Acts 14-19

New King James Version

At Iconium

14 Now it happened in Iconium that they went together to the synagogue of the Jews, and so spoke that a great multitude both of the Jews and of the ^(A)Greeks believed. ² But the unbelieving Jews stirred up the Gentiles and ^[a]poisoned their ^[b]minds against the brethren. ³ Therefore they stayed there a long time, speaking boldly in the Lord, ^(B)who was bearing witness to the word of His grace, granting signs and ^(C)wonders to be done by their hands.

⁴ But the multitude of the city was ^(D)divided: part sided with the Jews, and part with the ^(E)apostles. ⁵ And when a violent attempt was made by both the Gentiles and Jews, with their rulers, ^(F)to abuse and stone them, ⁶ they became aware of it and ^(G)fled to Lystra and Derbe, cities of Lycaonia, and to the surrounding region. ⁷ And they were preaching the gospel there.

Idolatry at Lystra

^8 (H)And in Lystra a certain man without strength in his feet was sitting, a cripple from his mother’s womb, who had never walked. ⁹ This man heard Paul speaking. ^[c]Paul, observing him intently and seeing that he had faith to be healed, ¹⁰ said with a loud voice, ^(I)“Stand up straight on your feet!” And he leaped and walked. ¹¹ Now when the people saw what Paul had done, they raised their voices, saying in the Lycaonian language, ^(J)“The gods have come down to us in the likeness of men!” ¹² And Barnabas they called ^[d]Zeus, and Paul, ^[e]Hermes, because he was the chief speaker. ¹³ Then the priest of Zeus, whose temple was in front of their city, brought oxen and garlands to the gates, ^(K)intending to sacrifice with the multitudes.

¹⁴ But when the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard this, ^(L)they tore their clothes and ran in among the multitude, crying out ¹⁵ and saying, “Men, ^(M)why are you doing these things? ^(N)We also are men with the same nature as you, and preach to you that you should turn from ^(O)these useless things ^(P)to the living God, ^(Q)who made the heaven, the earth, the sea, and all things that are in them, ^16 (R)who in bygone generations allowed all nations to walk in their own ways. ^17 (S)Nevertheless He did not leave Himself without witness, in that He did good, ^(T)gave us rain from heaven and fruitful seasons, filling our hearts with ^(U)food and gladness.” ¹⁸ And with these sayings they could scarcely restrain the multitudes from sacrificing to them.

Stoning, Escape to Derbe

^19 (V)Then Jews from Antioch and Iconium came there; and having persuaded the multitudes, ^(W)they stoned Paul and dragged him out of the city, supposing him to be ^(X)dead. ²⁰ However, when the disciples gathered around him, he rose up and went into the city. And the next day he departed with Barnabas to Derbe.

Strengthening the Converts

²¹ And when they had preached the gospel to that city ^(Y)and made many disciples, they returned to Lystra, Iconium, and Antioch, ²² strengthening the souls of the disciples, ^(Z)exhorting them to continue in the faith, and saying, ^(AA)“We must through many tribulations enter the kingdom of God.” ²³ So when they had ^(AB)appointed elders in every church, and prayed with fasting, they commended them to the Lord in whom they had believed. ²⁴ And after they had passed through Pisidia, they came to Pamphylia. ²⁵ Now when they had preached the word in Perga, they went down to Attalia. ²⁶ From there they sailed to Antioch, where they had been commended to the grace of God for the work which they had completed.

²⁷ Now when they had come and gathered the church together, ^(AC)they reported all that God had done with them, and that He had ^(AD)opened the door of faith to the Gentiles. ²⁸ So they stayed there a long time with the disciples.

Conflict over Circumcision

15 And ^(AE)certain men came down from Judea and taught the brethren, ^(AF)“Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.” ² Therefore, when Paul and Barnabas had no small dissension and dispute with them, they determined that ^(AG)Paul and Barnabas and certain others of them should go up to Jerusalem, to the apostles and elders, about this question.

³ So, ^(AH)being sent on their way by the church, they passed through Phoenicia and Samaria, ^(AI)describing the conversion of the Gentiles; and they caused great joy to all the brethren. ⁴ And when they had come to Jerusalem, they were received by the church and the apostles and the elders; and they reported all things that God had done with them. ⁵ But some of the sect of the Pharisees who believed rose up, saying, “It is necessary to circumcise them, and to command them to keep the law of Moses.”

The Jerusalem Council

⁶ Now the apostles and elders came together to consider this matter. ⁷ And when there had been much dispute, Peter rose up and said to them: ^(AJ)“Men and brethren, you know that a good while ago God chose among us, that by my mouth the Gentiles should hear the word of the gospel and believe. ⁸ So God, ^(AK)who knows the heart, ^[f]acknowledged them by ^(AL)giving them the Holy Spirit, just as He did to us, ^9 (AM)and made no distinction between us and them, ^(AN)purifying their hearts by faith. ¹⁰ Now therefore, why do you test God ^(AO)by putting a yoke on the neck of the disciples which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear? ¹¹ But ^(AP)we believe that through the grace of the Lord Jesus ^[g]Christ we shall be saved in the same manner as they.”

¹² Then all the multitude kept silent and listened to Barnabas and Paul declaring how many miracles and wonders God had ^(AQ)worked through them among the Gentiles. ¹³ And after they had ^[h]become silent, ^(AR)James answered, saying, “Men and brethren, listen to me: ^14 (AS)Simon has declared how God at the first visited the Gentiles to take out of them a people for His name. ¹⁵ And with this the words of the prophets agree, just as it is written:

^18 [j]“Known to God from eternity are all His works. ¹⁹ Therefore ^(AU)I judge that we should not trouble those from among the Gentiles who ^(AV)are turning to God, ²⁰ but that we ^(AW)write to them to abstain ^(AX)from things polluted by idols, ^(AY)from ^[k]sexual immorality, ^(AZ)from things strangled, and from blood. ²¹ For Moses has had throughout many generations those who preach him in every city, ^(BA)being read in the synagogues every Sabbath.”

The Jerusalem Decree

²² Then it pleased the apostles and elders, with the whole church, to send chosen men of their own company to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas, namely, Judas who was also named ^(BB)Barsabas,^[l] and Silas, leading men among the brethren.

²³ They wrote this letter by them:

Continuing Ministry in Syria

³⁰ So when they were sent off, they came to Antioch; and when they had gathered the multitude together, they delivered the letter. ³¹ When they had read it, they rejoiced over its encouragement. ³² Now Judas and Silas, themselves being ^(BI)prophets also, ^(BJ)exhorted and strengthened the brethren with many words. ³³ And after they had stayed there for a time, they were ^(BK)sent back with greetings from the brethren to ^[p]the apostles.

^34 [q]However, it seemed good to Silas to remain there. ^35 (BL)Paul and Barnabas also remained in Antioch, teaching and preaching the word of the Lord, with many others also.

Division over John Mark

³⁶ Then after some days Paul said to Barnabas, “Let us now go back and visit our brethren in every city where we have preached the word of the Lord, and see how they are doing.” ³⁷ Now Barnabas ^[r]was determined to take with them ^(BM)John called Mark. ³⁸ But Paul insisted that they should not take with them ^(BN)the one who had departed from them in Pamphylia, and had not gone with them to the work. ³⁹ Then the contention became so sharp that they parted from one another. And so Barnabas took Mark and sailed to ^(BO)Cyprus; ⁴⁰ but Paul chose Silas and departed, ^(BP)being ^[s]commended by the brethren to the grace of God. ⁴¹ And he went through Syria and Cilicia, ^(BQ)strengthening the churches.

Timothy Joins Paul and Silas

16 Then he came to ^(BR)Derbe and Lystra. And behold, a certain disciple was there, ^(BS)named Timothy, ^(BT)the son of a certain Jewish woman who believed, but his father was Greek. ² He was well spoken of by the brethren who were at Lystra and Iconium. ³ Paul wanted to have him go on with him. And he ^(BU)took him and circumcised him because of the Jews who were in that region, for they all knew that his father was Greek. ⁴ And as they went through the cities, they delivered to them the ^(BV)decrees to keep, ^(BW)which were determined by the apostles and elders at Jerusalem. ^5 (BX)So the churches were strengthened in the faith, and increased in number daily.

The Macedonian Call

⁶ Now when they had gone through Phrygia and the region of ^(BY)Galatia, they were forbidden by the Holy Spirit to preach the word in ^[t]Asia. ⁷ After they had come to Mysia, they tried to go into Bithynia, but the ^[u]Spirit did not permit them. ⁸ So passing by Mysia, they ^(BZ)came down to Troas. ⁹ And a vision appeared to Paul in the night. A ^(CA)man of Macedonia stood and pleaded with him, saying, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” ¹⁰ Now after he had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go ^(CB)to Macedonia, concluding that the Lord had called us to preach the gospel to them.

Lydia Baptized at Philippi

¹¹ Therefore, sailing from Troas, we ran a straight course to Samothrace, and the next day came to Neapolis, ¹² and from there to ^(CC)Philippi, which is the ^[v]foremost city of that part of Macedonia, a colony. And we were staying in that city for some days. ¹³ And on the Sabbath day we went out of the city to the riverside, where prayer was customarily made; and we sat down and spoke to the women who met there. ¹⁴ Now a certain woman named Lydia heard us. She was a seller of purple from the city of ^(CD)Thyatira, who worshiped God. ^(CE)The Lord opened her heart to heed the things spoken by Paul. ¹⁵ And when she and her household were baptized, she begged us, saying, “If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come to my house and stay.” So ^(CF)she persuaded us.

Paul and Silas Imprisoned

¹⁶ Now it happened, as we went to prayer, that a certain slave girl ^(CG)possessed with a spirit of divination met us, who brought her masters ^(CH)much profit by fortune-telling. ¹⁷ This girl followed Paul and us, and cried out, saying, “These men are the servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to us the way of salvation.” ¹⁸ And this she did for many days.

But Paul, ^(CI)greatly ^[w]annoyed, turned and said to the spirit, “I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.” ^(CJ)And he came out that very hour. ¹⁹ But ^(CK)when her masters saw that their hope of profit was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and ^(CL)dragged them into the marketplace to the authorities.

²⁰ And they brought them to the magistrates, and said, “These men, being Jews, ^(CM)exceedingly trouble our city; ²¹ and they teach customs which are not lawful for us, being Romans, to receive or observe.” ²² Then the multitude rose up together against them; and the magistrates tore off their clothes ^(CN)and commanded them to be beaten with rods. ²³ And when they had laid many stripes on them, they threw them into prison, commanding the jailer to keep them securely. ²⁴ Having received such a charge, he put them into the inner prison and fastened their feet in the stocks.

The Philippian Jailer Saved

²⁵ But at midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them. ^26 (CO)Suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken; and immediately ^(CP)all the doors were opened and everyone’s chains were loosed. ²⁷ And the keeper of the prison, awaking from sleep and seeing the prison doors open, supposing the prisoners had fled, drew his sword and was about to kill himself. ²⁸ But Paul called with a loud voice, saying, “Do yourself no harm, for we are all here.”

²⁹ Then he called for a light, ran in, and fell down trembling before Paul and Silas. ³⁰ And he brought them out and said, ^(CQ)“Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”

³¹ So they said, ^(CR)“Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household.” ³² Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house. ³³ And he took them the same hour of the night and washed their stripes. And immediately he and all his family were baptized. ³⁴ Now when he had brought them into his house, ^(CS)he set food before them; and he rejoiced, having believed in God with all his household.

Paul Refuses to Depart Secretly

³⁵ And when it was day, the magistrates sent the ^[x]officers, saying, “Let those men go.”

³⁶ So the keeper of the prison reported these words to Paul, saying, “The magistrates have sent to let you go. Now therefore depart, and go in peace.”

³⁷ But Paul said to them, “They have beaten us openly, uncondemned ^(CT)Romans, and have thrown us into prison. And now do they put us out secretly? No indeed! Let them come themselves and get us out.”

³⁸ And the officers told these words to the magistrates, and they were afraid when they heard that they were Romans. ³⁹ Then they came and pleaded with them and brought them out, and ^(CU)asked them to depart from the city. ⁴⁰ So they went out of the prison ^(CV)and entered the house of Lydia; and when they had seen the brethren, they encouraged them and departed.

Preaching Christ at Thessalonica

17 Now when they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to ^(CW)Thessalonica, where there was a synagogue of the Jews. ² Then Paul, as his custom was, ^(CX)went in to them, and for three Sabbaths ^(CY)reasoned with them from the Scriptures, ³ explaining and demonstrating ^(CZ)that the Christ had to suffer and rise again from the dead, and saying, “This Jesus whom I preach to you is the Christ.” ^4 (DA)And some of them were persuaded; and a great multitude of the devout Greeks, and not a few of the leading women, joined Paul and ^(DB)Silas.

Assault on Jason’s House

⁵ But the Jews ^[y]who were not persuaded, ^[z]becoming ^(DC)envious, took some of the evil men from the marketplace, and gathering a mob, set all the city in an uproar and attacked the house of ^(DD)Jason, and sought to bring them out to the people. ⁶ But when they did not find them, they dragged Jason and some brethren to the rulers of the city, crying out, ^(DE)“These who have turned the world upside down have come here too. ⁷ Jason has ^[aa]harbored them, and these are all acting contrary to the decrees of Caesar, ^(DF)saying there is another king—Jesus.” ⁸ And they troubled the crowd and the rulers of the city when they heard these things. ⁹ So when they had taken security from Jason and the rest, they let them go.

Ministering at Berea

¹⁰ Then ^(DG)the brethren immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Berea. When they arrived, they went into the synagogue of the Jews. ¹¹ These were more ^[ab]fair-minded than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness, and ^(DH)searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so. ¹² Therefore many of them believed, and also not a few of the Greeks, prominent women as well as men. ¹³ But when the Jews from Thessalonica learned that the word of God was preached by Paul at Berea, they came there also and stirred up the crowds. ^14 (DI)Then immediately the brethren sent Paul away, to go to the sea; but both Silas and Timothy remained there. ¹⁵ So those who conducted Paul brought him to Athens; and ^(DJ)receiving a command for Silas and Timothy to come to him with all speed, they departed.

The Philosophers at Athens

¹⁶ Now while Paul waited for them at Athens, ^(DK)his spirit was provoked within him when he saw that the city was ^[ac]given over to idols. ¹⁷ Therefore he reasoned in the synagogue with the Jews and with the Gentile worshipers, and in the marketplace daily with those who happened to be there. ^18 [ad]Then certain Epicurean and Stoic philosophers encountered him. And some said, “What does this ^[ae]babbler want to say?”

Others said, “He seems to be a proclaimer of foreign gods,” because he preached to them ^(DL)Jesus and the resurrection.

¹⁹ And they took him and brought him to the ^[af]Areopagus, saying, “May we know what this new doctrine is of which you speak? ²⁰ For you are bringing some strange things to our ears. Therefore we want to know what these things mean.” ²¹ For all the Athenians and the foreigners who were there spent their time in nothing else but either to tell or to hear some new thing.

Addressing the Areopagus

²² Then Paul stood in the midst of the ^[ag]Areopagus and said, “Men of Athens, I perceive that in all things you are very religious; ²³ for as I was passing through and considering the objects of your worship, I even found an altar with this inscription:

TO THE UNKNOWN GOD.

Therefore, the One whom you worship without knowing, Him I proclaim to you: ^24 (DM)God, who made the world and everything in it, since He is ^(DN)Lord of heaven and earth, ^(DO)does not dwell in temples made with hands. ²⁵ Nor is He worshiped with men’s hands, as though He needed anything, since He ^(DP)gives to all life, breath, and all things. ²⁶ And He has made from one ^[ah]blood every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, and has determined their preappointed times and ^(DQ)the boundaries of their dwellings, ^27 (DR)so that they should seek the Lord, in the hope that they might grope for Him and find Him, ^(DS)though He is not far from each one of us; ²⁸ for ^(DT)in Him we live and move and have our being, ^(DU)as also some of your own poets have said, ‘For we are also His offspring.’ ²⁹ Therefore, since we are the offspring of God, ^(DV)we ought not to think that the Divine Nature is like gold or silver or stone, something shaped by art and man’s devising. ³⁰ Truly, ^(DW)these times of ignorance God overlooked, but ^(DX)now commands all men everywhere to repent, ³¹ because He has appointed a day on which ^(DY)He will judge the world in righteousness by the Man whom He has ordained. He has given assurance of this to all by ^(DZ)raising Him from the dead.”

³² And when they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some mocked, while others said, “We will hear you again on this matter.” ³³ So Paul departed from among them. ³⁴ However, some men joined him and believed, among them Dionysius the Areopagite, a woman named Damaris, and others with them.

Ministering at Corinth

18 After these things Paul departed from Athens and went to Corinth. ² And he found a certain Jew named ^(EA)Aquila, born in Pontus, who had recently come from Italy with his wife Priscilla (because Claudius had commanded all the Jews to depart from Rome); and he came to them. ³ So, because he was of the same trade, he stayed with them ^(EB)and worked; for by occupation they were tentmakers. ^4 (EC)And he reasoned in the synagogue every Sabbath, and persuaded both Jews and Greeks.

^5 (ED)When Silas and Timothy had come from Macedonia, Paul was ^(EE)compelled ^[ai]by the Spirit, and testified to the Jews that Jesus is the Christ. ⁶ But ^(EF)when they opposed him and blasphemed, ^(EG)he shook his garments and said to them, ^(EH)“Your blood be upon your own heads; ^(EI)I am clean. ^(EJ)From now on I will go to the Gentiles.” ⁷ And he departed from there and entered the house of a certain man named ^[aj]Justus, one who worshiped God, whose house was next door to the synagogue. ^8 (EK)Then Crispus, the ruler of the synagogue, believed on the Lord with all his household. And many of the Corinthians, hearing, believed and were baptized.

⁹ Now ^(EL)the Lord spoke to Paul in the night by a vision, “Do not be afraid, but speak, and do not keep silent; ^10 (EM)for I am with you, and no one will attack you to hurt you; for I have many people in this city.” ¹¹ And he continued there a year and six months, teaching the word of God among them.

¹² When Gallio was proconsul of Achaia, the Jews with one accord rose up against Paul and brought him to the ^[ak]judgment seat, ¹³ saying, “This fellow persuades men to worship God contrary to the law.”

¹⁴ And when Paul was about to open his mouth, Gallio said to the Jews, “If it were a matter of wrongdoing or wicked crimes, O Jews, there would be reason why I should bear with you. ¹⁵ But if it is a ^(EN)question of words and names and your own law, look to it yourselves; for I do not want to be a judge of such matters.” ¹⁶ And he drove them from the judgment seat. ¹⁷ Then ^[al]all the Greeks took ^(EO)Sosthenes, the ruler of the synagogue, and beat him before the judgment seat. But Gallio took no notice of these things.

Paul Returns to Antioch

¹⁸ So Paul still remained ^[am]a good while. Then he took leave of the brethren and sailed for Syria, and Priscilla and Aquila were with him. ^(EP)He had his hair cut off at ^(EQ)Cenchrea, for he had taken a vow. ¹⁹ And he came to Ephesus, and left them there; but he himself entered the synagogue and reasoned with the Jews. ²⁰ When they asked him to stay a longer time with them, he did not consent, ²¹ but took leave of them, saying, ^(ER)“I^[an] must by all means keep this coming feast in Jerusalem; but I will return again to you, ^(ES)God willing.” And he sailed from Ephesus.

²² And when he had landed at ^(ET)Caesarea, and ^[ao]gone up and greeted the church, he went down to Antioch. ²³ After he had spent some time there, he departed and went over the region of ^(EU)Galatia and Phrygia ^[ap]in order, ^(EV)strengthening all the disciples.

Ministry of Apollos

^24 (EW)Now a certain Jew named Apollos, born at Alexandria, an eloquent man and mighty in the Scriptures, came to Ephesus. ²⁵ This man had been instructed in the way of the Lord; and being ^(EX)fervent in spirit, he spoke and taught accurately the things of the Lord, ^(EY)though he knew only the baptism of John. ²⁶ So he began to speak boldly in the synagogue. When Aquila and Priscilla heard him, they took him aside and explained to him the way of God more accurately. ²⁷ And when he desired to cross to Achaia, the brethren wrote, exhorting the disciples to receive him; and when he arrived, ^(EZ)he greatly helped those who had believed through grace; ²⁸ for he vigorously refuted the Jews publicly, ^(FA)showing from the Scriptures that Jesus is the Christ.

Paul at Ephesus

19 And it happened, while ^(FB)Apollos was at Corinth, that Paul, having passed through ^(FC)the upper regions, came to Ephesus. And finding some disciples ² he said to them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?”

So they said to him, ^(FD)“We have not so much as heard whether there is a Holy Spirit.”

³ And he said to them, “Into what then were you baptized?”

So they said, ^(FE)“Into John’s baptism.”

⁴ Then Paul said, ^(FF)“John indeed baptized with a baptism of repentance, saying to the people that they should believe on Him who would come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus.”

⁵ When they heard this, they were baptized ^(FG)in the name of the Lord Jesus. ⁶ And when Paul had ^(FH)laid hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them, and ^(FI)they spoke with tongues and prophesied. ⁷ Now the men were about twelve in all.

^8 (FJ)And he went into the synagogue and spoke boldly for three months, reasoning and persuading ^(FK)concerning the things of the kingdom of God. ⁹ But ^(FL)when some were hardened and did not believe, but spoke evil ^(FM)of the Way before the multitude, he departed from them and withdrew the disciples, reasoning daily in the school of Tyrannus. ¹⁰ And ^(FN)this continued for two years, so that all who dwelt in Asia heard the word of the Lord Jesus, both Jews and Greeks.

Miracles Glorify Christ

¹¹ Now ^(FO)God worked unusual miracles by the hands of Paul, ^12 (FP)so that even handkerchiefs or aprons were brought from his body to the sick, and the diseases left them and the evil spirits went out of them. ^13 (FQ)Then some of the itinerant Jewish exorcists ^(FR)took it upon themselves to call the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying, ^[aq]“We ^[ar]exorcise you by the Jesus whom Paul ^(FS)preaches.” ¹⁴ Also there were seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, who did so.

¹⁵ And the evil spirit answered and said, “Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are you?”

¹⁶ Then the man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them, ^[as]overpowered them, and prevailed against ^[at]them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded. ¹⁷ This became known both to all Jews and Greeks dwelling in Ephesus; and ^(FT)fear fell on them all, and the name of the Lord Jesus was magnified. ¹⁸ And many who had believed came ^(FU)confessing and telling their deeds. ¹⁹ Also, many of those who had practiced magic brought their books together and burned them in the sight of all. And they counted up the value of them, and it totaled fifty thousand pieces of silver. ^20 (FV)So the word of the Lord grew mightily and prevailed.

The Riot at Ephesus

^21 (FW)When these things were accomplished, Paul ^(FX)purposed in the Spirit, when he had passed through ^(FY)Macedonia and Achaia, to go to Jerusalem, saying, “After I have been there, ^(FZ)I must also see Rome.” ²² So he sent into Macedonia two of those who ministered to him, ^(GA)Timothy and ^(GB)Erastus, but he himself stayed in Asia for a time.

²³ And ^(GC)about that time there arose a great commotion about ^(GD)the Way. ²⁴ For a certain man named Demetrius, a silversmith, who made silver shrines of ^[au]Diana, brought ^(GE)no small profit to the craftsmen. ²⁵ He called them together with the workers of similar occupation, and said: “Men, you know that we have our prosperity by this trade. ²⁶ Moreover you see and hear that not only at Ephesus, but throughout almost all Asia, this Paul has persuaded and turned away many people, saying that ^(GF)they are not gods which are made with hands. ²⁷ So not only is this trade of ours in danger of falling into disrepute, but also the temple of the great goddess Diana may be despised and ^[av]her magnificence destroyed, whom all Asia and the world worship.”

²⁸ Now when they heard this, they were full of wrath and cried out, saying, “Great is Diana of the Ephesians!” ²⁹ So the whole city was filled with confusion, and rushed into the theater with one accord, having seized ^(GG)Gaius and ^(GH)Aristarchus, Macedonians, Paul’s travel companions. ³⁰ And when Paul wanted to go in to the people, the disciples would not allow him. ³¹ Then some of the ^[aw]officials of Asia, who were his friends, sent to him pleading that he would not venture into the theater. ³² Some therefore cried one thing and some another, for the assembly was confused, and most of them did not know why they had come together. ³³ And they drew Alexander out of the multitude, the Jews putting him forward. And ^(GI)Alexander ^(GJ)motioned with his hand, and wanted to make his defense to the people. ³⁴ But when they found out that he was a Jew, all with one voice cried out for about two hours, “Great is Diana of the Ephesians!”

³⁵ And when the city clerk had quieted the crowd, he said: “Men of Ephesus, what man is there who does not know that the city of the Ephesians is temple guardian of the great goddess ^[ax]Diana, and of the image which fell down from ^[ay]Zeus? ³⁶ Therefore, since these things cannot be denied, you ought to be quiet and do nothing rashly. ³⁷ For you have brought these men here who are neither robbers of temples nor blasphemers of ^[az]your goddess. ³⁸ Therefore, if Demetrius and his fellow craftsmen have a ^[ba]case against anyone, the courts are open and there are proconsuls. Let them bring charges against one another. ³⁹ But if you have any other inquiry to make, it shall be determined in the lawful assembly. ⁴⁰ For we are in danger of being ^[bb]called in question for today’s uproar, there being no reason which we may give to account for this disorderly gathering.” ⁴¹ And when he had said these things, he dismissed the assembly.