Dear Paul and Silas,
“Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceedingly glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you” Matt. 5:11.
Paul and Silas were exemplary in proving the soundness of this verse! Surely they were, and are, given to assure us that what was true for them is equally true for us. The early church endured much persecution and the reading or hearing of this particular event in the lives of these apostles would have been to them of no little comfort.
When Paul and Silas were in Philippi, a “certain damsel possessed with a spirit of divination. . .followed Paul and us, and cried, saying, These men are the servants of the Most High God, which show us the way of salvation” Acts 16:16,17. Paul commanded the evil spirit to come out of her. As a result her “owners” lost their means of monetary gain and had Paul and Silas brought before the magistrates, who promptly had them thrown into prison. “And when they had laid many stripes upon them, they cast them into prison, charging the jailor to keep them safely. Who, having received such a charge, thrust them into the inner prison, and made their feet fast in the stocks. And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God. . .Acts 16:23- 25.
The Philippi Chamber of Commerce was instrumental in obtaining accommodations for Paul and Silas. Unfortunately, there were no rooms available at the Philippi Hilton, so other arrangements were made. The Lodge to which the Apostles were directed did not have a AAA rating. The room was not cleaned prior to their arrival. They were not given fresh towels and linen. The floor, rather than being carpeted, had an earthy feel to it. This establishment would not likely have passed a sanitation inspection. The local pest control company had not been there of late. There was neither a restaurant nor room service. The room did not have a balcony with picture window overlooking the city. The Host was lacking in kindness and courtesy. . .
An earthquake. . .the foundation of the prison shaken. . .the doors were opened. . . everyone’s bands were loosed. Everyone that is, but the jailor’s. No, his hands and feet were not shackled; he was not fastened in the stocks: he was bound by sin. And sin was just about finished with him. “And the keeper of the prison awakened out of his sleep, and seeing the prison doors open, he drew out his sword, and would have killed himself, supposing that the prisoners had been fled. But Paul cried with a loud voice, saying, Do thyself no harm: for we are all here” Acts 16:27,28.
The jailor called for a light and his darkened eyes were opened to the Truth of the Word. He cried, What must I do to be saved, and received the Word of reconciliation: Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved. And he fell before Paul and Silas receiving the Word of Deliverance; and the “ropes brake off his arm like a thread;” the chains were “plucked asunder” and the fetters were “broken in pieces.”
If we thoughtfully meditate upon the account given us concerning Paul and Silas while they were in Philippi, we shall without doubt be able to identify them as Peacemakers and Ministers of Reconciliation. They could most assuredly relate to the eighth Beatitude: “Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely. . .” They cast out an evil spirit from a fortune teller, and for that were laid upon and thrust before the magistrate by an angry mob. They were stripped, beaten, and then cast into the inner prison, their feet shacked. And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed and sang praises unto God: (most likely they were continuing that which was begun earlier.) They sang praises; a convincing evidence that they were at Peace with the Father, that they had approached Him in poverty of spirit, in mourning and meekness, hungering and thirsting after Righteousness; being reconciled to God, they desired that others might be also reconciled.
The response of the Father: a great earthquake, prison doors opened, everyone’s bands were loosed. Everyone that is, but the jailor: he was imprisoned by sin, held captive by its shackles.
Paul cried out, “Do thyself no harm.” But the jailor had done them much harm.
“We are all here.” None escaped, though opportunity was there to do so.
It would appear that the attention of the Apostles was not upon their freedom, but the loosing of the jailor, yet in his bonds.
The jailor called for a light, and his eyes were opened to the Truth of the Word.
He cried, What must I do to be saved, and received the word of reconciliation - Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved. And they spake unto him the word of the Lord. And he fell in poverty of spirit, mourning his guilt and condemnation; he came in meekness and humility, owning himself as bankrupt and in need. He was forgiven. He was cleansed, he was reconciled to God. He became a Peacemaker. As a Peacemaker, he washed the Apostles stripes; he took them into his own house, he set meat before them; he rejoiced, believing, fellowshipping with Paul and Silas. He make peace with and was reconciled to the Apostles; but first peace and reconciliation had to be made with God.
The forgotten prisoners.
Have we been so caught up with the conversion of the Philippian jailor that we have overlooked the other prisoners in the jail house? (But our God is not forgetful, neither is He prone to overlook anything.) And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: AND THE PRISONERS HEARD THEM. [Did the prisoners hear them by the hearing of the ear? Or did their song and prayer reach their hearts (via the Spirit of God?) And suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken; [ Christ is the ONE FIRM FOUNDATION, but that which is earthly is said to have “foundations” these being subject to crumbling!] and immediately ALL THE DOORS WERE OPENED, and EVERYONE’S BANDS WERE LOOSED. And the keeper of the prison [Jail House] awakening out of sleep, and seeing the prison doors open, he drew out his sword, and would have killed himself, supposing that the PRISONERS HAD BEEN FLED. [Better to take his own life than to face the consequences when the magistrates found out that the prisoners had all fled.] But Paul cried with a loud voice, saying, Do thyself no harm: for WE ARE ALL HERE. “We understand that it was not the purpose of God that the living might die, but that the DEAD might LIVE! “Then he called for a light [he being in darkness, had no light of his own] and sprang in, and came TREMBLING, and fell down before Paul and Silas.” He came trembling: entromos - it was a tremor, a quaking of his heart: the earth trembled and quaked, it’s foundations were shaken; so it was with the jailor. “The doors were opened, everyone’s bands were loosed, we are all here! Paul and Silas with the prisoners, the prisoners with Paul and Silas. The shackles were loosed, the doors opened - why were they still there! Could it be that there was an effectual calling, a restraining by the Holy Spirit? Is it the nature and practice of our Lord to break the physical bonds of men and refrain from breaking the shackles of sin for their deliverance? Were they loosed that they might be immediately bound again? “And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” “And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house” Why would it take two men to speak to one man? Or were they speaking to all the men, prisoners and jailor alike? The next verse answers it for us: “And they spake unto him the word of the Lord, and to all that were in his house.” Did the jailor not have two ‘households?’ One where he lived (whether he had a wife and children we are not told - it is an assumption; it is speculation on our part.) But he did have another household - those who were abiding in the jail house. Notice, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved. And they spake unto him the word of the Lord, and to all that were in his house.” Where do we get the idea that they moved from that location, going down to his other house at midnight, waking his family so they might hear the gospel? What of the prisoners? Is he to leave them outside the jail house, they being now free of their shackles, trusting that they will stay put until he returns with Paul and Silas many hours later? And if they did not, it was to his peril. “And he took them the same hour of the night, and washed their stripes, and was baptized he and all his house [household] straightway.” [Most likely in the same water, the washing of stripes and the baptizing.] After all this was complete, THEN he brought them into his house, [as though they had not been there before] and set meat before them, and rejoiced, believing in God with all his house.” Sometimes house, [literally or figuratively] means a household of individuals, sometimes, a dwelling place. (It is used four times in this passage.) Nevertheless, having two households, if there were those dwelling in both, the Lord would be true to His word: they would all be saved! (Though I personally believe that those initially baptized along with the jailor, were saved prisoners, now being made the prisoners of Christ! Question? Where does the Lord Jesus keep His prisoners? In Maximum Security!
“And when it was day, the magistrates sent to the serjeants, saying, Let those men go.” OK, let which men go: Paul and Silas only - or all the prisoners? Why, Paul and Silas only. The other prisoners would remain in custody. I firmly believe that during that night the jailor could have asked Paul concerning the prisoners and he would have said as before, WE ARE ALL HERE! The prisoners would have returned with the Apostles to their rightful place in the prison to fulfill the sentences of the magistrates; else the jailor would likely have forfeited his life. Now, if the jailor was saved and all his “household,” shall we not say that the jail house became a church, a “House of God;” a “Temple.” if you please! Look it up! oikos, dwelling, Lit. or fig., family, lit. or fig., house[-hold], temple. Can you imagine, in or out of jail, what an impact these fellows would have had in Philippi?
But then, much of Paul’s ministry was a Jail House ministry, was it not?!!
