Act 19:1-20 | TNotes | STEP | Summary for Acts 19:1-7: 19:1-7 Paul traveled to Ephesus after Apollos had left. Subsequently, Apollos returned to Ephesus while Paul was still working there (1 Cor 16:12 ). The two men had different personalities, gifts, and roles, but God worked through both of them. • Some believers in Ephesus still had an inadequate understanding of the Christian faith (cp. Acts 18:26 ) and did not receive the Holy Spirit when they believed . They had accepted John’s baptism , which called for repentance from sin , but had not received Christian baptism, which included the gift of the Holy Spirit. When Paul had instructed them further, they were able to receive Christian baptism (19:5 ) and the Holy Spirit (19:6 ).

Summary for Acts 19:1-7: 19:1-7 ^a Paul traveled to Ephesus after Apollos had left. Subsequently, Apollos returned to Ephesus while Paul was still working there (1 Cor 16:12 ^b). The two men had different personalities, gifts, and roles, but God worked through both of them.

• Some believers in Ephesus still had an inadequate understanding of the Christian faith (cp. Acts 18:26 ^c) and did not receive the Holy Spirit when they believed. They had accepted John’s baptism, which called for repentance from sin, but had not received Christian baptism, which included the gift of the Holy Spirit. When Paul had instructed them further, they were able to receive Christian baptism (19:5 ^d) and the Holy Spirit (19:6 ^e).
19:6 ^f When Paul laid his hands on them they received the Holy Spirit, spoke in other tongues and prophesied, thereby experiencing the same filling with God’s power and presence that the disciples had received on the day of Pentecost (2:4 ^g, 11 ^h).
19:10 ⁱ Paul probably wrote 1 Corinthians during this time (see 1 Corinthians Book Introduction, “Date and Occasion of Writing”).
Summary for Acts 19:11-12: 19:11-12 ^j Paul, like other Christian evangelists (3:1-11 ^k; 4:22 ^l; 5:12-16 ^m; 6:8 ⁿ; 8:6-7 ^o, 13 ^p; 9:33-42 ^q), performed unusual miracles.

• evil spirits were expelled: As Jesus and Peter had done (cp. 5:16 ^r; Mark 1:21-34 ^s; Luke 4:31-37 ^t).
Summary for Acts 19:13-16: 19:13-16 ^u Paul’s effectiveness is contrasted with the impotence of the traveling Jewish exorcists, who used the name of Jesus as though it were magical but did not have a relationship with him or the indwelling power of the Holy Spirit (cp. Matt 12:27 ^v; Mark 9:38-39 ^w; Luke 9:49-50 ^x; 11:19 ^y).
Summary for Acts 19:17-19: 19:17-19 ^z The contrast between Paul and the Jewish exorcists was not lost on the people of Ephesus, Jews and Greeks alike. The resulting fear caused the inhabitants to honor and respect the name of the Lord Jesus. It led many to confess and forsake their sinful practices, including sorcery.
19:20 ^aa Luke’s summary of the success of the Good News in Ephesus is short but pungent (cp. 2:43-47 ^ab; 5:14 ^ac; 6:7 ^ad; 9:31 ^ae; 12:24 ^af; 16:5 ^ag; see Rom 1:16 ^ah). When the Christian faith overcame problems of internal dissension, idolatry, and pagan practices, it spread widely and grew rapidly.