God’s Word for You

Acts 19:4-7 The Ephesian Gentiles

by Pastor Timothy Smith on Friday, November 13, 2020

3 So Paul asked, “What were you baptized into?” And they replied, “John’s baptism.” 4 Paul said, “John’s baptism was a baptism of repentance. He told the people to believe in the one who was to come after him, that is, in Jesus. 5 When the people heard this, they were baptized into the name of the Lord Jesus.” 6 When Paul placed his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they spoke in tongues and prophesied. 7 There were about twelve men in all.

There are at least five important points to be noted here, and it might benefit the reader to compare this incident with the ministry of the prophet Samuel, especially in the days of King Saul.

First, Paul’s question, “What were you baptized into,” and their reply, “John’s baptism.” The “what” reminds us that baptism is not merely a ceremonial washing or a symbol, but a physical washing for the forgiveness of sins. John’s baptism was no different from the baptism of Jesus, since both were commanded by God, both used the same element (water), both used the word of God, and both were for repentance and the forgiveness of sins (Mark 1:4; Acts 2:38). These men had a valid Christian baptism but didn’t understand fully about Christ. They didn’t need to be baptized all over again. They needed instruction.

Second, translations differ in the way verse 5 is handled. If verse 5 is a comment from Luke (as in the NIV and KJV), then Paul would have just said that John’s baptism was valid, that it worked repentance and gave the forgiveness of sins, and that it was in the name of the Lord Jesus, and therefore (?) they should be baptized again. That would be nonsense. Following Paul’s excellent explanation of John’s baptism in verse 4, why would he re-baptize these men in verse 5? But if we take the words of verse 5 (as the Greek conjunction de, δέ, suggests we should) then Paul is simply continuing his explanation of John’s baptism as the same as Jesus’ baptism.

This understanding of verse 5 is that of Professor Adolf Hoenecke (Ev. Lutheran Dogmatics, Vol. IV, p. 88-89), and I am in agreement with him. Otherwise, we would need to arrive at a completely different and unstated reason for Paul’s words and actions. Did he think that John’s baptism was invalid? Did he think that they hadn’t really been baptized by some follower of John? If so, why aren’t we told more about this? If we take the words, especially verse 4-5, at face value, the passage makes the best sense as translated above, with verse 5 continuing the words of Paul, and not a separate comment by Luke.

Third, the laying on of hands and the coming of the Holy Spirit showed God’s approval on Paul’s message and on their faith in the message. This was similar to what happened when Saul was anointed King of Israel, 1 Samuel 10:1-10. Samuel, a prophet of God, anointed Saul of Benjamin as King over Israel, a position never before occupied with God’s blessing. To show this, Samuel made an accurate prophecy about two men at Rachel’s tomb, three men going to make an offering who would give Saul bread, and a procession of prophets near Gibeah. And Saul would join them in making prophecies. “God changed Saul’s heart, and all these signs were fulfilled that day” (1 Samuel 10:9). Just as Saul was shown the true preacher, Samuel, through this miracle, so also these Ephesian Gentiles were shown that Paul was a true Christian preacher to be listened to and learned from. And their faith in Jesus did not need to be replaced by anything; they had received the righteousness of God through faith in Christ.

Fourth, they spoke in tongues and prophesied. Speaking in tongues in Acts is shown to be a miraculous act of preaching the gospel (not merely speaking as one would over the morning coffee) in an unlearned language. This is what happened at Pentecost (Acts 2:4), when the Samaritans came to faith (Acts 8:14-18), when the Gentiles at the house of Cornelius came to faith (Acts 10:45-46) and now when these Ephesian Gentiles came to faith in Jesus. If another kind of speaking in tongues is meant in 1 Corinthians 12:10 and 14:5, that doesn’t alter our understanding of this passage. In 1 Corinthians, Paul insists that there needs to be an interpreter if tongues are spoken when no one can understand, otherwise the tongues benefit no one, and should not be spoken in worship. But like King Saul at his anointing, the Ephesian Gentiles prophesied, that is, they proclaimed the word of God.

Fifth, the significance of there being “twelve” of these Gentiles should not be overstated or mistaken. This was not a new Twelve, as if the apostles of Jesus should stay back in Israel, and this new group of twelve would work here in Asia Minor. Luke is careful to avoid this kind of distinction by saying that there were “about twelve” of them. They were not a definite number with symbolic importance, but a group of eleven, twelve, or thirteen Gentiles who came to faith in Christ in Ephesus when Paul taught them the value of Jesus Christ and the baptism of John.

Being baptized does not end our Christian education. Baptism washes away sins and creates faith, but we want to grow in our faith. The same is true with every other step we take in our Christian education. We don’t stop learning about Jesus when we finish our years in Sunday School, or when we get confirmed. A Christian might take high school classes in the Word of God, but there is more to learn. A bachelor’s degree, a master’s degree, a string of doctoral degrees, would still only be part of one’s Christian education. Adult Bible study should continue on for our whole lives. In his last day of life, Martin Luther was still wrestling over a passage of Scripture that led him to write, “We are all just beggars.” Whether we glean from Scripture, picking up scraps from the edges of the field, or whether we harvest the Scriptures, setting the sickle of contemplation to every stalk and every row as we methodically and systematically visit each field, every book of the Bible, we have a long way to go. And next year the same fields will be ripe once more. God nourishes us with those fields. Give them your attention. They will remind you of your sins, and mine, and they will show me my Savior—and yours.

In Christ,
Pastor Timothy Smith

 

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