Acts 16

1Paul also came to Derbe and to Lystra. A disciple named Timothy was there, the son of a Jewish woman who was a believer, but his father was a Greek.

2The brothers and sisters in Lystra and Iconium spoke well of him.

3Paul wanted Timothy to go with him, so he took him and circumcised him because of the Jews who lived in those places, for they all knew that his father was a Greek.

4As they went from town to town, they delivered to the believers the decisions reached by the apostles and elders in Jerusalem for them to observe.

5So the churches were strengthened in the faith and grew in number every day.

6They went through the region of Phrygia and Galatia, because they had been prevented by the Holy Spirit from speaking the word in Asia.

7When they came to the border of Mysia, they tried to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them.

8So they passed by Mysia and went down to Troas.

9During the night Paul had a vision: a man of Macedonia was standing there, pleading with him, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.”

10As soon as he had seen the vision, we immediately tried to leave for Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to proclaim the good news to them.

11We set sail from Troas and made a straight run to Samothrace, and the next day to Neapolis,

12and from there to Philippi, a city of the first district of Macedonia and a Roman colony. We stayed in this city for some days.

13On the Sabbath day we went outside the city gate to the riverside, where we thought there would be a place of prayer. We sat down and began speaking to the women who had gathered there.

14One of those listening was a woman named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth from the city of Thyatira, who worshiped God. The Lord opened her heart to pay attention to what Paul was saying.

15When she and her household had been baptized, she urged us, “If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come and stay at my house.” And she persuaded us.

16Once, as we were going to the place of prayer, we were met by a slave girl who had a spirit of divination and brought her owners a great deal of money by telling fortunes.

17She followed Paul and the rest of us, shouting, “These men are servants of the Most High God, who are proclaiming to you the way of salvation.”

18She kept doing this for many days. Finally Paul became greatly annoyed, turned around, and said to the spirit, “I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.” And it came out that very moment.

19When her owners saw that their hope of making money was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace before the authorities.

20They brought them before the magistrates and said, “These men are Jews, and they are throwing our city into confusion.

21They are promoting customs that it is not lawful for us as Romans to accept or practice.”

22The crowd joined in the attack against them, and the magistrates tore the clothes off them and ordered them to be beaten with rods.

23After striking them with many blows, they threw them into prison and ordered the jailer to guard them securely.

24Having received such orders, he put them in the inner prison and fastened their feet in the stocks.

25About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them.

26Suddenly there was a great earthquake, so strong that the foundations of the prison were shaken. At once all the doors flew open, and everyone’s chains came loose.

27When the jailer woke up and saw the prison doors open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself, because he thought the prisoners had escaped.

28But Paul shouted in a loud voice, “Do not harm yourself, for we are all here!”

29The jailer called for lights, rushed in, and fell down trembling before Paul and Silas.

30Then he brought them outside and said, “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 they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to everyone in his house.

33At that hour of the night he took them and washed their wounds, and immediately he and all his family were baptized.

34He brought them up into his house and set a meal before them, and he rejoiced with his whole household that he had come to believe in God.

35When morning came, the magistrates sent the officers with the order, “Release those men.”

36The jailer reported these words to Paul: “The magistrates have sent word that you are to be released. So come out now and go in peace.”

37But Paul said to the officers, “They beat us in public without a trial, men who are Roman citizens, and threw us into prison. And now are they going to throw us out secretly? Certainly not! Let them come themselves and escort us out.”

38The officers reported these words to the magistrates, and they were alarmed when they heard that Paul and Silas were Roman citizens.

39So they came and apologized to them, and after escorting them out, they asked them to leave the city.

40After Paul and Silas left the prison, they went to Lydia’s house, and when they had seen the brothers and sisters, they encouraged them and then departed.