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Acts 19:13–17
“The evil spirit answered [the Jewish exorcists], ‘Jesus I know, and Paul I recognize, but who are you?’ And the man in whom was the evil spirit leaped on them, mastered all of them and overpowered them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded” (vv. 15–16).
God did an extraordinary work at Ephesus as Paul labored to plant the church there. His work was so successful that the Jews forced him out of the synagogue, but that did not slow the spread of the gospel. The Apostle continued to teach daily in the hall of Tyrannus, and people from all over the province of Asia, Jews and gentiles alike, heard about Jesus (Acts 19:1–10). Our Creator confirmed Paul’s preaching with extraordinary miracles, allowing people to be healed by coming into contact with handkerchiefs and aprons that had touched the Apostle’s body (vv. 11–12).
The work of the Lord in Ephesus was so plain and undeniable that even those who did not believe in Jesus tried to harness some of the power of Paul’s ministry. We see this in today’s passage, where we read about seven Jewish exorcists, the sons of Sceva, who attempted to drive out evil spirits by using the name of Jesus (vv. 13–14). As the narrative continues, however, it becomes clear that these were Jews who did not actually have faith in Jesus, for a demon that they tried to cast out did not respond to their command in the way they intended. Instead, the man possessed by the spirit leaped onto the Jewish exorcists, forcing them to flee from the house naked and injured. The demon did not respond as desired because while it knew Jesus and Paul, it did not know those Jewish men trying to drive it away (vv. 15–17). In other words, the evil spirit was not bound to follow the command of those Jews because they were not united to Jesus by faith and thus had no right to wield the name of the Lord.
Evidently, the sons of Sceva were trying to use the name of Jesus as one might attempt to use the words of a magic spell to manipulate the supernatural. This was a vain use of God’s name, for Jesus is God and the name of God cannot be trifled with. The name of God—even the name of Jesus Christ—must be hallowed, and those who do not regard God as holy by coming to Him through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ do not enjoy the power and protection of the One who bears that name (Ex. 20:7).
God and His name are not tools to be wielded in a faithless manner. The Lord and His power cannot be manipulated through the mere vocalization of the syllables that make up His name. Only those who have bowed to Him can know the might of His name. John Chrysostom comments, “The name [of Jesus] has no power unless it is spoken by faith.”
Coram Deo Living before the face of God
Matthew Henry comments, “If we resist the devil by a true and lively faith in Christ, he will flee from us; but if we think to resist him by the bare using of Christ’s name, or any part of his word, as a spell or charm, he will prevail against us.” Only by trusting in the Lord Jesus Christ can we overcome Satan. The devil is not overcome by the faithless use of words or rituals.
For further study
- Deuteronomy 5:11
- Proverbs 18:10
- Acts 16:16–18
- Jude 9–10
The bible in a year
- Psalm 119:105–176
- 1 Corinthians 5