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Acts 17:6
ESV And when they could not find them, they dragged Jason and some of the brothers before the city authorities, shouting, "These men who have turned the world upside down have come here also,
NIV But when they did not find them, they dragged Jason and some other believers before the city officials, shouting: "These men who have caused trouble all over the world have now come here,
NASB When they did not find them, they began dragging Jason and some brothers before the city authorities, shouting, 'These men who have upset the world have come here also;
CSB When they did not find them, they dragged Jason and some of the brothers before the city officials, shouting, "These men who have turned the world upside down have come here too,
NLT Not finding them there, they dragged out Jason and some of the other believers instead and took them before the city council. 'Paul and Silas have caused trouble all over the world,' they shouted, 'and now they are here disturbing our city, too.
KJV And when they found them not, they drew Jason and certain brethren unto the rulers of the city, crying, These that have turned the world upside down are come hither also;
NKJV But when they did not find them, they dragged Jason and some brethren to the rulers of the city, crying out, “These who have turned the world upside down have come here too.

What does Acts 17:6 mean?

A team composed of Paul, Silas, and Timothy are in Thessalonica in Macedonia. As in most cities, they start by going to the synagogue and showing how Jesus fulfills the Old Testament prophecies of the Messiah. As in most cities, some of the Jews and many of the God-fearing Gentiles accept their explanation. And, as usual, some of the Jews see their words as a threat against their position and influence (Acts 17:1–5).

Paul is used to this and the persecution that follows. In Pisidian Antioch, he and Barnabas were run out of town (Acts 13:50–51). In Iconium, they were almost stoned (Acts 14:5–7). In Lystra, Paul was stoned (Acts 14:19). And in Philippi, Paul and Silas were beaten and wrongly imprisoned (Acts 16:16–24). But for the first time, Paul and his team are not around when the persecution starts; it's possible that the church is hiding them (Acts 17:10). Instead, the Jews incite a mob and attack the new converts, including their host, Jason.

It's unclear what the accusers mean by turning the world upside-down. This is only the second recorded time that Paul has been officially charged with a crime. The first was in Philippi when resentful men rightly charged that he and Silas were teaching the worship of a God—Jesus—that was not officially sanctioned by the Roman government (Acts 16:20–21). Philippi is a Roman outpost, and this is a serious charge in the Roman Empire. Thessalonica is a free city of Rome, and so the Jews use a more general charge: that they support a king other than Caesar (Acts 17:7). This is the same charge the Sanhedrin made against Jesus (John 19:12).
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