Acts 17:10-15

Acts 17:10-Ezra : . Through Berœ a to Athens.— Berœ a was a populous place but off the main route. Paul and Silas at once go to the synagogue; by this time we should think they could scarcely look to the synagogue with hopeful eyes. The Berœ an Jews, however, were “ more noble,” i.e. better-behaved, than their brethren at Thessalonica; they did not close their minds to the message, but applied themselves with interest to testing it by Scripture. The new church at Berœ a is composed, like that at Thessalonica, of Jews, Greek ladies of position, and men, i.e. Greeks. We hear of Sopater of Berœ a in Acts 20:4. The Jews of Thessalonica follow Paul with their hostility and he has to leave Berœ a also. As to Silas and Timothy there is a little difficulty. In Acts 18:5 they do not join Paul at Athens as he expected, but at Corinth. But in 1 Thessalonians 3 we read of Timothy having been with Paul at Athens, and having been sent by him from there to Thessalonica. According to 2 Corinthians 1:19 Silas and Timothy acted along with Paul in the early days of the Corinthian church. We are not fully informed as to these movements.