Acts 19:13-15

19:13 But some itinerant ¹  Jewish exorcists tried to invoke the name ²  of the Lord Jesus over those who were possessed by ³  evil spirits, saying, “I sternly warn ⁴  you by Jesus whom Paul preaches.” 19:14 (Now seven sons of a man named ⁵  Sceva, a Jewish high priest, were doing this.) ⁶  19:15 But the evil spirit replied to them, ⁷  “I know about Jesus ⁸  and I am acquainted with ⁹  Paul, but who are you?” ¹⁰ 

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¹ tn Grk “some Jewish exorcists who traveled about.” The adjectival participle περιερχομένων (periercomenwn) has been translated as “itinerant.”

² tn Grk “to name the name.”

³ tn Grk “who had.” Here ἔχω (ecw) is used of demon possession, a common usage according to BDAG 421 s.v. ἔχω 7.a.α.

⁴ sn The expression I sternly warn you means “I charge you as under oath.”

⁵ tn Grk “a certain Sceva.”

⁶ sn Within the sequence of the narrative, this amounts to a parenthetical note by the author.

⁷ tn Grk “answered and said to them.” The expression, redundant in English, has been simplified to “replied.”

⁸ tn Grk “Jesus I know about.” Here ᾿Ιησοῦν (Ihsoun) is in emphatic position in Greek, but placing the object first is not normal in contemporary English style.

⁹ tn BDAG 380 s.v. ἐπίσταμαι 2 has “know, be acquainted with τινά…τὸν Παῦλον Ac 19:15.” Here the translation “be acquainted with” was used to differentiate from the previous phrase which has γινώσκω (ginwskw).

¹⁰ sn But who are you? This account shows how the power of Paul was so distinct that parallel claims to access that power were denied. In fact, such manipulation, by those who did not know Jesus, was judged (v. 16). The indirect way in which the exorcists made the appeal shows their distance from Jesus.