And on the Sabbath day we went outside the gate to the riverside, where we supposed there was a place of prayer, and we sat down and spoke to the women who had come together.
The Jews withdrew to this secret place because their religion was odious everywhere, and it was unlawful for them to assemble publicly at Philippi, a Roman colony. Yet they preferred the worship of God before their own quiet and safety, gathering by the river to exhort one another and preserve the faith received from their fathers.
AI summary
The Spirit forbade preaching in Asia for good reason: other hands were at work there, the people were not yet prepared, or Christ had other work for Paul, preaching the gospel to Romans, whom the Jews hated most. This westward turn of the light shows where the gospel would flow in ages to come.
AI summary
Commenting on Acts 16:6-15
No synagogue existed at Philippi, likely because it was a Roman colony that forbade Jewish assemblies, so Paul sought out this prayer-place by the river. That they found women there suggests this proseucha was a known gathering where believers met to worship when no formal synagogue stood.
AI summary