While Apollos was in Corinth, Paul went through the inland regions and came to Ephesus. He found some disciples there

and when Paul placed his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them, and they began to speak in tongues and to prophesy.

But the evil spirit replied to them, “I know about Jesus and I am acquainted with Paul, but who are you?”

The city was filled with the uproar, and the crowd rushed to the theater together, dragging with them Gaius and Aristarchus, the Macedonians who were Paul’s traveling companions.

After the disturbance had ended, Paul sent for the disciples, and after encouraging them and saying farewell, he left to go to Macedonia.

But Paul went down, threw himself on the young man, put his arms around him, and said, “Do not be distressed, for he is still alive!”

After we located the disciples, we stayed there seven days. They repeatedly told Paul through the Spirit not to set foot in Jerusalem.

(For they had seen Trophimus the Ephesian in the city with him previously, and they assumed Paul had brought him into the inner temple courts.)

He immediately took soldiers and centurions and ran down to the crowd. When they saw the commanding officer and the soldiers, they stopped beating Paul.

When they had stretched him out for the lash, Paul said to the centurion standing nearby, “Is it legal for you to lash a man who is a Roman citizen without a proper trial?”

The commanding officer answered, “I acquired this citizenship with a large sum of money.” “But I was even born a citizen,” Paul replied.

Paul looked directly at the council and said, “Brothers, I have lived my life with a clear conscience before God to this day.”

Paul replied, “I did not realize, brothers, that he was the high priest, for it is written, ‘You must not speak evil about a ruler of your people.’”

When morning came, the Jews formed a conspiracy and bound themselves with an oath not to eat or drink anything until they had killed Paul.

They went to the chief priests and the elders and said, “We have bound ourselves with a solemn oath not to partake of anything until we have killed Paul.

Paul called one of the centurions and said, “Take this young man to the commanding officer, for he has something to report to him.”

After five days the high priest Ananias came down with some elders and an attorney named Tertullus, and they brought formal charges against Paul to the governor.

At the same time he was also hoping that Paul would give him money, and for this reason he sent for Paul as often as possible and talked with him.

Paul said in his defense, “I have committed no offense against the Jewish law or against the temple or against Caesar.”

Rather they had several points of disagreement with him about their own religion and about a man named Jesus who was dead, whom Paul claimed to be alive.