the Week of Proper 20 / Ordinary 25
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Acts 17:19
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Then they invited him to come speak at the courthouse square. They introduced Paul by saying, "We would like to hear more about this new teaching you bring.
And they took him and brought him to the Areopagus, saying, "May we know what this new teaching is which you are proclaiming?
And they took him and brought him to the Areopagus, saying, "May we know what this new teaching is which you are speaking?
And they took him to Mars' Hill, saying, Will you make clear to us what is this new teaching of yours?
And having taken hold on him they brought [him] to Areopagus, saying, Might we know what this new doctrine which is spoken by thee [is]?
And they took him and brought him to the Areopagus, saying, "May we know what this new doctrine is of which you speak?
They took him and brought him to the Areopagus, and said, "May we learn about this new teaching you're speaking of?
They took hold of him, and brought him to the Areopagus, saying, "May we know what this new teaching is, which is spoken by you?
And they took him and brought him to the Areopagus, saying, May we know what this new doctrine is, which is spoken by thee?
Then they took him and brought him up to the Areopagus, asking him, "May we be told what this new teaching of yours is?
And they tooke him, and brought him vnto Areopagus, saying, May we know what this new doctrine, whereof thou speakest, is?
And taking hold of him, they led him to the Areopagus, saying, Are we able to know what is this new doctrine being spoken by you?
And they toke him, and broughte him before the councell house, and sayde: Maye we not knowe, what new doctryne this is that thou teachest?
These people got together and asked him to make a public presentation over at the Areopagus, where things were a little quieter. They said, "This is a new one on us. We've never heard anything quite like it. Where did you come up with this anyway? Explain it so we can understand." Downtown Athens was a great place for gossip. There were always people hanging around, natives and tourists alike, waiting for the latest tidbit on most anything.
They took him and brought him to the Areopagus (Hill of Ares, the Greek god of war), saying, "May we know what this [strange] new teaching is which you are proclaiming?
And they took hold of him, and brought him unto the Areopagus, saying, May we know what this new teaching is, which is spoken by thee?
And they took hold of him and brought him to the Are-op'agus, saying, "May we know what this new teaching is which you present?
And they toke him and brought him into Marsestrete sayinge: maye we not knowe what this newe doctrine wher of thou speakest is?
And they took hold of him, and brought him to the Areopagus, saying, May we know what this new teaching is, which is spoken by you?
And they took him, and brought him to Areopagus, saying, May we know what this new doctrine [is], of which thou speakest?
having also taken him, unto the Areopagus they brought [him], saying, `Are we able to know what [is] this new teaching that is spoken by thee,
They got Paul and took him to a meeting of the Areopagus, where they said, "Please explain to us this new idea you have been teaching.
So they took Paul and brought him to the Areopagus, saying, "May we know what this new teaching is that you are proclaiming?
So they took Paul and brought him to the Areopagus, where they asked him, "May we know what this new teaching is that you are presenting?
They brought Paul before a council called the Areopagus, and said, "Tell us what your new teaching is all about.
They took and brought him before the High Council, saying, "May we know what this new teaching is that you are presenting?
And they took him and brought him to the Areopagus, saying, "May we know what this new teaching is that you are presenting?
And they tooke him, and brought him into Mars streete, saying, May we not know, what this newe doctrine, whereof thou speakest, is?
So they arrested him and brought him to the court house which is called Ar-e-op''agus, and said to him, May we know what is this new doctrine which you preach?
They took hold of him, and brought him to the Areopagus, saying, "May we know what this new teaching is, which is spoken by you?
Then they took him, brought him before the Areopagus,[fn] and asked, "May we know what this new teaching of yours is?
And they took him and brought him to the house of judgment which is called Arios-pagos, saying to him, Can we know what this new doctrine is which thou art preaching?
And they took him and brought him to the place of judgments called Areopagus, and said to him: May we know what this new doctrine which thou preachest is?
Then they took him to the high council of the city. "Come and tell us about this new teaching," they said.
Then they took him to Mars' Hill and said, "We want to hear of this new teaching of yours.
And they took hold of him, and brought him unto the Areopagus, saying, May we know what this new teaching is, which is spoken by thee?
So they took him and brought him to the Areopagus and asked him, "May we know what this new teaching is that you are presenting?
And so, laying hold of him, they brought him up, to the Hill of Mars, saying - Can we get to know what this new teaching is, which, by thee, is being spoken.
And taking him, they brought him to the Areopagus, saying: May we know what this new doctrine is, which thou speakest of?
And they took him, and brought him unto Areopagus, saying, May we know what this new doctrine, whereof thou speakest, is?
And they took hold of him and brought him to the Areopagus, saying, "May we learn what is this new teaching being proclaimed by you?
And they toke hym, and brought him into Marce streate, saying: Maye we not knowe what this newe doctrine wherof thou speakest is?
They took Paul to a meeting of the Areopagus council. They said, "Please explain to us this new idea that you have been teaching.
And they took him and brought him to the Areopagus, saying, "May we know what this new teaching is which you are proclaiming?
So they took Paul, brought him before the city council, the Areopagus, and said, "We would like to know what this new teaching is that you are talking about.
And thei token, and ledden hym to Ariopage, and seide, Moun we wite, what is this newe doctryne, that is seid of thee?
Contextual Overview
Bible Verse Review
from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge
Areopagus: or, Mars'-hill, Acts 17:22, "It was the highest court in Athens."
May: Acts 17:20, Acts 24:24, Acts 25:22, Acts 26:1, Matthew 10:18
new: Mark 1:27, John 13:34, 1 John 2:7, 1 John 2:8
Reciprocal: Isaiah 21:12 - if John 18:38 - What Acts 17:34 - the Areopagite
Gill's Notes on the Bible
And they took him,.... Not that they laid hands on him, and carried him away by violence, as a derider of their gods, and an introducer of new ones, in order to punish him; but they invited him to go with them, and they took him along with them in a friendly manner, and had him to a more convenient place for preaching and disputation, and where were many learned men to hear and judge of his doctrine; and this appears from their desire to hear what his doctrine was, and from his quiet departure, after he had ended his discourse:
and brought him unto Areopagus. The Arabic version seems to understand this of a person, rendering it, "and brought him to the most skilful, and the judge of the doctors"; to be heard and examined before him, about the doctrine he preached, who was most capable of judging concerning it; and this might be Dionysius, who is called the Areopagite, and was converted by the apostle, Acts 17:34. The Ethiopic version renders it, "they brought him to the house of their god"; to one of their idols' temple, the temple of Mars, which is not much amiss; for we are told g, that Areopagus was a street in Athens, in which was the temple of Mars, from whence it had its name; but the Syriac version renders it best of all, "they brought him to the house of judgment, or "court of judicature", which is called Areopagus"; and so it is called "Martium judicium", or Mars's "court of judicature", by Apuleius h, and "Martis curia", or the "court of Mars", by Juvenal i, for it was a court where causes were tried, and the most ancient one with the Athenians, being instituted by Cerops, their first king; and is thought to be near as ancient, if not fully as ancient, yea, as more ancient than the sanhedrim, or the court of seventy elders, appointed by Moses among the Jews. It was called Areopagus, because Ares, or Mars, was the first that was judged there k. The case was this, Alcippe, the daughter of Mars, being ravished by Habirrhothius, the son of Neptune, and caught by Mars in the very fact, was killed by him; upon which Neptune arraigned Mars for the murder, and tried him in this place, by a jury of twelve deities, by whom he was acquitted l. Hither Paul was brought, not to be tried in a legal manner; for it does not appear that any charge was exhibited against him, or any legal process carried on, only an inquiry was made about his doctrine, and that only to gratify their curiosity:
saying, may we know what this new doctrine, whereof thou speakest, is? for they had never heard of Jesus, nor of salvation by him, nor of the resurrection of the dead; these were all new things to them, and therefore they were the more curious to ask after them, new things being what they were fond of: wherefore they call his doctrine new, not so much by way of reproach, as suggesting it to be a reason why they inquired after it, and why they desired him to give them some account of it; and that it should be a new doctrine with them, or if they reproached it with the charge of novelty, it need not be wondered at in them, when the Jews charged and reproached the doctrine of Christ in like manner, Mark 1:27.
g Alex. ab Alex. Genial. Dier. l. 3. c. 5. h Milesiarum 10. i Satyr. 5. k Pausaniae Attica, p. 52. l Apellodorus de deorum origine, l. 3, p. 193.
Barnes' Notes on the Bible
And brought him unto Areopagus - Margin, or “Mars’ hill.” This was the place or court in which the Areopagites, the celebrated supreme judges of Athens, assembled. It was on a hill almost in the middle of the city; but nothing now remains by which we can determine the form or construction of the tribunal. The hill is almost entirely a mass of stone, and is not easily accessible, its sides being steep and abrupt. On many accounts this was the most celebrated tribunal in the world. Its decisions were distinguished for justice and correctness; nor was there any court in Greece in which so much confidence was placed. This court took cognizance of murders, impieties, and immoralities; they punished vices of all kinds, including idleness; they rewarded the virtuous; they were especially attentive to blasphemies against the gods, and to the performance of the sacred mysteries of religion. It was, therefore, with the greatest propriety that Paul was brought before this tribunal, as being regarded as a setter forth of strange gods, and as being supposed to wish to Introduce a new mode of worship. See Potter’s “Antiquities of Greece,” book 1, chapter 19; and Travels of Anacharsis, vol. i. 136, 185; ii. 292-295.
May we know - We would know. This seems to have been a respectful inquiry; and it does not appear that Paul was brought there for the sake of trial. There are no accusations; no witnesses; none of the forms of trial. They seem to have resorted thither because it was the place where the subject of religion was usually discussed, and because it was a place of confluence for the citizens, and judges, and wise men of Athens, and of foreigners. The design seems to have been, not to try him, but fairly to canvass the claims of his doctrines. See Acts 17:21. It was just an instance of the inquisitive spirit of the people of Athens, willing to hear before they condemned, and to examine before they approved.
Clarke's Notes on the Bible
Verse Acts 17:19. They took him, and brought him unto Areopagus — The Areopagus was a hill not far from the Acropolis, already described, where the supreme court of justice was held; one of the most sacred and reputable courts that had ever existed in the Gentile world. It had its name, αρειος παγος, Areopagus, or the Hill of Mars, or Ares, from the circumstance, according to poetic fiction, of Mars being tried there, by a court of twelve gods, for the murder of Halirrhothius, son of Neptune: the meaning of which is, that Ares, a Thessalian prince, having slain Halirrhothius, the son of a neighbouring prince, for having violated his daughter Alcippe, was here tried by twelve judges, by whom he was honourably acquitted: in the Athenian laws the death of the ravisher was the regular forfeiture for his crime. The justice administered in this court was so strict and impartial, that, it was generally allowed, both the plaintiff and defendant departed satisfied with the decision. "Innocence, when summoned before it, appeared without apprehension; and the guilty, convicted and condemned, retired with out daring to murmur." The place in which the judges sat was uncovered; and they held their sittings by night, to the end that nothing might distract their minds from the great business on which they were to decide; and that the sight of the accused might not affect them either with pity or aversion. In reference to this, all pleaders were strictly forbidden to use any means whatever to excite either pity or aversion, or to affect the passions; every thing being confined to simple relation, or statement of facts. When the two parties were produced before the court, they were placed between the bleeding members of victims slain on the occasion, and were obliged to take an oath, accompanied by horrible imprecations on themselves and families, that they would testify nothing but truth. These parties called to witness the eumenides, or furies, the punishers of the perjured in the infernal world; and, to make the greater impression on the mind of the party swearing, the temple dedicated to these infernal deities was contiguous to the court, so that they appeared as if witnessing the oaths and recording the appeal made to themselves. When the case was fully heard, the judges gave their decision by throwing down their flint pebbles, on two boards or tables, one of which was for the condemnation, the other for the acquittal, of the person in question.
