Acts 16
1 Paul came also to Derbe and to Lystra. A disciple was there, named Timothy, the son of a Jewish woman who was a believer, but his father was a Greek. 2 He was well spoken of by the brothers at Lystra and Iconium. 3 Paul wanted Timothy to accompany him, and he took him and circumcised him because of the Jews who were in those places, for they all knew that his father was a Greek. 4 As they went on their way through the cities, they delivered to them for observance the decisions that had been reached by the apostles and elders who were in Jerusalem. 5 So the churches were strengthened in the faith, and they increased in numbers daily. 6 And they went through the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia. 7 And when they had come up to Mysia, they attempted to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them. 8 So, passing by Mysia, they went down to Troas. 9 And a vision appeared to Paul in the night: a man of Macedonia was standing there, urging him and saying, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” 10 And when Paul had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go on into Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them. 11 So, setting sail from Troas, we made a direct voyage to Samothrace, and the following day to Neapolis, 12 and from there to Philippi, which is a leading city of the district of Macedonia and a Roman colony. We remained in this city some days. 13 And on the Sabbath day we went outside the gate to the riverside, where we supposed there was a place of prayer, and we sat down and spoke to the women who had come together. 14 One who heard us was a woman named Lydia, from the city of Thyatira, a seller of purple goods, who was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to pay attention to what was said by Paul. 15 And after she was baptized, and her household as well, she urged us, saying, “If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come to my house and stay.” And she prevailed upon us. 16 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 much gain by fortune-telling. 17 She followed Paul and us, crying out, “These men are servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to you the way of salvation.” 18 And this she kept doing for many days. Paul, having become 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 that very hour. 19 But when her owners saw that their hope of gain was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace before the rulers. 20 And when they had brought them to the magistrates, they said, “These men are Jews, and they are disturbing our city. 21 They advocate customs that are not lawful for us as Romans to accept or practice.” 22 The crowd joined in attacking them, and the magistrates tore the garments off them and gave orders to beat them with rods. 23 And when they had inflicted many blows upon them, they threw them into prison, ordering the jailer to keep them safely. 24 Having received this order, he put them into the inner prison and fastened their feet in the stocks. 25 About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to 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 everyone’s bonds were unfastened. 27 When the jailer woke and saw that the prison doors were open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself, supposing that the prisoners had escaped. 28 But Paul cried with a loud voice, “Do not harm yourself, for we are all here.” 29 And the jailer called for lights and rushed in, and trembling with fear he fell down before Paul and Silas. 30 Then he brought them out and said, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” 31 And they said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.” 32 And they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house. 33 And he took them the same hour of the night and washed their wounds; and he was baptized at once, he and all his family. 34 Then he brought them up into his house and set food before them. And he rejoiced along with his entire household that he had believed in God. 35 But when it was day, the magistrates sent the police, saying, “Let those men go.” 36 And the jailer reported these words to Paul, saying, “The magistrates have sent to let you go. Therefore come out now and go in peace.” 37 But Paul said to them, “They have beaten us publicly, uncondemned, men who are Roman citizens, and have thrown us into prison; and do they now throw us out secretly? No! Let them come themselves and take us out.” 38 The police reported these words to the magistrates, and they were afraid when they heard that they were Roman citizens. 39 So they came and apologized to them. And they took them out and asked them to leave the city. 40 So they went out of the prison and visited Lydia. And when they had seen the brothers, they encouraged them and departed. (Acts 16, ESV Bible)
1 Paul came also to Derbe and to Lystra. A disciple was there, named Timothy, the son of a Jewish woman who was a believer, but his father was a Greek. 2 He was well spoken of by the brothers at Lystra and Iconium. 3 Paul wanted Timothy to accompany him, and he took him and circumcised him because of the Jews who were in those places, for they all knew that his father was a Greek. (Acts 16:1-3, ESV Bible)
Circumcision of Timotiyos
On Paul's previous visit to Lystra, he had introduced the Jewish family of Lois, Eunice, and Eunice's teenage son Timothy to faith in Yeshua. The boy had impressed him with his sincerity and keen knowledge of the Scriptures. He "made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses" (I Timothy 6:12). Two years later, Paul found that Timothy had matured into a young man and a teacher among the local believers. "He was well spoken of by the brethren who were in Lystra and Iconium."
The believers at Lystra and Iconium recognized God's call upon the young man and recommended him to Paul.
Timothy's mother (Eunice) was Jewish, but his Greek father had not allowed her to have him circumcised. "Paul wanted this man to go with him; and he took him and circumcised him because of the Jews who were in those parts, for they all knew that his father was a Greek."
The circumcision of Timothy contradicts the popular view of Paul as the apostle who was against circumcision and Torah. Paul never opposed Jewish circumcision or Torah observance; he opposed circumcising Gentiles for conversion to become Jewish. As the son of a Jewish mother, Timothy was already Jewish. As a Jew, Timothy had no exemption from the obligation, and so long as he remained uncircumcised, he discredited Yeshua's call to repentance before the broader Jewish community. Paul invited the young man to join him as a disciple, but he insisted that he must first undergo circumcision.
References
This lesson is adapted from Daniel Lancaster's teachings in The Sent Ones, as presented by First Fruits of Zion for the Torah Club.
Disciple of Polos
After Timothy recovered well enough to travel, Paul, Silas, and the elders from the congregations in Lystra and Iconium prayed over him, prophesied over him, and then laid hands on him, apparently ordaining him in one sense or another before sending him out with Paul. Paul believed that Timothy received a spiritual gift through the laying on of hands. He urged Timothy to guard the treasure that God had entrusted to him:
Do not neglect the spiritual gift within you, which was bestowed on you through prophetic utterance with the laying on of hands by the [elders]. (I Timothy 4:14)
For this reason I remind you to kindle afresh the gift of God which is in you through the laying on of my hands. (2 Timothy I:6)
Protect, through the Holy Spirit who dwells in us, the treasure which has been entrusted to you. (2 Timothy I:I4)
He reminded Timothy of the prophecies uttered over him at that ceremony:
This command I entrust to you, Timothy, my son, in accordance with the prophecies previously made concerning you, that by them you fight the good fight, keeping faith and a good conscience, which some have rejected and suffered shipwreck in regard to their faith. (I Timothy I:I8-19)
Those who prophesied over Timothy predicted that he would become a great proclaimer of the gospel, i.e., an evangelist. Paul told him, "Do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry" (2 Timothy 4:5). Timothy needed to learn to "preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction" (2 Timothy 4:2).
As his personal disciple, Paul held Timothy to the same standards of Pharisaic discipleship that he had learned under Gamliel. Paul became Timothy's "father through the gospel"; Timothy became his "beloved and faithful child in the Master" (I Corinthians 4:14-17. Cf. I Timothy 1:18; 2 Timothy 2:1). The father-to-son language was characteristic of the Pharisaic, teacher-disciple model. Paul taught Timothy to "retain the standard of sound words," which he heard from him, and to transmit those teachings to his own disciples: "The things which you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, entrust these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also" (2 Timothy I:13, 2:2) He taught Timothy to follow his "teaching, conduct, purpose, faith, patience, love, perseverance, persecutions, and sufferings" (2 Timothy 3:10-11). Timothy quickly grasped his role as a disciple under a teacher. Paul boasted to the Philippians, "You know of [Timothy's] proven worth, that he served with me in the furtherance of the gospel like a child serving his father" (Philippians 2:22).
Paul and Silas stayed in each city for a few weeks, teaching and preaching among the disciples, encouraging them and strengthening them in the faith. When it was time to move on to the next location, they sometimes left some of the men with whom they traveled to stay behind and teach further.
As the two apostles set out from Lystra and Iconium, Timothy followed along with their group. Paul taught him as they walked, just as the Master had taught the Twelve.
References
This lesson is adapted from Daniel Lancaster's teachings in The Sent Ones, as presented by First Fruits of Zion for the Torah Club.
6 And they went through the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia. 7 And when they had come up to Mysia, they attempted to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them. (Acts 16:6-7, ESV Bible)
Divine Direction
They arrived in Pidisian Antioch, the community to whom Paul sent his epistle to the Galatians. They assembled the disciples of that place and "delivered the decrees which had been decided upon by the apostles and elders who were in Jerusalem, for [the Gentiles] to observe," settling the conflict addressed in the epistle.
With the delivery to Pisidian Antioch, Paul completed his initial objectives for the journey. He had visited the primary locations in Anatolia where he and Barnabas had planted the seeds of the kingdom. Now he turned his attention to further expansion.
He planned on leaving Pisidian Antioch and heading directly west to arrive in the cities of Asia Minor. He and his companions wanted to take the paved, royal Roman road straight to Ephesus, the seat of the Roman governor. Along the way, Paul hoped to visit Jewish communities in the cities of Hierapolis, Laodicea, Colossae, Smyrna, and finally, Ephesus.
Before they set out for the West, they were forbidden "by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia." Luke uses the term "Holy Spirit" according to the Jewish idiom for the utterance of a prophecy. Perhaps Paul or Silas received the revelation directly, or perhaps one of the disciples in Pisidian Antioch spoke a prophetic oracle over them, "Thus says the LORD ..." The apostles took the divine direction and steered northwest on a long, tiresome trek through the mountainous terrain of Phrygia, the legendary kingdom of King Midas. Nicely paved roads did not cut through that land. The fall rains had begun. After two weeks of exhausting travel on unpaved roads and winding paths, they emerged into Mysia, a land on the northwest of Anatolia and the southern coast of the Sea of Marmara.
Taking note of their new direction, the apostles assumed God was sending them to proclaim the gospel in the region of Bithynia, which lies along the southern coast of the Black Sea. Paul intended to turn to the northeast to follow the coast into Bithynia and Pontus, but "the Spirit of Yeshua did not permit them." The Master intercepted Paul and Silas and turned them back from Bithynia.
With no other options, they passed through Mysia until they at last descended from the mountainous inland to Alexandria Troas, a city on the Aegean coast, named after the nearby site of the legendary city of Troy. Troas had a busy port with an artificial harbor close to the Hellespont (Dardanelles). It served northwest Asia Minor as the chief port to Greece, Europe, and the Mediterranean via the Aegean, and it provided safe harbor from fierce winds. In Paul's day it was a prosperous, Roman colony with more than 100,000 people sprawled over an estimated one thousand acres. The ruins of Roman-era Troas reveal a city once alive with baths, gymnasium, stadium, and the typical architecture of the period. Luke silently skips over any mention of the apostles' work in Troas, but the reader may assume that they sought out the local Jewish community for food and lodging that night. Perhaps the Jewish community in Troas was small. A few years later, Paul returned to Troas and found "a door was opened" for the good news of Messiah. Perhaps that later success resulted from seeds planted on their first visit. His last visit to Troas finds a believing community present (2 Corinthians 2:12; Acts 20).
References
This lesson is adapted from Daniel Lancaster's teachings in The Sent Ones, as presented by First Fruits of Zion for the Torah Club.
9 And a vision appeared to Paul in the night: a man of Macedonia was standing there, urging him and saying, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” 10 And when Paul had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go on into Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them. (Acts 16:9-10, ESV Bible)
Vision in the Night
Paul and Silas did not know where to go from Troas. All other directions had been cut off for them, and they had run out of land. They found a place in the city to lodge for the night, and before retiring, they asked God to direct their steps. They did not need to wait long to receive direction. That night, a man appeared to Paul in a dream, standing over him and appealing, "Come over to Macedonia and help us." Macedonia occupied the mountainous, northeastern part of the Greek peninsula, bordered by Illyria and the Nestos River. Macedonia was linguistically Greek, but the Greeks considered native Macedonians as barbarians. Three and a half centuries earlier, the famous Macedonian, Alexander the Great, extended the power of Macedon as far as the Persian Empire, the fringes of India, and the north of Africa. The great Macedonian kingdom eventually gave way under the iron beast of Rome. The Romans subjugated Macedonia in the second century BCE, declared it a Roman province and colonized it. They placed its capital in the city of Thessalonica. Paul woke from his dream and shook his sleeping companions. Luke the physician recalled, "So when he woke up, he recounted his vision to us and we realized that He had summoned us to preach to the people of Macedonia" (Acts 16:10 Western Text). After leaving Troas, Luke routinely uses the first-person, common, plural forms "we" and "us" to speak of Paul's party. He does not tell his readers when he joined the party. He might have been with Paul and Silas since they left Antioch, or he might have joined them along the way.
In the morning, they took passage on a ship bound for the Macedonian coast, I40 miles northwest across the Aegean. Thanks to favorable autumn winds, they reached a port on the island of Samothrace after only one day. Samothrace means the "height of Thrace." Five-thousand-foot-high Mount Fengari dominates the island and makes Samothrace the second highest island in the Aegean. Mariners used it as a landmark, and they used the harbors of its northern shore for a stopover. Paul and Silas and their party may have disembarked for the night. A Jewish community could be found there.
The next day, the same favorable winds brought them to the port city of Neapolis (modern Kavala, Greece). Their ship traversed the whole distance in two days. They disembarked, spent the night, and then set out for nearby Philippi.
References
This lesson is adapted from Daniel Lancaster's teachings in The Sent Ones, as presented by First Fruits of Zion for the Torah Club.
12 and from there to Philippi, which is a leading city of the district of Macedonia and a Roman colony. We remained in this city some days. (Acts 16:12, ESV Bible)
Pillipi Sabbath Fellowship
Philippi was named after Philip of Macedon, the father of Alexander the Great, but in the days of the apostles, more Romans than Macedonians lived in Philippi. Antony and Octavian (Augustus) made the city famous when they fought Brutus and Cassius (the assassins of Julius Caesar) at the battle of Philippi. Mark Antony founded a colony in Philippi for Roman veterans. After the battle of Actium, Octavian settled still more veterans at Philippi and sent those who had been loyal to Mark Antony into exile there. Rome gave Philippi the right of self-government, the same rights as an Italian city, and exemption from taxation. Luke describes Philippi as "a leading city of the district of Macedonia, a Roman colony." Although it may have been a first city among the prominent cities of the district, a proconsul in the Roman capital of Thessalonica governed it. The Roman colony of Philippi guarded the Via Egnatia, the main Roman highway between Europe and Asia, and it prospered from the traffic. Philippi contained an acropolis and temples venerating the Roman gods and emperors. In addition, the visitor to Philippi found sanctuaries dedicated to Egyptian gods. Philippi had a theatre, a forum, a colonnaded market, bathhouses, and everything one might expect to find, but there was no synagogue in the city.
Following Paul's policy of taking the message "to the Jew first," the apostles inquired about the Jewish community. They did not find one. The residents of Roman Philippi had strong anti-Semitic prejudices. Earlier that year, the emperor Claudius expelled the Jews from Rome because of disturbances regarding Messiah. The magistrates of Philippi, a proud Roman colony closely connected with the capital, may have followed the emperor's lead and cast the Jews out of Philippi also.
Luke says, "On the Sabbath day we went outside the gate to a riverside, where we were supposing that there would be a place of prayer (προσευχή, proseuchē)." Luke used the word proseuche as a technical term for a place where Jews gathered to pray. In the absence of a synagogue, Jews in the Diaspora congregated on the bank of a river or on the shore of the sea for prayer because the running water carried away ritual pollution of Gentile lands. Alfred Edersheim explains, "Where there was no Synagogue there was a least a proseuche, under the open sky, after the form of a theatre, generally outside the town, near a river or the sea, for the sake of [ritual purification]. These, as we know from classical writers, were well known to the heathen" (The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah).
Paul, Silas, Luke, and Timothy left the city limits as they passed through the colonial arch one mile west of the walls. Along the banks of the Gangites River, they found the proseuche. They did not find any Jews gathered there. On that particular Sabbath, only a small group of God-fearing Gentile women gathered to worship the God of Israel in the open air. The handful of God-fearers seems to be all that remained of the Jewish community in Philippi. The decree against the Jews had overlooked God-fearers. Even in the absence of the Jewish community, the women continued on with Sabbath observance and prayers.
Presumably these women had assembled to recite the Shema, to pray the Shemoneh Esreh, and to read from the Law and Prophets and perhaps discuss its meaning, to hear from a teacher, and to receive a final blessing. In this case, Paul was the guest teacher. (Ben Witherington, The Acts of the Apostles: A Socio-Rhetorical Commentary, 49I)
The women gladly welcomed the visitors. Paul, Silas, Timothy, and Luke sat down with the women and explained their errand to Philippi. They presented the women with the good news of the kingdom.
References
This lesson is adapted from Daniel Lancaster's teachings in The Sent Ones, as presented by First Fruits of Zion for the Torah Club.
14 One who heard us was a woman named Lydia, from the city of Thyatira, a seller of purple goods, who was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to pay attention to what was said by Paul. 15 And after she was baptized, and her household as well, she urged us, saying, “If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come to my house and stay.” And she prevailed upon us. (Acts 16:14-15, ESV Bible)
In the Household of Ludya
Lydia was a wealthy merchant from Thyatira. That she was not Jewish is certain because Luke calls her a "worshiper of God." The choice of words indicates a God-fearer. A Jewish community existed in Thyatira. Either there or elsewhere, Lydia had become attached to Judaism. Thyatira was also known by the Hellenistic name Lydia, which made her Lydia of Lydia. She may have used it as a nickname associated with her business in Lydian dyes. Lydia worked in Philippi as "a seller of purple fabrics," and Thyatira was the home of the purple dye industry.
As a merchant in the purple market, Lydia belonged to an elite, mercantile establishment that controlled an important trade monopoly. She occupied a prestigious social status as a woman of wealth and power. Although Luke refers to her household, he makes no mention of a husband, but neither does he refer to her as a widow. She may have been a divorcee, or perhaps her husband simply did not make his way into Luke's narrative.
As Paul spoke about repentance, the Messiah, and the kingdom, "the Lord opened her heart to respond." She declared her desire to become a disciple. She and her household (children, slaves, and husband if she had one) received immersion into Messiah. Luke makes it sound as if the immersion took place in the river that same day, but the participation of her entire household implies that they returned to the river after the Sabbath to conduct the ceremony.
After her immersion, Lydia implored the apostles to consider staying in her home. She knew that Jews did not ordinarily lodge in the homes of Gentiles, but she persuaded them, "If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come into my house and stay."
Paul and Silas based their work in Philippi out of the house of Lydia. It's the first completely Gentile community of Yeshua followers. Luke does not tell us how long they spent in Philippi that year, but they must have remained there for several weeks. Paul and Silas worked hard to train the Philippians in discipleship. Paul told them, "The things you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you" (Philippians 4:9). He said, "Brethren, join in following my example, and observe those who walk according to the pattern you have in us" (Philippians 3:17). He tried to teach the Philippians to live peaceably and in unity. He gave the God-fearing women Euodia and Syntyche special mention as women who shared in his struggle for the gospel but also shared a struggle against one another:
I urge Euodia and I urge Syntyche to live in harmony in the Master. Indeed, true companion, I ask you also to help these women who have shared my struggle in the cause of the gospel. (Philippians 4:2-3)
A man named Epaphroditus also confessed faith in the Master. Epaphroditus later traveled to Rome as a courier to Paul for the Philippian community. Paul spoke of him as "Epaphroditus, my brother and fellow worker and fellow soldier" (Philippians 2:25). Others joined the community too, but Roman resistance to foreign superstitions like Judaism made it difficult to attract converts.
References
This lesson is adapted from Daniel Lancaster's teachings in The Sent Ones, as presented by First Fruits of Zion for the Torah Club.
16 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 much gain by fortune-telling. (Acts 16:16, ESV Bible)
Python Girl
The apostles found it hard to make converts in Philippi, but they did attract one unwelcome follower. A slave girl with a spirit of puthon (πύθων) had some notoriety in Philippi as a reliable oracle. In Greek mythology, the power of the Delphic oracle originally belonged to a powerful divine serpent that once lived at Pytho beneath Mount Parnassus. Apollo slew the serpent and took over the power of the oracle. He became Apollo Pythius (python), and men reverenced him as the foreteller of future events. In Greek thought, those who could predict the future did so under the influence of Apollo Pythius. His priesthood established his temple at Mount Parnassus (Delphi). They called his high priestess the Pythia because the spirit of the python inspired her.
People from all over the world traveled to Delphi to consult her. When pilgrims came to the temple at Delphi seeking divine direction and prophecy from the Pythia's oracle, she made declarations and obscure utterances, sometimes in clear communication, sometimes in a state of ecstatic, demon-induced frenzy. On some occasions, people heard voices emanate from within her though she did not open her mouth to speak. Prophets of Apollo helped interpret her utterances.
The owners of the slave-girl at Philippi had a smaller version of this oracular phenomenon. Those willing to pay a small fee could have access to the local Pythia and ask her questions. The evil spirit within her uttered predictions and answered the questions. Such "pythonesses" were common in the Roman world. Anyone seeking the guidance of the gods could pay her owners for a consultation. She brought "her masters much profit by fortune-telling." The fees added up to more than just small change.
On a certain day, as Paul, Silas, Timothy, and Luke were leaving for prayers at the place of prayer, they met the girl near the city gates. They briefly met her malevolent gaze. It seemed as if she had been waiting for them. As soon as they had passed her by, she began to follow after them, snarling, "These men are bond-servants of the Most High God, who are proclaiming to you the way of salvation." The statement was true enough, but as a rule established by the Master, we do not accept testimony from demons or allow them to speak on our behalf, whether they speak truly or falsely (Mark 1:34, 3:II-12).
The Philippians who heard the girl's repeated acclamations about Paul and Silas had no knowledge of the Most High God. From their perspective, she described Zeus, the head of the Olympian pantheon. In any case, this was not the type of outreach and street evangelism that the apostles had in mind.
She followed them at least as far as the city limit, and when they returned from prayers, she awaited them. She followed them all the way back to Lydia's house with the same heraldry. The next day, when Paul and Silas left the house, she was waiting. She immediately resumed her proclamation. Attempts to shush her and send her away proved fruitless.
The apostles tolerated the unwanted attention for several days, until Paul could endure her acclamations no longer. He turned on the girl and spoke directly to the python spirit, "I command you in the name of Yeshua the Messiah to come out of her!" With a quick shriek, the evil spirit surrendered the girl and fled.
The exorcism happened publicly. As the girl fell to the street, her owners (who had apparently followed at a discreet distance) hurried to her side. They could see at once that the spiritual power within her had left.
The apostles continued to make their way down the street as if nothing had happened.
References
This lesson is adapted from Daniel Lancaster's teachings in The Sent Ones, as presented by First Fruits of Zion for the Torah Club.
19 But when her owners saw that their hope of gain was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace before the rulers. 20 And when they had brought them to the magistrates, they said, “These men are Jews, and they are disturbing our city. 21 They advocate customs that are not lawful for us as Romans to accept or practice.” (Acts 16:19-21, ESV Bible)
Beaten and Imprisoned
The owners of the slave girl were furious with the exorcists. The Jews had damaged their property and destroyed their income. They gathered some ruffians from the street and pursued the apostles, laying hold of them and dragging them to the city forum to stand before the city magistrates. They charged, "These men are throwing our city into confusion, being Jews, and are proclaiming customs which it is not lawful for us to accept or to observe, being Romans." Although Imperial law recognized Judaism as a legal religion, the Romans still considered Judaism as a dangerous, foreign cult. They allowed Jews to practice Judaism, but they did not readily allow Romans to do so. The men charged Paul and Silas with proselytism and teaching Jewish customs. The charge was true.
The prosecutors appealed to anti-Jewish sentiment and Roman patriotism. As the crowd began to shout denouncements and turn unruly, the city magistrates observed that this was the type of disturbance "at the instigation of Chrestus" for which the emperor had expelled the Jews from Rome earlier that year. The city magistrates ordered the lictors to tie the two men to posts, strip them of their robes, and do their work. A "lictor" was a special Roman civil servant charged with the responsibility of attending and guarding magistrates and carrying out civil punishments. They carried with them at all times an axe and a bundle of rods, the latter as a symbol of Roman justice and authority and also a means of punishment.
Although Roman law forbade the authorities from beating Roman citizens with rods, Paul received the punishment three times: "Three times I was beaten with rods" (2 Corinthians I1:25). If Paul and Silas attempted to explain to the magistrates and lictors that, as Roman citizens, they had the right to a trial and hearing and that they were exempt from beating with rods, no one listened. Reflecting back on the situation, Paul later lamented to the believers of Thessalonica about how he and Silas had "suffered and been mistreated in Philippi" (I Thessalonians 2:2).
The jailer put the apostles together in a cell with other prisoners. He fastened their feet in heavy stocks. Timothy and Luke returned to the house of Lydia and told the disciples all that had transpired. They could do nothing but pray and wait to see the outcome. Many years later, as the disciples of Philippi endured the same type of persecution, Paul encouraged them to stand firm, "in no way alarmed by your opponents ... For to you it has been granted for Messiah's sake, not only to believe in Him, but also to suffer for His sake, experiencing the same conflict which you saw in me" (Philippians 1:29-30).
References
This lesson is adapted from Daniel Lancaster's teachings in The Sent Ones, as presented by First Fruits of Zion for the Torah Club.
25 About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them, (Acts 16:25, ESV Bible)
Song in the Night
All night long, Paul and Silas sat in the stocks, singing hymns and praying to God. The "hymns" included psalms and Levitical, liturgical songs they knew from the Temple and synagogue, as well as sectarian songs unique to the disciples of Yeshua. The prisoners imprisoned alongside Paul and Silas listened with wonder as the Jews poured out song after song in the mysterious melodies of the East. Paul and Silas sang songs and psalms in the strange languages of Hebrew and Aramaic. Some of the time, the songs spilled forth in elegant Greek. They knew the hymns of the Greek-speaking synagogue. As their voices echoed inside the prison walls, the jailer listened to the words about the Most High God of the Jews. He had never heard any of his prisoners sing to the Olympians like that. He fell asleep with the sound of the apostles' voices still echoing in his dreams.
The jailer awoke with a fright around midnight. A violent quake shook the jail and whole forum. He heard the sound of metal clanging and stone snapping. He rushed into the night and saw that the cell doors stood open. A guard who allowed a prisoner to escape was liable to death.
From where he still sat inside the dark jail cell, Paul could see the jailer framed in the open doorway, about to thrust his own sword into his body.
He called out, "Do not harm yourself, for we are all here!" The prisoners had not fled. Perhaps astonishment at the quake and the bursting of their bonds momentarily paralyzed them.
The jailer called for light. A servant came quickly with a lamp in hand. A quick inspection revealed that the tremor had inexplicably opened all the doors of the jail and burst the bonds of the prisoners. There could be no thought of attributing the tremor to a natural earthquake.
The jailer remembered the eerie words of the python girl: "These men are bond-servants of the Most High God, who are proclaiming to you the way of salvation." Trembling with fear, the jailer prostrated himself before Paul and Silas, asking them for forgiveness, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?" The jailer scarcely knew what he asked. Paul replied concisely, "Believe in the Master Yeshua, and you will be saved -you and your household."
References
This lesson is adapted from Daniel Lancaster's teachings in The Sent Ones, as presented by First Fruits of Zion for the Torah Club.
40 So they went out of the prison and visited Lydia. And when they had seen the brothers, they encouraged them and departed. (Acts 16:40, ESV Bible)
Farewell to Philippi
"When it was day, the magistrates gathered together in the forum and, remembering with fear the earthquake that had occurred, dispatched their policemen, saying, 'Release those men, whom you put in custody yesterday. The jailer went in and conveyed this information to Paul, saying, "The chief magistrates have sent to release you." (Acts 16:35-36 Western Text). The jailer urged Paul and Silas to come out, "Therefore come out now and go in peace."
Paul refused to leave. He complained, "They have beaten us in public without trial, men who are Romans, and have thrown us into prison; and now are they sending us away secretly? No indeed! But let them come themselves and bring us out."
The magistrates were dismayed to realize they had so mistreated Roman citizens. They gathered together some political allies and legal advisors. "They arrived at the prison with many friends and urged them to leave: 'We did not understand your situation, that you were upright men’ Leading them out, they urged them, 'Leave the city, lest those who have cried out against you gang together again' (Acts 16:39 Western Text).
The apostles did not leave at once. They returned to the house of Lydia where they reunited with Timothy and Luke. They called together all the disciples of Philippi. They related the miracles that occurred in the night and the conversion of the jailer and his family. They instructed the assembly to bring the new family into the community. Then they urged the new disciples to remain true in the faith. With tears, they said farewell, and then set out on their way.
References
This lesson is adapted from Daniel Lancaster's teachings in The Sent Ones, as presented by First Fruits of Zion for the Torah Club.