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- Acts Chapter 19 (part 2)
"When disciples followed a rabbi, they followed him closely so they would never be out of his sight, never be someplace where they couldn’t hear him speak. They followed him so closely that his sandals often kicked up dust."
May you be covered in His dust.
👉🏽 Read Chapter 19 HERE before reading my notes. If you don’t, my notes won’t make as much sense.
You can access previous notes on Acts and Luke HERE.
Grace and peace to you, saints, as the day ends—may your rest be in the Lord, who never sleeps.
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We’re in the back half of Acts. Let me catch you up.
As you read the Bible—especially the Book of Acts—writing a 2–3 sentence summary for each chapter can help you stay focused. It works for me. Here are mine.
Acts 1 Jesus told His disciples to wait—the Holy Spirit was coming. Then He ascended, and they were left staring at the sky, wondering what came next.
Acts 2 The waiting ended. The Spirit came, Peter preached, and thousands believed.
Acts 3 A crippled man wanted money but got something better—healing in Jesus’ name. Peter saw the crowd and didn’t hold back: This was Jesus.
Acts 4 The religious leaders tried to shut them up. Peter and John wouldn’t.
Acts 5 Sin was exposed, miracles increased, and the apostles were arrested. They walked away beaten—but rejoicing.
Acts 6 The church was growing, but so were the needs. Seven men were chosen to serve—one of them, Stephen, would soon give his life.
Acts 7 Stephen stood before the council and laid out the whole story—God’s faithfulness, Israel’s rebellion, and Jesus, the Righteous One they had killed. They couldn’t stand the truth, so they stoned him.
Acts 8 Persecution scattered the church. The gospel spread anyway. Philip preached in Samaria, demons fled, and an Ethiopian went home with the good news.
Acts 9 Saul was hunting Christians when Jesus stopped him cold. The persecutor became a preacher, and the church had to decide—could they trust him?
Acts 10 Peter had a vision. A Roman centurion had one too. And just like that, the gospel broke through to the Gentiles.
Acts 11 Peter told the church what happened, and at first, they weren’t sure. Then they realized—God was doing something bigger than they ever imagined.
Acts 12 Herod killed James and arrested Peter. But while the church prayed, an angel showed up, chains fell off, and Peter walked out of prison.
Acts 13 Paul and Barnabas were sent out. They preached, people believed, and opposition followed them wherever they went.
Acts 14 One day they were hailed as gods. The next? Dragged out and stoned. But Paul got up and kept preaching.
Acts 15 A fight broke out—did Gentiles need to follow the law to be saved? The answer was clear: Jesus alone saves.
Acts 16 Paul and Silas were beaten and chained—but they sang anyway. At midnight, an earthquake hit, doors flew open, and a jailer found Jesus.
Acts 17 Paul preached in synagogues, marketplaces, and on Mars Hill. Some laughed, some listened, and some believed.
Acts 18 Paul met Priscilla and Aquila, preached in Corinth, and didn’t back down. Even when opposition rose, God told him to stay—and many were saved.
Boom! Let’s get into it.
Last week, as we walked through the first verses of chapter 19, Paul traveled to Ephesus and met some disciples.
They’d been baptized, but only with John’s baptism—a baptism of repentance. John had told people to believe in the One who was coming after him.
But they didn’t know that He had died, risen again, and promised the Holy Spirit. They were following what they knew, but their knowledge was incomplete.
Paul revealed what John had been pointing to all along.
Jesus was the One they had been waiting for.
When they heard this, they were baptized in His name.
Paul laid hands on them and the Holy Spirit came upon them. They spoke in tongues and prophesied.
And just like that, Paul’s ministry in Ephesus began.
God was about to show His power in ways they wouldn’t forget.
And God was doing extraordinary miracles by the hands of Paul, so that even handkerchiefs or aprons that had touched his skin were carried away to the sick, and their diseases left them and the evil spirits came out of them.
I love that Luke writes that it was God who was doing “extraordinary miracles” through Paul. The New King James Version describes them as “unusual miracles.”
Aren’t all miracles extraordinary? What made these miracles different?
These miracles were unusual because they were indirect.
Most miracles in the Bible happen through touch, a spoken word, or an intentional act. But here, even handkerchiefs and aprons that had touched Paul carried God’s power—healing the sick and casting out demons.
This wasn’t common. Even Jesus, though He healed in many ways, didn’t usually do it like this. The closest example is the woman who was healed by touching the edge of His robe (Mark 5:27-30).
Then some of the itinerant Jewish exorcists undertook to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying, “I adjure you by the Jesus whom Paul proclaims.” Seven sons of a Jewish high priest named Sceva were doing this.
Itinerant means traveling from place to place rather than staying in one location.
So, itinerant Jewish exorcists were Jewish men who traveled around, performing exorcisms. They probably made a living by casting out demons (or at least attempting to), moving from town to town offering their services.
In this case, the seven sons of Sceva were among these traveling exorcists, but they tried to use Jesus’ name without actually knowing Him—and that didn’t go well for them.
Waiiiiit a minute.
They were sons of a Jewish high priest? That seems odd.
The text calls them “sons of a Jewish high priest named Sceva.”
But there’s a problem.
Sceva isn’t listed as a high priest anywhere in Jewish history.
And the high priesthood? It was a well-documented position. If Sceva had been one, we’d expect to see his name. But we don’t.
Then there’s this—high priests didn’t have itinerant exorcist sons.
The high priesthood was centered in Jerusalem, with strict temple duties. His sons wouldn’t have been roaming around, casting out demons for a living.
So what’s going on?
Maybe Sceva was a former high priest?
Some scholars think he could have been from a priestly family but not an actual high priest.
Or maybe 'high priest' was just a title he took for himself.
Some Jewish leaders liked to claim big titles—especially in mystical or exorcist circles—even if they weren’t the real deal.
Whatever the case, these men were throwing around Jesus’ name without actually knowing Him.
And as we’ll see next, that backfired—in a big way.
But the evil spirit answered them, “Jesus I know, and Paul I recognize, but who are you?”
That verse is chilling.
"Jesus I know, and Paul I recognize, but who are you?"
Hell knew Jesus. Of course.
Hell knew Paul. He was a threat.
But these guys? Nobody.
What does that mean for us?
Spiritual warfare is real. And the enemy targets warriors.
If hell knows your name, it’s because you’re in the fight. Preaching the gospel. Teaching the truth. Pushing back darkness.
If hell doesn’t know you? You’re probably playing it safe.
What do those known by hell look like?
They’re sharing their faith.
Teaching the Word.
Standing firm.
Reading your Bible, going to church, listening to Christian music—those things are good. But if that’s all you’re doing, you’re staying comfortable.
The enemy isn’t worried about comfortable Christians.
And the man in whom was the evil spirit leaped on them, mastered all of them and overpowered them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded. And this became known to all the residents of Ephesus, both Jews and Greeks. And fear fell upon them all, and the name of the Lord Jesus was extolled.
One demon-possessed man overpowered seven of them so badly that they ran away naked and bleeding.
Fear fell on the entire city—not because of the demon, but because of Jesus.
When was the last time the power of God struck fear into people?
Not just reverence.
Not just awe.
Fear.
We love talking about God’s love and grace. But here’s the other side—His power is terrifying to those who aren’t submitted to Him.
And here’s the real gut check: Are you living in a way that would make hell take notice?
Also many of those who were now believers came, confessing and divulging their practices. And a number of those who had practiced magic arts brought their books together and burned them in the sight of all. And they counted the value of them and found it came to fifty thousand pieces of silver.
Ephesus was full of magic, sorcery, and the occult.
It was home to the Temple of Artemis, one of the most famous pagan sites in the ancient world.
People in Ephesus regularly used spells, magic, and exorcisms. They even had Ephesian Letters—magical charms with words of power, known across the Roman world.
For many new believers, sorcery wasn’t just something they knew about—it was a normal part of life.
And this is a big deal.
They were coming clean—openly confessing and exposing the things they had been involved in. Many were probably still dabbling in magic, sorcery, or occult practices even after believing in Jesus.
But now? They were done hiding it.
This moment wasn’t just about repentance. It was about full surrender.
This verse is huge because it shows that salvation is just the beginning. There’s often a process of letting go—turning away from old ways and walking fully in the light.
And the silver?
That’s fifty thousand drachmas—one drachma per day’s wage. That means they burned the equivalent of 137 years of wages for one person.
In today’s money? Easily millions of dollars.
They weren’t just tossing out junk.
They were giving up something valuable—because they had found something greater.
So the word of the Lord continued to increase and prevail mightily.
Nothing could stop it.
The word of the Lord spread with power.
It wasn’t just growing—it was prevailing. Pushing back darkness. Breaking chains. Turning the city upside down.
Magic? Burned.
False power? Crushed.
Jesus? Unstoppable.
The gospel wasn’t just being preached. It was taking over.
One Minute Inspiration
I love you,
George
Uncovering Scripture
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George Sisneros is a full-time missionary in Guatemala and the founder of Ordinary Missionaries and the El Rosario Christian Academy for Boys.
He’s been married to his wife, Vonda, for 26 years. He’s a father to nine children, five adopted.
In 2024, George and his wife expanded to Cuba, joining forces with nine pastors committed to transforming lives through the gospel.