18 Bible Verses about Riots

But before they lay down, the men of the city, even the men of Sodom, compassed the house round, both old and young, all the people from every quarter; and they called unto Lot and said unto him, Where are the men who came in to thee this night? Bring them out unto us that we may know them. And Lot went out at the door unto them and shut the door after himread more.
and said, I pray you, brethren, do not so wickedly. Behold now, I have two daughters who have not known man; let me, I pray you, bring them out unto you and do ye to them as is good in your eyes; only unto these men do nothing, for they have come under the shadow of my roof. And they said, Stand back. And they said again, This fellow came in to sojourn and is he to lift himself up as judge? Now will we deal worse with thee than with them. And they did great violence to the man, even Lot, and came near to break the door. Then the men put forth their hand and pulled Lot into the house with them and shut the door. And they smote the men that were at the door of the house with blindness, both small and great so that they wearied themselves to find the door.

Then the men of the city said unto Joash, Bring out thy son that he may die because he has cast down the altar of Baal and because he has cut down the grove that was by it. And Joash replied unto all that stood against him, Will ye contend for Baal? Will ye save him? Whoever will contend for him, let him be put to death while it is yet morning; if he is God, let him contend for himself with the one who has cast down his altar.

Now it came to pass, when Jeremiah had made an end of speaking all that the LORD had commanded him to speak unto all the people that the priests and the prophets and all the people took him, saying, Thou shalt surely die. Why hast thou prophesied in the name of the LORD, saying, This house shall be like Shiloh, and this city shall be desolate without an inhabitant? And all the people were gathered against Jeremiah in the house of the LORD. When the princes of Judah heard these things, then they came up from the king's house unto the house of the LORD and sat down in the entry of the new gate of the LORD's house.read more.
Then the priests and the prophets spoke unto the princes and to all the people, saying, This man is worthy to die; for he has prophesied against this city as ye have heard with your ears.

And all those in the synagogue, when they heard these things, were filled with wrath and rose up and thrust him out of the city and led him unto the brow of the hill upon which their city was built that they might cast him down headlong. But he, passing through the midst of them, went away.

And the same time there arose no small stir about the way. For a certain man named Demetrius, a silversmith who made silver shrines for Diana, brought no small gain unto the craftsmen, whom he called together with the workmen of like occupation and said, Sirs, ye know that by this gain we have our wealth.read more.
Moreover ye see and hear, that not alone at Ephesus, but almost throughout all Asia, this Paul has persuaded and turned away many people, saying that they are not gods which are made with hands so that not only this our craft is in danger to be set at nought, but also that the temple of the great goddess Diana should be despised, and her magnificence should be destroyed, whom all Asia and the world worship. And when they heard these sayings, they were full of wrath and cried out, saying, Great is Diana of the Ephesians. And the whole city was filled with confusion, and having caught Gaius and Aristarchus, men of Macedonia, Paul's companions in travel, they rushed with one accord into the theatre. And when Paul would have entered in unto the people, the disciples suffered him not. And certain of the chief persons of Asia, who were his friends, sent unto him, asking him that he not present himself in the theatre. Some therefore cried one thing, and some another, for the assembly was confused; and most of them did not know why they were come together. And they drew Alexander out of the multitude, the Jews putting him forward. And Alexander beckoned with the hand and would have made his defense unto the people. But when they knew that he was a Jew, all with one voice about the space of two hours cried out, Great is Diana of the Ephesians.

in stripes, in imprisonments, in tumults, in labours, in watchings, in fastings,

But the princes of the priests and the elders persuaded the multitude that they should ask for Barabbas and destroy Jesus. The governor answered and said unto them, Which of the two desire ye that I release unto you? They said, Barabbas. Pilate said unto them, What shall I do then with Jesus who is called Christ? They all say unto him, Let him be crucified.read more.
And the governor said, Why, what evil has he done? But they cried out the more, saying, Let him be crucified. When Pilate saw that he could prevail nothing, but that rather a tumult was made, he took water and washed his hands before the multitude, saying, I am innocent of the blood of this just person; see ye to it.

Now at that feast it was customary that he release unto them one prisoner, whoever they desired. And there was one named Barabbas, who lay bound with those that had made insurrection with him, who had committed murder in the insurrection. And the multitude crying aloud began to desire him to do as he had always done unto them.read more.
And Pilate answered them, saying, Will ye that I release unto you the King of the Jews? For he knew that the princes of the priests had delivered him for envy. But the princes of the priests moved the multitude that he should rather release Barabbas unto them. And Pilate answered and said again unto them, What will ye then that I shall do unto him whom ye call the King of the Jews? And they cried out again, crucify him. Then Pilate said unto them, Why, what evil has he done? And they cried out the more exceedingly, crucify him. And so Pilate, willing to content the people, released Barabbas unto them and delivered Jesus, when he had scourged him, to be crucified.

And Stephen, full of faith and power, did great wonders and miracles in the people. Then there arose certain of the synagogue, which is called the synagogue of the Libertines, and Cyrenians and Alexandrians and of those of Cilicia and of Asia, disputing with Stephen. And they were not able to resist the wisdom and the Spirit by which he spoke.read more.
Then they suborned men, who said, We have heard him speak blasphemous words against Moses and against God. And they stirred up the people and the elders and the scribes and came upon him and caught him and brought him to the council and set up false witnesses, who said, This man does not cease to speak blasphemous words against this holy place and the law, for we have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth shall destroy this place and shall change the traditions which Moses delivered us.

But the disobedient Jews, moved with envy, took unto them certain lewd fellows of the baser sort and gathered a company and set all the city on an uproar and assaulted the house of Jason and sought to bring them out to the people. And when they did not find them, they brought Jason and certain brethren unto the rulers of the city, crying, These that have turned the world upside down have come here also, whom Jason has received, and these all do contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, one Jesus.read more.
And they troubled the people and the rulers of the city when they heard these things. And when they had taken security of Jason and of the others, they let them go.

And when the seven days were almost ended, the Jews, who were of Asia, when they saw him in the temple, stirred up all the people and laid hands on him, crying out, Men of Israel, help; this is the man that teaches everyone everywhere against the people and the law and this place and further brought Greeks also into the temple and has polluted this holy place. (For before this they had seen Trophimus, an Ephesian, with him in the city, whom they supposed that Paul had brought into the temple.)read more.
So that all the city was moved, and the people ran together; and they took Paul and drew him out of the temple, and immediately the doors were shut. And as they went about to kill him, tidings came unto the tribunal of the company that all Jerusalem was in an uproar who immediately took soldiers and centurions and ran down unto them; and when they saw the tribunal and the soldiers, they left off beating Paul. Then the tribunal came near and took him and commanded him to be bound with two chains and demanded to know who he was and what he had done. And some cried one thing, some another, among the multitude; and when he could not know the certainty for the tumult, he commanded him to be carried into the fortress. And when he came upon the stairs, so it was that he was borne of the soldiers because of the violence of the people.

Then the princes of the priests and the scribes and the elders of the people assembled together in the palace of the high priest, who was called Caiaphas, and took counsel that they might take Jesus by guile and kill him. But they said, Not on the feast day, lest there be an uproar among the people.

Two days after was the passover and the days of unleavened bread; and the princes of the priests and the scribes sought how they might take him by craft, that they might kill him. But they said, Not on the feast day, lest there be an uproar of the people.

Then the town scribe, appeasing the people, said, Ye men of Ephesus, what man is there that does not know how the city of the Ephesians is honored of the great goddess Diana and of the image which fell down from Jupiter? Seeing then that these things cannot be gainsaid, ye ought to be quiet and to do nothing rashly. For ye have brought here these men, who are neither guilty of sacrilege, nor blasphemers of your goddess.read more.
Therefore if Demetrius and the craftsmen who are with him have a matter against any man, the law is open, and there are proconsuls; let them accuse one another. But if ye enquire any thing concerning other matters, it shall be determined in a lawful assembly. For we are in danger of being accused of sedition for this day's uproar, there being no cause by which we may give an account of this concourse. And when he had thus spoken, he dismissed the assembly.

For we have found this man a pestilent fellow and a mover of sedition among all the Jews throughout the world and prince of the seditious sect of the Nazarenes, who also has gone about to profane the temple, whom we took and would have judged according to our law. But the tribunal Lysias came upon us, and with great violence took him away out of our hands,read more.
commanding his accusers to come unto thee; by examining of whom thou may take knowledge of all these things, of which we accuse him. And the Jews also assented, saying that these things were so. Then Paul, after the governor had beckoned unto him to speak, answered, Forasmuch as I know that thou hast been of many years a judge unto this nation, I do the more cheerfully answer for myself; because thou art able to understand that there have been but twelve days since I went up to Jerusalem to worship. And they neither found me in the temple disputing with any man, neither raising up the people, neither in the synagogues, nor in the city,

Let us walk honestly, as in the day, not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying.

The night is past, and the day is come; let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us clothe ourselves with the weapons of light.

receiving the reward of their unrighteousness, as those that count it pleasure to live luxuriously every day. These are spots and blemishes, who eat together with you, while at the same time they revel in their deceit,