CITY RULERS

Civic magistrates (Gr., po·li·tarʹkhai) before whom Jason and other Christians were dragged by an angry mob in Thessalonica. (Ac 17:5-8) Regarding the use of the Greek term, G. Ernest Wright says: “An inscription on this gate [the Vardar Gate from Thessalonica], now in the British Museum, mentions some city officials called ‘politarchs’. A number of other inscriptions contain the same word. In Acts 17:6 this term is also used as the name of the officials before whom Christians were dragged during the riot caused by Paul’s preaching. The word is otherwise unknown in extant Greek literature and the archaeological information is a confirmation of the accuracy of Luke’s narrative at this point.”​—Biblical Archaeology, 1962, p. 260; see ARCHAEOLOGY (Relating to the Christian Greek Scriptures).