While Apollos was at Corinth, Paul passed through the inland districts of Roman Asia, and went to Ephesus. There he found some disciples, of whom he asked:
This incident came to the knowledge of all the Jews and Greeks living at Ephesus; they were all awe-struck, and the Name of the Lord Jesus was held in the highest honor.
And you see and hear that not only at Ephesus, but in almost the whole of Roman Asia, this Paul has convinced and won over great numbers of people, by his assertion that those Gods which are made by hands are not Gods at all.
When the Recorder had succeeded in quieting the crowd, he said: "Men of Ephesus, who is there, I ask you, who needs to be told that this city of Ephesus is the Warden of the Temple of the great Artemis, and of the statue which fell down from Zeus?
For Paul had decided to sail past Ephesus, so as to avoid spending much time in Roman Asia. He was making haste to reach Jerusalem, if possible, by the Festival at the close of the Harvest.
(For they had previously seen Trophimus the Ephesian in Paul's company in the city, and were under the belief that Paul had taken him into the Temple.)
If with only human hopes I had fought in the arena at Ephesus, what should I have gained by it? If the dead do not rise, then-'Let us eat and drink, for to-morrow we shall die'!
I beg you, as I did when I was on my way into Macedonia, to remain at Ephesus; that you may instruct certain people there not to teach new and strange doctrines,
The Lord grant that he may find mercy at the hands of the Lord on 'That Day.' The many services that he rendered at Ephesus you have the best means of knowing.
It said-- 'Write what you see in a book and send it to the seven Churches, to Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamus, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicaea.'
To the Angel of the Church in Ephesus write:-- "These are the words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand, and walks among the seven golden lamps:--