vv.1-2 Timothy. We are now introduced to Timothy, or Timotheus (meaning “honored of God”), a young disciple from Derbe and Lystra whom Paul later called “my own son in the faith” (1 Tim. 1:2). Even toward the end of Paul’s life, he referred to Timothy’s “youth” (1 Tim. 4:12), showing how young he must have been when he first joined the apostle. Timothy stands as a remarkable example of early faithfulness and spiritual maturity in a young believer.

 

Timothy came from a home of mixed background. His father was a Greek, and his mother, Eunice, was a believing Jewess. Along with his grandmother Lois, she had instructed him in the Holy Scriptures “from a child” (2 Tim. 3:15). These godly women passed on to him what Paul later called “unfeigned faith” (2 Tim. 1:5), a faith that was genuine, living, and without hypocrisy. Though his home life was divided, grace triumphed, and the spiritual influence of his mother and grandmother bore lasting fruit.

 

By the time Paul returned to the region, Timothy was already known among the local believers as one who had “a good testimony of the brethren” (Acts 16:2). It is likely that he had been converted during Paul’s first visit to Lystra, when the apostle endured fierce persecution there (Acts 14). Paul’s courage under suffering made a deep impression on the young man, and perhaps it was through that example that Timothy’s heart was drawn to Christ (2 Tim. 3:10-13).

 

This meeting marked a turning point in Paul’s ministry. Barnabas had recently departed after the sharp contention over John Mark, and the Lord now brought Timothy into Paul’s life to fill that void with fresh companionship and help in the work. The first missionary journey had not only produced new converts but had raised up men fit to serve. Timothy was one of its most enduring fruits: a young man of proven faith and character, prepared quietly by God for greater usefulness ahead.

 

v.3 Timothy Circumcised. 

The reason why Paul had Timothy circumcised and not Titus is given to us; "because of the Jews which were in those quarters: for they knew all that his father was a Greek" (Acts 16:3). The issue with Timothy was that one parent was Jewish and the other Gentile, and so it would raise distracting questions about his ethnicity among the Jews. Paul used his Christian liberty, so that "unto the Jews I became as a Jew, that I might gain the Jews; to them that are under the law, as under the law, that I might gain them that are under the law" (1 Cor. 9:20). Paul did not compromise his principles with Timothy, but had rather used his Christian liberty to bring an end to any distraction over the issue. In Acts 15 it was a false teaching coming in among believers that circumcision was required for salvation. In Acts 16 it was to remove confusion among unbelievers whom Paul was trying to reach with the gospel. What the Jews wanted was to reject Timothy because of his mixed background, so Paul had him circumcised! The case of Titus was different (Gal. 2:3). Both the parents of Titus were Gentiles, and therefore he did not pose the same issue. In fact, the circumstances of him being a Gentile and uncircumcised is connected with why the Lord revealed to Paul that he should take Titus with him to the Jerusalem council. Titus was not compelled to take up with Jewish ceremony. To do so would be a compromise of principles! This makes Paul's position very clear.

 

vv.4-5 Ministry to Assemblies in Lystra and Derbe. As Paul and Silas passed through the cities they taught the brethren to observe the decrees of the apostles and elders at Jerusalem, namely the decrees of ch.15, that no other yoke was laid upon the Gentile, only the basic moral prohibitions (fornication, idolatry, blood). The council had settled the question of circumcision, showing that salvation was through Christ alone. Yet Paul did not go as a representative from Jerusalem, enforcing an order from above. He moved as one led of the Spirit, confirming what God had already wrought among the saints. This may at first look like centralized church government that forms the basis of the claims of the Roman Catholic Church. However it is important to see these were assemblies where there was a Jewish influence, and Paul and Silas were causing the influence of the Jerusalem leaders to be felt amongst Jewish believers, where the particular issue of Gentile liberty needed be firm hand. Paul and Silas did not tell these assemblies that they must have approval from the apostles and elders in Jerusalem to make decisions, bind and loose, etc.¹ This displayed real wisdom in handling the issue. The result was that the assemblies in this region were confirmed in the faith (strengthened) and grew in number every day!

 

vv.6-8 Driven to Troas. Paul and his companions continued westward, but the Spirit of God now intervened in a special way. They were “forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia.” Then, when they tried to go into Bithynia, “the Spirit of Jesus permitted them not.” This shows that even devoted servants may have right desires but need divine direction. Their plans were not wrong, but they were not God’s plans for that moment. The Lord was guiding their steps. Asia would one day hear the gospel mightily through Paul at Ephesus, but not yet. God had another field ready. So, passing by Mysia, they came down to Troas. It is a lesson in spiritual dependence: not every open door is God’s door. The Spirit often leads different from the way that we would reason. True service is not only zeal for Christ and the gospel, but submission to the will of God.

 

vv.9-10 Called to Macedonia. At Troas, Paul received clear direction from heaven. In a vision by night, he saw “a man of Macedonia” standing and pleading, “Come over into Macedonia and help us.” It was a striking call, not only because of the poignant message, but because it would mean the gospel’s first step into Europe. God had closed every other path so that His servants would hear this one. Paul’s response was immediate: “We sought to go into Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel unto them.” This is obedience to the Lord of the harvest! The shift from “they” to “we” in Luke’s narrative shows that the writer (Luke) now joined the company; the historian became a fellow laborer. This moment illustrates how the Lord guides His servants: sometimes by restraint, sometimes by a summons that leaves no doubt. The vision revealed a cry for help from souls in need. The gospel was crossing from Asia to Europe by divine appointment. The same Lord who had once said, “Go ye into all the world,” now directed His servant Paul to enter Europe! There has hardly been a more momentous journey in the history of the world than the short voyage Paul and his companions took across the Aegean to Europe.

 

vv.11-13 By the River. Sailing from Troas, Paul and his companions made a direct course to Samothrace, then to Neapolis, and finally to Philippi. This was a leading city of Macedonia and a Roman colony. There, for the first time, the gospel entered Europe. Philippi may have had few Jews, because instead of a synagogue, Paul found a small group gathered by a river for prayer. Perhaps the faithful met outdoors by running water because it was convenient for the washings connected with their worship. The little company, mostly women, had gathered in simplicity for prayer. Paul and his companions sat down and spoke to them, introducing the light of the gospel. Thus the work in Europe began quietly, by a riverbank, in the heart of the Roman world.

 

 

vv.14-15 Lydia. Among the women by the river was Lydia, a merchant from Thyatira who sold purple dyes. This was a costly trade as purple was worn by the wealthy and refined in Roman society. Though prosperous, she was a worshipper of the true God, not mired in pagan idolatry. As she listened, “the Lord opened her heart to attend to the things spoken by Paul.” It was not human persuasion that produced faith, but divine grace quietly working within Lydia’s heart. She believed the gospel, was baptized, and her whole household with her. Immediately, her heart turned to hospitality and she urged the missionaries to stay in her home, saying, “If ye have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come into my house and abide.” It is wonderful to see how Christian homes are used by God as resting places for the servants of Christ, beacons of testimony, and incubators of spiritual growth.

 

  

vv.16-18 A Spirit of Python Cast Out. Soon after Lydia’s conversion, opposition arose from another quarter. As Paul and his companions went to the place of prayer, they were met by a slave girl who had “a spirit of divination.” The Greek word is pythōna, from which we get “Python.”² Thus, the people of Philippi regarded this girl as inspired by a prophetic spirit, though in reality she was possessed by a demon. She followed them repeatedly, crying out, “These men are the servants of the Most High God, which show unto us the way of salvation.” This was a new tactic: rather than resist the gospel openly, to patronize its preachers. Notice that the spirit could not confess the Lord Jesus (1 Corinthians 12:3). Paul, grieved by this attempted alliance, commanded the spirit to come out of her “in the name of Jesus Christ”, and she was instantly delivered. The devil’s immediate strategy had failed; yet this act of mercy, which freed the girl from bondage, stirred up opposition in a different way.

 

vv.19-24 Persecution in Philippi. The girl’s deliverance brought no joy to her masters, for their profit had come through her fortune-telling. Seeing that the hope of their gain was gone, they dragged Paul and Silas into the marketplace before the rulers. Their accusation was cleverly framed to inflame civic pride in the Roman colony: “These men, being Jews, do exceedingly trouble our city, and teach customs which are not lawful for us to receive, being Romans.” This quickly stirred the crowd. Without trial or inquiry, the magistrates tore off the garments of the apostles and commanded them to be beaten with rods, which was a direct violation of Roman law, since Paul and Silas were Roman citizens. After receiving many stripes, they were cast into the inner prison (extra security), and their feet fastened in the stocks, a cruel device that stretched the body in pain. Yet even here the hand of God was at work.

 

 

vv.25-26 The Earthquake. At midnight, in that dark prison, Paul and Silas prayed and sang praises to God. Their backs were torn by stripes and their feet were confined in the stocks, yet their hearts overflowed with joy in the Lord. The other prisoners listened to them in astonishment. No doubt these other prisoners, and the jailor, were used to curses and groanings of despair, but now they heard songs and prayers of faith. Notice the expression, “in praying, were praising God with singing”. They were praying, and in praying, were praising with singing. This shows that singing can be a form of prayer expressed in song. Suddenly a great earthquake shook the foundations of the prison. Every door was opened, and every prisoner’s chains were loosed. This was not a random occurrence, but a divine intervention in answer to their praises. Any engineer or carpenter will know that a shifting building does not loosen doors but causes them to jam, jet the opposite happened. No one fled. This divine intervention brought liberty, but not lawlessness. The scene is a picture of the gospel itself: man’s bondage being shaken, a way of escape opened, and souls set free, but not to do their own will.

 

vv.27-34 The Salvation of the Jailor. Awakened by the earthquake and seeing the prison doors open, the jailer assumed the prisoners had escaped. Knowing Roman law demanded his life for their loss, he drew his sword to end his own. But Paul cried out, “Do thyself no harm, for we are all here.” Those words, full of love and concern, pierced the man’s heart more deeply than any earthquake could. Trembling, he fell before Paul and Silas and asked, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” He was concerned about his soul. In that moment, conviction of sin replaced fear of civil punishment. Paul’s answer was simple yet profound: “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.” He wanted to know what he should do to be saved. Paul tells him its not about working, but faith in a Person!

In scripture there is a difference between "believing", "believing in", and "believing on". If you "believe" someone, you accept what they say as truth. If you "believe in" someone, you have confidence in their character; i.e. it has to do with who they are, although it also includes that they are honest. If you "believe on" someone, they become an object for your faith, and this also includes both confidence in their character and in their words, but goes far higher.

The gospel does not call for works but faith in the Lord Jesus, the risen Savior who bore the judgment of God for sinners on the cross. Paul and Silas then spoke the Word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house. That very night, the jailer washed their wounds: real evidence of his changed heart, and he and his household were baptized. We learn from this that baptism is not primarily a testimony to the world, else why would he not have waited until daylight? Joy had now replaced despair, and the man who had once bound the apostles now set food before them. He rejoiced, believing in God! Only the gospel can turn a jailor’s home into a place of praise! “It is the power of God unto salvation” (Rom. 1:16).