Saint John the Evangelist spent a significant amount of time in the city of Ephesus. Ephesus is in Anatolia today. Saint John performed several miracles and had many stories in Ephesus. Let’s have a look at some of them.
Saint John the Evangelist at the Temple of Artemis
A yearly festival was held in Ephesus at the Temple of Artemis. People were celebrating the purity of Artemis by all wearing white clothes. Saint John the Evangelist came to the stairs leading to the altar of the Temple of Artemis in Ephesus and he stood wearing all black clothes.
People and especially the priest of Artemis were furious against him. Some even wanted to lynch Saint John the Evangelist. He had a better idea. Saint John said first priest of Artemis would beg his goddess to kill him and then Saint John to his god to kill believers of Artemis.
People were scared because many of them witnessed Saint John the beloved performing miracles before. People, who wanted to kill him a minute ago, started to beg Saint John for mercy. John asked the god to mercy them and in return the god spared everybody’s life except the priest of Artemis.
The Temple of Artemis in Ephesus was shaken by the power of the god and the altar collapsed on the priest killing him. About half of the temple of Artemis including the idols of the Goddess Artemis were shattered on this day.
Incident with Bedbugs
Saint John the Evangelist and his travelling companions Verus and Andronicus were travelling from Smyrna to Ephesus. They decided to spend the night in an inn on the way.
All the beds in the inn were infested with the bedbugs. Before entering his room Saint John had a look at his bed and said;
”I say to you, you bugs, be considerate; leave your home for this night and go to rest in a place which is far away from the servants of God!”
Saint John
People were probably amused seeing this old man speaking to bugs. They had a huge shock in the morning after witnessing a swarm of bedbugs waiting in front of John’s door to be let back inside the room by Saint John again.
Resurrection of Drusiana
St. John arrived at the house of Andronicus in Ephesus. Andronicus and his wife Drusiana were among the earliest members of the Ephesian Church. Couple believed in celibacy and stayed as virgins even after their marriage.
A pagan man named Callimachus of Ephesus fell in love with Drusiana. Callimachus had sexual desires against her. Hearing the sinful ideas of Callimachus, Drusiana held herself responsible for the sin of lust. Drusiana passed away because of remorse.
Hearing the death of Drusiana, Callimachus made a plan to fulfil his lust of the flesh. He paid bribery to the servant of Drusiana named Fortunatus. The wicked Fortunatus entered the grave and started strip Drusiana dead body. A venomous snake entered into the tomb and first bit Fortunatus and after him bit Callimachus. Both man died at the scene.
Saint John and Andronicus entered the tomb on the upcoming day and witnessed two dead man laying next to Drusiana. John resurrected Callimachus and learned what happened. Callimachus converted into a Christian after the resurrection and started celibacy. Drusiana was off her remorse seeing Callimachus becoming Christian. Drusiana wanted Forunatus. Steward Forunatus was still not a believer even after his experience. He decided to run away and got bitten one more time by the very same snake waiting outside the tomb.
Aristodemus Against Saint John
Aristodemus was the high priest of the Temple of Artemis nearby Ephesus. He challenged Saint John to prove John’s gods existence to him. John proposed to drink a lethal poison to prove it. They brought two men who were about to be executed to try the poison. Two death sentenced convicts died immediately after drinking the poison. Then Saint John drank it and survived. Seeing this miracle Aristodemus converted into Christianity and later he became the bishop of Ephesus.
Hire a Tour Guide to See Saint John the Evangelist’s Legacy in Ephesus
Planning to visit Turkey any day soon? Don’t skip Ephesus Ancient City in Turkey during your trip. We can explore Ephesus together and see the real location where stories of Saint John the Evangelist in Ephesus took place in real life. Contact me to book a professional licensed Biblical tour guide in Ephesus. See you soon, Hasan Gülday.
