Paul was too restless to remain long in any place. As he completed the second year of his ministry at Ephesus, he began planning his next move. To pave the way, he sent two of his helpers, Timothy and Erastus, ahead of him into Macedonia. Shortly after they left, a major shift in the situation at Ephesus took place.

Paul’s teaching had been tolerated and even welcomed by the Ephesians so long as it remained in a purely religious context. When it began to swell in influence so that it affected the city’s commercial and economic interests, opposition developed from an unusual source. One of the big industries in the city was the fashioning of silver statues of the goddess Diana, both for export and to sell to tourists. This business was being hurt, because visitors to Ephesus were listening…