Acts 16

Acts 16:16-24

16. ¶ And it came to pass, as we went to prayer, a certain damsel, * possessed with a spirit of divination, met us, which brought her matters * much gain by foothsaying: 17. The same followed Paul and us, and cried, saying, Thele men are the servants of the most high God, which shew unto us the way of salvation. 18. And this did she many days. But Paul * being grieved, turned and said to the spirit, I command thee in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her. And * he came out the same hour. 19. ¶ And when her matters saw that the hope of their gains was gone, * they caught Paul and Silas, and drew them into the marketplace, unto the rulers; 20. And brought them to the magistrates, saying, Thele men being Jews, * do exceedingly trouble our city, 21. And teach customs which are not lawful for us to receive, neither to observe, being Romans. 22. And the multitude rose up together against them: and the magistrates rent off their clothes, and * commanded to beat them. 23. And when they had laid many stripes upon them, they cast them into prison, charging the jailer to keep them safely. 24. Who having received such a charge, though there was the inner prison, and * made their feet fast in the stocks.

A singular occurrence soon made the preachers of the gospel more taken notice of.

1. There was a damsel possessed with a spirit of divination; for in these times of ignorance and idolatry, the devil used many such disluding instruments, who pretended to forced future events, and to return oracular answers to those who foodishly put their trust in such jugglers: and as they paid for consisting them, this maid being reputed of extraordinary skill, brought her matters much gain by her foothsaying. And when Paul and his companions went out of the city to their country, this damsel for several days followed them, crying, Thele men are the servants of the most high God, which shew unto us the way of salvation; and this was either a testimony extorted by the divine power to leave the men of Philippi more inexcusable, for rejecting what themselves seemed to be oracular; or as others begged, the devil designed to prejudice the cause of Christ, as if these preachers were promoting the same interests, and influenced by the same spirit as this foothsayer. Note, (1.) It is the honour of ministers, that they are servants of the most high God. (2.) There is no way of salvation, but that which the gospel points out to us; without it we must for ever lie down in ignorance, guilt, and misery.

2. Grieved at her continual clamours, and justly apprehensive, least there should seem to be a confederacy between them and her; or forty that Satan, by her means, should deceive and delude the people of Philippi, Paul turned and said to the spirit, I command thee in the name of Jesus Christ, to come out of her, and instantly Satan’s power was broken, and he came out the same hour.

3. Her matters, highly exasperated to find all their gains gone, and her foothsaying at an end, caught Paul and Silas, the two most active persons; and dragging them violently along to the forum, where the magistrates sat to administer justice, preferred a heavy complaint against them, covering their private revenge with the presence of zeal for the public welfare, saying, Thele men being Jesus, the refuse of the earth, and the peels of society, do exceedingly trouble our city, fomenting men and disturbances, and interrupting the peace of the people; and teach customs which are not lawful for us to receive, neither to observe, being Romans; their doctrines and practices being utterly opposite to, and subversive of the worship of our gods, the manners of our country, and the laws of the empire. Note, (1.) The love of money is the root of all evil. (2.) Revenge and malice often wear the cloak of religious zeal, to conceal their malignity. (3.) They who are the preachers of the gospel of peace, have often thus been branded as the disbarters of society, and as the firebrands of discord.

4. The giddy multitude, inflamed by a charge so invidious, rose up in a popular tumult, ready to tear them in pieces; and the magistrates, without form of trial, swimming with the firemen, rent off their clothes, and commanded the lullers, their officers, to charge them with rods severely, as the most infamous malefactors, 1. Thel. ii. 2. and not content with this cruel treatment, after the many and deep stripes they had laid on them, they committed them to the town prison, strictly charging the jailer to keep them safely, that they might not escape; whilst they consulted what farther to do with them. And he, an instrument, savage as his matters could desire, failed not to execute the charge with abundant severity, shedding them into the inner prison, the place allotted to the vilest criminals; and to prevent all possibility of escape, as well as to add to the miseries of these innocent sufferers, he made their feet fast in the stocks. Note, Christ’s servants must prepare for sufferings, and

VOL. II.

not stagger at any reproach which, for his sake, they may be called to bear.

25. ¶ And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them. 26. And suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken: and immediately all the doors were opened, and every one hands were looted. 27. And the keeper of the prison awaking out of his sleep, and seeing the prison doors open, he drew out his sword, and would have killed himself, supposing that the prisoners had been fled. 28. But Paul cried with a loud voice, saying, Do thyself no harm; for we are all here. 29. Then he called for a light, and sprang in, and came trembling, and fell down before Paul and Silas: 30. And brought them out, and said, ‘Sirs, what must I do to be saved? 31. And they said, ‘Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house. 32. And they spake unto him the word of the Lord, and to all that were in his house. 33. And he took them the same hour of the night, and washed their stripes; and was baptized, he and all his, straightway. 34. And when he had brought them into his house, he set meat before them, and rejoiced, believing in God with all his house.

Acts 16:25-34

The misery, pain, and wretched condition in which these two innocent prisoners might be supposed to lie, would lead us to expect many a doleful groan; but, wonderful to tell I we find them happier in their filthy prison, than their persecutors on beds of down.

1. At midnight Paul and Silas prayed, committing themselves cheerfully to God, and looking up to him for strength to bear whatever more might be laid upon them; remembering, no doubt, their persecutors, and begging God to forgive them, not forgetting their inhuman jailer; and they not only prayed, but sang praises unto God, rejoicing in their hands, that they were counted worthy to suffer for their matters; and were filled with such divine confessions as made them forget all the horrors of a prison, and brought down to that dreary mansion a taste of heavenly felicity; and the prisoners heard them; so loud, so hearty were their praises, not ashamed of their matters; and service. Note, (1.) Prayer is an eave to the heart in every affliction, and joint sufferers should unite their supplications. (2.) Our trials should never unburden our hearts for praise; in the midst of all, we have much, very much, for which we should be thankful. (3.) Psalm-singing is a blessed gospel ordinance, and we should never be ashamed of being heard in our families, though foolish and wicked men may ridicule the service.

2. God meticulously gives a token of his presence with them, and of his acceptance of their prayers and praises. Suddenly there was a great earthquake, a testimony of God’s displeasure against their persecutors, and of his appearance on the behalf of his suffering ministers, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken, and immediately all the doors were opened, and every one’s hands were looted; an intimation to the prisoners, that the gospel which these faithful preachers declared, was designed to deliver their souls from the more grievous bondage of guilt and corruption.

3. The jailor himself becomes a convert.

(1.) Awaked by the terrible shock, and starting from his bed, he saw with astonishment the prison doors wide open, and supposing all the prisoners fled, for whose escape his own life must pay, in the first transports of despair he drew his sword, to put an end to his life, in order to prevent a more dreaded public execution.

(2.) Paul, who probably by divine revelation knew the fatal resolution the jailor was about to take, with a loud voice stays his uplifted arm, saying, Do thyself no harm; for we are all here. Paul and Silas thought not of escaping, and the rest were held by an invisible power, fast as the chains which bound them. Note, The gospel-word is, Do thyself no harm; all God’s warnings, rebukes, and calls, are purely to rescue us from the ruin into which we were running, and to save us from sin, the cause of all our miseries.

(3.) The jailor, whose conscience the convictions of sin had now shook more terribly, than the earthquake the prison’s foundations, called for a light, and sprang in eagerly; and some trembling, under the most fearful tense of his dreadful guilt, and fell down before Paul and Silas, with deepest respect and veneration, and brought them out of the hurtful disreptive where they were, and said, Sirs, What must I do to be saved? He now felt all the wickedness of his past crooked, particularly his cruel behaviour to these messengers of God, and confounded at his provocations, eagerly begs their forgiveness and direction, how he may obtain pardon at the hands of God. Note, (1.) God’s

7 T Spirit

Spirit works in different ways on different persons; some, like Lydia, are gently led to Christ; others pass forth through the most dreadful terrors, sometimes brought to the gates of despair, and even tempted to self-murder; and yet even this works together for their good, in order to make Christ more precious to their souls. (2.) They who have depleted and ill used God’s ministers before, when seized by convictions of sin, will entertain very different apprehensions of them, and address them with very different language. (3.) To a soul convinced of sin, all other considerations are swallowed up in that one great concern, What must I do to be saved?

(4.) Paul and Silas have an immediate answer ready for his question. Before on the Lord Jesus Christ, and they find to be found, and the house; the salvation which they preached, being free for him, though an id-latrous Gentile and better perfection; and his family also would be admitted to share his blessing. And they spoke unto him the word of the Lord, and to all that were in the house, who were assembled on this joyful occasion. Now, (1.) The gospel proposes a free salvation in Jesus Christ to the chief of sinners. (2.) Nothing but faith in a Redeemer can bring true peace to a guilty conscience, or obtain the salvation which a sinner needs. (3.) Matters of families, who know the Lord themselves, cannot but be deftown that all under their roof may share their blessings, and be brought with them to the knowledge of the truth.

(5.) Filled now with gratitude and love, the jailor, deeply affected with the blessed truths which he heard, and then, and washed their fingers, to topple and ease the wounds which their severe scourging had made in their backs, and was baptized, he and all his, strangeways, deftown to come under the bonds of the covenant with his family, and to make public protection of Christianity. Which done, he brought Paul and Silas into his house, and or must before them, to refresh them, after the fatigues and falling which they had endured; and rejected, believing in God with all his house, who rejoiced with him in the salvation which they had now embraced, or ever all his house, going from one room to another in a transport of joy. Now, (1.) Believing in Christ, is called believing in God, for he is very God; and on his being so, our everlasting hopes depend. (2.) Joy to the happy trust of faith; they who see a uncauched God blotting out all their transgressions, cannot but rejoice in his salvation.