Acts 17:23

Acts 17:23 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)For as I passed by, and beheld your devotions, I found an altar with this inscription, TO THE UNKNOWN GOD. Whom therefore ye ignorantly worship, him declare I unto you.
• English Standard Version (ESV)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.
• New King James Version (NKJV)for as I was passing through and considering the objects of your worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: TO THE UNKNOWN GOD. Therefore, the One whom you worship without knowing, Him I proclaim to you:
• New Living Translation (NLT)for as I was walking along I saw your many shrines. And one of your altars had this inscription on it: ‘To an Unknown God.’ This God, whom you worship without knowing, is the one I’m telling you about.

Context of Acts 17:23

21(All the Athenians and the foreigners who lived there spent their time doing nothing but talking about and listening to the latest ideas.) 22Paul then stood up in the meeting of the Areopagus and said: “People of Athens! I see that in every way you are very religious. For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: to an unknown god. So you are ignorant of the very thing you worship—and this is what I am going to proclaim to you. 24“The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by human hands. 25And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything. Rather, he himself gives everyone life and breath and everything else.

Acts 17:23 word by word

διερχόμενος γὰρ καὶ ἀναθεωρῶν τὰ σεβάσματα ὑμῶν εὗρον καὶ βωμὸν ἐν ᾧ ἐπεγέγραπτο· ἀγνώστῳ θεῷ. ὃ οὖν ἀγνοοῦντες εὐσεβεῖτε, τοῦτο ἐγὼ καταγγέλλω ὑμῖν.Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Forγάρgar · forG1063
• as I passed byδιέρχομαιdierchomai · to pass throughG1330
• andκαίkai · andG2532
• beheldἀναθεωρέωanatheōreō · to contemplateG333
• yourσύsu · youG4771
• devotionsὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• devotionsσέβασμαsebasma · object of worshipG4574
• I foundεὑρίσκωheuriskō · to find/meetG2147
• an altarβωμόςbōmos · altarG1041
• withἐνen · in/on/amongG1722
• thisὅςhos hē ho · whichG3739
• inscriptionἐπιγράφωepigraphō · to write onG1924
• TO THE UNKNOWNἄγνωστοςagnōstos · unknownG57
• GODθεόςtheos · GodG2316
• thereforeοὖνoun · therefore/thenG3767
• ye ignorantlyἀγνοέωagnoeō · be ignorantG50
• worshipεὐσεβέωeusebeō · to show pietyG2151
• himοὗτοςhoutos houtoi hautē hautai · this/he/she/itG3778
• declareκαταγγέλλωkataggellō · to proclaimG2605
• Iἐγώegō · I/weG1473

Cross-references for Acts 17:23

• Romans 1:23and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like a mortal human being and birds and animals and reptiles.
• 1 Corinthians 8:5For even if there are so-called gods, whether in heaven or on earth (as indeed there are many “gods” and many “lords”),
• 2 Thessalonians 2:4He will oppose and will exalt himself over everything that is called God or is worshiped, so that he sets himself up in God’s temple, proclaiming himself to be God.
• Psalms 147:20He has done this for no other nation; they do not know his laws. Praise the Lord.
• John 17:3Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.
• Romans 1:20For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.
• 1 Corinthians 1:21For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe.
• 2 Corinthians 4:4The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel that displays the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.
• Galatians 4:8Formerly, when you did not know God, you were slaves to those who by nature are not gods.
• Ephesians 2:12remember that at that time you were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world.
• 1 Timothy 1:17Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory for ever and ever. Amen.
• 1 John 5:20We know also that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true. And we are in him who is true by being in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.
• Acts 17:30In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent.
• Psalms 50:21When you did these things and I kept silent, you thought I was exactly like you. But I now arraign you and set my accusations before you.
• Matthew 15:9They worship me in vain; their teachings are merely human rules.’ ”
• John 4:22You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews.

Commentaries on Acts 17:23

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 23Beheld your devotions - , The objects of your worship; the different images of their gods which they held in religious veneration, sacrificial instruments, altars, etc., etc. To the Unknown God - . That there was an altar at Athens thus inscribed, we cannot doubt after such a testimony; though St. Jerome questions it in part; for he says St. Paul found the inscription in the plural number, but, because he would not appear to acknowledge a plurality of…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 23For as I passed by - Greek: “For I, coming through, and seeing, etc.” And beheld - Diligently contemplated; attentively considered ̓͂ anatheōrōnThe worship of an idolatrous people will be an object of intense and painful interest to a Christian. Your devotions - ̀ ́ ta sebasmataOur word devotions refers to the “act of worship” - to prayers, praises, etc. The Greek word used here means properly any sacred thing; any object which is worshipped, or which…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 22-31Verses 22-31 Here we have a sermon to heathens, who worshipped false gods, and were without the true God in the world; and to them the scope of the discourse was different from what the apostle preached to the Jews. In the latter case, his business was to lead his hearers by prophecies and miracles to the knowledge of the Redeemer, and faith in him; in the former, it was to lead them, by the common works of providence, to know the Creator, and worship…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 22-31Paul’s sermon in Athens shows how well he could adapt his preaching of the good news (Romans 11:14; 1 Corinthians 9:19–23; 10:33; compare Acts 16:3; 17:2–3; 21:20–26). His Greek audience did not know the Scriptures or believe in one God like the Jews. However, they had a strong intellectual background. Paul connected with them using an Athenian inscription on an altar TO AN UNKNOWN GOD. He then explained God’s nature as the Creator (17:22–29), followed by…Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 2323. as I passed by and beheld your devotions--rather, "the objects of your devotion," referring, as is plain from the next words, to their works of art consecrated to religion. I found an altar ... To the--or, "an" unknown god--erected, probably, to commemorate some divine interposition, which they were unable to ascribe to any known deity. That there were such altars, Greek writers attest; and on this the apostle skilfully fastens at the outset, as the…Read the comment

Topics related to Acts 17:23

• Altar
• Athens
• Blindness
• Gentiles
• Idolatry
• Ignorance
• Paul
• Readings, Select
• Religion
• Zeal, Religious

In the dictionaries

• God
• god, false god, goddess, idol, idolater, idolatrous, idolatry
• Unknown God
• Altar
• Appoint
• Areopagus
• Assurance
• Blood
• Determine
• Ignorantly

Commentaries on Acts 17

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Illustrated New Testament
• Burkitt’s Expository Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Family Bible Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• The People’s New Testament
• Robertson’s Word Pictures
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• The Fourfold Gospel and Commentary on Acts
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings