(SEE 16:24)

Elisha left Jericho to go to Bethel, and on the way some boys came out of a town and made fun of him. "Get out of here, baldy!" they shouted.

The messengers went to every city in the territory of the tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh, and as far north as the tribe of Zebulun, but people laughed at them and made fun of them.

But they made fun of God's messengers, ignoring his words and laughing at his prophets, until at last the LORD's anger against his people was so great that there was no escape.

LORD, you have deceived me, and I was deceived. You are stronger than I am, and you have overpowered me. Everyone makes fun of me; they laugh at me all day long.

and then hand him over to the Gentiles, who will make fun of him, whip him, and crucify him; but three days later he will be raised to life."

who will make fun of him, spit on him, whip him, and kill him; but three days later he will rise to life."

He will be handed over to the Gentiles, who will make fun of him, insult him, and spit on him.

Herod and his soldiers made fun of Jesus and treated him with contempt; then they put a fine robe on him and sent him back to Pilate.

The soldiers also made fun of him: they came up to him and offered him cheap wine,

Then the prophet Zedekiah went up to Micaiah, slapped his face, and asked, "Since when did the LORD's spirit leave me and speak to you?"

he had me beaten and placed in chains near the upper Benjamin Gate in the Temple.

They were furious with me and had me beaten and locked up in the house of Jonathan, the court secretary, whose house had been made into a prison.

The tenants grabbed his slaves, beat one, killed another, and stoned another.

And so I tell you that I will send you prophets and wise men and teachers; you will kill some of them, crucify others, and whip others in the synagogues and chase them from town to town.

Then Pilate set Barabbas free for them; and after he had Jesus whipped, he handed him over to be crucified.

They called the apostles in, had them whipped, and ordered them never again to speak in the name of Jesus; and then they set them free.

And the crowd joined in the attack against Paul and Silas. Then the officials tore the clothes off Paul and Silas and ordered them to be whipped.

After a severe beating, they were thrown into jail, and the jailer was ordered to lock them up tight.

Five times I was given the thirty-nine lashes by the Jews;

three times I was whipped by the Romans; and once I was stoned. I have been in three shipwrecks, and once I spent twenty-four hours in the water.

You shared the sufferings of prisoners, and when all your belongings were seized, you endured your loss gladly, because you knew that you still possessed something much better, which would last forever.

and had Joseph arrested and put in the prison where the king's prisoners were kept, and there he stayed.

Tell them to throw him in prison and to put him on bread and water until I return safely."

This made Asa so angry with the prophet that he had him put in chains. It was at this same time that Asa began treating some of the people cruelly.

But he sent a man ahead of them, Joseph, who had been sold as a slave.

His feet were kept in chains, and an iron collar was around his neck,

he had me beaten and placed in chains near the upper Benjamin Gate in the Temple.

"The LORD made you a priest in place of Jehoiada, and you are now the chief officer in the Temple. It is your duty to see that every crazy person who pretends to be a prophet is placed in chains with an iron collar around the neck.

At that time the army of the king of Babylonia was attacking Jerusalem, and I was locked up in the courtyard of the royal palace.

King Zedekiah had imprisoned me there and had accused me of announcing that the LORD had said, "I am going to let the king of Babylonia capture this city,

Then, just as the LORD had said, Hanamel came to me there in the courtyard and asked me to buy the field. So I knew that the LORD had really spoken to me.

But I want you to go there the next time the people are fasting. You are to read the scroll aloud, so that they will hear everything that the LORD has said to me and that I have dictated to you. Do this where everyone can hear you, including the people of Judah who have come in from their towns.

They were furious with me and had me beaten and locked up in the house of Jonathan, the court secretary, whose house had been made into a prison.

Later on King Zedekiah sent for me, and there in the palace he asked me privately, "Is there any message from the LORD?" "There is," I answered, and added, "You will be handed over to the king of Babylonia."

What happened to your prophets who told you that the king of Babylonia would not attack you or the country?

So King Zedekiah ordered me to be locked up in the palace courtyard. I stayed there, and each day I was given a loaf of bread from the bakeries until all the bread in the city was gone.

So they took me and let me down by ropes into Prince Malchiah's well, which was in the palace courtyard. There was no water in the well, only mud, and I sank down in it.

So Ebedmelech went there and said to the king,

Then the king ordered Ebedmelech to take with him three men and to pull me out of the well before I died.

He told me to put the rags under my arms, so that the ropes wouldn't hurt me. I did this,

While I was still imprisoned in the palace courtyard, the LORD told me

"I was trapped like a bird by enemies who had no cause to hate me.

Water began to close over me, and I thought death was near.

So they arrested them and put them in jail until the next day, since it was already late.

They arrested the apostles and put them in the public jail.

But Saul tried to destroy the church; going from house to house, he dragged out the believers, both men and women, and threw them into jail.

After his arrest Peter was put in jail, where he was handed over to be guarded by four groups of four soldiers each. Herod planned to put him on trial in public after Passover.

The night before Herod was going to bring him out to the people, Peter was sleeping between two guards. He was tied with two chains, and there were guards on duty at the prison gate.

Then the angel said, "Tighten your belt and put on your sandals." Peter did so, and the angel said, "Put your cloak around you and come with me."

They passed by the first guard station and then the second, and came at last to the iron gate that opens into the city. The gate opened for them by itself, and they went out. They walked down a street, and suddenly the angel left Peter.

Aware of his situation, he went to the home of Mary, the mother of John Mark, where many people had gathered and were praying.

She recognized Peter's voice and was so happy that she ran back in without opening the door, and announced that Peter was standing outside.

Meanwhile Peter kept on knocking. At last they opened the door, and when they saw him, they were amazed.

When morning came, there was a tremendous confusion among the guards---what had happened to Peter?

Upon receiving this order, the jailer threw them into the inner cell and fastened their feet between heavy blocks of wood.

Suddenly there was a violent earthquake, which shook the prison to its foundations. At once all the doors opened, and the chains fell off all the prisoners.

But Paul shouted at the top of his voice, "Don't harm yourself ! We are all here!"

Then he led them out and asked, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?"

Then they preached the word of the Lord to him and to all the others in the house.

Then he took Paul and Silas up into his house and gave them some food to eat. He and his family were filled with joy, because they now believed in God.

So the jailer told Paul, "The officials have sent an order for you and Silas to be released. You may leave, then, and go in peace."

The police officers reported these words to the Roman officials; and when they heard that Paul and Silas were Roman citizens, they were afraid.

Paul and Silas left the prison and went to Lydia's house. There they met the believers, spoke words of encouragement to them, and left.

The commander went over to Paul, arrested him, and ordered him to be bound with two chains. Then he asked, "Who is this man, and what has he done?"

After two years had passed, Porcius Festus succeeded Felix as governor. Felix wanted to gain favor with the Jews so he left Paul in prison.

Are they Christ's servants? I sound like a madman---but I am a better servant than they are! I have worked much harder, I have been in prison more times, I have been whipped much more, and I have been near death more often.

For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles, pray to God.

I urge you, then---I who am a prisoner because I serve the Lord: live a life that measures up to the standard God set when he called you.

May the Lord show mercy to the family of Onesiphorus, because he cheered me up many times. He was not ashamed that I am in prison,

Because I preach the Good News, I suffer and I am even chained like a criminal. But the word of God is not in chains,

Don't be afraid of anything you are about to suffer. Listen! The Devil will put you to the test by having some of you thrown into prison, and your troubles will last ten days. Be faithful to me, even if it means death, and I will give you life as your prize of victory.