Acts 17:34 NIV

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Acts 17:32-34

We have here a short account of the issue of Paul's preaching at Athens. I. Few were the better: the gospel had as little success at Athens as any where; for the pride of the philosophers there, as of the Pharisees at Jerusalem, prejudiced them against the gospel of Christ. 1. Some ridiculed Paul and his preaching. They heard him patiently till he came to speak of the resurrection of the dead (Acts 17:32), and then some of them began to hiss him: they mocked. What he had said before was... read more

William Barclay

William Barclay's Daily Study Bible - Acts 17:32-34

17:32-34 When they heard of a resurrection of dead men, some mocked and some said, "We will hear about this again"; but some attached themselves to him and believed. Amongst these were Dionysius the Areopagite and a woman called Damaris. together with others. It would seem on the whole that Paul had less success in Athens than anywhere else. It was typical of the Athenians that all they wanted was to talk. They did not want action; they did not even particularly want conclusions. They... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Acts 17:34

Howbeit, certain men clave unto him, and believed ,.... There were some who were ordained to eternal life, to whom the Gospel came in power, and they received the love of the truth, and their hearts and affections were knit unto the apostle; and they followed him, and kept to him, and privately conversed with him, and believed his doctrine, and in Jesus Christ, whom he preached unto them; to these the Gospel was the savour of life unto life, when to the scoffers and mockers it was the savour... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Acts 17:34

Certain men clave unto him - Became affectionately united to him, and believed the doctrines he had preached. Dionysius the Areopagite - There can be no doubt that this man was one of the judges of this great court, but whether the president or otherwise we cannot tell. Humanly speaking, his conversion must have been an acquisition of considerable importance to the Christian religion; for no person was a judge in the Areopagus who had not borne the office of archon, or chief governor of... read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Acts 17:34

Verse 34− 34.Among whom was also Dionysius. Seeing that Luke doth name one man and one woman only, it appeareth that there was but a small number of those which believed at the first. For those other of whom he maketh mention remained indifferent; because they did neither wholly despise Paul’s doctrine, neither were they so thoroughly touched, that they joined themselves unto him that they might be his scholars. Luke maketh mention of Dionysius above the rest, because he was in no small... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Acts 17:16-34

The cross of Christ in the metropolis of art and philosophy. There is a singular interest in this first encounter of the gospel with the art and philosophy of Athens, and it is instructive to note the attitude taken by the great preacher in the encounter. Whether St. Paul had artistic taste we have no means of knowing. But probably, as a devout Jew, seeing that sculpture was so largely employed in the images of the gods and the deified emperors, his eye would not have been trained to look... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Acts 17:16-34

Paul at Athens. Paul stands in Athens, amidst the master-pieces of Greek art and the memorials of Greek wisdom. It is not admiration or aesthetic delight which is awakened in him, but moral indignation. Christianity is not opposed to art; but Christianity does not approve the worship of sensuous or ideal beauty apart from moral earnestness. In the true relation, religion absorbs art into itself; when art is substituted for religion, there is moral decay. Nor is Christianity hostile to... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Acts 17:16-34

Paul at Athens. Consider— I. The connection of the whole with THE HISTORY OF CHRISTIANITY . The Greek mind evangelized. The function of Greek thought in the development of doctrine. The contrast between the gospel and philosophy. The step towards the conquest of the world. II. The illustration of THE APOSTOLIC METHOD . Adaptation of the truth to every class of mind. Difference of the preaching when the foundation of the Jewish Scriptures was for the time forsaken.... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Acts 17:32-34

Three kinds of hearing. It is not always given to the hardest and most conscientious labored to reap a large harvest. The day had been a day of hard work and faithful work for Paul. Arrived at sunset, he counts more disappointment than gain. This passage speaks of three kinds of hearers. And it is telling us of facts—facts that were, facts that too often are. Notice — I. THERE ARE WHO HEAR AND MOCK . 1. They mock when they hear something and fear something. 2. ... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Acts 17:34

But for howbeit, A.V.; whom also for the which, A.V. Dionysius the Areopagite . The earliest notice we have of him in ecclesiastical writers is the well-known one of Eusebius, 'Eccl. Hist.,' 3. 4., in which he says, "We are told by an ancient writer, Dionysius the pastor of the diocese of Corinth, that his namesake Dionysius the Areopagite, of whom St. Luke says in the Acts that he was the first who embraced the faith after St. Paul's discourse in the Areopagus, became the first... read more

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Acts 17:32-34

William Barclay's Daily Study Bible - Acts 17:32-34

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Acts 17:34

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Acts 17:34

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Acts 17:34

The Pulpit Commentary - Acts 17:16-34

The Pulpit Commentary - Acts 17:16-34

The Pulpit Commentary - Acts 17:16-34

The Pulpit Commentary - Acts 17:32-34

The Pulpit Commentary - Acts 17:34

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