So the message about the Lord spread widely and had a powerful effect.
Parallel translations
- WEB So the word of the Lord was growing and becoming mighty.
- KJV So mightily grew the word of God and prevailed.
- BSB So the word of the Lord powerfully continued to spread and prevail.
- NKJV So the word of the Lord grew mightily and prevailed.
- NASB So the word of the Lord was growing and prevailing mightily.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
As a result, the word of the Lord kept spreading and growing powerfully.
Overview
This is one of Luke's summary statements marking the advance of the gospel (cf. Acts 6:7; 12:24). The dramatic conversions and renunciations fueled the word's increasing strength in Ephesus. It testifies that God's word triumphs even in strongholds of magic and idolatry.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 4
- Acts 12:24But the word of God grew and multiplied.
- Acts 6:7The word of God increased and the number of the disciples multiplied in Jerusalem exceedingly. A great company of the priests were obedient to the faith.
- Isa 55:11so is my word that goes out of my mouth: it will not return to me void, but it will accomplish that which I please, and it will prosper in the thing I sent it to do.
- 2 Th 3:1Finally, brothers, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may spread rapidly and be glorified, even as also with you;
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
Acts is the risen Christ continuing his work by the Spirit through the church, as the apostles preach that there is salvation in no other name under heaven.
How Acts 19:20 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.