Acts 16:8
and passing by Mysia, they came down to Troas.
Troas was a port on the western coast of Mysia.
Acts 16:9
A vision appeared to Paul in the night: a man of Macedonia was standing and appealing to him, and saying, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.”
Vision. Visions are supernatural revelations that are so compelling they appear as real images, even though they are received in our spirits; see entry for Acts 9:10.
Acts 16:10
When he had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go into Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them.
(a) Macedonia was the mountainous region of northern Greece. After receiving his vision of a Macedonian man (see previous verse), Paul visited several cities in the region including Neapolis, Philippi, Amphipolis, Apollonia, Thessalonica, and Berea (Acts 16:11–12, 17:1, 10). Paul returned to Philippi on a later trip through the region (Acts 20:6).
(b) Gospel literally means good news. Since there is no bad news in the good news, any message that leaves you feeling fearful, anxious or condemned, is not the gospel. See entry for The Gospel.
Acts 16:11
So putting out to sea from Troas, we ran a straight course to Samothrace, and on the day following to Neapolis;
(a) Troas; see entry for Acts 16:8.
(b) Samothrace was an island in the northern Aegean Sea
(c) Neapolis was a seaport on the coast of Macedonia. In his travels, Paul would have passed through the port at least three times. Yet there is no mention of him preaching there. Philippi was the more important city.
Acts 16:14
A woman named Lydia, from the city of Thyatira, a seller of purple fabrics, a worshiper of God, was listening; and the Lord opened her heart to respond to the things spoken by Paul.
Lydia was a Thyatiran trader in purple cloth. When she heard Paul preach the gospel in Philippi, she became a believer, along with her whole household. A generation later, Jesus sent a letter to the church in Lydia’s hometown of Thyatira (Rev. 2:18–29). Who planted this church? Paul never went there. Few people did. Thyatira was an obscure town in the middle of nowhere known for only one thing: purple dye. It’s possible that the Thyatiran church was planted by the purple cloth dealer from Thyatira who met Paul in Philippi.
Acts 16:17
Following after Paul and us, she kept crying out, saying, “These men are bond-servants of the Most High God, who are proclaiming to you the way of salvation.”
(a) Bondservants. The original noun doulos means “someone who belongs to another.” The slave-girl was telling people that Paul and his companions belonged to the Lord.
Words like “slave” and “bond-servant” play into the hands of those who preach dead works. But this girl was not making a comment about how hard Paul and his team were working. She recognized them as having a different master. Her masters were evil for they kept her in bondage and profited from her oppression. Their Master was different. Their Master could set her free (see next verse).
(b) Salvation. The original word for salvation means deliverance or rescue. Jesus is the great Deliverer who rescues us from our enemies (Luke 1:71). See entry for Salvation.
Acts 16:18
She continued doing this for many days. But Paul was greatly annoyed, and turned and said to the spirit, “I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her!” And it came out at that very moment.
Jesus Christ. To refer to Jesus as Christ is to recognize that he is the prophesied Messiah or Rescuer (John 1:41). The word Christ means anointed one.
Acts 16:31
They said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.”
(a) Believe. Like Jesus before them, the apostles preached for a verdict (Mark 1:15). Believing the good news about Jesus is both the work of God and his command (John 6:29, 1 John 3:23). The chief takeaway of the new covenant is to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ (see entry for John 3:16).
All of God’s blessings, including forgiveness, salvation, righteousness and sanctification, come to us freely by grace and are received by faith. Faith does not compel God to forgive us or sanctify us. But faith is the conduit through which grace flows. See entry for Eph. 2:8.
(b) And you will be saved. Who is saved? It is the one who trusts in the Savior (Acts 16:31). Jesus said, “He who believes in me has everlasting life” (John 6:47). See entry for Salvation.
Acts 16:40
They went out of the prison and entered the house of Lydia, and when they saw the brethren, they encouraged them and departed.
(a) They went out of the prison. Since Paul and Silas were able to walk out of prison, we can conclude that the severe beating they had the previous day (Acts 16:22–23) was not debilitating. Their backs would have been heavily bruised and lacerated, but they were able to walk.
(b) Departed. Perhaps no one faced more persecution than the Apostle Paul and his standard response was to walk away, keep moving, and keep preaching. See entry for Acts 14:20.
The Grace Commentary is a work in progress with new content added regularly. Sign up for occasional updates below. Got a suggestion? Please use the Feedback page. To report typos or broken links on this page, please use the comment form below.
Help us get the good news of grace to everyone, everywhere. We’re building the world’s largest grace-based Bible commentary. Join the team and your support will help us complete the Grace Commentary and offer versions in multiple formats and languages to believers, leaders and churches all over the world.