In this passage, Paul and Silas are arrested and help bring about the conversion of their jailer. Paul and his crew, including Silas and probably Luke himself (notice the “we” in verse 16), were staying in Philippi after helping set-up a church in the home of Lydia. Lydia was the focus of last week’s reading, but this reading features a different woman, a slave possessed by an unclean spirit. This spirit correctly identifies (multiple times, apparently) that Paul and company are “servants of the Most High God”. Humorously, Paul exorcises this spirit from the girl from what appears to be more annoyance rather than anything else. But this exorcism puts Paul and company at odds with the girl’s owners and eventually the authorities. Paul and Silas end up beaten and imprisoned.

It should be noted that Paul and Silas could have avoided this fate. After our passage, Paul reveals that he and Silas are Roman citizens and therefore should have been afforded safety from the harshness of their punishment. Instead, Paul and Silas end up in prison singing songs to God. They also take this opportunity to talk to their fellow prisoners about God, but this is interrupted when an earthquake strikes. The fact that this quake perfectly unshackles Paul and Silas shows us that Luke feels that it was a miraculous event. 

When their jailor awakens, he is shamed by the fact that his charges might have escaped, and he moves to kill himself to preserve his family’s honor. This might seem drastic, but dishonor was a serious concern to the Romans. It could spread like a disease unless quickly dealt with. To save his family from this dishonor, he was prepared to kill himself. Fortunately, he is stopped by Paul, and the grateful jailor takes Paul and Silas to his home and cares for them. He inquires about salvation and is baptized, “he and his entire family”. And so, our passage ends with celebration. 

Paul and Silas show us that chances for evangelism can arrive in unexpected places. Even before the jailor, they were spreading the Good News among their fellow prisoners. Hopefully most of us don’t find ourselves in as dire a situation as Paul and Silas most of the time, but we too can probably find situations to witness to the gospel, by listening to people who are hurting, helping out people in need, and by telling what God has done in our lives. And we can do this, like Paul and Silas, even if things aren’t going perfectly in our own lives. You never know when an opportunity to share about Jesus might present itself!