19:1 And 1 it came to pass, that, while Apollos was at
Corinth, Paul having passed through the upper coasts came
to Ephesus: and finding certain disciples,
(1) Paul, not being offended at the rudeness of the Ephesians,
plants a church amongst them.
19:2 He said unto them, Have ye received the a Holy Ghost
since ye believed? And they said unto him, We have not so
much as heard whether there be any Holy Ghost.
(a) Those excellent gifts of the Holy Spirit, which were in
the Church in those days.
19:32 And he said unto them, Unto b what then were ye
baptized? And they said, Unto c John's baptism.
(2) John only began to instruct the disciples whom Christ would
make perfect.
(b) In what doctrine then are you taught and instructed?
(c) To be baptized into John's baptism is to profess the
doctrine which John preached and to be identified with
his baptism.
19:93 But when divers were hardened, and believed not, but
spake evil of that d way before the multitude, he
departed from them, and separated the disciples, disputing
daily in the school of one e Tyrannus.
(3) For a man to separate himself and others from infidels who
are utterly desperate, is not to divide the Church, but
rather to unite it, and make it one.
(d) By this word "way", the Hebrews understand any type of
life, and here it is taken for Christianity.
(e) This was a man's proper name.
19:134 Then certain of the vagabond Jews, f exorcists, took
upon them to call over them which had evil spirits the
name of the Lord Jesus, saying, We adjure you by Jesus
whom Paul preacheth.
(4) Satan is forced to give witness against himself.
(f) So were they called who cast out demons by forcing them
to leave in the name of God: and in the beginning of the
Church, those who had the gift of working miracles, and
laid their hands on those that were possessed with
demons, were called the same.
19:16 And the man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them,
and overcame them, and g prevailed against them, so that
they fled out of that house naked and wounded.
(g) He prevailed against them, though they struggled ever
so much.
19:185 And many that believed came, and h confessed, and
shewed their deeds.
(5) Conjuring and sorcery is condemned by open testimony, and
by the authority of the apostle.
(h) Confessed their errors, and openly detested them, being
terrified with the fear of the judgment of God: and
how does this compare to confession to a priest?
19:19 Many of them also which used curious arts brought their
books together, and burned them before all [men]: and they
counted the price of them, and found [it] i fifty
thousand [pieces] of silver.
(i) Those that give the lowest estimate, reckon it to be
about eight hundred pounds English.
19:216 After these things were ended, Paul purposed in the
k spirit, when he had passed through Macedonia and
Achaia, to go to Jerusalem, saying, After I have been
there, I must also see Rome.
(6) Paul is never weary.
(k) By the motion of God's Spirit: therefore we may not say
that Paul ran rashly unto death, but as the Spirit of
God led him.
19:237 And the same time there arose no small stir about that
way.
(7) Gain cloaked with a show of religion is the very cause why
idolatry is strongly and stubbornly defended.
19:24 For a certain [man] named Demetrius, a silversmith, which
made silver l shrines for Diana, brought no small gain
unto the craftsmen;
(l) These were special counterfeit temples with Diana's
picture in them, which those who worshipped her
bought.
19:27 So that not only m this our craft is in danger to be set
at nought; but also that the temple of the great goddess
Diana should be despised, and her magnificence should be
destroyed, whom all Asia and the world worshippeth.
(m) As if he said, "If Paul goes on in this way as he has
begun, to confuse the opinion which men have of
Diana's image, all of our gain will come to nothing."
19:318 And certain of the chief of Asia, which were his
friends, sent unto him, desiring [him] that he would not
adventure himself into the theatre.
(8) There ought to be in all Christians, and especially in the
ministers, an invincible steadfastness which may not by any
storms or assaults be overcome, which nonetheless must
modestly allow itself to be governed by wisdom.
19:349 But when they knew that he was a Jew, all with one
voice about the space of two hours cried out, Great [is]
Diana of the Ephesians.
(9) Instead of reason, the idolaters are sufficiently contented
with their own madness and outcries, and those are the
greatest defence that they have.
19:3510 And when the townclerk had appeased the people, he
said, [Ye] men of Ephesus, what man is there that knoweth
not how that the city of the Ephesians is a worshipper of
the great goddess Diana, and of the [image] which n fell
down from Jupiter?
(10) An example of a political man who redeems peace and
quietness with lies, which Paul would have never done.
(n) The Ephesians believed superstitiously that the image
of Diana came down to them from heaven.
19:38 Wherefore if Demetrius, and the craftsmen which are with
him, have a o matter against any man, the p law is
open, and there are q deputies: let them implead one
another.
(o) Have anything to accuse any man of.
(p) For there are certain days appointed for civil causes
and matters of judgment, and the deputies sit on
those days.
(q) By the deputies are meant also the deputies'
substitutes, that is, those who sat for them.
19:39 But if ye enquire any thing concerning other matters, it
shall be determined in a r lawful assembly.
(r) He speaks of a lawful assembly not only to speak
against the disordered tumult of the people, but also
against all meeting and coming together which was not
by order: for there were certain days appointed to
call people together in.
