The most prestigious of the ancient Greek city-states, Athens was established around 1400 BC by the Mycenaeans. The name of the city is connected to the Greek goddess Athena, who according to legend won the right to give her name to it in a competition with Poseidon, then made the olive tree a symbol of Athens (Herodotus, Histories). The initial settlement of the city was on the Acropolis, which housed the Mycenaean palace, probably at least one temple, and had a wall encircling it. Democracy emerged centuries later in Athens, beginning with the reforms and constitution under Solon in the early 6th century BC. A few decades later, in about 508 BC, the constitution was further reformed under the leadership of Cleisthenes to give more power to the citizens, enlarge the council to include all of the tribes, and the practice of ostracism may have been introduced (10 year exile by vote). Soon after, Themistocles began the development of the Athenian navy in order to defend the region against the growing threat of invasion from Persia. In addition to building and improving over 200 trireme warships and training marines, a new harbor at Piraeus was constructed and connected to Athens via a walled road (Hale, Lords of the Sea). The long wall from Athens to Piraeus was still present in the 1st century, but in disrepair (Pliny, Natural History). In the wars with Persia, which followed, the Athenians were able to hold their homeland largely due to the naval preparations, excellent leadership, and alliances formed with other Greek city-states. Although Athens was captured and sacked twice, the Persians were decisively defeated and the period that followed was a “golden age” for Athens, beginning under the leadership of Pericles. During this time, playwrights such as Aeschylus and Euripides composed their masterpieces which are still read and performed today, Herodotus and Thucydides recorded histories that continue to be used by modern historians, Socrates trained a line of philosophers, including Plato, that influenced many of the great thinkers for centuries, Hippocrates established medicine in ancient Greece as a distinct field, and Pericles led Athens into greatness, promoting academics, art, architecture, and democracy, and initiating construction projects on the Acropolis that included the Parthenon. After this period, however, Athens was never quite the same. Athens ultimately lost to Sparta in the Peloponnesian War in the late 5th century BC, next the Macedonians under Philip II defeated Athens and controlled the region, and then came the Romans. When Rome took over the region in 146 BC, Athens was part of the large province that included both Macedonia and Achaia. Even though it had retained its reputation for scholarship, it was neither the largest nor most important city of the area. In 88 BC, Athens joined a local revolt against Roman rule, but general Sulla soundly defeated the uprising and leveled much of Athens in 86 BC. After Augustus took power and a time of peace ensued, Athens became part of the new Province of Achaia in 27 BC, but it was granted free city status, allowing it to continue many of its past institutions and governing traditions.
In the Roman period, the city of Athens was composed of monumental architecture continuing from the Classical period, plus rebuilding and expansion under the Romans. Because of the long history of the city and the sacred nature of many of the buildings, the general layout and major monuments had not radically changed in 500 years. Centuries old buildings such as the Parthenon, Erechtheion, Theater of Dionysus, and the incomplete Temple of Olympian Zeus still stood. The golden age of Athens had long passed, but the city was still an important center of learning and philosophy. Plato’s Academy and Aristotle’s Lyceum had been founded there, lasting in some form through the Roman period, and it continued to be the home of many philosophers and scholars. After the destruction of Athens in about 86 BC, Plato’s Academy apparently met in a gymnasium called Ptolemy, probably the gymnasium located adjacent to the original Academy, and this continued in some form until the closing of the Academy in 529 AD by Emperor Justinian I. The Lyceum was re-founded in the 1st century BC by Andronicus of Rhodes, who preserved many of the works of Aristotle, and functioned until the sack of Athens by the Heruli in 267 AD. The original sites of both the Academy and the Lyceum have recently been rediscovered (Academy north of the ancient city in an archaeological park; Lyceum west of the Byzantine and Christian Museum). The most popular philosophical system in Athens during the 1st century was Stoicism. Zeno (340-265 BC) was considered the founder, although Stoics obtained their name from “stoa” since that is where Zeno, the founder, taught in the Athenian Agora. Stoics followed a moral philosophy that was primarily based on logic and emphasized action or way of life over beliefs. They were about self-control and suppression of emotions. They believed in a type of pantheism, thinking the divine to be in all things and being, but they were also materialists who believed in a sort of determinism. Its teachers taught in public. It was the most prominent philosophical position in the Roman Empire. Famous Stoics include Zeno, Cicero, Seneca, Epictetus, and Marcus Aurelius. Paul had more common ground with the Stoics rather than the Epicureans, similar to the situation with the Pharisees and the Sadducess (Keener, Acts). A major Stoic of the Roman period was Seneca the Younger, who was actually employed by Emperor Claudius. The Epicureans were the second most popular philosophical school, followed by less people and exerting less influence than the Stoics. It was started by Epicurus (341-270 BC), who was essentially a materialist who did only believed in the supernatural or the divine to a very limited extent. The philosophy focused on pleasure/happiness, but this was achieved through gaining knowledge, limiting desires, and living modestly. In many ways this philosophy was similar to Buddhism merged with a kind of scientific naturalism. They believed the gods existed and that people had souls, but that the gods did not intervene. They also stressed the existence of “atoms” and that these atoms moved about randomly, causing life to be random. The Epicureans were opponents of the Stoics, but they generally only had influence with the educated elite and contrary to the Stoics stayed out of politics. A major Epicurean of the Roman period was the poet Lucretius. Other philosophical schools of thought present in Athens during the 1st century included Platonists (Skeptics), Aristotelians (Peripatetics), and Pythagoreans. However, many people in Athens, both common workers and government officials, disliked and distrusted philosophers, considering many of their ideas and way of life unrealistic and a waste of time. Traditionally, the Romans also had a negative view of Greek philosophy, since Roman culture stressed practical knowledge and application. In his letters, Paul also warned against this type of worldly philosophy, referring to it as empty words of deception and the appearance of wisdom (Colossians 2:8, 23; Ephesians 5:6; 1 Timothy 6:20).
On the Acropolis, the most imposing building was the Parthenon, housing a statue of Athena made from a wood core and covered with ivory and gold, measuring over 37 feet tall. The Parthenon, built in the 5th century BC, functioned not only as a monument and temple to Athena, but as a bank for the city. On the east (front) of the building, stone sculptures illustrated the birth of Athena and assembly of gods, while on the west (rear) of the building, the sculpted stone showed the naming myth of Athena and Poseidon competing for patronage of the city. The outside and inside of the building were also decorated with sculptured reliefs and paintings. Another statue of Athena, even more massive, was made of bronze and stood over 49 feet high outside the temple on the Acropolis, commemorating the ancient victory at Marathon. Just like the legend of the image of Artemis in Ephesus, an image of Athena in Athens had allegedly fallen from heaven. Athena was a daughter of Zeus and Metis, and the Greek goddess of wisdom, war, and craft. She was considered a virgin goddess and the patron deity of heroes. The story of Athena may have originated with the Mycenaeans or even the Minoans, and the mythology associated with Athena changed over the centuries until the “standard” Greek version that existed in the Classical and Roman periods. In the 6th century AD, the Parthenon was converted into a church after Christianity became widespread in Athens. Then for a time, when the Ottomans controlled the region, the Parthenon was used as a mosque from the 15th century, and also doubled as a weapons cache. Unfortunately, the large amounts of gunpowder stored there led to a massive explosion in 1687 during a war with Venice, and the building was severely damaged. Small restoration attempts and research took place after this, but in 1983 a conservation and restoration project of grand scale was started, with the goal of reconstructing the Parthenon as close to its ancient form as possible with the current materials and knowledge. Directly in front of the Parthenon, to the east, was the newly constructed round temple of Augustus, probably showcasing statues of Roma and Augustus, and by the time of Paul perhaps also Tiberius and Claudius. The ancient Erechtheion with its caryatid porch stood nearby. This was a temple complex dedicated to Athena and Poseidon, relating to the founding myth and a legendary king of Athens named Erichthonios, who founded the Panathenaic Festival, erected a statue of Athena on the Acropolis, and was associated with the serpent seen on statues of Athena. This complex housed the sacred olive tree of Athena and a seawater cistern associated with Poseidon (Pausanias, Description of Greece). The olive tree was obviously important to the ancient economy of Athens and the surrounding area, but the sacred tree idea may have originally come from the Near East, where the symbol was prolific in ancient times and relates to the tree of life in the Garden of Eden. The Acropolis was also the location of a small temple of Athena Nike and various other shrines. At the base of the Acropolis were more temples and shrines, including the Asklepion and a sacred precinct of Dionysus. Next to this was the Theater of Dionysus, holding 17,000 spectators, in which the great Athenian plays were performed and the Dionysia festival was held.
Below the Acropolis to the north was the Agora, with all of its shops, administrative buildings, and religious structures. Although the ancient Agora (marketplace) was still in use, Julius Caesar and Augustus constructed the Roman forum in Athens east of the ancient Agora (also called Market of Caesar and Augustus), on the opposite side of the Panathenaic Way. In full view of the Acropolis, the Agora of Athens in the Roman period was filled with people crafting, selling, buying, loitering, and even worshipping. This Agora has been remarkably preserved, including walls of various residential and commercial buildings, statues, altars, streets, and temples. For centuries, the economy of Athens had been centered around olive groves, vineyards, clay deposits, the mining of marble, and the harbor (DeVries, Cities of the Biblical World). In the 1st century, these resources were still important parts of the commerce of the city, and Piraeus was a major harbor, but Athens was not the wealthy and powerful city that it had once been. Structures in the ancient Agora included the city council building, the temple of Ares, the odeon of Marcus Agrippa, an Imperial temple of Livia, the Stoa or painted portico where Zeno the Stoic lectured, the temple of Hephaistos, the bema in front of the Stoa of Attalos, the Altar of the 12 gods, the altar of Zeus, the Metroon (associated with Cybele, a mother goddess), and probably the synagogue. The Roman forum on the east side was primarily dedicated to commerce, and it measured 364 feet by 321 feet. In this area was the Tower of the Winds, actually called the Horologion, which was a public water clock, sundial, and weather vane built in the 1st century BC (McRay, Archaeology and the New Testament). At the end of the 1st century and the beginning of the 2nd century AD, the Library of Pantainos and the Library of Hadrian were built in the area of the forum. Hadrian also constructed a Pantheon in Athens, completed the temple of Olympian Zeus with its 104 columns over 90 feet high, and built a new district called Hadrianopolis. The Gate of Hadrian divided old Athens from his new city, and inscriptions on opposite sides of the arch state “This is Athens, the ancient city of Theseus” and “This is the city of Hadrian, and not of Theseus.” To the east, outside the city walls, was the stadium. This stadium was home to the Panathenaic Games held every 4 years, which by 144 AD had a seating capacity of about 50,000 people, but this may have been significantly less in the 1st century. In 1896, the stadium, refurbished, hosted the opening and closing of the first Olympics in modern times.
Fleeing a mob of hostile Jews in Beroea that had come from Thessalonica, Paul was escorted by some of the new Berean Christians to Athens, where he waited for Silas and Timothy (Acts 17:15). Paul may have traveled south by land to Athens, or possibly by sea, landing at the harbor of Piraeus. Around late 49 AD or early 50 AD during the reign of Emperor Claudius, Paul entered Athens. If on his way from Piraeus harbor into the city, he would have passed the temple of Athena and Zeus, and a temple of Aphrodite by the sea, then through the Diplyon gate and down the Dromos, which was the major street leading to the Agora. Had Paul approached Athens from Beroea by land, he would have passed the stadium, gone through one of the eastern gates, and then by the Temple of Olympian Zeus, which was connected to the memory of the flood recorded by Deucalion (Stearns, “The Apostle Paul in Athens”; The Temple of Olympian Zeus, unfinished in the 1st century and completed by Hadrian in 132 AD). This was the ancient Greek account of the great flood, and Paul was probably aware of the Deucalion version of Noah’s flood which had been passed down and modified over the centuries, but still retained basic elements of the story found in the Bible, such as being forewarned of a flood, the god(s) unleashing a flood to destroy humans, building a boat for the survival of one family, and landing on a mountain (Ovid, Metamorphoses; Genesis 6:9-8:18). On the approach to Athens, Paul could have seen numerous massive temples dominating the skyline, while walking through nearly every part of the city, altars and idols and shrines and temples were everywhere. While waiting for Silas and Timothy to join him the city, Paul immediately noticed that Athens was filled with idols of false gods and the altars, shrines, and temples dedicated to them. It troubled him greatly. Altars in Greece, including those in use during the Roman period in Athens and Corinth, often included dedications to particular gods, such as Zeus, Athena, Apollo, and Poseidon. Others, such as one discovered in Athens, were dedicated not to a named god or goddess but to the “demons of the underworld.” In ancient Hellenistic culture, a demon was a supernatural being not equivalent to a god, and often associated with evil. The chthonic (underworld) deities and demons were given sacrifices in different types of pits or on altars. These sacrificial areas could be found in a temple, shrine, or underground sanctuary. Writing to the Church at Corinth, also in Achaia Province, Paul remarked that although many of the people in the Roman world sacrificed to demons, the Christians should not have any association with these worship practices or the gods and demons that were so prevalent in the culture (1 Corinthians 10:21-22). Walking around the ruins of the ancient city today, many temples, shrines, and altars can still be seen with astonishing frequency. These places of pagan worship were so common that virtually every block had an association with some god, goddess, spirit, or demon, such as Zeus, Athena, Dionysius, Asclepius, Apollo, Hephaestus, and Augustus. And, if Paul had arrived at the harbor of Piraeus, he would have walked the walled road lined with images of various deities. A Roman official who served under Emperor Nero in the 1st century AD actually remarked of Athens that “truly our neighborhood is so well stocked with deities to hand, you will easier meet with a god than a man” (Petronius, Satyricon). Therefore, just as described in Acts, Paul truly was “observing the city full of idols” (Acts 17:16). Walking through different areas of Athens Paul would have seen statues, altars, temples, and shrines to many pagan deities. The most prominent deities in Athens of the Roman period were Athena, Zeus, Hermes (Herms pillars were prolific and found often at entrances, gateways, roads, and at the agora), Poseidon, Asklepius, Dionysus, Nike, Eros, Aphrodite, Nymphs, Hephaestus, Apollo, Demeter, Ares, and finally the Emperor (a temple of Augustus was on the acropolis). However, many other minor deities had temples, shrines, statues, and altars throughout the city and surrounding area. “Temples made with hands” and shrines were found all over the city, including the Acropolis, Agora, and other areas (Acts 17:24). The Eleusinian Mystery cult was also popular in Athens, since Eleusis was located nearby. The Acropolis, which dominated the skyline, may or may not have been visited by Paul during his brief time in Athens. A marble staircase up to the summit had been commissioned by Emperor Claudius as part of a restoration campaign only a few years before Paul arrived (about 42 AD), a monument to Marcus Agrippa on the left was also recent, and after passing under the Propylaea and going to the front of the Parthenon, Paul would have seen the temple of Roma and Augustus built just after 27 BC among the classical structures of old, including the Parthenon, Erectheion, Temple of Athena Nike, and the colossal bronze statue of Athena (McRay, Archaeology and the New Testament; Pausanias, Description of Greece; Dio Cassius, Roman History).
Eventually Paul found the synagogue, and there he reasoned from the Scriptures with the Jews and God-fearers who were present (Acts 17:17). The synagogue was probably near the Metroon on the western side of the ancient Agora. During excavations, a marble fragment inscribed with a menorah and a palm branch, tentatively dated to the 3rd or 4th century AD, was discovered in the Agora just northeast of the Metroon (Urman et al, Ancient Synagogues). A community of Jews is also known to have existed in Attica (Athens being the major city of the region), during the 1st century, and therefore a synagogue must have been located somewhere in the city (Philo, Embassy). Archaeological evidence suggests that the Roman period synagogue of Athens, including the 1st century synagogue that Paul visited, was located in the Agora, possibly in one of the buildings near the Metroon. Besides the synagogue, Paul also taught in the Agora every day (Acts 17:17). During his time in Athens, Paul taught, conversed, and probably also worked in the commercial section of the Agora (forum) as an artisan tentmaker, as he did in Corinth and elsewhere, producing insulated tents which stayed cool in the summer and warm in the winter. Scholars have proposed a few different ideas about the exact craft that Paul was engaged in, ranging from leatherworking to the use of cloth or animal hair, but most agree he was making tents, regardless of the material used (Keener, Acts). His time in the marketplace allowed Paul to come in contact with people from all walks of life, including the city officials and the academics. At some point, Timothy joined Paul in Athens, but was then sent back to Thessalonica, so Paul seems to have spent most of his time in Athens without any of his usual travel and ministry companions (1 Thessalonians 3:1). Soon, however, Paul caught the attention of the philosophers and became an instant and popular curiosity in the city.
After Paul had started preaching Jesus Christ and the resurrection in the synagogue and the marketplace of Athens, inquisitive intellectuals eventually asked Paul to come before the council of the Areopagus to explain this new information that he had been teaching to various groups of people in the city. Athens had been a center of learning for centuries, so many of the philosophers, academics, and city leaders were interested in hearing and evaluating the strange and possibly impious ideas. The Areopagus of Athens, also known as Mars Hill, is located northwest of and adjacent to the Acropolis. In the Archaic period, the city elders met there, while in the Classical period, it came to be used as an assembly place of judicial tribunals for major crimes such as murder and corruption (Plutarch, Solon). The name, Areo Pagus, may have been derived from the name of the Greek god of war, Ares, or from Arai (curses). [The two word form found in Acts is also the typical way in which it is found in inscriptions of the Roman period in Athens.] One legend claims that the first trial on the hill was a charge of murder against Ares, while the other legend states that the first trial on the hill was that of Orestes, who was cursed and “angered the Furies” for murdering his mother (McDonald, “Archaeology and St. Paul’s Journeys in Greek Lands: Athens”). Related to this was a temple dedicated to the Furies at the base of the hill. These functions seem to have continued into Roman times, being the ruling administrative council of Athens and rendering judgements on important issues (Keener, Acts). When Paul was in Athens, the Areopagus may have also become a popular gathering place to discuss and debate ideas, since many scholars and philosophers still studied and taught in Athens. However, Paul and the message he was teaching could have been “on trial” in a sense, having the ideas formally evaluated by the great minds and ruling council of the city to determine whether or not they were appropriate or permissible. In the Roman period, the Areopagus council is known to have questioned and even banished other teachers who went against or questioned traditional beliefs (Diogenes Laertius, Lives of Eminent Philosophers). In the distant past, Socrates had faced trial before the Areopagus in Athens centuries before for impiety, specifically for allegedly failing to acknowledge the gods that the city acknowledges and introducing new gods (or strange deities), so Paul could have been brought before the court for a hearing concerning similar ideas, and specifically this “unknown god” that he introduced and the message of salvation and resurrection that he was proclaiming (Winter, “On Introducing Gods to Athens”; Plato, Apology of Socrates; Xenophon, Apology of Socrates to the Jury; Acts 17:18). The location of Trial of Socrates was possibly on south side of Agora in Heleaea near slope of Areopagus, or the Royal Stoa, or on the Areopagus itself (Irvine, Socrates on Trial). Socrates denied the charges, while Paul bluntly stated that the true God is not associated with their temples, priests, and idols (Acts 17:24-29). However, Paul does tell the Athenians he is not introducing a new deity, but that they have been worshipping the “unknown” true God in ignorance along with their false pantheon.
Many scholars now suggest that Paul was brought before the council of the Areopagus not on the actual hill, but at a nearby location such as the Royal Stoa by the slopes of the hill where they may have regularly met during this period (Keener, Acts; Witherington, The Acts of the Apostles; Hemer, The Book of Acts). However, it is possible that the hearing took place on the actual hill, although the ancient buildings that were once there no longer remain (McRay, Archaeology and the New Testament; Hemer, The Book of Acts). The council of the Areopagus was composed of 100 members, including all the former archons (civic officials) of Athens. Having seen altars to almost every pagan deity imaginable, Paul had also noticed an altar to the “unknown god” and proceeded to use it as an introduction to the one true God and the message of Jesus Christ which these philosophers and politicians had not heard. In his speech to the Areopagus, Paul used an altar to the “unknown god” as an illustration that the God that is unknown to the Athenians is the one true God, while the objects of stone and metal that they used in their worship were merely objects formed by men and gods created through the thoughts of men (Acts 17:23-31). This altar to the unknown god has generated discussion, research, and debate due to its novelty and the way in which Paul used the inscription during his speech in Athens. Famous ancient Greek philosophers such as Plato, Aristotle, and Xenophanes all used the generic “theos” (god) in their works to refer to an ambiguous Supreme god, so Paul’s explanation would have been particularly relevant and interesting to the educated philosophers of Athens which he addressed, and the illustration also appears to have had an important historical context for Athens. The altar to the unknown god in 1st century Athens to which Paul referred may have been a result of the Cylon affair of the 6th century BC involving the appeasement of an unknown god to abate a plague in Athens and the proposed solution by Epimenides of Crete to sacrifice and make altars to the “unknown god.” Paul actually quoted a phrase from Epimenides in his speech at the Areopagus “in him we live and move and have our being,” and much later another quote which stated “a prophet of their own, said, ‘Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, lazy gluttons,’” when he wrote to Titus on Crete, so he was well aware of this philosopher and many others (Acts 17:28; Titus 1:12; Epimenides, Cretica; Clement of Alexandria, Stromata; Diogenes Laertius, Lives of Eminent Philosophers; cf. also brief quote from Aratus, Phaenomena in Acts 17:28). Greek philosophers and their reference to a deistic type of Supreme god or the people simply covering their bases for reverence to any possible god that they missed a dedication to could have been alternative reasons, or a combination of all of the above. A few ancient sources of the Roman period also specifically mention the presence of altars dedicated to the unknown gods as a collective, and even altars to the unknown god, including the very accurate traveler and historian Pausanias around 150 AD who mentioned seeing these specifically in Athens (Pausanias, Description of Greece; Philostratus, Appolonius of Tyana; Diogenes Laertius, Lives of Eminent Philosophers; Tertullian, To the Heathen; Pseudo-Lucian, Philopatris; Hemer, The Book of Acts). Allegedly, an altar to an unknown god was discovered in Athens in 1208 AD by Pope Innocent III, but it has not been located in modern times. A 1st century BC Latin inscribed altar found on the Palatine Hill in Rome mentions “whether to a god or goddess sacred” and has been compared to the “unknown god” altar of Athens, but the type from Rome appears to be more generic and applicable to any deity. However, in Pergamum, Miletus, and Phrygia, altars of this period were discovered with Greek inscriptions stating dedication to “unknown gods” (van der Horst, “The Unknown God”). Therefore, the ancient sources and recently rediscovered altars confirm that the inscribed “unknown god” altar that Paul made reference to in Athens was an actual monument, and not merely a hypothetical object used for a speech. During his discourse to the Areopagus, Paul used examples, concepts, and quotations that the Athenians were familiar with to explain about the one true God and the resurrection. Those gathered around were likely the members of the Areopagus, teachers and students from various philosophical schools, and perhaps some of the other educated citizens. Although many sneered and rejected the message that Paul has brought, Luke recorded that Dionysus, a member of the Areopagus council, and a woman named Damaris became believers. While we know nothing else about Damaris, she could have been a student of one of the philosophical schools that admitted women, or an educated lady of the elites in Athens. Although Paul calls the household of Stephanus “the firstfruits of Achaia,” and the church in Achaia was centered around Corinth rather than Athens, there were believers in Athens as a result of Paul preaching the Gospel there, and a small church must have existed in the 1st century AD (1 Corinthians 16:15). Paul does not state there were no converts in Athens, but may have been referring to the first baptisms that he conducted in Achaia, or possibly the household of Stephanus was actually from Athens and not Corinth, since the letters were intended to be distributed to the whole church in Achaia, although centered around and delivered to Corinth (1 Corinthians 1:14-16; 2 Corinthians 1:1). A tradition claims that Dionysus the Areopagite was the first bishop of Athens, and that he was martyred during the reign of Domitian in the late 1st century AD, who is known to have persecuted and executed many Christians during his reign. A Byzantine church just below the cliffs on the north side of the Areopagus may have been built in honor of Dionysus the Areopagite, or to commemorate the preaching of Paul at the Areopagus (Vanderpool, “The Apostle Paul in Athens”).