Parallel Bible results for "acts 16"

Acts 16

Common English Bible CEB

1 Paul reached Derbe, and then Lystra, where there was a disciple named Timothy. He was the son of a believing Jewish woman and a Greek father.

2 The brothers and sisters in Lystra and Iconium spoke well of him.

3 Paul wanted to take Timothy with him, so he circumcised him. This was because of the Jews who lived in those areas, for they all knew Timothy's father was Greek.

4 As Paul and his companions traveled through the cities, they instructed Gentile believers to keep the regulations put in place by the apostles and elders in Jerusalem.

5 So the churches were strengthened in the faith and every day their numbers flourished.

6 Paul and his companions traveled throughout the regions of Phrygia and Galatia because the Holy Spirit kept them from speaking the word in the province of Asia.

7 When they approached the province of Mysia, they tried to enter the province of Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus wouldn't let them.

8 Passing by Mysia, they went down to Troas instead.

9 A vision of a man from Macedonia came to Paul during the night. He stood urging Paul, "Come over to Macedonia and help us!"

10 Immediately after he saw the vision, we prepared to leave for the province of Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to proclaim the good news to them.

11 We sailed from Troas straight for Samothrace and came to Neapolis the following day.

12 From there we went to Philippi, a city of Macedonia's first district and a Roman colony. We stayed in that city several days.

13 On the Sabbath we went outside the city gate to the riverbank, where we thought there might be a place for prayer. We sat down and began to talk with the women who had gathered.

14 One of those women was Lydia, a Gentile God-worshipper from the city of Thyatira, a dealer in purple cloth. As she listened, the Lord enabled her to embrace Paul's message.

15 Once she and her household were baptized, she urged, "Now that you have decided that I am a believer in the Lord, come and stay in my house." And she persuaded us.

16 One day, when we were on the way to the place for prayer, we met a slave woman. She had a spirit that enabled her to predict the future. She made a lot of money for her owners through fortune-telling.

17 She began following Paul and us, shouting, "These people are servants of the Most High God! They are proclaiming a way of salvation to you!"

18 She did this for many days. This annoyed Paul so much that he finally turned and said to the spirit, "In the name of Jesus Christ, I command you to leave her!" It left her at that very moment.

19 Her owners realized that their hope for making money was gone. They grabbed Paul and Silas and dragged them before the officials in the city center.

20 When her owners approached the legal authorities, they said, "These people are causing an uproar in our city. They are Jews

21 who promote customs that we Romans can't accept or practice."

22 The crowd joined in the attacks against Paul and Silas, so the authorities ordered that they be stripped of their clothes and beaten with a rod.

23 When Paul and Silas had been severely beaten, the authorities threw them into prison and ordered the jailer to secure them with great care.

24 When he received these instructions, he threw them into the innermost cell and secured their feet in stocks.

25 Around midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them.

26 All at once there was such a violent earthquake that it shook the prison's foundations. The doors flew open and everyone's chains came loose.

27 When the jailer awoke and saw the open doors of the prison, he thought the prisoners had escaped, so he drew his sword and was about to kill himself.

28 But Paul shouted loudly, "Don't harm yourself! We're all here!"

29 The jailer called for some lights, rushed in, and fell trembling before Paul and Silas.

30 He led them outside and asked, "Honorable masters, what must I do to be rescued?"

31 They replied, "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your entire household."

32 They spoke the Lord's word to him and everyone else in his house.

33 Right then, in the middle of the night, the jailer welcomed them and washed their wounds. He and everyone in his household were immediately baptized.

34 He brought them into his home and gave them a meal. He was overjoyed because he and everyone in his household had come to believe in God.

35 The next morning the legal authorities sent the police to the jailer with the order "Release those people."

36 So the jailer reported this to Paul, informing him, "The authorities sent word that you both are to be released. You can leave now. Go in peace."

37 Paul told the police, "Even though we are Roman citizens, they beat us publicly without first finding us guilty of a crime, and they threw us into prison. And now they want to send us away secretly? No way! They themselves will have to come and escort us out."

38 The police reported this to the legal authorities, who were alarmed to learn that Paul and Silas were Roman citizens.

39 They came and consoled Paul and Silas, escorting them out of prison and begging them to leave the city.

40 Paul and Silas left the prison and made their way to Lydia's house where they encouraged the brothers and sisters. Then they left Philippi.

GOD'S WORD Translation GW

1 Paul arrived in the city of Derbe and then went to Lystra, where a disciple named Timothy lived. Timothy's mother was a Jewish believer, but his father was Greek.

2 The believers in Lystra and Iconium spoke well of Timothy.

3 Paul wanted Timothy to go with him. So he circumcised him because of the Jews who lived in those places and because he knew that Timothy's father was Greek.

4 As they went through the cities, they told people about the decisions that the apostles and spiritual leaders in Jerusalem had made for the people.

5 So the churches were strengthened in the faith and grew in numbers every day.

6 Paul and Silas went through the regions of Phrygia and Galatia because the Holy Spirit kept them from speaking the word in the province of Asia.

7 They went to the province of Mysia and tried to enter Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus wouldn't allow this.

8 So they passed by Mysia and went to the city of Troas.

9 During the night Paul had a vision of a man from Macedonia. The man urged Paul, "Come to Macedonia to help us."

10 As soon as Paul had seen the vision, we immediately looked for a way to go to Macedonia. We concluded that God had called us to tell the people of Macedonia about the Good News.

11 So we took a ship from Troas and sailed straight to the island of Samothrace. The next day we sailed to the city of Neapolis,

12 and from there we went to the city of Philippi. Philippi is a leading city in that part of Macedonia, and it is a Roman colony. We were in this city for a number of days.

13 On the day of worship we went out of the city to a place along the river where we thought Jewish people gathered for prayer. We sat down and began talking to the women who had gathered there.

14 A woman named Lydia was present. She was a convert to Judaism from the city of Thyatira and sold purple dye for a living. She was listening because the Lord made her willing to pay attention to what Paul said.

15 When Lydia and her family were baptized, she invited us to stay at her home. She said, "If you're convinced that I believe in the Lord, then stay at my home." She insisted. So we did.

16 One day when we were going to the place of prayer, a female servant met us. She was possessed by an evil spirit that told fortunes. She made a lot of money for her owners by telling fortunes.

17 She used to follow Paul and shout, "These men are servants of the Most High God. They're telling you how you can be saved."

18 She kept doing this for many days. Paul became annoyed, turned to the evil spirit, and said, "I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her!" As Paul said this, the evil spirit left her.

19 When her owners realized that their hope of making money was gone, they grabbed Paul and Silas and dragged them to the authorities in the public square.

20 In front of the Roman officials, they said, "These men are stirring up a lot of trouble in our city. They're Jews,

21 and they're advocating customs that we can't accept or practice as Roman citizens."

22 The crowd joined in the attack against Paul and Silas. Then the officials tore the clothes off Paul and Silas and ordered [the guards] to beat them with sticks.

23 After they had hit Paul and Silas many times, they threw them in jail and ordered the jailer to keep them under tight security.

24 So the jailer followed these orders and put Paul and Silas into solitary confinement with their feet in leg irons.

25 Around midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns of praise to God. The other prisoners were listening to them.

26 Suddenly, a violent earthquake shook the foundations of the jail. All the doors immediately flew open, and all the prisoners' chains came loose.

27 The jailer woke up and saw the prison doors open. Thinking the prisoners had escaped, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself.

28 But Paul shouted as loudly as he could, "Don't hurt yourself! We're all here!"

29 The jailer asked for torches and rushed into the jail. He was trembling as he knelt in front of Paul and Silas.

30 Then he took Paul and Silas outside and asked, "Sirs, what do I have to do to be saved?"

31 They answered, "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you and your family will be saved."

32 They spoke the Lord's word to the jailer and everyone in his home.

33 At that hour of the night, the jailer washed Paul and Silas' wounds. The jailer and his entire family were baptized immediately.

34 He took Paul and Silas upstairs into his home and gave them something to eat. He and his family were thrilled to be believers in God.

35 In the morning the Roman officials sent guards who told the jailer, "You can release those men now."

36 The jailer reported this order to Paul by saying, "The officials have sent word to release you. So you can leave peacefully now."

37 But Paul told the guards, "Roman officials have had us beaten publicly without a trial and have thrown us in jail, even though we're Roman citizens. Now are they going to throw us out secretly? There's no way they're going to get away with that! Have them escort us out!"

38 The guards reported to the officials what Paul had said. When the Roman officials heard that Paul and Silas were Roman citizens, they were afraid.

39 So the officials went to the jail and apologized to Paul and Silas. As the officials escorted Paul and Silas out of the jail, they asked them to leave the city.

40 After Paul and Silas left the jail, they went to Lydia's house. They met with the believers, encouraged them, and then left.