Paul in Ephesus: Acts 19, the Hall of Tyrannus and the Riot

Short answer: Paul spent about three years in Ephesus, roughly AD 52–55, on what is usually called his third missionary journey. Acts 19 says he taught for three months in the synagogue and then for two years in the lecture hall of Tyrannus, until a riot started by Demetrius the silversmith filled the city's theatre and he left for Macedonia. The theatre still stands in the ruins of Ephesus, beside Selçuk in western Turkey, but the hall of Tyrannus has never been identified.

Ephesus was the capital of the Roman province of Asia, and Paul's stay there was the longest that Acts records on his journeys. This guide follows it passage by passage, from Acts 18 to his farewell at Miletus in Acts 20, with what archaeology adds and where scholars disagree. For the city across the whole Bible, see our overview of Ephesus in the Bible.

Paul's First Stop in Ephesus (Acts 18:18–28)

Paul first reached Ephesus at the end of his second journey, sailing from Corinth with Priscilla and Aquila, a Jewish couple he had lived and worked with there "because he was a tentmaker as they were" (Acts 18:3). He reasoned in the synagogue, declined to stay, promised "I will come back if it is God's will," and sailed for Caesarea (18:19–21).

Priscilla and Aquila stayed. When Apollos, a learned Jew from Alexandria who "knew only the baptism of John", began preaching in the synagogue, they took him home and "explained to him the way of God more adequately" (18:25–26). Paul later sent greetings from them and "the church that meets at their house" (1 Corinthians 16:19), and says they "risked their lives for me" (Romans 16:4).

The Twelve Disciples and the Holy Spirit (Acts 19:1–7)

Paul returned overland and found about twelve disciples who had received only John's baptism. "Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?" he asked. "No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit" (19:2). They were baptised in the name of the Lord Jesus, and "when Paul placed his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they spoke in tongues and prophesied" (19:6). Paul's own receiving of the Spirit is a different passage, Acts 9:17, in Damascus.

The Synagogue and the Hall of Tyrannus (Acts 19:8–10)

For three months Paul "spoke boldly" in the synagogue. When some "publicly maligned the Way", he took the disciples and "had discussions daily in the lecture hall of Tyrannus" (19:8–9). "This went on for two years, so that all the Jews and Greeks who lived in the province of Asia heard the word of the Lord" (19:10).

What Was the Lecture Hall of Tyrannus?

Luke's word is scholē, a room where a teacher met pupils; the King James Version says "school". Every Greek city had such halls, often inside a gymnasium. Luke does not say who Tyrannus was. Reference works offer three readings: a Greek teacher or rhetorician whose hall Paul hired (William Ramsay's view), a Jewish teacher's private school (H. A. W. Meyer's), or a building that kept an earlier owner's name.

The Western text of Acts, best known from Codex Bezae, adds that Paul taught "from the fifth hour to the tenth", which the NRSV footnote gives as eleven in the morning to four in the afternoon. The NIV and most modern versions leave the words out, but the picture fits: the hot midday hours were when a teacher's room stood empty, leaving Paul free to work at his trade in the morning. He reminded the Ephesian elders that "these hands of mine have supplied my own needs" (20:34).

Where Was the Hall of Tyrannus?

Nobody knows. Archaeologists have not identified the building, and no ruin at Ephesus can be shown to be it. Guides sometimes point to the ground in front of the Library of Celsus, but that is a suggestion, not an identification, and the library was built in the 2nd century AD, two generations after Paul.

Miracles, the Sons of Sceva and the Burned Scrolls (Acts 19:11–20)

"God did extraordinary miracles through Paul," so that even "handkerchiefs and aprons that had touched him" were taken to the sick (19:11–12). Seven sons of Sceva, "a Jewish chief priest", tried to drive out spirits with the words "In the name of the Jesus whom Paul preaches, I command you to come out." The spirit answered, "Jesus I know, and Paul I know about, but who are you?", and they fled naked and bleeding (19:13–16). A Jewish high priest could serve only at the Temple in Jerusalem, so reference works suggest Sceva had held the office there earlier, belonged to a high-priestly family or led one of the priestly divisions.

Many believers then confessed their practices, and former sorcerers burned their scrolls in public, worth "fifty thousand drachmas" (19:19). The NIV notes that a drachma was about a day's wages, so this was more than a hundred years' pay for one labourer. Ephesus was known for magic: Greek writers from the 4th century BC onwards mention the "Ephesian letters" (Ephesia grammata), obscure words used as spells and amulets.

The Riot of the Silversmiths, Step by Step (Acts 19:23–41)

Paul had decided to go on to Jerusalem through Macedonia and stayed "in the province of Asia a little longer" (19:21–22). Then came the riot:

1. The complaint. Demetrius, a silversmith "who made silver shrines of Artemis", gathered the craftsmen: Paul taught that "gods made by human hands are no gods at all", threatening their trade and the goddess's temple (19:24–27).
2. The chant. They began shouting "Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!", and the city was in uproar (19:28–29).
3. The theatre. The crowd seized Gaius and Aristarchus, Paul's companions from Macedonia, and "rushed into the theater together" (19:29).
4. Paul held back. The disciples would not let Paul go in, and some "officials of the province, friends of Paul", the Asiarchs, begged him to stay away. He never entered the theatre (19:30–31).
5. Two hours of shouting. Most did not know why they were there. When the Jews pushed forward Alexander to speak, the crowd realised he was a Jew and chanted for about two hours (19:32–34).
6. The city clerk. The clerk (grammateus) calmed them: Ephesus was "the guardian of the temple of the great Artemis"; "the courts are open"; and the city was "in danger of being charged with rioting". He dismissed the assembly (19:35–41).
7. Paul leaves. Paul encouraged the disciples, "said goodbye and set out for Macedonia" (20:1).

What Archaeology and Inscriptions Add

The theatre still stands, but it was not yet the building you see. The Austrian Archaeological Institute's study of the auditorium shows it was then essentially the large Hellenistic theatre with some early Roman additions. The great Roman enlargement came later: a new stage front dedicated in AD 85, a north wing finished in AD 92 and a south wing between AD 102 and 112. Our Great Theatre guide covers the building.

Luke calls the crowd an ekklēsia (19:32, 39, 41), the word for the citizens' assembly, and that assembly met in the theatre. An inscription from the theatre, now in the British Museum, records that in AD 104 Gaius Vibius Salutaris paid for a silver Artemis and two silver images to be set up there at every assembly, and it is dated by the year's grammateus, the city clerk's office.

The Asiarchs and the title neōkoros, "temple warden" (the NIV's "guardian of the temple"), also appear on Ephesian inscriptions or coins. Many scholars take this local colour as a sign of good information. Others, including Helmut Koester and Stephan Witetschek, argue it fits Ephesus at the end of the 1st century, when Luke wrote, better than the 50s. Most accept the general picture. For the goddess herself, see our Temple of Artemis guide.

Paul's Letters from Ephesus and the Imprisonment Question

Paul wrote 1 Corinthians in Ephesus: "I will stay on at Ephesus until Pentecost, because a great door for effective work has opened to me, and there are many who oppose me" (1 Corinthians 16:8–9). The same letter asks, "If I fought wild beasts in Ephesus with no more than human hopes, what have I gained?" (15:32). Nearly all scholars read this figuratively, usually of fierce opponents; condemnation to the beasts also cost a man his civil rights, which hardly fits Paul's later appeals as a Roman citizen. The tale of Paul and a lion at Ephesus comes from the 2nd-century apocryphal Acts of Paul.

Paul also writes of "the troubles we experienced in the province of Asia", when "we despaired of life itself" (2 Corinthians 1:8), and of being "in prison more frequently" (11:23). Acts records no imprisonment in Ephesus, but in 1929 G. S. Duncan argued that Paul wrote his prison letters from a cell there. Few accepted the whole theory, yet Britannica places Philippians in a prison "probably at Rome or Ephesus", and some scholars think Ephesus suits Philemon better than Rome. The question is open. For the letter to the Ephesians itself, see our Letter to the Ephesians guide and who wrote Ephesians and why.

"St Paul's Prison" and the Grotto of St Paul

"St Paul's Prison" is a well-preserved Hellenistic tower on a hill at the western edge of the city, part of the walls built around 287 BC. The name is local tradition; the Dutch traveller Cornelis de Bruyn engraved the tower as St Paul's prison in his travels, published in French in 1714. William Ramsay noted in 1904 that the tower stood in Paul's day but saw "no reason to think that he was ever imprisoned in Ephesus".

The Grotto of St Paul is a cave on the northern slope of Bülbüldağı, above the excavated city. In the late 1990s Renate Pillinger's University of Vienna team uncovered paintings under later plaster; one, of the late 5th or early 6th century, shows Paul teaching while Thecla listens from a window, a scene from the apocryphal Acts of Paul and Thecla. To protect the paintings, the cave is closed to the public, and no reopening date has been announced.

Farewell to the Ephesian Elders at Miletus (Acts 20:17–38)

After Macedonia and Greece, Paul hurried back towards Jerusalem, probably in the spring of AD 57. He "decided to sail past Ephesus" and from Miletus, about 50 km to the south, "sent to Ephesus for the elders of the church" (20:16–17).

His speech is the only one in Acts addressed to Christians. He recalls teaching "publicly and from house to house" and that "for three years I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears" (20:20, 31). He warns that "savage wolves will come in among you" and quotes the Lord Jesus: "It is more blessed to give than to receive" (20:29, 35). They wept; what grieved them most was that "they would never see his face again", and they walked him to the ship (20:37–38).

Miletus is now an archaeological site beside the village of Balat, in Aydın province. Like Ephesus, it lost its harbour to silt, here from the Büyük Menderes river.

Timeline of Paul in Ephesus

All dates are approximate. They follow F. F. Bruce's chronology, anchored on an inscription from Delphi that dates Gallio's year as proconsul of Achaia (Acts 18:12) to about AD 51–52. Helmut Koester put the Ephesian years at AD 52–54, and other scholars shift events by a year or two.

Following Paul in Ephesus Today

Ancient Ephesus lies just outside Selçuk, about 75 km south of İzmir. What you can see:

• The Great Theatre: the riot's setting. From the upper seats, look west across the old harbour to the hill of "St Paul's Prison", the view Ramsay thought the finest in Ephesus.
• Harbor Street and the Commercial Agora: the street to the vanished harbour, rebuilt around AD 400, and the market square beside the Library of Celsus. See our Harbor Street and Marble Road guide.
• The Temple of Artemis: the temple Demetrius defended is now one re-erected column in a field in Selçuk.
• The tower and the grotto: neither is open to visitors, but you can see the tower from the upper seats of the Great Theatre.
• Miletus: a separate trip south. The Ministry of Culture lists it as open daily, 08:30 to 17:30, with one ticket covering the museum; check muze.gov.tr for the current price.

Our 14-day Footsteps of St Paul tour includes Miletus, its museum and Ephesus. For shorter visits, see our biblical and Christian tours in Turkey. To see the church Paul left behind a generation later, read about the Church of Ephesus in Revelation and the Seven Churches of Revelation guide.

Frequently Asked Questions

What happened in Ephesus with Paul?
Paul stayed about three years. He baptised about twelve disciples who received the Holy Spirit, taught in the synagogue and then the lecture hall of Tyrannus, saw magic scrolls worth fifty thousand drachmas burned, and left after Demetrius the silversmith started a riot in the theatre (Acts 19).

How long did Paul stay in Ephesus?
About three years, roughly AD 52 to 55: three months in the synagogue, two years in the hall of Tyrannus and "a little longer". Paul told the elders, "for three years I never stopped warning each of you" (Acts 20:31).

What was the Hall of Tyrannus in Acts 19?
The lecture hall (Greek scholē, "school" in the King James Version) where Paul held daily discussions for two years (Acts 19:9–10). Tyrannus was probably a local teacher who owned the room, though this is not certain.

Has the Hall of Tyrannus been found?
No. Archaeologists have not identified the building. Spots some guides point out, such as the area in front of the Library of Celsus, are suggestions only.

What does the name Tyrannus mean, and how is it pronounced?
It is the Latin form of the Greek Tyrannos, "tyrant", used here simply as a man's name. It is pronounced tie-RAN-us. Nothing more is known about him than Acts 19:9.

Which verse says the Ephesian disciples received the Holy Spirit?
Acts 19:6: "When Paul placed his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they spoke in tongues and prophesied." Paul's own receiving of the Spirit is told in Acts 9:17, in Damascus.

Did Paul write any of his letters in Ephesus?
Yes, 1 Corinthians (16:8). Some scholars think Philippians and Philemon were written in an Ephesian prison; others place them in Rome.

Was Paul imprisoned in Ephesus?
Acts does not say so. His letters mention deadly danger in Asia and frequent imprisonments, so some scholars argue for one there. The tower called "St Paul's Prison" is linked to him only by later tradition.

What is Ephesus called today?
Efes in Turkish. The ruins lie beside Selçuk in İzmir Province and have been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2015. See our guide to the name of Ephesus.

Part of the Ephesus ancient city complete guide. For the building where the riot happened, see the Great Theatre guide.

Photos via Wikimedia Commons: Dudva (CC BY-SA 4.0), Erik Cleves Kristensen (CC BY 2.0), Eoe gian (CC BY-SA 3.0), Alexander Svoboda (public domain), Tomisti (CC BY-SA 4.0).