And he took him and circumcised him because of the Jews who were in that region, for they all knew that his father was Greek. These were convenient in sizeTo claim Roman citizenship falsely was punishable by death. (Williams). This moved Paul and his missionary team from the continent of Asia to the continent of Europe; this was the first missionary endeavor to Europe. This is how God wants our lives to be: Natural magnets drawing people to Him. 3. 6. If you refuse cookies we will remove all set cookies in our domain. iii. The greatest blessing is His gift of salvation by His free grace. God does not give Christians an exemption, even when they are in the middle of doing His will and pursuing His kingdom and righteousness. Paul and Silas in Prison. Bibliografische Daten. Their pure, upright life, deep faith and devotion to God, their gentleness and their wonderful manliness, became a shining example of life for thousands (in Christianity Today [6/21/74]). 1. There And he came out the same hour. V. The casing of an evil spirit out of a damsel (v. 16-18). 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). Hollywood, FL. This man was more affected by the love and grace demonstrated by Paul and Silas than by the earthquake. 1 Corinthians 15:3-8 (ESV) For I delivered to you as of first impo And immediately all the doors were opened, and everyone's bonds were unfastened. That convicts me of my lack of joy and my grumbling over the minor irritations in my life! They were forbidden by the Holy Spirit to preach the word in Asia: After strengthening the churches in the region, Paul sought to go next to the south-west, towards the important city of Ephesus. Exalting Jesus in Acts (Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary) - GOOD Product Id:1433647095 Condition:USEDGOOD 255947117284 A *Christian called The jailer rejoiced greatly, with all his household, having believed in God." "The jailer called for lights and rushed in to the prison. _ 1. Further, there was racial prejudice behind these false charges. 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. 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. They were not given an opportunity to defend themselves. Acts 16:30-34 What must I do to be Saved? 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. This woman was the first convert in Europe, and one might say that the Macedonian man turned out to be a woman. 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. The Holy Spirit often guides as much by the closing of doors as He does by the opening of doors. Thats how it always should be. There are still those today who are possessed with a spirit of divination. 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 16:16. Studying the book of Acts 16; shows a significant summary of the history, time and relevant details according to the bible's acts based onBenson Joseph - Bible Commentary and reading parallely the bible's version Legacy Standard Bible. Introduction. But Paul cried with a loud voice, saying, Don't harm yourself: we are all here!", "The jailer called for lights and rushed in to the prison. Acts 16:16. The fact is, most of us as Americans have never experienced any serious violation of our religious rights. Others refuse to preach repentance, claiming that this text says that it is not necessary. Thomas Coke Commentary on the Holy Bible - Acts 2:40. He has a greater purpose that we often do not understand. going one way, and then anoth MINISTRY IN PHILIPPI FROM THE HOUSE OF LYDIA (16:12B-40). So many professing Christians are grumbling, discontented people. Lord. 9:23), because the prisoners will be listening. Sermon #7 . Now therefore depart, and go in peace: If Paul and Silas were released the day after their beating, arrest, and imprisonment, why did God send the earthquake? According to the estimate of William Barclay, the first missionary journey finished about five years before the events of this chapter. Always? Our trials do not mean that He does not exist or that He is not loving and good. The Jewish religion was tolerated, but Jews were prohibited from proselytizing Romans. When you are treated wrongly, entrust your soul to a faithful Creator in doing what is right. VII. The demon knew who Commentary, explanation and study verse by verse. Tap the title above, next to the arrow, to go to thatlesson with a link back to thispage. Yet the Spirit of God directed this work, and Paul wasnt the right person in the right place at the right time to begin bringing the gospel to the Roman Province of Asia Minor. A SPIRIT OF DIVINATION CAST OUT BY ST PAUL. Presumably this was because demons gave her supernatural insight into the lives of others. SEPARATOR CAPACITY, 5,000 LB. 5:11-12). Second, Paul was concerned about the future of the church and the gospel in Philippi. c. Now after he had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go: Paul did not hesitate to answer the call of the Macedonian man. www.simplybible.com Copyright Ron Graham 2012, "As we were going to prayer, it happened that a certain slave girl met us. Better, perhaps, _to the oratory,_ or _place Ephesus would come later, not now. The term emphasizes His omnipotence and sovereignty. . Because God said no to Paul these two times, we have a gospel and a Book of Acts written by Doctor Luke. We may assume here t Acts 16:16. Three stories in the Bible help us to distinguish three kinds of belief. Th WELCOMED; ATTESTED; IMPRISONED We need to keep in mind that Paul and Silas did not know the end of this story when they began singing at midnight in the dungeon. There was an old chaplain general of the British Army Bishop John Taylor Smith who used a unique test on candidates for the chaplaincy. b. Now when they had gone through Phrygia and the region of Galatia, they were forbidden by the Holy Spirit to preach the word in Asia. a. His mother was a Jew who had become a believer in Jesus. We fully respect if you want to refuse cookies but to avoid asking you again and again kindly allow us to store a cookie for that. It is possible that they didnt have the opportunity, but it is more likely that the Holy Spirit directed them to not reveal it until a certain time. One thing I really want to talk about is the best way to use Bible commentaries so you are actually learning how to study the Book for yourself, and not just memorizing the thoughts of the . All doors seemed to be It was a strange and wonderful church they left behind in Philippi: Lydia, perhaps the slave girl, the jailer and his household, and others. He fell down trembling before Paul and Silas. That they sailed straight for Samothrace is quite revealing, because this is a nautical expression that means the wind was at their backs. 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." This is indicated by how they began their accusation: These men, being Jews.. They tried to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit did not permit them: After the attempt to go to Asia, Paul sought to go north into Bithynia, but was again prevented by the Holy Spirit. 1:25 is the other). pythonem. Immediately all the doors were opened, and everyones bonds were loosed. 17 She followed Paul and the rest of us, shouting, "These men are servants of the Most High God, who are telling you . 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. He fell down trembling before Paul and Silas. _MARION ADAMS_ At the time, Paul probably had no idea of the greatness of Gods purpose. Our website uses cookies to store user preferences. professed to divine, that is to reveal things beyond the reach of b. The real issue, when youre treated wrongly, is, Do you trust in a sovereign, omnipotent God who could have prevented this situation if He had so willed? Summary. 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. OUTLINE I. TIMOTHY JOINS PAUL AND SILAS (1-5) A. TIMOTHY'S BACKGROUND (1-3) 1. girl who was demon possessed followed them crying out, "These men are The size of this file is 8.8 megabytes. A spirit pretending to divination, to tell And behold, a certain disciple was there, named Timothy, the son of a certain Jewish woman who believed, but his father was Greek. And on the Sabbath day we went out of the city to the riverside, where prayer was customarily made; and we sat down and spoke to the women who met there. Each of these two had their lives touched by Jesus in very different ways. ", "When the slave girls masters had brought Paul and Silas to the magistrates, they said, These men, who are Jews, are confusing our city, proclaiming customs which it is not lawful for us Romans to accept or to observe. Wise, I: NEW /E OF THE BABYLONIAN TALMU. What's more, Paul and Barnabus have traveled . Timothy AS WE WENT TO PRAYER. i. Paul began this missionary journey having come from Antioch. masters much gai AS WE WENT TO PRAYER, Or, _To the oratory._ The manner in which St. i. i. Conversion of the Philippian jailer. d. When they had laid many stripes on them, they threw them into prison: After being severely beaten, Paul and Silas were imprisoned in maximum-security conditions (commanding the jailer to keep them securely the inner prison fastened their feet in the stocks). c. And he came out that very hour: The idea behind that very hour is that the demon came out immediately. i Paul and Silas Imprisoned i. Jewish legal tradition gave a maximum number of blows that could be delivered when beating a person, but the Romans had no such limit. Do they now release us secretly? Tap the title next to the arrow to get thatdocument. The greatest help we can bring anyone is the life-changing gospel of Jesus Christ. Click on the different category headings to find out more. The next time, they would follow the Roman law! He graduated from Dallas Theological Seminary (Th.M., 1976 in Bible exposition) and Califo More, The Net Pastors Journal, Eng. We provide you with a list of stored cookies on your computer in our domain so you can check what we stored. CHAPTER 16 Acts of the Apostles - 423 pages Pdf (includes the following notes) Acts Commentary 15:36-16:10; Acts Commentary 16:11-24; Acts Commentary 16:25-40; HENRY MORRIS. b. But it had everything to do with the salvation of a certain prison guard and his household. had evidently been converted through Paul on his first visit NOW IT HAPPENED, AS WE WENT TO PRAYER, THAT A CERTAIN SLAVE GIRL If our rights are violated, we dont take it sitting down. The demon came out that very hour. 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. The only way that prison and mistreatment and a raw back do not matter is when the delight of God matters more. spirit of divination met us, who brought her i. Either the quake or Gods miraculous power loosed all of the prisoners chains. From the city of Derbe to Troas. Waste Pro State LocationWaste Pro of Florida. He did not appreciate the source of the recommendation, and he didnt need demonic approval of his work. (Acts 16:35-37). His captors smashed four of his vertebrae and either cut or burned 18 holes in his body, but they could not defeat him. 20When the slave girls masters had brought Paul and Silas to the magistrates, they said, 'These men, who are Jews, are confusing our city, 21proclaiming customs which it is not lawful for us Romans to accept or to observe'. We are next introduced to an incident which led to a decided But they can read and predict human behavior, and can attempt to steer events towards a previously predicted conclusion. ACTS 16:16 pu,qwna 24Join these men, go through the rite of purication with them, and pay for the shaving of their heads. VIII. God wanted to give him a continent for Jesus, to give him a personal doctor, and to give all of us the man whom God would use to write more of the New Testament than anyone else did. ( ). DAY 6 - ASK FOR INSIGHT READ THE PASSAGE Think back through what you have learned each day this week. If it had been America, they would have sued and had the magistrates removed from office. (16:35-40) When the 'police' . secrets about their lives. Most certainly not! a. (Acts 16:29-34). He pointed this obviously repentant man to faith in Jesus Christ. A demonic spirit who These cookies are strictly necessary to provide you with services available through our website and to use some of its features. He fell down trembling before Paul and Silas. So, they came down to Troas. A disciple was there, named Timothy, the son of a Jewish woman who was a believer, but his father was a Greek. Note some of the ways that Paul and Silas were mistreated. Let them come themselves and get us out. And the officers told these words to the magistrates, and they were afraid when they heard that they were Romans. And he took them the same hour of the night, and washed their stripes; and was baptized, he and all his, straightway. Suddenly there was a great earthquake which shook the prison to its foundations. i. V. The casing of an evil spirit out of a damsel, ver 16-18. According to the legend, AS WE WENT TO PRAYER,. A CERTAIN DAMSEL POSSESSED WITH A SPIRIT OF DIVINATION MET US. 22The crowd rose up together against them, and the magistrates tore the clothes off Paul and Silas, and commanded them to be beaten with rods. (Acts 16:14-15 RSV) The next step after the proclaiming of the Word of God -- the radical, revolutionary message of the gospel -- is always up to God. Acts 16 Commentary; G CAMPBELL MORGAN. Entered into the house of Lydia This was the place of their residence while at Philippi: see Acts 16:15.. It would be a very long time before these officials would beat a man without a trial. Full-Time. ii. And this she did for many days. But he let their wrong go unpunished and by his actions showed that Christians are not out for personal vengeance. a. Sirs, what must I do be saved? When we were on our way to the place of prayer.. it happened that a a. Paul never specifically called the keeper of the prison to repent because he was already repenting. The dyes used for making purple were expensive and highly regarded. But it is a promise that the Holy Spirit may well make alive to us, helping us to trust Him for the salvation of our families. Had there been ten Jewish men, they would have sufficed to constitute a synagogue. Let them come themselves and release us. ", "The sergeants reported these words to the magistrates, and they were afraid when they heard that they were Romans. It's one of those chapters that you always remember - just the record along of Lydia and her marvelous liberation. certain maid having. Acts 16:16. But it was the Holy Spirits plan to lead him there. the jailor in Acts 16:31-40, commenting on the various characteristics of repentance he possessed or displayed. Read Acts 16 again and ask God to reveal and emphasize truths from this chapter that He wants you to see. However, the jailers household was not saved merely because he was; Paul came and spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house. The word "house" is rightly supplied, for the sense is not, that they went into the country of Lydia, as some have been tempted to think; but they went to the woman Lydia, whose heart the Lord had opened, and was become a disciple and follower of Christ; they went to her house it . 37:4). Under inspiration by the Holy Spirit, Paul told the keeper of the prison that his household would trust Jesus just as he did. But when it is true and has a supernatural origin (as opposed to clever, insightful guessing), there is no doubt that it is inspired by demons. 27The jailer, roused out of sleep, saw the prison doors open. Its still possible for a type of Macedonian Man to give an unusual call to serve God in a distant place. A cheerful, joyous spirit does not depend on having wonderful, trouble-free circumstances. Were out of here! And they would have run for their lives. Yet Jesus said that some demons would be more difficult to cast out than others (Matthew 17:21). ow DAMSEL. And on the Sabbath day we went out of the city to the riverside, where prayer was customarily made; and we sat down and spoke to the women who met there. DAMSEL POSSESSED MET US. CONTENTS: Paul finds Timothy. i. Paul knew that a man will be identified by both his friends and his enemies, and could do without a demonic letter of reference. The jailer then brought Paul and Silas up into his house, and set food before them. He sang because prison did not matter (The Westminster Pulpit [Baker], 9:314-315). 2. The demon came out that very hour. Later, there was a church in Thyatira also, and it was one of the seven churches addressed in Revelation (Revelation 2:18-29). And yet the same mighty power that sent the quake could have prevented the beating and imprisonment in the first place, but did not. She was possessed by a demon, who gave A. _Theophylact_: thus m AS WE WENT TO PRAYER - Greek: as we were going to the proseuche, Baptism was so important that they were baptized "the same hour of the night." Acts 16:40. 3 Paul wanted Timothy as a companion on his journey. of the district, a Roman colony: and we were in 16-18. The real reason for the anger of the slave girls owners was that they had just been deprived of their source of income (16:19). a. (Witham) --- A divining spirit, which pretended to foretell things to A fortune-telling female slave, who brought much money to her owners i. When a Barnabas leaves (for whatever reason), God has a Timothy to go on with him. Our series on Acts and the early church continues with the beginning of Paul's second missionary journey. As you know, when he later wrote to this Philippian church from a prison cell in Rome, the major theme of that letter was joy in the Lord in spite of our circumstances. _Then came he to Lystra,_ as in Acts 14:6. Those who are prisoners in Satans domain of darkness are always listening to and watching the Lords people, especially in times of trial. Let them come themselves and release us.' certain damsel met us_ (that is, met Paul and his three companions) So perfect were the winds that they sailed 156 miles in just two days, whereas returning the other way at a later time (Acts 20:6) it took five days. (Hughes). And he brought them out and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved? So they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household. Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house. In times of trial, Satan tempts us to think things like, If God exists and if He is good, why didnt He protect you from this extreme situation? As Peter goes on to show, and as Paul and Silas here exemplify, the solution is to resist the devil by being firm in our faith in the Almighty God. I think that if they were offering any petitions mixed in with their praise, it would have been, Lord, use this situation for the greater furtherance of the gospel. Paul and Silas knew that God could have prevented them from being beaten and thrown in prison in the first place, but He did not do so. He has a greater purpose that we often do not understand. VII. the place of prayer, Acts 16:13. A jailer was charged to watch them. b. The walk to the place of prayer is made Thus if we want to glorify God, which is the highest goal for the Christian, we must focus on finding joy in Him. Please be aware that this might heavily reduce the functionality and appearance of our site. It was at least the third choice for him. 5:3-5). iii. See on ch. This one incident does not exhaust the biblical teaching on when to stand up for your rights and when to let them go. The jailer then saw that all the prisoners were still there. No indeed! D2 E H L P most m Verse Acts 16:16. 16. Dive Deeper. Their singing was not based on their knowledge of a happy outcome. 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. before, Paul was favorably impressed with the young man, Timothy, who . THE PYTHONESS The Oxford Bible Commentary (first (paperback) ed.). The following cookies are also needed - You can choose if you want to allow them: You can read about our cookies and privacy settings in detail on our Privacy Policy Page. Increasingly, our religious rights are being violated in the interest of so-called neutrality. Recently, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that nude dancing was entitled to considerable legal protection as expressive behavior, but they struck down student elections permitting speech that might be used for prayer prior to high school football games.