Acts 16:23 (DBY)

Passage

And having laid many stripes upon them they cast [them] into prison, charging the jailor to keep them safely;

Nearby Context

Acts 16:21 and announce customs which it is not lawful for us to receive nor practise, being Romans.

Acts 16:22 And the crowd rose up too against them; and the praetors, having torn off their clothes, commanded to scourge [them].

Acts 16:23 And having laid many stripes upon them they cast [them] into prison, charging the jailor to keep them safely;

Acts 16:24 who, having received such a charge, cast them into the inner prison, and secured their feet to the stocks.

Acts 16:25 And at midnight Paul and Silas, in praying, were praising God with singing, and the prisoners listened to them.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "stripes", "having", "laid", "upon", "cast", "prison", "charging", and "jailor". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "stripes" and "having", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 22's "And the crowd rose up too against..." into verse 24's "who having received such a charge cast...", so "stripes" and "having" belong inside that flow. In Acts context, the local focus is Christ, faith, and discipleship.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "stripes" and "having" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.