Acts 16

1Paul went first to Derbe, and then on to Lystra, where he met a believer by the name of Timothy. He was the son of a Jewish Christian mother, and his father was Greek. 2The brothers at Lystra and Iconium spoke well of him. 3Paul wanted Timothy to travel with him, so he circumcised him because the Jews in the area all knew that Timothy's father was Greek. 4As they went through the different towns they gave them the requirements the apostles and elders in Jerusalem had said should be observed. 5The churches were strengthened in their trust in the Lord and every day their numbers increased.

6They traveled through the districts of Phrygia and Galatia, since the Holy Spirit prevented them from going to the province of Asia to speak the word. 7When they arrived at the border of Mysia they tried to enter Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus would not allow them to enter. 8So they passed by Mysia and went down to Troas.

9There Paul saw in vision during the night a man from Macedonia standing up, pleading with him, “Please come over to Macedonia and help us!” 10After Paul saw this vision, we#16:10. The change to “we” indicates that the writer, Luke, had joined them. immediately made arrangements to go to Macedonia, since we concluded that God had called us to share the good news with them.

11We set sail from Troas and made straight for Samothrace. The next day we went on to Neapolis, 12and from there to Philippi, the most important city in Macedonia, and also a Roman colony. We stayed in this city for several days. 13On the Sabbath day we went out of the citytown gates down to the riverside where we thought people would come to pray. We sat down and talked with the women who had gathered there.

14One of them was called Lydia, who sold purple cloth from the town of Thyatira. She worshiped God, and she listened to us. The Lord opened her mind to what Paul was saying, and she accepted what he told her. 15After she and all her household were baptized, she pleaded with us, “If you really think that I'm truly committed to the Lord, then come and stay at my house.” She kept on insisting until we agreed!

16One day when we were going down to the place of prayer we met a slave girl possessed by an evil spirit.#16:16. Literally, “python spirit,” a spirit of divination. She earned her masters a great deal of money by fortune-telling. 17This girl followed Paul and the rest of us around, shouting, “These men are the servants of Almighty God. They are telling you how to be saved!” 18She went on doing this for several days. This bothered Paul so he turned around and told the spirit, “I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to leave her!” The spirit immediately left her.

19But when her masters saw they had lost their means of making money, they grabbed hold of Paul and Silas and dragged them before the authorities at the marketplace. 20They brought them in front of the magistrates, and accused them: “These Jewish men are causing a great disturbance in our town,” they said. 21“They're advocating things that are illegal for us as Romans to accept or to practice.” 22The crowd joined together in an attack on them. The magistrates tore off Paul and Silas' clothes, and ordered them beaten with rods. 23After giving them a severe beating, they threw them into prison, ordering the jailer to keep them locked up. 24The jailer followed his orders. He threw Paul and Silas into the inner cell and shackled their feet in the stocks.

25Around midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing praises to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them. 26Suddenly a tremendous earthquake shook the foundations of the prison. Immediately all the doors flew open and everyone's chains fell off.

27The jailer woke up and saw the doors of the prison wide open. He drew his sword and was about to kill himself, thinking that the prisoners had escaped. 28But Paul shouted out, “Don't hurt yourself—we're all still here!”

29The jailer asked for lights to be brought and rushed in. Shaking with fear he fell down before Paul and Silas. 30He escorted them out and asked them, “Sirs, what do I have to do so I can be saved?”

31“Trust in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your whole household,” they replied. 32Then they shared the word of the Lord with him and everyone who lived in his house. 33Even though it was late at night he bathed their wounds, and he was baptized right away, along with all his family. 34He took them home and had a meal prepared for them. The jailer and his whole family were full of joy because they trusted in God.

35Early the next day the magistrate sent officials to the jailer, telling him, “Release those men.” 36The jailer told Paul, “The magistrates have sent word to release you. So you can leave, and go in peace.”

37But Paul told them, “They publicly beat us without a trial—and yet we're Roman citizens! Then they threw us in prison. Now they want to quietly let us go? No, they should come themselves and release us!”

38The officials went back and reported this to the magistrates. When they heard that Paul and Silas were Roman citizens they were really worried, 39and went to apologize to them.#16:39. It was illegal to punish a Roman citizen without a trial. They escorted them out and begged them to leave town. 40So Paul and Silas left the prison and went to Lydia's house. There they met with the believers, encouraged them, and then went on their way.

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Dr. Jonathan Gallagher. Released under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 Unported License. Version 4.3. For corrections send email to jonathangallagherfbv@gmail.com

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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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