Acts 19

Acts 19:1

19:1 When Paul originally visited Ephesus, he promised the Jews in the synagogue that he would return, in the will of God. In fulfillment of that promise, he journeyed from the regions of Galatia and Phrygia along the inland route, over mountainous terrain to EPHESUS on the western coast of proconsular Asia. Arriving there he met about twelve men who professed to be disciples. As he talked with them, he realized that their knowledge of the Christian faith was very imperfect and defective. He wondered if they had ever really received the Holy Spirit. 19:2 Therefore he asked them, Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed? In the KJV Paul’s question reads, Have ye received the Holy Ghost since ye believed? This wrongly implies that the reception of the Holy Spirit takes place subsequent to salvation. The thought of this verse is not that the reception of the Holy Spirit is a work of grace which follows salvation. As soon as a sinner trusts the Savior, he receives the Holy Spirit. The reply of the disciples was, We have not so much as heard whether there is a Holy Spirit, or as it is rendered in the ASV, We did not so much as hear whether the Holy Spirit was given. Since these men were disciples of John the Baptist, as we learn in the next verse, they should have known about the existence of the Holy Spirit from the OT. Not only so, but John had taught his disciples that the One who came after him would baptize them with the Holy Spirit. What these disciples did not know was that the Holy Spirit had already been given on the Day of Pentecost. 19:3, 4 When the apostle raised the question of baptism, he found out that these men knew only about John’s baptism. In other words, the extent of their knowledge was that the Messiah was at hand, and they had signified their repentance by baptism as a necessary preparation for receiving Him as King. They did not know that Christ had died, had been buried, and had risen from the dead and ascended back to heaven, and that He had sent the Holy Spirit. Paul explained all this to them. He reminded them that when John baptized with the baptism of repentance, he urged them to believe … on Christ Jesus. 19:5 When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. Throughout the Book of Acts the emphasis is distinctly on the lordship of Jesus. Therefore, the disciples of John here were baptized by the authority of the Lord Jesus and as a public acknowledgment that in their lives they accepted Jesus Christ as Lord (Jehovah). 19:6, 7 Paul then laid his hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit. This is the fourth distinct time in Acts when the Holy Spirit was given. The first was in chapter 2, on the Day of Pentecost, and involved the Jews primarily. The second was in Acts 8, when the Spirit was given to the Samaritans through the laying on of the hands of Peter and John. The third time was in Acts 10, at the household of the Gentile, Cornelius, in Joppa. We have previously pointed out that the order of events leading up to the reception of the Holy Spirit is different in each case. Here in Acts 19 the order is: Faith. Re-baptism. Laying on of the apostle’s hands. Reception of the Holy Spirit. By giving the Holy Spirit to John’s disciples through the laying on of Paul’s hands, the Lord forestalled the possibility of a charge being made later that Paul was inferior to Peter, John, or the other apostles. When the disciples of John received the Holy Spirit they spoke with tongues and prophesied. Such supernatural powers were God’s method of working in the days before the NT was given. Today we know that we receive the Holy Spirit at the time of conversion, not by signs and wonders, or even by feelings, but by the testimony of the NT Scriptures. The moment a person believes on the Lord Jesus Christ, he is indwelt by the Holy Spirit; he is sealed by the Holy Spirit; he receives the earnest of the Spirit; he receives the anointing of the Spirit; and he is baptized by the Spirit into the Body of Christ. However, this does not deny that in a believer’s life there are subsequent crises of the Spirit. There is no denying that the Holy Spirit often comes on individuals in a sovereign manner, empowering them for special ministries, giving them great boldness in the faith, and pouring out upon them a passion for souls. 19:8 For three months Paul visited the synagogue in Ephesus, reasoning and persuading concerning the things of the kingdom of God. By reasoning, we understand that he spoke to the intellects of the people. By persuading, he sought to influence their wills, especially with regard to faith in Jesus as the Christ. The subject of his discourses was The Things of the Kingdom of God.C. E. Stuart clarifies: Not, be it observed, that he preached the Gospel of the Kingdom: that would have been dispensationally out of place. The Lord preached that. It, however, fell into abeyance on His death, to be revived in a coming day (Mat_24:14; Rev_14:6-7). But Paul reasoned about the Kingdom of God, for that now exists on earth. 19:9, 10 When some of the Jews were hardened (as to their intellects) and disobedient (as to their wills), when they began to agitate the multitude against the Way, Paul left the synagogue and withdrew his disciples from the Jews there. He took them to the school of Tyrannus, where he had freedom to teach them daily. It is generally thought that Tyrannus was a Greek who conducted classes in philosophy or rhetoric. For two years the apostle made disciples and then sent them out to teach others also. As a result the whole province of Asia heard the word of the Lord Jesus, both Jews and Greeks. Thus a great door and effectual was opened to Paul, even though there were many adversaries (1Co_16:9). 19:11, 12 As an apostle of Jesus Christ, Paul had the power to perform signs and wonders. These were proofs of his apostleship, and authenticated the message he preached. So great was the power that flowed through him that even handkerchiefs or aprons which he touched would be carried away to the sick or demon-possessed, and healing would result. The question arises whether these miracles can be duplicated today. The Holy Spirit of God is sovereign, and He can do as He pleases. However, it must be admitted that the apostles and their delegates had supernatural powers conferred upon them. Since we do not have apostles today in the full sense of the word, it is futile to insist that their miracles have been perpetuated. 19:13, 14 Whenever God works in power, Satan is invariably on hand to obstruct and oppose. While Paul was preaching and performing miracles, there were certain wandering Jews in Ephesus who were exorcists. These men commanded evil spirits (using the name of the Lord Jesus as a magic formula) to come out of those who were possessed. That certain of the Jews actually had the power to expel demons was acknowledged by the Lord Jesus (Luk_11:19). Among the Jewish magicians practicing this were seven sons of Sceva (pronounced see’-vah). This man was made chief priest, or the priest in charge of the twenty-four courses. One day his sons were trying to expel an evil spirit from a demoniac. They said to the demon, We adjure you by the Jesus whom Paul preaches.19:15, 16 They uttered the words, but they did not have the power, and the demon did not obey. In fact, the reply of the evil spirit was most illuminating. He said, Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are you?F. B. Meyer has an amusing comment on this, which is worth quoting: When the sons of Sceva started on the demon, he turned on them, and said, You little dwarfs, you lilliputians, who are you? I know Paul! I don’t know you, I have never heard about you before; your name has never been talked about down in Hell. No one knows you, nor about you outside of this little bit of a place called Ephesus.Yes, and there is the question that was put to me today: Does anyone know of me down in Hell? Do the devils know about us? Are they scared about us?

Are they frightened by us? Or do they turn upon us? When we preach on Sunday, or when we visit in the streets, or take our Sunday School Class, the devil says, I don’t know you, you are not worth my powder and shot; you can go on doing your work. I am not going to upset Hell to stop you.It is interesting how the Scripture distinguishes between the evil spirit (v. 15) and the man in whom the evil spirit dwelt (v. 16). In verse 15 the demon spoke. But in verse 16 the demoniac himself leaped on the sons of Sceva, overpowered them, stripped them, and wounded them. 19:17 When news of this defeat of the forces of Satan became known in the surrounding area, a deep sense of awe fell on the people, and the name of the Lord Jesus was magnified. It was not Paul’s name that received the glory, but the name of Paul’s Savior. 19:18, 19 So mightily did the Spirit of God work among those who had practiced various forms of magical art that a great number turned to Christ, confessing … their deeds. After doing so, they made a public demonstration of their faith by gathering up their books that dealt with magic and burning them in a great bonfire. The original cost of the books would have been fifty thousand pieces of silver. It is difficult to determine exactly how much that would be in our currencyperhaps between eight and ten thousand dollars. 19:20 This well-publicized renunciation of pagan practices caused the word of the Lord to grow mightily and to prevail. Perhaps if modern Christians would burn their trashy books and magazines, the word would prevail much more. 19:21 As Paul’s time at Ephesus began to draw to a close, he determined to go back to Jerusalem via Macedonia and Achaia, and after that he would also see Rome. His great heart of love and compassion was always reaching out to centers where the gospel could be planted, and from which it could spread. 19:22 He sent Timothy and Erastus on ahead to Macedonia, but he lingered in Asia for a time. It was probably at this time that he wrote 1 Corinthians (about a.d. 56). 19:23-27 As a result of Paul’s ministry, many Ephesians turned to the Lord from their idols. The spiritual awakening in the city was so widespread that it caused a business recession among the idol-makers. Demetrius, a silversmith, was one of those seriously affected. He made silver shrines of Diana. Serving as a spokesman for the trade, Demetrius gathered together all his fellow craftsmen and sought to stir them up to take some resolute action. He reminded them how Paul had been so successful in persuading many people that there are no gods which are made with human hands.

He revealed his real motive when he said that their trade was in danger, but he sought to give it a religious coloring by pretending great reverence for Diana and her temple.19:28-31 The meeting of silversmiths soon developed into a mob scene in which the whole city became involved. Chanting Great is Diana of the Ephesians!, the crowd rushed into the theater (arena or coliseum), and seized Gaius and Aristarchus, two of Paul’s traveling companions, doubtless with the purpose of killing them. Paul himself wanted to step in and speak to the mob, but he was prevented by the disciples, and also by the Asiarchs (officers elected by the cities who at their own expense furnished festivals in honor of the gods). These civic benefactors who had befriended Paul told him that it would be most unwise for him to enter the arena. 19:32 By this time the mob was completely out of control. Many did not know why they were there. Conflicting voices were heard on every hand. 19:33, 34 A Jew named Alexander sought to step forward and address the mob. Doubtless his purpose was to defend the Jews as being completely innocent in the matter. But when the crowd found out that he was a Jew, they put up a tremendous protesting roar. For about two hours they chanted, Great is Diana of the Ephesians!19:35 At this crucial moment, the city clerk succeeded in quieting the crowd. His speech was as successful as it was lame. He said in effect that the Ephesians had nothing to fear.

After all, everyone knew that Ephesus had been appointed the city to serve as temple guardian of the great goddess Diana. Although thirteen cities in Asia had an interest in the temple, yet that sacred building was the solemn charge of the Ephesians. Also to them fell the privilege of guarding an image of Diana which was supposed to have fallen from heaven. 19:36-40 Implying that their religious foundations were secure, and that nothing could ever topple the worship of Diana, he told the people that they were foolish to make such a fuss. After all, the men against whom they were crying out had not been robbers of temples or blasphemers of Diana. If Demetrius and his fellow craftsmen had a just complaint, the regular courts of law were open to them, with proconsuls ready to hear their charges. If they had anything else to say, there was always the possibility of gathering together in the lawful assembly. But they had been gathering as a disorderly mob. The Roman Empire took a very dim view of any such proceedings.

If they were ever called … to account for this mob scene, they would not be able to justify themselves. Also the city clerk knew that his job and possibly his life would be in danger if news of a riot got back to Rome. 19:41 By this time the mob had been quieted, and they now hastened away to their homes. Strange to say, it was the action of the town clerk in the interests of civil order, and not the uproar, that ended Paul’s ministry there. As long as there was healthy opposition, Paul felt the door of opportunity was widely open in Ephesus (1Co_16:8-9). But it appears that when municipal protection was extended to him, he moved on (Selected). The word, assembly (vv. 32, 39, 41), translates the Greek word, ekklesia, meaning a called out company of people. It is the same word translated church in other parts of the NT. Whether the word refers to a heathen mob, as here, or the congregation of Israel, as in Act_7:38, or the NT church, must be determined from the context. The word, assembly, is a better translation of ekklesia than the word, church. The word, church, comes from a Greek word meaning belonging to the Lord (kuriake, cf. Scottish kirk). In modern usage, it commonly refers to a religious building. That is why many Christians prefer the word assembly; it expresses the fact that the church is a called out group of people, not a building or even a denomination.