Word Pictures in the New Testament - David Cox

Word Pictures in the NT [Acts: Chapter 19]
(Robertson, _Grammar_, pp. 1040ff.), common idiom after
\gin•sk•\, to know. {Temple-keeper} (\ne•koron\). Old word from
\ne•s\ (\naos)\, temple, and \kore•\, to sweep. Warden, verger,
cleaner of the temple, a sacristan. So in Xenophon and Plato.
Inscriptions so describe Ephesus as \ne•koron t•s Artemidos\ as
Luke has it here and also applied to the imperial _cultus_ which
finally had several such temples in Ephesus. Other cities claimed
the same honour of being \ne•koros\, but it was the peculiar
boast of Ephesus because of the great temple of Artemis. A coin
of A.D. 65 describes Ephesus as \ne•koros\. There are papyri
examples of the term applied to individuals, one to Priene as
\ne•koros\ of the temple in Ephesus (Moulton and Milligan,
_Vocabulary_). {And of the image which fell down from Jupiter}
(\kai tou diopetous\). Supply \agalma\ (image), "the from
heaven-fallen image." From Zeus (\Dios\) and \pet•\ (\pipt•,
pipet•\), to fall. Zeus (Jupiter) was considered lord of the sky
or heaven and that is the idea in \diopetous\ here. The legend
about a statue fallen from heaven occurs concerning the statue of
Artemis at Tauris, Minerva at Athens, etc. Thus the recorder
soothed the vanity (Rackham) of the crowd by appeal to the
world-wide fame of Ephesus as sacristan of Artemis and of her
heaven-fallen image.
19:36 {Cannot be gainsaid} (\anantir•t•n oun ont•n\). Genitive
absolute with \oun\ (therefore). Undeniable (\an, anti, r•tos\),
verbal adjective. Occasionally in late Greek (Polybius, etc.),
only here in N.T., but adverb \anantir•t•s\ in Ac 10:29. These
legends were accepted as true and appeased the mob. {Ye ought}
(\deon estin\). It is necessary. Periphrastic present indicative
instead of \dei\ like 1Pe 1:6; 1Ti 5:13f. {Be quiet}
(\katestalmenous\). Perfect passive participle of \katastell•\
(see verse 35). {Rash} (\propetes\). Old adjective from \pro\
and \pet•\, to fall forward, headlong, precipitate. In the N.T.
only here and 2Ti 3:4, though common in the _Koin•_. Better
look before you leap.
19:37 {Neither robbers of temples} (\oute hierosulous\). Common
word in Greek writers from \hieron\, temple, and \sula•\, to rob,
be guilty of sacrilege. The word is found also on inscriptions in
Ephesus. The Jews were sometimes guilty of this crime (Ro
2:22), since the heathen temples often had vast treasures like
banks. The ancients felt as strongly about temple-robbing as
westerners used to feel about a horse-thief. {Nor blasphemers of
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