Acts 16

This chapter falls in the middle of Acts and continues the second missionary journey that Paul began with Silas at the end of Acts 15.

Outline

• Verses 1–5 Timothy joins the company at Lystra, and Paul circumcises him. They deliver the decisions reached at Jerusalem to the churches.
• Verses 6–10 The Holy Spirit prevents them from going into Asia and Bithynia, and at Troas Paul sees a vision of a man of Macedonia.
• Verses 11–15 At a place of prayer by the river in Philippi, Lydia, a seller of purple, hears the word and is baptized together with her household.
• Verses 16–24 Paul casts a spirit of divination out of a slave girl; her owners bring charges, and Paul and Silas are beaten and imprisoned.
• Verses 25–34 As they pray and sing praises at midnight, an earthquake strikes, and the jailer and his household believe and are baptized.
• Verses 35–40 When Paul reveals that they are Roman citizens, the magistrates come in person to release them, and the two men comfort the brethren at Lydia's house before departing.

Key Verses

• Acts 16:9 "Come over into Macedonia, and help us." This call becomes the occasion for the gospel's passage into the region of Macedonia.
• Acts 16:25 "And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God." This is a scene of prayer and praise offered in the midst of suffering.
• Acts 16:31 "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house." This is the answer to the question of how to obtain salvation.

People and Places

• Paul and Silas are the co-workers who traveled together on this journey.
• Timothy is a disciple born to a believing Jewish mother and a Greek father.
• Lydia is a seller of purple (that is, purple-dyed cloth) from Thyatira, a Gentile woman who worshiped God.
• The Philippian jailer is the man who kept the prison and came to faith along with his entire household.
• Philippi is a Roman colony in the region of Macedonia.
• Other places along the route include Derbe, Lystra, Iconium, Phrygia, Galatia, Mysia, Bithynia, Troas, Samothrace, and Neapolis.

Points for Reflection

• Beginning in verse 10, the narrative shifts to the first person plural ("we"). Traditionally this has been read as evidence that the author, Luke, joined the company at this point, though scholars hold other views as well.
• Timothy's circumcision is discussed in light of the decision of the Council of Jerusalem not to impose circumcision on Gentile believers, and of Galatians 2:3, which states that Titus was not compelled to be circumcised. It is commonly explained as an accommodation for the sake of ministry among Jews.
• The scenes in which the "whole household" of Lydia and of the jailer were baptized are frequently cited in the infant baptism debate. Denominations that practice infant baptism, such as Presbyterians and Methodists, regard these as examples of household baptism. Baptists hold that, as verses 32 and 34 indicate, those baptized were people who had heard the word and believed.
• The names of Timothy's mother and grandmother (Eunice and Lois) appear not in this chapter but in 2 Timothy 1:5. They are discussed in the article Lois and Eunice.
• The church at Philippi is the church to which Paul later wrote the Epistle to the Philippians.

In the Korean Church

Acts 16:31 is widely used in sermons and slogans that emphasize family evangelism and "household salvation." The Macedonian vision (verse 9) is often cited in missionary sermons, and the praise in prison (verse 25) in sermons on praising God amid suffering.