Acts 19:21–41

A Riot at Ephesus

²¹Now after these events Paul resolved in the Spirit ^uto pass through ^vMacedonia and Achaia and ^wgo to Jerusalem, saying, “After I have been there, ^xI must also see Rome.” ²²And having sent into Macedonia two of ^yhis helpers, ^zTimothy and Erastus, he himself stayed in Asia ^afor a while.

²³About that time ^bthere arose no little disturbance concerning ^cthe Way. ²⁴For a man named Demetrius, a silversmith, who made silver shrines of Artemis, ^dbrought no little business to the craftsmen. ^25dThese he gathered together, with the workmen in similar trades, and said, “Men, you know that from this business we have our wealth. ²⁶And you see and hear that not only in Ephesus but in almost all of Asia this Paul has persuaded and turned away a great many people, ^esaying that ^fgods made with hands are not gods. ²⁷And there is danger not only that this trade of ours may come into disrepute but also that the temple of the ^ggreat goddess Artemis may be counted as nothing, and that she may even be deposed from her magnificence, she whom all Asia and the world worship.”

²⁸When they heard this they were enraged and were crying out, ^g“Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!” ²⁹So the city was filled with the confusion, and they rushed together into the theater, dragging with them Gaius and ^hAristarchus, Macedonians who were Paul’s ⁱcompanions in travel. ³⁰But when Paul wished to go in among the crowd, the disciples would not let him. ³¹And even some of the Asiarchs,⁵ who were friends of his, sent to him and were urging him not to venture into the theater. ^32jNow some cried out one thing, some another, for the assembly was in confusion, and most of them did not know why they had come together. ³³Some of the crowd prompted Alexander, whom the Jews had put forward. And Alexander, ^kmotioning with his hand, wanted to make a defense to the crowd. ³⁴But when they recognized that he was a Jew, for about two hours they all cried out with one voice, ^l“Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!”

³⁵And when the town clerk had quieted the crowd, he said, “Men of Ephesus, who is there who does not know that the city of the Ephesians is temple keeper of the great Artemis, and of the sacred stone that fell from ^mthe sky?^{6 36}Seeing then that these things cannot be denied, you ought to be quiet and do nothing rash. ³⁷For you have brought ⁿthese men here who are neither ^osacrilegious nor blasphemers of our goddess. ³⁸If therefore Demetrius and the craftsmen with him have a complaint against anyone, the courts are open, and there are ^pproconsuls. Let them bring charges against one another. ³⁹But if you seek anything further,⁷ it shall be settled in the regular assembly. ⁴⁰For we really are in danger of being charged with rioting today, since there is no cause that we can give to justify this commotion.” ⁴¹And when he had said these things, he dismissed the assembly.