Act 17:21 | KingComments | STEP | Curious as they are, they want to know more. There is no enmity, rather a benevolent permission they give him to give his testimony. They even politely ask Paul if they are allowed to know “what this new teaching is” he is talking about. For this they take him to the Areopagus, where ‘the Department of Religion’, in the presence of many interested people in the ‘public gallery’, wants to deal with these things. They want to hear Paul about what they judge to be “new teaching” and “strange things”. To them, these are words with an unknown meaning. Paul will certainly have spoken in plain Greek, but still the meaning of what he says escapes these highly gifted thinkers. They think they are enlightened in their thinking, but in reality they are darkened in their minds. Therefore they understand nothing of what Paul says ( ). In order to be able to do so, they must first repent. Paul’s speech therefore culminates in a call to repentance that is connected to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus ( ). Before that happens, Paul is given the opportunity to explain what he is teaching. Offering this opportunity is in line with the attitude of the Athenians, for they like nothing more than to talk. Athens is a real city of talk. All they do is talk all day long. When a novelty presented itself, it was a rewarding occasion for a conversation.

‏ Acts 17:21

Paul Brought to the Areopagus

Curious as they are, they want to know more. There is no enmity, rather a benevolent permission they give him to give his testimony. They even politely ask Paul if they are allowed to know “what this new teaching is” he is talking about. For this they take him to the Areopagus, where ‘the Department of Religion’, in the presence of many interested people in the ‘public gallery’, wants to deal with these things. They want to hear Paul about what they judge to be “new teaching” and “strange things”. To them, these are words with an unknown meaning.

Paul will certainly have spoken in plain Greek, but still the meaning of what he says escapes these highly gifted thinkers. They think they are enlightened in their thinking, but in reality they are darkened in their minds. Therefore they understand nothing of what Paul says (1Cor 2:14). In order to be able to do so, they must first repent. Paul’s speech therefore culminates in a call to repentance that is connected to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus (Acts 17:30-31).

Before that happens, Paul is given the opportunity to explain what he is teaching. Offering this opportunity is in line with the attitude of the Athenians, for they like nothing more than to talk. Athens is a real city of talk. All they do is talk all day long. When a novelty presented itself, it was a rewarding occasion for a conversation.