3
and explaining the Scriptures, and proving from them that the Messiah had to suffer and rise from death. "This Jesus whom I announce to you," Paul said, "is the Messiah."
4
Some of them were convinced and joined Paul and Silas; so did many of the leading women and a large group of Greeks who worshiped God.
5
But some Jews were jealous and gathered worthless loafers from the streets and formed a mob. They set the whole city in an uproar and attacked the home of a man named Jason, in an attempt to find Paul and Silas and bring them out to the people.
6
But when they did not find them, they dragged Jason and some other believers before the city authorities and shouted, "These men have caused trouble everywhere! Now they have come to our city,
7
and Jason has kept them in his house. They are all breaking the laws of the Emperor, saying that there is another king, whose name is Jesus."
8
With these words they threw the crowd and the city authorities in an uproar.
9
The authorities made Jason and the others pay the required amount of money to be released, and then let them go.
10
As soon as night came, the believers sent Paul and Silas to Berea. When they arrived, they went to the synagogue.
11
The people there were more open-minded than the people in Thessalonica. They listened to the message with great eagerness, and every day they studied the Scriptures to see if what Paul said was really true.
12
Many of them believed; and many Greek women of high social standing and many Greek men also believed.
13
But when the Jews in Thessalonica heard that Paul had preached the word of God in Berea also, they came there and started exciting and stirring up the mobs.