The Meaning of Acts 19:14 Explained

Acts 19:14

KJV: And there were seven sons of one Sceva, a Jew, and chief of the priests, which did so.

YLT: and there were certain -- seven sons of Sceva, a Jew, a chief priest -- who are doing this thing;

Darby: And there were certain men, seven sons of Sceva, Jewish high priest, who were doing this.

ASV: And there were seven sons of one Sceva, a Jew, a chief priest, who did this.

Discover Acts 19:14

CONTEXT: What is the Context of Acts 19:14?

MEANING: What does Acts 19:14 Mean?

WORDS: What do the individual words in Acts 19:14 mean?

RELATIONS: What do the major concepts mean in Acts 19:14?

What is the context of Acts 19:14?

KJV Reverse Interlinear

And there were seven sons of [one] Sceva, a Jew, [and] chief of the priests, which did so.

What does Acts 19:14 Mean?

Context Summary

Acts 19:13-29 - The Power Of Jesus' Name

Where God's spirit is mightily at work, Satan is not far away. Here the enemy's emissaries were mean enough to use the name of Jesus to get themselves a few more shekels. But the name is useless apart from the living power of the Spirit. It is terrible when the very demons flout those who profess religion. Who are ye? meant, "You do not count." The demons knew Christ as the Holy One of God and Paul as His representative, but these exorcist Jews were hollow as sounding brass. Cast into the balances, they were altogether lighter than vanity, Psalms 62:9.

The outcome of all this was a mighty revival. The name of the Lord Jesus was magnified, and a searching work of grace led to the confession of sin and the cleansing of heart and life in many who had followed vain superstitions.

So deep was the work of God in that great city of Ephesus that the trade in charms and amulets, sold in the neighborhood of the temple, began to fall off. The crowd of worshippers in Diana's temple was also perceptibly less. People who came in from the seaboard would find their way to the Apostle, who preached the gospel with a power that could not be withstood. Regenerated souls therefore, in turn, carried the gospel throughout the whole region. [source]

Chapter Summary: Acts 19

¹ The Holy Spirit is given by Paul's hands
⁸ The Jews blaspheme his doctrine, which is confirmed by miracles
¹³ The Jewish exorcists,
¹⁶ are beaten by a man who had an evil spirit
¹⁹ Conjuring books are burnt
²¹ Demetrius, for love of gain, raises an uproar against Paul;
³⁵ which is appeased by the town clerk

Greek Commentary for Acts 19:14

Seven sons of Sceva [Σκευα επτα υιοι]
Who this Sceva was we do not know. If a high priest, he was highly connected in Jerusalem (cf. Acts 5:24). Some MSS. have ruler instead of priest. His name may be Latin in origin. Σκευα Skeuā has Doric form of genitive. But that he had seven sons in this degraded business shows how Judaism had fared poorly in this superstitious city. Did they imagine there was special power in the number seven? [source]

Did [ποιοῦντες]
The participle denotes practice. [source]

What do the individual words in Acts 19:14 mean?

They were now certain of Sceva a Jew a high priest seven sons this were doing

ἦσαν δέ τινος Σκευᾶ Ἰουδαίου ἀρχιερέως ἑπτὰ υἱοὶ τοῦτο ποιοῦντες

ἦσαν	They were
Parse: Verb, Imperfect Indicative Active, 3rd Person Plural Root: εἰμί Sense: to be, to exist, to happen, to be present.
δέ	now
Parse: Conjunction Root: δέ Sense: but, moreover, and, etc.
τινος	certain
Parse: Interrogative / Indefinite Pronoun, Genitive Masculine Singular Root: τὶς Sense: a certain, a certain one.
Σκευᾶ	of Sceva
Parse: Noun, Genitive Masculine Singular Root: Σκευᾶς Sense: a certain chief priest residing at Ephesus.
Ἰουδαίου	a Jew
Parse: Adjective, Genitive Masculine Singular Root: Ἰουδαῖος Sense: Jewish, belonging to the Jewish race.
ἀρχιερέως	a high priest
Parse: Noun, Genitive Masculine Singular Root: ἀρχιερεύς Sense: chief priest, high priest.
ἑπτὰ	seven
Parse: Adjective, Nominative Masculine Plural Root: ἑπτά Sense: seven.
υἱοὶ	sons
Parse: Noun, Nominative Masculine Plural Root: υἱός Sense: a son.
τοῦτο	this
Parse: Demonstrative Pronoun, Accusative Neuter Singular Root: οὗτος Sense: this.
ποιοῦντες	were doing
Parse: Verb, Present Participle Active, Nominative Masculine Plural Root: ποιέω Sense: to make.

What are the major concepts related to Acts 19:14?

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