Acts 16:27 (DBY)

Passage

And the jailor being awakened out of his sleep, and seeing the doors of the prison opened, having drawn a sword was going to kill himself, thinking the prisoners had fled.

Nearby Context

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

Acts 16:26 And suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison shook, and all the doors were immediately opened, and the bonds of all loosed.

Acts 16:27 And the jailor being awakened out of his sleep, and seeing the doors of the prison opened, having drawn a sword was going to kill himself, thinking the prisoners had fled.

Acts 16:28 But Paul called out with a loud voice, saying, Do thyself no harm, for we are all here.

Acts 16:29 And having asked for lights, he rushed in, and, trembling, fell down before Paul and Silas.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "jailor", "awakened", "sleep", "seeing", "doors", "prison", "opened", and "having". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "jailor" and "awakened", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 26's "And suddenly there was a great earthquake..." into verse 28's "But Paul called out with a loud...", so "jailor" and "awakened" 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 "jailor" and "awakened" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.