Acts 18-21
In Corinth
After these things he departed aAthens and went to bCorinth. 2 And he found a Jew named aAquila, a native of bPontus, and his wife aPriscilla, who recently came from cItaly because dClaudius had commanded all the Jews to depart from Rome. He came to them, 3 and because he was of the same trade, he was staying with them and athey were working, for by trade they were tent-makers. 4 And he was reasoning ain the synagogue every bSabbath and trying to persuade both cJews and Greeks.
5 But when aSilas and Timothy bcame down from cMacedonia, Paul began devoting himself completely to the word, solemnly dbearing witness to the Jews that eJesus is the Christ. 6 But when they resisted and blasphemed, he ashook out his garments and said to them, “Your bblood be on your own heads! I am clean. From now on I will go cto the Gentiles.” 7 Then he left there and went to the house of a man named Titius Justus, a aGod-fearer, whose house was next to the synagogue. 8 aAnd Crispus, bthe leader of the synagogue, believed in the Lord cwith all his household, and many of the dCorinthians when they heard were believing and being baptized. 9 And the Lord said to Paul in the night by aa vision, “Do not be afraid, but go on speaking and do not be silent; 10 for I am with you, and no man will lay a hand on you in order to harm you, for I have many people in this city.” 11 And he stayed there a year and six months, teaching the word of God among them.
12 But while Gallio was aproconsul of bAchaia, cthe Jews with one accord rose up against Paul and brought him before dthe judgment seat, 13 saying, “This man persuades men to worship God contrary to athe law.” 14 But when Paul was about to aopen his mouth, Gallio said to the Jews, “If it were a wrongdoing or vicious crime, O Jews, it would be reasonable for me to put up with you; 15 but if there are aquestions about words and names and your own law, see to it yourselves; I am not willing to be a judge of these matters.” 16 And he drove them away from athe judgment seat. 17 And they all took hold of aSosthenes, bthe leader of the synagogue, and began beating him in front of cthe judgment seat. But Gallio was not concerned about any of these things.
Priscilla, Aquila, and Apollos
18 And Paul, having remained many days longer, atook leave of bthe brothers and put out to sea for cSyria, and with him were dPriscilla and dAquila. In eCenchreae he fhad his hair cut, for he was keeping a vow. 19 And they arrived at aEphesus, and he left them there. Now he himself entered bthe synagogue and reasoned with the Jews. 20 When they asked him to stay for a longer time, he did not consent, 21 but ataking leave of them and saying, “I will return to you again bif God wills,” he set sail from cEphesus.
22 And when he had landed at aCaesarea, he went up and greeted the church, and went down to bAntioch. 23 And having spent some time there, he left and passed successively through the aGalatian region and Phrygia, strengthening all the disciples.
24 Now a Jew named aApollos, an bAlexandrian by birth, an eloquent man, arrived at cEphesus; and he was mighty in the Scriptures. 25 This man had been instructed in athe way of the Lord; and being fervent in spirit, he was speaking and teaching accurately the things concerning Jesus, being acquainted only with bthe baptism of John; 26 and he began to speak out boldly in the synagogue. But when aPriscilla and Aquila heard him, they took him aside and explained to him bthe way of God more accurately. 27 And when he wanted to go across to aAchaia, bthe brothers encouraged him and wrote to cthe disciples to welcome him; and when he had arrived, he greatly helped those who had believed through grace, 28 for he powerfully refuted the Jews in public, demonstrating aby the Scriptures that bJesus is the Christ.
Paul in Ephesus
Now it happened that while aApollos was at bCorinth, Paul passed through the cupper regions and came to dEphesus and found some disciples. 2 And he said to them, “aDid you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” And they said to him, “No, bwe have not even heard if the Holy Spirit is being received.” 3 And he said, “Into what then were you baptized?” And they said, “aInto John’s baptism.” 4 Then Paul said, “aJohn baptized with the baptism of repentance, telling the people bto believe in Him who was coming after him, that is, in Jesus.” 5 And when they heard this, they were abaptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. 6 And when Paul had alaid his hands upon them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they began bspeaking with tongues and cprophesying. 7 Now there were in all about twelve men.
8 And after he entered athe synagogue, he continued speaking out boldly for three months, reasoning and persuading them babout the kingdom of God. 9 But when asome were becoming hardened and were not believing, speaking evil of bthe Way before the multitude, he left them and took away cthe disciples, reasoning daily in the school of Tyrannus. 10 This took place for atwo years, so that all who lived in bAsia heard cthe word of the Lord, both Jews and Greeks.
Miracles in Ephesus
11 And God was doing aextraordinary miracles by the hands of Paul, 12 aso that cloths or aprons were even carried from his body to the sick, and the diseases left them and bthe evil spirits went out. 13 But also some of the Jewish aexorcists, 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 aEphesus; 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 apieces of silver. 20 So athe word of the Lord bwas growing mightily and prevailing.
Riots in Ephesus
21 Now after these things were finished, Paul purposed in the Spirit to ago to Jerusalem bafter he had passed through cMacedonia and dAchaia, saying, “After I have been there, eI must also see Rome.” 22 And having sent into aMacedonia two of bthose who ministered to him, cTimothy and dErastus, he himself stayed in eAsia for a while.
23 Now about that time there occurred no small disturbance concerning athe Way. 24 For a man named Demetrius, a silversmith, who made silver shrines of Artemis, awas bringing no little 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 aEphesus, but in almost all of bAsia, this Paul has persuaded and turned away a considerable crowd, saying that cthings 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 Artemis be considered as worthless and that she, whom all of aAsia and bthe 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 Artemis of the aEphesians!” 29 And the city was filled with the confusion, and they rushed with one accord into the theater, dragging along aGaius and bAristarchus, Paul’s traveling ccompanions from dMacedonia. 30 And when Paul wanted to go into the assembly, athe disciples would not let him. 31 Also some of the Asiarchs who were friends of his sent to him and repeatedly urged him not to venture into the theater. 32 aSo then, some were shouting one thing and some another, for the meeting was in confusion and the majority did not know for what reason they had come together. 33 And some of the crowd concluded it was Alexander, since the Jews had put him forward; and having amotioned with his hand, Alexander was intending to make a defense to the 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 aEphesus, 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 arobbers 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 aproconsuls are available; let them bring charges against one another. 39 But if you want anything beyond this, it shall be settled in the 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
Now after the uproar had ceased, Paul having summoned and exhorted athe disciples, said farewell and left bto go to cMacedonia. 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 aa plot was formed against him by the Jews as he was about to set sail for bSyria, he decided to return through cMacedonia. 4 And he was accompanied by Sopater of aBerea, the son of Pyrrhus, and by bAristarchus and Secundus of the cThessalonians, and bGaius of dDerbe, and eTimothy, and fTychicus and gTrophimus of hAsia. 5 But these had gone on ahead and were waiting for aus at bTroas. 6 aAnd we sailed from bPhilippi after cthe days of Unleavened Bread, and came to them at dTroas within five days; and there we stayed seven days.
Eutychus Raised from the Dead in Troas
7 And on athe first day of the week, when bwe were gathered together to cbreak bread, Paul began speaking to them, intending to leave the next day, and he prolonged his message until midnight. 8 Now there were many alamps in the bupper room where we were gathered together. 9 And there was a young man named 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 afell upon him, and after embracing him, he bsaid, “Do not be troubled, for his life is in him.” 11 And when he had gone back up and had abroken the bread and 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 awe, 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 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 aMiletus. 16 For Paul had decided to sail past aEphesus so that he would not have to spend time in bAsia; for he was hurrying cto be in Jerusalem, if possible, don the day of Pentecost.
17 Now from Miletus he sent to aEphesus and called to him bthe elders of the church. 18 And when they had come to him, he said to them,
“You yourselves know, afrom 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 through athe plots of the Jews; 20 how I adid not shrink from declaring to you anything that was profitable, and teaching you publicly and from house to house, 21 solemnly atestifying to both Jews and Greeks about brepentance toward God and cfaith in our Lord Jesus Christ. 22 And now, behold, bound by the Spirit, aI am on my way to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there, 23 except that athe Holy Spirit solemnly btestifies to me in every city, saying that cchains and afflictions await me. 24 But aI do not make my life of any account nor dear to myself, so that I may bfinish my course and cthe ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to dtestify solemnly of the gospel of ethe grace of God.
25 “And now, behold, I know that all of you, among whom I went about apreaching the kingdom, will no longer see my face. 26 Therefore, I testify to you this day that aI am innocent of the blood of all. 27 For I adid not shrink from declaring to you the whole bpurpose of God. 28 Be on guard for yourselves and for all athe flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd bthe church of God which cHe purchased with His own blood. 29 I know that after my departure asavage wolves will come in among you, not sparing bthe flock; 30 and from among your own selves men will arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away athe disciples after them. 31 Therefore be watchful, remembering that night and day for a period of athree years I did not cease to admonish each one bwith tears. 32 And now I acommend you to God and to bthe word of His grace, which is able to cbuild you up and to give you dthe inheritance among all those who have been sanctified. 33 aI have coveted no one’s silver or gold or clothes. 34 You yourselves know that athese hands ministered to my own needs and to those bwho 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 aknelt down and prayed with them all. 37 And they began to weep aloud and afalling on Paul’s neck, they were kissing him, 38 being in agony especially over athe word which he had spoken, that they would not see his face again. And they were baccompanying him to the ship.
Paul Sets Out for Jerusalem
Now when awe had parted from them and had set sail, we came by ba straight course to Cos and the next day to Rhodes and from there to Patara; 2 and having found a ship crossing over to aPhoenicia, we went aboard and set sail. 3 And when we came in sight of aCyprus, leaving it on the left, we kept sailing to bSyria and landed at cTyre; for there the ship was to unload its cargo. 4 And after looking up athe disciples, we stayed there seven days; and they kept telling Paul bthrough the Spirit not to set foot in Jerusalem. 5 And when our days there were ended, we left and started on our journey, while they all, with wives and children, aescorted us until we were out of the city. After bkneeling down on the beach and praying, we said farewell to one another. 6 Then we went on board the ship, and they returned ahome again.
7 And when we had finished the voyage from aTyre, we arrived at Ptolemais, and after greeting bthe brothers, we stayed with them for a day. 8 And on the next day we left and came to aCaesarea, and entering the house of bPhilip the cevangelist, who was bone of the seven, we stayed with him. 9 Now this man had four virgin daughters who aprophesied. 10 And as we were staying there for some days, a prophet named aAgabus came down from Judea. 11 And coming to us, he atook Paul’s belt and bound his own feet and hands, and said, “This bis what the Holy Spirit says: ‘In this way the Jews at Jerusalem will cbind the man who owns this belt and ddeliver him into the hands of the Gentiles.’” 12 And when we had heard this, we as well as the local residents began begging him anot to go up to Jerusalem. 13 Then Paul answered, “What are you doing, crying and breaking my heart? For aI am ready not only to be bound, but even to die at Jerusalem for bthe name of the Lord Jesus.” 14 And since he would not be persuaded, we fell silent, saying, “aThe will of the Lord be done!”
15 Now after these days we got ready and astarted on our way up to Jerusalem. 16 And some of athe disciples from bCaesarea also came with us, taking us to Mnason of cCyprus, an dearly disciple with whom we were to lodge.
In Jerusalem
17 And after we arrived in Jerusalem, athe brothers welcomed us gladly. 18 And the following day Paul went in with us to aJames, and all bthe elders were present. 19 And after he had greeted them, he abegan to relate one by one the things which God did among the Gentiles through his bministry. 20 And when they heard it they began aglorifying God; and they said to him, “You see, brother, how many thousands there are among the Jews of those who have believed, and they are all bzealous for the Law; 21 and they have been told about you, that you are ateaching all the Jews who are among the Gentiles to forsake Moses, telling them bnot to circumcise their children nor to walk according to cthe customs. 22 What, then, is to be done? They will certainly hear that you have come. 23 Therefore do this that we tell you. We have four men who aare under a vow; 24 take them and apurify yourself along with them, and pay their expenses so that they may bshave their heads. Then all will know that there is nothing to the things which they have been told about you, but that you yourself also walk orderly, keeping the Law. 25 But concerning the Gentiles who have believed, we wrote, ahaving decided that they should keep from meat sacrificed to idols and from blood and from what is strangled and from sexual immorality.” 26 Then Paul took the men, and the next day, apurifying himself along with them, bwent into the temple giving notice of the completion of the days of purification, until the sacrifice was offered for each one of them.
Paul Is Arrested
27 Now when athe seven days were almost over, bthe Jews from cAsia, upon noticing him in the temple, began to throw all the crowd into confusion and laid hands on him, 28 crying out, “Men of Israel, help! aThis is the man who teaches to everyone everywhere against our people and the Law and this place; and besides, he has even brought Greeks into the temple and has bdefiled this holy place.” 29 For they had previously seen aTrophimus the bEphesian in the city with him, and they supposed that Paul had brought him into the temple. 30 Then all the city was stirred, and the people rushed together, and taking hold of Paul they adragged him out of the temple, and immediately the doors were shut. 31 While they were seeking to kill him, a report came up to the commander of the aRoman cohort that all Jerusalem was in confusion. 32 At once he atook along soldiers and centurions and ran down to them; and when they saw the commander and the soldiers, they stopped beating Paul. 33 Then the commander came up and took hold of him, and ordered him to be abound with btwo chains; and he began asking who he was and what he had done. 34 But among the crowd asome were shouting one thing and some another, and when he could not find out the facts because of the uproar, he ordered him to be brought into bthe barracks. 35 And when he got to athe stairs, he actually was carried by the soldiers because of the violence of the crowd; 36 for the multitude of the people kept following them, shouting, “aAway with him!”
Paul’s Defense Before the Jews
37 As Paul was about to be brought into athe barracks, he said to the commander, “May I say something to you?” And he *said, “Do you know Greek? 38 Then you are not athe Egyptian who some time ago raised a revolt and led the four thousand men of the Assassins out binto the wilderness?” 39 But Paul said, “aI am a Jew of Tarsus in bCilicia, a citizen of no insignificant city; and I beg you, allow me to speak to the people.” 40 And when he had given him permission, Paul, standing on athe stairs, bmotioned to the people with his hand; and when there was a great hush, he spoke to them in the cHebrew language, saying,
Copyright © 2021 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.
Managed in partnership with Three Sixteen Publishing Inc.
lsbible.org