Acts 19
1 While Apollos was at Corinth, Paul, having passed through the upper country, came to Ephesus and found certain disciples.
While Apollos was at Corinth, Paul [left the places in Phrygia and Galatia] provinces where he had been visiting, and traveled through [Asia province] back to Ephesus. He met some people [who said that they] were believers.
2 He said to them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” They said to him, “No, we haven’t even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.”
He asked them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed [God’s message]?” They answered, “No, we [(exc) did not]. We have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.”
3 He said, “Into what then were you baptized?” They said, “Into John’s baptism.”
So Paul asked, “So when you were baptized, what [were you showing]?” They replied, “[We were showing] that we [(exc)] believed what John [the Baptizer] taught.”
4 Paul said, “John indeed baptized with the baptism of repentance, saying to the people that they should believe in the one who would come after him, that is, in Christ Jesus.”
Paul said, “John baptized people who turned away from their sinful behavior. He [also] told the people to believe in the one who would come after he [had come], and that was Jesus.”
5 When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.
So, when those men heard that, they were baptized [to affirm that they believed] [MTY] in the Lord Jesus.
6 When Paul had laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them and they spoke with other languages and prophesied.
After that, Paul placed his hands on their heads [one by one], and the [power of the] Holy Spirit came upon [each of] them. The [Holy Spirit] enabled them to speak in various languages [MTY] [that they had not learned], and they also spoke messages [that the Holy Spirit] revealed to them.
7 They were about twelve men in all.
There were about twelve men [whom Paul baptized and who received the power of the Holy Spirit].
8 He entered into the synagogue and spoke boldly for a period of three months, reasoning and persuading about the things concerning God’s Kingdom.
For three months after that, Paul entered the Jewish meeting place [in Ephesus on each] Sabbath/Jewish day of rest, and he spoke boldly. He convincingly taught [the people] about how God wanted to rule [MET] [their lives].
9 But when some were hardened and disobedient, speaking evil of the Way before the multitude, he departed from them and separated the disciples, reasoning daily in the school of Tyrannus.
[A few of the people in the meeting house believed the message about Jesus]. But some of the people would not believe that message and did not want to [continue to] hear it. While many people were listening, they said many bad things about the way [for people to receive eternal life about which Paul was preaching]. So Paul left them and took the believers with him [to meet in another place]. He taught every day in a lecture hall [that a man whose name was] Tyrannus [lectured in/owned].
10 This continued for two years, so that all those who lived in Asia heard the word of the Lord Jesus, both Jews and Greeks.
For two years Paul continued to teach people in that building. In this way, most of [HYP] the Jews and non-Jews who lived in Asia [province] heard the message about the Lord [Jesus].
11 God worked special miracles by the hands of Paul,
Also, God gave Paul the power [MTY] to do amazing miracles.
12 so that even handkerchiefs or aprons were carried away from his body to the sick, and the diseases departed from them, and the evil spirits went out.
[If those who were sick could not come to Paul, handkerchiefs or aprons that Paul had touched would be taken and] placed on the sick people {[others] would take [and place on] the sick people handkerchiefs or aprons that Paul had touched}. As a result, those sick people would become well, and evil spirits that troubled people would leave.
13 But some of the itinerant Jews, exorcists, took on themselves to invoke over those who had the evil spirits the name of the Lord Jesus, saying, “We adjure you by Jesus whom Paul preaches.”
There were also some Jews who traveled around [to] various places, [and] they commanded the evil spirits in those places to depart [from people. Certain ones of those Jews once] tried to command the evil spirits to come out of people by saying “I command you by the authority [MTY] of the Lord Jesus, the man about whom Paul preaches, to come out!”
14 There were seven sons of one Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, who did this.
There were seven men who were doing that. They were sons of a man named Sceva, a Jew, [who called himself] a chief priest.
15 The evil spirit answered, “Jesus I know, and Paul I know, but who are you?”
But [one day as they were doing that], the evil spirit [refused to come out of that person. Instead, he] said to them, “I know Jesus, and I know [that he has authorized] Paul [to expel demons]. (But no one has authorized you [to do anything to me!]/who authorized you [to do anything to me]?) [RHQ]”
16 The man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them, overpowered them, and prevailed against them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded.
[After saying that, suddenly] the man who was controlled by the evil spirit jumped on the seven Jewish men, [one after another], knocked all of them down, and beat each of them severely. He tore off their clothes and wounded them, causing them to bleed. So, [greatly frightened, they all] ran out of the house.
17 This became known to all, both Jews and Greeks, who lived at Ephesus. Fear fell on them all, and the name of the Lord Jesus was magnified.
All the people who lived in Ephesus, both Jews and non-Jews, heard what had happened. So they were afraid [MTY]. They honored the Lord Jesus [MTY] [because they realized that he was very powerful].
18 Many also of those who had believed came, confessing and declaring their deeds.
[At that time], while other believers were listening, many believers confessed the evil things that they had been doing.
19 Many of those who practiced magical arts brought their books together and burned them in the sight of all. They counted their price, and found it to be fifty thousand pieces of silver.
Several of those who had [previously] practiced sorcery gathered up their scrolls [that told how to work] magic and burned them in a public place. When people added up how much those scrolls had cost, they realized that altogether the amount was 50,000 valuable silver coins.
20 So the word of the Lord was growing and becoming mighty.
As a result, many more people heard [MTY] the message about the Lord [Jesus], and the message powerfully [changed their lives].
21 Now after these things had ended, Paul determined in the Spirit, when he had passed through Macedonia and Achaia, to go to Jerusalem, saying, “After I have been there, I must also see Rome.”
After those things had happened, Paul decided that he wanted to go to Jerusalem, but he decided that [first] he would visit [the believers in] Macedonia and Achaia [provinces again]. Paul said, “After I have been to Jerusalem, I must also go to Rome.”
22 Having sent into Macedonia two of those who served him, Timothy and Erastus, he himself stayed in Asia for a while.
He sent two of his helpers, Timothy and Erastus, ahead to Macedonia. But Paul stayed a little longer [in Ephesus city], in Asia [province].
23 About that time there arose no small disturbance concerning the Way.
[Soon after that], some of the people there tried to make a lot of [LIT] trouble for the people who believed the way [God revealed for us(inc) to receive eternal life].
24 For a certain man named Demetrius, a silversmith who made silver shrines of Artemis, brought no little business to the craftsmen,
There was a man there whose name was Demetrius who made little images out of silver. [They were models] of the temple of [a goddess whose name was] Artemis. Demetrius and the other men [who made those little images] earned a lot of [LIT] money [from selling those images].
25 whom he gathered together with the workmen of like occupation, and said, “Sirs, you know that by this business we have our wealth.
Demetrius called a meeting of his workmen and also of others who made the little silver images. He said to them, “Men, you know that we [(inc)] earn a lot of money doing our kind of work.
26 You see and hear that not at Ephesus alone, but almost throughout all Asia, this Paul has persuaded and turned away many people, saying that they are no gods that are made with hands.
Also, you know that [this fellow] Paul has persuaded many people who live in Ephesus [to no longer buy the images that we make. Now even the people from] many other towns in our province [no longer want to buy what we make]. This fellow tells people that the gods that we have made [and worship] are not gods [and that we should not worship them].
27 Not only is there danger that this our trade come into disrepute, but also that the temple of the great goddess Artemis will be counted as nothing and her majesty destroyed, whom all Asia and the world worships.”
[If people continue to listen to him], soon they will ruin our business. Besides, they will no longer think that they should [come to] the temple of Artemis [to worship her. People] all over our Asia [province] and everywhere [HYP] else worship [our great] goddess [Artemis. Soon people] may no longer consider that Artemis is great!”
28 When they heard this they were filled with anger, and cried out, saying, “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!”
All the men there were very angry [at Paul] when they heard what Demetrius said. They began to shout, “The goddess Artemis of us Ephesians is very great!”
29 The whole city was filled with confusion, and they rushed with one accord into the theater, having seized Gaius and Aristarchus, men of Macedonia, Paul’s companions in travel.
Many of the other people in the city heard the shouting and went [and joined the crowd. They also became angry at Paul] and began shouting. [Several of] the people seized Gaius and Aristarchus, two men [from Macedonia] who had been traveling with Paul. [Then the whole crowd of people ran, dragging those men along with them], to the city stadium.
30 When Paul wanted to enter in to the people, the disciples didn’t allow him.
Paul also wanted to go [to the stadium and speak to] the people, but the other believers would not let him go there.
31 Certain also of the Asiarchs, being his friends, sent to him and begged him not to venture into the theater.
Also, some government officials of that province who were friends of Paul [heard what was happening]. So they sent someone to tell him [urgently] not to go into the stadium.
32 Some therefore cried one thing, and some another, for the assembly was in confusion. Most of them didn’t know why they had come together.
The crowd of people [in the stadium] continued shouting. Some shouted one thing, and some shouted something else. But most of them did not even know what the meeting was about!
33 They brought Alexander out of the multitude, the Jews putting him forward. Alexander beckoned with his hand, and would have made a defense to the people.
One of the [Jews there was named Alexander. Some of] the Jews pushed him to the front of the stadium, [so that he could speak to the crowd of people]. So Alexander motioned with his hands to the crowd, [wanting them to be quiet]. He wanted to tell them that [the Jews] were not responsible [for the riot].
34 But when they perceived that he was a Jew, all with one voice for a time of about two hours cried out, “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!”
But [many of the non-Jewish people] knew that Alexander was a Jew. [They also knew that the Jews did not worship the goddess Artemis. So the non-Jews there] unitedly [and] repeatedly shouted for about two hours, “Great is [the goddess] Artemis [whom we(inc)] Ephesians [worship]!”
35 When the town clerk had quieted the multitude, he said, “You men of Ephesus, what man is there who doesn’t know that the city of the Ephesians is temple keeper of the great goddess Artemis, and of the image which fell down from Zeus?
Then the city secretary made the crowd stop shouting, and he said to them, “My fellow-citizens, everyone in the world knows [RHQ] that [we(inc) people who live in] Ephesus [city] guard the temple [where we worship] the great [goddess] Artemis. Also, [everyone knows that we(inc) watch over] the [sacred] image [of our goddess] that fell down from heaven!
36 Seeing then that these things can’t be denied, you ought to be quiet and to do nothing rash.
Of course everyone knows that, and no one can say that these things are not true. So you should be quiet now. Do not suddenly do anything (foolish/that will cause us trouble).
37 For you have brought these men here, who are neither robbers of temples nor blasphemers of your goddess.
You [should not] have brought these [two] men [here, because they have not done anything evil]. They have not gone into our temples and taken things [from there]. And they have not spoken evil of our goddess.
38 If therefore Demetrius and the craftsmen who are with him have a matter against anyone, the courts are open and there are proconsuls. Let them press charges against one another.
Therefore, if Demetrius and his fellow-workmen want to accuse anyone [about anything bad, they should do it in the right way]. There are courts [that you can go to when you want to accuse someone], and there are judges [there who have been appointed by the government] {[whom the government has appointed]}. You can accuse [anyone there].
39 But if you seek anything about other matters, it will be settled in the regular assembly.
But if you want to ask about something else, [you should ask] for [other officials to] resolve it when [those] officials legally assemble.
40 For indeed we are in danger of being accused concerning today’s riot, there being no cause. Concerning it, we wouldn’t be able to give an account of this commotion.”
[And this is certainly not a legal meeting! Resolve this legally] because, if [we(inc) do] not, I am afraid [that the governor] will hear about all this noise [that you have made] and will say that we [(inc)] were trying to rebel [against the government]. If he would ask me what you were all shouting about, I would not be able to give him an answer.”
41 When he had thus spoken, he dismissed the assembly.
That is what the city secretary said [to the crowd]. Then he told them all to go [home. So they left].
