Acts 20:33-34

The context

Paul speaks to the Ephesian elders at Miletus, on his way to Jerusalem, in a farewell that reads like a will. He has reviewed three years of teaching and warned about wolves who will come. Verse 33 disclaims coveting, and verse 34 points to his own labor for his support.

What it establishes

It establishes that Paul's financial conduct was part of his defense of the ministry, and that he worked with his own hands rather than drawing on the churches he founded. The claim is specific and checkable, and he calls the elders as witnesses to it in the next verse.

What it does not establish

It does not make self-support a rule for ministers. Paul elsewhere argues the opposite right at length and says he waived it for the gospel. Nor does the verse say money defiles; it says he did not covet.

Short note, first pass, October 2026. Corrections welcome.

Cited in these answers

• Don’t the numerous televangelists on TBN and other such networks show that Christianity is all about the money?

Part of Scripture, Opened — the exegetical layer behind every citation on this site. Scripture quotations are from the ESV.