The Company, the Ship, and the Route, 27:1-44.
[1-2] According to God’s plan, Paul was to go to Rome. Luke was one of his companions on the journey (notice the “we” section as mentioned earlier, Acts 16:10). Paul was a bound prisoner in the care of Julius, a Roman soldier. The ship they boarded was from Adramyttium, a city on the western coast of Asia. This ship was returning to home port, so they could not travel all the way to Rome on this trip.
[3] The ship stopped at Sidon, and Paul was given the freedom to go on land and visit the brethren. It may be that Paul was ill at this time and received kind treatment among his brethren.
[4-6] The ship sailed across the sea. The weather was not favourable, but after passing Cyprus, they landed safely at Myra. There they changed ships. There was much travel from Alexandria in Egypt to Rome and other ports throughout the Mediterranean Sea. This ship had a cargo of wheat (verse 38). We know it was a large ship, because we learn later that, in addition to her cargo, she carried a total of 276 people (verse 37).
[7-8] The weather continued to give them trouble, and they had to sail slowly. Much time had been lost, and with each passing day, sailing became more dangerous. They reached Safe Harbors. There must have been some discussion about whether they should spend the winter in that place or not.
Acts 27:9-20
9 However, we had lost much time. It was now dangerous to sail, because it was after mid-September. So Paul warned them, 10 “Men, I can see that there will be much destruction on this trip. The ship and the things on this ship will be lost. Even our lives may be lost!” 11 But the captain of the ship and its owner didn’t agree with Paul. The Roman officer believed what they said, rather than what Paul said. 12 That harbor was not a good place for the ship to stay for the winter. Therefore, most of the men decided that the ship should leave there. The men hoped that we could go to Phoenix. The ship could stay there for the winter. (Phoenix was a city on the island of Crete. It had a harbor which faced southwest and northwest.) 13 Then a good wind began to blow from the south. The men on the ship thought, “This is the wind we wanted, and now we have it!” So they pulled up anchor. We sailed very close to the island of Crete, 14 but then a very strong wind named “the Northeaster” came down from the island. 15 This wind took the ship and carried it away. The ship couldn’t hold against the wind. So, we stopped trying to resist and let the wind blow us. 16 We went below a small island named Cauda. Then we were able to bring in the lifeboat. (It was very hard to do this.) 17 After the men took the lifeboat in, they tied ropes around the ship to hold the ship together. The men were afraid that the ship would hit the sandbanks of Syrtis. So they lowered the sail and let the wind carry the ship along. 18 The next day the storm was blowing us so hard that the men threw some things out of the ship to make the ship lighter. 19 A day later they threw out the ship’s equipment. 20 For many days we couldn’t see the sun or the stars to guide us. The storm was very bad. We lost all hope of staying alive – we thought we would die.
[9] A Jewish fast was held during the time we know as September or October. This was probably in the year A.D. 59.
[10-12] Paul received a vision indicating that if they continued the journey, the ship would be destroyed. However, the judgement of the ship’s captain was followed. The harbor there was not suitable. They decided to move on to Phoenix.
[13-15] As the weather cleared, they supposed it was a good time to sail, and so they started their journey. They hoped to sail along close to the shore, but soon the wind became strong again. This blew the ship out into the open sea, in spite of the sailors’ efforts to control it.
[16] Their ship was driven close to a small island. There they gained some protection from the dangerous wind. During this lull, they hauled aboard a smaller boat. They needed to get it aboard because the wind would have destroyed it in the harsh waves.
[17-20] They tied cables around the middle of the ship to hold it more securely. This gave added strength to the boards, which were under much stress in the waves.
The Syrtis was a great area of quicksand along the northern coast of Africa. Since the wind threatened to drive them that way, they feared that they might be driven upon the sands. For this reason, they cast overboard much of the cargo. This allowed the ship to ride higher in the water.
Acts 27:21-38
21 For a long time the men didn’t eat. Then one day Paul stood up before them and said, “Men, I told you not to leave Crete. You should have listened to me. Then you would not have had all of this trouble and loss. 22 But now I am telling you to cheer up. None of you will die! However, the ship will be lost. 23 Last night an angel came to me from the true God. This is the God I worship. I am His. 24 God’s angel said, ‘Paul, don’t be afraid! You must stand before Caesar. And God has promised to give you something good: He will save the lives of all those sailing with you.’ 25 So men, cheer up! I trust in God. Everything will happen just as His angel told me. 26 But, we will run aground on an island.” 27 On the 14th night, we were floating around in the Adriatic Sea. The sailors sensed that we were close to land. 28 They threw a rope into the water with a weight on the end of it. They found that the water was 120 feet deep. They went a little further and threw the rope in again. It was 90 feet deep. 29 The sailors were afraid that we would hit the rocks. So, they threw four anchors into the water. Then they prayed for daylight to come. 30 Some of the sailors wanted to leave the ship. They lowered the lifeboat to the water, trying to make the other men think that they were throwing out more anchors from the front of the ship. 31 But Paul told the officer and the other soldiers, “If these men don’t stay in the ship, then your lives cannot be saved!” 32 So the soldiers cut the ropes and let the lifeboat fall into the water. 33 Just before dawn, Paul started persuading everyone to eat something. He said, “For the past two weeks you have been waiting and watching. You have not eaten for 14 days. 34 Now, I beg you, eat something! You need it to stay alive. Not one of you will lose even one hair of your head.” 35 After he said this, Paul took some bread and, in front of them all, thanked God for it. He broke off a piece and began to eat. 36 All of the men felt better. They all started to eat, too. 37 (There were 276 people on the ship.) 38 We ate all we wanted. Then we began to make the ship lighter by throwing the wheat into the sea.
[21-26] During this time, Paul received another vision. He spoke words of encouragement to the people. Even while others were in despair, Paul’s faith in God remained firm.
[27-29] After two weeks of darkness and despair, the sailors sensed that they were nearing land. It was in the darkness of night, so they could not see. They took an instrument and measured the depth of the water. This indicated that they were getting close to land. They were afraid that the ship would be dashed upon the rocks. They cast out the anchors and hoped that they could hold the ship until daylight.
[30-32] The sailors did not want to risk their lives further by remaining on the ship. They had lowered the smaller boat, pretending to check the safety of the larger vessel. The soldiers cut away the ropes holding the small boat, and the sailors were prevented from escaping.
[33-38] Paul seemed to have gained the confidence of the entire group of people. He appealed to them to eat so they could gain some strength. With Paul’s calm confidence, the people were encouraged.
Acts 27:39-44
39 When daylight came, the sailors saw land, but they did not know where we were. We saw a bay with a beach. The sailors wanted to sail the ship to the beach, if they could. 40 So the men cut the ropes to the anchors and left the anchors in the sea. At the same time, the men untied the ropes which were holding the rudders. Then the men raised the front sail into the wind and sailed toward the beach, 41 but the ship hit a sandbank and the front of the ship stuck there; the ship could not move. Then the big waves began to break up the back of the ship. 42 The soldiers decided to kill the prisoners, so that none of the prisoners could swim away and escape, 43 but the officer wanted to let Paul live. Therefore, he didn’t allow the soldiers to kill the prisoners. Julius ordered the people who could swim to jump into the water and swim toward land. 44 Others used wooden boards or pieces from the ship. This is how all of the people got to land. No one died.
[39-44] The sailors did not recognize the land, but they did see a small area where they might be able to land the boat. They cast off the anchors and tried to guide the boat. The boat hit ground, and the wind and waves began to break it up. The soldiers planned to kill all the prisoners, but Paul had gained the confidence of the soldiers’ leader. He protected them and guided them to shore. In this way, all were able to get ashore safely as God had promised Paul.
Acts 28:1-11
28 1 When we were safe on land, we realized that the island was called Malta. 2 It was very cold and raining. The people who lived there were very kind to us. They made a fire for us and welcomed us all. 3 Paul picked up a pile of sticks for the fire. He was putting the sticks on the fire. Then, because of the heat, a poisonous snake came out and bit him on the hand. 4 The people living on the island saw the snake hanging from Paul’s hand. They said to each other, “Surely this man is a murderer! He didn’t die in the ocean, but Justice will not permit him to live.” 5 However, Paul shook off the snake into the fire. He was not hurt. 6 The people expected him to swell up or to suddenly fall down dead. For a long time the people waited and watched him, but nothing bad happened to him. So the people changed their minds and they began to say, “He is a god!” 7 There were some fields around that same area. A very important man on the island owned these fields. His name was Publius. He welcomed us into his home. Publius was very kind to us. We stayed in his house for three days. 8 Publius’ father was very sick. He had a fever and dysentery, but Paul went to him and prayed for him. Paul put his hands on the man and healed him. 9 After this occurred all the other sick people on the island began to come to Paul. Paul healed them, too. 10-11 The people on the island gave us many honors. We stayed there three months. When we were ready to leave, the people gave us the things we needed.
Events on the Island, 28:1-10.
[1-6] The people of this island were very kind to these unfortunate people. The weather was cold, and they were all wet. Fires were built. Paul helped everyone else gather sticks. Suddenly he was bitten by a viper. The people who saw this believed that this was justice upon a criminal. Though he had escaped death from the sea, they thought that the gods were bringing justice upon him. They watched, expecting to see him fall dead. They were amazed to see that no harm came to him. The protection of God on this occasion is the only example we have of the statement found in Mark 16:18 regarding no harm coming to those early believers who might take up snakes. This miracle served the general purpose of signs. It confirmed that Paul was a man from the true God, and this caused the people to believe his message.
[7-10] Paul had an opportunity to demonstrate the power of God. He healed the father of one of the leading men on the island. Paul probably preached the gospel to those people. As confirmation of his word, he healed many people (see Hebrews 2:2-4).
Acts 28:11-22
11 We got on a ship from the city of Alexandria. The ship had stayed on the island of Malta during the winter. On the front of the ship was the sign for the twin gods. 12 We stopped at the town of Syracuse and stayed there for three days. 13 Then we came to the town of Rhegium. The next day, a wind began to blow from the southwest, so we were able to leave. A day later we came to the town of Puteoli. 14 We found some brothers there. They asked us to stay with them seven days. Finally, we came near to Rome. 15 The believers in Rome heard that we were there. They came out to meet us at the Market of Appius and at the Three Inns. When Paul saw these believers, he felt better. He thanked God. 16 Then we went to Rome. In Rome, though Paul was allowed to live alone, a soldier stayed with Paul to guard him. 17 Three days later Paul sent for some of the most important Jewish leaders. When they came together, Paul said to them, “My Jewish brothers, I have done nothing against our people or against the customs of our ancestors, yet I was arrested in Jerusalem and handed over to the Romans. 18 The Romans asked me many questions, but they couldn’t find any reason why I should be put to death. They wanted to let me go free. 19 However, the Jewish leaders there didn’t want me to go free. So, I was forced to ask to have my trial before Caesar in Rome. I am not accusing my people of anything wrong. 20 This is the reason I wanted to see you and talk with you. I am bound with this chain, because I believe in the hope of Israel.” 21 These Jews answered Paul, “We have received no letters from Judea about you. None of our Jewish brothers who have traveled from Judea brought any news about you or told us anything bad about you. 22 We do want to hear your ideas. We know that people everywhere are speaking against this sect.”
The Voyage Is Completed, 28:11-16.
[11-16] Another ship of Alexandria, which had wintered in the island, provided accommodation for this shipwrecked crew and Paul’s group. The “twin gods” were believed to protect sailors. Many people believed in magic and protective charms. But Christians believed in the true God. They made a three-day stop at Syracuse, on the island of Sicily. Next, they landed at Puteoli, which was located on the southern tip of Italy. There was a church at Puteoli.
From Puteoli, they made their way to Rome. In some way, the brethren in Rome received word that Paul and others were on their way. They went out to meet them. The Market of Appius was a town located about 70 kilometres south of Rome. Three Inns was the next village that they reached on the road to Rome. At these two small towns there was a great meeting of brethren, and they all made their way back to Rome. Paul was not treated as a common prisoner in Rome. He was provided with a place by himself and was guarded by a soldier.