Acts 16:14 NIV

The Pulpit Commentary - Acts 16:14

The opened heart. " Whose heart the Lord opened." Describe the joy that St. Paul must have felt in this first sign of the Divine blessing attending his labors in a new sphere. If God was with him, opening the hearts of the people, then his labor could not be in vain. Review the circumstances under which the apostle had been brought to Philippi—the night vision at Macedonia, etc. Explain that Philippi was the first city, regarded geographically, not politically. Show the distinction... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Acts 16:14-40

The day that looked like the day of small things. It may be said, indeed, that "the kingdom came not with observation" into Europe. To the silence, modesty, and unostentatiousness of its first steps, nothing seems wanting. The notoriety came, again, not from the studied purpose of its heralds, who did their bidding in so pacific a manner, but from the vain attempt to crush them. Let us notice in some detail what we know from the present passage of Christianity's very first rooting of... read more

Albert Barnes

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - Acts 16:14

A seller of purple - Purple was a most valuable color, obtained usually from shellfish. It was chiefly worn by princes and by the rich, and the traffic in it might be very profitable. Compare the Isaiah 1:18 note; Luke 16:19 note.The city of Thyatira - This was a city of Lydia, in Asia Minor, now called Akhisar. The art of dyeing was early cultivated in the neighborhood of Thyatira, as we learn from Homer (Iliad, iv. 141), and as is confirmed by inscriptions found in that city - a circumstance... read more

Joseph Benson

Joseph Benson's Commentary of the Old and New Testaments - Acts 16:13-15

Acts 16:13-15. On the sabbath we went out of the city The Jews usually held their religious assemblies (either by choice or constraint) at a distance from the heathen; by a river side The river Strymon, which ran between Philippi and Neapolis; where prayer was wont to be made That is, where the Jews and their proselytes were wont to assemble for prayer. The original expression, which is peculiar and much controverted, ου ενομιζετο προσευχη ειναι , may be rendered, Where a proseucha ... read more

Donald C. Fleming

Bridgeway Bible Commentary - Acts 16:11-40

Philippi - first church in Europe (16:11-40)The missionaries left Troas with another addition to the party, Luke, the author of the book (note the word ‘we’ in verse 11). Luke’s home appears to have been in Philippi, the city to which the group was now heading (11-12). It seems that Philippi had few Jews and no synagogue, but a group of God-fearers met for prayer at the river bank. The missionaries joined with them and made known to them the gospel of Jesus Christ. As a result a cloth merchant... read more

E.W. Bullinger

E.W. Bullinger's Companion Bible Notes - Acts 16:14

seller of purple . Greek. porphuropolis. Only here. The celebrated purple dye was made from the murex, a shell-fish. Referred to by Homer. Thyatira . On the Lycus in Lydia. Inscriptions of the guild of Dyers at Thyatira. which worshipped = one worshipping. Greek. sebomai. App-137 . No doubt a proselyte. God . App-98 . heard = was hearing. opened = opened effectually. Greek. dianoigo. Only here, Acts 17:3 .Mark 7:34 , Mark 7:35 .Luke 2:23 ; Luke 24:31 , Luke 24:32 , Luke 24:45 . read more

James Burton Coffman

Coffman Commentaries on the Bible - Acts 16:14

And a certain woman named Lydia, a seller of purple, of the city of Thyatira, one that worshipped God, heard us: whose heart the Lord opened to give heed unto the things which were spoken by Paul.Lydia, a seller of purple ... An expensive purple dye, made of the murex shell, was one of the most valuable commodities of antiquity; and Lydia's engaging in trade of such a product surely indicates some considerable capital. This was the dye that gave rise to the words "royal purple," suggested by... read more

Thomas Coke

Thomas Coke Commentary on the Holy Bible - Acts 16:14

Acts 16:14. Thyatira,— Was a city bordering both on Asia and Lydia; and this woman seems to have derived her name from the latter on that account. She was a proselyte of the gate; that is, one who worshipped the true God, though she did not conform to the Jewish law in all its rites and ceremonies. She heard St. Paul with serious attention; and, through the goodness and grace of God, her heart was affected, and her mind convincedofthetruth and excellence of the Christian religion, which she... read more

Robert Jamieson; A. R. Fausset; David Brown

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible - Acts 16:14

14, 15. Lydia—a common name among the Greeks and Romans. a seller of purple, of the city of Thyatira—on the confines of Lydia and Phrygia. The Lydians, particularly the inhabitants of Thyatira, were celebrated for their dyeing, in which they inherited the reputation of the Tyrians. Inscriptions to this effect, yet remaining, confirm the accuracy of our historian. This woman appears to have been in good circumstances, having an establishment at Philippi large enough to accommodate the missionary... read more

Thomas Constable

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Acts 16:6-20

C. The extension of the church to the Aegean shores 16:6-19:20The missionary outreach narrated in this section of the book took place in major cities along the Aegean coastline that major Roman roads connected. read more