Acts 16
1 He came also to Derbe and Lystra. And look, a certain disciple was there, named Timothy, the son of a Jewish woman who believed; but his father was a Greek.
Paul [and Silas] to Derbe [city and visited the believers there]. Next [they went to] Lystra [city]. A believer whose name was Timothy lived there. His mother was a Jewish believer, but his father was a Greek.
2 The brothers who were at Lystra and Iconium gave a good testimony about him.
The believers in Lystra and Iconium said good things about Timothy,
3 Paul wanted to have him go out with him, and he took and circumcised him because of the Jews who were in those parts; for they all knew that his father was a Greek.
and Paul wanted to take Timothy with him [when he went] to other places, so he circumcised Timothy. [He did that so that] the Jews who lived in those places [would accept Timothy], because they knew that his non-Jewish father [had not allowed him to be circumcised] {[anyone to circumcise his son]}.
4 As they went on their way through the cities, they delivered the decrees to them to keep which had been ordained by the apostles and elders who were at Jerusalem.
[So Timothy went with Paul and Silas] and they traveled to many other towns. [In each town] they told [the] believers the rules that had been decided by the apostles and elders in Jerusalem {that the apostles and elders in Jerusalem had decided} that [non-Jewish] believers should obey.
5 So the churches were strengthened in the faith, and increased in number daily.
[God was helping] the believers in those towns to trust more strongly [in the Lord Jesus], and every day more people became believers.
6 When they had gone through the region of Phrygia and Galatia, they were forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia.
Paul and his companions wanted/planned to enter Asia [province] preach the message [about Jesus] there, but they were prevented by the Holy Spirit {the Holy Spirit prevented them} [from going there. So] they traveled through Phrygia and Galatia [provinces].
7 When they had come opposite Mysia, they tried to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them.
They arrived at the border of Mysia [province] and they wanted to go [north] Bithynia [province]. But [again] the Spirit of Jesus showed them that they should not [go there].
8 Passing by Mysia, they came down to Troas.
So they went through Mysia [province] and arrived at Troas, a [port city. I, Luke, joined them there].
9 A vision appeared to Paul in the night. There was a man of Macedonia standing, begging him, and saying, "Come over into Macedonia and help us."
That night [God gave] Paul a vision in which he saw a man [who was a native] of Macedonia [province]. He was standing [some distance away], and he was earnestly calling to Paul, “[Please] come over [here] to Macedonia and help us!”
10 When he had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go out to Macedonia, concluding that the Lord had called us to proclaim the Good News to them.
[The next morning] we [(exc)] immediately got ready to go to Macedonia, because we believed that God had called us to [go and] preach the good message to the people there.
11 Then, setting sail from Troas, we made a straight course to Samothrace, and the day following to Neapolis;
So we [(exc)] got on a ship in Troas and sailed across [the sea] Samothrace [Island. We spent the night there], and the next day [we sailed again across the sea and arrived] at Neapolis [port/town].
12 and from there to Philippi, which is a principle city of that district of Macedonia, a colony. We were staying some days in this city.
Then we [left Neapolis and] went [by land] to Philippi. It was a very important city in Macedonia [province, where many] Roman citizens lived. We stayed in Philippi several days.
13 On the Sabbath day we went forth outside of the gate by a riverside, where we supposed there was a place of prayer, and we sat down, and spoke to the women who had come together.
On the first (Sabbath/Jewish day of rest) [after we(exc) arrived], we went outside the city gate [down] to the river. We had heard [someone say] that [Jewish] people gathered to pray there. [When we arrived there, we saw] some women who had gathered [to pray]. So we sat down and began to tell them [the message about Jesus].
14 A certain woman named Lydia, a seller of purple, of the city of Thyatira, one who worshiped God, heard us; whose heart the Lord opened to listen to the things which were spoken by Paul.
A woman whose name was Lydia was one of those who were listening [to Paul. She was a non-Jewish woman], from Thyatira [city, who bought and] sold [expensive] purple cloth. She had accepted what the Jews believe about God. The Lord [God] caused her to pay attention to the message that Paul preached, and she believed it. [The members of her household also heard the good message and believed in Jesus] [MTY].
15 When she and her household were baptized, she urged us, saying, "If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come into my house, and stay." So she persuaded us.
After [Paul and Silas] baptized Lydia and the others who lived in her house [MTY] {After Lydia and the others who lived in her house were baptized}, she invited us to [go and stay in] her home. She said, “You [(pl)] know that I [now] believe in the Lord [Jesus], so [please] come and stay in my house.” She persuaded us [to do that, so we(exc) stayed there].
16 It happened, as we were going to prayer, that a certain girl having a spirit of Python met us, who brought her masters much gain by fortune telling.
Another day, while we [(exc)] were going to the place where people regularly gathered to pray, we met a young woman who was a slave. An evil spirit was enabling her to be a ventriloquist and to tell people what would happen [to them]. People paid a lot of money to [the men who were] her owners, in return for her telling them things that [she said] would happen [to them].
17 She followed Paul and us, shouting, "These men are servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to you the way of salvation."
This young woman followed Paul and the rest of us. She continually shouted, “These men serve the God who is the greatest [of all gods]! They are telling you how ([God] can save you [so that he will not punish you/to be] saved)”
18 She was doing this for many days. But Paul, becoming greatly annoyed, turned and said to the spirit, "I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her." And it came out at once.
She continued to do that for many days. Finally Paul became irritated. So he turned [toward the young woman] and rebuked the evil spirit [that was in her. He said], “By the authority [MTY] of Jesus Christ, I command you [(sg)] to come out of this young woman!” Right away the evil spirit left her.
19 But when her masters saw that the hope of their gain was gone, they seized Paul and Silas, and dragged them into the marketplace before the rulers.
And then her owners realized that she could no longer earn money for them [because she could no longer predict what would happen to people, so they were angry]. They grabbed Paul and Silas and forcefully took them to the public square, to [the place where] the government authorities and [a lot of other people were gathered].
20 When they had brought them to the magistrates, they said, "These men, being Jews, are agitating our city,
The owners [of the young woman] brought Paul and Silas to the city officials and told them, “These men are Jews, and they are greatly troubling [the people in] [MTY] our city.
21 and set forth customs which it is not lawful for us to accept or to observe, being Romans."
They are teaching that we [(inc)] should follow customs that our laws do not allow us Romans to consider [to be correct] or to obey!”
22 The crowd rose up together against them, and the magistrates tore their clothes off of them, and commanded them to be beaten with rods.
Many of the crowd joined [those who were accusing] Paul and Silas, and started beating them. Then the [Roman] authorities commanded [soldiers] to tear the shirts off Paul and Silas and to beat them [with rods/sticks].
23 When they had laid many stripes on them, they threw them into prison, charging the jailer to keep them safely,
[So the soldiers] beat Paul and Silas vigorously [with rods]. After that, they [took them and] shoved them into the prison. They told the jailer that he should lock them up securely.
24 who, having received such a command, threw them into the inner prison, and secured their feet in the stocks.
[Because the officials] had [commanded] him [to do that], the jailer shoved Paul and Silas into the cell that was farthest inside. [There, he made them sit down on the floor/ground and stretch out their legs]. Then he fastened their ankles in [grooves] between two large wooden beams, [so that Paul and Silas could not move their legs].
25 But about midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them.
About midnight, Paul and Silas were praying [aloud] and praising God by singing hymns. The [other] prisoners were listening attentively to them.
26 Suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened, and everyone's bonds were loosened.
Suddenly there was a very strong earthquake. It shook the entire jail [SYN] and its foundation [SYN]. [The earthquake caused] all the doors [of the jail] to open suddenly, and [caused] all the chains that fastened the prisoners to fall off.
27 The jailer, being roused out of sleep and seeing the prison doors open, drew his sword and was about to kill himself, supposing that the prisoners had escaped.
The jailer woke up and saw that the doors of the jail were open. He thought that the prisoners had escaped. So he pulled out his sword in order to kill himself, [because he knew that the officials would kill him if the prisoners escaped].
28 But Paul shouted loudly, saying, "Do not harm yourself, for we are all here."
Paul [saw the jailer and] shouted to him, “Do not harm yourself! We [(exc) prisoners] are all here!”
29 He called for lights and sprang in, and, fell down trembling before Paul and Silas,
The jailer shouted [to someone] to bring torches/lanterns, [and after they brought them], he rushed into the jail and knelt down in front of Paul and Silas. [He was very afraid, so] much so that he was trembling/shaking.
30 and brought them out and said, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?"
Then he brought Paul and Silas out [of the jail] and asked: “Sirs, what do I need to do to be saved [from being punished for my sins]?”
31 They said, "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household."
[They answered], “Trust in [what] the Lord Jesus [has done for you], and you will be saved {[God] will save you}, and the others who live in [MTY] your house will [also] be saved [if they believe in Jesus].”
32 They spoke the word of the Lord to him, and to all who were in his house.
Then the jailer took Paul and Silas into his house, washed their wounds, and gave them a meal. [He woke up all the people in his house, and] Paul and Silas told all of them the message about the Lord [Jesus. They all believed in him]. Immediately [after that, the jailer and all his family were baptized] {[Paul and Silas] baptized the jailer and all his family}. They were very happy, because now they all believed in God.
33 He took them the same hour of the night, and washed their stripes, and was immediately baptized, he and all his household.
34 He brought them up into his house, and set food before them, and rejoiced greatly, with all his household, having believed in God.
35 But when it was day, the magistrates sent the sergeants, saying, "Let those men go."
The next morning, the [Roman] officials commanded [some] police officers [to go to the jail to say to the jailer], “[Our bosses] say, ‘Let those [two] prisoners go [now]!’”
36 The jailer reported these words to Paul, saying, "The magistrates have sent to let you go; now therefore come out, and go in peace."
[After the officers went and told that to] the jailer, he [went and] told Paul, “The [Roman] authorities have sent a message [(sg)] saying that I should release you [(sg)] and Silas [from prison]. So you [two] can leave [the jail] now. Now you can go peacefully!”
37 But Paul said to them, "They have beaten us publicly, without a trial, men who are Romans, and have cast us into prison. Do they now release us secretly? No indeed. Let them come themselves and bring us out."
But Paul said to the police officers, “The authorities [commanded men to] beat us in front of a crowd before [those authorities] had learned if we [(exc)] had done anything wrong! Then they [ordered men to] shove us into jail! [But that was not legal, because] we [(exc)] are Roman citizens! And now they want [RHQ] to send us away secretly! We will not accept that! Those [Roman] officials must come themselves and [tell us that they are sorry], and take us out [of jail].”
38 The sergeants reported these words to the magistrates, and they were afraid when they heard that they were Romans,
So the police officers [went and] told the city authorities [what Paul had said]. When those authorities heard that Paul and Silas were Roman citizens, they were afraid [that someone would report to more important officials what they had done, and as a result they would be punished] {[those officials would punish them]}.
39 and they came and apologized to them. When they had brought them out, they asked them to depart from the city.
So the city authorities came to Paul and Silas and told them that they were sorry for what they had done to them. The authorities brought them out of the jail, and repeatedly asked them to leave the city [soon].
40 They went out of the prison, and entered into Lydia's house. When they had seen the brothers, they encouraged them, and departed.
After Paul and Silas left the jail, they went to Lydia’s house. There they met with her and the [other] believers. They encouraged the believers [to continue trusting in the Lord Jesus], and then the two apostles left [Philippi].
