Paul in Ephesus
Acts 19:1-22
Apollos was in Corinth, and Paul is in Ephesus. Paul asked the Ephesians if they received the Holy Spirit when they believed. They said they had never heard anything about a Holy Spirit. When Paul asked them what baptism they had received, they admitted John’s baptism was the only one they knew. Paul explained to them that John’s baptism was one of repentance. He told the Ephesians to believe in the one who came after John. Paul laid his hands on them, and the Holy Spirit came on them. All 12 of them began to speak in tongues and prophesied.
Paul attended the synagogue and spoke boldly for three months. Some refused to believe. Paul took his disciples with him and taught in the lecture hall of Tyrannus. This went on for two years. This gave all the Jews and Greeks living in Asia a chance to hear the word of the Lord. God performed many miracles through Paul. Handkerchiefs and aprons that had been touched by Paul were taken to the sick, and they were healed of their illnesses, and evil spirits left them (Acts 19:12). Remember in Acts 5:15, it was Peter’s shadow that caused people to be healed.
Some Jews tried to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus over those who were demon-possessed. Seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, did this. One day, the evil spirit answered the sons by saying, “Jesus I know, and I know Paul, but who are you?” Then the man with the evil spirit jumped on them and overpowered all of them. He gave them such a beating that they ran out of the house naked and bleeding.
This frightened many people. Many who believed but were doing evil deeds confessed that they had practiced sorcery. To show their repentance, they brought their scrolls and burned them publicly. The value of the books was 50,000 drachmas or a day’s wages. Ephesus was known for occult practices which explains the large number of scrolls the people owned. Because of this act, the word of the Lord spread widely. Paul stays in Ephesus a little longer before going to Jerusalem.
Questions
1. Compare Acts 19:12 with Acts 5:15 and Matthew 14:36 in reference to a point of contact.
2. Describe what happened with the seven sons of Sceva.
3. What was the amount of the bonfire of occultic scrolls and books? Why were the scrolls burned?
The Riot in Ephesus
Acts 19:23-41
A riot was provoked by a silversmith named Demetrius because he accused Paul of keeping him from making money because he made idols. Paul was convincing the people that man-made gods are no gods at all. Besides, Demetrius said Paul was discrediting the great goddess Artemis who was worshipped throughout Asia and the world.
Demetrius called other businessmen together and soon the whole city was in an uproar. Paul wanted to speak to the crowd, but he was prevented from doing so (Acts 19:23-34).
After about two hours, the city clerk was able to quiet the crowd by assuring everyone that Paul and his companions had done no harm (Acts 19:35-41).
Questions
1. Why did Demetrius provoke the riot?
2. What happened during the riot?
3. What was the outcome of the riot?
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