Acts 18:23-21:16

Legacy Standard Bible

²³ And having spent some time there, he left and passed successively through the ^(A)Galatian region and Phrygia, strengthening all the disciples.

²⁴ Now a Jew named ^(B)Apollos, an ^(C)Alexandrian by birth, ^[a]an eloquent man, arrived at ^(D)Ephesus; and he was mighty in the Scriptures. ²⁵ This man had been instructed in ^(E)the way of the Lord; and being fervent in spirit, he was speaking and teaching accurately the things concerning Jesus, being acquainted only with ^(F)the baptism of John; ²⁶ and ^[b]he began to speak out boldly in the synagogue. But when ^(G)Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they took him aside and explained to him ^(H)the way of God more accurately. ²⁷ And when he wanted to go across to ^(I)Achaia, ^(J)the brothers encouraged him and wrote to ^(K)the disciples to welcome him; and when he had arrived, he greatly ^[c]helped those who had believed through grace, ²⁸ for he powerfully refuted the Jews in public, demonstrating ^(L)by the Scriptures that ^(M)Jesus is the ^[d]Christ.

Paul in Ephesus

19 Now it happened that while ^(N)Apollos was at ^(O)Corinth, Paul passed through the ^(P)upper regions and came to ^(Q)Ephesus and found some disciples. ² And he said to them, “^(R)Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” And they said to him, “No, ^(S)we have not even heard if the Holy Spirit is being received.” ³ And he said, “Into what then were you baptized?” And they said, “^(T)Into John’s baptism.” ⁴ Then Paul said, “^(U)John baptized with the baptism of repentance, telling the people ^(V)to believe in Him who was coming after him, that is, in Jesus.” ⁵ And when they heard this, they were ^(W)baptized ^[e]in the name of the Lord Jesus. ⁶ And when Paul had ^(X)laid his hands upon them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they began ^(Y)speaking with tongues and ^(Z)prophesying. ⁷ Now there were in all about twelve men.

⁸ And after he entered ^(AA)the synagogue, he continued speaking out boldly for three months, reasoning and persuading them ^(AB)about the kingdom of God. ⁹ But when ^(AC)some were becoming hardened and were not believing, speaking evil of ^(AD)the Way before the multitude, he left them and took away ^(AE)the disciples, reasoning daily in the school of Tyrannus. ¹⁰ This took place for ^(AF)two years, so that all who lived in ^[f](AG)Asia heard ^(AH)the word of the Lord, both Jews and Greeks.

Miracles in Ephesus

¹¹ And God was doing ^(AI)extraordinary ^[g]miracles by the hands of Paul, ^12 (AJ)so that cloths or aprons were even carried from his body to the sick, and the diseases left them and ^(AK)the evil spirits went out. ¹³ But also some of the Jewish ^(AL)exorcists, who went from place to place, attempted to invoke over those who had the evil spirits the name of the Lord Jesus, saying, “I implore you by Jesus whom Paul preaches.” ¹⁴ Now seven sons of one named Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, were doing this. ¹⁵ And the evil spirit answered and said to them, “I recognize Jesus, and I know about Paul, but who are you?” ¹⁶ And the man, in whom was the evil spirit, leaped on them, subdued all of them, and utterly prevailed against them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded. ¹⁷ And this became known to all, both Jews and Greeks, who lived in ^(AM)Ephesus; and fear fell upon them all and the name of the Lord Jesus was being magnified. ¹⁸ Also, many of those who had believed kept coming, confessing and disclosing their practices. ¹⁹ And many of those who practiced magic brought their books together and were burning them in the sight of everyone; and they counted up the price of them and found it fifty thousand ^[h](AN)pieces of silver. ²⁰ So ^[i](AO)the word of the Lord ^(AP)was growing mightily and prevailing.

Riots in Ephesus

²¹ Now after these things were finished, Paul purposed in the ^[j]Spirit to ^(AQ)go to Jerusalem ^(AR)after he had passed through ^(AS)Macedonia and ^(AT)Achaia, saying, “After I have been there, ^(AU)I must also see Rome.” ²² And having sent into ^(AV)Macedonia two of ^(AW)those who ministered to him, ^(AX)Timothy and ^(AY)Erastus, he himself stayed in ^[k](AZ)Asia for a while.

²³ Now about that time there occurred no small disturbance concerning ^(BA)the Way. ²⁴ For a man named Demetrius, a silversmith, who made silver shrines of ^[l]Artemis, ^(BB)was bringing no little ^[m]business to the craftsmen; ²⁵ these he gathered together with the workers of similar trades, and said, “Men, you know that our prosperity is from this business. ²⁶ And you see and hear that not only in ^(BC)Ephesus, but in almost all of ^(BD)Asia, this Paul has persuaded and turned away a considerable crowd, saying that ^(BE)things made with hands are not gods. ²⁷ And not only is there danger that this trade of ours fall into disrepute, but also that the temple of the great goddess ^[n]Artemis be considered as worthless and that she, whom all of ^(BF)Asia and ^(BG)the ^[o]world worship, is even about to be brought down from her majesty.”

²⁸ When they heard this and were filled with rage, they began crying out, saying, “Great is ^[p]Artemis of the ^(BH)Ephesians!” ²⁹ And the city was filled with the confusion, and they rushed ^[q]with one accord into the theater, dragging along ^(BI)Gaius and ^(BJ)Aristarchus, Paul’s traveling ^(BK)companions from ^(BL)Macedonia. ³⁰ And when Paul wanted to go into the ^[r]assembly, ^(BM)the disciples would not let him. ³¹ Also some of the ^[s]Asiarchs who were friends of his sent to him and repeatedly urged him not to ^[t]venture into the theater. ^32 (BN)So then, some were shouting one thing and some another, for the ^[u]meeting was in confusion and the majority did not know ^[v]for what reason they had come together. ³³ And some of the crowd ^[w]concluded it was Alexander, since the Jews had put him forward; and having ^(BO)motioned with his hand, Alexander was intending to make a defense to the ^[x]assembly. ³⁴ But when they recognized that he was a Jew, a single cry arose from them all as they shouted for about two hours, “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!” ³⁵ Now after calming the crowd, the city clerk *said, “Men of ^(BP)Ephesus, what man is there after all who does not know that the city of the Ephesians is guardian of the temple of the great Artemis and of the image which fell down from heaven? ³⁶ So, since these are undeniable facts, you ought to keep calm and to do nothing rash. ³⁷ For you have brought these men here who are neither ^(BQ)robbers of temples nor blasphemers of our goddess. ³⁸ So then, if Demetrius and the craftsmen who are with him have a complaint against anyone, the courts are in session and ^[y](BR)proconsuls are available; let them bring charges against one another. ³⁹ But if you want anything beyond this, it shall be settled in the ^[z]lawful meeting. ⁴⁰ For indeed we are in danger of being accused of a riot in connection with today’s events, since there is no cause for which we can give as an account for this disorderly gathering.” ⁴¹ After saying this he dismissed the meeting.

Through Macedonia and Greece

20 Now after the uproar had ceased, Paul having summoned and exhorted ^(BS)the disciples, said farewell and left ^(BT)to go to ^(BU)Macedonia. ² And when he had gone through those districts and had given them much exhortation, he came to Greece. ³ And there he spent three months, and when ^(BV)a plot was formed against him by the Jews as he was about to set sail for ^(BW)Syria, he decided to return through ^(BX)Macedonia. ⁴ And he was accompanied by Sopater of ^(BY)Berea, the son of Pyrrhus, and by ^(BZ)Aristarchus and Secundus of the ^(CA)Thessalonians, and ^(CB)Gaius of ^(CC)Derbe, and ^(CD)Timothy, and ^(CE)Tychicus and ^(CF)Trophimus of ^[aa](CG)Asia. ⁵ But these had gone on ahead and were waiting for ^(CH)us at ^(CI)Troas. ^6 (CJ)And we sailed from ^(CK)Philippi after ^(CL)the days of Unleavened Bread, and came to them at ^(CM)Troas within five days; and there we stayed seven days.

Eutychus Raised from the Dead in Troas

⁷ And on ^(CN)the first day of the week, when ^(CO)we were gathered together to ^(CP)break bread, Paul began speaking to them, intending to leave the next day, and he prolonged his ^[ab]message until midnight. ⁸ Now there were many ^(CQ)lamps in the ^(CR)upper room where we were gathered together. ⁹ And there was a young man named ^[ac]Eutychus sitting on the windowsill, sinking into a deep sleep. And as Paul kept on talking, he sunk into that sleep and fell down from the third floor and was picked up dead. ¹⁰ But Paul went down and ^(CS)fell upon him, and after embracing him, he ^(CT)said, “^[ad]Do not be troubled, for his life is in him.” ¹¹ And when he had gone back up and had ^(CU)broken the bread and ^[ae]eaten, he talked with them a long while until daybreak, and then left. ¹² And they took away the boy alive, and were not a little comforted.

Paul’s Farewell to the Ephesian Elders

¹³ But ^(CV)we, going ahead to the ship, set sail for Assos, intending from there to take Paul on board; for so he had arranged it, intending himself to go ^[af]by land. ¹⁴ And when he met us at Assos, we took him on board and came to Mitylene. ¹⁵ And sailing from there, we arrived the following day opposite Chios; and the next day we crossed over to Samos; and the day following we came to ^(CW)Miletus. ¹⁶ For Paul had decided to sail past ^(CX)Ephesus so that he would not have to spend time in ^[ag](CY)Asia; for he was hurrying ^(CZ)to be in Jerusalem, if possible, ^(DA)on the day of Pentecost.

¹⁷ Now from Miletus he sent to ^(DB)Ephesus and called to him ^(DC)the elders of the church. ¹⁸ And when they had come to him, he said to them,

“You yourselves know, ^(DD)from the first day that I set foot in Asia, how I was with you the whole time, ¹⁹ serving the Lord with all humility and with tears and with trials which came upon me ^[ah]through ^(DE)the plots of the Jews; ²⁰ how I ^(DF)did not shrink from declaring to you anything that was profitable, and teaching you publicly and ^[ai]from house to house, ²¹ solemnly ^(DG)testifying to both Jews and Greeks about ^(DH)repentance toward God and ^(DI)faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. ²² And now, behold, bound by the ^[aj]Spirit, ^(DJ)I am on my way to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there, ²³ except that ^(DK)the Holy Spirit solemnly ^(DL)testifies to me in every city, saying that ^(DM)chains and afflictions await me. ²⁴ But ^(DN)I do not make my life of any account nor dear to myself, so that I may ^(DO)finish my course and ^(DP)the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to ^(DQ)testify solemnly of the gospel of ^(DR)the grace of God.

²⁵ “And now, behold, I know that all of you, among whom I went about ^(DS)preaching the kingdom, will no longer see my face. ²⁶ Therefore, I ^[ak]testify to you this day that ^(DT)I am ^[al]innocent of the blood of all. ²⁷ For I ^(DU)did not shrink from declaring to you the whole ^(DV)purpose of God. ²⁸ Be on guard for yourselves and for all ^(DW)the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you ^[am]overseers, to shepherd ^(DX)the church of God which ^(DY)He ^[an]purchased ^[ao]with His own blood. ²⁹ I know that after my departure ^(DZ)savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing ^(EA)the flock; ³⁰ and from among your own selves men will arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away ^(EB)the disciples after them. ³¹ Therefore be watchful, remembering that night and day for a period of ^(EC)three years I did not cease to admonish each one ^(ED)with tears. ³² And now I ^(EE)commend you to God and to ^(EF)the word of His grace, which is able to ^(EG)build you up and to give you ^(EH)the inheritance among all those who have been sanctified. ^33 (EI)I have coveted no one’s silver or gold or clothes. ³⁴ You yourselves know that ^(EJ)these hands ministered to my own needs and to those ^(EK)who were with me. ³⁵ In everything I showed you that by laboring in this manner you must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, that He Himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’”

³⁶ And when he had said these things, he ^(EL)knelt down and prayed with them all. ³⁷ And ^[ap]they began to weep aloud and ^(EM)falling on Paul’s neck, they were kissing him, ³⁸ being in agony especially over ^(EN)the word which he had spoken, that they would not see his face again. And they were ^(EO)accompanying him to the ship.

Paul Sets Out for Jerusalem

21 Now when ^(EP)we had parted from them and had set sail, we came by ^(EQ)a straight course to Cos and the next day to Rhodes and from there to Patara; ² and having found a ship crossing over to ^(ER)Phoenicia, we went aboard and set sail. ³ And when we came in sight of ^(ES)Cyprus, leaving it on the left, we kept sailing to ^(ET)Syria and landed at ^(EU)Tyre; for there the ship was to unload its cargo. ⁴ And after looking up ^(EV)the disciples, we stayed there seven days; and they kept telling Paul ^(EW)through the Spirit not to set foot in Jerusalem. ⁵ And when ^[aq]our days there were ended, we left and started on our journey, while they all, with wives and children, ^(EX)escorted us until we were out of the city. After ^(EY)kneeling down on the beach and praying, we said farewell to one another. ⁶ Then we went on board the ship, and they returned ^(EZ)home again.

⁷ And when we had finished the voyage from ^(FA)Tyre, we arrived at Ptolemais, and after greeting ^(FB)the brothers, we stayed with them for a day. ⁸ And on the next day we left and came to ^(FC)Caesarea, and entering the house of ^(FD)Philip the ^(FE)evangelist, who was ^(FF)one of the seven, we stayed with him. ⁹ Now this man had four virgin daughters who ^(FG)prophesied. ¹⁰ And as we were staying there for some days, a prophet named ^(FH)Agabus came down from Judea. ¹¹ And coming to us, he ^(FI)took Paul’s belt and bound his own feet and hands, and said, “This ^(FJ)is what the Holy Spirit says: ‘In this way the Jews at Jerusalem will ^(FK)bind the man who owns this belt and ^(FL)deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles.’” ¹² And when we had heard this, we as well as the local residents began begging him ^(FM)not to go up to Jerusalem. ¹³ Then Paul answered, “What are you doing, crying and breaking my heart? For ^(FN)I am ready not only to be bound, but even to die at Jerusalem for ^(FO)the name of the Lord Jesus.” ¹⁴ And since he would not be persuaded, we fell silent, saying, “^(FP)The will of the Lord be done!”

¹⁵ Now after these days we got ready and ^(FQ)started on our way up to Jerusalem. ¹⁶ And some of ^(FR)the disciples from ^(FS)Caesarea also came with us, taking us to Mnason of ^(FT)Cyprus, an ^(FU)early disciple with whom we were to lodge.