Bible Strands
Acts 16:6
After the Holy Spirit had prevented them from speaking the word in the province of Asia, they traveled through the region of Phrygia and Galatia.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The narrative reports Paul and his companions redirecting their travel after the Holy Spirit blocked their initial mission in Asia. This occurs immediately following the strengthening and daily numerical growth of the early churches.
The words — The Greek verb διῆλθον (diēlthon) literally means "they passed through," describing their physical movement into Phrygia and Galatia. The conjunction δὲ (de) syntactically links this movement to the preceding divine restriction.
The thread — The text records the same regional itinerary in Acts 18:23 when Paul revisits Phrygia and Galatia later in his ministry. The identical pattern of Spirit-enforced boundary-setting appears in Acts 16:7 when the group attempts to enter Bithynia.
Why it lands — The text explicitly states that the Spirit prevented a specific action, requiring the reader to recognize blocked paths as active divine redirection. It asks the reader to track subsequent movements without assuming the interrupted plan was the intended destination.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Greek words
King James Version
Now when they had gone throughout Phrygia and the region of Galatia, and were forbidden of the Holy Ghost to preach the word in Asia,
Cross-references
- Acts 18:23 After Paul had spent some time in Antioch, he traveled from place to place throughout the region of Galatia and Phrygia, strengthening all the disciples.
- Acts 16:7 And when they came to the border of Mysia, they tried to enter Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus would not permit them.
- Acts 11:12 The Spirit told me to accompany them without hesitation. These six brothers also went with me, and we entered the man’s home.
- Acts 13:2 While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.”
- Galatians 1:2 and all the brothers with me, To the churches of Galatia:
- Acts 19:10 This continued for two years, so that everyone who lived in the province of Asia, Jews and Greeks alike, heard the word of the Lord.
- Galatians 3:1 O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? Before your very eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed as crucified.
- 2 Timothy 4:10 because Demas, in his love of this world, has deserted me and gone to Thessalonica. Crescens has gone to Galatia, and Titus to Dalmatia.
- 1 Peter 1:1 Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To the elect who are exiles of the Dispersion throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, chosen
- 2 Chronicles 6:7 Now it was in the heart of my father David to build a house for the Name of the LORD, the God of Israel.