Acts 16:16 (YLT)

Passage

And it came to pass in our going on to prayer, a certain maid, having a spirit of Python, did meet us, who brought much employment to her masters by soothsaying,

Nearby Context

Acts 16:14 and a certain woman, by name Lydia, a seller of purple, of the city of Thyatira, worshipping God, was hearing, whose heart the Lord did open to attend to the things spoken by Paul;

Acts 16:15 and when she was baptized, and her household, she did call upon us, saying, `If ye have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, having entered into my house, remain;' and she constrained us.

Acts 16:16 And it came to pass in our going on to prayer, a certain maid, having a spirit of Python, did meet us, who brought much employment to her masters by soothsaying,

Acts 16:17 she having followed Paul and us, was crying, saying, `These men are servants of the Most High God, who declare to us a way of salvation;'

Acts 16:18 and this she was doing for many days, but Paul having been grieved, and having turned, said to the spirit, `I command thee, in the name of Jesus Christ, to come forth from her;' and it came forth the same hour.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "Spirit", "came", "pass", "going", "prayer", "certain", "maid", and "having". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "Spirit" and "came", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 15's "and when she was baptized and her..." into verse 17's "she having followed Paul and us was...", so "Spirit" and "came" 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 "Spirit" and "came" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.