The Apostle Paul is still at Ephesus but he is already making plans for future mission trips. Luke tells us, "After all this had happened, Paul decided to go to Jerusalem, passing through Macedonia and Achaia. 'After I have been there,' he said, 'I must visit Rome also.' He sent two of his helpers, Timothy and Erastus, to Macedonia, while he stayed in the province of Asia a little longer." (Acts 19:21-22) When Luke says "after all this had happened" he means the powerful preaching and the mighty miracles Paul performed at Ephesus, plus the incident with the sons of Sceva that we studied yesterday. The NIV makes a somewhat unclear translation by saying Paul "decided" to go to Jerusalem. This makes it sound as if he actually does go at this time. Many other translations render this verse "Paul purposed in the Spirit", which is more accurate. Paul does not go anywhere right now but is making careful plans for the future through prayer and the guidance of the Holy Spirit. But he does send some of his companions out from the city at this time.
"About that time there arose a great disturbance about the Way. A silversmith named Demetrius, who made silver shrines of Artemis, brought in a lot of business for the craftsmen there. He called them together, along with the workers in related trades, and said: 'You know, my friends, that we receive a good income from this business. And you see and hear how this fellow Paul has convinced and led astray large numbers of people here in Ephesus and in practically the whole province of Asia. He says that gods made by human hands are no gods at all. There is danger not only that our trade will lose its good name, but also that the temple of the great goddess Artemis will be discredited; and the goddess herself, who is worshiped throughout the province of Asia and the world, will be robbed of her divine majesty.'" (Acts 19:23-27) Paul's missionary work at Ephesus is hitting Demetrius in the pocketbook pretty hard. The silversmith has made his living off other people's superstitions. It's quite evident from his passionate speech that he cares more about his potential financial loss than about any dishonor that might effect the goddess Artemis.
Idols fashioned to represent the Greek goddess Artemis (known as Diana to the Romans) were bizarre, featuring many breasts or eggs covering her chest and abdomen. This presumably symbolized her ability to grant fertility to women and her role in helping women through childbirth and child-rearing. Her temple at Ephesus is nothing but rubble today but it is thought to have housed a lumpy meteor that the Ephesians believed resembled the many-breasted Artemis. We will find a reference to this object later in our study today.
The friends of Demetrius are enraged at the thought of losing their lucrative business. "When they heard this, they were furious and began shouting, 'Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!' Soon the whole city was in an uproar. The people seized Gaius and Aristarchus, Paul's traveling companions from Macedonia, and all of them rushed into the theater together. Paul wanted to appear before the crowd, but the disciples would not let him. Even some of the officials of the province, friends of Paul, sent him a message begging him not to venture into the theater." (Acts 19:28-31) The auditorium at Ephesus is estimated to have been able to hold anywhere from 25,000 to 50,000 people. Paul's friends are horrified at the thought of him going into the theater. They fear the angry mob will tear him apart.
This next verse has always amused me with its dry humor. "The assembly was in confusion: Some were shouting one thing, some another. Most of the people did not even know why they were there." (Acts 19:32) We sometimes see this same thing happening today in modern demonstrations. There are certain types of people who will join up just to be a part of something without fully knowing or caring what they are a part of. If you hand them a sign, they will march. If you give them a slogan, they will shout it. They just want to be included. Many of the people who rush to the theater at Ephesus have no idea what's going on but they want to be a part of it.
"The Jews in the crowd pushed Alexander to the front, and they shouted instructions to him. He motioned for silence in order to make a defense before the people. But when they realized he was a Jew, they all shouted in unison for about two hours: 'Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!'" (Acts 19:33-34) It is believed by many well-respected Bible scholars that these particular Jews are opponents of Paul and of the gospel. They push Alexander forward to be their spokesperson. He is to speak in order to disassociate the Jews at Ephesus from Paul so that they will not be blamed for the uproar. The Greeks at Ephesus are already prejudiced against the Jews and so the Jews who push Alexander forward are hoping to prevent any persecution from coming, but as soon as the Ephesians recognize Alexander as a Jew they refuse to hear him, drowning out his words by chanting for two solid hours.
"The city clerk quieted the crowd and said: 'Fellow Ephesians, doesn't all the world know that the city of Ephesus is the guardian of the temple of the great Artemis and of her image, which fell from heaven? Therefore, since these facts are undeniable, you ought to calm down and not do anything rash.'" (Acts 19:35-36) The clerk says something like, "The great goddess Artemis and the worship of her cannot be harmed by anything anyone says or does. Why, she even sent us an image of herself from the skies! What are you worried about? Do you really think this new message about a god who rose from the dead is capable of turning people away from her?" The clerk envisions the worship of Artemis going on forever. He doesn't think any religion or any god can possibly bring her down. Yet her temple is in ruins today while the name of our living Savior, Jesus Christ, is still revered all over the world.
The clerk reminds the assembly that their actions are unlawful. "You have brought these men here, though they have neither robbed temples nor blasphemed our goddess. If, then, Demetrius and his fellow craftsmen have a grievance against anybody, the courts are open and there are proconsuls. They can press charges. If there is anything further you want to bring up, it must be settled in a legal assembly. As it is, we are in danger of being charged with rioting because of what happened today. In that case we would not be able to account for this commotion, since there is no reason for it.' After he had said this, he dismissed the assembly." (Acts 19:37-41)
When Paul preaches he doesn't attack the names of pagan gods. He presents the gospel of Jesus Christ. The people at Ephesus, after listening to a calm voice of reason, realize that they have never heard Paul or his companions say one word against the goddess Artemis. The goal of the missionaries at Ephesus is not to malign the local false deities but to present the gospel of the Savior of the world. Once the citizens turn to Christ they will naturally abandon useless idolatry in favor of the living God with whom they can have a personal relationship. In the same way there's little use of standing in our churches today preaching against this or that sin or of attacking various lifestyles. This won't accomplish much, if anything at all. What people need to hear is the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. When they accept Him as their Savior and Friend and Lord they will naturally abandon the things that get in the way of their relationship with Him. We are not called to attack the idolatry of our times (immorality, greed, addictions, and so forth) but we are called to share the gospel. Christ can be trusted to do the rest.
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