Acts 17:9

THE MESSAGE

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
After taking a security bond from Jason and the others, they released them.

King James Version (1611)
And when they had taken securitie of Iason, and of the other, they let them goe.

King James Version
And when they had taken security of Jason, and of the other, they let them go.

English Standard Version
And when they had taken money as security from Jason and the rest, they let them go.

New American Standard Bible
And when they had received a pledge from Jason and the others, they released them.

New Century Version
They made Jason and the others put up a sum of money. Then they let the believers go free.

Amplified Bible
And when they had taken security (bail) from Jason and the others, they let them go.

New American Standard Bible (1995)
And when they had received a pledge from Jason and the others, they released them.

Legacy Standard Bible
And when they had received the bond from Jason and the others, they released them.

Berean Standard Bible
And after they had collected bond from Jason and the others, they released them.

Contemporary English Version
So they made Jason and the other followers pay bail before letting them go.

Complete Jewish Bible
so that only after Jason and the others had posted bond did they let them go.

Darby Translation
And having taken security of Jason and the rest, they let them go.

Easy-to-Read Version
They made Jason and the other believers deposit money to guarantee that there would be no more trouble. Then they let them go.

Geneva Bible (1587)
Notwithstanding when they had receiued sufficient assurance of Iason and of the other, they let them goe.

George Lamsa Translation
So they took bail from Jason and some of the brethren and then let them go.

Good News Translation
The authorities made Jason and the others pay the required amount of money to be released, and then let them go.

Lexham English Bible
And after taking money as security from Jason and the rest, they released them.

Literal Translation
And taking security from Jason and the rest, they let them go.

American Standard Version
And when they had taken security from Jason and the rest, they let them go.

Bible in Basic English
And having made Jason and the others give an undertaking to keep the peace, they let them go.

Hebrew Names Version
When they had taken security from Jason and the rest, they let them go.

International Standard Version
but after they had gotten a bond from Jason and the others they let them go.

Etheridge Translation
and they took pledges from Jason and also from the brethren, and then dismissed them.

Murdock Translation
And they took sureties from Jason, and also from the brethren, and then released them.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
And when they were sufficiently aunswered of Iason, and of the other, they let them go.

English Revised Version
And when they had taken security from Jason and the rest, they let them go.

World English Bible
When they had taken security from Jason and the rest, they let them go.

Wesley's New Testament (1755)
However having taken security of Jason and of the rest, they let them go.

Weymouth's New Testament
They required Jason and the rest to find substantial bail, and after that they let them go.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
And whanne satisfaccioun was takun of Jason, and of othere, thei leten Poul and Silas go.

Update Bible Version
And when they had taken security from Jason and the rest, they let them go.

Webster's Bible Translation
And when they had taken security of Jason and of the other, they let them go.

New English Translation
After the city officials had received bail from Jason and the others, they released them.

New King James Version
So when they had taken security from Jason and the rest, they let them go.

New Living Translation
So the officials forced Jason and the other believers to post bond, and then they released them.

New Life Bible
Then they made Jason and the others pay some money and let them go.

New Revised Standard
and after they had taken bail from Jason and the others, they let them go.

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
and, taking security from Jason and the rest, they let them go.

Douay-Rheims Bible
And having taken satisfaction of Jason and of the rest, they let them go.

Revised Standard Version
And when they had taken security from Jason and the rest, they let them go.

Tyndale New Testament (1525)
And when they were sufficiently answered of Iason and of the other they let the goo.

Young's Literal Translation
and having taking security from Jason and the rest, they let them go.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
And whan they had receaued a sufficient answere of Iason and of the other, they let them go.

Mace New Testament (1729)
however having oblig'd Jason and the rest to give security, they let them go.

Simplified Cowboy Version
The city council made Jason and the others post a heavy bail, and they let them go.

Contextual Overview

¹They took the road south through Amphipolis and Apollonia to Thessalonica, where there was a community of Jews. Paul went to their meeting place, as he usually did when he came to a town, and for three Sabbaths running he preached to them from the Scriptures. He opened up the texts so they understood what they'd been reading all their lives: that the Messiah absolutely had to be put to death and raised from the dead—there were no other options—and that "this Jesus I'm introducing you to is that Messiah." ⁴Some of them were won over and joined ranks with Paul and Silas, among them a great many God-fearing Greeks and a considerable number of women from the aristocracy. But the hard-line Jews became furious over the conversions. Mad with jealousy, they rounded up a bunch of brawlers off the streets and soon had an ugly mob terrorizing the city as they hunted down Paul and Silas. They broke into Jason's house, thinking that Paul and Silas were there. When they couldn't find them, they collared Jason and his friends instead and dragged them before the city fathers, yelling hysterically, "These people are out to destroy the world, and now they've shown up on our doorstep, attacking everything we hold dear! And Jason is hiding them, these traitors and turncoats who say Jesus is king and Caesar is nothing!" The city fathers and the crowd of people were totally alarmed by what they heard. They made Jason and his friends post heavy bail and let them go while they investigated the charges. That night, under cover of darkness, their friends got Paul and Silas out of town as fast as they could. They sent them to Berea, where they again met with the Jewish community. They were treated a lot better there than in Thessalonica. The Jews received Paul's message with enthusiasm and met with him daily, examining the Scriptures to see if they supported what he said. A lot of them became believers, including many Greeks who were prominent in the community, women and men of influence. But it wasn't long before reports got back to the Thessalonian hard-line Jews that Paul was at it again, preaching the Word of God, this time in Berea. They lost no time responding, and created a mob scene there, too. With the help of his friends, Paul gave them the slip—caught a boat and put out to sea. Silas and Timothy stayed behind. The men who helped Paul escape got him as far as Athens and left him there. Paul sent word back with them to Silas and Timothy: "Come as quickly as you can!" The longer Paul waited in Athens for Silas and Timothy, the angrier he got—all those idols! The city was a junkyard of idols. He discussed it with the Jews and other like-minded people at their meeting place. And every day he went out on the streets and talked with anyone who happened along. He got to know some of the Epicurean and Stoic intellectuals pretty well through these conversations. Some of them dismissed him with sarcasm: "What an airhead!" But others, listening to him go on about Jesus and the resurrection, were intrigued: "That's a new slant on the gods. Tell us more." These people got together and asked him to make a public presentation over at the Areopagus, where things were a little quieter. They said, "This is a new one on us. We've never heard anything quite like it. Where did you come up with this anyway? Explain it so we can understand." Downtown Athens was a great place for gossip. There were always people hanging around, natives and tourists alike, waiting for the latest tidbit on most anything. So Paul took his stand in the open space at the Areopagus and laid it out for them. "It is plain to see that you Athenians take your religion seriously. When I arrived here the other day, I was fascinated with all the shrines I came across. And then I found one inscribed, to the god nobody knows . I'm here to introduce you to this God so you can worship intelligently, know who you're dealing with. "The God who made the world and everything in it, this Master of sky and land, doesn't live in custom-made shrines or need the human race to run errands for him, as if he couldn't take care of himself. He makes the creatures; the creatures don't make him. Starting from scratch, he made the entire human race and made the earth hospitable, with plenty of time and space for living so we could seek after God, and not just grope around in the dark but actually find him. He doesn't play hide-and-seek with us. He's not remote; he's near. We live and move in him, can't get away from him! One of your poets said it well: ‘We're the God-created.' Well, if we are the God-created, it doesn't make a lot of sense to think we could hire a sculptor to chisel a god out of stone for us, does it? "God overlooks it as long as you don't know any better—but that time is past. The unknown is now known, and he's calling for a radical life-change. He has set a day when the entire human race will be judged and everything set right. And he has already appointed the judge, confirming him before everyone by raising him from the dead." At the phrase "raising him from the dead," the listeners split: Some laughed at him and walked off making jokes; others said, "Let's do this again. We want to hear more." But that was it for the day, and Paul left. There were still others, it turned out, who were convinced then and there, and stuck with Paul—among them Dionysius the Areopagite and a woman named Damaris. ⁶Thessalonica They took the road south through Amphipolis and Apollonia to Thessalonica, where there was a community of Jews. Paul went to their meeting place, as he usually did when he came to a town, and for three Sabbaths running he preached to them from the Scriptures. He opened up the texts so they understood what they'd been reading all their lives: that the Messiah absolutely had to be put to death and raised from the dead—there were no other options—and that "this Jesus I'm introducing you to is that Messiah." Some of them were won over and joined ranks with Paul and Silas, among them a great many God-fearing Greeks and a considerable number of women from the aristocracy. But the hard-line Jews became furious over the conversions. Mad with jealousy, they rounded up a bunch of brawlers off the streets and soon had an ugly mob terrorizing the city as they hunted down Paul and Silas. They broke into Jason's house, thinking that Paul and Silas were there. When they couldn't find them, they collared Jason and his friends instead and dragged them before the city fathers, yelling hysterically, "These people are out to destroy the world, and now they've shown up on our doorstep, attacking everything we hold dear! And Jason is hiding them, these traitors and turncoats who say Jesus is king and Caesar is nothing!" The city fathers and the crowd of people were totally alarmed by what they heard. They made Jason and his friends post heavy bail and let them go while they investigated the charges. That night, under cover of darkness, their friends got Paul and Silas out of town as fast as they could. They sent them to Berea, where they again met with the Jewish community. They were treated a lot better there than in Thessalonica. The Jews received Paul's message with enthusiasm and met with him daily, examining the Scriptures to see if they supported what he said. A lot of them became believers, including many Greeks who were prominent in the community, women and men of influence. But it wasn't long before reports got back to the Thessalonian hard-line Jews that Paul was at it again, preaching the Word of God, this time in Berea. They lost no time responding, and created a mob scene there, too. With the help of his friends, Paul gave them the slip—caught a boat and put out to sea. Silas and Timothy stayed behind. The men who helped Paul escape got him as far as Athens and left him there. Paul sent word back with them to Silas and Timothy: "Come as quickly as you can!" The longer Paul waited in Athens for Silas and Timothy, the angrier he got—all those idols! The city was a junkyard of idols. He discussed it with the Jews and other like-minded people at their meeting place. And every day he went out on the streets and talked with anyone who happened along. He got to know some of the Epicurean and Stoic intellectuals pretty well through these conversations. Some of them dismissed him with sarcasm: "What an airhead!" But others, listening to him go on about Jesus and the resurrection, were intrigued: "That's a new slant on the gods. Tell us more." These people got together and asked him to make a public presentation over at the Areopagus, where things were a little quieter. They said, "This is a new one on us. We've never heard anything quite like it. Where did you come up with this anyway? Explain it so we can understand." Downtown Athens was a great place for gossip. There were always people hanging around, natives and tourists alike, waiting for the latest tidbit on most anything. So Paul took his stand in the open space at the Areopagus and laid it out for them. "It is plain to see that you Athenians take your religion seriously. When I arrived here the other day, I was fascinated with all the shrines I came across. And then I found one inscribed, to the god nobody knows . I'm here to introduce you to this God so you can worship intelligently, know who you're dealing with. "The God who made the world and everything in it, this Master of sky and land, doesn't live in custom-made shrines or need the human race to run errands for him, as if he couldn't take care of himself. He makes the creatures; the creatures don't make him. Starting from scratch, he made the entire human race and made the earth hospitable, with plenty of time and space for living so we could seek after God, and not just grope around in the dark but actually find him. He doesn't play hide-and-seek with us. He's not remote; he's near. We live and move in him, can't get away from him! One of your poets said it well: ‘We're the God-created.' Well, if we are the God-created, it doesn't make a lot of sense to think we could hire a sculptor to chisel a god out of stone for us, does it? "God overlooks it as long as you don't know any better—but that time is past. The unknown is now known, and he's calling for a radical life-change. He has set a day when the entire human race will be judged and everything set right. And he has already appointed the judge, confirming him before everyone by raising him from the dead." At the phrase "raising him from the dead," the listeners split: Some laughed at him and walked off making jokes; others said, "Let's do this again. We want to hear more." But that was it for the day, and Paul left. There were still others, it turned out, who were convinced then and there, and stuck with Paul—among them Dionysius the Areopagite and a woman named Damaris. ⁷Thessalonica They took the road south through Amphipolis and Apollonia to Thessalonica, where there was a community of Jews. Paul went to their meeting place, as he usually did when he came to a town, and for three Sabbaths running he preached to them from the Scriptures. He opened up the texts so they understood what they'd been reading all their lives: that the Messiah absolutely had to be put to death and raised from the dead—there were no other options—and that "this Jesus I'm introducing you to is that Messiah." Some of them were won over and joined ranks with Paul and Silas, among them a great many God-fearing Greeks and a considerable number of women from the aristocracy. But the hard-line Jews became furious over the conversions. Mad with jealousy, they rounded up a bunch of brawlers off the streets and soon had an ugly mob terrorizing the city as they hunted down Paul and Silas. They broke into Jason's house, thinking that Paul and Silas were there. When they couldn't find them, they collared Jason and his friends instead and dragged them before the city fathers, yelling hysterically, "These people are out to destroy the world, and now they've shown up on our doorstep, attacking everything we hold dear! And Jason is hiding them, these traitors and turncoats who say Jesus is king and Caesar is nothing!" ⁸The city fathers and the crowd of people were totally alarmed by what they heard. They made Jason and his friends post heavy bail and let them go while they investigated the charges.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

Cross-References

Psalms 25:10
From now on every road you travel Will take you to God . Follow the Covenant signs; Read the charted directions.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And when they had taken security of Jason, and of the other,.... That is, received satisfaction from them, by the defence which they made for themselves, and the apostles, by the account that they gave of them and of their doctrines; whereby it plainly appeared to the full satisfaction of the magistrates, that their principles had no tendency to move sedition, or to alter the form of their government, or to do anything detrimental to Caesar, as was suggested: the Syriac, and Arabic versions render it, "took sureties"; of them for their good behaviour, and that they would be forthcoming, whenever called for:

they let them go; about their business, to their own houses, and company, and did not inflict any punishment upon them, or commit them to prison.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

And when they had taken security of Jason - This is an expression taken from courts, and means that Jason and the other gave satisfaction to the magistrates for the good conduct of Paul and Silas, or became responsible for it. Whether it was by depositing a sum of money, and by thus giving bail, is not quite clear. The sense is, that they did it in accordance with the Roman usages, and gave sufficient security for the good conduct of Paul and Silas. Heuman supposes that the pledge given was that they should leave the city. Michaelis thinks that they gave a pledge that they would no more harbor them; but if they returned again to them, they would deliver them to the magistrates.

And of the other - The other brethren Acts 17:6 who had been drawn to the rulers of the city.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Acts 17:9. Taken security — λαβοντες το ικανον, Having taken what was sufficient, or satisfactory. Sufficient for the present, to prove that the apostles were upright, peaceable, and loyal men; and that Jason and his friends were the like, and would be, at any time, forthcoming to answer for their conduct. Perhaps this is the sense of the phrase in the text.