Acts 28:16
And when we came to Rome, the centurion delivered the prisoners to the captain of the guard: but Paul was suffered to dwell by himself with a soldier that kept him. And when we came to Rome, the centurion delivered the prisoners to the captain of the guard: but Paul was suffered to dwell by himself with a soldier that kept him.
Paul arrived in Rome as a prisoner on a visit long expected by the Christians in Italy ever since they had received his epistle to the Romans, and though they had not thought to see him come in chains, his sufferings only endeared him to them the more. News of his approach reached Rome from Puteoli, a hundred and forty miles away in constant communication with the metropolis, and some of the Roman Christians started out to meet and welcome him before he reached the city.
On arrival the centurion, Julius, delivered the prisoners to the captain of the emperor's guard. Paul was not put in prison with the other prisoners but was allowed to live by himself in a rented or hired house under the watch of a soldier assigned to guard him. He remained a prisoner chained to his guard, a condition that Julius could not change and from which he could not be released.
This favorable treatment was granted because the authorities regarded him favorably, through the favorable report of Julius and the letter of Festus. The justice and integrity of the captain of the imperial guard gave Paul comparative freedom to receive visitors and continue working for the cause of Christ and the advancement of the gospel. But before the two years ended a cruel and tyrannical official replaced him, leaving Paul unable to expect favor.
The Roman imprisonment beginning with this verse ended with Paul's release, after which he soon left Rome, escaping the later persecution and using his remaining freedom to work among the churches. Paul under guard in Rome, with his chains and impending death as a criminal under Nero, stands as an example of faith holding firm against worldly power.