Morning Bible Study: Acts 16:16-24

16  Once when we were going to the place of prayer, we were met by a female slave who had a spirit by which she predicted the future. She earned a great deal of money for her owners by fortune-telling. 
17  She followed Paul and the rest of us, shouting, "These men are servants of the Most High God, who are telling you the way to be saved." 
18  She kept this up for many days. Finally Paul became so annoyed that he turned around and said to the spirit, "In the name of Jesus Christ I command you to come out of her!" At that moment the spirit left her. 
19  When her owners realized that their hope of making money was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace to face the authorities. 
20  They brought them before the magistrates and said, "These men are Jews, and are throwing our city into an uproar 
21  by advocating customs unlawful for us Romans to accept or practice." 
22  The crowd joined in the attack against Paul and Silas, and the magistrates ordered them to be stripped and beaten with rods. 
23  After they had been severely flogged, they were thrown into prison, and the jailer was commanded to guard them carefully. 
24  When he received these orders, he put them in the inner cell and fastened their feet in the stocks.

(the following is from Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary -- www.christianity.com)

"Commentary on Acts 16:16-24

Satan, though the father of lies, will declare the most important truths, when he can thereby serve his purposes. But much mischief is done to the real servants of Christ, by unholy and false preachers of the gospel, who are confounded with them by careless observers. Those who do good by drawing men from sin, may expect to be reviled as troublers of the city. While they teach men to fear God, to believe in Christ, to forsake sin, and to live godly lives, they will be accused of teaching bad customs."