And Paul after remaining in Corinth some time longer, took leave of the brothers, and sailed away to Syria, accompanied by Priscilla and Aquila. As Paul was under a vow, he had his head shaved at Cenchrea. When they came to Ephesus he left them there; but he himself entered into the synagogue and reasoned with the Jews. read more. When they begged him to stay longer, he would not consent, but said, as he took leave of them, "I will return again to you, if God will." Then, setting sail from Ephesus, he landed at Caesarea; he went up to Jerusalem and saluted the church, and came down to Antioch. After spending some time there, he set out and went through the region of Galatia and Phrygia, in order, and strengthened all the disciples. Now a certain Jew named Apollos, a native of Alexandria, a learned man and mighty in the Scriptures, came to Ephesus.

Now it happened that while Apollos was in Corinth, Paul, after passing through the hinterland, came to Ephesus, where he found a few disciples. "Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?" he asked them. "No" said they, "we did not even hear that there is a Holy Spirit." read more. "Into what, then, were you baptized?" he asked. And they said, "Into the baptism of John." "John indeed baptized with the baptism of repentance," answered Paul, "telling the people to believe on One who was coming after him, namely, on Jesus." When they heard this they were baptized into the name of the Lord Jesus; and after Paul had laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them, and they began to speak with tongues, and to prophesy. They were in all about twelve men. Then Paul went into the synagogue, and there continued to preach fearlessly for about three months, reasoning and persuading them about the kingdom of God. But when some grew hardened and disobedient, and spoke evil of the Way before the crowd, he left them, withdrew the disciples, and continued to hold discussions daily in the lecture-hall of Tyrannus. This went on for two years, so that all the inhabitants of Asia heard the Lord's message, Jews as well as Greeks. God also wrought extraordinary miracles by the hand of Paul; so much so, that handkerchiefs or aprons were carried away from his body to the sick; and their diseases departed from them, and the evil spirits went out. But there were also some strolling Jewish exorcists, who took it upon them to invoke the name of Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying, "I adjure you by that Jesus whom Paul preaches." There were seven sons of one Sceva, a Jewish high priest who used to do this. But the evil spirit answered, "Jesus I know, and Paul I have heard of, but who are you?" And the man in whom the evil spirit was sprang on two of them, overpowered them and prevailed against them, so that they fled out of the house naked and wounded. And this became known to all the people of Ephesus, both Jews and Greeks. Awe fell on them all, and the name of the Lord Jesus began to be held in honor. Many also of those who became believers used to come to confess and to declare their deeds. And some of them who had practised magic arts, collected their books, and burned them in the presence of all. And they counted the price of them, and found it to be fifty thousand silver coins. So mightily the word of the Lord continued to grow and to prevail.

After listening to this they were filled with rage, and cried out again and again, saying, The city was filled with commotion. They rushed like one man into the theater, dragging with them Gaius and Aristarchus, Macedonians, Paul's companions in travel. read more. When Paul wanted to go in to the people, the disciples would not let him, and some of the Asiarchs, too, who were his friends, sent word to him repeatedly, entreating him not to venture into the theater. Now some were shouting one thing, some another, for the assembly was in an uproar, and the majority had no idea why they were come together. And they brought Alexander out of the crowd, whom the Jews had pushed forward. And Alexander, motioning with his hand, would have made a defense to the people, but when they saw that he was a Jew they all, with one voice, for about two hours, shouted, At length the recorder got them quiet. "Men of Ephesus," he said, "who here does not know that the city of the Ephesians is temple-guardian of the great Diana and of the image which fell down from Jupiter?

From Miletus he sent to Ephesus for the elders of the church to come to him;

(For they had formerly seen Trophimus, the Ephesian, with him in the city, and supposed that Paul had brought him into the temple.)

If after the manner of men I have fought with wild beasts at Ephesus, what good does it do me? If the dead do not rise, Let us eat and drink, For we shall be dead tomorrow.

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms in Christ.

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms in Christ.

which he exercised in raising Christ from the dead, and in seating him at his right hand in the heavenly heights,

together with him He raised us from the dead, and together with Christ Jesus seated us in the heavenly realm,

in order that now his manifold wisdom should, through the church, be made known to the principalities and powers in the heavenly sphere,

This then I tell you and implore you in the Master's name, to pass your lives no longer as the Gentiles do in the perverseness of their minds;

For our wrestling is not against flesh and blood, but against the despotisms, the empires, the rulers of this present darkness, the spirit-hosts of evil in the heavenly realm.

As I begged you when I was setting out for Macedonia, stay where you are at Ephesus, and instruct certain individuals there not to be teaching heterodoxy,

You already know that all the Christians in Roman Asia forsook me, among them Phygellus and Hermogenes.

Tychicus I have sent to Ephesus.

To the angel of the Church in Ephesus, write. These are the words of Him who holds the seven stars in his right hand, and who walks among the seven golden candlesticks. I know your works and your toil and stedfastness, and that you cannot endure evil men, and that you tested those who called themselves apostles, though they are not, and how you found them false. read more. You are holding fast, and have borne up for my name's sake, and have not grown weary. But I have this against you, that you have left your first love. Remember whence you have fallen, and turn again, and do your first works. Otherwise I am coming to you and will remove your candlestick out of its place, unless you repent. But this you have, that you hate the works of the Nicolaitans, which I hate. He who has an ear, let him listen to what the Spirit is saying to the churches. To him that overcomes, to him will I give to eat from the tree of life which is in the garden of God.