Acts 16:22–25
Beaten and jailed, Paul and Silas sing hymns at midnight
Study it word by word22And the crowd rose up together against them, and the magistrates tore off their clothes and ordered them to be beaten with rods.
23And after laying many blows on them, they threw them into prison, ordering the jailer to guard them securely.
24He, having received such an order, threw them into the inner prison and fastened their feet in the stocks.
25And about midnight Paul and Silas, while praying, were singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them.
In its context
20And bringing them to the magistrates, they said, “These men, being Jews, are greatly disturbing our city
21and they proclaim customs that it is not lawful for us to accept or practice, being Romans.”
…
26And suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened, and everyone’s chains were unfastened.
27And the jailer, waking up and seeing the doors of the prison opened, drew his sword and was about to kill himself, supposing that the prisoners had escaped.
Its words in the original
- συνεπέστηsynepestē· rise up together
Rise up together, join in attacking someone.
- ὄχλοςochlos· crowd
Crowd, throng; the people.
- στρατηγοὶstratēgoi· officer, magistrate
Officer, magistrate. In Jerusalem, the captain of the temple guard; in a Roman city, the magistrates.
- περιρήξαντεςperirēxantes· tear off
Tear off, rip apart all around.
- ἱμάτιαhimatia· cloak, clothes
Cloak, the outer garment; in the plural, clothes.
- ἐκέλευονekeleuon· order, command
Order, command, give the word for something to be done.
- ῥαβδίζεινrhabdizein· beat with rods
Beat with rods, a Roman punishment.
- πολλάςpollas· much, many
Much, great; in the plural, many.
- ἐπιθέντεςepithentes· put on, lay on
Put on, lay on.
- πληγὰςplēgas· blow, wound, plague
Blow, beating; wound; also plague, disaster.
- ἔβαλονebalon· throw, put
Throw, cast; also put.
- φυλακήνphylakēn· prison, watch
Prison; also guard, and each of the watches of the night.
- παραγγείλαντεςparangeilantes· command, instruct
Give orders, instruct.
- δεσμοφύλακιdesmophylaki· jailer
Jailer.
- ἀσφαλῶςasphalōs· securely
Safely, under close guard; with certainty.
- τηρεῖνtērein· keep
Keep, obey; also guard, preserve.
- παραγγελίανparangelian· order, instruction
Order, command, instruction.
- τοιαύτηνtoiautēn· such
Such, of this kind.
- λαβὼνlabōn· take, receive
Take, receive.
- ἐσωτέρανesōteran· inner
Inner, innermost.
- πόδαςpodas· foot
Foot.
- ἠσφαλίσατοēsphalisato· secure, make fast
Secure, make firm, guard; fasten.
- ξύλονxylon· wood, club
Wood; a club; a tree, the cross.
- μεσονύκτιονmesonyktion· midnight
Midnight.
- ΠαῦλοςPaulos· Paul
Paul: the Roman name of the apostle Saul; also Sergius Paulus, proconsul of Cyprus.
- ΣιλᾶςSilas· Silas
Silas, a leader of the believers in Jerusalem and a companion of Paul; also called Silvanus.
- προσευχόμενοιproseuchomenoi· pray
Pray: speak with God.
- ὕμνουνhymnoun· sing a hymn
Sing hymns, praise in song.
- θεόνtheon· God, god
God. In the plural or in another sense, "gods".
- ἐπηκροῶντοepēkroōnto· listen to
Listen attentively.
- δέσμιοιdesmioi· prisoner
Prisoner.