Sha’ul’s Second Missionary Journey ~ Part 9

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We continue our ongoing story of Sha’ul’s Second Missionary Journey beginning in Acts 17:5.

Attach on Jason’s House

⁵ But the unbelieving Jews grew jealous, so they got together some vicious men from the riffraff hanging around in the market square, collected a crowd, and started a riot in the city. They attacked Jason’s  ^[1] house, hoping to bring Sha’ul and Sila out to the mob. ⁶ But when they didn’t find them, they dragged Jason and some other brothers before the city authorities and shouted, “These men who have turned the whole world upside down have come here too!

 

 

⁷ And Jason has let them stay in his home! All of them are defying the decrees of the Emperor because they assert that there is another king, Yeshua!” ⁸ Their words threw the crowd and the authorities into turmoil, ⁹ so that only after Jason and the others had posted bond did they let them go.

The mob was agitated because they could not find Sha’ul and Sila, so they settled for second best and obtained a peace bond against them. Jason had to put up a bond and guarantee that Sha’ul and Sila would leave the city and not return. Perhaps Jason was a relative of Sha’ul’s, which would make the transaction even more meaningful (Romans 16:21). Sha’ul saw this prohibition as a device of HaSatan to hinder the work (1 Thessalonians 2:18). Still, it certainly did not hinder the Thessalonian church from “sounding out the word” and winning the lost (1 Thessalonians 1:6–9).

Good Reception in Berea

¹⁰ But as soon as night fell, the brothers sent Sha’ul and Sila off to Berea. As soon as they arrived, they went to the synagogue. ¹¹ Now, the people here were of nobler character than the ones in Thessalonica; they eagerly welcomed the message, checking the Tanakh every day to see if the things Sha’ul was saying were true. ¹² Many of them came to trust, as did a number of prominent Greek women and not a few Greek men.

Today, such open-mindedness is similarly welcomed by Messianic Jews and is praiseworthy. We are confident that when the Good News is given this sort of a fair hearing, and the hearers rely on the facts, including the Tanakh, to verify the message, the response today will often be like that in Berea, where many Jewish people came to trust in Yeshua – an apparent success for Sha’ul’s Jewish evangelism.

Again, Agitators Force Departure from Berea

¹³ But when the unbelieving Jews of Thessalonica learned that the word of God had been proclaimed by Sha’ul in Berea as well, they went there too to make trouble and agitate the crowds.

Just as the appeal of Yeshua knows no borders (both Jews and Gentiles follow Him), so too opposition to Christ knows no borders. Agitators from Thessalonica were unwilling to let faith flourish in Berea, so they came there, too, intent on thwarting the missionaries.

¹⁴ The brothers sent Sha’ul away at once to go down to the seacoast while Sila and Timothy stayed behind. ¹⁵ Sha’ul’s escort went with him as far as Athens, then left with instructions for Sila and Timothy to come as quickly as they could. ^[2]

Sha’ul set sail for Athens, while Sila and Timothy stayed behind and braved the opposition in Berea. This indicates that Sha’ul had become the focal point of Jewish opposition to the Messianic message. [FYI, Athens was 195 miles from Berea.]

In our next post, we will continue to explore Shaul’s Second Missionary Journey; we will follow Sha’ul and Sila on their journey through Macedonia, starting in chapter 17:16.

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[1] Who was Jason? He is referred to in several commentaries as Jason the Host. Jason was probably Jewish, for Sha’ul and Sila would not have needlessly offended the Jewish community by lodging with a Gentile. We will find a Jason in Romans 16:21 as a “fellow countryman” of Sha’ul.

^[2] Ac 17:5–15.