Theology 7375-01: Paul for Pilgrims Eli Gutierrez – Presentation on Ephesus

Ephesus (Ἔφεσος), was the capital city of the Roman province of Asia (western Asia Minor).
The city was famed for the nearby Temple of Artemis, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient
World. Among many other monumental buildings are the Library of Celsus, and a theatre
capable of holding 25,000 spectators. It was a very important city in Paul’s ministry, he spent at
least three years in Ephesus, where he probably suffered imprisonments and other calamities.
Also, it is probable that Paul wrote 1 Corinthians and Galatians in Ephesus. Finally, it was one of
the seven churches of Asia that are cited in the book of Revelation, the Gospel of John may have
been written here, and the city was the site of several 5th-century Christian Councils

Geography
A city of the Roman province of most advantageous field for the missionary labors of
Asia, near the mouth of the Paul. The city stood upon the sloping sides and at the
Cayster river, three miles from the base of two hills, Prion and Coressus, commanding a
western coast of Asia Minor, and beautiful view; its climate was exceptionally fine, and
opposite the island of Samos. With the soil of the valley was unusually fertile.
an artificial harbor accessible to
the largest ships, and rivaling the
harbor at Miletus, standing at the
entrance of the valley which
reaches far into the interior of Asia
Minor, and connected by
highways with the chief cities of
the province, Ephesus was the
most easily accessible city in Asia,
both by land and sea. Its location,
therefore, favored its religious,
political and commercial
development, and presented a

History

 Pre-Roman times
o According to Mythology, was founded by Amazons
o Inhabited by Carians, and indigenous people
o The Greek city was founded in 1100 BC by Ionian colonists
o 550 BC, the first Temple of Artemis was built
o In 294 BC, Lysimachus (successor of Alexander) relocated the city to a site near
the harbor
o 133 BC, Ephesus falls under Roman control
o Pompey recovers control over the city in 69 BC, after a revolt against Rome

 The Roman city

o An estimated population around 250,000 people
o Politically: the capital of Asia Minor
 o Economically: “the greatest commercial site in Asia” (Strabo)
o Place of athletic contests and religious festivals

 Religion
o The cult of Artemis was the most prominent and significant
 Central to identity of the city
 Greek cult influenced by local
 Connections with the practice of magic
o Material and literary evidence show the presence of Jewish people
o Worship of other deities

 Buildings (the city has been excavated since 1895):

o Theater: whit a seating capacity for 24,000 people
 It was the scene of the tumultuous mob assembly in Acts 19
o The Temple of Artemis
 Largest building in the Greek world
 Made entirely of Marble
 220 x 425 feet (55 x 115 meters)
 127 columns, some rising to a height of 60 feet (17.65 m.)
 One of the Ancient World’s Seven Wonders
 The ancient site was discovered in 1865
o Prytaneion: the town hall with political and religious functions
o Commercial market (Agora): 110 meters square
o Baths and gymnasiums: showing the Hellenic culture of the city
o Stadium: erected during Nero’s reign (229 x 30 m.)
o Medical school: literary evidence points to the existence of a medical academy

Connections to Paul

 The Lukan Account

o Paul visited Ephesus shortly in his way from Corinth to Jerusalem (Acts 18:18-
22)
 He visited the Synagogue
 The Jews received his preaching and asked him to stay
 Paul left Priscila and Aquila to continue the work (52 AD?)
 Apollos was preaching John’s baptism, and Priscila y Aquila instructed
him more accurately and sent him to Achaia
o Paul comes back to Ephesus and preaches the Kingdom of God (Acts 19:1-10)
 About twelve “disciples” receive the Holy Spirit
 Paul preaches in the synagogue, but some Jews reject his message
 He takes the disciples (Jews and probably Gentile God-fearers) and
preaches in the lecture hall of Tyrannus
 The western text adds from 11:00 to 4:00 pm
  He uses this hall for two years, so that “all Asia, Jews and Greek,
heard the Word of God
 Paul lived in Ephesus about three years (52-55 AD)
o God performs many miracles through Paul and many believed in Jesus (Acts
19:11-21)
 Even handkerchiefs that Paul had touched healed the sick
 Some Jews were exorcising in the name of Jesus, but one day an evil spirit
beat them because it did not recognize them
 Many believed in Jesus and some that had practiced sorcery brought their
scrolls (valued in 50,000 drachmas) and burned them
o Hostility from the Artemis adherents (Demetrius), and the riot in Ephesus (Acts
19:23-41)
 Demetrius, a silversmith who made silver shrines of Artemis, called the
craftsmen to protest at the theater against Paul’s preaching
 Demetrius alleged that Paul's preaching was harmful to their trade and to
the credit of the Temple
 His fellow union workers and people from all over the city gathered to
affirm their support of their patroness deity
 The mob chanted for about two hours “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians”,
and they seized two of Paul fellow workers from Macedonia
 Paul wanted to appear before the crowd but his companions and even
some of the province officials did not let him
 Alexander, a local Jew, wanted to make a defense but the mob rejected
him when they knew he was Jew
 Finally, the frenzy was quelled by the intervention of the city clerk
 Paul left shortly after the incident
o Paul’s farewell to the Ephesian elders at Miletus (Acts 20:13-38)
 Paul was in a hurry to go back to Jerusalem, so he sailed pass Ephesus
 In Miletus he called the Ephesian elders to give them a final word
 Paul reminds his three years of ministry in Ephesus, his hardships, his
preaching, and his work
 He affirms that they would never see him again, and he encourages them
to keep preaching the word of God

 Paul’s letters (less explicit material)

o Although there are no explicit mentions, Ephesus might have been one of the
places where Paul was imprisoned (2 Corinthians 11:23, 1 Clement 5:6)
 Paul affirms that he was in prison frequently, and that he suffered great
“troubles” in Asia (2 Corinthians 1:8)
o What does Paul mean by “I fought wild beasts in Ephesus”? (1 Corinthians
15:32), is it literal?
 Some scholars argue that it should not be taken literally since his Roman
citizenship would have prevented such an occurrence, but rather it is a
metaphorical way of referring to the difficulty with his opponents
o Paul’s correspondence from and to Ephesus
 Ephesus was at the hub of those communities that he had already founded
  He wrote 1 Corinthians from Ephesus (54 AD?), and a previous lost letter
 If he was imprisoned in Ephesus it is plausible that he wrote Philippians
and Philemon in that city
 There is no consensus about the authorship and context of the letters to
Timothy, whom Paul left as his representative in Ephesus
 However, the letters do seem to have a connection to Asia Minor
o Paul’s letter to the Ephesians
 Most scholars consider that the so-called letter to the Ephesians was not
written exclusively to the Ephesians
 “In Ephesus” does not seem to be the best reading for Ephesians 1:1b
 However, it is undoubtedly in the Pauline tradition and it does reflect the
situation of the churches in Asia Minor, including Ephesus, in the second
half of the first century
 The issue of Jew-Gentile disunity
 The issue of divine power and spirits
 The need for instruction and ethical exhortation
o Paul “exposed to death again and again”
 Paul speaks about the many sufferings he faced in Ephesus, and Asia in
general but… did he believe he had died and rose again?
 In Lystra, Paul was stoned and people thought he was dead (Acts 14:19)
 1 Corinthians 15:31-32 “I face death every day—yes, just as surely as I
boast about you in Christ Jesus our Lord. If I fought wild beasts in
Ephesus with no more than human hopes, what have I gained? If the dead
are not raised”
 2 Corinthians 1:9-10 “Indeed, we felt we had received the sentence of
death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God,
who raises the dead. He has delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he
will deliver us again.”
 2 Corinthians 11:23 “been exposed to death again and again”
 Most likely, he is speaking about the danger of death
 In any case, it would not be the eschatological resurrection, but a miracle
from God in that particular situation

Bibliography
Arnold, C. E., “Ephesus” in: G Hawthorne, R. Martin and D. Reid, Dictionary of Paul and his
letters (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1993)
Longenecker, Bruce W. and Todd D. Still, Thinking through Paul (Grand Rapids, MI;
Zondervan, 2014)
Wallace, Richard and Wynne Williams. The Three Worlds of Paul of Tarsus (London/New
York: Routledge, 1998).