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- Introduction
- Definitions
- How does the bible interpret itself?
- Figures of speech are a critical key to understanding the bible
- Summary
INTRODUCTION
People who only go to church on Easter and Christmas and don't really have a connection with the Lord are not going to carry out Acts 17:11 because its for the remnant of believers that really want to know the true depths of the word of God.Matthew 13 [in the context of the parable of the sower and the seed]
9 Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.
10 And the disciples came, and said unto him, Why speakest thou unto them in parables?
11 He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given.
12 For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath.
13 Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand.
14 And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive:
15 For this people's heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them.
16 But blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear.
Verse 15: definition of "waxed gross" - [Strong's Exhaustive Concordance #3975 - pachun] From a derivative of pegnumi (meaning thick); to thicken, i.e. (by implication) to fatten (figuratively, stupefy or render callous) -- wax gross.
Waxed is King James old english and means become or grow.
The reason for this is because of the corrupt commandments, doctrines and traditions of men taught from the evil pharisees [religious leaders] who were operating devil spirits that really messed up the people. There's nothing new under the sun.
17 For verily I say unto you, That many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them.
Hebrews 5
12 For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat.
13 For every one that useth milk is unskilful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe.
14 But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.
Matthew 5:6
Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.
Now we're going to break Acts 17:11 down into smaller components and get all the great details...
Acts 17
10 And the brethren immediately sent away Paul and Silas by night unto Berea: who coming thither went into the synagogue of the Jews.
11 These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so.
According to Google Earth, the straight direct distance between Thessalonica and Berea is about 65km = 40 miles, but the actual walking distance is approximately 71km = 44 miles in Google maps.
In modern times, Thessalonica is Thessaloniki and Beria is now Veria and both are located in the northern area of Greece.
Berea is only mentioned 3 times in the bible, all in the book of Acts, but Thessalonica/Thessalonians is mentioned 9 times in the bible; 6 in Acts, twice in Thessalonians and once in II Timothy.
DEFINITIONS
Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary
Definition of Beria:
A city of Macedonia to which Paul with Silas and Timotheus went when persecuted at Thessalonica (Acts 17:10, 13), and from which also he was compelled to withdraw, when he fled to the sea-coast and thence sailed to Athens (14, 15). Sopater, one of Paul’s companions belonged to this city, and his conversion probably took place at this time (Acts 20:4). It is now called Veria.
Map & detailed data on Berea
Greek lexicon of Acts 17:11
In the Greek texts, the word noble simply means noble, so we go to the dictionary for a much better, more detailed definition.
Definition of noble
no ble [noh-buhl]
adjective, no bler, no blest.
- Distinguished by rank or title
- Pertaining to persons so distinguished
- Of, belonging to, or constituting a hereditary class that has special social or political status in a country or state; of or pertaining to the aristocracy
Synonyms: highborn, aristocratic; patrician, blue-blooded.
Antonyms: baseborn, lowborn; common, plebian; lower-class, working-class, middle-class, bourgeois.
- Of an exalted moral or mental character or excellence: a noble thought.
Synonyms: lofty, elevated, high-minded, principled; magnanimous; honorable, estimable, worthy, meritorious.
Antonyms: ignoble, base; vulgar, common.
- Admirable in dignity of conception, manner of expression, execution, or composition: a noble poem
Synonyms: grand, dignified, august.
Antonyms: undignified, disreputable, unrespected.
- Very impressive or imposing in appearance: a noble monument
Synonyms: majestic, grand, stately; magnificent, imposing, splendid, impressive; regal, imperial, lordly.
Antonyms: insignificant, mean, paltry; modest, plain, ordinary.
- Of an admirably high quality; notably superior; excellent
Synonyms: noteworthy, notable, outstanding, exemplary, exceptional.
Antonyms: inferior, ordinary, unexceptional.
- Famous; illustrious; renowned.
Synonyms: famed, celebrated, acclaimed, distinguished.
Antonyms: unknown, obscure, unremarkable.
Greek concordance of receive
Strong's Concordance #1209
dechomai: to receive
Part of Speech: Verb
Phonetic Spelling: (dekh'-om-ahee)
Definition: I take, receive, accept, welcome.
HELPS Word-studies
1209 dexomai - properly, to receive in a welcoming (receptive) way. 1209 (dexomai) is used of people welcoming God (His offers), like receiving and sharing in His salvation (1 Thes 2:13) and thoughts (Eph 6:17).
1209/dexomai ("warmly receptive, welcoming") means receive with "ready reception what is offered" (Vine, Unger, White, NT, 7), i.e. "welcome with appropriate reception" (Thayer).
[The personal element is emphasized with 1209 (dexomai) which accounts for it always being in the Greek middle voice. This stresses the high level of self-involvement (interest) involved with the "welcoming-receiving." 1209 (dexomai) occurs 59 times in the NT.]
This reminds me of a great verse in the book of James.
James 1:21 [New English Translation]
So put away all filth and evil excess and humbly welcome the message implanted within you, which is able to save your souls.
Now back to Acts 17:11
Here is the definition of "readiness":
Psalms 42:1
As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God.
Psalms 119:131
I opened my mouth, and panted: for I longed for thy commandments.
What does "pant" mean?
Definition of pant
verb (used without object)
1. to breathe hard and quickly, as after exertion.
2. to gasp, as for air.
3. to long with breathless or intense eagerness; yearn: to pant for revenge.
4. to throb or heave violently or rapidly; palpitate.
5. to emit steam or the like in loud puffs.
6. Nautical . (of the bow or stern of a ship) to work with the shock of contact with a succession of waves. Compare work (def 24).
Now back to Acts 17:11
HOW DOES THE BIBLE INTERPRET ITSELF?
One of the simple principles on how the bible interprets itself is just look up a word in a bible dictionary.Greek concordance of searched
Strong's Concordance #350
anakrino: to examine, investigate
Part of Speech: Verb
Phonetic Spelling: (an-ak-ree'-no)
Definition: I examine, inquire into, investigate, question.
HELPS Word-studies
350 anakrino (from 303 /ana, "up, completing a process," which intensifies 2919 /krino, "to select by separating/judging") - properly, to distinguish by vigorously judging "down to up," i.e. closely examining (investigating) through "the process of careful study, evaluation and judgment" (L & N, 1, 27.44); "to examine, investigate, question (so J. B. Lightfoot, Notes, 181f).
[The prefix 303 /ana ("up") shows the process involved that takes krino ("judging/separating") up to its needed conclusion. Accordingly, 350 (anakrino) is often used in its forensic sense in the ancient world. It can even refer to "examination by torture" (see Field, Notes, 120f, Abbott-Smith).]
The Greek word anakrino summarizes sound biblical research:
- Accuracy
- Consistency
- Context: immediate & remote context flow with the verse
- Detailed
- Making distinctions
- Maintaining integrity
- In line with the laws of logic, math and other true sciences
- Systematic
- Thorough
- Verification by multiple objective authorities
- To whom is this book of the bible written directly to?
- What biblical administration is it in?
- What do all the other verses on the same subject say about it?
- Was a particular word added to or deleted from the text according to Greek and Hebrew interlinears?
- Is that an accurate translation of that word according to ancient Greek, Aramaic and other texts?
- How many times is a particular word used? Where? How?
- Is conclusion x consistent with the laws of logic, mathematics, astronomy, or other sound science?
II Timothy 2
15 Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.
16 But shun profane and vain babblings: for they will increase unto more ungodliness.
17 And their word will eat as doth a canker [gangrene]: of whom is Hymenaeus and Philetus;
18 Who concerning the truth have erred, saying that the resurrection is past already; and overthrow the faith of some.
Acts 17:11 in the context of Acts 19:20
The book of acts is divided up into 8 sections with each section ending in a summary and concluding statement.This is called the figure of speech symperasma.
The seventh section is Acts 16:6 to acts 19:19, with the summary and concluding statement being acts 19:20.
7 is the number of spiritual perfection.
Discerning of spirits is also the 7th manifestation of holy spirit listed in I Corinthians 12: 10 and there was a lot of spiritual discernment in the 7th section.
Acts 19:20
So mightily grew the word of God and prevailed.
Many many teachings could be done on this one section alone.
One of the ingredients and prerequisites of having the word of God prevailing in your life is to do what the Bereans did: "they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so".
We must have the rightly-divided word as the foundation of our lives in order to grow and prevail in life.
Consider the following in light of Acts 17:11:
Acts 8
8 And there was great joy in that city.
9 But there was a certain man, called Simon, which beforetime in the same city used sorcery, and bewitched the people of Samaria, giving out that himself was some great one:
10 To whom they all gave heed, from the least to the greatest, saying, This man is the great power of God.
11 And to him they had regard, because that of long time he had bewitched them with sorceries.
Simon was a counterfeit preacher that was operating devil spirits and deceived the entire city.
One of the signs that a counterfeit is operating is that the person gets the credit and glory instead of God.
The devil's best counterfeits are always in a religious context.
No doubt the believers of Berea had gotten wind of this incident and were determined that they wouldn't be deceived like the Samarians.
That provided plenty of motivation to know the truth of God's word so that the word of God could prevail in their lives.
Hosea 4:6
My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no priest to me: seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I will also forget thy children.
So now we can get back to the original verse with a much greater depth of understanding, including a link below for the map & encyclopedia of Thessalonica.
SUMMARY
- The commandments, doctrines and traditions of men from corrupt religious leaders who are operating devil spirit power can prevent people from seeing and hearing the true word of God, but those who hunger and thirst for God's righteousness will be filled to satisfaction.
Milk of the word is more suitable for the babes in Christ, whereas the meat of the word is for mature Christians who can handle the word skillfully. - Verifying the definitions of words in a verse are critical for an accurate and more complete understanding of the word of God. The definitions for the words Berea/Bereans; noble; receive and pant are detailed in this section.
- One of the ways the bible interprets itself is to look up words in a verse with a good bible dictionary to remove any personal opinions, denominational bias or complex and confusing theological theories.
The definition of the Greek word anakrino [Strong's #350] involves the following concepts: Accuracy; Consistency; Context: immediate & remote context flow with the verse; Detailed; Making distinctions; Maintaining integrity In line with the laws of logic, math and other true sciences; Systematic; Thorough; Verification by multiple objective authorities - Acts 17:11 is in the context of the 7th section of Acts and 7 is the number of spiritual perfection. Each of the 8 sections of Acts ends in a summary and concluding statement called the figure of speech symperasma. We must have the rightly-divided word as the foundation of our lives in order to grow and prevail in life.
These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so.