Paul and Silas Are Put in Jail
One
day on our way to the place of prayer, we were met by a slave girl. She had a
spirit in her that gave her the power to tell the future. By doing this she
made a lot of money for her owners. The girl followed Paul and the rest of us
and kept yelling, “These men are servants of the Most High God! They are
telling you how to be saved.”
This
went on for several days. Finally, Paul got so upset that he turned and said to
the spirit, “In the name of Jesus Christ, I order you to leave this girl
alone!” At once the evil spirit left her.
When
the girl’s owners realized that they had lost all chances for making more
money, they grabbed Paul and Silas and dragged them into court. They told the
officials, “These Jews are upsetting our city! They are telling us to do things
we Romans are not allowed to do.”
The
crowd joined in the attack on Paul and Silas. Then the officials tore the
clothes off the two men and ordered them to be beaten with a whip. After they
had been badly beaten, they were put in jail, and the jailer was told to guard
them carefully. The jailer did as he was told. He put them deep inside the jail
and chained their feet to heavy blocks of wood.
About
midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing praises to God, while the
other prisoners listened. Suddenly a strong earthquake shook the jail to its
foundations. The doors opened, and the chains fell from all the prisoners.
When
the jailer woke up and saw that the doors were open, he thought that the
prisoners had escaped. He pulled out his sword and was about to kill himself.
But Paul shouted, “Don’t harm yourself! No one has escaped.”
The
jailer asked for a torch and went into the jail. He was shaking all over as he
knelt down in front of Paul and Silas. After he had led them out of the jail,
he asked, “What must I do to be saved?”
They
replied, “Have faith in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved! This is also true
for everyone who lives in your home.”
Then
Paul and Silas told him and everyone else in his house about the Lord. While it
was still night, the jailer took them to a place where he could wash their cuts
and bruises. Then he and everyone in his home were baptized. They were very
glad that they had put their faith in God. After this, the jailer took Paul and
Silas to his home and gave them something to eat.
The
next morning the officials sent some police with orders for the jailer to let
Paul and Silas go. The jailer told Paul, “The officials have ordered me to set
you free. Now you can leave in peace.”
But
Paul told the police, “We are Roman citizens, and the Roman officials had us
beaten in public without giving us a trial. They threw us into jail. Now do
they think they can secretly send us away? No, they cannot! They will have to
come here themselves and let us out.” When the police told the officials that
Paul and Silas were Roman citizens, the officials were afraid. So they came and
apologized. They led them out of the jail and
asked them to please leave town. But Paul and Silas went straight to the home
of Lydia, where they saw the Lord’s followers and encouraged them. Then they
left. (CEV)
This reading is taken from 30 Scripture
Readings with the Great Men of the Bible. The complete book can be found here: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B003ZK5H3C/ref=nosim?tag=hudsonbcom-20&linkCode=sb1&camp=212353&creative=380549
The HOLY BIBLE, CONTEMPORARY ENGLISH VERSION copyright ©
1997, 1997 by the American Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights
reserved.
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