In brief
The sons of Sceva are seven traveling Jewish exorcists in Ephesus during Paul's stay there in the first century. Their father, Sceva, is presented as one of the chief priests. They try to drive out an evil spirit by invoking the Jesus whom Paul preaches, although they do not know the Lord themselves. The spirit treats them as strangers, and the possessed man puts them to flight. We remember that the name of Jesus is no magic formula: it gives authority to those who belong to him.
What does the name The Sons of Sceva mean?
The name Sceva is generally linked to a Latin nickname, Scaeva, often translated as left-handed, but this origin remains uncertain. The Bible does not explain the name and does not give the name of any of the seven sons (Acts 19:14).
The story of The Sons of Sceva
Extraordinary miracles at Ephesus
Acts 19:8-12Paul teaches at Ephesus for more than two years, first in the synagogue and then in the hall of Tyrannus, so that everyone living in Asia hears the word of the Lord. God works extraordinary miracles by the hands of Paul: cloths that have touched his body are laid on the sick, their diseases leave them, and evil spirits come out.
A borrowed formula
Acts 19:13-14Some traveling Jewish exorcists then try to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus over those with evil spirits, ordering the spirits out by the Jesus whom Paul preaches. Those doing this are seven sons of Sceva, a Jew presented as one of the chief priests. They speak of Jesus as someone else's Jesus, without knowing him themselves.
The evil spirit's question
Acts 19:15The evil spirit answers that it knows Jesus and knows who Paul is, but asks who they are. The unseen world recognizes the authority of Jesus and of his servant Paul, yet it sees no authority in these men. They pronounce the right name without having any relationship with the one who bears it.
Naked and wounded
Acts 19:16The man in whom the evil spirit lives leaps on them, overpowers them, and beats them so severely that they run out of the house naked and wounded. Those who wanted to master demons with a formula are publicly humiliated. Their failure shows that the name of Jesus cannot be used like a magic object in foreign hands.
The name of Jesus is glorified
Acts 19:17-20The event becomes known to all the Jews and Greeks of Ephesus. Fear falls on them, and the name of the Lord Jesus is glorified. Many believers come to confess what they have done, and former sorcerers burn their books in front of everyone, to a value of fifty thousand pieces of silver. So the word of the Lord grows mightily and prevails.
Test your knowledge
What The Sons of Sceva teaches us
- The name of Jesus is not a magic formula: it gives authority to those who belong to him by faith.
- Knowing someone else's Jesus is not enough; each person must receive him personally as Lord.
- The spiritual world distinguishes true faith from imitation, even when the words spoken are identical.
- God can use the failure of impostors to bring glory to the name of his Son.
- True conversion shows in a concrete break with the occult, like the books burned at Ephesus.
Key verses
The evil spirit's reply sums up the story: the authority of Jesus and of Paul is recognized, but the sons of Sceva have no legitimacy, because they do not know the one whose name they speak.
God turns the exorcists' humiliation into a testimony: fear grips Ephesus and the name of the Lord Jesus is glorified, instead of being treated as one formula among others.
Jesus warns that some will say they drove out demons in his name and will hear that he never knew them. What matters is not the formula but the relationship with him.
The name of Jesus is above every name, and every knee must bow before him. We do not manipulate this name: we bow before the one who bears it.
Sermons about The Sons of Sceva
- Acts 19: The Word of the Lord Changes Your LifeThe preacher stresses that the sons of Sceva knew the name of Jesus without having received him as their Lord: Jesus is not someone we use, but the one before whom we bow down.
- New Spiritualities: What They Seek, What Christ GivesFlorent Varak places the failed exorcism of the sons of Sceva in the magical world of Ephesus, where people paid dearly for protective formulas, just before the former sorcerers burned their books.
Frequently asked questions
Who were the sons of Sceva?
According to Acts 19:13-14, they are seven sons of a Jew named Sceva, presented as one of the chief priests. They were among the traveling Jewish exorcists in Ephesus during Paul's stay. The Bible gives none of their names and says nothing about their lives after this episode.
Why did the name of Jesus not work for them?
Because they used it as a formula borrowed from Paul, without knowing Jesus. The evil spirit says it itself: it knows Jesus and knows who Paul is, but these men have no authority. The name of Jesus does not work mechanically; it is tied to faith and belonging to the Lord.
Where can the story of the sons of Sceva be found in the Bible?
Their story is in Acts 19:13-20, during Paul's long stay in Ephesus. The account begins with the extraordinary miracles done by the hands of Paul (verses 11 and 12) and ends with the burned magic books and the growth of the word of the Lord.