Acts 27–28

Paul Sails for Rome

27When it was decided that we^o would sail for Italy,^p Paul and some other prisoners were handed over to a centurion named Julius, who belonged to the Imperial Regiment.^{q 2}We boarded a ship from Adramyttium about to sail for ports along the coast of the province of Asia,^r and we put out to sea. Aristarchus,^s a Macedonian^t from Thessalonica,^u was with us.

³The next day we landed at Sidon;^v and Julius, in kindness to Paul,^w allowed him to go to his friends so they might provide for his needs.^{x 4}From there we put out to sea again and passed to the lee of Cyprus because the winds were against us.^{y 5}When we had sailed across the open sea off the coast of Cilicia^z and Pamphylia,^a we landed at Myra in Lycia. ⁶There the centurion found an Alexandrian ship^b sailing for Italy^c and put us on board. ⁷We made slow headway for many days and had difficulty arriving off Cnidus. When the wind did not allow us to hold our course,^d we sailed to the lee of Crete,^e opposite Salmone. ⁸We moved along the coast with difficulty and came to a place called Fair Havens, near the town of Lasea.

⁹Much time had been lost, and sailing had already become dangerous because by now it was after the Day of Atonement.^af So Paul warned them, ¹⁰“Men, I can see that our voyage is going to be disastrous and bring great loss to ship and cargo, and to our own lives also.”^{g 11}But the centurion, instead of listening to what Paul said, followed the advice of the pilot and of the owner of the ship. ¹²Since the harbor was unsuitable to winter in, the majority decided that we should sail on, hoping to reach Phoenix and winter there. This was a harbor in Crete,^h facing both southwest and northwest.

The Storm

¹³When a gentle south wind began to blow, they saw their opportunity; so they weighed anchor and sailed along the shore of Crete. ¹⁴Before very long, a wind of hurricane force,ⁱ called the Northeaster, swept down from the island. ¹⁵The ship was caught by the storm and could not head into the wind; so we gave way to it and were driven along. ¹⁶As we passed to the lee of a small island called Cauda, we were hardly able to make the lifeboat^j secure, ¹⁷so the men hoisted it aboard. Then they passed ropes under the ship itself to hold it together. Because they were afraid they would run aground^k on the sandbars of Syrtis, they lowered the sea anchor^b and let the ship be driven along. ¹⁸We took such a violent battering from the storm that the next day they began to throw the cargo overboard.^{l 19}On the third day, they threw the ship’s tackle overboard with their own hands. ²⁰When neither sun nor stars appeared for many days and the storm continued raging, we finally gave up all hope of being saved.

²¹After they had gone a long time without food, Paul stood up before them and said: “Men, you should have taken my advice^m not to sail from Crete;ⁿ then you would have spared yourselves this damage and loss. ²²But now I urge you to keep up your courage,^o because not one of you will be lost; only the ship will be destroyed. ²³Last night an angel^p of the God to whom I belong and whom I serve^q stood beside me^{r 24}and said, ‘Do not be afraid, Paul. You must stand trial before Caesar;^s and God has graciously given you the lives of all who sail with you.’^{t 25}So keep up your courage,^u men, for I have faith in God that it will happen just as he told me.^{v 26}Nevertheless, we must run aground^w on some island.”^x

The Shipwreck

²⁷On the fourteenth night we were still being driven across the Adriatic^c Sea, when about midnight the sailors sensed they were approaching land. ²⁸They took soundings and found that the water was a hundred and twenty feet^d deep. A short time later they took soundings again and found it was ninety feet^e deep. ²⁹Fearing that we would be dashed against the rocks, they dropped four anchors from the stern and prayed for daylight. ³⁰In an attempt to escape from the ship, the sailors let the lifeboat^y down into the sea, pretending they were going to lower some anchors from the bow. ³¹Then Paul said to the centurion and the soldiers, “Unless these men stay with the ship, you cannot be saved.”^{z 32}So the soldiers cut the ropes that held the lifeboat and let it drift away.

³³Just before dawn Paul urged them all to eat. “For the last fourteen days,” he said, “you have been in constant suspense and have gone without food—you haven’t eaten anything. ³⁴Now I urge you to take some food. You need it to survive. Not one of you will lose a single hair from his head.”^{a 35}After he said this, he took some bread and gave thanks to God in front of them all. Then he broke it^b and began to eat. ³⁶They were all encouraged^c and ate some food themselves. ³⁷Altogether there were 276 of us on board. ³⁸When they had eaten as much as they wanted, they lightened the ship by throwing the grain into the sea.^d

³⁹When daylight came, they did not recognize the land, but they saw a bay with a sandy beach,^e where they decided to run the ship aground if they could. ⁴⁰Cutting loose the anchors,^f they left them in the sea and at the same time untied the ropes that held the rudders. Then they hoisted the foresail to the wind and made for the beach. ⁴¹But the ship struck a sandbar and ran aground. The bow stuck fast and would not move, and the stern was broken to pieces by the pounding of the surf.^g

⁴²The soldiers planned to kill the prisoners to prevent any of them from swimming away and escaping. ⁴³But the centurion wanted to spare Paul’s life^h and kept them from carrying out their plan. He ordered those who could swim to jump overboard first and get to land. ⁴⁴The rest were to get there on planks or on other pieces of the ship. In this way everyone reached land safely.ⁱ

Paul Ashore on Malta

28Once safely on shore, we^j found out that the island^k was called Malta. ²The islanders showed us unusual kindness. They built a fire and welcomed us all because it was raining and cold. ³Paul gathered a pile of brushwood and, as he put it on the fire, a viper, driven out by the heat, fastened itself on his hand. ⁴When the islanders saw the snake hanging from his hand,^l they said to each other, “This man must be a murderer; for though he escaped from the sea, the goddess Justice has not allowed him to live.”^{m 5}But Paul shook the snake off into the fire and suffered no ill effects.^{n 6}The people expected him to swell up or suddenly fall dead; but after waiting a long time and seeing nothing unusual happen to him, they changed their minds and said he was a god.^o

⁷There was an estate nearby that belonged to Publius, the chief official of the island. He welcomed us to his home and showed us generous hospitality for three days. ⁸His father was sick in bed, suffering from fever and dysentery. Paul went in to see him and, after prayer,^p placed his hands on him^q and healed him.^{r 9}When this had happened, the rest of the sick on the island came and were cured. ¹⁰They honored us^s in many ways; and when we were ready to sail, they furnished us with the supplies we needed.

Paul’s Arrival at Rome

¹¹After three months we put out to sea in a ship that had wintered in the island—it was an Alexandrian ship^t with the figurehead of the twin gods Castor and Pollux. ¹²We put in at Syracuse and stayed there three days. ¹³From there we set sail and arrived at Rhegium. The next day the south wind came up, and on the following day we reached Puteoli. ¹⁴There we found some brothers and sisters^u who invited us to spend a week with them. And so we came to Rome. ¹⁵The brothers and sisters^v there had heard that we were coming, and they traveled as far as the Forum of Appius and the Three Taverns to meet us. At the sight of these people Paul thanked God and was encouraged. ¹⁶When we got to Rome, Paul was allowed to live by himself, with a soldier to guard him.^w

Paul Preaches at Rome Under Guard

¹⁷Three days later he called together the local Jewish leaders.^x When they had assembled, Paul said to them: “My brothers,^y although I have done nothing against our people^z or against the customs of our ancestors,^a I was arrested in Jerusalem and handed over to the Romans. ¹⁸They examined me^b and wanted to release me,^c because I was not guilty of any crime deserving death.^{d 19}The Jews objected, so I was compelled to make an appeal to Caesar.^e I certainly did not intend to bring any charge against my own people. ²⁰For this reason I have asked to see you and talk with you. It is because of the hope of Israel^f that I am bound with this chain.”^g

²¹They replied, “We have not received any letters from Judea concerning you, and none of our people^h who have come from there has reported or said anything bad about you. ²²But we want to hear what your views are, for we know that people everywhere are talking against this sect.”ⁱ

²³They arranged to meet Paul on a certain day, and came in even larger numbers to the place where he was staying. He witnessed to them from morning till evening, explaining about the kingdom of God,^j and from the Law of Moses and from the Prophets^k he tried to persuade them about Jesus.^{l 24}Some were convinced by what he said, but others would not believe.^{m 25}They disagreed among themselves and began to leave after Paul had made this final statement: “The Holy Spirit spoke the truth to your ancestors when he saidⁿ through Isaiah the prophet:

²⁶“ ‘Go to this people and say,

“You will be ever hearing but never understanding;

you will be ever seeing but never perceiving.”

²⁷For this people’s heart has become calloused;^o

they hardly hear with their ears,

and they have closed their eyes.

Otherwise they might see with their eyes,

hear with their ears,

understand with their hearts

and turn, and I would heal them.’^ap

²⁸“Therefore I want you to know that God’s salvation^q has been sent to the Gentiles,^r and they will listen!” ^[29]b

³⁰For two whole years Paul stayed there in his own rented house and welcomed all who came to see him. ³¹He proclaimed the kingdom of God^s…