Acts 16

16 ¹Paul went on to Derbe and Lystra. A disciple was there named Timothy, son of a believing Jewish woman, but his father was a Greek. ²He was well thought of by the brothers at Lystra and Iconium. ³Paul wanted him to travel with him, so he took and circumcised him, because of the Jews in those places, for they all knew his father was Greek. ⁴Traveling through the towns, they delivered the decisions the apostles and elders in Jerusalem had made, for them to keep. ⁵So the churches were strengthened in the faith and grew in numbers daily.

The Father Calls Them to Macedonia

⁶They crossed the Phrygian and Galatian region, since the Holy Spirit had stopped them from speaking the word in Asia. ⁷Reaching Mysia, they tried entering Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus wouldn't let them. ⁸So passing by Mysia, they went down to Troas. ⁹Paul saw a vision in the night: a Macedonian man stood pleading with him, "Cross over to Macedonia and help us." ¹⁰When he had seen the vision, we tried at once to leave for Macedonia, concluding our Father had called us to tell them the good news.

Lydia Opens Her Heart in Philippi

¹¹So we set sail from Troas and sailed straight to Samothrace, and the next day to Neapolis, ¹²and from there to Philippi, a leading city of that district of Macedonia, a Roman colony. We stayed there several days.

¹³On the Sabbath we went outside the gate to a river, supposing there was a place of prayer. We sat and spoke with the women gathered there. ¹⁴A woman named Lydia, from Thyatira, who sold purple cloth and worshiped our Father, was listening. The Lord opened her heart to Paul's words. ¹⁵When she and her household were baptized, she urged us: "If you judge me faithful to the Lord, come to my house and stay." And she persuaded us.

Imprisoned for the Gospel

¹⁶As we went to the place of prayer, we met a slave girl possessed by a spirit of divination; she earned her owners great profit through fortune-telling. ¹⁷She followed Paul and us, shouting, "These men are servants of the Most High God, announcing to you the way of salvation." ¹⁸She did this for many days. Paul, deeply annoyed, turned and told the spirit, "I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her." It came out instantly.

¹⁹When her owners saw their hope of profit was gone, they seized Paul and Silas, dragged them to the marketplace before the rulers. ²⁰Bringing them to the magistrates, they said, "These men are Jews, disturbing our city. ²¹They advocate customs that are not lawful for us as Romans to accept or practice."

²²The crowd joined the attack, and the magistrates ripped off Paul and Silas's clothes and ordered them beaten with rods. ²³After beating them severely, they threw them into prison, ordering the jailer to guard them securely. ²⁴Given that order, he locked them in the inner cell and clamped their feet in stocks.

²⁵About midnight Paul and Silas prayed and sang hymns to our Father while the prisoners listened to them. ²⁶Suddenly a violent earthquake shook the prison's foundations; instantly all doors opened and everyone's chains loosened. ²⁷The jailer woke, saw the prison doors open, drew his sword meaning to kill himself, thinking the prisoners had escaped. ²⁸But Paul shouted, "Don't harm yourself, for we are all here!"

²⁹The jailer called for lights, rushed in, and fell trembling before Paul and Silas. ³⁰Then he brought them outside and said, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?"

³¹And they said, "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household." ³²They spoke the Lord's word to him and everyone in his house. ³³In that hour of the night, he took them and washed their wounds; then he and his whole household were baptized at once. ³⁴He brought them up into his house, set food before them, and was overjoyed with his whole household at believing in our Father.

³⁵But when morning came, the magistrates sent the police, saying, "Release those men."

³⁶The jailer told Paul, "The magistrates sent orders to release you. Come out now and go in peace."

³⁷But Paul said to them, "They beat us publicly, without trial, Roman citizens that we are, and threw us into prison. Now they want to send us off secretly? No! Let them come themselves and lead us out."

³⁸The officers reported these words to the magistrates, who were afraid to hear they were Roman citizens. ³⁹They came, apologized, led them out, and asked them to leave the city. ⁴⁰So they left the prison and went to Lydia's house. There they saw the brothers, encouraged them, and left.