In brief
The slave girl of Philippi is a young slave whose name Luke does not give. She has a spirit of divination, literally a spirit of Python, and earns her masters a great deal of money by fortune telling. For many days she follows Paul and his companions, crying out that they are servants of the Most High God. Paul commands the spirit to come out of her in the name of Jesus Christ, and it comes out at that very hour. Her deliverance leads to the imprisonment of Paul and Silas.
What does the name The Slave Girl of Philippi mean?
Luke does not give her name. He describes her as “a certain girl having a spirit of divination” (Acts 16:16). In Greek the phrase is a spirit of Python, the serpent of Greek mythology associated with the oracle at Delphi.
The story of The Slave Girl of Philippi
An exploited slave
Acts 16:16At Philippi, as Paul and his companions are going to prayer, a girl meets them. She has a spirit of divination and brings her masters much gain by fortune telling. Her gift is not freedom: she is under the grip of a spirit and in the service of other men’s profit.
Crying out for many days
Acts 16:17-18The girl follows Paul and his companions, crying out, “These men are servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to us a way of salvation!” Her words seem true, but they come from a spirit of divination. She keeps this up for many days.
Set free in Jesus’s name
Acts 16:18Paul, greatly annoyed, turns and says to the spirit, “I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her!” The spirit comes out that very hour. The deliverance comes not from a magic formula or from Paul’s strength, but from the authority of the name of Jesus Christ.
The masters’ anger
Acts 16:19-24Her masters see the hope of their gain gone. They seize Paul and Silas, drag them before the rulers, and accuse them of agitating the city. The crowd rises up; the magistrates have the two men beaten with rods and thrown into prison. The girl’s freedom has a price for the messengers.
A city touched by the gospel
Acts 16:25-34In prison, Paul and Silas pray and sing. An earthquake opens the doors, and the jailer believes in God with his whole household. Thus the girl’s deliverance opens the way to another conversion at Philippi. Luke does not say what became of the girl afterward.
Test your knowledge
What The Slave Girl of Philippi teaches us
- The name of Jesus Christ has authority over evil spirits and truly sets people free.
- A true word from the mouth of a deceiving spirit is not a testimony to seek out.
- God sees the worth of an exploited person where others see only profit.
- Serving others’ freedom can cost dearly, but God uses even hardship for his work.
Key verses
Paul does not address the girl but the spirit, and he acts in the name of Jesus Christ. The deliverance is immediate and complete.
The masters do not rejoice at the girl’s liberation. They see only their lost gain, a sign that the gospel disturbs established interests.
Jesus promises real freedom to those the Son sets free. The deliverance of the slave girl of Philippi illustrates this freedom that only the Son can give.
Sermons about The Slave Girl of Philippi
Frequently asked questions
Why did Paul drive out the spirit if the girl spoke the truth?
Her words were accurate, but they came from a spirit of divination. After many days, Paul, greatly annoyed, commands the spirit to come out in the name of Jesus Christ (Acts 16:18). The gospel does not need the testimony of an evil spirit, and the girl needed to be set free.
What does “spirit of Python” mean?
In Greek mythology, Python is the serpent tied to the oracle at Delphi. The expression referred to a spirit of divination. Luke uses it to say that the girl told fortunes under the influence of a spirit, which Paul then drives out in the name of Jesus Christ.
Where is the slave girl’s story found in the Bible?
Her story is in Acts 16:16-24, during Paul’s stay at Philippi, in Macedonia. It falls between the conversion of Lydia and that of the jailer, two other accounts in the same chapter.