St Paul in Philippi and Athens

Paul’s second missionary journey (49-52 AD) took him through Asia Minor to Macedonia and Greece. Silas and Timothy and later Luke were Paul’s fellow travelers. Paul was well-received by converts in the city of Philippi until he healed a slave girl who was possessed. She had served her master as a fortuneteller before the exorcism. Her owner had Paul and Silas arrested, beaten and jailed. When an earthquake shook open the jail doors, the jailer was about to kill himself until Paul stopped him, preached the word, and baptized the poor man (cf. Acts 16:16-34). 

In Athens he tried to persuade the crowd that their statue to “an unknown god” was a prelude to their honoring Jesus, but Paul had slight success with that tactic (cf. Acts 17:22-34).