Acts 16:35 - Printer Friendly

ESV: But when it was day, the magistrates sent the police, saying, “Let those men go.”

NIV: When it was daylight, the magistrates sent their officers to the jailer with the order: 'Release those men.'

NASB: Now when day came, the chief magistrates sent their officers, saying, 'Release those men.'

CSB: When daylight came, the chief magistrates sent the police to say, "Release those men."

NLT: The next morning the city officials sent the police to tell the jailer, 'Let those men go!'

KJV: And when it was day, the magistrates sent the serjeants, saying, Let those men go.

NKJV: And when it was day, the magistrates sent the officers, saying, “Let those men go.”

Paul and Silas have been attacked by a crowd, beaten by the city magistrates, and imprisoned overnight (Acts 16:22–23). This was standard procedure for crimes that did not warrant capital punishment. Giving the accused the option to go into exile was also standard; the accused avoids more punishment, and the magistrates don't have to hold a formal trial.

The message the police bring is not unexpected. However, the magistrates will find it is not so simple to apply. When they looked at Silas and Paul, they saw two itinerant Jewish teachers, possibly magicians. They didn't bother to ask if they were Roman citizens. Few people in the Roman Empire were actual citizens; such a status was granted to children of citizens, residents of particular cities, those who were honored by the Empire, and those who could buy it (Acts 22:28).

Besides legal, political, and religious advantages, citizens could only be placed under house arrest on command. They could not be punished or fully imprisoned without a fair trial; they could not even be bound. Later, a tribune in Jerusalem will be deeply afraid to learn this law has been violated (Acts 22:29), revealing how seriously the magistrates in the current situation in Philippi have erred.

Paul and Silas's response is worthy of being imitated. The magistrates have denied them their legal rights; in defense of those rights and to avoid future incidents, Paul and Silas demand an apology. But they do not formally accuse the magistrates with the crime. For justice and for the protection of their church plant, they demand respect. For peace, they will accept the apology and leave the city (Acts 16:36–40).

Acts 16:25–40 records Paul's first imprisonment. The Philippian magistrates arrested Paul and Silas and had them beaten for spreading the news about Jesus. The two are now chained in a cell, praying and singing to God. An earthquake shakes the prison, releasing all the doors and chains. Paul assures the jailer no one has left, and the jailer tends to the pair's wounds. They share Jesus' offer of forgiveness of sins, and the jailer and his household accept Christ. In the morning, the magistrates attempt to release Paul and Silas, only to be confronted with their own crime: they have illegally punished two Roman citizens. After apologizing, the magistrates ask Paul and Silas to leave town.

Acts 16 follows Paul and Silas as they take the letter of Acts 15 into modern-day Asia Minor and Macedonia. They collect Timothy in Lystra and Luke in Troas. In Philippi, they meet Lydia and baptize her family. After expelling a demon from a fortune-telling girl, city officials illegally beat and imprison Paul and Silas. An earthquake frees them of their chains, but they stay and bring the jailer and his family to Christ. The next morning, Paul and Silas refuse to leave quietly, politely insisting that their civil rights have been violated. The officials apologize, and Paul, Silas, and Timothy go to Thessalonica.

Acts 15 ends with Paul and Silas spreading the news that Gentile Christians don't have to be circumcised. Acts 16 begins with Paul circumcising a Jewish man, Timothy, to prevent difficulties in preaching to older Jews as the boy grows into church leadership. Paul's second missionary trip finds the church growing east, into Philippi, Thessalonica, Berea, Athens, and Corinth (Acts 16:11—18:18). On his way back to Syrian Antioch, Paul will stop by Ephesus and soften the Jews for the extended ministry of Priscilla, Aquila, and Apollos. During his first trip, Paul planted churches and ordained elders; in his second, he commissions more missionaries.

The summary of the book of Acts is provided in Jesus' words in Acts 1:8: ''But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.'' In Acts 2:1–13, the Christ-followers receive the Holy Spirit. Acts 2:14—7:60 describes the rapid growth of the church in Jerusalem. Chapters 8—12 find Jewish persecution inadvertently spreading the gospel throughout Judea and Samaria. And in chapters 13—28, Paul and his companions spread the good news throughout the Roman Empire.