So Paul stood in the middle of the leadership council and said, “Respected leaders of Athens, it is clear to me how extravagant you are in your worship of idols.
Eventually the mayor of the city was able to quiet them down. He said, “Fellow citizens! Who in the world doesn’t know that we are devoted to the great temple of Artemis and to her image that fell from Zeus out of heaven?
Those who accompanied Paul sailed with him as far as Athens. Then Paul sent them back to Berea with instructions for Silas and Timothy to hurry and join him.
So they brought him for a public dialogue before the leadership council of Athens, known as the Areopagus. “Tell us,” they said, “about this new teaching that you’re bringing to our city.
But there were some who believed the message and joined him from that day forward. Among them were Dionysius, a judge on the leadership council, and a woman named Damaris.