19:1 While 1 Apollos was in Corinth, 2 Paul went through the inland 3 regions 4 and came to Ephesus. 5 He 6 found some disciples there 7 19:2 and said to them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” 8 They replied, 9 “No, we have not even 10 heard that there is a Holy Spirit.” 19:3 So Paul 11 said, “Into what then were you baptized?” “Into John’s baptism,” they replied. 12 19:4 Paul said, “John baptized with a baptism of repentance, telling the people to believe in the one who was to come after him, 13 that is, in Jesus.” 19:5 When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus, 19:6 and when Paul placed 14 his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came 15 upon them, and they began to speak 16 in tongues and to prophesy. 17 19:7 (Now there were about twelve men in all.) 18
19:8 So Paul 19 entered 20 the synagogue 21 and spoke out fearlessly 22 for three months, addressing 23 and convincing 24 them about the kingdom of God. 25 19:9 But when 26 some were stubborn 27 and refused to believe, reviling 28 the Way 29 before the congregation, he left 30 them and took the disciples with him, 31 addressing 32 them every day 33 in the lecture hall 34 of Tyrannus. 19:10 This went on for two years, so that all who lived in the province of Asia, 35 both Jews and Greeks, heard the word of the Lord. 36
19:11 God was performing extraordinary 37 miracles by Paul’s hands, 19:12 so that when even handkerchiefs or aprons that had touched his body 38 were brought 39 to the sick, their diseases left them and the evil spirits went out of them. 40 19:13 But some itinerant 41 Jewish exorcists tried to invoke the name 42 of the Lord Jesus over those who were possessed by 43 evil spirits, saying, “I sternly warn 44 you by Jesus whom Paul preaches.” 19:14 (Now seven sons of a man named 45 Sceva, a Jewish high priest, were doing this.) 46 19:15 But the evil spirit replied to them, 47 “I know about Jesus 48 and I am acquainted with 49 Paul, but who are you?” 50 19:16 Then the man who was possessed by 51 the evil spirit jumped on 52 them and beat them all into submission. 53 He prevailed 54 against them so that they fled from that house naked and wounded.
1 tn Grk “It happened that while.” The introductory phrase ἐγένετο (egeneto, “it happened that”), common in Luke (69 times) and Acts (54 times), is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated.
2 map For location see JP1-C2; JP2-C2; JP3-C2; JP4-C2.
3 tn Or “interior.”
4 tn BDAG 92 s.v. ἀνωτερικός has “upper τὰ ἀ. μέρη the upper (i.e. inland) country, the interior Ac 19:1.”
5 map For location see JP1-D2; JP2-D2; JP3-D2; JP4-D2.
6 tn Grk “and found.” Because of the length of the Greek sentence and the sequencing with the following verse the conjunction καί (kai) has not been translated here. Instead a new English sentence is begun.
7 tn The word “there” is not in the Greek text but is implied.
8 tn The participle πιστεύσαντες (pisteusante") is taken temporally.
9 tn Grk “they [said] to him” (the word “said” is implied in the Greek text).
10 tn This use of ἀλλά (alla) is ascensive and involves an ellipsis (BDAG 45 s.v. ἀλλά 3): “No, [not only did we not receive the Spirit,] but also we have not heard that there is a Holy Spirit.” However, this is lengthy and somewhat awkward in English, and the ascensive meaning can be much more easily represented by including the word “even” after the negation. Apparently these disciples were unaware of the provision of the Spirit that is represented in baptism. The language sounds like they did not know about a Holy Spirit, but this seems to be only linguistic shorthand for not knowing about the Spirit’s presence (Luke 3:15-18). The situation is parallel to that of Apollos. Apollos and these disciples represent those who “complete” their transition to messianic faith as Jews.
11 tn Grk “he”; the referent (Paul) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
12 tn Grk “they said.”
13 sn These disciples may have had their contact with John early on in the Baptist’s ministry before Jesus had emerged. This is the fifth time Luke links John the Baptist and Jesus (Acts 1:5; 11:16; 13:25; 18:25).
14 tn Or “laid.”
15 sn The coming of the Holy Spirit here is another case where the Spirit comes and prophesy results in Acts (see Acts 2). Paul’s action parallels that of Peter (Acts 8) and not just with Gentiles.
16 tn The imperfect verb ἐλάλουν (elaloun) has been translated as an ingressive imperfect.
17 tn The imperfect verb ἐπροφήτευον (eprofhteuon) has been translated as an ingressive imperfect.
18 sn This is a parenthetical note by the author.
19 tn Grk “he”; the referent (Paul) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
20 tn Grk “So entering the synagogue, he spoke out fearlessly.” The participle εἰσελθών (eiselqwn) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.
21 sn See the note on synagogue in 6:9.
22 tn Or “boldly.”
23 tn Although the word διελέξατο (dielexato; from διαλέγομαι, dialegomai) is frequently translated “reasoned,” “disputed,” or “argued,” this sense comes from its classical meaning where it was used of philosophical disputation, including the Socratic method of questions and answers. However, there does not seem to be contextual evidence for this kind of debate in Acts 19:8. As G. Schrenk (TDNT 2:94-95) points out, “What is at issue is the address which any qualified member of a synagogue might give.” Other examples of this may be found in the NT in Matt 4:23 and Mark 1:21.
24 tn Or “addressing them persuasively.” The two participles διαλεγόμενος and πείθων (dialegomeno" and peiqwn) can be understood as a hendiadys (so NIV, NRSV), thus, “addressing them persuasively.”
25 sn To talk about Jesus as the Christ who has come is to talk about the kingdom of God. This is yet another summary of the message like that in 18:28.
26 tn BDAG 1105-6 s.v. ὡς 8.b lists this use as a temporal conjunction.
27 tn Or “some became hardened.” See BDAG 930 s.v. σκληρύνω b and Acts 7:51-53.
28 tn Or “speaking evil of.” BDAG 500 s.v. κακολογέω has “speak evil of, revile, insult…τὶ someth. τὴν ὁδόν the Way (i.e. Christian way of life) Ac 19:9.”
29 sn The Way refers to the Christian movement (Christianity). Luke frequently refers to it as “the Way” (Acts 9:2; 18:25-26; 19:23; 22:4; 24:14, 22).
30 tn Grk “leaving them, he took.” The participle ἀποστάς (apostas) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.
31 tn The words “with him” are not in the Greek text, but are implied.
32 tn Although the word διελέξατο (dielexato; from διαλέγομαι, dialegomai) is frequently translated “reasoned,” “disputed,” or “argued,” this sense comes from its classical meaning where it was used of philosophical disputation, including the Socratic method of questions and answers. However, there does not seem to be contextual evidence for this kind of debate in Acts 19:9. As G. Schrenk (TDNT 2:94-95) points out, “What is at issue is the address which any qualified member of a synagogue might give.” Other examples of this may be found in the NT in Matt 4:23 and Mark 1:21.
33 tn BDAG 437 s.v. ἡμέρα 2.c has “every day” for this phrase in this verse.
34 tn The “lecture hall” was a place where teachers and pupils met. The term is a NT hapax legomenon (BDAG 982 s.v. σχολή). L&N 7.14 notes, “it is better to use a translation such as ‘lecture hall’ rather than ‘school,’ since one does not wish to give the impression of the typical classroom situation characteristic of present-day schools.”
35 tn Grk “Asia”; in the NT this always refers to the Roman province of Asia, made up of about one-third of the west and southwest end of modern Asia Minor. Asia lay to the west of the region of Phrygia and Galatia. The words “the province of” are supplied to indicate to the modern reader that this does not refer to the continent of Asia.
36 sn The word of the Lord is a technical expression in OT literature, often referring to a divine prophetic utterance (e.g., Gen 15:1, Isa 1:10, Jonah 1:1). In the NT it occurs 15 times: 3 times as ῥῆμα τοῦ κυρίου (rJhma tou kuriou; Luke 22:61, Acts 11:16, 1 Pet 1:25) and 12 times as λόγος τοῦ κυρίου (logo" tou kuriou; here and in Acts 8:25; 13:44, 48, 49; 15:35, 36; 16:32; 19:20; 1 Thess 1:8, 4:15; 2 Thess 3:1). As in the OT, this phrase focuses on the prophetic nature and divine origin of what has been said.
37 tn BDAG 1019 s.v. τυγχάνω 2.d states, “δυνάμεις οὐ τὰς τυχούσας extraordinary miracles Ac 19:11.”
38 tn Or “skin” (the outer surface of the body).
39 tn Or “were taken.” It might be that as word went out into the region that since the sick could not come to Paul, healing was brought to them this way. The “handkerchiefs” are probably face cloths for wiping perspiration (see BDAG 934 s.v. σουδάριον) while the “aprons” might be material worn by workmen (BDAG 923-24 s.v. σιμικίνθιον).
40 tn The words “of them” are not in the Greek text, but are implied.
41 tn Grk “some Jewish exorcists who traveled about.” The adjectival participle περιερχομένων (periercomenwn) has been translated as “itinerant.”
42 tn Grk “to name the name.”
43 tn Grk “who had.” Here ἔχω (ecw) is used of demon possession, a common usage according to BDAG 421 s.v. ἔχω 7.a.α.
44 sn The expression I sternly warn you means “I charge you as under oath.”
45 tn Grk “a certain Sceva.”
46 sn Within the sequence of the narrative, this amounts to a parenthetical note by the author.
47 tn Grk “answered and said to them.” The expression, redundant in English, has been simplified to “replied.”
48 tn Grk “Jesus I know about.” Here ᾿Ιησοῦν (Ihsoun) is in emphatic position in Greek, but placing the object first is not normal in contemporary English style.
49 tn BDAG 380 s.v. ἐπίσταμαι 2 has “know, be acquainted with τινά…τὸν Παῦλον Ac 19:15.” Here the translation “be acquainted with” was used to differentiate from the previous phrase which has γινώσκω (ginwskw).
50 sn But who are you? This account shows how the power of Paul was so distinct that parallel claims to access that power were denied. In fact, such manipulation, by those who did not know Jesus, was judged (v. 16). The indirect way in which the exorcists made the appeal shows their distance from Jesus.
51 tn Grk “in whom the evil spirit was.”
52 tn Grk “the man in whom the evil spirit was, jumping on them.” The participle ἐφαλόμενος (efalomeno") has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style. L&N 15.239 has “ἐφαλόμενος ὁ ἄνθρωπος ἐπ᾿ αὐτούς ‘the man jumped on them’ Ac 19:16.”
53 tn Grk “and beating them all into submission.” The participle κατακυριεύσας (katakurieusa") has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style. According to W. Foerster, TDNT 3:1098, the word means “the exercise of dominion against someone, i.e., to one’s own advantage.” These exorcists were shown to be powerless in comparison to Jesus who was working through Paul.
54 tn BDAG 484 s.v. ἰσχύω 3 has “win out, prevail…κατά τινος over, against someone Ac 19:16.”