Boyd’s Bible Dictionary:
(desirable). Capital of Ionia, on the Ægean Sea. Noted for its commerce, learning, and architecture. Paul visited it (Acts 18:1-20), and founded a church there, to which he addressed one of his best epistles (Acts 19:1-10; 20:17-38).
Concise Bible Dictionary:
A renowned city of Ionia, and in the time of the Romans the capital of the part called “the province of Asia,” being the west portion of Asia Minor. Being near the sea it was a place of great commerce, and as the capital of the province it had constant intercourse with the surrounding towns. The celebrated temple of Diana also brought multitudes of heathen. Its inhabitants are supposed to have been of Greek origin, with also a large number of Jews engaged in commerce (Acts 18:19-21; Acts 19:1,17,26,35; Acts 20:16-17; 1 Cor. 15:32; 1 Cor. 16:8; Eph. 1:1; 1 Tim. 1:3; 2 Tim. 1:18; 2 Tim. 4:12; Rev. 1:11; Rev. 2:1). It is now named Ayasolook. The ruins are extensive: the sea has retired, leaving a pestilential morass of mud and rushes.
Strong’s Dictionary of Greek Words:
Transliteration:
Ephesios
Meaning:
from 2181; an Ephesian or inhabitant of Ephesus
KJV Usage:
Ephesian, of Ephesus
Jackson’s Dictionary of Scripture Proper Names:
gentilic of Ephesus
Potts’ Bible Proper Names:
Desirable; the end:―people of Ephesus, Acts 19:28. {Amabilis; finis}
“845. Ephesian Letters” From Manners and Customs of the Bible:
Acts 19:19. Many of them also which used curious arts brought their books together, and burned them before all men.
Ephesus was the great center of magic in the time of Paul. The “books” here mentioned were probably made up of directions for producing magical results, and were reckoned of great value to all who practiced sorcery. One of the curious arts “consisted in the use of the” Ephesian letters,”celebrated in ancient times. These are supposed to have been copies of certain characters which were engraved on the crown, the girdle, and the feet of the statue of the goddess Diana. See note on verse 35 (#850). They were written on strips of parchment, and worn as amulets. The” books “ may have taught how to use these to the best advantage. Hesychins (cited by Burder, Oriental Literature, No. 1492) says: “The Ephesian letters, or characters, were formerly six, but certain deceivers added others afterward; and their names, according to report, were these: askion, kataskion, lix, tetrax, damnameneus, and aision. It is evident that askion means darkness; kataskion, light; lix, the earth; tetrax, the year; damnameneus, the sun; and aision, truth: these are holy and sacred things.”
“848. The Theater at Ephesus” From Manners and Customs of the Bible:
Acts 19:29. They rushed with one accord into the theater.
This was an immense semicircular structure, the largest of which any account has come down to us from ancient times. It was open to the sky, with ascending seats, tier above tier, and is said to have been capable of holding thirty thousand persons. Its ruins are yet to be seen. Among the Greeks, (though rarely among the Romans,) theaters were used, not only for spectacular entertainments, but also for assemblages for political or business purposes. Hence it was perfectly natural for the excited multitude to rush into the theater on this occasion.
It was in a theater that Herod Agrippa I gave audience to the Tyrian deputies, and was smitten with disease and death. See Josephus, Antiquities, book 19, chap. 8, § 2. See also Acts 12:20-23.
“850. Town Clerk - Diana of Ephesus” From Manners and Customs of the Bible:
Acts 19:35. When the townclerk had appeased the people, he said, Ye men of Ephesus, what man is there that knoweth not how that the city of the Ephesians is a worshiper of the great goddess Diana, and of the image which fell down from Jupiter?
1. The grammateus, scribe, or “townclerk,” as the word is here rendered, seems to have been charged with duties of a higher order than those of the ordinary scribes among the Greeks. It is supposed that, under the Roman rule in Asia Minor, the work of the scribes was not limited to recording the laws and reading them in public. They presided over popular assemblies, and sometimes legally assumed the functions of magistrates. The title is preserved on ancient coins and marbles, and the scribes were evidently regarded as governors of cities or districts.
2. While the Diana of the Romans corresponded to the Artemis of the Greeks, this Ephesian Diana or Artemis was a totally distinct divinity of Asiatic origin. Her worship was found by the Greeks in Ionia when they settled there, and to her they gave the name of Artemis. There was in many respects a resemblance between the Ephesian Artemis and the Syrian Astarte. See note on 1 Kings 11:5 (#304). Her worship extended over a vast region, and cities vied with each other for the honor of being called neokoron, sweeper, or keeper, of the temple; “worshiper” in the text. The original Ephesian image was said to have fallen from heaven, as was also asserted of images of other deities in other cities. This has given rise to the opinion that this and similar images were aerolites, and were worshiped according to the ancient superstition which gave sanctity and divinity to certain stones. See note on Isaiah 57:6 (#527). Ancient authorities, however, assert that the Ephesian Artemis was of wood, some say of ebony, others of vine-wood. Whatever the material, the figure was very coarse and rude. The later image of the Ephesian goddess was elaborately made, and was covered with carefully-wrought symbols and mystic figures. See note on verse 19 (#845).
The following is the description given of this statue by Mr. Falkener (Ephesus, pp. 290-291): “The circle round her head denotes the nimbus of her glory, the griffins inside of which express its brilliancy. In her breast are the twelve signs of the zodiac, of which those seen in front are the ram, bull, twins, crab, and lion; they are divided by the hours. Her necklace is composed of acorns, the primeval food of man. Lions are on her arms to denote her power, and her hands are stretched out to show that she is ready to receive all who come to her. Her body is covered with various beasts and monsters, as sirens, sphinxes, and griffins, to show she is the source of nature, the mother of all things. Her head, hands, and feet are of bronze, while the rest of the statue is of alabaster, to denote the ever-varying light and shade of the moon’s figure.... Like Rhea, she was crowned with turrets, to denote her dominion over terrestrial objects” (Fairbairn, Imperial Bible Dictionary).
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