Paul wanted to appear before the crowd, but the disciples would not let him. Even some of the officials of the province, friends of Paul, sent him a message begging him not to venture into the theater. The assembly was in confusion: Some were shouting one thing, some another. Most of the people did not even know why they were there. The Jews in the crowd pushed Alexander to the front, and they shouted instructions to him. He motioned for silence in order to make a defense before the people. But when they realized he was a Jew, they all shouted in unison for about two hours: “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!”
The city clerk quieted the crowd and said: “Fellow Ephesians, doesn’t all the world know that the city of Ephesus is the guardian of the temple of the great Artemis and of her image, which fell from heaven? Therefore, since these facts are undeniable, you ought to calm down and not do anything rash. You have brought these men here, though they have neither robbed temples nor blasphemed our goddess. If, then, Demetrius and his fellow craftsmen have a grievance against anybody, the courts are open and there are proconsuls. They can press charges. If there is anything further you want to bring up, it must be settled in a legal assembly. As it is, we are in danger of being charged with rioting because of what happened today. In that case we would not be able to account for this commotion, since there is no reason for it.” After he had said this, he dismissed the assembly.

There have been many times in my life where I was ready to make a just defense of my actions, but was not allowed to. Some of these are in the family arena and some of these have been in business. I can think of a few scenarios where manipulative people bent on evil came against me. Many times God’s plan was to let other people come to my defense.

Most of the time, these allies have more sway with those in power than I do. A strong word of defense from a powerful friend can be much more persuasive than my own defense.

Here we see Paul wanting to address the crowd, to defend the gospel he preached, and to correct the accusations laid against him. This is a natural response we all have when wrongly accused. But the Godly wisdom of his friends won him over and he remained in hiding.

Strangely, God sent a man who does not appear to be a follower of Jesus to come to his aid. The people probably could not be mad at the city clerk, as he had done nothing wrong and he served them well, in all likelihood. So they listened, calmed down, and after realizing the charges were baseless, they disbursed.

It takes a lot of humility to stay silent when accusations are flying. “You adulterous people, don’t you know that friendship with the world means enmity against God? Therefore, anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God. Or do you think Scripture says without reason that he jealously longs for the spirit he has caused to dwell in us? But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says: “God opposes the proud but shows favor [gives grace] to the humble.” Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.” (‭‭James‬ ‭4‬:‭4‬-‭8‬)

James identifies the problem most people have with waiting on God to act: Pride. He also identifies the reason most religious people “cave in” to pressure over time: Wanting to be friends with the world. So we must stand strong on the truth of the Bible, my friends. We must not mix God’s Word with worldly filth.

Lord, make my heart pure and purely yours, I pray. I want to be an instrument of your righteousness, your peace, and your love to those around me. I know you will send your truth to iron out all injustice at some point. You love me and I rest in that love!