ActsChapter 16

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¹Paul came to Derbe and then to Lystra. A disciple named Timothy lived there. His mother was a Jewish believer, but his father was Greek. ²The brothers in Lystra and Iconium said good things about him. ³Paul wanted Timothy to go with him. So he took him and circumcised him. He did this because of the Jews who lived in that area. They all knew that Timothy's father was Greek. ⁴They went from town to town. They gave the people the rules the apostles and elders in Jerusalem had decided on. The people were to obey them. ⁵So the churches grew strong in the faith. They grew in number every day. ⁶The Holy Spirit kept them from speaking the word in the province of Asia. So they went through the area of Phrygia and Galatia. ⁷They came to the border of Mysia. They tried to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus would not let them. ⁸So they passed by Mysia and went down to Troas. ⁹During the night Paul had a vision. A man from Macedonia stood there begging him, "Come over to Macedonia and help us." ¹⁰After Paul saw the vision, we got ready right away to leave for Macedonia. We were sure God had called us to preach the good news to them. ¹¹We sailed from Troas straight to Samothrace. The next day we went on to Neapolis. ¹²From there we went to Philippi. It was a Roman colony and the leading city of that part of Macedonia. We stayed there several days. ¹³On the Sabbath we went outside the city gate to the river. We expected to find a place of prayer there. We sat down and talked to the women who had gathered there. ¹⁴One of the women listening was named Lydia. She was from the city of Thyatira, and she sold purple cloth. She worshiped God. The Lord opened her heart to accept Paul's message. ¹⁵She and the people of her house were baptized. Then she begged us, "If you think I truly believe in the Lord, come and stay at my house." And she talked us into it. ¹⁶One day we were going to the place of prayer. A slave girl met us. She had a spirit that let her tell the future. She made a lot of money for her owners by telling fortunes. ¹⁷This girl followed Paul and the rest of us. She kept shouting, "These men are servants of the Most High God! They are telling you the way to be saved!" ¹⁸She kept doing this for many days. At last Paul became so upset that he turned around. He said to the spirit, "In the name of Jesus Christ I command you to come out of her!" And the spirit left her at that very moment. ¹⁹The girl's owners saw that their hope of making money was gone. So they grabbed Paul and Silas. They dragged them to the marketplace to face the officials. ²⁰They brought them to the judges and said, "These men are Jews. They are throwing our city into an uproar. ²¹They are teaching customs that we Romans are not allowed to accept or follow." ²²The crowd joined in the attack on Paul and Silas. The judges ordered that their clothes be torn off and that they be beaten with rods. ²³They were hit many times. Then they were thrown into prison. The jailer was ordered to guard them closely. ²⁴When he got this order, he put them in the inner cell. He locked their feet in the stocks. ²⁵About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God. The other prisoners were listening to them. ²⁶Suddenly there was a strong earthquake. It shook the prison down to its base. At once all the doors flew open. Everyone's chains came loose. ²⁷The jailer woke up and saw the prison doors open. He thought the prisoners had escaped. So he pulled out his sword to kill himself. ²⁸But Paul shouted, "Don't hurt yourself! We are all here!" ²⁹The jailer called for lights and rushed in. Shaking with fear, he fell down in front of Paul and Silas. ³⁰Then he brought them out and asked, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?" ³¹They answered, "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household." ³²Then Paul and Silas told the word of the Lord to him and to everyone in his house. ³³At that hour of the night, the jailer took them and washed their wounds. Right away he and everyone in his house were baptized. ³⁴Then he brought them into his home and gave them a meal. He and everyone in his house were filled with joy. They had come to believe in God. ³⁵In the morning the judges sent their officers with an order: "Let those men go." ³⁶The jailer told Paul, "The judges have sent orders to let you go. Now you can leave. Go in peace." ³⁷But Paul said to the officers, "They beat us in public without a trial. They threw us into prison, even though we are Roman citizens. And now they want to send us away in secret? Certainly not! Let them come here themselves and walk us out!" ³⁸The officers told this to the judges. The judges were afraid when they heard that Paul and Silas were Roman citizens. ³⁹So they came and tried to make peace with them. They led them out of the prison. Then they asked them to leave the city. ⁴⁰Paul and Silas came out of the prison. They went to Lydia's house. There they saw the brothers and encouraged them. Then they left the city.