New International Reader s Version - NIrV - 1996
Acts 16
1
Paul came to Derbe. Then he went on to Lystra. A believer named Timothy lived there. His mother was Jewish and a believer. His father was a Greek.
Reference
People
2
The believers at Lystra and Iconium said good things about Timothy.
3
Paul wanted to take him along on the journey. So he circumcised Timothy because of the Jews who lived in that area. They all knew that Timothy's father was a Greek.
Reference
4
Paul and his companions traveled from town to town. They reported what the apostles and elders in Jerusalem had decided. The people were supposed to obey what was in the report.
Reference
6
Paul and his companions traveled all through the area of Phrygia and Galatia. The Holy Spirit had kept them from preaching the word in Asia Minor.
Reference
📍 Galatia
Holy
1 Corinthians 16:1
Parallel theme
Acts 18:23
Galatians 1:2
1 Peter 1:1
Galatians 3:1
2 Timothy 4:10
Spirit
Acts 11:12
7
They came to the border of Mysia. From there they tried to enter Bithynia. But the Spirit of Jesus would not let them.
Reference
📍 Locations
9
During the night Paul had a vision. He saw a man from Macedonia standing and begging him. "Come over to Macedonia!" the man said. "Help us!"
Reference
📍 Macedonia
10
After Paul had seen the vision, we got ready at once to leave for Macedonia. We decided that God had called us to preach the good news there.
📍 Macedonia
11
At Troas we got into a boat. We sailed straight for Samothrace. The next day we went on to Neapolis.
📍 Locations
12
From there we traveled to Philippi, a Roman colony. It is an important city in that part of Macedonia. We stayed there several days.
Reference
📍 Locations
13
On the Sabbath day we went outside the city gate. We walked down to the river. There we expected to find a place of prayer. We sat down and began to speak to the women who had gathered together.
Reference
14
One of those listening was a woman named Lydia. She was from the city of Thyatira. Her business was selling purple cloth. She was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to accept Paul's message.
Reference
📍 Thyatira
People
Parallel theme
Luke 24:45
Revelation 3:20
Revelation 3:7
References God
Isaiah 50:5
Romans 9:16
Philippians 2:13
References Lord
Acts 11:21
Worship
Acts 18:7
15
She and her family were baptized. Then she invited us to her home. "Do you consider me a believer in the Lord?" she asked. "If you do, come and stay at my house." She succeeded in getting us to go home with her.
Reference
Baptism
Acts 16:33
Faith
1 Peter 5:12
3 John 1:5
Ephesians 1:1
Parallel theme
Hebrews 13:2
Acts 11:14
Genesis 19:3
Luke 24:29
Philemon 1:17
3 John 1:8
16
One day we were going to the place of prayer. On the way we were met by a female slave. She had a spirit that helped her to tell ahead of time what was going to happen. She earned a lot of money for her owners by telling fortunes.
Reference
Parallel theme
1 Timothy 6:10
Galatians 5:20
2 Timothy 3:8
Prayer
Acts 16:13
Spirit
Leviticus 19:31
Isaiah 8:19
1 Chronicles 10:13
1 Samuel 28:7
Acts 16:18
1 Samuel 28:3
17
The woman followed Paul and the rest of us around. She shouted, "These men serve the Most High God. They are telling you how to be saved."
Reference
Parallel theme
John 14:6
References God
1 Peter 2:16
Mark 5:7
Daniel 6:20
Daniel 3:28
Daniel 3:26
Psalm 57:2
Jonah 1:9
Luke 4:41
Luke 4:34
18
She kept this up for many days. Finally Paul became upset. Turning around, he spoke to the spirit. "In the name of Jesus Christ," he said, "I command you to come out of her!" At that very moment the spirit left her.
Reference
19
The female slave's owners realized that their hope of making money was gone. So they grabbed Paul and Silas. They dragged them into the market place to face the authorities.
Reference
Parallel theme
Acts 17:6
Acts 16:16
Acts 8:3
Mark 13:9
Matthew 24:9
2 Corinthians 6:5
References Paul
Acts 21:30
20
They brought them to the judges. "These men are Jews," her owners said. "They are making trouble in our city.
Reference
21
They are suggesting practices that are against Roman law. These are practices we can't accept or take part in."
Reference
Word
Esther 3:8
22
The crowd joined the attack against Paul and Silas. The judges ordered that Paul and Silas be stripped and beaten.
Reference
23
They were whipped without mercy. Then they were thrown into prison. The jailer was commanded to guard them carefully.
Reference
24
When he received his orders, he put Paul and Silas deep inside the prison. He fastened their feet so they couldn't get away.
Reference
25
About midnight Paul and Silas were praying. They were also singing hymns to God. The other prisoners were listening to them.
Reference
Parallel theme
James 1:2
Romans 5:3
Psalm 77:6
Ephesians 5:19
Colossians 1:24
Psalm 50:15
Prayer
Hebrews 5:7
Romans 12:12
References God
Job 35:10
Resurrection
Psalm 119:62
26
Suddenly there was a powerful earthquake. It shook the prison from top to bottom. All at once the prison doors flew open. Everybody's chains came loose.
Reference
27
The jailer woke up. He saw that the prison doors were open. He pulled out his sword and was going to kill himself. He thought the prisoners had escaped.
Reference
Parallel theme
Acts 12:19
29
The jailer called out for some lights. He rushed in, shaking with fear. He fell down in front of Paul and Silas.
Reference
Parallel theme
Revelation 3:9
31
They replied, "Believe in the Lord Jesus. Then you and your family will be saved."
Reference
Faith
John 1:12
John 3:36
Galatians 3:26
Acts 18:8
Galatians 3:22
Parallel theme
Genesis 17:7
Salvation
Mark 16:16
Isaiah 45:22
Acts 4:12
Acts 15:11
32
They spoke the word of the Lord to him. They also spoke to all the others in his house.
Reference
Parallel theme
1 Thessalonians 2:8
33
At that hour of the night, the jailer took Paul and Silas and washed their wounds. Right away he and his whole family were baptized.
Reference
34
The jailer brought them into his house. He set a meal in front of them. He and his whole family were filled with joy. They had become believers in God.
Reference
35
Early in the morning the judges sent their officers to the jailer. They ordered him, "Let those men go."
36
The jailer told Paul, "The judges have ordered me to set you and Silas free. You can leave now. Go in peace."
Reference
37
But Paul replied to the officers. "They beat us in public," he said. "We weren't given a trial. And we are Roman citizens! They threw us into prison. And now do they want to get rid of us quietly? No! Let them come themselves and personally lead us out."
Reference
Parallel theme
Matthew 10:16
38
The officers reported this to the judges. When the judges heard that Paul and Silas were Roman citizens, they became afraid.
Reference
Parallel theme
Acts 22:29
39
So they came and said they were sorry. They led them out of the prison. Then they asked them to leave the city.
Reference
Summary of Acts 16
Acts 16 describes the beginning of a major new stage in Paul's missionary work, as the Gospel moves into Macedonia and reaches Europe, while showing how God uses both ordinary people and extraordinary events to build a growing Christian community.
Paul begins the journey by meeting Timothy in Lystra, a young believer with a Jewish mother and Greek father who is well respected by the local Christians.
Paul invites Timothy to join the missionary team, and together they travel through the region delivering the decision of the Jerusalem Council, which strengthens the churches and helps them understand that Gentile believers do not need to become Jewish in order to follow Jesus.
As Paul and his companions travel, however, the Holy Spirit prevents them from preaching in certain areas, and when they reach Troas, Paul receives a vision of a man from Macedonia asking them to come and help.
They understand this as God's direction and immediately travel across the sea to Macedonia, bringing the Gospel into a new part of the Roman world.
In Philippi, Paul and his companions meet a group of women praying beside a river, including Lydia, a successful seller of purple cloth from Thyatira.
Lydia listens to Paul's message, God opens her heart, and she and her household are baptized, after which she welcomes the missionaries into her home and becomes an important supporter of the new church.
The missionaries later encounter a slave girl who is controlled by a spirit associated with fortune-telling, and after she repeatedly follows them and calls attention to their mission, Paul commands the spirit to leave her in Jesus' name.
Her owners become angry because they have lost the money they earned from her fortune-telling, and they bring Paul and Silas before the authorities, where the missionaries are accused of disturbing the city and promoting customs that Romans should not accept.
Paul and Silas are beaten with rods and thrown into prison, where they are placed in the most secure part of the jail with their feet fastened in stocks.
Instead of complaining or giving up, they pray and sing hymns to God at midnight, while the other prisoners listen.
Suddenly, a powerful earthquake shakes the prison, the doors open, and the prisoners' chains come loose.
The jailer assumes everyone has escaped and prepares to kill himself because he expects severe punishment, but Paul immediately calls out that everyone is still there and stops him.
The frightened jailer then asks Paul and Silas what he must do to be saved, and they tell him to believe in the Lord Jesus.
They explain the Gospel to him and his household, and that same night the jailer washes their wounds, receives baptism with his household, brings them into his home, feeds them, and celebrates because he has come to believe in God.
The next morning, the authorities order Paul and Silas to be released quietly, but Paul reveals that they are Roman citizens who were publicly beaten without a proper trial, forcing the magistrates to come personally and escort them out.
Before leaving Philippi, Paul and Silas return to Lydia's house, meet with the believers, and encourage them, showing that their concern is not simply to preach in a city and leave but to establish and strengthen a lasting Christian community.
The central message of Acts 16 is that God directs the Christian mission even when human plans change, as Paul is prevented from entering certain regions but is clearly led toward Macedonia through the vision at Troas.
The chapter also shows that the Gospel reaches very different people, including Timothy, Lydia, a formerly exploited slave girl, and a Roman jailer, demonstrating that the Christian message crosses social, cultural, economic, and national boundaries.
Another major theme is that suffering does not mean that God has abandoned His servants, because Paul and Silas are beaten and imprisoned, yet their response is prayer and worship, and God uses their suffering to open the way for the jailer and his household to hear the Gospel.
Acts 16 also shows that Christianity is beginning to establish itself firmly in Europe, with Philippi becoming one of the earliest Christian communities in Macedonia, and the people who believe there will become an important part of Paul's continuing mission.
The chapter therefore combines divine guidance, courageous preaching, suffering, miraculous rescue, personal conversion, and the birth of a new church, showing how the Gospel continues moving forward even when its messengers face serious obstacles.
Paul begins the journey by meeting Timothy in Lystra, a young believer with a Jewish mother and Greek father who is well respected by the local Christians.
Paul invites Timothy to join the missionary team, and together they travel through the region delivering the decision of the Jerusalem Council, which strengthens the churches and helps them understand that Gentile believers do not need to become Jewish in order to follow Jesus.
As Paul and his companions travel, however, the Holy Spirit prevents them from preaching in certain areas, and when they reach Troas, Paul receives a vision of a man from Macedonia asking them to come and help.
They understand this as God's direction and immediately travel across the sea to Macedonia, bringing the Gospel into a new part of the Roman world.
In Philippi, Paul and his companions meet a group of women praying beside a river, including Lydia, a successful seller of purple cloth from Thyatira.
Lydia listens to Paul's message, God opens her heart, and she and her household are baptized, after which she welcomes the missionaries into her home and becomes an important supporter of the new church.
The missionaries later encounter a slave girl who is controlled by a spirit associated with fortune-telling, and after she repeatedly follows them and calls attention to their mission, Paul commands the spirit to leave her in Jesus' name.
Her owners become angry because they have lost the money they earned from her fortune-telling, and they bring Paul and Silas before the authorities, where the missionaries are accused of disturbing the city and promoting customs that Romans should not accept.
Paul and Silas are beaten with rods and thrown into prison, where they are placed in the most secure part of the jail with their feet fastened in stocks.
Instead of complaining or giving up, they pray and sing hymns to God at midnight, while the other prisoners listen.
Suddenly, a powerful earthquake shakes the prison, the doors open, and the prisoners' chains come loose.
The jailer assumes everyone has escaped and prepares to kill himself because he expects severe punishment, but Paul immediately calls out that everyone is still there and stops him.
The frightened jailer then asks Paul and Silas what he must do to be saved, and they tell him to believe in the Lord Jesus.
They explain the Gospel to him and his household, and that same night the jailer washes their wounds, receives baptism with his household, brings them into his home, feeds them, and celebrates because he has come to believe in God.
The next morning, the authorities order Paul and Silas to be released quietly, but Paul reveals that they are Roman citizens who were publicly beaten without a proper trial, forcing the magistrates to come personally and escort them out.
Before leaving Philippi, Paul and Silas return to Lydia's house, meet with the believers, and encourage them, showing that their concern is not simply to preach in a city and leave but to establish and strengthen a lasting Christian community.
The central message of Acts 16 is that God directs the Christian mission even when human plans change, as Paul is prevented from entering certain regions but is clearly led toward Macedonia through the vision at Troas.
The chapter also shows that the Gospel reaches very different people, including Timothy, Lydia, a formerly exploited slave girl, and a Roman jailer, demonstrating that the Christian message crosses social, cultural, economic, and national boundaries.
Another major theme is that suffering does not mean that God has abandoned His servants, because Paul and Silas are beaten and imprisoned, yet their response is prayer and worship, and God uses their suffering to open the way for the jailer and his household to hear the Gospel.
Acts 16 also shows that Christianity is beginning to establish itself firmly in Europe, with Philippi becoming one of the earliest Christian communities in Macedonia, and the people who believe there will become an important part of Paul's continuing mission.
The chapter therefore combines divine guidance, courageous preaching, suffering, miraculous rescue, personal conversion, and the birth of a new church, showing how the Gospel continues moving forward even when its messengers face serious obstacles.