Paragraph 16:19–24
16:19a–b
their hope of making money was gone: The owners’ hope was gone because the spirit told the girl what to say, but Paul had forced the spirit away. For the Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as was gone, Luke purposely used the same verb (“went out”) here as in 16:18d. This helps to connect the two events. If possible, use the same verb here as in 16:18d. For example:
their hope of making money had left
To make the connection more clear, it is possible to add the word “similarly.” For example:
their hope of making money ⌊similarly⌋ had left
However many languages will not be able to use the same verb here. For example:
they could no longer hope to get money ⌊from her⌋ ⌊ability to predict⌋
-or-
⌊similarly⌋ they could no longer hope to get money
16:19c–d
dragged them: The word dragged refers figuratively to the owners forcing Paul and Silas to go to the marketplace. They may have grabbed them by the arm or their clothes and pulled them there. In some languages a literal translation would wrongly indicate actually dragging them. If that is true in your language, translate the correct meaning. For example:
forced/pulled them
before the authorities: This phrase in Greek is literally “before the authorities.” The owners brought Paul and Silas to the authorities so that they could charge them with breaking the law. For example:
to the authorities (Good News Translation)
authorities: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as authorities refers generally to leaders. For example:
rulers (Revised Standard Version)
marketplace: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as marketplace was a public area where people gathered for many activities. This included buying and selling. The Roman authorities were normally there during the day. Other ways to translate this word are:
public square (Good News Translation)
-or-
public meeting place
-or-
village center
-or-
town square
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