23 When Paul and Silas had been severely beaten, the authorities threw them into prison and ordered the jailer to secure them with great care. 24 When he received these instructions, he threw them into the innermost cell and secured their feet in stocks.
25 Around midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them.
Reflection
I’m a sucker for prison movies or shows about prison. Apparently, I’m not alone when you realize there are so many shows about prison. So, get set for some devotionals about prisons and jails this week.
The Apostles kept finding themselves in jail. Today’s devotional tells you how to act when you are incarcerated.
Paul was familiar with the inside of a prison. This time he’s with Silas. While I used Acts 14:23-25 you should read verses 16-34. Paul was causing a ruckus, and the crowd attacked him and Silas. When the city officials got involved, it got even worse for them. They stripped them of their clothes and beat them with a rod, a very harsh punishment.
“They were severely beaten and were thrown in jail,” we’re told by Luke, the writer of Acts and Luke. The jailer was told to “secure them with great care.” But that didn’t mean making them comfortable. He placed them in the “innermost cell and secured their feet in stocks.”
So, what’s a person to do? If it was me, and I know this to be true cause I once spent a night in prison, I would have been very upset and blamed others for my predicament.
Not Paul and Silas. They leaned upon Jesus and had a prayer meeting. “Around midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them.
“All at once there was such a violent earthquake that it shook the prison’s foundations. The doors flew open, and everyone’s chains came loose. When the jailer awoke and saw the open doors of the prison, he thought the prisoners had escaped, so he drew his sword and was about to kill himself.”
But it went from being a prayer and praise meeting to being mass baptisms.
Paul told the jailer not to harm himself because everyone was present and accounted for. I like the NIV translation starting in verse 29 to 30, because it uses “saved” instead of rescued. I think it’s a more accurate translation. Anyway, they replied, “to believe in the Lord Jesus,” and the jailer and his entire household believed. After that he invited Paul and Silas into his home, he washed their wounds, and everyone was baptized.
What a night. Paul and Silas kept their heads, maybe literally, because they knew God kept their souls.
Best prison story ever.
by Rick Reed
For Pondering and Prayer
Good things happen when we stay connected to God. Others come to know God too. It really doesn’t get any better than that.
Prayer: My Savior, as always, please help me to keep my head when things are troubling my heart. And help me to know you are always listening. Amen.