Acts - Week 14 / Monday

Reading for today: Acts 27:1-20

This account of Paul's journey to Rome gives us one of the most interesting and factual accounts of a sea voyage and a shipwreck to be found anywhere in ancient literature. Luke uses "we" throughout the passage, so it is clear he was an eyewitness.

When they finally get to Myra, Julius books passage for the prisoners on an Alexandrian grain ship bound for Rome. Egypt was the chief source of wheat for the city of Rome, and these ships that carried wheat were considered very important. With much difficulty against these contrary winds, they finally arrive at Fair Havens.

It had taken a great deal of tie to get this far, and Paul cautioned agaisnt going on. The dangerous season for sailing in this part of the world is between the middle of September and the middle of November. After the middle of November all shipping on the open sea came to a halt until February at the earliest.

Luke mentions that it was already past "the Fast" or Yom Kippur, which occurred in A.D.59 on October 5. Therefore, they were well into the dangerous sailing season. The centurion, persuaded by the pilot and the owner of the ship, ignored Paul's warning and decided to try to reach Phoenix and winter there.

When the winds shifted, they found themselves at the mercy of the winds. When they found some protection on the south side of the island of Cauda, they ran cables around the hull to hold the ship together. This was a common precaution done in the event of riding out a storm. They also let out an anchor to slow their drift towards any sand banks.

The next day they threw overboard some of the cargo, which probably meant some of the ship's equipment. The grain would have been (and was) the last thing to go. Lightening the load indicates that the ship was taking on water.

The third day they even threw the ship's tackle into the sea, and for the next 11 days the storm continued, making navigation impossible. They were simply riding out the storm. But when they saw neither sun nor stars for many days, and the storm continued raging, they finally gave up all hope of being saved., except for Paul.

Tomorrow: The shipwreck