Acts 17:18
 
Acts 17:18
(KJV) Then certain philosophers of the Epicureans, and of the Stoicks, encountered him. And some said, What will this babbler say? other some, He seemeth to be a setter forth of strange gods: because he preached unto them Jesus, and the resurrection.
(1611 KJV) Then certaine Philosophers of the Epicureans, and of the Stoikes, encountred him: and some said, What will this babbler say? Othersome, He seemeth to be a setter foorth of strange gods: because hee preached vnto them Iesus, and the resurrection.
(1568 Bishops Bible) Then certaine philosophers of the Epicures, and of the Stoickes disputed with hym. And some saide: What wyll this babler say? Other some, he seemeth to be a setter foorth of newe gods: because he preached vnto them Iesus, and the resurrection.
(1526 Tyndale) Certayne philosophers of ye Epicures and of ye stoyckes disputed with him. And some ther were which sayde: what will this babler saye. Other sayd: he semeth to be a tydynges bringer of newe devyls because he preached vnto them Iesus and the resurreccion.
 
Counterfeit Versions
(CSB) Some of the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers also debated with him. Some said, “What is this ignorant show-off trying to say?”  Others replied, “He seems to be a preacher of foreign deities”​— ​because he was telling the good news about Jesus and the resurrection.
(NIV) A group of Epicurean and Stoic philosophers began to dispute with him. Some of them asked, "What is this babbler trying to say?" Others remarked, "He seems to be advocating foreign gods." They said this because Paul was preaching the good news about Jesus and the resurrection.
(NASV) And also some of the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers were conversing with him. Some were saying, "What would this idle babbler wish to say?" Others, "He seems to be a proclaimer of strange deities,"--because he was preaching Jesus and the resurrection.
(THE MESSAGE) He got to know some of the Epicurean and Stoic intellectuals pretty well through these conversations. Some of them dismissed him with sarcasm: "What an airhead!" But others, listening to him go on about Jesus and the resurrection, were intrigued: "That's a new slant on the gods. Tell us more."
(AMP) And some also of the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers encountered him and began to engage in discussion. And some said, What is this babbler with his scrap-heap learning trying to say? Others said, He seems to be an announcer of foreign deities--because he preached Jesus and the resurrection.
(NLT) He also had a debate with some of the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers. When he told them about Jesus and his resurrection, they said, “What’s this babbler trying to say with these strange ideas he’s picked up?” Others said, “He seems to be preaching about some foreign gods.”
(ESV) Some of the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers also conversed with him. And some said, "What does this babbler wish to say?" Others said, "He seems to be a preacher of foreign divinities"—because he was preaching Jesus and the resurrection.
(CEV) Some of them were Epicureans and some were Stoics, and they started arguing with him. People were asking, "What is this know-it-all trying to say?" Some even said, "Paul must be preaching about foreign gods! That's what he means when he talks about Jesus and about people rising from death."
(1901 ASV) And certain also of the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers encountered him. And some said, What would this babbler say? others, He seemeth to be a setter forth of strange gods: because he preached Jesus and the resurrection.
(HCSB) Then also, some of the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers argued with him. Some said, "What is this pseudo-intellectual trying to say?" Others replied, "He seems to be a preacher of foreign deities"—because he was telling the good news about Jesus and the resurrection.
(NRSV) Also some Epicurean and Stoic philosophers debated with him. Some said, ‘What does this babbler want to say?’ Others said, ‘He seems to be a proclaimer of foreign divinities.’ (This was because he was telling the good news about Jesus and the resurrection.)
(NAB-Roman Catholic) Even some of the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers engaged him in discussion. Some asked, "What is this scavenger trying to say?" Others said, "He sounds like a promoter of foreign deities," because he was preaching about 'Jesus' and 'Resurrection.'
(NWT-Jehovah’s Witnesses) But certain ones of both the Ep·i·cu·re´an and the Sto´ic philosophers took to conversing with him controversially, and some would say: “What is it this chatterer would like to tell?” Others: “He seems to be a publisher of foreign deities.” This was because he was declaring the good news of Jesus and the resurrection.
 
Textus Receptus - Traditional Text
tineV de twn epikoureiwn kai twn stwikwn jilosojwn suneballon autw kai tineV elegon ti an qeloi o spermologoV outoV legein oi de xenwn daimoniwn dokei kataggeleuV einai oti ton ihsoun kai thn anastasin autoiV euhggelizeto
 
Hort-Westcott - Critical Text
tineV de kai twn epikoureiwn kai stoikwn jilosojwn suneballon autw kai tineV elegon ti an qeloi o spermologoV outoV legein oi de xenwn daimoniwn dokei kataggeleuV einai oti ton ihsoun kai thn anastasin euhggelizeto
 
Corrupted Manuscripts
This verse is corrupted in the following manuscripts:
Aleph 01 - Sinaiticus - Nineteenth Century Counterfeit
B 03 - Vaticanus - Fourth century
L 020 - Ninth century
P 025 - Ninth century
 
Manuscripts which agree with the Textus Receptus for this verse
Byzantine Text (450-1450 A.D.)
 
Published Critical Greek Texts with Corruptions
Omit “unto them” after “he preached”
Tischendorf, Constantine - 1869
Tregelles, Samuel - 1857
Alford, Henry - 1849 revised in 1871 (in margin or brackets)
Westcott and Hort - 1881
Nestle - 1927 as revised in seventeenth edition in 1941
Nestle-Aland - 1979 - Twenty Sixth Edition
Nestle-Aland - 1993 - Twenty Seventh Edition
United Bible Societies - 1983 - Fourth Edition
Hodges and Farstad - Majority Text 1982 as corrected in 1985
 
Affected Teaching
Here is an omission which concerns itself about a direct witness to the philosophers. The Gnostics would definitely want this out because it speaks of Paul directly witnessing to them about the Lord Jesus Christ and the resurrection. The Gnostics did not believe that Jesus was divine and that He only was raised in spirit and not in body. This belief is present today with the Jehovah Witnesses and New Age beliefs where they equate Jesus with other teachers like Buddha or Confucius. They see Him as an ascended master. Paul was directly challenging the philosophy of the Epicureans and Stoics. The Epicureans followed Epicurus (342-270 BC) who taught that nature is the supreme teacher by supplying feelings, sensations, and anticipations for the testing of truth. Later his followers saw sensual pleasures as the goal of life. Stoics followed Zeno of Citium (335-263 BC) and he believed in a creative power and saw duty, reason, and self-sufficiency as goals of life. He also encouraged his followers to follow the laws of nature. We can see why they would have called Paul a babbler concerning the resurrection because their philosophy was totally tied to this earth. The modern versions make it sound like Paul was having an evangelism crusade but he was directly challenging the beliefs of these two philosophical systems which teaches us that the Gospel can go up against any form of philosophy. We need not shrink back simply because these philosophical systems seem to be so intense, instead we hit them head on and let the Holy Spirit do the convicting. These systems seem to bring much wisdom but in reality, they are Satanism couched in big words and fantasies.

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