Discovery BoxActs 14:11 
Context14:11 So when the crowds saw what Paul had done, they shouted 1 in the Lycaonian language, 2 “The gods have come down to us in human form!” 3
Acts 19:34
Context19:34 But when they recognized 4 that he was a Jew, they all shouted in unison, 5 “Great is Artemis 6 of the Ephesians!” for about two hours. 7
Acts 24:21
Context24:21 other than 8 this one thing 9 I shouted out while I stood before 10 them: ‘I am on trial before you today concerning the resurrection of the dead.’” 11
1 tn Grk “they lifted up their voice” (an idiom).
2 tn Grk “in Lycaonian, saying.” The word “language” is not in the Greek text, but is implied. The participle λέγοντες (legontes) is redundant in English and has not been translated.
3 tn So BDAG 707 s.v. ὁμοιόω 1. However, L&N 64.4 takes the participle ὁμοιωθέντες (Jomoiwqente") as an adjectival participle modifying θεοί (qeoi): “the gods resembling men have come down to us.”
sn The gods have come down to us in human form. Greek culture spoke of “divine men.” In this region there was a story of Zeus and Hermes visiting the area (Ovid, Metamorphoses 8.611-725). The locals failed to acknowledge them, so judgment followed. The present crowd was determined not to make the mistake a second time.
4 tn Grk “But recognizing.” The participle ἐπιγνόντες (epignonte") has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.
5 tn Grk “[they shouted] with one voice from all of them” (an idiom).
6 sn Artemis was a Greek goddess worshiped particularly in Asia Minor, whose temple, one of the seven wonders of the ancient world, was located just outside the city of Ephesus, 1.25 mi (2 km) northeast of the Grand Theater. Dimensions were 418 ft by 239 ft (125 m by 72 m) for the platform; the temple proper was 377 ft by 180 ft (113 m by 54 m). The roof was supported by 117 columns, each 60 ft (18 m) high by 6 ft (1.8 m) in diameter. The Emperor Justinian of Byzantium later took these columns for use in construction of the Hagia Sophia, where they still exist (in modern day Istanbul).
7 sn They all shouted…for about two hours. The extent of the tumult shows the racial and social tensions of a cosmopolitan city like Ephesus, indicating what the Christians in such locations had to face.
8 tn BDAG 433 s.v. ἤ 2.c has “οὐδὲν ἕτερον ἤ nothing else than…Ac 17:21. τί…ἤ what other…than…24:21.”
9 tn Grk “one utterance.”
10 tn Cf. BDAG 327 s.v. ἐν 1.e, which has “before, in the presence of, etc.”
11 sn The resurrection of the dead. Paul’s point was, what crime was there in holding this religious belief?
