Acts
King James Version (KJV)
Acts 16:16
“And it came to pass, as we went to prayer, a certain damsel possessed with a spirit of divination met us, which brought her masters much gain by soothsaying:”
King James Version (KJV)
Acts 16:16 Context
13And on the sabbath we went out of the city by a river side, where prayer was wont to be made; and we sat down, and spake unto the women which resorted thither. 14And a certain woman named Lydia, a seller of purple, of the city of Thyatira, which worshipped God, heard us: whose heart the Lord opened, that she attended unto the things which were spoken of Paul. 15And when she was baptized, and her household, she besought us, saying, If ye have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come into my house, and abide there. And she constrained us. 16And it came to pass, as we went to prayer, a certain damsel possessed with a spirit of divination met us, which brought her masters much gain by soothsaying: 17The same followed Paul and us, and cried, saying, These men are the servants of the most high God, which shew unto us the way of salvation. 18And this did she many days. But Paul, being grieved, turned and said to the spirit, I command thee in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her. And he came out the same hour. 19And when her masters saw that the hope of their gains was gone, they caught Paul and Silas, and drew them into the marketplace unto the rulers,
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Other Translations
¶ And it came to passe, as we went to prayer, a certaine Damosell possessed with a spirit of diuination, met vs: which brought her masters much gaine by soothsaying.
- King James Version (1611) - View 1611 Bible Scan
It happened that as we were going to the place of prayer, a slave-girl having a spirit of divination met us, who was bringing her masters much profit by fortune-telling.
- New American Standard Version (1995)
And it came to pass, as we were going to the place of prayer, that a certain maid having a spirit of divination met us, who brought her masters much gain by soothsaying.
- American Standard Version (1901)
And when we were going to the place of prayer, we came across a girl with a spirit which gave knowledge of the future, whose masters made great profit from her power.
- Basic English Bible
And it came to pass as we were going to prayer that a certain female slave, having a spirit of Python, met us, who brought much profit to her masters by prophesying.
- Darby Bible
And it came to pass as we went to prayer, a certain damsel possessed with a spirit of divination, met us, who brought her masters much gain by sooth-saying:
- Webster's Bible
One day, as we were on our way to the place of prayer, a slave girl met us who claimed to be inspired and was accustomed to bring her owners large profits by telling fortunes.
- Weymouth Bible
It happened, as we were going to prayer, that a certain girl having a spirit of divination met us, who brought her masters much gain by fortune telling.
- World English Bible
And sche constreynede vs. And it was don, whanne we yeden to preier, that a damysel that hadde a spirit of diuynacioun, mette vs, which yaf greet wynnyng to her lordis in dyuynynge.
- Wycliffe Bible
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,
- Youngs Literal Bible
- King James Version (1611) - View 1611 Bible Scan
It happened that as we were going to the place of prayer, a slave-girl having a spirit of divination met us, who was bringing her masters much profit by fortune-telling.
- New American Standard Version (1995)
And it came to pass, as we were going to the place of prayer, that a certain maid having a spirit of divination met us, who brought her masters much gain by soothsaying.
- American Standard Version (1901)
And when we were going to the place of prayer, we came across a girl with a spirit which gave knowledge of the future, whose masters made great profit from her power.
- Basic English Bible
And it came to pass as we were going to prayer that a certain female slave, having a spirit of Python, met us, who brought much profit to her masters by prophesying.
- Darby Bible
And it came to pass as we went to prayer, a certain damsel possessed with a spirit of divination, met us, who brought her masters much gain by sooth-saying:
- Webster's Bible
One day, as we were on our way to the place of prayer, a slave girl met us who claimed to be inspired and was accustomed to bring her owners large profits by telling fortunes.
- Weymouth Bible
It happened, as we were going to prayer, that a certain girl having a spirit of divination met us, who brought her masters much gain by fortune telling.
- World English Bible
And sche constreynede vs. And it was don, whanne we yeden to preier, that a damysel that hadde a spirit of diuynacioun, mette vs, which yaf greet wynnyng to her lordis in dyuynynge.
- Wycliffe Bible
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,
- Youngs Literal Bible
Bible commentary
People's Bible Notes for Acts 16:16
Ac 16:16 As we went to prayer. To the place of prayer. A certain damsel possessed with a spirit of divination. Literally, "The spirit of a Pythoness". This meant, among the Greeks, a prophetic spirit, Pythias being one of the names of Apollo, the god of prophecy. The account shows (1) that the damsel was "possessed", (2) that her strange power gave her value in that it was superhuman, (3) that she was a slave, owned by several masters, and brought them "much gain by soothsaying". Luke does not say that she foretold the future, but the people thought she did. She was a demoniac. See PNT "Mt 8:29".