They feared when they heard ... - They were apprehensive of punishment for having imprisoned them in violation of the laws of the empire. To punish unjustly a Roman citizen was deemed an offence to the majesty of the Roman people, and was severely punished by the laws. Dionysius Hal. (Ant. Rom., ii.) says, “The punishment appointed for those who abrogated or transgressed the Valerian law was death, and the confiscation of his property.” The emperor Claudius deprived the inhabitants of Rhodes of freedom for having crucified some Roman citizens (Dio Cass., lib. 60). See Kuinoel and Grotius.
Related Commentaries of Acts 16:38
Acts 16:38
38 And the serjeants told these words unto the magistrates: and they feared, when they heard that they were Romans.