Acts 19:1-29 ▼

1 And it came to pass while Apollos was in Corinth that Paul, having passed through the upper parts to come to Ephesus and having found certain disciples,

2 also said to them, “Did you? receive the Holy Spirit, having believed?” And they said to him, “But we did not even hear that there is a Holy Spirit.”

3 And he said, “Into what, then, were you? baptized?” And they said, “Into John's baptism.”

4 And Paul said, “John baptized a baptism of repentance, saying to the people that they should believe in the One coming after him, that is, in Jesus.”

5 And having heard, they were baptized into the name of the Lord Jesus.

6 And Paul having laid the hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them, and they were speaking in tongues and prophesying.

7 And there were in all about twelve men.

8 And having entered into the synagogue, he was speaking boldly for three months, reasoning and persuading concerning the kingdom of God.

9 But when some were hardened and were disbelieving, speaking evil of the Way before the multitude, having departed from them, he separated the disciples, reasoning every day in the lecture hall of Tyrannus.

10 And this continued for two years, so that all those inhabiting Asia heard the word of the Lord, both Jews and Greeks.

11 And God was doing miracles not being ordinary through the hands of Paul,

12 so that even soudaria or simikinthia from his skin were brought to the ailing, and the diseases departed from them, and the evil spirits left.

13 And some of the itinerant Jews, exorcists, also attempted to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus over those having evil spirits, saying, “I adjure you? by Jesus, whom Paul proclaims.”

14 Now seven sons of a certain Sceva, a Jewish high priest, were doing this.

15 But the evil spirit, answering, said to them, “Jesus I know, and Paul I know about; but you?, who are you??”

16 And the man in whom was the evil spirit, having leapt on them, having overpowered them all, prevailed against them so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded.

17 Now this became known to all those inhabiting Ephesus, both Jews and Greeks. And fear fell upon them all, and the name of the Lord Jesus was being magnified.

18 And many of those having believed were coming, confessing and declaring their deeds,

19 and many of those having practiced works of magic, having brought the books, burned them before all. And they counted up the prices of them and found it five myriads of silver.

20 Thus the word of the Lord continued to increase and prevail with might.

21 Now after these things were fulfilled, Paul purposed in the Spirit to go to Jerusalem, having passed through Macedonia and Achaia, having said, “After my having been there, it is necessary for me to see Rome also.”

22 And having sent two of those ministering to him, Timothy and Erastus, into Macedonia, he remained for a time in Asia.

23 And there arose at the same time no little disturbance concerning the Way.

24 For a certain silversmith named Demetrius, making silver shrines of Artemis, was bringing no little business to the craftsmen.

25 Having brought them together along with the workmen in such things, he said, “Men, you? know that out of this business is our wealth.

26 And you? see and hear that not only in Ephesus, but in almost all of Asia, this Paul, having persuaded them, has turned away a great many people, saying that they are not gods being made by hands.

27 Now not only is this business of ours endangered to come into disrepute, but also for the temple of the great goddess Artemis to be reckoned for nothing, and also her majesty to be deposed, whom all Asia and the world worship.”

28 And having heard and having become full of rage, they were crying out, saying, “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!”

29 And the city was filled with confusion, and with one accord they rushed to the theatre, having dragged off Gaius and Aristarchus, Macedonians, fellow travelers of Paul.