Acts 27 · The Lantern

As it was decided that we were to sail to Italy, Paul and some other prisoners were put in charge of a captain of the Augustan Guard, named Julius.

But after Paul, in consequence of his appeal to Caesar, had been sent to Rome by Festus, the Jews, being frustrated in their hope of entrapping him by the snares that they had laid for him, turned against James, the brother of the Lord, to whom the episcopal seat at Jerusalem had been entrusted by the apostles. The following daring measures were undertaken by them against him.

See how far Aristarchus also accompanies Paul. To good and useful purpose is Aristarchus present, as he would take back the report of all to Macedonia.

When it was decided that he should sail to Italy, Paul, along with the rest of the prisoners, was handed over to a centurion. More accurately read in Greek: "When it was decided that we should sail to Italy, they handed over Paul and some other prisoners to a centurion."

We went on board a ship from Adramyttium, which was on the point of sailing to the ports along the coast of Roman Asia, and put to sea. Aristarchus, a Macedonian from Thessalonica, went with us.

The next day we put in to Sidon, where Julius treated Paul in a friendly manner, and allowed him to go to see his friends and receive their hospitality.

Putting to sea again, we sailed under the lee of Cyprus, because the wind was against us;

and, after crossing the sea of Cilicia and Pamphylia, we reached Myra in Lycia.

There the Roman officer found an Alexandrian ship on her way to Italy, and put us on board of her.

For several days our progress was slow, and it was only with difficulty that we arrived off Cnidus. As the wind was still unfavorable when we came off Cape Salmone, we sailed under the lee of Crete,

and with difficulty, by keeping close in shore, we reached a place called ‘Fair Havens,’ near which was the town of Lasea.

This had taken a considerable time, and sailing was already dangerous, for the Fast was already over; and so Paul gave this warning.

By "the fast" here, I suppose he means that of the Jews. For they departed thence a long time after the Pentecost, so that it was much about midwinter that they arrived at the coasts of Crete. And this too was no slight miracle, that they also should be saved on his account.

"because the fast was now over." Here the fast means that of the Jews. For after Pentecost he departed from there after a long time, as if to come to the parts of Crete almost in the winter itself. Behold, Paul now prophesies again, telling them that they would be shipwrecked. [AMMONIUS]

I think Paul is speaking here of the Jewish fast, since he had departed a long time after Pentecost, so that he arrived at the borders of Crete almost by winter.

“My friends,” he said, “I see that this voyage will be attended with injury and much damage, not only to the cargo and the ship, but to our own lives also.”

See [Paul's] modesty: in order that he may not appear to prophesy but to speak as if from supposition, he says "I see." They would have not received his words if he had pronounced them at once. In the first place he prophesies and says, "God, whom I worship," thus leading them. How would have it happened without a loss of lives?

Even if the shipwreck did not occur to them with loss of lives according to his word. For this would have happened as far as the nature of the thing was concerned, if God had not preserved them. For through him he also caused those men to be saved. The shipwreck that took place, then, occurred because the season was bad, since the storm was great.

But to show that he is not prophesying, but speaking by conjecture, he expresses himself thus: "I perceive," – because they would not have immediately believed him even if he had said this as a prophet.

The Roman officer, however, was more influenced by the captain and the owner than by what was said by Paul.

And, as the harbor was not a suitable one to winter in, the majority were in favor of continuing the voyage, in hope of being able to reach Phoenix, and winter there. Phoenix was a Cretan harbor, open to the north-east and south-east.

So, when a light wind sprang up from the south, thinking that they had found their opportunity, they weighed anchor and kept along the coast of Crete, close in shore.

But shortly afterwards a hurricane came down on us off the land — a north-easter, as it is called.

The ship was caught by it and was unable to keep her head to the wind, so we had to give way and let her drive before it.

Running under the lee of a small island called Cauda, we only just managed to secure the ship’s boat,

and, after hoisting it on board, the men frapped the ship. But, afraid of being driven on to the Syrtis Sands, they lowered the yard, and then drifted.

So violently were we tossed about by the storm, that the next day they began throwing the cargo overboard,

and, on the following day, threw out the ship’s tackle with their own hands.

As neither sun nor stars were visible for several days, and, as the gale still continued severe, all hope of our being saved was at last abandoned.

It was then, when they had gone a long time without food, that Paul came forward, and said: “My friends, you should have listened to me, and not have sailed from Crete and so incurred this injury and damage.

Yet, even as things are, I beg you not to lose courage, for there will not be a single life lost among you — only the ship.

For last night an angel of the God to whom I belong, and whom I serve, stood by me, and said —

Both good and bad angels are among people. Not by chance or without reason was that angel, for example, allotted to be the guardian of Peter or that other one for Paul or those of the children of the church, those that always "behold the face of their Father, who is in heaven." Concerning these things there can be no doubt that, by the judgment of God, who clearly sees their ra…

"For there stood by me this night the angel of God, whose I am, and whom I serve, saying, Fear not, Paul; thou must be brought before Caesar: and, lo God hath given thee all them that sail with thee." So that righteous men, though they may be in a tempest, or on the sea, or in the deep, suffer nothing dreadful, but even save others together with themselves.

For an angel of God stood by me this night. He was not boasting of himself by saying this but was provoking them to faith. For the sea was allowed to be stormy so that by what was heard and by what was not heard, the spiritual grace in Paul might be revealed.

‘Have no fear, Paul; you must appear before the Emperor, and God himself has given you the lives of all your fellow voyagers.’

"God has granted safety to all," so that what Homer says appears to be false: "I say that no one can avoid his fate, neither good man nor bad, even though he be noble." And this means that it is impossible to escape the death that Fate establishes at the moment of birth.

You cannot deny that the prisoner and the jailers were of unequal merit. And what were the circumstances of that shipwreck involving the apostle and the soldiers? The apostle Paul described a vision afterwards and said that those who were on the ship had been given to him by the Lord.

"Behold, God has granted you all those who sail with you." Behold, if it were not for Paul, all who were in the ship would have had to perish. Thus, what was said by Homer is false: Homer says that it is impossible to escape the mortal fate that determines the hour of a person's death together with their birth.

Therefore, courage, my friends! For I believe God, that everything will happen exactly as I have been told.

We will, however, have to be driven on some island.”

It was now the fourteenth night of the storm, and we were drifting about in the Adriatic Sea, when, about midnight, the sailors began to suspect that they were drawing near land.

So they took soundings, and found twenty fathoms of water. After waiting a little, they took soundings again, and found fifteen fathoms.

Then, as they were afraid of our being driven on some rocky coast, they let go four anchors from the stern, and longed for daylight.

The sailors wanted to leave the ship, and had lowered the boat, on pretense of running out anchors from the bows,

when Paul said to the Roman officer and his men: “Unless the sailors remain on board, you cannot be saved.”

Paul said to the centurion and to the soldiers, "Except these abide in the ship, ye cannot be saved": so saying, not on this account, but that he might restrain them, and the prophecy might not fall to the ground. Accordingly observe how the centurion does as he bids him, insomuch that he even let the boat go, and destroyed it.

But when he said, "Unless these stay in the ship, you cannot be saved," Paul spoke wisely, so as to hold them and not let the prophecy fail. Therefore when they saw that their lack of resolve had put them in danger, then they began to obey him.

"Unless these men stay in the ship, you cannot be saved," etc. Because in the danger of shipwreck, the knowledge of sailors who were experienced in the sea was more beneficial than the weapons of soldiers, they were therefore more likely to control the boat than to let the sailors be cast away.

So the soldiers cut the ropes which held the boat, and let her drift away.

In the interval before daybreak Paul kept urging them all to take something to eat. “It is a fortnight today,” he said, “that, owing to your anxiety, you have gone without food, taking nothing.

And how, say you, did they go without food, having taken nothing? How did they bear it? Their fear possessed them, and did not let them fall into a desire of food, being, as they were, at the point of extreme jeopardy; but they had no care for food. Moreover, the place is a trying one, for it was in the Adriatic, and then their long abstinence. They were in the midst of death.

"And when it began to be light, Paul besought," etc. After fourteen days of storm, Paul besought them to take food, since it was clear that, of two hundred seventy-six men, not even a hair of their heads had been lost. To encourage others by his own example, he broke bread and himself began to eat.

And as the day was about to dawn, Paul urged everyone to take some food. In this passage, the most beautiful sense of allegory is laid open, as Paul urged those he promised would be saved from the wreck to take food.

So I beg you to take something to eat; your safety depends on it, for not one of you will lose even a hair of his head.”

With these words he took some bread, and, after saying the thanksgiving to God before them all, broke it in pieces, and began to eat;

But how" in every place," since we are prohibited (from praying) in public? In every place, he means, which opportunity or even necessity, may have rendered suitable: for that which was done by the apostles (who, in gaol, in the audience of the prisoners, "began praying and singing to God") is not considered to have been done contrary to the precept; nor yet that which was done…

And he exhorts them again to take some meat, and they do as he bids them, and he takes some first, to persuade them not by word, but also by act, that the storm did them no harm, but rather was a benefit to their souls. Observe, his giving thanks after all that had happened strengthened them. For this showed an assured mind that they would be saved.

That Paul began to eat was so that he would not die of hunger. "Having taken bread, he gave thanks to God" for what had happened. The order of the Eucharist also teaches us to say the same thing: "We thank Thee, O God, that Thou hast vouchsafed us…"

and the men all felt cheered and had something to eat themselves.

There were about seventy-six of us on board, all told.

After satisfying their hunger, they further lightened the ship by throwing the grain into the sea.

When daylight came, they could not make out what land it was, but, observing a creek in which there was a beach, they consulted as to whether they could run the ship safely into it.

Then they cast off, and abandoned the anchors, and at the same time unlashed the gear of the steering oars, hoisted the foresail to the wind, and made for the beach.

They got, however, into a kind of channel, and there ran the ship aground. The bows stuck fast and could not be moved, while the stern began breaking up under the strain.

The advice of the soldiers was that the prisoners should be killed, so that none of them could swim away and make their escape.

But the Roman officer, anxious to save Paul, prevented their carrying out their intention, and ordered that those who could swim should be the first to jump into the sea and try to reach the shore;

and that the rest should follow, some on planks, and others on different pieces of the ship. In these various ways everyone managed to get safely ashore.

Acts27