This should be rendered as in above a. As Roman citizens, Paul and Silas had a right to a trial before any punishment. AND IT CAME TO PASS, AND WE WENT TO PRA 40 Silas was almost necessary as a companion for Paul. Each of these two had their lives touched by Jesus in very different ways. The use of they here suggests that Luke stayed behind in Philippi for at least a while, perhaps to care for this new congregation. The Midnight Miracles Acts 16:16-40; F B MEYER. I am using the wording of 1 Peter 4:19, which is one of two times in the New Testament God is called the Creator (Rom. This was a big step, perhaps bigger than Paul even knew. Maybe they thought that the beating and night in prison would send these guys packing, never to return. When you are treated wrongly, entrust your soul to a faithful Creator in doing what is right. i. 37:4). When a Barnabas leaves (for whatever reason), God has a Timothy to go on with him. 17 She followed Paul and the rest of us, shouting, "These men are servants of the Most High God, who are telling you the way to be saved." 18 She kept this up for many days. And she prevailed upon us. . He knew that it was easier for the gospel to spread from these cities than to these cities. Ephesus would come later, not now. The wisdom and greatness of Gods plan was beginning to unfold. His action in the circumcision of Timothy is startling in She was possessed by a spirit of divination. These stocks had more than two holes for legs, which could thus be forced apart in a such a way as to cause the utmost discomfort and cramping pain. (Bruce), iii. labours in that city, Lois a jewess, her daughter Eunice, and Timothy We note with interest that the Holy Spirit actually forbade Paul to do something we normally think of as good preaching Gods Word to those who need it. On the morning after "a great earthquake" (v. 26) strikes a city, there is much turmoil, as people assess . So he stood on his rights in order to protect the church and the cause of Christ in that city. If Paul wished to maintain his links with the synagogue, he could not be seen to countenance apostasy. (Bruce). Tap the title next to the arrow to get thatdocument. A with ABCD. This he does not yet do, speaking racially. (Acts 16:29-34). med. John Dummelow's Commentary on the Bible - Acts 8:4-18. God guides us along the way, to just the right place. He testified, Alone in my cell, cold, hungry, and in rags, I danced for joy every night. During this time he asked a fellow prisoner, whom he had led to Christ before they were both arrested, Have you any resentment against me that I brought you to Christ? The man responded, I have no words to express my thankfulness that you brought me to the wonderful Savior. gain by soothsaying: ACTS 16:1 Paul and Silas would not be hurried out of town until they had brought their work there to a conclusion. Acts 16:16-24. She earned a great deal of money for her owners by fortune-telling. the place where he was worshipped, (which was afterwards cal 16-18. Having received such a charge, he put them into the inner prison and fastened their feet in the stocks. By rights, Paul could have had their heads if he had taken his case to a higher authority. They trusted that He had another purpose in mind, and so He did, namely, the conversion of the jailer and his family. Had there been ten Jewish men, they would have sufficed to constitute a synagogue. Yet, Paul was forbidden by the Holy Spirit to go there. I could handle, Try not to grumble too much. Rejoice always; In everything give thanks; for this is Gods will for you in Christ Jesus (1 Thess. a. "ACTS OF THE APOSTLES" Chapter Sixteen OBJECTIVES IN STUDYING THIS CHAPTER 1) To trace the route of Paul . One way or another, Paul and his company got the message. Whereas Lydia, while not necessarily wealthy, was at least a woman of some independence (as the head of her household), this second woman is doubly bound, a . with a spirit of divination met us, which brought her masters much masters much gain by the giving of oracles.' Mythology, by Apollo, who was hence called Pythius, and the priestess _as we went to prayer_ Better, AS WE WERE GOING TO THE PLACE OF Suddenly there was a great earthquake which shook the prison to its foundations. Then they came and pleaded with them and brought them out, and asked them to depart from the city. When they had laid many blows on Paul and Silas, they threw them into prison. He has a greater purpose that we often do not understand. Hollywood, FL. Cultivating joy in the Lord every day is not optional. First, he did the work of strengthening the churches through the regions of Syria and Cilicia (Acts 15:40-41). Do we just lay down as doormats and take whatever happens passively? That leads to the last point: We dont know why, but for some reason the next morning the magistrates sent to the jailer and told him to release Paul and Silas. As we went to prayer Or to the place of prayer, mentioned before; a certain damsel met us (that is, met Paul and his three companions) possessed with a spirit of divination Greek, , having a spirit of Python, or Apollo. Like the children of Israel in the wilderness, they think that they would be happier back in slavery in Egypt than to be with God and His provision in the wilderness. This sort of treatment effectively terrorizes the population into submission. nay verily; but let them come themselves and fetch us out. b. I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her: Jesus cast out demons with His own authority. ii. | List Python". 19 Now when her masters saw that the hope of their gain was gone, they seized Paul and Silas, and dragged them to the marketplace to face the rulers." (Acts 16:16-19). Or, as James wrote, Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance (James 1:2-3). 16 Once when we were going to the place of prayer, we were met by a female slave who had a spirit by which she predicted the future. ii. Acts chapter 16. You always can block or delete cookies by changing your browser settings and force blocking all cookies on this website. A. Timothy (16:1-10) As Paul and Silas go through Derbe and Lystra, they come across a disciple named Timothy who was spoken highly of by the brethren. The conversion of the Jailer in Philippi Acts 16:16-40: At a place of prayer in Philippi Paul and Silas came across a girl that had a spirit of divination. Verse Acts 16:40. But few of us know the kind of persecution experienced by those in former or present communist countries, or those in strongly Muslim countries They could more effectively preach from the story in our text than I can. The content of the joint AAR/SBL annual meetings, which attract upwards of 11,000 attendees, is very revealing. Paul's Macedonian vision. Home All doors seemed to be Knowing this, Paul called with a loud voice, saying, Do yourself no harm, for we are all here. He assured the jailer that no one had escaped. Note some of the ways that Paul and Silas were mistreated. As we come to the 16 th chapter of Acts we are coming, really, to a chapter that is going to, I think, leave an impression on all of us. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved: Pauls answer to the keeper of the prison is a classic statement of the essence of the gospel. Adoniram Judson went to India, but God guided him to Burma. There is perhaps no example of this more remarkable than that which Paul and Silas did not sit in jail lamenting, Maybe we missed the signals! If I radiate His joy because I have entrusted my soul to Him, the faithful Creator, then even when Im wrongly treated, He will be glorified and others will be drawn to the Savior. He was a believer. With Paul, we should aim at doing all things for the sake of the gospel (1 Cor. The accusing and abusing of Paul and Silas for it, their imprisonment, and the indignities done them, ver 19-24. Due to security reasons we are not able to show or modify cookies from other domains. It would have been easy for Paul and Silas to escape thinking God provided another miraculous jailbreak. 26Suddenly there was a great earthquake which shook the prison to its foundations. 2 He was well spoken of by the brothers[ b] at Lystra and Iconium. Lydia was prospering in business; the guard was about to kill himself. First, Paul was concerned for justice for all people, and what these magistrates had done was grossly unjust. So Paul and Silas went out of the prison, and entered into Lydias house to see and encourage the brethren; then Paul and Silas departed.". (Acts 16:6) they received a GOOD NEWS FOR EVERYONE Explanation - The following list includes not only commentaries but other Christian works by well known evangelical writers.Most of the resources below are newer works (written after 1970) which previously were available only for purchase in book form . 4:13). On the Sabbath day we went out of the city to the riverside, where prayer was customarily made: The fact that the Jews of Philippi had no synagogue and met by the river means that there were not many Jewish men in Philippi. i. Yet they returned to the prison willingly to spare the jailer certain death. V1 Paul went to Derbe and then he went to Lystra. i. Philippi was the place where the armies of Mark Antony and Octavian defeated Brutus and Cassius in the decisive battle of the second Roman civil war in 42 B.C. (Hughes) Because of this, many Roman soldiers retired in the area, and Philippi was proud of its Roman connection. No, in this he was simply obeying the words of Jesus, Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. This shows Gods provision, because John Mark and Barnabas just left Paul (Acts 15:36-41). spiritum Read Acts 16 again and ask God to reveal and emphasize truths from this chapter that He wants you to see. All of the ambiguity that this character radiates has an . Paul did things for the sake of love that he would not do for the sake of trying to please God through legalism. They came and pleaded with them and brought them out, and asked them to depart from the city: The magistrates acted as politicians often act by instinct. And it came to pass, as we went to prayer, a certain damsel possessed with a spirit of divinationc met us, which brought her masters much gain by soothsaying: The 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. The jailer then brought Paul and Silas up into his house, and set food before them. i. Due to the sweetness and greatness of this work, there is a proverb in Tamil which says, "Thiruvasagathukku . And a vision appeared to Paul in the night. New International Version. If you do, then the next issue is to pray, Lord, use this difficult situation for Your glory to further Your purpose. Whenever Paul wrote as a prisoner, he never said, Paul, a prisoner of that scoundrel Caesar who has unjustly put me in prison! No, it was always, Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus. He trusted in the sovereign and all-powerful God, who easily could overrule Caesar if He so chose. A disciple, whose mother was a Jewish Christian and father was Greek 3. by day, incessantly crying after them, _These men are serva And it came to pass, as we went to prayer, a certain damsel possessed (2 Corinthians 11:23), ii. (16:35-40) When the 'police' . Now when he had brought them into his house, he set food before them; and he rejoiced, having believed in God with all his household. When you answered the call of God, you were excited and energized about the possibility of service. A verse by verse study of Acts 17:1-15. The conversion of the Jailer in Philippi Acts 16:16-40: At a place of prayer in Philippi Paul and Silas came across a girl that had a spirit of divination. 16-30, Ezekiel 37:21-28). He comments: The words had scarcely left his lips when she was released from its power.. (13-15) The conversion of Lydia. We do not know firsthand the true meaning of the word persecution. Perhaps some of you may have felt ostracized at work or have been passed over for a promotion because you are a Christian. Paul, becoming greatly annoyed, turned and said to the spirit, I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her! The demon came out that very hour. A certain disciple was there, named Timothy: In the time since Paul had been to Lystra, a young man named Timothy had been serving the Lord (He was well spoken of by the brethren). The term emphasizes His omnipotence and sovereignty. Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice! (Phil. And they brought them to the magistrates, and said, These men, being Jews, exceedingly trouble our city; and they teach customs which are not lawful for us, being Romans, to receive or observe. Then the multitude rose up together against them; and the magistrates tore off their clothes and commanded them to be beaten with rods. And the keeper of the prison, awaking from sleep and seeing the prison doors open, supposing the prisoners had fled, drew his sword and was about to kill himself. Acts 21:23-26 23So do what we tell you. And the prisoners were listening to them: What a strange sound this was to the other prisoners! If anyone had a right to be angry, they did. This girl had brought her masters much gain by fortune telling. She followed Paul and Silas saying, "These men are the servants of the most high God, which shew unto us the way of salvation."