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Wednesday, April 8th, 2026
Wednesday in Easter Week
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Read the Bible

Good News Translation

Acts 19:20

In this powerful way the word of the Lord kept spreading and growing stronger.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Paul;   Scofield Reference Index - Holy Spirit;   Thompson Chain Reference - Awakenings and Religious Reforms;   Awakenings, Religious;   Bible, the;   Power;   Word;   Word of God;  

Dictionaries:

- Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Asia;   Ephesus;   Mission;   Paul;   Baker Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - Magic;   Charles Buck Theological Dictionary - Ordination;   Relics;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Acts;   Church;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Bible;   Corinthians, Second Epistle to;   Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament - Growth Increase ;   Metaphor;   Miracles;   Missions;   Paul;   Simon Magus;   Morrish Bible Dictionary - Ephesians, Epistle to the;   People's Dictionary of the Bible - Ephesians;   Ephesus;  

Encyclopedias:

- Condensed Biblical Cyclopedia - Saul of Tarsus;   International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Charm;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
In this way the word of the Lord flourished and prevailed.
King James Version (1611)
So mightily grew the word of God, and preuailed.
King James Version
So mightily grew the word of God and prevailed.
English Standard Version
So the word of the Lord continued to increase and prevail mightily.
New American Standard Bible
So the word of the Lord was growing and prevailing mightily.
New Century Version
So in a powerful way the word of the Lord kept spreading and growing.
Amplified Bible
So the word of the Lord [concerning eternal salvation through faith in Christ] was growing greatly and prevailing.
New American Standard Bible (1995)
So the word of the Lord was growing mightily and prevailing.
Legacy Standard Bible
So the word of the Lord was growing mightily and prevailing.
Berean Standard Bible
So the word of the Lord powerfully continued to spread and prevail.
Contemporary English Version
So the Lord's message spread and became even more powerful.
Complete Jewish Bible
Thus the message about the Lord continued in a powerful way to grow in influence.
Darby Translation
Thus with might the word of the Lord increased and prevailed.
Easy-to-Read Version
This is how the word of the Lord was spreading in a powerful way, causing more and more people to believe.
Geneva Bible (1587)
So the worde of God grewe mightily, and preuailed.
George Lamsa Translation
So mightily grew the faith of God and greatly increased in numbers.
Lexham English Bible
In this way the word of the Lord was growing in power and was prevailing.
Literal Translation
So with might, the Word of the Lord increased and was strong.
American Standard Version
So mightily grew the word of the Lord and prevailed.
Bible in Basic English
So the word of the Lord was increased very greatly and was full of power.
Hebrew Names Version
So the word of the Lord was growing and becoming mighty.
International Standard Version
In that way the word of the Lord kept spreading and triumphing.Acts 6:7; 12:24;">[xr]
Etheridge Translation
And thus with great power prevailed and increased the faith of Aloha.
Murdock Translation
And thus with great power was the faith of God strengthened and increased.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
So myghtyly grew the word of God, and preuayled.
English Revised Version
So mightily grew the word of the Lord and prevailed.
World English Bible
So the word of the Lord was growing and becoming mighty.
Wesley's New Testament (1755)
So powerfully did the word of God grow and prevail.
Weymouth's New Testament
Thus mightily did the Lord's Message spread and triumph!
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
so strongli the word of God wexide, and was confermyd.
Update Bible Version
So, by the power of the Lord, the word kept spreading and growing stronger.
Webster's Bible Translation
So mightily grew the word of God, and prevailed.
New English Translation
In this way the word of the Lord continued to grow in power and to prevail.
New King James Version
So the word of the Lord grew mightily and prevailed.
New Living Translation
So the message about the Lord spread widely and had a powerful effect.
New Life Bible
The Word of the Lord became well-known.
New Revised Standard
So the word of the Lord grew mightily and prevailed.
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Thus, with might, the Lord's word, was growing and prevailing.
Douay-Rheims Bible
So mightily grew the word of God and was confirmed.
Revised Standard Version
So the word of the Lord grew and prevailed mightily.
Tyndale New Testament (1525)
So myghtely grewe ye worde of god and prevayled.
Young's Literal Translation
so powerfully was the word of God increasing and prevailing.
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
So mightely grewe ye worde of the LORDE, and preuayled.
Mace New Testament (1729)
thus the christian doctrine flourish'd and prevail'd.
Simplified Cowboy Version
Because of this, God's message spread to the far corners of every pasture around there.

Contextual Overview

13 Some Jews who traveled around and drove out evil spirits also tried to use the name of the Lord Jesus to do this. They said to the evil spirits, "I command you in the name of Jesus, whom Paul preaches." 14 Seven brothers, who were the sons of a Jewish High Priest named Sceva, were doing this. 15 But the evil spirit said to them, "I know Jesus, and I know about Paul; but you—who are you?" 16 The man who had the evil spirit in him attacked them with such violence that he overpowered them all. They ran away from his house, wounded and with their clothes torn off. 17 All the Jews and Gentiles who lived in Ephesus heard about this; they were all filled with fear, and the name of the Lord Jesus was given greater honor. 18 Many of the believers came, publicly admitting and revealing what they had done. 19 Many of those who had practiced magic brought their books together and burned them in public. They added up the price of the books, and the total came to fifty thousand silver coins. 20 In this powerful way the word of the Lord kept spreading and growing stronger.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

Acts 6:7, Acts 12:24, Isaiah 55:11, 2 Thessalonians 3:1

Reciprocal: Exodus 7:12 - but Aaron's Leviticus 13:52 - burn Leviticus 19:31 - General Psalms 98:1 - his right Psalms 110:3 - day Mark 4:31 - is less than Acts 9:35 - all

Cross-References

Genesis 12:13
Tell them that you are my sister; then because of you they will let me live and treat me well."
Genesis 19:5
They called out to Lot and asked, "Where are the men who came to stay with you tonight? Bring them out to us!" The men of Sodom wanted to have sex with them.
Genesis 19:7
He said to them, "Friends, I beg you, don't do such a wicked thing!
Genesis 19:30
Because Lot was afraid to stay in Zoar, he and his two daughters moved up into the hills and lived in a cave.
Psalms 119:175
Give me life, so that I may praise you; may your instructions help me.
Isaiah 55:3
"Listen now, my people, and come to me; come to me, and you will have life! I will make a lasting covenant with you and give you the blessings I promised to David.
Amos 3:6
Does the war trumpet sound in a city without making the people afraid? Does disaster strike a city unless the Lord sends it?

Gill's Notes on the Bible

So mightily grew the word of God, and prevailed. Over conjuring books, conjurers themselves, yea, even the devils; the power of God going along with it, many were converted; which is meant by the increase of it, and were delivered from the power of darkness, out of the hands of Satan, and translated into the kingdom of Christ. Beza's ancient copy reads, the "faith" of God; and the Syriac version, "faith in God".

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

So mightily grew the word of God - So powerfully. It had such efficacy and power in this wicked city. That power must have been mighty which would thus make them willing not only to cease to practice imposition, but to give up all hopes of future gains, and to destroy their property. On this instructive narrative we may remark:

(1) That religion has power to break the hold of sinners on unjust and dishonest means of living.

(2) That those who have been engaged in an unchristian and dishonorable practice will abandon it when they become Christians.

(3) That their abhorrence of their former course will be, and ought to be, expressed as publicly as was the offence.

(4) That the evil practice will be abandoned at any sacrifice, however great. The question will be, what is right; not what will it cost. Property, in the view of a converted man, is nothing when compared with a good conscience.

(5) This conduct of those who had used curious arts shows us what ought to be done by those who have been engaged in any evil course of life and who are then converted. If what they did when they were converted was right - and who can doubt it? - it settles a great principle on which young converts should act. If a man has been engaged in the slave-trade, he will abandon it, and his duty will not be to sell his ship to one who he knows will continue the traffic. His property should be withdrawn from the business publicly, either by being destroyed, or by being converted to a useful purpose. If a man has been a distiller of ardent spirits as a drink, his duty will be to forsake his evil course. Nor will it be his duty to sell his distillery to one who will continue the business, but to withdraw his property from it publicly, either by destroying it, or converting it to some useful purpose. If a man has been engaged in the traffic in ardent spirits, his duty is not to sell his stock to those who will continue the sale of the poison, but to withdraw it from public use - converting it to some useful purpose, if he can; if not, by destroying it. All that has ever been said by money-loving distillers, or venders of ardent spirits, about the loss which they would sustain by abandoning the business, might have been said by these practitioners of curious arts in Ephesus. And if the excuses of rumselling people are valid, their conduct was folly; and they should either have continued the business of practicing “curious arts” after they were converted, or should have sold their “books” to those who would have continued it. For assuredly it was not worse to practice jugglery and fortune-telling than it is to destroy the bodies and souls of people by the traffic in ardent spirits. And yet, how few people there are in Christian lands who practice on the principle of these honest, but comparatively unenlightened men at Ephesus.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Acts 19:20. So mightily grew the word of God, and prevailed. — The Codex Bezae reads this verse thus: "So mightily grew the word of the Lord, and prevailed; and the faith of God increased and multiplied." It is probable that it was about this time that St. Paul had that conflict which he mentions, 1 Corinthians 15:32: If I after the manner of men, have fought with wild beasts at Ephesus, &c. See the note there. It means some severe trials not here mentioned, unless we may suppose him to refer to the ferocious insurrection headed by Demetrius, mentioned at the end of this chapter. 1 Corinthians 15:32- :


 
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