Acts 17:14

And then immediately the brethren sent away Paul to go as it were to the sea: but Silas and Timotheus abode there still. AND THEN IMMEDIATELY THE BRETHREN - the converts gathered at Berea. SENT AWAY PAUL - as had been done before from Jerusalem (Acts 9:30), and from Thessalonica (Acts 17:10). How long he stayed at Berea we know not; but as we know that he longed and expected soon to return to the Thessalonians (1 Thessalonians 2:17), it is probable he remained some weeks at least, and only abandoned his intention of revisiting Thessalonica at that time when the virulence of his enemies there, stimulated by his suc...

10-15 The Jews in Berea applied seriously to the study of the word preached unto them. They not only heard Paul preach on the sabbath, but daily searched the Scriptures, and compared what they read with the facts related to them. The doctrine of Christ does not fear inquiry; advocates for his cause desire no more than that people will fully and fairly examine whether things are so or not. Those are truly noble, and likely to be more and more so, who make the Scriptures their rule, and consult them accordingly. May all the hearers of the gospel become like those of Berea, receiving the word with readiness of mind, and searching the Scriptures daily, whether the things preached to them are so....

Verse Acts 17:14. _TO GO AS IT WERE TO THE SEA_] This passage is generally understood to mean that the disciples took Paul towards the sea, _as if he had intended to embark, and return to Troas_, but with the _real design_ to go to _Athens_. But it is more likely that his conductors, in order to his greater safety, left the public or more frequented road, and took him _coastwise_ to Athens. Or, by taking a vessel at that part of the sea nearest to _Berea_, they might have coasted it to Athens, which was quite a possible case; and, as we do not hear of his stopping at any place on his journey to preach, it is very probable that he went by sea to this city. Though sleights and feints may be allowable in cases of life and death, yet there does not appear an absolute necessity for any in this case. And, as the text does not necessarily point any out, so we need not hav...

THE BRETHREN - Those who were Christians. SENT AWAY PAUL - In order to secure his safety. A similar thing had been done in Thessalonica, Acts 17:10. The tumult was great; and there was no doubt, such was the hostility of the Jews, that the life of Paul would be endangered, and they there fore resolved to secure his safety. AS IT WERE - Rather, “even to the sea,” for that is its signification. It does not imply that there was any feint or sleight in the case, as if they intended to deceive their pursuers. They took him to the seacoast, not far from Berea, and from that place he probably went by sea to Athens....

EXPOSITION ACTS 17:1 AMPHIPOLIS. This was the ancient capital of that division of Macedonia (Macedonia Prima); see Acts 16:12, note. It was situated on the Via Egnatia, thirty-four miles southwest from Philippi, and three miles from the AEgean Sea. It lay in a peninsula, surrounded on three sides by the Strymon, whence its name, _Amphipolis; _its modern name is _Neokhoria, _now a village. Its original name was Ἐννέα ̔οδοί, The Nine Ways. Originally a Thracian city, it was conquered by the Athenians, then by the Lacedaemonians, then fell under the dominion of Philip of Macedon, and finally, with the rest of Macedonia, became part of the Roman empire. APOLLONIA; now probably _Polina, _thirty miles due west

AND THEN IMMEDIATELY THE BRETHREN,.... That were at Berea, the new converts there: SENT AWAY PAUL, whom they knew the Jews mostly sought after, and were offended with: TO GO AS IT WERE TO THE SEA; the Aegean sea, or Archipelago, near to which Berea was: this seems to have been done, in order to make the people conclude that he intended to take shipping, and go into some other parts of the world, when the design was to go to Athens by foot, and so be safe from any lying in wait of his persecutors: the Alexandrian copy, the Vulgate Latin, and the Oriental versions read, "to go to the sea"; to the sea side, whither it seems he did go; and yet it looks as if he did not go by sea, but by land, to Athens: BUT SILAS AND TIMOTHEUS ABODE THERE STILL; at Berea, to confirm and strengthen the young converts there made....

ACTS 17:14-15 Codex Bezae, with occasional support from other Western witnesses, recasts these two verses as follows: to.n me.n ou=n Pau/lon oi` avdelfoi. evxape,steilan avpelqei/n evpi. th.n qa,lassan\ u`pe,meinen de. o` Sila/j kai. o` Timo,qeoj evkei/) oi` de. katasta,nontej to.n Pau/lon h;gagon e[wj VAqhnw/n( parh/lqen de. th.n Qessali,an( evkwlu,qh ga.r eivj auvtou.j khru,xai to.n lo,gon( labo,ntej de. evntolh.n para. Pau,lou pro.j to.n Sila/n kai. Timo,qeon o[pwj evn ta,cei e;lqwsin pro.j auvto.n evxh,|esan (“The brethren therefore sent Paul off to go to the sea, but Silas and Timothy remained there. (15) And those who conducted Paul brought him as far as Athens, and he passed by Thessaly, for he was prevented from proclaiming the word to them; and having received a command from Paul for Silas and Timothy...

CHAPTER 17 _ 1. The Gospel in Thessalonica (Acts 17:1)._ 2. The Gospel in Beroea (Acts 17:10). 3. Paul in Athens (Acts 17:15). Three cities in which the Gospel is next preached are before us in this chapter. But there is a marked difference between these three places. In Thessalonica there was much hostility, the result of the success of the Gospel. In Beroea a more noble class of Jews were found. Their nobility consisted in submission to the Scriptures, the oracles of God, and in a ready mind. There was a still greater blessing among the Jews and the Gentiles. In Athens the Apostle Paul met idolatry, indifference and ridicule. An interesting fact is learned concerning the activity of the apostl

THROUGH BERŒ A TO ATHENS. Berœ a was a populous place but off the main route. Paul and Silas at once go to the synagogue; by this time we should think they could scarcely look to the synagogue with hopeful eyes. The Berœ an Jews, however, were more noble, _i.e._ better-behaved, than their brethren at Thessalonica; they did not close their minds to the message, but applied themselves with interest to testing it by Scripture. The new church at Berœ a is composed, like that at Thessalonica, of Jews, Greek ladies of position, and men, _i.e._ Greeks. We hear of Sopater of Berœ a in Acts 20:4. The Jews of Thessalonica follow Paul with their hostility and he has to leave Berœ a also. As to Silas and Timothy there is a little difficulty. In Acts 18:5 they do not join Paul at Athens as he expected, but at Corinth. But i

IN THESSALONICA (Acts 17:1-9)...