16:1   Paul came also to Derbe and to Lystra And a disciple lived there, named Timothy, the son of a Jewish woman who believed, but his father had Greek ancestry,

16:2   and the brethren who lived in lystra and Iconium spoke well of him.

16:3   Paul wanted this man to go with him; and he took him and circumcised him because of the Jews who lived in those parts, for they all knew that his father had Greek ancestry.

16:4   Now while they passed through the cities, they delivered the decrees which the apostles and elders who lived in Jerusalem had decided for them to observe.

16:5  So the churches received strengthening in the faith, and increased in number daily.

16:6   They passed through the Phrygian and Galatian region because the Holy Spirit had forbidden them to speak the word in Asia;

16:7   and after they came to Mysia, they tried to go into Bithynia, and the Spirit of Jesus did not permit them;

16:8   and passing by Mysia, they came down to Troas.

16:9   A vision appeared to Paul in the night: a man of Macedonia stood and appealing to him, and saying, "Come over to Macedonia and help us."

16:10  When he had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go into Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them.

16:11   So putting out to sea from Troas, we ran a straight course to Samothrace, and on the day following to Neapolis;

16:12   and from there to Philippi, a leading city of the district of Macedonia, a Roman colony; and we stayed in this city for some days.

16:13   And on the Sabbath day we went outside the gate to a riverside, where we supposed that there would exist a place of prayer; and we sat down and began speaking to the women who had assembled.

16:14   A woman named Lydia, from the city of Thyatira, a seller of purple fabrics, a worshiper of God, listened; and the Lord opened her heart to respond to the things spoken by Paul.

16:15   And when she and her household had become baptized, she urged us, saying, "If you have judged me faithful to the Lord, come into my house and stay." And she prevailed upon us.

16:16  It happened that as went to the place of prayer, a slave-girl having a spirit of divination met us, who had brought her masters much profit by fortune-telling.

16:17   Following after Paul and us, she kept crying out, saying, "These men have made themselves bond-servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to you the way of salvation."

16:18  She continued doing this for many days. But Paul grew greatly annoyed, and 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 that very moment.

16:19  But when her masters saw that their hope of profit had left, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the market place before the authorities,

16:20   and when they had brought them to the chief magistrates, they said, "These men have thrown our city into confusion, having identified themselves as Jews,

16:21   and proclaim customs which we cannot lawfully accept or to observe, having identified ourselves as Romans."

16:22   The crowd rose up together against them, and the chief magistrates tore their robes off them and proceeded to order them to suffer beating with rods.

16:23   When they had struck them with many blows, they threw them into prison, commanding the jailer to guard them securely;

16:24   and he, having received such a command, threw them into the inner prison and fastened their feet in the stocks.

16:25   But about midnight Paul and Silas prayed and sang hymns of praise to God, and the prisoners listened to them;

16:26   and suddenly there came a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison house shook; and immediately all the doors opened and everyone's chains unfastened.

16:27   When the jailer awoke and saw the prison doors opened, he drew his sword and intended to kill himself, supposing that the prisoners had escaped.

16:28   But Paul cried out with a loud voice, saying, "Do not harm yourself, for we all remain here!"

16:29   And he called for lights and rushed in, and trembling with fear he fell down before Paul and Silas,

16:30   and after he brought them out, he said, "Sirs, what must I do to receive salvation?"

16:31   They said, " Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will receive salvation, you and your household."

16:32   And they spoke the word of the Lord to him together with all who lived in his house.

16:33  And he took them that very hour of the night and washed their wounds, and immediately he received baptism, he and all his household.

16:34   And he brought them into his house and set food before them, and rejoiced greatly, having believed in God with his whole household.

16:35   Now when day came, the chief magistrates sent their policemen, saying, "Release those men."

16:36   And the jailer reported these words to Paul, saying, "The chief magistrates have sent to release you Therefore come out now and go in peace."

16:37  But Paul said to them, "They have beaten us in public without trial, men who have Roman citizenship, and have thrown us into prison; and now they send us away secretly? No indeed! But let them come themselves and bring us out."

16:38   The policemen reported these words to the chief magistrates. They had fear when they heard that they had Roman citizenship,

16:39  and they came and appealed to them, and when they had brought them out, they kept begging them to leave the city.

16:40   They went out of the prison and entered the house of Lydia, and when they saw the brethren, they encouraged them and departed.