100 Reasons to Believe New Testament History
88. The Philippian Marketplace
In Acts 16:16-19 we read of Paul’s visit to Philippi, and how Paul exorcised a demon-possessed slave woman, much to the chagrin of her owners, who profited much by her fortune telling. They promptly seized Paul and Silas, and dragged them to the magistrates in the Philippian market place. Archaeological work has exposed located this marketplace, as J.A. Thompson notes,
“This site has been exposed by the excavations. It followed the usual pattern of a Roman forum with a platform to the north, where cases were heard, and a large open square surrounded by important buildings.” A. J.A. Thompson, “The Bible and Archaeology”, Eerdmans Publishing, 1962, p.386
88. The Philippian Marketplace - Notes and References
“French archaeologists on the strength of the concrete evidence in the Book of Acts excavated the Roman colony. They found the old forum, the temples and public buildings, the pillared arcades, the paved streets and squares with their rain gutters still intact.” Werner Keller, “The Bible as History”, New Revised English Translation, Hodder and Stoughton, 1980,.p. 360