But when they realized that he was a Jew, they all shouted in unison for about two hours: “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!”
Parallel translations
- WEB But when they perceived that he was a Jew, all with one voice for a time of about two hours cried out, “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!”
- KJV But when they knew that he was a Jew, all with one voice about the space of two hours cried out, Great is Diana of the Ephesians.
- NKJV But when they found out that he was a Jew, all with one voice cried out for about two hours, “Great is Diana of the Ephesians!”
- NASB 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!”
- NLT But when the crowd realized he was a Jew, they started shouting again and kept it up for about two hours: “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians! Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!”
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
When the crowd realized Alexander was a Jew, they drowned him out for two hours chanting, Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!
Overview
The mob's blind devotion to Artemis overwhelmed any attempt at reasoned speech. Their fanatical, hours-long chant reveals the grip of idolatry on the city. The scene starkly contrasts mindless idol-worship with the truth of the living God whom Paul proclaimed.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 7
- Acts 19:28When the men heard this, they were enraged and began shouting, “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!”
- Acts 16:20They brought them to the magistrates and said, “These men are Jews and are throwing our city into turmoil
- Matt 6:7And when you pray, do not babble on like pagans, for they think that by their many words they will be heard.
- Rev 13:4They worshiped the dragon who had given authority to the beast, and they worshiped the beast, saying, “Who is like the beast, and who can wage war against it?”
- Rom 2:22You who forbid adultery, do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples?
- Acts 19:26And you can see and hear that not only in Ephesus, but in nearly the whole province of Asia, Paul has persuaded a great number of people to turn away. He says that man-made gods are no gods at all.
- 1 Kgs 18:26And they took the bull that was given them, prepared it, and called on the name of Baal from morning until noon, shouting, “O Baal, answer us!” But there was no sound, and no one answered as they leaped around the altar they had made.
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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 19:34 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
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