Paul’s Imprisonment at Philippi JSS3 Christian Religious Studies (CRS) Lesson Note

Paul and Silas were missionaries who traveled to many places to tell people about Jesus. Their journey brought them to a city called Philippi. Philippi was an important Roman colony in Macedonia (which is in modern-day Greece). While they were in this city, they faced many challenges, but God used these difficulties to bring more people to believe in Jesus.

The Arrival at Philippi

Before we talk about the imprisonment, let’s understand how Paul and Silas came to Philippi:

• Paul had a vision of a man from Macedonia asking for help
• Paul believed this was God’s way of telling him to preach in Macedonia
• Paul, Silas, and their companions traveled to Philippi, which was a major city in Macedonia
• They stayed in Philippi for several days
• On the Sabbath day, they went outside the city gate to the river where they expected to find a place of prayer
• There they met a woman named Lydia, a seller of purple cloth
• Lydia believed in their message about Jesus and was baptized along with her household
• She invited the missionaries to stay at her house

The Slave Girl with a Spirit

In Philippi, a slave girl is being used by her owners as a seer or fortune teller. The young woman is possessed by a demon who quite accurately identifies Paul and Silas as “slaves of the Most High God” who have come to reveal “a way of salvation.”

This situation created problems for several reasons:

• The girl was being used by her owners to make money through fortune-telling
• She was possessed by an evil spirit that controlled her
• The spirit knew who Paul and Silas were and what they were doing
• Her constant following and shouting was disrupting their work

For many days, this slave girl followed Paul and Silas around the city. She kept shouting, “These men are servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to you the way of salvation.” After a few days of this, Paul became very annoyed with this situation.

Paul Casts Out the Spirit

After a few days of this, Paul is fed up, rebukes the spirit, and casts it out of her in the name of Jesus. Paul turned to the girl and said to the spirit, “In the name of Jesus Christ I command you to come out of her!” The spirit left the girl immediately.

This created several important results:

• The girl was freed from the evil spirit that controlled her
• She could no longer tell fortunes or predict the future
• Her owners lost their source of income
• The owners became very angry with Paul and Silas

As a result, she also lost the ability to foretell the future which created no little anger on the part of her owners. The owners saw that their hope of making money was gone.

The Arrest and Imprisonment

The owners of the slave girl were furious because they had lost their way of making money. So they took Paul and Silas and brought them before the magistrates (Philippi was like a “little” Rome), charging that the missionaries were forcing them, as Roman citizens, to follow unlawful customs.

They made several accusations against Paul and Silas:

• They claimed Paul and Silas were disturbing the city
• They said the missionaries were teaching customs that Romans should not accept or practice
• They stirred up the crowd against Paul and Silas

The magistrates took these accusations seriously. The result was that Paul and Silas were thrown into prison after being stripped, beaten, and severely flogged (Acts 16:20-24). The jailer was commanded to guard them carefully, so he put them in the inner cell and fastened their feet in stocks, which was very painful.

The Midnight Earthquake

Despite their painful situation, Paul and Silas did not complain or lose hope:

• Around midnight, they were praying and singing hymns to God
• The other prisoners were listening to them
• Suddenly, there was a powerful earthquake
• The foundations of the prison were shaken
• All the prison doors flew open
• Everyone’s chains came loose

Around midnight there was an earthquake and all the prison doors flew open. This was clearly a miracle from God. The earthquake was strong enough to open doors and break chains, but not strong enough to harm anyone.

The Jailer’s Conversion

When the jailer woke up and saw the prison doors open, he was terrified. He thought all the prisoners had escaped. According to Roman law, if prisoners escaped, the guard would be punished with the same punishment the prisoners would have received.

The jailer drew his sword and was about to kill himself, but Paul shouted, “Don’t harm yourself! We are all here!”

Paul and Silas did not flee, but instead stayed and shared the gospel with the jailer who subsequently—both he and his entire family—came to the Lord (Acts 16:25-34).

The jailer’s response shows his change of heart:

• He called for lights and rushed in
• He fell trembling before Paul and Silas
• He brought them out and asked, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”
• They replied, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household”
• They spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all the others in his house
• The jailer washed their wounds
• He and all his household were baptized immediately
• He brought Paul and Silas into his house and set a meal before them
• He was filled with joy because he had come to believe in God

The Release from Prison

The next morning, the magistrates sent their officers with orders to release Paul and Silas. After Paul had made a point about his Roman citizenship to the magistrates who were wishing simply to release them, the missionaries went to the home of Lydia (Acts 16:35-40).

When the officers told Paul and Silas they could leave, Paul refused to go quietly. He said, “They beat us publicly without a trial, even though we are Roman citizens, and threw us into prison. And now do they want to send us away secretly? No! Let them come themselves and escort us out.”

This was important because:

• It was illegal to beat Roman citizens without a trial
• Paul wanted to protect the new believers in Philippi
• He wanted to clear their reputation in the city

When the magistrates heard that Paul and Silas were Roman citizens, they were alarmed. They came to the prison, apologized to Paul and Silas, and escorted them from the prison. They requested that Paul and Silas leave the city.

Departure from Philippi

Before leaving the city, Paul and Silas went to Lydia’s house. There they met with the believers, encouraged them, and then departed for Apollonia and Thessalonica (Acts 17:1).

The story of Paul and Silas in Philippi teaches us several important lessons:

• God can use difficult situations to spread the good news about Jesus
• Prayer and praise are powerful even in the worst circumstances
• People can come to believe in Jesus in unexpected ways
• Standing up for what is right is important
• God’s plan cannot be stopped by human opposition

EVALUATION

1. Narrate the story of Paul’s encounter with the slave girl at Philippi.
2. What happened when Paul cast the spirit out of the slave girl?
3. Why were Paul and Silas put in prison?
4. Describe what happened at midnight while Paul and Silas were in prison.
5. How did the jailer and his family respond to Paul’s message?
6. Why did Paul refuse to leave the prison quietly the next day?
7. What lessons can we learn from this story?