ISB ~ Acts 19 v23 - 41

The riot at Ephesus shows how the good news of the gospel was bad news for the idols and idol manufacturers of antiquity. Here Demetrius and a guild of tradesmen turn the city against missionaries whose promotion of one God dishonored the cult of Artemis and led to a sharp decline in the sale of miniature Artemis statues. The impression comes through that Demetrius was zealous not only to preserve the honor of the goddess (19:27), but even more so to protect his source of income (19:25). See note on Acts 14:15.