191 It happened that while Apollos was at Corinth , Paul passed through the upper country and came to Ephesus , and found some disciples . 2 He said to them, " Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed ?" And they said to him, "No , we have not even heard whether there is a Holy Spirit ." 3 And he said , "Into what then were you baptized ?" And they said , " Into John's baptism ." 4 Paul said , " John baptized with the baptism of repentance , telling the people to believe in Him who was coming after him, that is, in Jesus ." 5 When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus . 6 And when Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they began speaking with tongues and prophesying . 7 There were in all about twelve men .
8 And he entered the synagogue and continued speaking out boldly for three months , reasoning and persuading them about the kingdom of God . 9 But when some were becoming hardened and disobedient , speaking evil of the Way before the people , he withdrew from them and took away the disciples , reasoning daily e in the school of Tyrannus . 10 This took place for two years , so that all who lived in Asia heard the word of the Lord , both Jews and Greeks . 11 God was performing extraordinary miracles by the hands of Paul , 12 so that handkerchiefs or aprons were even carried from his body to the sick , and the diseases left them and the evil spirits went out.
13 But also some of the Jewish exorcists , who went from place to place , attempted to name over those who had the evil spirits the name of the Lord Jesus , saying , "I adjure you by Jesus whom Paul preaches ." 14 Seven sons of one Sceva , a Jewish chief priest , were doing this . 15 And the evil spirit answered and said to them, "I recognize Jesus , and I know about Paul , but who are you?" 16 And the man , in whom was the evil spirit , leaped on them and subdued all of them and overpowered them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded . 17 This became known to all , both Jews and Greeks , who lived in Ephesus ; and fear fell upon them all and the name of the Lord Jesus was being magnified . 18 Many also of those who had believed kept coming , confessing and disclosing their practices . 19 And many of those who practiced magic brought their books together and began burning them in the sight of everyone ; and they counted up the price of them and found it fifty e thousand pieces of silver . 20 So the word of the Lord was growing mightily and prevailing .
21 Now after these things were finished , Paul purposed in the Spirit to go to Jerusalem after he had passed through Macedonia and Achaia , saying , "After I have been there , I must also see Rome ." 22 And having sent into Macedonia two of those who ministered to him, Timothy and Erastus , he himself stayed in Asia for a while .
23 About that time there occurred no small disturbance concerning the Way . 24 For a man named Demetrius , a silversmith , who made silver shrines of Artemis , was bringing no little business to the craftsmen ; 25 these he gathered together with the workmen of similar trades, and said , "Men , you know that our prosperity depends e upon this business . 26 "You see and hear that not only in Ephesus , but in almost all of Asia , this Paul has persuaded and turned away a considerable number of people , saying that gods made with hands are no gods at all. 27 "Not only is there danger that this trade of ours fall into disrepute , but also that the temple of the great goddess Artemis be regarded as worthless and that she whom all of Asia and the world worship will even be dethroned from her magnificence ." 28 When they heard this and were filled with rage , they began crying out, saying , "Great is Artemis of the Ephesians !" 29 The city was filled with the confusion , and they rushed with one accord into the theater , dragging along Gaius and Aristarchus , Paul's traveling companions from Macedonia . 30 And when Paul wanted to go into the assembly , the disciples would not let him. 31 Also some of the Asiarchs who were friends of his sent to him and repeatedly urged him not to venture e into the theater . 32 So then , some were shouting one thing and some another , for the assembly was in confusion and the majority did not know for what reason they had come together . 33 Some of the crowd concluded it was Alexander , since the Jews had put him forward ; and having motioned with his hand , Alexander was intending to make a defense to the assembly . 34 But when they recognized that he was a Jew , a single outcry arose from them all as they shouted for about two hours , "Great is Artemis of the Ephesians !" 35 After quieting the crowd , the town clerk said , "Men of Ephesus , what man is there after all who does not know that the city of the Ephesians is guardian of the temple of the great Artemis and of the image which fell down from heaven ? 36 "So , since these are undeniable facts , you ought to keep calm and to do nothing rash . 37 "For you have brought these men here who are neither robbers of temples nor blasphemers of our goddess . 38 "So then , if Demetrius and the craftsmen who are with him have a complaint against any man , the courts are in session and proconsuls are available; let them bring charges against one another . 39 "But if you want anything beyond this, it shall be settled in the lawful assembly . 40 "For indeed we are in danger of being accused of a riot in connection with today's events, since there is no real cause for it, and in this connection we will be unable e to account e for this disorderly gathering ." 41 After saying this he dismissed the assembly .
31 Now Peter and John were going up to the temple at the ninth hour, the hour of prayer . 2 And a man who had been lame from his mother's womb was being carried along, whom they used to set down every day at the gate of the temple which is called Beautiful , in order to beg alms of those who were entering the temple . 3 When he saw Peter and John about to go into the temple , he began asking to receive alms . 4 But Peter , along with John , fixed his gaze on him and said , "Look at us!" 5 And he began to give them his attention , expecting to receive something from them. 6 But Peter said , "I do not possess silver and gold , but what I do have I give to you: In the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene -walk !" 7 And seizing him by the right hand , he raised him up; and immediately his feet and his ankles were strengthened . 8 With a leap he stood upright and began to walk ; and he entered the temple with them, walking and leaping and praising God . 9 And all the people saw him walking and praising God ; 10 and they were taking note of him as being the one who used to sit at the Beautiful Gate of the temple to beg alms , and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him.
11 While he was clinging to Peter and John , all the people ran together to them at the so-called portico of Solomon , full of amazement .
12 But when Peter saw this, he replied to the people , "Men of Israel , why are you amazed at this , or why do you gaze at us, as if by our own power or piety we had made him walk ? 13 " The God of Abraham , Isaac and Jacob , the God of our fathers , has glorified His servant Jesus , the one whom you delivered and disowned in the presence of Pilate , when he had decided to release Him. 14 "But you disowned the Holy and Righteous One and asked for a murderer to be granted to you, 15 but put to death the Prince of life , the one whom God raised from the dead , a fact to which we are witnesses . 16 "And on the basis of faith in His name , it is the name of Jesus which has strengthened this man whom you see and know ; and the faith which comes through Him has given him this perfect health in the presence of you all . 17 "And now , brethren , I know that you acted in ignorance , just as your rulers did also . 18 "But the things which God announced beforehand by the mouth of all the prophets , that His Christ would suffer , He has thus fulfilled . 19 "Therefore repent and return , so that your sins may be wiped away , in order that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord ; 20 and that He may send Jesus , the Christ appointed for you, 21 whom heaven must receive until the period of restoration of all things about which God spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets from ancient time . 22 "Moses said , ' THE Lord GOD WILL RAISE UP FOR YOU A PROPHET LIKE ME FROM YOUR BRETHREN ; TO HIM YOU SHALL GIVE HEED to everything He says to you. 23 ' And it will be that every soul that does not heed that prophet shall be utterly destroyed from among the people .' 24 "And likewise , all the prophets who have spoken , from Samuel and his successors onward , also announced these days . 25 "It is you who are the sons of the prophets and of the covenant which God made with your fathers , saying to Abraham , ' AND IN YOUR SEED ALL THE FAMILIES OF THE EARTH SHALL BE BLESSED .' 26 "For you first , God raised up His Servant and sent Him to bless you by turning every one of you from your wicked ways ."
