Acts 16

The Macedonian Vision

1Now Paul traveled to Derbe and also to Lystra. A disciple named Timothy was there, the son of a Jewish woman who was a believer [in Christ], however, his father was a Greek. 2Timothy was well spoken of by the brothers and sisters who were in Lystra and Iconium. 3Paul wanted Timothy to go with him [as a missionary]; and he took him and circumcised him because of the Jews who were in those places, since they all knew that his father was a Greek. 4As they traveled from town to town, they delivered the decrees decided on by the apostles and elders who were in Jerusalem, for the churches to observe. 5So the churches were strengthened in the faith, and they continually increased in number day after day.

6Now they passed through the territory of Phrygia and Galatia, after being forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in [the west coast province of] Asia [Minor]; 7and after they came to Mysia, they tried to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus did not permit them; 8so passing by Mysia, they went down to Troas. 9Then a vision appeared to Paul in the night: a man from [the Roman province of] #Northern Greece.Macedonia was standing and pleading with him, saying, “Come over to Macedonia and help us!” 10And when he had seen the vision, #At this point Luke (the writer) apparently joined the journey and includes himself in the narrative, speaking in the first person.we (including Luke) tried to go on into Macedonia at once, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them.

11So setting sail from Troas, we ran a direct course to Samothrace, and the next day [went on] to Neapolis; 12and from there [we came] to Philippi, which is a leading city of the district of Macedonia, a Roman colony. We stayed on in this city for several days; 13and on the Sabbath day we went outside the city gate to the bank of the [Gangites] river, where we thought there would be a #Apparently there were not enough Jews living in Philippi to establish a synagogue.place of prayer, and we sat down and began speaking to the women who had come there.

First Convert in Europe

14A woman named #The first recorded believer in Europe.Lydia, from the city of Thyatira, a dealer in #This was an important and valuable fabric, having great demand, being used on the official toga in Rome and its colonies.purple fabrics who was [already] a worshiper of God, listened to us; and the Lord opened her heart to pay attention and to respond to the things said by Paul. 15And when she was baptized, along with her household, she pleaded with us, saying, “If you have judged me and decided that I am faithful to the Lord [a true believer], come to my house and stay.” And she persuaded us.

16It happened that as we were on our way to the place of prayer, we were met by a slave-girl who had #Lit a python spirit. In Greek mythology, Python the earth-dragon (serpent goddess), was associated with the oracle at Delphi.a spirit of divination [that is, a demonic spirit claiming to foretell the future and discover hidden knowledge], and she brought her owners a good profit by fortune-telling. 17She followed after Paul and us and kept screaming and shouting, “These men are servants of the Most High God! They are proclaiming to you the way of salvation!” 18She continued doing this for several days. Then Paul, being greatly annoyed and worn out, turned and said to the spirit [inside her], “I command you in the name of Jesus Christ [as His representative] to come out of her!” And it came out at that very moment.

19But when her owners saw that their hope of profit was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them before the authorities in the market place [where trials were held], 20and when they had brought them before the chief magistrates, they said, “These men, who are Jews, are throwing our city into confusion and causing trouble. 21They are publicly teaching customs which are unlawful for us, as Romans, to accept or observe.”

Paul and Silas Imprisoned

22The crowd also joined in the attack against them, and the chief magistrates tore their robes off them and ordered that Paul and Silas be beaten with rods. 23After striking them many times [with the rods], they threw them into prison, commanding the jailer to guard them securely. 24He, having received such a [strict] command, threw them into the inner prison (dungeon) and fastened their feet in the stocks [in an agonizing position].

25But about midnight when Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns of praise to God, and the prisoners were listening to them; 26suddenly there was a great earthquake, so [powerful] that the very foundations of the prison were shaken and at once all the doors were opened and everyone’s chains were unfastened. 27When the jailer, shaken out of sleep, saw the prison doors open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself, thinking that the prisoners had escaped. 28But Paul shouted, saying, “Do not hurt yourself, we are all here!” 29Then the jailer called for torches and rushed in, and trembling with fear he fell down before Paul and Silas, 30and after he brought them out [of the inner prison], he said, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”

The Jailer Converted

31And they answered, “Believe in the Lord Jesus [as your personal Savior and entrust yourself to Him] and you will be saved, you and your household [if they also believe].” 32And they spoke the word of the Lord [concerning eternal salvation through faith in Christ] to him and to all who were in his house. 33And he took them that very hour of the night and washed their bloody wounds, and immediately he was baptized, he and all his household. 34Then he brought them into his house and set food before them, and rejoiced greatly, since he had believed in God with his entire family [accepting with joy what had been made known to them about the Christ].

35Now when day came, the chief magistrates sent their officers, saying, “Release those men.” 36And the jailer repeated the words to Paul, saying, “The chief magistrates have sent word to release you; so come out now and go in peace.” 37But Paul said to them, “They have beaten us in public without a trial, men who are Romans, and have thrown us into prison; and now they are sending us out secretly? No! Let them come here themselves and bring us out!” 38The officers reported this message to the chief magistrates, and #Paul was a Roman citizen because he was born in Tarsus (22:28), capitol of Cilicia and a city that the emperor Augustus had pronounced “free” because of its support of Rome. Nothing is known of Silas’ family background, but if his name is short for “Silvanus,” it is a Roman name (taken from the god of the forest) and it could be that Silas was also born a Roman citizen. Details on Roman citizenship at that time are sketchy at best, but it is clear from Acts that punishing a citizen without a trial and guilty verdict was illegal, probably involving severe penalties for the magistrates in charge. Also, a Roman citizen charged with a crime had the right to go to Rome and be tried in the emperor’s court (25:9-12).when they heard that the prisoners were Romans, they were frightened; 39so they came [to the prison] and appealed to them [with apologies], and when they brought them out, they kept begging them to leave the city. 40So they left the prison and went to Lydia’s house; and when they had seen the brothers and sisters, they encouraged and comforted them, and left.

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Acts 16

Timothy Joins Paul and Silas

1Paul came to Derbe. Then he went on to Lystra. A believer named Timothy lived there. His mother was Jewish and a believer. His father was a Greek. 2The believers at Lystra and Iconium said good things about Timothy. 3Paul wanted to take him along on the journey. So he circumcised Timothy because of the Jews who lived in that area. They all knew that Timothy’s father was a Greek. 4Paul and his companions traveled from town to town. They reported what the apostles and elders in Jerusalem had decided. The people were supposed to obey what was in the report. 5So the churches were made strong in the faith. The number of believers grew every day.

Paul’s Vision of the Man From Macedonia

6Paul and his companions traveled all through the area of Phrygia and Galatia. The Holy Spirit had kept them from preaching the word in Asia Minor. 7They came to the border of Mysia. From there they tried to enter Bithynia. But the Spirit of Jesus would not let them. 8So they passed by Mysia. Then they went down to Troas. 9During the night Paul had a vision. He saw a man from Macedonia standing and begging him. “Come over to Macedonia!” the man said. “Help us!” 10After Paul had seen the vision, we got ready at once to leave for Macedonia. We decided that God had called us to preach the good news there.

Lydia Becomes a Believer in Philippi

11At Troas we got into a boat. We sailed straight for Samothrace. The next day we went on to Neapolis. 12From there we traveled to Philippi, a Roman colony. It is an important city in that part of Macedonia. We stayed there several days.

13On the Sabbath day we went outside the city gate. We walked down to the river. There we expected to find a place of prayer. We sat down and began to speak to the women who had gathered together. 14One of the women listening was from the city of Thyatira. Her name was Lydia, and her business was selling purple cloth. She was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to accept Paul’s message. 15She and her family were baptized. Then she invited us to her home. “Do you consider me a believer in the Lord?” she asked. “If you do, come and stay at my house.” She succeeded in getting us to go home with her.

Paul and Silas Are Thrown Into Prison

16One day we were going to the place of prayer. On the way we were met by a female slave. She had a spirit that helped her tell people what was going to happen. She earned a lot of money for her owners by doing this. 17She followed Paul and the rest of us around. She shouted, “These men serve the Most High God. They are telling you how to be saved.” 18She kept this up for many days. Finally Paul became upset. Turning around, he spoke to the spirit that was in her. “In the name of Jesus Christ,” he said, “I command you to come out of her!” At that very moment the spirit left the woman.

19Her owners realized that their hope of making money was gone. So they grabbed Paul and Silas. They dragged them into the market place to face the authorities. 20They brought them to the judges. “These men are Jews,” her owners said. “They are making trouble in our city. 21They are suggesting practices that are against Roman law. These are practices we can’t accept or take part in.”

22The crowd joined the attack against Paul and Silas. The judges ordered that Paul and Silas be stripped and beaten with rods. 23They were whipped without mercy. Then they were thrown into prison. The jailer was commanded to guard them carefully. 24When he received these orders, he put Paul and Silas deep inside the prison. He fastened their feet so they couldn’t get away.

25About midnight Paul and Silas were praying. They were also singing hymns to God. The other prisoners were listening to them. 26Suddenly there was a powerful earthquake. It shook the prison from top to bottom. All at once the prison doors flew open. Everyone’s chains came loose. 27The jailer woke up. He saw that the prison doors were open. He pulled out his sword and was going to kill himself. He thought the prisoners had escaped. 28“Don’t harm yourself!” Paul shouted. “We are all here!”

29The jailer called out for some lights. He rushed in, shaking with fear. He fell down in front of Paul and Silas. 30Then he brought them out. He asked, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”

31They replied, “Believe in the Lord Jesus. Then you and everyone living in your house will be saved.” 32They spoke the word of the Lord to him. They also spoke to all the others in his house. 33At that hour of the night, the jailer took Paul and Silas and washed their wounds. Right away he and everyone who lived with him were baptized. 34The jailer brought them into his house. He set a meal in front of them. He and everyone who lived with him were filled with joy. They had become believers in God.

35Early in the morning the judges sent their officers to the jailer. They ordered him, “Let those men go.” 36The jailer told Paul, “The judges have ordered me to set you and Silas free. You can leave now. Go in peace.”

37But Paul replied to the officers. “They beat us in public,” he said. “We weren’t given a trial. And we are Roman citizens! They threw us into prison. And now do they want to get rid of us quietly? No! Let them come themselves and personally lead us out.”

38The officers reported this to the judges. When the judges heard that Paul and Silas were Roman citizens, they became afraid. 39So they came and said they were sorry. They led them out of the prison. Then they asked them to leave the city. 40After Paul and Silas came out of the prison, they went to Lydia’s house. There they met with the brothers and sisters. They told them to be brave. Then they left.

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