No Gods at All

 Acts 19:23-41

Good morning! Today we continue our series in the Book of Acts, looking at the second half of Chapter 19. Last week, John shared about the events surrounding Paul’s arrival in Ephesus, and today’s passage will also take place in this city. The first part of the chapter tells us that Paul spent his first three months in Ephesus “speaking boldly” and “arguing persuasively” in the synagogue. We are told in verse 9, “but some of them became obstinate, they refused to believe and publicly maligned the Way,” the “Way” being a term for followers of Christ, a term that is undoubtedly connected to Jesus’ own words “I am the way and the truth and life. No man comes to the Father except through Me” which is in John 14:6. I would point out that if only “some” of those in the synagogue became obstinate, then others did not – and in fact there grew to be a population of Jewish believers in Ephesus. But it seems that at the end of those three months, Paul was no longer welcome in the synagogue, and so we are told that Paul left the synagogue and began to have daily discussions in a place called the lecture hall of Tyrannus. We don’t know the details, but whoever controlled that location was likely a believer who offered this facility in support of Paul. This brings us to Acts 19:10, which is quite a remarkable verse:

This went on for two years, so that all the Jews and Greeks who lived in the province of Asia heard the word of the Lord. – Acts 19:10

It is estimated that 2 million people lived in the province of Asia. Did all 2 million of them hear the gospel by going to the lecture hall of Tyrannus? No, I don’t think this is what the passage is implying. What it is implying is that Paul trained disciples at the lecture hall of Tyrannus, and these disciples went out throughout the province of Asia so that no significantly sized community in the entire province did not get exposure to the gospel through these disciples. Did Paul even train every disciple personally? No, I don’t think so. In the Great Commission the disciples are told by Jesus to go and make disciples, and the result is the power of multiplication – exponential growth. Over the past few years, we have seen the negative effects of exponential growth by watching how the Covid virus so permeated the world that almost every human has been exposed. But over this two-year period in Paul’s life, the gospel spread in an equally unimaginable way, spreading with astonishing speed, changing individual lives, families, communities, and ultimately, the entire region.  No, Paul did not save each person personally – indeed, he almost certainly never even met the vast, vast majority of those who came to faith in Christ in this period.  

Now the passage goes on to say that God did do extraordinary miracles through Paul; even handkerchiefs and aprons which touched him God used to bring miraculous healing and deliverance from evil spirits. And so I do not doubt that the crowds that surrounded Paul were large, much like what happened around Jesus. But these things only helped to spread the gospel, the good news of what Jesus has done, even faster. 

One more event and its aftermath is described in last week’s passage: Seven sons of a Jewish chief priest decided to take it upon themselves to ty to drive out evil spirits from demon-possessed people by invoking the name of Jesus. This backfired – the demon stated that he knew Jesus and knew about Paul but never heard of them, and then the man possessed by the spirit overpowered them all. News of this event spread like wildfire throughout Ephesus, causing many to be filled with godly fear and turn to the Lord. As a result, some who had practiced sorcery brought the scrolls together and burned them publicly. 

And so, putting these events together, what we can say is that the gospel was spreading and deeply infiltrating not only the Jewish community in Ephesus, but the march larger Gentile population, and not just in Ephesus but throughout the surrounding area. This brings us to today’s passage.

About that time there arose a great disturbance about the Way. A silversmith named Demetrius, who made silver shrines of Artemis, brought in a lot of business for the craftsmen there. He called them together, along with the workers in related trades, and said: “You know, my friends, that we receive a good income from this business. And you see and hear how this fellow Paul has convinced and led astray large numbers of people here in Ephesus and in practically the whole province of Asia. He says that gods made by human hands are no gods at all. There is danger not only that our trade will lose its good name, but also that the temple of the great goddess Artemis will be discredited; and the goddess herself, who is worshiped throughout the province of Asia and the world, will be robbed of her divine majesty.” – Acts 19:23-27

Now, Ephesus was more famous for its Temple of Artemis than it was for anything else. This temple was just outside of Ephesus. It has been designated as one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, along with the Great Pyramid of Giza (which is the only one of the Seven Wonders still in existence, although its façade is mostly gone), the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, the Statue of Zeus at Olympia, the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus, the Colossus of Rhodes, and the Lighthouse of Alexandria.  

The first version of the Temple, dedicated to the goddess Artemis, was destroyed by a flood in the seventh century BC. Myths attribute its building to the Amazons. The Temple was rebuilt in a much larger form from 550 to 540 BC, funded by Croesus, king of Lydia. Shortly after completing the project, Croesus was defeated by Cyrus the Great, the same Cyrus mentioned in the Book of Ezra. This Temple stood until 356 BC, about 200 years, when it was destroyed by an arsonist named Herostratus. He did this simply because he wanted to be famous. He was of course executed for this crime. There is a term named after him, Herostratic fame, which means fame sought at any cost. 

A third version of the Temple was built starting in 323 BC, this time paid for locally by the Ephesians. Alexander the Great offered to pay for it, but the Ephesians – with great tact – told him that it would be improper for one god to build a temple to another. This Temple was 150 yards long (so 1.5 times longer than a football field) 75 yards wide, and 60 feet high, with at least 127 columns. Literary sources describe the Temple as adorned by paintings and sculptures from the very best artists and sculptors of the time. This was the Temple that stood at the time of the Book of Acts. 

Now, the Romans often conflated gods together, and they identified Artemis with Diana, daughter of Zeus, sister of Apollo, goddess of the hunt, wild animals, fertility, and the Moon. For those into DC movies, the superhero Wonder Woman was written with these stories in mind, as Wonder Woman was connected to the Amazons, and even had the name Diana. 

Now the appearance of Diana throughout the Roman Empire was as a beautiful woman, but the appearance of Artemis of Ephesus was something entirely different, something more ancient. Countless small figurines of this image were made, often with wood, and adorned with metal jewelry and precious stones. 

In our passage, Demetrius was a silversmith who either made standalone silver images or silver coverings of wood figurines of Artemis. At this time, skilled laborers were members of something like guilds, kind of like modern trade unions, and based on what this passage says, it is likely that Demetrius was a leader of a trade guild that seemingly included multiple trades, not just silversmiths. And Demetrius brings all these people together and tells them that Paul and his Christianity were a threat to their livelihoods, because so many people were turning to Christ and away from the traditional gods. And in reference to our title for today’s message, he says that Paul is teaching the people that “gods made by human hands are no gods at all.”

Ironically, we have absolutely nothing left of either the silver coverings or complete silver sculptures of Artemis. Being a valuable metal, anything made of silver was undoubtedly melted down to be used for some other purpose. And so quite literally, the gods made by Demetrius and his fellow silversmiths today are not only not gods at all; they aren’t anything at all.  

Now, we all know that God forbids making personal idols to false gods, and that is exactly what these were. 

Now Demetrius masterfully stirs the people up by appealing to fears of (1) losing their income, (2) losing their honor as tradesmen, and (3) having their goddess herself greatly dishonored. I think it is hardest for us to appreciate the third appeal, so let me say a bit more about it. The people of Ephesus were extremely proud of their Temple, not only because it brought so much income from visitors to Ephesus, but also because their very identity as a city – of which they were very proud – was completely linked to Artemis and her Temple. It is hard for us to identify with the depths to which ancient peoples often tied their identities to their cities, but this was a huge thing back then. You may identify as an American, or a South Carolinian, or your high school or college football team, but it is not the same. 

What is the result of Demetrius’ speech?

When they heard this, they were furious and began shouting: “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!” Soon the whole city was in an uproar. The people seized Gaius and Aristarchus, Paul’s traveling companions from Macedonia, and all of them rushed into the theater together. Paul wanted to appear before the crowd, but the disciples would not let him. Even some of the officials of the province, friends of Paul, sent him a message begging him not to venture into the theater. – Acts 19:28-31

The content of their shout ties into this idea of their identity. Note that they don’t say “Great is Diana,” using the terminology of Rome, but “Great is Artemis,” and even that is not enough – they knew their Artemis was unique, ancient, and to them, special. So they didn’t just say “Great is Artemis,” but “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians.” That Artemis. 

The ”theater” here is likely the main theater in Ephesus. From archaeology we know where it was, and some ruins of it still exit. It was a huge outdoor place cut into a hillside, a place that 25 thousand people could fit into. We aren’t told how many people came there, but it is possible they filled the place. The situation is very unstable – this is the nature of mob behavior. The people wanted to solve the problem immediately by finding Paul and killing him. Paul was not there at the time, and as the passage says, he wanted to address the crowd, no doubt to attempt to share the gospel with them, but Paul’s friends who were officials begged him not to, because they knew the people wanted blood. 

These officials in the Greek were called asiarchs, people from the Roman government who watched over the local leaders to make sure that they keep their people in line. They were called asiarchs because they were the officials in the province of Asia. In other provinces they had other names, such as Galatiarchs in Galatia, Macedoniarchs in Macedonia, and so on. Why were some of them friends with Paul? Probably because they had become believers in Christ.

Now I want to point out that although Demetrius is the person who whipped up these people into a frenzy, and Demetrius bears responsibility for the results of his actions, the ultimate mastermind behind these events is not Demetrius, but Satan. This has been true throughout Acts. When people harden their hearts against the gospel message, Satan is able to use them to accomplish his own purposes, and one of his greatest purposes is to thwart the spread of the gospel. And this is because every advancement of the gospel is simultaneously a retreat for Satan. I think of Matt. 16:18, where Jesus said, “I tell you that you are Peter (which means rock), and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.” To not overcome a building project means that the land is successfully taken, kept, and transformed, that the building is built. Advancement of the church means shrinkage of the kingdom of Satan. 

The assembly was in confusion: Some were shouting one thing, some another. Most of the people did not even know why they were there. The Jews in the crowd pushed Alexander to the front, and they shouted instructions to him. He motioned for silence in order to make a defense before the people. But when they realized he was a Jew, they all shouted in unison for about two hours: “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!” – Acts 19:32-34

And so there is general chaos, with lots of people just coming out because they heard shouting – many of them still have no idea what is going on. Even though the situation was quite dangerous, Luke writes with a humorous touch. The people hear shouting, so they leave their homes or workplaces to go to the source of the noise and join in on the shouts, saying “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians” over and over. In between shouts, they shout to the people closest to them, “What’s going on?” And the people next to them shout back, “Not a clue!” They shrug their shoulders and keep on with the chant. It’s certainly more exciting that whatever they were doing, anyway. Ephesus had a long history of rebelling against its overlords and even switching sides in battles, so maybe some of them saw this as an opportunity to protest their Roman governance. This makes sense to me given the words of the chant, choosing the name Artemis rather than Diana, and being specific about Artemis of the Ephesians, the ancient Artemis – in their minds, the ”real” Artemis. 

Now let’s talk about the actions of the Jews who were no doubt non-Christian Jews. The passage is short on details, but it is likely that they know what is really going on and see it as an opportunity to get the crowd as a whole to turn against Paul and get rid of him once and for all. Now, we don’t know for sure who Alexander is, as it is a pretty common name, but an Alexander is mentioned in Paul’s second letter to Timothy. This letter is a flash forward to the future of multiple years, maybe 10 years or more. Paul is now in chains, arrested for his faith, something we will see more about in the coming chapters of Acts. And the letter has a deeply concerning line: Paul tells Timothy in 2 Tim. 1:15: “You know that everyone in the province of Asia has deserted me, including Phygelus and Hermogenes.” I do not take this to mean that Christianity has died out in the province of Asia, not at this point, but it does mean that among Paul’s small circle of direct contacts, these people have abandoned Paul now that he is in chains. Paul goes on to mention the household of Onesiphorus, who was of a great help to him in Ephesus. But I am getting off track – the verse I want to mention is 2 Tim. 4:14: “Alexander the metalworker did me a great deal of harm. The Lord will repay him for what he has done.” Is this the same Alexander? Possibly. The fact that he is a metalworker, and that the riot in Ephesus was started by Demetrius, another metalworker, is suspicious. Paul also mentions an Alexander, possibly the same one, in 1 Tim. 1:20, who he says he has handed over to Satan to be taught not to blaspheme. So if this is the same Alexander, it may have been someone who first behaved as a believer but then split from the believers and took many confused believers with him. Again, this might be the same Alexander in our passage or it might be someone else, but the fact that he is a metalworker is at least an interesting coincidence. In any case, the Alexander in Ephesus is a Jew who seemingly wishes to see Paul stopped. It is possible he is a believer, trying to present the gospel, but I don’t think this is the case, as I think Luke would be much clearer and call him a Jewish believer, not just a Jew. The Jews usher him to the front, and he tries to talk, but the crowd can tell he is a Jew by his attire, and they react, because they don’t see the Ephesian Jews as “real” Ephesians. After all, they don’t worship Artemis either! They certainly don’t buy their trinkets of Artemis. 

And so the crowd goes on shouting for two hours. This is a long time – it is surprising that nobody official shows up sooner, but perhaps they are afraid of the size of the crowd and not sure how to stop the riot. Or perhaps it takes this long to send word for the right officials to come and for them to get there and figure out what is actually happening.

The city clerk quieted the crowd and said: “Fellow Ephesians, doesn’t all the world know that the city of Ephesus is the guardian of the temple of the great Artemis and of her image, which fell from heaven? Therefore, since these facts are undeniable, you ought to calm down and not do anything rash. You have brought these men here, though they have neither robbed temples nor blasphemed our goddess. If, then, Demetrius and his fellow craftsmen have a grievance against anybody, the courts are open and there are proconsuls. They can press charges. If there is anything further you want to bring up, it must be settled in a legal assembly. As it is, we are in danger of being charged with rioting because of what happened today. In that case we would not be able to account for this commotion, since there is no reason for it.” After he had said this, he dismissed the assembly. – Acts 19:35-41

And so at last a city official comes and speaks to the crowd. His opening statement is, in my opinion, very telling. Fellow Ephesians, doesn’t all the world know that the city of Ephesus is the guardian of the temple of the great Artemis and of her image, which fell from heaven? It seems that this official understands why this crowd has in fact erupted – the gospel is spreading so rapidly throughout the area that those who still believe in the old gods feel threatened by it. This reaction to the gospel is very common, and it still happens in many parts of the world today. Ministering in Hindu villages, for example, the evangelist at first may meet open, welcoming people, because they already worship tons of different gods, so what is one more? But as people turn their lives over to Christ, they also forsake all the lowercase g gods they used to worship. People in the village first see this as strange, but not a big deal. But when the gospel starts to really spread and more and more people stop worshiping the old gods, they feel threatened, and it is often at this point that real persecution begins. This is exactly what was happening in Ephesus, and I believe this is why Luke, directed by the Holy Spirit, includes today’s passage with all of its details in Acts. 

And so the city official starts by directly addressing this angst brought on by the fact that the gospel is spreading so significantly that it feels like, to these unbelievers, that the city itself is changing – which it certainly is, by the way, as that is what the gospel does – it transforms societies as well as individuals. An example of this is the ruling this week of the SC state supreme court affirming the abortion law passed by the legislature. There aren’t a lot of atheists out there that are opposed to abortion. It is predominantly the significant number of Christians in this state that have led to the pressure to get the legislature to act to produce this law. 

The general population of Ephesus saw Christianity as a sect of Judaism – they didn’t really care if Alexander or the other Jews there were Christian or not. They saw Christianity and the disruption and threat it was to their city, as a Jewish problem, because Paul and a number of other leaders of the movement looked Jewish, acted Jewish, and so on. And the city official is not making a distinction either. He points out that they have not robbed temples, and not – directly at least – blasphemed their goddess. But this is what Christianity does – it results in people leaving their idols behind, in no longer believing in what they formerly believed in, and when this happens on a large scale, as it did in Ephesus, and as it continues to happen around the world, the nonbelievers don’t like it, and neither does Satan, who works behind the scenes to fan the flames of discontent and persecution.

This riot was dispelled peacefully. Paul and the believers were safe. But this is not always the outcome. Persecution occurs somewhere around the world daily. We should remember our brothers and sisters around the world and pray for their safety, encouragement, and that the gospel would continue to spread and that believers would continue to multiply. And finally, we should prayerfully look for ways to be a part of the multiplying gospel, being disciples that make disciples, ourselves.