon, which, flowing round it, gave it its name. The exact site of the second town has not been ascertained, although the road to it must have lain through scenes of surpassing loveliness.
2. How they found it. In those days Thessalonica—the modern Saloniki, with a population of 70,000, of whom a third are Jews—was a rich commercial city, near the mouth of the Echedorus. Originally called Therma, its name was changed by Cassander, the son of Antipater, and one of Alexander’s generals, who rebuilt it, into Thessalonica, after his wife, who was a daughter of Philip. For the historic associations connected with Thessalonica see Conybeare and Howson’s Life and Epistles of St. Paul, i. 298. When Paul and Silas for the first time entered this town “it was the most populous of all the cities of Macedonia, and the capital of the whole province,” where “the Roman Proconsul, attended by six lictors and their fasces, held his court, attended by his privy council, or Board of Advice, composed of select illustrious Romans, with whom he conferred on all matters of state” (Lewin). Its dense heathenism, moreover, was relieved by the presence of only one Jewish synagogue, while its streets were crowded by “lewd fellows of the baser sort,” “vile fellows of the rabble,” or market-place tramps.
3. How long they remained in it. At least three Sabbaths (Acts 17:2), and possibly three full weeks, during which, it may be safely assumed, the four missionaries were not idle, and Paul specially kept working night and day (1 Thessalonians 2:9). There is even ground for thinking Paul must have stayed several months in Thessalonica, as during that period he twice received pecuniary assistance from Philippi (Philippians 4:15-16).
II. Their procedure in the city.—
1. Their lodging. This, the procuring of which naturally formed their first concern, they found in the house of one Jason, a Græcised form of Jesus, a Jew, to whom “they may have brought letters of introduction from the disciples at Philippi” (Lewin), or who may have been a kinsman of Paul’s (Romans 16:21), though too much significance may be attached to similarity of name. If the individual here mentioned was a relative of Paul’s he must have been with the apostle at Corinth when he wrote the epistle to the Romans 2. Their living. This may have been provided gratuitously by Jason, though that is unlikely. The epistle to the Thessalonians (1 Acts 2:9) rather shows that Paul and his companions laboured night and day, if not at their ordinary trades, at some form of manual labour, to furnish for themselves such scanty supplies as their modest wants demanded. The Philippians, indeed, once and again forwarded money contributions (Philippians 4:15-16) to the apostle while in Thessalonica; but if, as he himself states, he had suffered the loss of his whole worldly property in Philippi (Philippians 3:8), and if, as there is reason to believe, while he was there, wheat stood at famine prices in Thessalonica, a peck of wheat being sold, according to Eusebius, for six drachmæ, or four shillings and sixpence, being six times the usual price (see Lewin, vol. i., p. 258), the amounts received from his grateful converts would hardly dispense him or his companions—Silas, Timothy, and Luke—from the necessity of supporting themselves by their own hands.
3. Their preaching. Here the narrative loses sight of Silas and speaks exclusively of Paul, concerning whose ministrations it furnishes the amplest details.
(1) The place in which they were held was the synagogue, the only one then, though now Saloniki can boast of nearly forty Jewish churches.
(2) The time was the Sabbath, the ordinary season for worship, in selecting which Paul followed his usual custom of seeking the earliest hearing for his gospel from his countrymen (compare Acts 13:5; Acts 13:14; Acts 14:1).
(3) The text book from which his expositions and exhortations were drawn was the Scriptures of the Old Testament, which he regarded as the word of God and the New Testament Church’s manual of salvation.
(4) The thesis in support of which he reasoned said that Jesus of Nazareth was the Hebrew Messiah who had been promised to the fathers, obviously a suitable starting-point from which to address a Jewish audience. A preacher’s success with his hearers depends, to no small extent, on the way in which he opens his discourse.
(5) The method in which he sought to establish this proposition was not by noisy declamation or dogmatic assertion, least of all by vulgar sensationalism, but by calm reasoning, appealing to the Scriptures for the evidence on which he based his proposition, expounding the meaning of the prophecies that spoke of the Messiah, and showing how they all had received their fulfilment in Jesus of Nazareth.
(6) The proof which he deduced from Scripture consisted in this, that according to these prophecies “Christ must needs have suffered and risen again from the dead” (compare Acts 2:24-31; Acts 3:18; Acts 13:27-37; Luke 24:44), and that, according to actual fact, Jesus of Nazareth had risen from the grave.
(7) The effect produced by his disputations was such that a considerable number of his hearers were converted. First, some of the Jewish worshippers came over to his side, among them Secundus (Acts 20:4), Aristarchus (Acts 19:29; Acts 20:4; Colossians 4:10; Philemon 1:24), and perhaps Gaius (Acts 19:29). Next, a great multitude of the Greek proselytes (according to another reading “of the devout and of Greeks”) attached themselves to the new faith. Lastly, not a few of the chief (or first) women—i.e., occupying a leading position in the town (compare Acts 13:50), espoused the new cause. N.B.—As all the above, unless the other reading be adopted, were practically gathered from Judaism, while Paul speaks of the Thessalonian Christians as having been drawn from those who worshipped idols (1 Thessalonians 1:9; 1 Thessalonians 2:14), it has been surmised that Acts preserves the result only of Paul’s three Sabbaths’ reasonings in the synagogue, and that either he preached to the Gentiles during the week (Neander) or spent a longer time in Thessalonica preaching to the Gentiles after he had been excluded from the synagogue, and before the incidents next recorded (Paley). See above, Acts 1:3.
III. Their treatment in the city.—
1. Their work hindered. Perceiving the success which had attended the apostle’s preaching in drawing away from the synagogue so large a body of converts, “a greater multitude of adherents than they had won during many years to the doctrines of Moses” (Farrar), indignant at seeing the strange missionaries teaching the Gentiles (1 Thessalonians 2:16), and perhaps furious at their losing the resources, reverence, and adhesion of the leading women of the city (Farrar), the unbelieving Jews followed the example of their co-religionists at Antioch (Acts 13:50), Iconium (Acts 14:2), and Lystra (Acts 14:19), and excited against the evangelists a fresh persecution, calling to their aid “certain lewd fellows of the baser sort,” the roughs and scoundrels, loafers and loiterers of the city, the men of the market-place, the street-walkers, and raising a hue and cry against the objects of their rage (see “Critical Remarks”).
2. Their lodging assaulted. Jason’s house, surrounded by the mob, was broken into in hope of finding his hated guests (compare Genesis 19:4-11). The ostensible ground of attack was that Jason had granted these wandering preachers a lodging; the real purpose was to fetch these out before the people, demos, or popular assembly, in which their condemnation would at once have been secured. Had the apostles, at the moment, been within Jason’s house, they would certainly have been arrested. As, however, they were absent, Jason and certain brethren—i.e., Thessalonian converts with him at the time—were apprehended and forcibly dragged before the city-rulers, or politarchs (see “Critical Remarks”).
3. Their names traduced. The absent missionaries were charged—not with being Christians, which had not yet become a crime in the Roman empire—but with being
(1) revolutionaries, men who were aiming at turning, and who in some measure actually had, “turned the world upside down”; and
(2) rebels—persons who acted contrary to the decrees of Cæsar, saying, “There is another king, one Jesus,” and who therefore were, to all intents and purposes, guilty of high treason. The decrees of Cæsar were the Julian Laws, which enacted that whosoever violated the majesty of the State, or insulted the emperor by casting a stone at his image, would be counted as a traitor. As intended by its promoters, the accusation was, of course, false (compare Luke 23:2; John 19:12; John 19:15), though it found a seeming warrant in the character of Paul’s preaching at Thessalonica, which talked about Christ’s kingdom and glory (1 Thessalonians 1:10; 1 Thessalonians 2:19; 1 Thessalonians 3:13; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; 1 Thessalonians 5:1; 1 Thessalonians 2; 2 Thessalonians 1:5; 2 Thessalonians 1:7-10; 2 Thessalonians 2:1-12); in another sense than theirs it was perfectly true (see below, “Hints,” etc.).
4. Their departure rendered necessary. The magistrates, alarmed for the peace of the city, demanded security—perhaps by sureties or by a sum of money—from Jason and his brethren, not that Paul and Silas would appear for trial, since these were forthwith sent away from the town, but that no attempt would be made against the supremacy of Rome, and that the quiet of the town would not be disturbed. As this could hardly be secured while Paul continued preaching within its precincts, it was necessary for him to depart. This, accordingly, he did, taking with him Silas and Timothy, the brethren in Thessalonica sending them off secretly, under cover of the darkness, and, no doubt, with affectionate farewells, to the out-of-the-way town of Berœa.
Learn—
1. The unwearied diligence which Christ’s ambassadors should exhibit.
2. The value of the Old Testament as a storehouse of proofs of Christ’s Messiahship and divinity.
3. The proper subject of Christian preaching—that Jesus is the Christ.
4. The most effective style of preaching—that which is based on Scripture and aims at the heart, through the understanding.
5. The success which commonly results from faithful preaching.
6. The inveterate hostility of the evil heart towards the gospel.
7. The slanders which are often hurled against the followers of Christ.
HINTS AND SUGGESTIONS
Acts 17:3. The Death and Resurrection of Christ a Necessity.
I. His death necessary.—
1. To fulfil Scripture—which as God’s word could not be broken (John 10:35).
2. To accomplish God’s counsel—which had foreordained that Christ should die (Acts 4:28; 1 Peter 1:19-20; Galatians 4:4).
3. To atone for the sins of men—by the shedding of His blood (2 Corinthians 5:21; Colossians 1:14; Hebrews 9:12).
4. To perfect His example of holiness—since in thus taking the sinner’s place He gave to mankind the highest demonstration of self-sacrificing love (1 Peter 2:21; 1 John 3:16).
II. His resurrection necessary.—
1. To fulfil Scripture, which had foretold His rising from the dead.
2. To demonstrate His Divine sonship, without which He could not have been a Saviour for man.
3. To attest the acceptance of His atoning work, evidence of which would have been awanting had He not risen.
4. To perfect Him as a Saviour, by showing Him to have life in Himself and all power in heaven and on earth, and therefore to be able to save to the uttermost, etc.
Acts 17:6. Turning the World upside down.
I. A malicious calumny.—As used by the Thessalonian Jews about Paul and Silas, and as still directed by the unbelieving world against ministers, missionaries, and Christian people generally, who are not either—
1. political revolutionaries, in their tenets or their actions, Christianity enjoining submission for conscience’ sake and Christ’s sake to the powers that be (Romans 13:1); or
2. social agitators, their religion teaching them to follow peace with all men (Hebrews 12:14), to lead a quiet and peaceable life (1 Timothy 2:2), and to study the things that make for peace (Romans 14:19).
II. A glorious truth.—In a sense not intended this indictment expressed the truth concerning Paul and Silas, as it still does about Christian preachers and professors. It is the aim of these, as it was of Paul and Silas, to turn the world upside down.
1. In its beliefs, leading it from trust in idols to faith in God and Jesus Christ.
2. In its actions, turning them from sin to holiness, and from the bondage of Satan to serve the living God.
3. In its hopes, directing it to seek its chief good above and not below, in heaven rather than on earth.
Acts 17:7. Another King, one Jesus.
I. His sovereignty.—Rests on
1. The appointment of Heaven. Christ is a king by Divine right (Psalms 2:6; Acts 5:31; Philippians 2:9-11).
2. The affections of His subjects. His enemies do not wish Him to reign over them, but His friends do (Luke 19:27).
II. His empire.
1. Its extent. The universe (Matthew 28:18), including the nations (Daniel 7:14), and the Church (John 1:49; John 18:36; 1 Corinthians 15:24; Colossians 1:18), as well as angels, principalities, and powers (1 Peter 3:22).
2. Its character. Spiritual, not of this world, a kingdom of truth and righteousness (John 18:36).
3. Its duration. Eternal. It shall never pass away (Revelation 11:15) till the end of this mediatorial dispensation (1 Corinthians 15:28).
III. His rule. A rule
1. Of righteousness (Psalms 45:6; Isaiah 32:1).
2. Of love (Psalms 110:3).
3. Of salvation (Zechariah 9:9).
Illustration.—“After an absence of twenty months Andrew Melville returned to Scotland and resumed his office at St. Andrew’s. He was repeatedly elected Moderator of the General Assembly and Rector of the University. A remarkable instance of his plain speaking took place at Cupar, in 1596. Melville was heading a deputation to remonstrate with the king. James reminded the zealous remonstrant that he was his vassal. ‘Sirrah!’ retorted Melville, ‘ye are God’s silly vassal; there are two kings and two kingdoms in Scotland; there is King James, the head of this Commonwealth, and there is Christ Jesus, the King of the Church, whose subject James 6 is, and of whose kingdom he is not a king, nor a lord, nor a head, but a member.’ ” (Chambers’ Encyclopœdia, art. Melville, Andrew).
Acts 17:1-9. Paul’s Visit to Thessalonica.
I. A time of uninterrupted labour.
1. Providing for his own maintenance
2. Publishing the gospel.
3. Arranging for the welfare of his converts.
II. A period of growing influence. Extending
1. Among his own countrymen.
2. Next among the Gentiles.
3. Finally among the leading citizens.
III. A season of spiritual joy. Because of—
1. The hearty reception which his message received;
2. The numerous converts it gained; and
3. The practical influence these exerted in the community.