使徒行傳 16
Chinese Contemporary Bible (Traditional)
提摩太加入福音事工
16 保羅來到特庇，然後又到路司得。那裡有個門徒名叫提摩太，母親是信主的猶太人，父親是希臘人。 2 路司得和以哥念的弟兄姊妹都稱讚提摩太。 3 保羅打算帶提摩太去傳福音。因為當地的猶太人都知道提摩太的父親是希臘人，保羅就給提摩太行了割禮。 4 他們走遍各城，把耶路撒冷的使徒和長老所定下的規條教導當地的門徒遵守。 5 這樣，眾教會在信仰上得到堅固，人數天天都在增加。
馬其頓人的呼求
6 由於聖靈阻止他們到亞細亞傳福音，他們便經過弗呂迦和加拉太地區， 7 來到每西亞的邊界，正要進入庇推尼地區，耶穌的靈又加以攔阻。 8 他們就越過每西亞，下到特羅亞。 9 當天晚上，保羅在異象中看見一個馬其頓人站在那裡懇求他：「請到馬其頓來幫助我們！」
10 保羅見了這個異象，確信是上帝呼召我們[a]到馬其頓去傳福音，就立刻準備動身。 11 我們從特羅亞啟航，直接駛往撒摩特喇，第二天抵達尼亞坡里， 12 再從那裡來到腓立比。腓立比是馬其頓的主要城市，是羅馬帝國的殖民地。我們在那裡住了幾天。 13 安息日那天，我們到城外的河邊，知道那裡有一個禱告的地方，就坐下來，向已經聚集的婦女講道。 14 聽眾中有個賣紫色布匹的婦人名叫呂底亞，是推雅推喇城的人，向來敬拜上帝。上帝開啟她的心，她便留心聽保羅講道。 15 呂底亞和家人接受洗禮之後，極力邀請我們，說：「如果你們認為我是真心信主的話，請來我家住。」於是強留我們住下。
保羅和西拉入獄
16 一天，我們又去河邊那個禱告的地方，途中遇到一個被巫鬼附身的女奴。她用占卜為她的主人們賺了不少錢。 17 她跟著保羅和我們大喊大叫：「這些人是至高上帝的奴僕，是來向你們宣講得救之道的。」 18 一連幾天，她都這樣喊叫。保羅不勝其煩，就轉過身來斥責那鬼：「我奉耶穌基督的名命令你從她身上出來！」那鬼立刻從她身上出去了。
19 她的主人們眼見財路斷絕了，就把保羅和西拉揪住，拖到廣場去見官長。 20 他們在官長面前控告保羅和西拉，說：「這些是猶太人，竟擾亂我們的城市， 21 宣揚我們羅馬人不可接受或實行的風俗。」 22 於是，大家都一起攻擊他們，官長下令剝掉他們的衣服，杖打他們。 23 他們被毒打一頓，又被關進監獄，官長命獄卒嚴密看守。 24 獄卒接到命令後把他們關進內牢，雙腳上了枷鎖。
25 半夜，保羅和西拉禱告、唱詩讚美上帝，其他的囚犯都側耳傾聽。 26 突然間發生大地震，整座監獄的地基都搖動起來，牢門立刻全開了，囚犯的鎖鏈也都鬆開了。 27 獄卒驚醒後，看見牢門盡開，以為囚犯已經逃走了，就想拔刀自殺。 28 保羅見狀，大聲喝止：「不要傷害自己，我們都在這裡！」
29 獄卒叫人拿燈過來，衝進內牢，戰戰兢兢地俯伏在保羅和西拉面前。 30 獄卒領他們出來後問道：「兩位先生，我該怎樣做才能得救？」
31 他們說：「要信主耶穌，你和你一家就必定得救。」 32 於是保羅和西拉向獄卒和他全家傳講主的道。 33 當晚，獄卒把二人帶去，為他們清洗傷口。他一家老小都接受了洗禮。 34 他請二人到家裡吃飯，他和全家人充滿了喜樂，因為都信了上帝。
35 第二天早上，官長派差役來，說：「把他們放了。」 36 獄卒轉告保羅說：「官長下令釋放你們，現在你們可以平安地走了。」 37 保羅卻說：「我們是羅馬公民，他們不經審訊就當眾打我們，又把我們關進牢裡，現在卻想偷偷打發掉我們嗎？這樣不行，叫他們親自來領我們出去！」
38 差役回報官長。官長得知保羅和西拉都是羅馬公民，非常害怕， 39 連忙到獄中向他們道歉，領他們出監，又央求他們離開腓立比。 40 二人離開監獄，來到呂底亞家中，見了弟兄姊妹，勸勉一番之後，便離開了那裡。
Footnotes
- 16·10 本書作者路加此時加入保羅的行列，故改用第一人稱複數「我們」。
Acts 16
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
Chapter 16
Paul in Lycaonia: Timothy. 1 He reached [also] Derbe and Lystra where there was a disciple named Timothy, the son of a Jewish woman who was a believer, but his father was a Greek.(A) 2 The brothers in Lystra and Iconium spoke highly of him,(B) 3 and Paul wanted him to come along with him. On account of the Jews of that region, Paul had him circumcised,[a] for they all knew that his father was a Greek. 4 As they traveled from city to city, they handed on to the people for observance the decisions reached by the apostles and presbyters in Jerusalem. 5 Day after day the churches grew stronger in faith and increased in number.
Through Asia Minor. 6 They traveled through the Phrygian and Galatian territory because they had been prevented by the holy Spirit from preaching the message in the province of Asia. 7 When they came to Mysia, they tried to go on into Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus[b] did not allow them, 8 so they crossed through Mysia and came down to Troas. 9 During [the] night Paul had a vision. A Macedonian stood before him and implored him with these words, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” 10 When he had seen the vision, we[c] sought passage to Macedonia at once, concluding that God had called us to proclaim the good news to them.
Into Europe. 11 [d]We set sail from Troas, making a straight run for Samothrace, and on the next day to Neapolis, 12 and from there to Philippi, a leading city in that district of Macedonia and a Roman colony. We spent some time in that city. 13 On the sabbath we went outside the city gate along the river where we thought there would be a place of prayer. We sat and spoke with the women who had gathered there. 14 One of them, a woman named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth, from the city of Thyatira, a worshiper of God,[e] listened, and the Lord opened her heart to pay attention to what Paul was saying. 15 After she and her household had been baptized, she offered us an invitation, “If you consider me a believer in the Lord, come and stay at my home,” and she prevailed on us.
Imprisonment at Philippi. 16 As we were going to the place of prayer, we met a slave girl with an oracular spirit,[f] who used to bring a large profit to her owners through her fortune-telling. 17 She began to follow Paul and us, shouting, “These people are slaves of the Most High God, who proclaim to you a way of salvation.” 18 She did this for many days. Paul became annoyed, turned, and said to the spirit, “I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.” Then it came out at that moment.
19 When her owners saw that their hope of profit was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them to the public square before the local authorities. 20 They brought them before the magistrates[g] and said, “These people are Jews and are disturbing our city 21 and are advocating customs that are not lawful for us Romans to adopt or practice.” 22 (C)The crowd joined in the attack on them, and the magistrates had them stripped and ordered them to be beaten with rods. 23 After inflicting many blows on them, they threw them into prison and instructed the jailer to guard them securely. 24 When he received these instructions, he put them in the innermost cell and secured their feet to a stake.
Deliverance from Prison. 25 About midnight, while Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God as the prisoners listened, 26 there was suddenly such a severe earthquake that the foundations of the jail shook; all the doors flew open, and the chains of all were pulled loose. 27 When the jailer woke up and saw the prison doors wide open, he drew [his] sword and was about to kill himself, thinking that the prisoners had escaped. 28 But Paul shouted out in a loud voice, “Do no harm to yourself; we are all here.” 29 He asked for a light and rushed in and, trembling with fear, he fell down before Paul and Silas. 30 Then he brought them out and said, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” 31 And they said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus and you and your household will be saved.” 32 So they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to everyone in his house. 33 He took them in at that hour of the night and bathed their wounds; then he and all his family were baptized at once. 34 He brought them up into his house and provided a meal and with his household rejoiced at having come to faith in God.
35 But when it was day, the magistrates sent the lictors[h] with the order, “Release those men.” 36 The jailer reported the[se] words to Paul, “The magistrates have sent orders that you be released. Now, then, come out and go in peace.” 37 But Paul said to them, “They have beaten us publicly, even though we are Roman citizens and have not been tried, and have thrown us into prison.(D) And now, are they going to release us secretly? By no means. Let them come themselves and lead us out.”[i] 38 The lictors reported these words to the magistrates, and they became alarmed when they heard that they were Roman citizens.(E) 39 So they came and placated them, and led them out and asked that they leave the city. 40 When they had come out of the prison, they went to Lydia’s house where they saw and encouraged the brothers, and then they left.
Footnotes
- 16:3 Paul had him circumcised: he did this in order that Timothy might be able to associate with the Jews and so perform a ministry among them. Paul did not object to the Jewish Christians’ adherence to the law. But he insisted that the law could not be imposed on the Gentiles. Paul himself lived in accordance with the law, or as exempt from the law, according to particular circumstances (see 1 Cor 9:19–23).
- 16:7 The Spirit of Jesus: this is an unusual formulation in Luke’s writings. The parallelism with Acts 16:6 indicates its meaning, the holy Spirit.
- 16:10–17 This is the first of the so-called “we-sections” in Acts, where Luke writes as one of Paul’s companions. The other passages are Acts 20:5–15; 21:1–18; 27:1–28:16. Scholars debate whether Luke may not have used the first person plural simply as a literary device to lend color to the narrative. The realism of the narrative, however, lends weight to the argument that the “we” includes Luke or another companion of Paul whose data Luke used as a source.
- 16:11–40 The church at Philippi became a flourishing community to which Paul addressed one of his letters (see Introduction to the Letter to the Philippians).
- 16:14 A worshiper of God: a “God-fearer.” See note on Acts 8:26–40.
- 16:16 With an oracular spirit: literally, “with a Python spirit.” The Python was the serpent or dragon that guarded the Delphic oracle. It later came to designate a “spirit that pronounced oracles” and also a ventriloquist who, it was thought, had such a spirit in the belly.
- 16:20 Magistrates: in Greek, stratēgoi, the popular designation of the duoviri, the highest officials of the Roman colony of Philippi.
- 16:35 The lictors: the equivalent of police officers, among whose duties were the apprehension and punishment of criminals.
- 16:37 Paul’s Roman citizenship granted him special privileges in regard to criminal process. Roman law forbade under severe penalty the beating of Roman citizens (see also Acts 22:25).
Scripture texts, prefaces, introductions, footnotes and cross references used in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC All Rights Reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.