Acts 27
27
Paul Sails to Italy
1When it was decided that we # 27:1 It is likely that Luke rejoined Paul here and sailed with him to Rome. were to sail for Italy, Festus handed over Paul and a number of other prisoners to the custody of a Roman officer named Julius, a member of the imperial guard. 2We went on board a ship from the port of Adramyttium # 27:2 Adramyttium (modern-day Edrimit, Turkey) was a seaport in the Roman colony of Mysia. Adramyttium means “I will abide in death.” that was planning to stop at various ports along the coast of southwestern Turkey. # 27:2 Or “the coast of the province of Asia” (Minor). We put out to sea and were accompanied by Aristarchus # 27:2 Aristarchus means “the best leader.” from Thessalonica in Macedonia.
3The next day we docked at Sidon, # 27:3 A Phoenician city now in modern-day Lebanon. and Julius, being considerate of Paul, allowed him to disembark and be refreshed by his friends living there. 4From there we put out to sea, but because the winds # 27:4 The Aramaic can be translated “the spirits were against us.” were against us, we sailed under the lee of Cyprus. # 27:4 That is, east and north of the island. 5After sailing across the open sea off Cilicia and Pamphylia, we docked at the port of Myra in Lycia. 6While we were there, the commanding officer found an Egyptian ship from Alexandria that was bound for Italy, and he put us on board.
7We made little headway for several days, and with difficulty we made it to Knidus. # 27:7 Or “Cnidus,” an ancient port city on the Gulf of Gökova on the coast of Turkey. The strong winds kept us from holding our course, so from there we sailed along the lee of Crete, # 27:7 The Aramaic is “we circled Crete.” opposite Cape Salome. 8Hugging the coast, we struggled on to a place called Fair Havens, near the town of Lasea. 9We remained there a long time, until we passed the day of the Jewish fast. # 27:9 This was possibly the Day of Atonement, when every Jew fasts.
Paul advised the frightened sailors that they should not put out to sea in such dangerous weather, # 27:9 As translated from the Aramaic. This was the season the Romans called mare clausum, the closed sea, when the Mediterranean was not navigable. saying, 10“Men, I can see that our voyage would be disastrous for us and bring great loss, not only to our ship and cargo but also to our own lives. We should remain here.” # 27:10 This was clearly prophetic revelation given to the apostle Paul.
11But the officer in charge was persuaded more by the ship’s helmsman and captain # 27:11 Or “ship’s owner.” than he was by Paul. 12So the majority decided to put out to sea, since Fair Haven was an exposed harbor and not suitable to winter in. They had hoped to somehow reach the Cretan port of Phineka, # 27:12 Or “Phoenix.” which was a more suitable port because it was facing south. # 27:12 As translated from the Aramaic. The Greek is “looking toward Lips and Choros.” Lips was the Greek term for the “winds from the southwest,” and Choros the word for “winds from the northwest.”
13When a gentle south breeze began to blow, they assumed they could make it, so they pulled up anchor and sailed close to Crete. 14But it wasn’t long before the weather abruptly worsened and a storm of hurricane force called the Nor’easter # 27:14 The Aramaic is “Euroclydon’s typhoon.” tore across the island and blew us out to sea. 15The sailors weren’t able to turn the ship into the wind, so they gave up and let it be driven by the gale winds. # 27:15 The Aramaic is “we surrendered to its power.”
16As we passed to the lee of a small island called Cauda, # 27:16 Or “Gaudos.” we were barely able to get the ship’s lifeboat under control, 17so the crew hoisted the dinghy aboard. The sailors used ropes and cables to undergird the ship, # 27:17 The Aramaic is “They tied down the lifeboat on the ship, lest it fall into the sea.” fearing they would run aground on the shoals of Syrtis. # 27:17 This was a shallow region full of reefs and sandbars off the coast of Libya between Benghazi and Tripoli. They lowered the drag anchor to slow its speed and let the ship be driven along.
18The next day, because of being battered severely by the storm, the sailors jettisoned the cargo, 19and by the third day they even threw the ship’s tackle and rigging overboard. 20After many days of seeing neither the sun nor the stars, and with the violent storm continuing to rage against us, all hope of ever getting through it alive was abandoned.
21After being without food for a long time, Paul stepped before them all and said, “Men, you should have obeyed # 27:21 The Greek word peitharkheo means “to obey one who is in authority.” Paul was the true captain of the ship and carried the weight of authority. me and avoided all of this pain and suffering by not leaving Crete. 22Now listen to me. Don’t be depressed, for no one will perish—only the ship will be lost. 23For God’s angel visited me last night, the angel of my God, the God I passionately serve. He came and stood in front of me 24and said, ‘Don’t be afraid, Paul. You are destined to stand trial before Caesar. And because of God’s favor on you, he has given you the lives of everyone who is sailing with you.’ 25So men, keep up your courage! I know that God will protect you, just as he told me he would. 26But we must run aground on some island to be saved.”
27On the fourteenth night of being tossed about the Adriatic Sea, about midnight, the sailors sensed we were approaching land. 28So they took soundings and discovered that the water was about 120 feet deep. # 27:28 Or “twenty fathoms.” After sailing a short distance, they again took soundings and found it was only ninety feet deep. # 27:28 Or “fifteen fathoms.” 29Fearing we would be dashed against a rocky coast, they dropped four anchors from the stern and waited for morning to come.
30Some sailors pretended to go down to drop anchors from the bow when in fact they wanted to lower the lifeboat into the sea and escape, abandoning ship. 31Paul said to the Roman officer and his soldiers, “Unless you all stay together onboard the ship, you have no chance of surviving.” 32At the moment they heard this, the soldiers cut the ropes of the dinghy and let it fall away.
33Just before daybreak, Paul urged everyone to eat. He said, “Today makes two full weeks that you’ve been in fearful peril and hunger, unable to eat a thing. 34Now eat and be nourished. For you’ll all come through this ordeal without a scratch.” # 27:34 Or “Not one hair of your heads will perish.”
35Then Paul took bread and gave thanks to God # 27:35 The Aramaic is “glorified God.” in front of them, broke it and began to eat. 36-37There were 276 people who ate until they were filled, and were strengthened and encouraged. # 27:36–37 Paul served communion on board the ship and fed every passenger and crew member. (Did God multiply the bread?) The language used is vividly eucharistic. There is a variation among many Greek manuscripts as to the total of those who were fed. Some have as few as sixty-nine or seventy. The majority of reliable manuscripts in Greek and Aramaic have 276. 38After they were satisfied, they threw the grain into the sea to lighten the ship.
Paul Is Shipwrecked
39When daylight came, the sailors didn’t recognize the land, but they noticed a cove with a sandy beach, so they decided to run the ship ashore. 40They cut away the anchors, leaving them in the sea, untied the ropes holding the rudders, and hoisted the foresail to the breeze to head for the beach. 41But they drifted into the rocky shoals between two depths of the sea, causing the ship to flounder still a distance from shore. The bow was stuck fast, jammed on the rocks, while the stern was being smashed by the pounding of the surf.
42The soldiers wanted to kill all the prisoners to prevent them from escaping. 43But the Roman officer was determined to bring Paul safely through, so he foiled their attempts. He commanded the prisoners and crew who could swim to jump overboard and swim ashore. # 27:43 As translated from the Aramaic. 44The rest all managed to survive by clinging to planks and broken pieces of the ship, so that everyone scrambled to the shore uninjured.
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Acts 27: TPT
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