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.
And the brethren,.... The believers in Thessalonica, the young converts there, who were full of love and affection to their spiritual fathers:
immediately sent away Paul and Silas by night unto Berea; another city in Macedonia: and so it is placed by Pliny {l} in the north part of it; and, according to Ptolomy {m} it was, in that part of Macedonia called Emathia, and was not far from Pella, the native place of Alexander the great. It is now called Veria; some say it was called Berea from Beraea, daughter of Beres, son of Macedo, by whom it is said to have been built; others from Pheron; and some think it has some agreement with the Syriac word Barja and Baraitha; since what is called Berytus, is Beroe with others: there was besides this another Beraea, a city of Syria, which Josephus {n} speaks of; and is mentioned by Pliny {o} along with Hierapolis and Chalcis, and very likely is the same that is spoken of in:
"But the King of kings moved Antiochus' mind against this wicked wretch, and Lysias informed the king that this man was the cause of all mischief, so that the king commanded to bring him unto Berea, and to put him to death, as the manner is in that place.'' (2 Maccabees 13:4)
Hither the brethren sent Paul and Silas, when it was night and dark, and they could pass unobserved, in order to preserve them from the fury of the mob.
who coming thither; to Berea; that is, Paul and Silas:
went into the synagogue of the Jews; which was in that city; not being at all daunted or discouraged with what they had met with at Thessalonica.
{l} Nat. Hist. l. 4. c. 10.
{m} Geograph. l. 3. c. 13.
{n} Antiqu. l. 12. c. 8. sect. 7.
{o} Nat. Hist. l. 5. c. 23, 26.