Ἄρειος Πάγος

From the study of Acts 17:19

Range of meaning

(1) A rocky hill northwest of the Acropolis in Athens, named after Ares. (2) The council of Athens that took its name from the hill, because it originally met there. In the Roman period this council was the most prestigious governing body in Athens, with oversight of religious matters, cults and, it appears, education and public teaching.

Against the English

BSB, KJV, ESV, NASB and WEB say "the Areopagus," which keeps the ambiguity. NIV adds "a meeting of," so it reads the word as the council. NLT goes further and calls it the city's high council. The KJV's "Mars' hill" in verse 22 (not in this verse) pushes readers toward the purely geographical sense.

How it drifted

The KJV's "Mars' hill" in v. 22, together with modern tourism to the actual rock, has made most English readers picture an open-air hilltop. The council, which was probably at least part of what Luke meant, has dropped out of view.

Used elsewhere in the period

Classical writers (Aeschylus' Eumenides, Demosthenes) describe the council's ancient role as a homicide court. Pausanias (1.28.5) describes the hill and the stories about how it got its name. Cicero speaks of "the Areopagus" as a governing body ("the Athenian state is governed by the counsel of the Areopagus"). Inscriptions from the Roman era show the council approving public honours and religious matters. Within Acts, verse 22 places Paul "in the middle of the Areopagus," which sounds more like a body of people than a rock, and verse 34 names a convert, "Dionysius the Areopagite," meaning a member of the council.

From the study of Acts 17:22

Range of meaning

"Hill of Ares." (1) The rocky outcrop northwest of the Acropolis. (2) By extension, the Council of the Areopagus, Athens' oldest and most prestigious governing body, named after the hill where it originally met. Members were former senior magistrates. Later an Areopagite is simply a council member (v. 34, "Dionysius the Areopagite").

Against the English

KJV: "Mars' hill," using the Roman name for Ares and making it purely a location. BSB, NIV: "the meeting of the Areopagus" (a body of people). ESV, WEB: "the Areopagus," which leaves both senses open. NLT: "the council."

How it drifted

"Mars' Hill" became the popular English name through the KJV, and it pictures Paul preaching outdoors on a rock to whoever happened to be there. Under Roman rule the council was a powerful civic authority, and it often met in the Royal Stoa (a colonnaded hall) in the marketplace rather than on the hill.

Used elsewhere in the period

Classical Athenian authors (Aeschylus, Eumenides, makes the council's founding a myth about a murder trial). Roman-era inscriptions show the council at the head of Athenian civic life, with oversight of religion, education and public order. Lucian (Anacharsis 19) recalls the council's tradition that speakers before it should avoid flattering preambles and emotional appeals.