Acts 16:19

And when her masters saw that the hope of their gain was gone, they laid hold on Paul and Silas, and dragged them into the marketplace before the rulers.

McGarvey, and others, have pointed out a somewhat humorous pun in Luke's Greek at this place. He said, "That when the evil spirit WENT OUT, the masters saw that the hope of their gain WENT OUT."[12]

The retaliation Paul had evidently feared took place at once.