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Robertson's Word Pictures of the NT

Acts 19:20

Mightily

(κατα κρατος). According to strength. Only here in N.T., common military term in Thucydides. Such proof of a change counted.Grew and prevailed

(ηυξανεν κα ισχυεν). Imperfect actives, kept growing and gaining strength. It was a day of triumph for Christ in Ephesus, this city of vast wealth and superstition. Ephesus for centuries will be one of the centres of Christian power. Timothy will come here and John the Apostle and Polycarp and Irenaeus.

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See also Acts 19:20 in other biblical comments:

  • A Textual Commentary On The Greek New Testament by Bruce M. Metzger

    ACTS 19:20 tou/ kuri,ou o` lo,goj hu;xanen kai. i;scuen {B} A majority of the Committee preferred the Alexandrian reading (a* A B), on the consideration that it is more likely that the less usual ord...

  • Adam Clarke Bible Commentary

    Verse Acts 19:20. _SO MIGHTILY GREW THE WORD OF GOD, AND PREVAILED._] The Codex Bezae reads this verse thus: "So mightily grew the word of the Lord, and prevailed; _and the faith of God increased and...

  • Albert Barnes' Bible Commentary

    SO MIGHTILY GREW THE WORD OF GOD - So powerfully. It had such efficacy and power in this wicked city. That power must have been mighty which would thus make them willing not only to cease to practice...

  • Annotated Bible by A.C. Gaebelein

    CHAPTER 19 _ 1. The second visit of Paul to Ephesus. The twelve disciples of John (Acts 19:1)._ 2. The Apostle's continued labors. The separation of the disciples. The Province Asia evangelized (Act...

  • Arthur Peake's Commentary on the Bible

    MIRACLES, EXORCISMS, BURNING OF BOOKS OF MAGIC. Peter's shadow cured the sick (Acts 5:15); Paul's minor articles of clothing do the same, according to the widespread belief of antiquity in the indirec...

  • Barclay Daily Study Bible (NT)

    Some of the itinerant Jewish exorcists tried naming the name of Jesus over those who had evil spirits. They said, "I adjure you by Jesus whom Paul preaches." There were seven sons of a certain Scaeva,...

  • Barclay Daily Study Bible (NT)

    IN EPHESUS (Acts 19:1-7) Acts 19:1-41 is mainly concerned with Paul's work in Ephesus. He stayed longer there than anywhere else, almost three years. (i) Ephesus (G2181) was the market of Asia Minor....

  • Bullinger's Companion Bible Notes

    MIGHTILY. according to strength (Greek. _Kratos._ App-172.) GREW. Greek. _auxano._ Compare Acts 6:7; Acts 12:24. GOD. The texts read "the Lord". PREVAILED. Same word as in. Acts 19:16. This verse is...

  • Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

    _So mightily grew the word of God_, &c. The oldest Greek texts have "the word _of the Lord_" (adopted by _R. V._), The full sense of the words rendered "mightily" is "with overpowering force and stren...

  • Cambridge Greek Testament for Schools and Colleges Commentary

    PAUL PREACHES TO THE JEWS FIRST AND AFTERWARDS TO THE GENTILES. THE WORD OF GOD PREVAILS MIGHTILY...

  • Cambridge Greek Testament for Schools and Colleges Commentary

    ΟὝΤΩΣ ΚΑΤᾺ ΚΡΆΤΟΣ, _so mightily_. The phrase is common in classical Greek in the sense of ‘with all one’s power and might.’...

  • Charles Box Commentaries

    _BOOKS ABOUT WITCHCRAFT WERE BURNED ACTS 19:11-20:_ God blessed Paul with the power to work great miracles. Many sick people were healed and evil sprits were cast out. Some vagabond Jews took it upon...

  • Charles Rose Commentaries

    ΗΎΞΑΝΕΝ _impf. ind. act. от_ ΑΎΞΆΝΩ (G837) расти. _Impf._ изображает длительный рост, ΊΣΧΥΕΝ _impf. ind. act. от_ ΙΣΧΎΩ, _см._ Acts 19:16....

  • Charles Simeon's Horae Homileticae

    DISCOURSE: 1795 GENUINE REPENTANCE Acts 19:18. _And many that believed came, and confessed, and shewed their deeds. Many of them also which used curious arts brought their books together, and turned...

  • Coke's Commentary on the Holy Bible

    AND MANY THAT BELIEVED CAME, &C.— Exorcisms and incantations had been very much practised at Ephesus: the Gentiles there imagined that Diana, or the moon, presided over their incantations; but upon th...

  • College Press Bible Study Textbook Series

    BUTLER'S COMMENTS Special Study PAUL'S POWER TO GIVE CHARISMATIC POWER (Acts 19:1-41) A. There is much ambiguous, scripturally-imprecise and confusing exegesis of Acts 19:1-7 being done today. 1....

  • Combined Bible Commentary

    See notes on verse 18...

  • Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible

    _SO MIGHTILY GREW THE WORD OF GOD AND PREVAILED._ No JFB commentary on this verse....

  • Concordant Commentary on the New Testament by A. E. Knoch

    18 Many believers still clung to their old practices, but when they found that the Lord was greater than the demons whom they feared, they abandoned their false arts. They gave up the scrolls which ta...

  • Dummelow's Commentary on the Bible

    EPHESUS 1-41. Paul at Ephesus. Opposition of the manufacturers of idols. St. Paul, leaving Antioch in S. Galatia (see Acts 18:23), approached Ephesus not by the usual level route leading through Colos...

  • EasyEnglish Bible Commentaries

    GOOD NEWS FOR EVERYONE ACTS _MARION ADAMS_ CHAPTER 19 PAUL IN EPHESUS, 19:1-10 V1 While Apollos was in Corinth, Paul was travelling. He travelled through the *province on the higher road. He arr...

  • Ellicott's Commentary On The Whole Bible

    SO MIGHTILY GREW THE WORD OF GOD AND PREVAILED. — The verbs imply a continuous growth. The better MSS. give, “the word _of the Lord.” _...

  • Expositor's Greek Testament (Nicoll)

    κατὰ κράτος : adverbial, so only here in N.T., _cf._ Judges 4:3, and Jos., _Ant._, viii., 11, 3, in classical Greek, Xen., _Cyr._, i., 4, 23, etc. ηὔξ. καὶ ἴσ.: in contrast to the empty superstitions...

  • Frederick Brotherton Meyer's Commentary

    THE POWER OF JESUS' NAME Acts 19:13 Where God's spirit is mightily at work, Satan is not far away. Here the enemy's emissaries were mean enough to use the name of Jesus to get themselves a few more s...

  • G. Campbell Morgan's Exposition on the Whole Bible

    The result of the work of Apollos was manifest when Paul reached Ephesus. There he found a company of sincere disciples to Jesus as He had been revealed by John. To them Paul declared the truth in its...

  • Gary Hampton Commentaries

    Magnifying Jesus' Name God caused some great miracles to be worked through Paul. Even pieces of cloth, like a handkerchief or apron, which had touched his body could be placed on the body of the sick...

  • Hawker's Poor man's commentary

    And he went into the synagogue, and spake boldly for the space of three months, disputing and persuading the things concerning the kingdom of God. (9) But when divers were hardened, and believed not,...

  • Introductory Lectures - Commentary by William Kelly

    We now enter on the missionary journeys, as they are called, of the apostle Paul. The work, under the Spirit, opens to the glory of the Lord. Not merely are Gentiles met in grace and brought into the...

  • John Calvin's Bible Commentary

    − 20._Grew mightily _[ _lions. _] The word κατα κρατος doth signify that the word increased not a little, (or that these proceedings were not common) as if he should say, that in those increasings app...

  • John Darby's Synopsis

    From Verse 24 of Chapter 18 to Verse 7 of Chapter 19 we have a kind of summary of the progress made by the doctrine of Christ, and of the power that accompanied it. Apollos knew only of the teaching o...

  • John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible

    SO MIGHTILY GREW THE WORD OF GOD, AND PREVAILED. Over conjuring books, conjurers themselves, yea, even the devils; the power of God going along with it, many were converted; which is meant by the incr...

  • John Trapp Complete Commentary

    So mightily grew the word of God and prevailed. Ver. 20. _So mightily grew the word of God and prevailed_] Happy it is for a people or person, when the word falls upon their spirits in the power of i...

  • Joseph Benson’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments

    _And this_ Acknowledgment of the divine authority of Jesus and Paul, made in the absence of both; or this fact, concerning the possessed man, thus prevailing against the sons of Sceva; _was known to a...

  • Kretzmann's Popular Commentary of the Bible

    SO MIGHTILY GREW THE WORD OF GOD AND PREVAILED. The beating which the exorcists received in consequence of their unwarranted use of the name of Jesus had a good effect also upon the disciples that had...

  • Kretzmann's Popular Commentary of the Bible

    A further result of this event:...

  • Leslie M. Grant's Commentary on the Bible

    Paul returned to Ephesus, as he had promised. Of course there was an assembly there already, as chapter 18:27 intimates; but he found certain disciples who, at his questioning, tell him they had not e...

  • Manly Luscombe Commentary on New Testament

    SO THE WORD OF THE LORD GREW MIGHTILY AND PREVAILED. 1. Word spread rapidly. The church was growing quickly. 2. The church was becoming strong. It was strong and getting stronger. The Greek word her...

  • Mark Dunagan Commentaries

    New Testament Times. Tenney p. 277. Acts 19:1 AFA Journal. March 1996 p. 2....

  • Matthew Henry Commentary on the Whole Bible

    13-20 It was common, especially among the Jews, for persons to profess or to try to cast out evil spirits. If we resist the devil by faith in Christ, he will flee from us; but if we think to resist h...

  • Matthew Poole's Concise Commentary On The Bible

    The increase which the seed of the word had made was very remarkable; or it is a great instance of the power of God's word, when it makes men willing to part with their beloved and accustomed sins, an...

  • Patchworkid's Personal Study Bible Notes

    Acts 19:20 So G3779 word G3056 Lord G2962 grew G837 (G5707) mightily G2596 G2904 and G2532 prevailed...

  • Peter Pett's Commentary on the Bible

    ‘So mightily grew the word of the Lord and prevailed.' Thus was the mighty working of the word revealed. The word of the Lord grew mightily and prevailed, and this in contrast to the word of Satan whi...

  • Peter Pett's Commentary on the Bible

    PAUL'S CONTINUING MINISTRY IN EPHESUS (19:8-20). Meanwhile we are reminded that Paul's' ministry continues in Ephesus in the proclamation of the Kingly Rule of God (compare Acts 1:3; Acts 8:12; Acts 1...

  • Philip Schaff's Popular Commentary on the NT (4 vols)

    Acts 19:20. SO MIGHTILY GREW THE WORD OF GOD AND PREVAILED. Somewhere about this time Paul wrote his First Epistle to the Corinthians. It is more than probable that when he penned the words, ‘For a gr...

  • Summarized Bible Commentary

    CONTENTS: Paul at Ephesus. Disciples of John the Baptist become Christians. Paul in the synagogue and in the school of Tyrannus. Paul's miracles. Uproar of the silversmiths. CHARACTERS: Jesus, Holy S...

  • Sutcliffe's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments

    Acts 19:1. _Paul came to Ephesus,_ a city of Ionia, built by the Amezones. Its temple of Diana was one of the seven wonders of the world; but Pompey plundered it of all its riches. This city is now in...

  • The Bible Study New Testament

    ALL THE JEWS AND GENTILES. Ephesus was a center of magic and the black arts. This happening would have a strong effect on those who sold magic charms, etc., and would honor the Christ whom Paul preach...

  • The Biblical Illustrator

    _So mightily grew the Word of God and prevailed._ THE GROWING AND PREVAILING GOSPEL 1. This is a despatch from the seat of war announcing a glorious victory for the royal arms. 2. Past triumphs of...

  • The Biblical Illustrator

    _And he welt into the synagogue._ PAUL’S MINISTRY AT EPHESUS I. Wonderful preaching. 1. Manner of the preaching. (1) It was bold (Act 4:31; 2 Corinthians 7:4; Philippians 1:14). (2) It was logical...

  • The Biblical Illustrator

    _While Apollos was at Corinth, Paul … came to Ephesus._ --Ephesus was the third capital and starting point of Christianity At Jerusalem Christianity was born in the cradle of Judaism; Antioch had been...

  • The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary

    _CRITICAL REMARKS_ Acts 19:13. VAGABOND.—_I.e._, wandering about, or strolling JEWS, EXORCISTS, by profession (compare Matthew 12:8). “They appear to have regarded Paul as one of their own class, but...

  • The Pulpit Commentaries

    EXPOSITION ACTS 19:1 _Country _for _coasts, _A.V.; _found _for _finding, _A.V. and T.R. THE UPPER COUNTRY (τὰ ἀνωτερικὰ μέρη); the inland districts of Galatia and Phrygia, through which St. Paul...

  • Through The Bible C2000 Serie by Chuck Smith

    And it came to pass, that, while Apollos was at Corinth [watering what Paul had planted], Paul having passed through the upper coasts came to Ephesus; and there he found certain disciples [that no dou...

  • Treasury of Scripture Knowledge

    2 Thessalonians 3:1; Acts 12:24; Acts 6:7; Isaiah 55:11...

  • Wesley's Explanatory Notes

    So powerfully did the word of God grow — In extent, and prevail — In power and efficacy....

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Old Testament