And the serjeants told these words unto the magistrates: and they feared, when they heard that they were Romans.
The magistrates' early order to release them shows God at work: either the earthquake convinced them it was His hand, or their own consciences gave them no rest. While Paul and Silas sang in stocks, these men tossed sleepless, lashed by guilt far worse than any rod. God made the persecutors pity their prisoners.
AI summary
Commenting on Acts 16:35-40
The magistrates feared not for the wrong they had done, nor for God's judgment to come, but only because these men were Romans; they dreaded being called before the Senate, losing their posts, and facing punishment themselves.
AI summary
To imprison a Roman citizen unjustly was an affront to the majesty of Rome itself, and the law punished it severely, even with death and confiscation of property. The magistrates knew exactly what they had risked.
AI summary