Acts 19:29
And the whole city was filled with confusion: and having caught Gaius and Aristarchus, men of Macedonia, Paul’s companions in travel, they rushed with one accord into the theatre. And the whole city was filled with confusion: and having caught Gaius and Aristarchus, men of Macedonia, Paul’s companions in travel, they rushed with one accord into the theatre.
The confusion that filled the whole city broke out during the yearly ceremonies in honor of Diana at Ephesus, when great numbers came from all parts of the province and the festivities were conducted with pomp and splendor. It took place after more than three years of Paul's work at Ephesus, by which time a flourishing church had been raised and the gospel had spread throughout Asia among both Jews and Gentiles. At that time Paul had purposed to pass through Macedonia and Achaia to go to Jerusalem and afterward to see Rome, had sent Timothy and Erastus on into Macedonia, and had decided to remain at Ephesus until after Pentecost, but the uproar hastened his departure.
The uproar grew out of the telling blow Paul's teaching had struck against heathen worship, which caused a perceptible falling off in attendance at the national festival and in the enthusiasm of the worshipers. His influence reached far beyond open converts by enlightening many who had not accepted the new doctrines until they lost all confidence in their heathen gods. The tumult was stirred up because the spread of the gospel threatened the income of image-makers and pagan priests, and the report of Demetrius's speech threw the city into confusion. In that gala season the company of believers meeting in the school of Tyrannus stood as an inharmonious note in the festive chorus and faced ridicule, reproach, and insult.
When the angry crowd could not find Paul, they seized his traveling companions Gaius and Aristarchus, who were Macedonians, and rushed together with them into the theater. The mob's violence was directed at Paul, and his companions were caught up in the uproar in his place. Paul was elsewhere because his fellow believers had hurried him to safety, and when he learned his companions were in danger and wanted to go to the theater to address the rioters, they restrained him. Influential magistrates also sent word urging him not to enter the perilous situation, since his appearance could provoke the crowd and put his life at risk from a mob that might have killed him, for his time to die as a martyr had not yet come. The city recorder's decision showed Paul had committed no unlawful act, checked the mob, and kept Christianity from being discredited by the uproar.