Artemis? Or Jesus? Which is it?

What is of interest here is that Artemis was also spoken of as “appearing.” One expression relating to Artemis used in the Salutaris inscription was “the most manifest goddess.” The use of epiphany language was also widespread in Greco-Roman religion, including in the imperial cult.

Although the point is not explicitly polemical, the readers of 1–2 Timothy are being told by the author that the true “manifestation” of a god in this world is Jesus Christ, not Artemis. So the language does have a polemical edge to it, for those with ears to hear. But in addition, the language used in the city of Artemis is here being applied to Jesus. This is a contextualization of the message—the adoption of the epiphany schema and its associated language as a vehicle for the expression of the author’s christology.—Paul Trebilco, “Not Engaging the City: Reading 1 and 2 Timothy and the Johannine Letters in the City of Ephesus,” in The Urban World and the First Christians, 169