19:28
The actions of the traders who would lose out whipped up anger among the people. We need to be aware of how easy it is to whip up a storm of protest, we perhaps see this most today in “Twitter storms”. The local allegiance to Artemis was very high. So a mob was crying out “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians”.
19:29-31
This caused a great commotion in the city, and two of Paul’ travelling companions were also caught up in this, being dragged into the temple. The temple could hold about 20 000 people. The theatre was near the open market and contained various statues. Paul himself wanted to join them, but the other disciples stopped him. Paul was always ready to face up to opposition. However, we also see that even though he wa an apostle, the counsel of other disciples played a part. Asiarchs (officials of Asia) also warned him against going in.
19:32
Luke gives an accurate and insightful description of the mob. When activists of whatever sort insight some sort of mass protest most people do not really know what they are doing or why they are doing it. Interestingly enough, the Greek word used here to describe the assembly is “ekklesia”. So ekklesia in itself does not necessarily mean a church gathering, it all depends upon the context.
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