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Acts 17:13
ESV But when the Jews from Thessalonica learned that the word of God was proclaimed by Paul at Berea also, they came there too, agitating and stirring up the crowds.
NIV But when the Jews in Thessalonica learned that Paul was preaching the word of God at Berea, some of them went there too, agitating the crowds and stirring them up.
NASB But when the Jews of Thessalonica found out that the word of God had been proclaimed by Paul in Berea also, they came there as well, agitating and stirring up the crowds.
CSB But when the Jews from Thessalonica found out that the word of God had been proclaimed by Paul at Berea, they came there too, agitating and upsetting the crowds.
NLT But when some Jews in Thessalonica learned that Paul was preaching the word of God in Berea, they went there and stirred up trouble.
KJV But when the Jews of Thessalonica had knowledge that the word of God was preached of Paul at Berea, they came thither also, and stirred up the people.
NKJV But when the Jews from Thessalonica learned that the word of God was preached by Paul at Berea, they came there also and stirred up the crowds.

What does Acts 17:13 mean?

Paul and his team traveled about 66 miles, or 106 kilometers, from Philippi to Thessalonica. They then journeyed about 45 miles, or 72 kilometers, from Thessalonica to Berea. All these locations are in Macedonia, and all in the Roman Empire. Philippi is a Roman outpost where the people speak Latin and follow the Roman laws more carefully. Thessalonica is a Greek free city, the largest city in Macedonia and its capital. Philippi does not seem to have enough Jews for a synagogue; Thessalonica and Berea do.

There isn't a lot here to explain the differences each city has to Paul's message about Jesus' offer of salvation. In Philippi, a Gentile businesswoman named Lydia who gathers with other women at the river to pray to the Jewish God welcomes Jesus' salvation eagerly. She hosts Paul and his team until they're forced to leave because of persecution by other Gentiles (Acts 16:11–40). In Berea, the Jews and God-fearing Gentiles in the synagogue take the time and effort to study the Scriptures to see if Paul's words are true. Their diligence validates Paul's message and allows it to spread throughout the city (Acts 17:11–12).

The Thessalonians, in between Philippi and Berea, respond in a completely different way. Some of the Jews and Gentiles in the synagogue do believe Paul and follow when he apparently moves the church out of the synagogue to the house of Jason (Acts 17:4). But they don't financially support Paul and his team—the church in Philippi does (Philippians 4:16; 1 Thessalonians 2:9; 2 Thessalonians 3:8). And many of the Jews in Thessalonica reject their own Messiah because they value more their position in their own society (Acts 17:5). They not only attack the church and force Paul and Silas out of Thessalonica, but they also pursue Paul to Berea so he has to flee to Athens (Acts 17:10, 14–15).

In the early church, one of the most effective methods of persecution is stirring up crowds. It happens to Paul in Philippi (Acts 16:22), Thessalonica (Acts 17:5), Ephesus (Acts 19:28–29), and Jerusalem (Acts 21:30)—and it happened to Jesus (Mark 15:11). The Bereans are our example of people who study and seek out the truth instead of following the crowd.
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