Acts 17:30Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

He pauses over a matter closer to them. When he had touched their soul by showing that they were without excuse, see what he adds: “Overlooking the times of ignorance, God now commands all men everywhere to repent.”

How so? Will none of them be punished? None of those who wish to repent. He is speaking of these, not of those who have died, but of those to whom he is preaching.

God, he says, does not require an account from you. He did not say, “He disregarded” or “He permitted,” but, “you were in ignorance.”

“He overlooked” means that He does not bring punishment upon those worthy of punishment. “You were in ignorance.” He does not say, “You willingly did evil,” since this is clear from what was said above.

“Everywhere to repent.” By these words he points to the whole inhabited world.

"The times of ignorance, therefore." He is not speaking about the dead, but about those to whom he preached. Therefore he did not say, "He let the times pass," but "overlooking," that is, surveying them. Nor does he say, "You committed evil willingly," but, "You did not know." Thus he declares this to his hearers, not demanding their punishment as men worthy of punishment, but calling them to repentance.

When you have persuaded them that God is one, then with His help you will show that salvation has been given to us through Christ.

Begin with what Christ accomplished while abiding in the body. Point out the marks of the divine nature, so that it may be seen that He is more than man.

Show that death was conquered by the power of Him alone, and that after death He rose from Hades.

Faith grows little by little. When people see that He surpassed men, they will believe that He is God.

If you do not establish that He could not have accomplished His deeds without divine power, how will you prove that divine power was in Him?

As a remedy for error, he pointed to the thirst for repentance. Then he came to Christ, but for the time being he still preferred to call Him not God, but man.

Having long and patiently endured these times of ignorance, God now declares the truth to all and calls all to repentance.

Idolatry belonged to ignorance of the true God. The Gentiles expressed an involuntary awareness of this ignorance when they made an altar “to the unknown God.”

But now, the Apostle proclaims, God has been pleased to end these times of ignorance. He commands all men everywhere to repent of all the sins and errors in which they sank while ignorant of God’s truth.

To move his hearers to repentance, the Apostle proclaims that God has appointed a day on which He will judge the world in righteousness.

He has appointed the day of the universal and dread judgment. At that judgment, according to each one’s true worth, He will righteously subject unrepentant sinners to punishment and forgive the sins of those who repent.

Meanwhile the inspired preacher continued his speech. Like transparent streams from a life-giving spring, it flowed from his lips and gave life to the minds and hearts of his hearers.

It was a profound philosophy, unknown to them until then. Yet at the same time it was simple to understand and worked upon the heart with irresistible power.

It was a simple speech. Yet every word, like lightning, pierced the soul of those who heard it and was plainly imprinted on their faces.

With extraordinary clarity, the Apostle set forth the exalted understanding of God to which the greatest sages of the ancient world scarcely dared to rise.

On the basis of well-known popular poets, he showed all the irrationality of worshiping idols made by human hands.

“Therefore, overlooking the times of ignorance,” and so forth. From what the Apostle said above about the absurdity and irrationality of idolatry, it is clear that the whole time during which idolatry ruled mankind was a time of ignorance.

It was a time of ignorance of God’s truth, a time of mankind’s spiritual unknowing. God has now left these times behind, or more precisely, overlooked them.

They have passed, and a new period has come: the period of repentance.

From this thought the Apostle moves to the final part of his speech, to the preaching of redemption and the Redeemer.

Therefore, overlooking the times of ignorance, God now, at the turning point of history, commands all to repent. He commands as the sovereign Lord of the world and of mankind.

The exhortation to repentance is made with greater firmness and decisiveness than the meek and humane judgment about idol-service, which was, as it were, excused by ignorance.

But now, says the Apostle, ignorance must be considered ended. Through me and through other Christian preachers of the faith, God commands all to repent.

He threatens the disobedient and unrepentant with the judgment of Him Whom He gave for the redemption of all. This One died and rose, which serves as assurance that His judgment over men is inevitable.

“Thus he, Paul, declares this to his hearers, not demanding their punishment as people worthy of punishment, but calling them to repentance. He does not say, ‘You willingly committed evil,’ but, ‘You did not know.’