15 Bible Verses about Riots

And when the people in the synagogue heard this, they were all very angry, and they got up and drove him out of the town and took him to the brow of the hill on which their town was built, intending to throw him down from it. But he made his way through the midst of them and went on.

Just at that time a great commotion arose about the Way. A silversmith named Demetrius was making large profits for his workmen by the manufacture of silver shrines of Artemis. He got the workmen in that and similar trades together, and said to them, "Men, you know that this business is the source of our prosperity,read more.
and you see and hear that not only in Ephesus but almost all over Asia, this man Paul has persuaded and drawn away numbers of people, telling them that gods made by human hands are not gods at all. There is danger, therefore, not only that this business of ours will be discredited, but also that the temple of the great goddess Artemis will be neglected and the magnificence of her whom all Asia and the world worship will be a thing of the past!" When they heard this, they became very angry, and cried, "Great Artemis of Ephesus!" So the commotion spread all over the city, and by a common impulse the people rushed to the theater, dragging with them two Macedonians, Gaius and Aristarchus, Paul's traveling companions. Paul wanted to go before the people himself, but the disciples would not allow it. Some of the religious authorities also, who were friends of his, sent to him and begged him not to venture into the theater. Meanwhile the people were shouting, some one thing and some another, for the meeting was in confusion, and most of them had no idea why they had come together. Some of the crowd called upon Alexander, as the Jews had pushed him to the front, and he made a gesture with his hand and was going to speak in defense of them to the people. But when they saw that he was a Jew, a great shout went up from them all, and they cried for two hours, "Great Artemis of Ephesus!"

beatings, imprisonments, riots, labors, sleepless nights, and hunger,

But the high priests and the elders prevailed on the crowd to ask for Barabbas, and to have Jesus put to death. And the governor answered, "Which of the two do you want me to release for you?" They said, "Barabbas!" Pilate said to them, "Then what am I to do with Jesus, the so-called Christ?" They all said, "Have him crucified!"read more.
He said, "Why, what has he done that is wrong?" But they shouted all the louder, "Have him crucified!" When Pilate saw that he was gaining nothing but that a riot was beginning instead, he took some water and washed his hands in the presence of the crowd, saying, "I am not responsible for this man's death; you must see to it yourselves."

Now at festival time he used to set free for them one prisoner, whom they petitioned for. There was in prison a man called Barabbas, among some revolutionaries who in their outbreak had committed murder. And a crowd of people came up and started to ask him for the usual favor.read more.
Pilate asked them, "Do you want me to set the king of the Jews free for you?" For he knew that the high priests had handed him over to him out of envy. But the high priests stirred up the crowd to get him to set Barabbas free for them instead. And Pilate again said to them, "Then what shall I do with the man you call the king of the Jews?" They shouted back, "Crucify him!" And Pilate said to them, "Why, what has he done that is wrong?" But they shouted all the louder, "Crucify him!" And as Pilate wanted to satisfy the crowd, he set Barabbas free for them, and after having Jesus flogged handed him over to be crucified.

Stephen, greatly strengthened by God's favor, did remarkable signs and wonders among the people. But members of the synagogue known as that of the Libyans, Cyreneans, and Alexandrians, and men from Cilicia and Asia undertook to debate with Stephen, but they could not meet his wisdom and the inspiration with which he spoke.read more.
So they instigated people to say, "We have heard him use abusive language about Moses and about God." They aroused the people, the elders, and the scribes, and they set upon him and seized him, and brought him before the council. Then they brought forward false witnesses, who said, "This man is constantly saying things against this holy place and against the Law, for we have heard him say that Jesus of Nazareth will tear this place down and change the customs that have been handed down to us by Moses."

This offended the Jews and they gathered some unprincipled loafers, formed a mob and started a riot in the town. They attacked Jason's house, to find them and bring them out among the people. As they could not find them, they dragged Jason and some of the brothers before the town magistrates, shouting, "The men who have made trouble all over the world have come here too, and Jason has taken them in. They all disobey the emperor's decrees, and claim that someone else called Jesus is king."read more.
The crowd and the magistrates were very much excited at hearing this, and they put Jason and the others under bonds before they let them go.

The seven days were almost over when the Jews from Asia caught sight of him in the Temple, and stirred up all the crowd and seized him, shouting, "Men of Israel, help! This is the man who teaches everybody everywhere against our people and the Law and this place, and besides he has actually brought Greeks into the Temple and desecrated this sacred place." For they had previously seen Trophimus of Ephesus with him in the city, and they supposed that Paul had brought him into the Temple.read more.
The whole city was thrown into confusion, and the people hurried together, and seized Paul and dragged him outside of the Temple, the gates of which were immediately shut. They were trying to kill him when the news reached the colonel of the regiment that all Jerusalem was in a tumult. He immediately got some officers and men and hurried down among them, and when they saw the colonel and the soldiers they stopped beating Paul. Then the colonel came up and seized him, and ordered him to be bound with two chains, and then inquired who he was and what he had been doing. Some of the crowd shouted one thing and some another, and as he could not find out the facts on account of the confusion, he ordered him to be taken into the barracks. When Paul got to the steps, he was actually carried by the soldiers, on account of the violence of the mob,

Then the high priests and the elders of the people gathered in the house of the high priest, whose name was Caiaphas, and plotted to arrest Jesus by stealth and put him to death. But they said, "It must not be during the festival, or there may be a riot."

It was now two days before the festival of the Passover and of Unleavened Bread. And the high priests and scribes were casting about for a way to arrest him by stealth and put him to death, for they said, "It must not be during the festival, or there may be a riot."

At last the recorder quieted the mob and said, "Men of Ephesus, who in the world does not know that the city of Ephesus is the guardian of the temple of the great Artemis, and of the image that fell down from the sky? So as these facts are undeniable, you must be calm, and not do anything reckless. For you have brought these men here, though they have not been guilty of disloyalty nor uttered any blasphemy against our goddess.read more.
If Demetrius and his fellow-craftsmen have a charge to bring against anyone, there are the courts and the governors; let them take legal action. But if you require anything beyond that, it must be settled before the regular assembly. For we are in danger of being charged with rioting in connection with today's events, though there is really nothing about this commotion that we will not be able to explain." With these words he dismissed the assembly.

For we have found this man a pest and a disturber of the peace among Jews all over the world. He is a ringleader of the Nazarene sect, and actually tried to desecrate the Temple, but we caught him. OMITTED TEXTread more.
If you will examine him yourself you will be able to find out from him all about the things we charge him with." The Jews also joined in these charges, and said that the statement was true. The governor made a sign to Paul to speak, and he answered, "As I know that for many years you have acted as judge for this nation, I cheerfully undertake my defense, for it is not more than twelve days ago, as you can easily satisfy yourself, that I went up to worship at Jerusalem, and they have never found me debating with anyone in the Temple, or creating a disturbance among the people in the synagogues or about the city,

Let us live honorably, as in the light of day, not in carousing and drunkenness, or in immorality and indecency, or in quarreling and jealousy.

The night is nearly over; the day is at hand. So let us throw aside the deeds of darkness, and put on the armor of light.

suffering wrong as the reward for their wrongdoing. They find pleasure in the indulgence of the moment; they are a stain and a disgrace, and they revel in their deceit while they join in your religious meals.