Acts 16:23

"Colludere puellae daemonum cum Paulo," that the demon of the damsel was in collision with Paul. "Sed recidisset in merum ludibrium," but became a mere laughing-stock. "Opponit Christum daemoni," he opposes Christ to the demon. "Acerrimi zelotae legis suae," the fiercest zealots for their law. "Flabellum," bellows. "Tertiam calumniam ex crimine seditionis concinnant," they concoct a third calamny out of the charge of sedition. "Odiose traductus fuit," was hatefully traduced. "Repente effervent," suddenly effervesce, break out. "Deploranda," desperate, deplorable. "Et alios quosvis sceleratos," and villains of any description. "Tumultuose," tumultuously. 23. And when they had given them many stripes, they did cast them into prison, commanding the keeper of the prison to keep them safe; 24. Who, seeing he had received such commandments, did put them in the inner prison, and made fast their feet in the stocks. 25. And at midnight Paul and Silas praying, did praise God; and those which lay bound heard them. 26. And suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken; and by and by all the doors were opened, and all their hands [chains] were loosed. 27. And when the keeper of the prison awaked, and saw all the prison doors open, drawing out his sword, he was about to slay himself, thinking that those which lay bound were fled. 28. And Paul cried with a loud voice, Do thyself no harm: for we be all here. 23. That he should keep them safe.

16:16-24 Satan, though the father of lies, will declare the most important truths, when he can thereby serve his purposes. But much mischief is done to the real servants of Christ, by unholy and false preachers of the gospel, who are confounded with them by careless observers. Those who do good by drawing men from sin, may expect to be reviled as troublers of the city. While they teach men to fear God, to believe in Christ, to forsake sin, and to live godly lives, they will be accused of teaching bad customs.

And when they had laid many stripes upon them,.... Even above measure, as in 2 Corinthians 11:35 . They cast them into prison; designing doubtless to inflict some greater punishment upon them, after they had further examined into their affairs: charging the jailer to keep them safely; suggesting, that he must be answerable for them, should they escape, either through his favour or his negligence; and they might rather give this strict charge, because they perceived that they were uncommon men, possessed of a strange power, which they had exerted in the casting out of the evil spirit, which might come to their knowledge by some means or other; they might look upon them to be a sort of magicians, and therefore were to be narrowly watched, that they did not make use of their art to deliver themselves; however, they judged it necessary to use all the precautions they could, to secure them: some have thought this jailer to be the same with Stephanas, 1 Corinthians 1:16 but this is not certain, nor very probable.

Laid many stripes upon them; partly by the lictors or executioners, and partly by the furious rabble. The jailer; this jailer’s name (of whose conversion we read hereafter) was Stephanas, as may appear if you compare 1 Corinthians 1:16 with what follows by St. Luke in this story. Of him also we read, 1 Corinthians 16:15,17 .

Acts 16:23 . Ἐπιθέντες , when they had laid upon them) They do not immediately say that they are Romans; or else in the tumult they were not heard. We are not always to use all helps (safeguards against ill-treatment) in every way: we must give ear to the Divine direction.— παραγγείλαντες , having charged ) More for the sake of appeasing the crowd, as it seems probable, than that they thought Paul and Silas guilty: Acts 16:35 . Acts 16:23

23, 24. when they had laid many stripes upon them—the bleeding wounds from which they were not washed till it was done by the converted jailer (Ac 16:33). charged the jailer … who … thrust them into the inner prison—"pestilential cells, damp and cold, from which the light was excluded, and where the chains rusted on the prisoners. One such place may be seen to this day on the slope of the Capitol at Rome" [Howson].

And when they had laid many stripes on them - The Jews were by law prohibited from inflicting more than 40 stripes, and usually inflicted but 39, 2 Corinthians 11:24 . But there was no such law among the Romans. They were unrestricted in regard to the number of lashes, and probably inflicted many more. Perhaps Paul refers to this when he says 2 Corinthians 11:23 , "In stripes above measure." that is, beyond the usual measure among the Jews, or beyond moderation. They cast them into prison - The magistrates did this partly as a punishment, and partly with a view hereafter of taking vengeance on them more according to the forms of law.

Acts 16:23 . δεσμοφύλακι , Lucian, Tox. , 30; Jos., Ant. , ii., 5, 1, LXX ἀρχιδεσμοφύλαξ , Genesis 39:21-23 ; Genesis 40:3 A, Genesis 41:10 A ( cf. the word ἀρχισωματοφύλαξ , Deissmann, Neue Bibelstudien , p. 93). Chrysostom and Oecumenius identify him with Stephanus, but he was the first-fruits of Achaia, 1 Corinthians 16:15 .