Acts 17

As Paul stood on Mars' Hill, he taught the Athenians that the Lord -

"...hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation;
27 That they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though he be not far from every one of us..." (New Testament Acts 17:26 - 27)

The Joseph Smith Translation used the words -

". . . if they are willing to find him, for he is not far from every one of us."

As I pondered "of one blood all nations of men", I thought of the promises made to Abraham of whom the Jews so strongly claimed their heritage -

"...I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee above measure, and make thy name great among all nations, and thou shalt be a blessing unto thy seed after thee, that in their hands they shall bear this ministry and Priesthood unto all nations;
10 And I will bless them through thy name; for as many as receive this Gospel shall be called after thy name, and shall be accounted thy seed, and shall rise up and bless thee, as their father;
11 And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse them that curse thee; and in thee (that is, in thy Priesthood) and in thy seed (that is, thy Priesthood), for I give unto thee a promise that this right shall continue in thee, and in thy seed after thee (that is to say, the literal seed, or the seed of the body) shall all the families of the earth be blessed, even with the blessings of the Gospel, which are the blessings of salvation, even of life eternal." (Pearl of Great Price Abraham 2:9 - 11)

Paul taught the Galations of this concept of who becomes the seed of Abraham saying-

"...as Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.
7 Know ye therefore that they which are of faith, the same are the children of Abraham.
8 And the scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the heathen through faith, preached before the gospel unto Abraham, saying, In thee shall all nations be blessed.
9 So then they which be of faith are blessed with faithful Abraham." (New Testament Galatians 3:6 - 9)

"For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.
27 For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ.
28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.
29 And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise." (New Testament Galatians 3:26 - 29)

It then appears to be the distinct obligation and duty of the seed of Abraham -

"...that in their hands they shall bear this ministry and Priesthood unto all nations..." (Pearl of Great Price Abraham 2:9)

It is apparent that Paul understood this obligation as the Lord, having previously called him -

"...a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel..." (New Testament Acts 9:15)

Said to Paul and Barnabas -

"...I have set thee to be a light of the Gentiles, that thou shouldest be for salvation unto the ends of the earth." (New Testament Acts 13:47)

It is the seed of Abraham to whom the Lord addressed in modern day -

"Verily, I say unto you that ye are chosen out of the world to declare my gospel with the sound of rejoicing, as with the voice of a trump." (Doctrine and Covenants Section 29:4)

It was with this priesthood obligation that -

"...while Paul waited for them at Athens, his spirit was stirred in him, when he saw the city wholly given to idolatry." (New Testament Acts 17:16)

Which led to his infamous teachings on Mars' Hill