Acts 16

Young's Literal Translation (YLT)

1 Ref And he came to Derbe and Lystra, and lo, a certain disciple was there, by name Timotheus son of a certain woman, a believing Jewess, but of a father, a Greek,

2 Ref who was well testified to by the brethren in Lystra and Iconium;

3 Ref this one did Paul wish to go forth with him, and having taken `him', he circumcised him, because of the Jews who are in those places, for they all knew his father -- that he was a Greek.

4 Ref And as they were going on through the cities, they were delivering to them the decrees to keep, that have been judged by the apostles and the elders who `are' in Jerusalem,

5 Ref then, indeed, were the assemblies established in the faith, and were abounding in number every day;

6 Ref and having gone through Phrygia and the region of Galatia, having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia,

7 Ref having gone toward Mysia, they were trying to go on toward Bithynia, and the Spirit did not suffer them,

8 Ref and having passed by Mysia, they came down to Troas.

9 Ref And a vision through the night appeared to Paul -- a certain man of Macedonia was standing, calling upon him, and saying, `Having passed through to Macedonia, help us;' --

10 Ref and when he saw the vision, immediately we endeavoured to go forth to Macedonia, assuredly gathering that the Lord hath called us to preach good news to them,

11 Ref having set sail, therefore, from Troas, we came with a straight course to Samothracia, on the morrow also to Neapolis,

12 Ref thence also to Philippi, which is a principal city of the part of Macedonia -- a colony. And we were in this city abiding certain days,

13 Ref on the sabbath-day also we went forth outside of the city, by a river, where there used to be prayer, and having sat down, we were speaking to the women who came together,

14 Ref and a certain woman, by name Lydia, a seller of purple, of the city of Thyatira, worshipping God, was hearing, whose heart the Lord did open to attend to the things spoken by Paul;

15 Ref and when she was baptized, and her household, she did call upon us, saying, `If ye have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, having entered into my house, remain;' and she constrained us.

16 Ref And it came to pass in our going on to prayer, a certain maid, having a spirit of Python, did meet us, who brought much employment to her masters by soothsaying,

17 Ref she having followed Paul and us, was crying, saying, `These men are servants of the Most High God, who declare to us a way of salvation;'

18 Ref and this she was doing for many days, but Paul having been grieved, and having turned, said to the spirit, `I command thee, in the name of Jesus Christ, to come forth from her;' and it came forth the same hour.

19 Ref And her masters having seen that the hope of their employment was gone, having caught Paul and Silas, drew `them' to the market-place, unto the rulers,

20 Ref and having brought them to the magistrates, they said, `These men do exceedingly trouble our city, being Jews;

21 Ref and they proclaim customs that are not lawful for us to receive nor to do, being Romans.'

22 Ref And the multitude rose up together against them, and the magistrates having torn their garments from them, were commanding to beat `them' with rods,

23 Ref many blows also having laid upon them, they cast them to prison, having given charge to the jailor to keep them safely,

24 Ref who such a charge having received, did put them to the inner prison, and their feet made fast in the stocks.

25 Ref And at midnight Paul and Silas praying, were singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were hearing them,

26 Ref and suddenly a great earthquake came, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken, opened also presently were all the doors, and of all -- the bands were loosed;

27 Ref and the jailor having come out of sleep, and having seen the doors of the prison open, having drawn a sword, was about to kill himself, supposing the prisoners to be fled,

28 Ref and Paul cried out with a loud voice, saying, `Thou mayest not do thyself any harm, for we are all here.'

29 Ref And, having asked for a light, he sprang in, and trembling he fell down before Paul and Silas,

30 Ref and having brought them forth, said, `Sirs, what must I do -- that I may be saved?'

31 Ref and they said, `Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved -- thou and thy house;'

32 Ref and they spake to him the word of the Lord, and to all those in his household;

33 Ref and having taken them, in that hour of the night, he did bathe `them' from the blows, and was baptized, himself and all his presently,

34 Ref having brought them also into his house, he set food before `them', and was glad with all the household, he having believed in God.

35 Ref And day having come, the magistrates sent the rod-bearers, saying, `Let those men go;'

36 Ref and the jailor told these words unto Paul -- `The magistrates have sent, that ye may be let go; now, therefore, having gone forth go on in peace;'

37 Ref and Paul said to them, `Having beaten us publicly uncondemned -- men, Romans being -- they did cast `us' to prison, and now privately do they cast us forth! why no! but having come themselves, let them bring us forth.'

38 Ref And the rod-bearers told to the magistrates these sayings, and they were afraid, having heard that they are Romans,

39 Ref and having come, they besought them, and having brought `them' forth, they were asking `them' to go forth from the city;

40 Ref and they, having gone forth out of the prison, entered into `the house of' Lydia, and having seen the brethren, they comforted them, and went forth.

Bible in Basic English (BBE)

1 Ref And he came to Derbe and Lystra: and there was a certain disciple there named Timothy, whose mother was one of the Jews of the faith, but his father was a Greek;

2 Ref Of whom the brothers at Lystra and Iconium had a high opinion.

3 Ref Paul had a desire for him to go with him, and he gave him circumcision because of the Jews who were in those parts: for they all had knowledge that his father was a Greek.

4 Ref And on their way through the towns, they gave them the rules which had been made by the Apostles and the rulers of the church at Jerusalem, so that they might keep them.

5 Ref So the churches were made strong in the faith and were increased in number every day.

6 Ref And after they had gone through the land of Phrygia and Galatia, the Holy Spirit did not let them take the word into Asia;

7 Ref And having come to Mysia, they made an attempt to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus did not let them;

8 Ref And going past Mysia, they came down to Troas.

9 Ref And Paul had a vision in the night; a man of Macedonia came, requesting him, and saying, Come over into Macedonia and give us help.

10 Ref And when he had seen the vision, straight away we made the decision to go into Macedonia, for it seemed certain to us that God had sent us to give the good news to them.

11 Ref So, from Troas we went straight by ship to Samothrace and the day after to Neapolis;

12 Ref And from there to Philippi, which is the most important town of Macedonia and a Roman colony: and we were there for some days.

13 Ref And on the Sabbath we went outside the town, by the river, where we had an idea that there would be a place of prayer; and, being seated, we had talk with the women who had come together.

14 Ref And a certain woman named Lydia, a trader in purple cloth of the town of Thyatira, and a God-fearing woman, gave ear to us: whose heart the Lord made open to give attention to the things which Paul was saying.

15 Ref And when she and her family had had baptism, she made a request to us, saying, If it seems to you that I am true to the Lord, come into my house and be my guests. And she made us come.

16 Ref And when we were going to the place of prayer, we came across a girl with a spirit which gave knowledge of the future, whose masters made great profit from her power.

17 Ref She came after Paul and us, crying out and saying, These men are the servants of the Most High God, who are giving you news of the way of salvation.

18 Ref And this she did on a number of days. But Paul was greatly troubled and, turning, said to the spirit, I give you orders in the name of Jesus Christ, to come out of her. And it came out that very hour.

19 Ref But when her masters saw that their hope of profit was gone, they took Paul and Silas, pulling them into the market-place before the rulers;

20 Ref And when they had taken them before the authorities, they said, These men, who are Jews, are greatly troubling our town;

21 Ref Teaching rules of living which it is not right for us to have or to keep, being Romans.

22 Ref And the people made an attack on them all together: and the authorities took their clothing off them, and gave orders for them to be whipped.

23 Ref And when they had given them a great number of blows, they put them in prison, giving orders to the keeper of the prison to keep them safely:

24 Ref And he, having such orders, put them into the inner prison with chains on their feet.

25 Ref But about the middle of the night, Paul and Silas were making prayers and songs to God in the hearing of the prisoners;

26 Ref And suddenly there was an earth-shock, so that the base of the prison was moved: and all the doors came open, and everyone's chains came off.

27 Ref And the keeper, coming out of his sleep, and seeing the prison doors open, took his sword and was about to put himself to death, fearing that the prisoners had got away.

28 Ref But Paul said in a loud voice, Do yourself no damage, for we are all here.

29 Ref And he sent for lights and came rushing in and, shaking with fear, went down on his face before Paul and Silas,

30 Ref And took them out and said, Sirs, what have I to do to get salvation?

31 Ref And they said, Have faith in the Lord Jesus, and you and your family will have salvation.

32 Ref And they gave the word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house.

33 Ref And that same hour of the night, he took them, and when he had given attention to their wounds, he and all his family had baptism straight away.

34 Ref And he took them into his house and gave them food, and he was full of joy, having faith in God with all his family.

35 Ref But when it was day, the authorities sent the police, saying, Let these men go.

36 Ref And the keeper said to Paul, The authorities have given orders to let you go: come out now, and go in peace.

37 Ref But Paul said to them, They have given us who are Romans a public whipping without judging us, and have put us in prison. Will they now send us out secretly? no, truly, let them come themselves and take us out.

38 Ref And the police gave an account of these words to the authorities, and they were full of fear on hearing that they were Romans;

39 Ref Then they came and made prayers to them, requesting them, when they had taken them out, to go away from the town.

40 Ref And they came out of the prison and went to the house of Lydia: and when they had seen the brothers they gave them comfort and went away.

American Standard-ASV1901 (ASV)

1 Ref And he came also to Derbe and to Lystra: and behold, a certain disciple was there, named Timothy, the son of a Jewess that believed; but his father was a Greek.

2 Ref The same was well reported of by the brethren that were at Lystra and Iconium.

3 Ref Him would Paul have to go forth with him; and he took and circumcised him because of the Jews that were in those parts: for they all knew that his father was a Greek.

4 Ref And as they went on their way through the cities, they delivered them the decrees to keep which had been ordained of the apostles and elders that were at Jerusalem.

5 Ref So the churches were strengthened in the faith, and increased in number daily.

6 Ref And they went through the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been forbidden of the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia;

7 Ref and when they were come over against Mysia, they assayed to go into Bithynia; and the Spirit of Jesus suffered them not;

8 Ref and passing by Mysia, they came down to Troas.

9 Ref And a vision appeared to Paul in the night: There was a man of Macedonia standing, beseeching him, and saying, Come over into Macedonia, and help us.

10 Ref And when he had seen the vision, straightway we sought to go forth into Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them.

11 Ref Setting sail therefore from Troas, we made a straight course to Samothrace, and the day following to Neapolis;

12 Ref and from thence to Philippi, which is a city of Macedonia, the first of the district, a `Roman' colony: and we were in this city tarrying certain days.

13 Ref And on the sabbath day we went forth without the gate by a river side, where we supposed there was a place of prayer; and we sat down, and spake unto the women that were come together.

14 Ref And a certain woman named Lydia, a seller of purple of the city of Thyatira, one that worshipped God, heard us: whose heart the Lord opened to give heed unto the things which were spoken by Paul.

15 Ref And when she was baptized, and her household, she besought us, saying, If ye have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come into my house, and abide `there'. And she constrained us.

16 Ref And it came to pass, as we were going to the place of prayer, that a certain maid having a spirit of divination met us, who brought her masters much gain by soothsaying.

17 Ref The same following after Paul and us cried out, saying, These men are servants of the Most High God, who proclaim unto you the way of salvation.

18 Ref And this she did for many days. But Paul, being sore troubled, turned and said to the spirit, I charge thee in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her. And it came out that very hour.

19 Ref But when her masters saw that the hope of their gain was gone, they laid hold on Paul and Silas, and dragged them into the marketplace before the rulers,

20 Ref and when they had brought them unto the magistrates, they said, These men, being Jews, do exceedingly trouble our city,

21 Ref and set forth customs which it is not lawful for us to receive, or to observe, being Romans.

22 Ref And the multitude rose up together against them: and the magistrates rent their garments off them, and commanded to beat them with rods.

23 Ref And when they had laid many stripes upon them, they cast them into prison, charging the jailor to keep them safely:

24 Ref who, having received such a charge, cast them into the inner prison, and made their feet fast in the stocks.

25 Ref But about midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns unto God, and the prisoners were listening to them;

26 Ref and suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison-house were shaken: and immediately all the doors were opened, and every one's bands were loosed.

27 Ref And the jailor, 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.

28 Ref But Paul cried with a loud voice, saying, Do thyself no harm: for we are all here.

29 Ref And he called for lights and sprang in, and, trembling for fear, fell down before Paul and Silas,

30 Ref and brought them out and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved?

31 Ref And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus, and thou shalt be saved, thou and thy house.

32 Ref And they spake the word of the Lord unto him, with all that were in his house.

33 Ref And he took them the same hour of the night, and washed their stripes; and was baptized, he and all his, immediately.

34 Ref And he brought them up into his house, and set food before them, and rejoiced greatly, with all his house, having believed in God.

35 Ref But when it was day, the magistrates sent the sergeants, saying, Let those men go.

36 Ref And the jailor reported the words to Paul, `saying', The magistrates have sent to let you go: now therefore come forth, and go in peace.

37 Ref But Paul said unto them, They have beaten us publicly, uncondemned, men that are Romans, and have cast us into prison; and do they now cast us out privily? Nay verily; but let them come themselves and bring us out.

38 Ref And the sergeants reported these words unto the magistrates: and they feared when they heard that they were Romans;

39 Ref and they came and besought them; and when they had brought them out, they asked them to go away from the city.

40 Ref And they went out of the prison, and entered into `the house' of Lydia: and when they had seen the brethren, they comforted them, and departed.

Chapter 16 of 28

Begin Your Journey of Faith

We all start at different points in our walk with Christ. No matter where you are, we're here to support you as you grow in faith.

Accept Jesus Christ as Your Savior

If you haven’t made the decision to follow Jesus yet, we want to walk with you as you discover the new life He offers.

Read "A Truly Free Gift"

What Guides Our Walk With Christ

Discover the biblical truths and core beliefs that shape how we live, serve, and walk faithfully with Christ each day.

Explore Our Beliefs

Join a Community of Believers

Don’t walk through life alone. Find others to connect with, whether in person or online, and grow together in Christ.

Discover Where We Meet