And when it was day, the magistrates sent the officers, saying, "Let those men go." So the keeper of the prison reported these words to Paul, saying, "The magistrates have sent to let you go. Now therefore depart, and go in peace.". Acts 16:35-36

Why did the magistrates want to release Paul and Silas? The text does not say. It may have been that their consciences troubled them for overreacting about these men who really hadn’t done anything wrong. And great was their overreaction: they had the men beaten! And for what? By this we are reminded of the weakness of human government. Have we not been living with severe government reaction to the COVID virus for over a year and a half?

When consciences are stirred, we can thank the Holy Spirit, whether it be for His stirring of the consciences of government officials or of our own consciences. May we respond better to the conviction we receive from the Spirit than the magistrates did. They wanted to send the men on their way, brushing the whole affair under the rug as though these innocent men had not been beaten unjustly. Let us, when convicted by the Holy Spirit, confess our sin and seek to make matters right. Pretending sin never happened is not the same as confessing, repenting and seeking to make things right with any we may have sinned against.

I freely admit that the text does not tell us why the magistrates sought to release Paul and Silas. But the lessons to be learned are valid even if we do not know their reasons.