Informal thoughts on Acts 17:16-34
22 So Paul, standing in the midst of the Areopagus, said: “Men of Athens, I perceive that in every way you are very religious. 23 For as I passed along and observed the objects of your worship, I found also an altar with this inscription: ‘To the unknown god.’ What therefore you worship as unknown, this I proclaim to you. 24 The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man, 25 nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything. 26 And he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place, 27 that they should seek God, and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him.
23] to the unknown god - so they’re saying, there’s probably another one out there, don’t accidentally want to tick him off, so let’s put this up make sure we don’t miss anybody - there were gods everywhere - temple to Athena, there was the Parthenon, there was a temple to the goddess Roma, a temple to Augustus - Petronius said that it was easier to find a god than a man in Athens - people do want answers to their questions about God, is there a god, who is the true God, I hear all these people telling me all things about God, don’t know who to believe - Paul answering those questions here -
Greek geographer Pausanias referred to “altars of the gods name Unknown” in Athens, also in Olympia, in Pergamum there is an inscription “to unknown gods”
18] the word babbler literally means a seed picker - as if Paul was picking up random ideas, bits and pieces of philosophy here and there - Epicureans were into seeking pleasure while the Stoics prized self-control -
19]Areopagus literally means the hill of Ares, another name for the god of war = Mars Hill - Court of Areopagus had authority over the civil and religious life of Athens, in Paul’s day primarily over religion and morality -
24-25] Paul refers in vv. 24-25 to the God who made the world and everything in it, does not live in temples made by man (might have pointed over his shoulder to the Parthenon, right above him) nor is he served by human hands -
26] Everyone, he says, is descended from one man - only one family of man, all descended from one ancestor - if Ancestry.com had a big enough data base everybody would find their family tree going back to this one ancestor; means there is no place for racism, making decisions about people based on color of their skin - Bible says there is only one race, and that’s the human race -
Modern science, by the way, has finally caught up with the Bible - a lot of work has been done by scientists on the human genome, getting it all mapped out - here is the their latest discovery, their latest findings -
Here is the headline in LiveScience: Genetic 'Adam' and 'Eve' Uncovered - pull quote:
“Almost every man alive can trace his origins to one man…new research suggests. And that ancient man likely shared the planet with the mother of all women…The findings, detailed today (Aug. 1, 2013) in the journal Science - the co-author of the study study isCarlos Bustamante, a geneticist at Stanford University - the findings come from the most complete analysis of the male sex chromosome, or the Y chromosome, to date.”
“The Y chromosome is passed down identically from father to son, so mutations, or point changes, in the male sex chromosome can trace the male line back to the father of all humans. By contrast, DNA from the mitochondria, the energy powerhouse of the cell, is carried inside the egg, so only women pass it on to their children. The DNA hidden inside mitochondria, therefore, can reveal the maternal lineage to an ancient Eve.
“In addition, mitochondrial DNA from the men, as well as similar samples from 24 women, revealed that all women on the planet trace back to a mitochondrial Eve (at) almost the same time period during which the Y-chromosome Adam lived.
“A separate study in the same issue of the journal Science found that men shared a common ancestor…”
[https://www.huffpost.com/entry/genetic-adam-eve-chromosome-men-man_n_3691084
https://www.livescience.com/38613-genetic-adam-and-eve-uncovered.html]
Bottom line, ladies and gentlemen, do not doubt this Book - keeps getting proved right, science keeps catching up to where the Bible has been all along -
God determined allotted periods - that is, how long nation will last - and the boundaries of their dwelling places
Answer to whether the U.S. plays into prophecy - only God knows if America has a role in end times prophecy - he has determined how long this nation will last - may not last long enough to figure into end time events -
Boundaries = borders - sovereign and secure borders are God’s idea - no point in having a border unless it means something, unless you are prepared to defend it - where did the borders of our country come from? Our borders, our land, weren’t stolen from anyone - they were given to us by God - for instance, we repeatedly during the Revolutionary War tried to add Canada to the United States - every time, God slapped our hand and said, that’s not for you -
31] He has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness, by a man whom he has appointed, he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead - Paul always comes back to the stubborn historical fact of Christ’s resurrection from the dead, a reminder that our faith is not a blind, subjective leap into the dark but a faith that is rooted and grounded in the stubborn historical fact, verified by literally hundreds of eyewitnesses, who testified they had seen him alive after they had seen him die -
Had heard of this but didn't know the sources, am grateful for your fruitful research! Thank you, shared with pleasure!
Thanks, again, mi amigo!