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NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Act_17:22-31
22So Paul stood in the midst of the Areopagus and said, "Men of Athens, I observe that you are very religious in all respects. 23For while I was passing through and examining the objects of your worship, I also found an altar with this inscription, 'to an unknown god.' Therefore what you worship in ignorance, this I proclaim to you. 24The God who made the world and all things in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands; 25nor is He served by human hands, as though He needed anything, since He Himself gives to all people life and breath and all things; 26and He made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined their appointed times and the boundaries of their habitation, 27that they would seek God, if perhaps they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us; 28for in Him we live and move and exist, as even some of your own poets have said, 'For we also are His children.' 29Being then the children of God, we ought not to think that the Divine Nature is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by the art and thought of man. 30Therefore having overlooked the times of ignorance, God is now declaring to men that all people everywhere should repent, 31because He has fixed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness through a Man whom He has appointed, having furnished proof to all men by raising Him from the dead."
Act_17:22 "you are very religious" This is literally "to fear the gods (daimôn)." This can mean (1) in a negative sense, "superstitious," as in the King James Version, or (2) in a positive sense, "very precise in the practice of religious detail" (NKJV, NJB cf. Act_25:19). These men had an intellectual curiosity and respect for religious matters, but only within certain parameters (their traditions).
▣ "all" Notice the number of times in this sermon that Paul uses the inclusive "all" or phrases that parallel it.
1. "all respects," Act_17:22
2. "all things," Act_17:24
3. "all life and breath," Act_17:25
4. "all things," Act_17:25
5. "every nation," Act_17:26
6. "all the face of the earth," Act_17:26
7. "each one of us," Act_17:27
8. "we" (twice", Act_17:28
9. "all everywhere," Act_17:30
10. "the world" (lit. The inhabited earth), Act_17:31
11. "all men," Act_17:31
Paul's good news was that God loved all humans (i.e., made in His image, cf. Gen_1:26-27) and has provided a way for them to know Him (i.e., original purpose of creation was fellowship with God, cf. Gen_3:8) and be forgiven (i.e., from the effects of the fall, cf. Genesis 3).
Act_17:23 "inscription, 'to an unknown god'" The Greeks were afraid they may have forgotten or left out of their worship an important deity who might cause trouble if neglected, so they regularly had monuments of this type (cf. Pausanias, Description of Greece 1:1:4 and Philostratus, Life of Apollonius 6:3:5). It shows their fear of the spiritual realm and their polytheism.
▣ "Therefore what you worship in ignorance" There is a word play between "unknown" (agnôetô) and "ignorance" (agnoountes). We get the English word "agnostic" from this Greek word. Paul was adapting the gospel presentation to pagans who believed in an impersonal world soul.
▣ "This I proclaim to you" Paul is clearly asserting that he is not a "babbler" (Act_17:18) and that he does know the high God they are ignorant of.
Act_17:24 "The God who made the world and all things in it" Paul's first theological point is God is creator (cf. Genesis 1-2; Psalms 104; Psa_146:6; Isa_42:5). The Greeks believed that spirit (God) and matter (atoms) were both co-eternal. Paul asserts the Genesis 1 concept of creation where a personal, purposeful God creates both the heavens and the earth (this planet and the universe).
▣ "does not dwell in temples made with hands" This is a quote from (1) the OT (cf. 1Ki_8:27; Isa_66:1-2) or (2) a Greek philosopher, Euripides, Fragment 968. There are several quotes in this context from Greek writers (cf. Act_17:25; Acts 28). Paul was also trained in Greek scholastics.
Act_17:25 "as though He needed anything" This same thought is found in (1) Euripides' Heracles 1345f; (2) Plato's Euthyphro 14c; (3) Aristobulus, Fragment 4; or (4) Psa_50:9-12. The Greek temples were often seen as the place where the gods were fed and cared for.
▣ "since He Himself gives to all people life and breath and all things" This may be an allusion to Isa_42:5. This is Paul's theological way of asserting (1) God's love for humanity (mercy, grace) and (2) God's gracious provision for humanity (providence). A similar truth was made by Zeno, the founder of the Stoic school, recorded in Clement of Alexandria, Stromateis 5:76:1. Notice the "autos," He Himself! What a wonderful truth for Gentile pagans to hear and receive.
Act_17:26 "He made from one" The western family of Greek manuscripts adds "one blood." However, the Greek manuscripts P74, à , A, and B omit the term (the UBS4 gives its omission a "B" rating [almost certain]). If original it refers to Adam. If it is an allusion to Greek philosophy it reflects the unity of humanity from one stock. This phrase and the next one clearly assert the solidarity of all humanity (possibly an allusion from Mal_2:10, or even the LXX of Deu_32:8), and theologically it asserts that humans are made in God's image (cf. Gen_1:26-27).
The rest of this verse may also allude to the Genesis account. Mankind is commanded to be fruitful and fill the earth (cf. Acts 1:28; Act_9:1; Act_9:7). Humans were reluctant to separate and fill the earth. The Tower of Babel (cf. Genesis 10-11) shows God's mechanism to accomplish this.
▣ "having determined their appointed times and the boundaries of their habitation" Paul asserts that God not only created all things, but directs all things. This may be an allusion to Deu_32:8 (LXX). However, this truth is also asserted elsewhere in the OT (cf. Job_12:23; Psa_47:7-9; Psa_66:7).
Act_17:27 The first phrase may be another quote from the Greek poet, Aratus.
▣ "if" This is a fourth class conditional which means the farthest removed from reality. Humans must recognize their need. Both verbs are aorist active optatives.
NASB, NKJV,
NRSV "they might grope for Him"
TEV "as they felt around for him"
NJB "feeling their way towards him"
The word means "to touch" or "to feel" (cf. Luk_24:39). This context implies a groping due to darkness or confusion. They are trying to find God, but it is not easy. Paganism is a blinding force which characterizes the fall, as does idolatry and superstition (cf. Romans 1-2), but God is present!
▣ "He is not far from each one of us" What a wonderful truth. God created us, God is for us, God is with us (cf. Psalms 139)! Paul is forcibly asserting God's love, care, and presence with all humans. This is the truth of the gospel (cf. Eph_2:11 to Eph_3:13).
Paul may be alluding to Deu_4:7 or Jer_23:23-24, but extrapolating it to all humans. This is the hidden secret of the New Covenant!
Act_17:28 "even some of your own poets have said" The previous phrase, "in Him we live and move and exist," is a quote from
1. Cleanthes' Hymn to Zeus. He was the head of the Stoic school from 263-232 b.c. or
2. Aratus's (from Soli, a city near Tarsus) Phainomena, line 5. Aratus was from Cilicia and lived from 315-240 b.c. This quote emphasizes either
a. God's immanence (cf. Act_17:27) or
b. God's creation of all humans (cf. Act_17:26).
Paul also quotes the Epicureans in 1Co_15:32 and Menander, Thais, in 1Co_15:33. Paul was trained in Greek literature and rhetoric, probably at Tarsus, which was a major university town.
▣ "For we also are His children" This is another quote, possibly from Epimenides, quoted by Diogenes Laertius in Lives of the Philosophers 1:112.
Act_17:29 This is Paul's conclusion and refutation of idolatry (cf. Psa_115:1-18; Isa_40:18-20; Isa_44:9-20; Isa_46:1-7; Jer_10:6-11; Hab_2:18-19). The tragedy of fallen humanity is that they seek spiritual truth and fellowship from manmade things that cannot hear, answer, or help!
Act_17:30 "overlooked the times of ignorance" This is a surprising aspect of God's mercy (cf. Rom_3:20; Rom_3:25; Rom_4:15; Rom_5:13; Rom_5:20; Rom_7:5; Rom_7:7-8; 1Co_15:56). But now they have heard the gospel and are spiritually responsible!
▣ "God is now declaring to men that all people everywhere" This statement asserts
1. there is only one God
2. He wants all humans everywhere to repent
It shows the universalism of God's mercy and love (cf. Joh_3:16; Joh_4:42; 1Ti_2:4; Tit_2:11; 2Pe_3:9; 1Jn_2:1; 1Jn_4:14). This is not universalism in the sense that all will be saved (cf. Act_17:32-33), but in the sense that God desires all humans to repent and trust Jesus for salvation. Jesus died for all! All can be saved! The mystery of evil is that not all will be saved.
▣ "repent" The Hebrew term means "a change of action," while the Greek term refers to a "change of mind." Both are crucial. Both schools of philosophy mentioned in Act_17:18 would have rejected this, but for different reasons. See hyperlink at Act_2:38.
Act_17:31 "because He has fixed a day in which He will judge the world" Paul's message has clearly and repeatedly asserted God's mercy and provision. But this is only half the message. The God of love and compassion is also the God of justice who desires righteousness. Humans made in His image will give an account of their stewardship of the gift of life (i.e., Psa_96:13; Psa_98:9). The NT theme that God will judge the world (hyperbole on the known world) is recurrent (ex. Mat_10:15; Mat_11:22; Mat_11:24; Mat_16:27; Mat_22:36; Mat_25:31-46; Rev_20:11-15).
▣ "through a Man whom He has appointed" This concept of a Judgement Day based on our faith relationship to a resurrected man, Jesus of Nazareth (YHWH's agent in judgment), was unheard of and incredible to these Greek intellectuals (cf. 1Co_1:23), but the heart of the gospel witness (cf. Act_10:42; Mat_25:31-33).
▣ "by raising Him from the dead" This theme is repeated many times in Acts (cf. Act_2:24; Act_2:32; Act_3:15; Act_3:26; Act_4:10; Act_5:30; Act_10:40; Act_13:30; Act_13:33-34; Act_13:37; Act_17:31). It is the heart of the gospel affirmation that God the Father accepted the life, teaching, and substitutionary death of Jesus. The fullest teaching text on the subject of (1) Jesus' resurrection and (2) the resurrection of believers is 1 Corinthians 15.