Encyclopedia entry
Sceva
An implement, a Jew, chief of the priests at Ephesus (Acts 19:13-16); i.e., the head of one of the twenty-four courses of the house of Levi. He had seven sons, who “took upon them to call over them which had evil spirits the name of the Lord Jesus,” in imitation of Paul. They tried their method of exorcism on a fierce demoniac, and failed. His answer to them was to this effect (19:15): “The Jesus whom you invoke is One whose authority I acknowledge; and the Paul whom you name I recognize to be a servant or messenger of God; but what sort of men are ye who have been empowered to act as you do by neither?” (Lindsay on the Acts of the Apostles.)
Also from Smith's (1884) +−
a Jew residing at Ephesus at the time of St. Paul’s second visit to that town. (Acts 19:14-16) (A.D. 52.)
In the Bible
1
Verses where Sceva is named. Berean Standard Bible (public domain).
- Acts 19:14
Seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, were doing this.
Scripture on Sceva
1
Sources · Hitchcock's Bible Names (1869) · Easton's Bible Dictionary (1897) · Smith's Bible Dictionary (1884)
Public-domain text. Modernized only where archaic spelling impedes reading; original facts preserved. Verify against an authoritative modern reference before quoting.