Acts 16:20

And when they had brought them unto the magistrates, they said, These men, being Jews, do exceedingly trouble our city, and set forth customs which it is not lawful for us to receive, or to observe, being Romans.

This action was founded on racial hatred, supported by falsehood, aggravated by physical violence on the part of the accusers. The words "rulers" in Acts 16:19 and "magistrates" in Acts 16:20 refer to the same officials, the marketplace corresponding to the forum in Rome. There were two of these magistrates (duumvirs) corresponding to the consuls at Rome. Such officials often "received the courtesy title of `praetors,' which is the title Luke used here."[13]

These men, being Jews ... This was the principal basis of the attack on Paul and Silas, Luke and Timothy apparently being allowed to pass unmolested, because being Greeks (Timothy was half Greek), they would not have had the typical Jewish appearance of Paul and Silas. There was nothing honest or forthright about this brutal movement against Paul and Silas, being simply an exercise in spite, brought on by the spoilation of their evil use of the demon-possessed girl. There was no formal trial of any kind and no opportunity for the accused to defend themselves; it was a case of "mob justice" in which the population willingly participated. The magistrates were shamefully delinquent in their duty in the scene which emerges here.