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Read Acts Chapter 16

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1Then came he to Derbe and Lystra: and, behold, a certain disciple was there, named Timotheus, the son of a certain woman, which was a Jewess, and believed; but his father was a Greek:

2Which was well reported of by the brethren that were at Lystra and Iconium.

3Him would Paul have to go forth with him; and took and circumcised him because of the Jews which were in those quarters: for they knew all that his father was a Greek.

4And as they went through the cities, they delivered them the decrees for to keep, that were ordained of the apostles and elders which were at Jerusalem.

5And so were the churches established in the faith, and increased in number daily.

6Now when they had gone throughout Phrygia and the region of Galatia, and were forbidden of the Holy Ghost to preach the word in Asia,

7After they were come to Mysia, they assayed to go into Bithynia: but the Spirit suffered them not.

8And they passing by Mysia came down to Troas.

9And a vision appeared to Paul in the night; There stood a man of Macedonia, and prayed him, saying, Come over into Macedonia, and help us.

10And after he had seen the vision, immediately we endeavoured to go into Macedonia, assuredly gathering that the Lord had called us for to preach the gospel unto them.

11Therefore loosing from Troas, we came with a straight course to Samothracia, and the next day to Neapolis;

12And from thence to Philippi, which is the chief city of that part of Macedonia, and a colony: and we were in that city abiding certain days.

13And on the sabbath we went out of the city by a river side, where prayer was wont to be made; and we sat down, and spake unto the women which resorted thither.

14And a certain woman named Lydia, a seller of purple, of the city of Thyatira, which worshipped God, heard us: whose heart the Lord opened, that she attended unto the things which were spoken of Paul.

15And when she was baptized, and her household, she besought us, saying, If ye have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come into my house, and abide there. And she constrained us.

16And it came to pass, as we went to prayer, a certain damsel possessed with a spirit of divination met us, which brought her masters much gain by soothsaying:

17The same followed Paul and us, and cried, saying, These men are the servants of the most high God, which shew unto us the way of salvation.

18And this did she many days. But Paul, being grieved, turned and said to the spirit, I command thee in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her. And he came out the same hour.

19And when her masters saw that the hope of their gains was gone, they caught Paul and Silas, and drew them into the marketplace unto the rulers,

20And brought them to the magistrates, saying, These men, being Jews, do exceedingly trouble our city,

21And teach customs, which are not lawful for us to receive, neither to observe, being Romans.

22And the multitude rose up together against them: and the magistrates rent off their clothes, and commanded to beat them.

23And when they had laid many stripes upon them, they cast them into prison, charging the jailor to keep them safely:

24Who, having received such a charge, thrust them into the inner prison, and made their feet fast in the stocks.

25And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them.

26And suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken: and immediately all the doors were opened, and every one's bands were loosed.

27And the keeper of the prison awaking out of his sleep, and seeing the prison doors open, he drew out his sword, and would have killed himself, supposing that the prisoners had been fled.

28But Paul cried with a loud voice, saying, Do thyself no harm: for we are all here.

29Then he called for a light, and sprang in, and came trembling, and fell down before Paul and Silas,

30And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved?

31And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.

32And they spake unto him the word of the Lord, and to all that were in his house.

33And he took them the same hour of the night, and washed their stripes; and was baptized, he and all his, straightway.

34And when he had brought them into his house, he set meat before them, and rejoiced, believing in God with all his house.

35And when it was day, the magistrates sent the serjeants, saying, Let those men go.

36And the keeper of the prison told this saying to Paul, The magistrates have sent to let you go: now therefore depart, and go in peace.

37But Paul said unto them, They have beaten us openly uncondemned, being Romans, and have cast us into prison; and now do they thrust us out privily? nay verily; but let them come themselves and fetch us out.

38And the serjeants told these words unto the magistrates: and they feared, when they heard that they were Romans.

39And they came and besought them, and brought them out, and desired them to depart out of the city.

40And they went out of the prison, and entered into the house of Lydia: and when they had seen the brethren, they comforted them, and departed.

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Explanation

Acts 16

In short

Paul travels through cities in Asia Minor, recruiting Timothy and delivering decisions from the apostles in Jerusalem. The Holy Spirit guides him away from certain regions and toward Macedonia, where he converts Lydia and her household, then encounters opposition when he casts out a spirit of divination from a slave girl. After Paul and Silas are beaten and imprisoned, an earthquake releases them, the jailer believes in Jesus, and the magistrates later apologize for beating Roman citizens without trial.

What the text says

Paul arrives at Lystra and meets Timothy, a disciple whose mother is Jewish and father is Greek. Timothy is well-spoken of by believers, so Paul wants him to join his travels and circumcises him because the Jews in that region know his father was Greek (verses 1-3). As they travel through cities, they deliver decrees from the apostles and elders in Jerusalem, which strengthens the churches (verses 4-5).

The Holy Spirit prevents Paul from preaching in Asia and Bithynia (verses 6-7), so Paul goes to Troas, where he sees a vision of a Macedonian man calling him to come help (verses 8-9). Paul recognizes this as the Lord's call (verse 10) and sails to Philippi, Macedonia's main city (verses 11-12).

At Philippi, Paul speaks to women by a river on the Sabbath. Lydia, a purple merchant from Thyatira who worships God, hears Paul, the Lord opens her heart, and she and her household are baptized. She insists they stay in her house (verses 13-15).

As Paul goes to prayer, a slave girl with a divining spirit meets him, follows him, and announces he can show the way of salvation (verses 16-17). After many days, Paul commands the spirit to leave her in Jesus' name, and it does (verse 18). Her owners lose their profit and drag Paul and Silas to the magistrates, accusing them of teaching unlawful customs (verses 19-21). The magistrates beat them and throw them in prison with orders to keep them secure (verses 22-24).

At midnight, Paul and Silas pray and sing while the prisoners listen (verse 25). An earthquake shakes the prison, opens all doors, and loosens all chains (verse 26). The jailer wakes, sees open doors, and prepares to kill himself, thinking prisoners escaped (verses 27-28). Paul shouts that everyone is still there (verse 28). The jailer brings them out, trembling, and asks "what must I do to be saved?" (verses 29-30). Paul answers: "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house" (verse 31). They speak God's word to the jailer and his household, who are baptized that night (verses 32-33). The jailer's household rejoices, believing in God (verse 34).

By day, magistrates send word to release Paul and Silas (verse 35). The jailer tells them they are free to go (verse 36). Paul refuses, saying they beat Roman citizens without trial and cast them in prison, so the magistrates must come themselves to release them (verse 37). When told Paul and Silas are Romans, the magistrates fear (verse 38), come to apologize, escort them out, and ask them to leave the city (verses 39). Paul and Silas go to Lydia's house, see the believers, comfort them, and depart (verse 40).

Takeaways

  • The Spirit actively guides where the gospel should go and where it should not.
  • Belief in Jesus and baptism come to both individuals and entire households through encounters with Paul.
  • Roman citizenship protects Paul from unjust punishment and wins official acknowledgment of wrongdoing.

Explanation written with the help of AI. The Bible text above is not changed. Context and interpretation are flagged as such; always come back to the text itself.