Paul in Athens
An altar to an unknown god
Two things you can tap
- A verse number shows the Bible’s exact words.
- An underlined word shows what it means.
Story
What happened?
Tap a verse number, like , to read the Bible’s exact words.
The whole story, in shortWhat happens, start to finish. Open it if you want the ending first.
While Paul waited in Athens, he was upset to see the city full of idols, and philosophers brought him to the council called the Areopagus. Paul pointed to an altar "to an unknown god" and told them about the God who made the world, who is not far from anyone, and who proved he will judge the world by raising a man from the dead. Some laughed, some wanted to hear more, and some believed, including Dionysius and a woman named Damaris.
Where it is in the Bible: Acts 17:16-34
Who’s who and what came beforePeople, places, and the story so far. Open it anytime.
Scene Card
Cast
- Paul: A follower of Jesus who once attacked the church. Jesus met him on the road to Damascus. Now he travels from city to city, telling people about Jesus.
- The philosophers: Teachers from two famous schools of thought in Athens, the Epicureans and the Stoics. A philosopher is someone who studies big questions about life and the world.
- The Areopagus: A council of leaders in Athens. It met on or near a rocky hill with the same name.
- Dionysius and Damaris: A member of the Areopagus and a woman from Athens. Both believed Paul's message.
Setting
- Athens, a famous old city in Greece, full of temples and statues. The synagogue, the busy marketplace, and then the meeting of the Areopagus.
When
- Almost 20 years after Jesus rose from the dead, around AD 50. Soon after Paul's time in Philippi.
Before the Story
Paul had to leave town twice. In Thessalonica, some people believed Paul's message, and others turned against him and started a riot (17:4-5). Then in Berea, people from Thessalonica came to stir up the crowds again (17:13).
So the believers sent Paul away, alone. They took him to Athens. Silas and Timothy stayed behind in Berea for now (17:14-15).
Athens was a city of ideas. For hundreds of years, it had been famous for its teachers and thinkers.
Here's what you know that almost nobody in this story knows: The God they call "unknown" has already made himself known. Paul is about to tell them who he is.
Map of the Story
| Scene | Verses | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| 1. A City Full of Idols | 17:16-17 | Paul is upset by the idols and talks with everyone he meets |
| 2. "What Is This Babbler Saying?" | 17:18-21 | The philosophers bring Paul to the Areopagus |
| 3. To an Unknown God | 17:22-23 | Paul starts with an altar he found |
| 4. The God Who Made the World | 17:24-25 | God doesn't live in temples or need anything |
| 5. Not Far from Any of Us | 17:26-29 | We are God's children, so God is not an idol |
| 6. A Day and a Man | 17:30-31 | God calls everyone to turn to him, and raised Jesus |
| 7. Some Laughed, Some Believed | 17:32-34 | The crowd splits over the resurrection |
Plain Retelling
Scene 1 of 7A City Full of Idols
Paul was waiting in Athens for Silas and Timothy. While he waited, he walked the city.
Everywhere he looked, he saw idols. An idol is a statue people worship as a god. "He was deeply disturbed in his spirit to see that the city was full of idols" (17:16).
So Paul started talking. In the synagogue, he reasoned with Jewish people and with Gentiles who worshiped Israel's God. Gentiles are people who are not Jewish.
He also talked every day in the marketplace, with anyone who was there.
Scene 2 of 7"What Is This Babbler Saying?"
Some philosophers began to argue with Paul. Some of them were Epicureans and some were Stoics, two famous schools of thought.
Some of them said, "What is this babbler trying to say?" (17:18). A babbler is someone who picks up scraps of ideas and repeats them. It was an insult.
Others said Paul seemed to be preaching about foreign gods. They said this because Paul kept talking about Jesus and "the resurrection" (17:18). The resurrection means rising from the dead.
So they took Paul to a meeting of the Areopagus. They wanted to hear this new teaching. "You are bringing some strange notions to our ears, and we want to know what they mean" (17:20).
Acts explains that the people of Athens, and the visitors who lived there, spent their time doing little else than hearing and talking about the newest ideas.
Scene 3 of 7To an Unknown God
Paul stood up in front of the council. He didn't start by attacking them. He started with something he had noticed. "Men of Athens, I see that in every way you are very religious" (17:22).
While he walked around, Paul had looked at the things they worshiped. He even found an altar with these words carved on it: "TO AN UNKNOWN GOD" (17:23).
An altar is a stone table where people left gifts for a god. This one was for a god whose name they didn't know.
Then Paul said, "Therefore what you worship as something unknown, I now proclaim to you" (17:23). To proclaim means to announce.
Scene 4 of 7The God Who Made the World
Paul began with who God is. God made the world and everything in it. He is "the Lord of heaven and earth" (17:24).
So God doesn't live in temples that people build. Athens was full of beautiful temples. Paul said God doesn't live in any of them.
God doesn't need people to serve him, either, as if he were missing something. It's the other way around. "He Himself gives everyone life and breath and everything else" (17:25).
Scene 5 of 7Not Far from Any of Us
Paul went on. God made every nation from one man. He decided when and where people would live.
God did this so that people would seek him, and maybe reach out for him and find him. "He is not far from each one of us" (17:27).
Then Paul said, "For in Him we live and move and have our being" (17:28). And he quoted their own poets: "We are His offspring" (17:28). Offspring means children.
Paul used their own poets to make his point. If we are God's children, God can't be like a statue of gold, silver, or stone that people make with their hands.
Scene 6 of 7A Day and a Man
Now Paul came to the hard part. In the past, God had let people's not-knowing go by. But now God "commands all people everywhere to repent" (17:30). To repent means to turn around, and turn back to God.
Why now? God has set a day when he will judge the world with justice. He will do it through a man he has chosen.
And God has given everyone proof. He raised that man from the dead.
Paul didn't say the man's name in these verses. But remember, he had been talking about Jesus and the resurrection every day (17:17-18).
Scene 7 of 7Some Laughed, Some Believed
When the listeners heard about someone rising from the dead, some of them laughed at Paul.
Others said, "We want to hear you again on this topic" (17:32).
Then Paul left the meeting.
But some people went with him and believed. One was Dionysius, a member of the council. Another was a woman named Damaris. Others believed too.
Paul had come to Athens alone, sent away from two cities. He left with new brothers and sisters, even in Athens.
Meaning
What does it mean?
Read It
What Does This Mean?
| The text says | It means |
|---|---|
| "Deeply disturbed in his spirit" (17:16) | Paul was upset and troubled. God's people were never to make idols (Exodus 20:4). |
| "God-fearing Gentiles" (17:17) | People who were not Jewish but worshiped Israel's God. |
| "This babbler" (17:18) | An insult. It meant someone who repeats scraps of ideas he doesn't understand. |
| "TO AN UNKNOWN GOD" (17:23) | An altar for a god whose name the people didn't know. Paul used it as a door to talk about the true God. |
| "Does not live in temples made by human hands" (17:24) | God is bigger than any building. Solomon said the same when he built God's temple (1 Kings 8:27). |
| "He is not far from each one of us" (17:27) | God is close to every person, even people who don't know him yet. |
| "We are His offspring" (17:28) | A line from a Greek poet. Every person comes from God and owes God their life. |
| "Repent" (17:30) | Turn around. Change direction and turn back to God. |
| "By raising Him from the dead" (17:31) | The resurrection of Jesus is God's proof that Jesus is the one he has chosen. |
Back Then
Athens. Athens was the most famous city of ancient Greece. It was known for its thinkers and its art. In Paul's time it was part of the Roman Empire. (Easton's Bible Dictionary, "Athens")
Epicureans and Stoics. Epicureans taught that the best life was a calm, pleasant one, free from pain and fear. Stoics taught that people should accept whatever happens and live by reason, without being ruled by feelings. (Easton's Bible Dictionary, "Epicureans" and "Stoics")
The Areopagus. The name means "the hill of Ares," a Greek god of war. The Romans called him Mars, so the hill is also called Mars Hill. The council that met there took its name from the hill. (Easton's Bible Dictionary, "Areopagus")
The poets. "We are His offspring" comes from a Greek poet named Aratus. Many scholars think "In Him we live and move and have our being" comes from an older poet, Epimenides.
Literal Reader Alert
Paul quoted poets who wrote about Greek gods. Was he agreeing with them? No. He borrowed their words to point to the true God, the way you might quote a song someone loves to start a conversation. He didn't say their gods were real. He said the God they were reaching for was the one who made the world (17:24).
Did Paul's speech fail, since some people laughed? No. Some laughed, some wanted to hear more, and some believed (17:32-34). That's how it often goes when people hear about Jesus. Acts even names two of the believers.
Why doesn't Paul say "Jesus" in his speech? In these verses, Paul calls him "the Man He has appointed" (17:31). But Acts tells us Paul had been talking about Jesus all along (17:18). The speech in Acts may also be a summary of a longer talk.
"God overlooked the ignorance of earlier times" (17:30). Does that mean God didn't care? No. It means God was patient. God held back his judgment, waiting for the time when he would send Jesus. Now that Jesus has come, God calls everyone to turn to him (17:30).
How People Feel
| Who | Feeling | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Paul | Deeply upset | The city was full of idols (17:16) |
| Some philosophers | Scornful | They called Paul a babbler (17:18) |
| The people of Athens | Curious | They wanted to know what his new teaching meant (17:20) |
| Some listeners | Mocking | They laughed at the idea of rising from the dead (17:32) |
| Other listeners | Interested | They wanted to hear more (17:32) |
For you
What does it mean for me?
Your Turn
What's true for you right now? Tap one.
I'm searching for God
Paul said God made people to seek him, and "He is not far from each one of us" (17:27). You don't have to find your way up to God. In Jesus, God has come to find you.
I have friends who don't believe
Paul didn't start by attacking. He started with what the people of Athens already cared about. You can listen first too, and let the Holy Spirit work.
I'm not sure I believe in the resurrection
You're not alone. Some of Paul's listeners laughed, and some said, "We want to hear you again on this topic" (17:32). Asking questions is a good place to be.
I feel far from God
Paul told a room full of strangers that God is near every one of them. That includes you.
It's really bad right now
Please tell someone you trust today. In the U.S., call or text 988. If you are in danger, call 911 or your local emergency number. Outside the U.S., findahelpline.com lists free helplines.
You Might Have Heard
"All religions are just different paths up the same mountain."
What's true: Paul said God made people to seek him (17:27). He took the people of Athens seriously, and he started with what they cared about.
What the story is mainly about: Paul didn't tell the people of Athens they were already on the right path. He said they were worshiping what they didn't know, and he told them who God is. He called everyone to turn to God (17:30). The true God made the world, gives us life and breath, and raised Jesus from the dead (17:24-31).
Where Jesus is: He is the man God raised from the dead (17:31). We don't climb up to God. In Jesus, God came down to us.
Good News
The people of Athens had built an altar to a god they didn't know. They were reaching into the dark.
God has set a day to judge the world (17:31). Guessing right about God is not what makes anyone ready for that day.
But God doesn't wait for us to find him. "He is not far from each one of us" (17:27). He gives every one of us life and breath and everything else (17:25).
And he has shown us who he is. He raised Jesus from the dead (17:31). The unknown God has shown his face. We see him in Jesus.
You don't have to find God in the dark. God has come near to you in Jesus.
From the Wider Church
Augustine, a church leader in North Africa about 1,600 years ago, began his book Confessions with a prayer: "You have made us for yourself, and our heart is restless until it rests in you." It's the same idea Paul taught in Athens. God made us to seek him (17:27).
Big Idea
The God people reach for in the dark has come near, and he made himself known by raising Jesus from the dead.
If this story brings up big feelings, talk with someone you trust, like a parent, pastor, or counselor.
For leaders and parentsLuther, church readings, and notes for teaching.
From Luther
In the Heidelberg Disputation (1518), Luther said we can't know God truly by studying the world and reasoning our way up to him. We know God truly in Christ, and most of all in his suffering and his cross. Paul started with creation in Athens, but he didn't stop there. He ended with the man God raised from the dead.
In Church
Many churches follow a reading plan called the Revised Common Lectionary. It reads Acts 17:22-31 on the Sixth Sunday of Easter in Year A.
We quote Luther for what he got right about grace. He also wrote terrible things about Jewish people. Read our note on that.
Memorize
How do I keep it?
One line from this story to learn by heart. Practice a little now. It will come back later so it sticks.
For in Him we live and move and have our being.
How did that feel?