Luke the beloved physician wrote how, “certain of the vagabond Jews, exorcists, took upon them to call over them which had evil spirits the name of the Lord Jesus, saying, We adjure you by Jesus whom Paul preaches. And there were seven sons of one Sceva, a Jew, and chief of the priests, which did so”, and in chapter nineteen and verse fifteen of the book of Acts Luke shared how the evil spirit said, “Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are you?” where we read:
And the evil spirit answered and said, Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are you?
The verse begins, “And the evil spirit answered and said, ...”: Luke began with the words, “and the evil spirit” which means “and the labor filled, annoying and wicked demon who conceived and inhabited the bodies of men” “answered and said” or “responded and began to speak by uttering, declaring and proclaiming” the following words. Luke shared how the “demon” began to respond to the attempt of the “seven sons of Sceva” to cast him out.
The verse continues, “... Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are you?” Luke added the words, “Jesus I know” or “Jesus, whose name means Jehovah is Salvation and is the Son of God, the Savior of mankind and God incarnate, I, the evil spirit, am acquainted with, perceive, understand and have knowledge of”, “and Paul I know” which means “and Paul, whose name means small or little, I, the evil spirit, am acquainted with, perceive, understand and have knowledge of”; “but who are you” or “however, nonetheless, nevertheless, notwithstanding and moreover what person are you, sons of Sceva”? Luke shared how the “evil spirit” knew who “Jesus and Paul” were, and he questioned who the “seven sons of Sceva” were.
When we consider Luke's words in this verse, we discover how the “evil spirit” knew exactly who “Jesus and Paul” were, but he was without knowledge of these “seven sons of Sceva”. It is interesting to note that this “demon” was aware of “Jesus”, which is easy to understand, but he also had knowledge of “Paul”. In other words, they had a reputation with this “evil spirit”. However, these “seven sons of Sceva” did not, and we shall see what happens to them in our next verse. For now let us be mindful that God desires to have a personal relationship with everyone who will surrender to His Son Jesus, and when they fully commit themselves to Him, even the “evil spirits” will know who they are His. Imitating God's miracle working power is not wise, and when a careful study of these “seven sons of Sceva” is done, those who are wise shall put their faith and trust in Jesus and allow Him alone to use them as He sees best in His Kingdom.
Next time Luke shares how the evil spirit says, “the man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them”, so read ahead, and we shall join together then.
Until tomorrow…there is more…
See more devotionals on the website "thewordfortodaywithray.com" or look for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be Married”, “One Year in the Sermon on the Mount” and the new poetry book "Random Mushrooms Volumes I and II" and the new novel "Elizabeth County" in all major bookstore sites, http://www.amazon.com ; http://www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at www.mrzlc.com/bookstore. All references are from "Strongs Concordance".
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