The city was full of idols.

Acts 17:16-17, Now while Paul was waiting for them at Athens, his spirit was provoked within him as he saw that the city was full of idols. So he reasoned in the synagogue with the Jews and the devout persons, and in the marketplace every day with those who happened to be there. 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.

We hear about so-called Christians protesting at military funerals, calling down curses on certain specific sins, or taunting Hare Krishna by holding raw meat under their faces. Jesus, when he met the woman at the well, began a life-changing conversation by asking for a cup of water, not by accusing her of adultery. And Paul, while provoked in his spirit, sought first to reason with those who knew nothing of the Lord Jesus Christ. Rather than denouncing their idolatrous worship, he simply told them of Jesus Christ and his resurrection! Why should we not do the same?

Let us see others with your eyes, as you did with the woman at the well, to gently lead them into the way of the cross!

ESV Lectionary