Sha’ul’s Voyage to Rome ~ Part 2

We continue in the Book of Acts. Sha’ul’s Voyage to Rome begins in Acts 27:13.

As you reflect on Acts 13-26, you might notice Sha’ul’s unwavering commitment to sharing the Gospel despite facing persecution. In your life, there may be family members or friends who are resistant to your faith. Take time this week to engage them in a heartfelt conversation over lunch or dinner, sharing your personal testimony and how your faith has shaped your life. This vulnerability can create an opening for the Gospel to take root in their hearts.

The Ship Is Blown Off Course By The Storm

¹³ When a gentle southerly breeze began to blow, they thought that they had their goal within grasp, so they raised the anchor and started coasting by Crete close to shore. ¹⁴ But before long, there struck us from land a full gale from the northeast, the kind they call an Evrakilon.

A full gale, Greek anemos tuphonikos (the first means “wind”; the latter gives us the English word “typhoon”). They tried to hug the south coast of Crete, but the northeast wind, blowing from the shore, drove them out to sea, where the larger waves were more challenging to deal with. The crew thought the gentle southerly breeze in verse 13 would push them to their destination, but the seasonal northeaster blew the ship away from Phoenix and into the open sea.

¹⁵ The ship was caught up and unable to face the wind, so we gave way to it and were driven along. ¹⁶ As we passed into the lee of a small island called Cauda, we managed with strenuous effort to get control of the lifeboat. ¹⁷ They hoisted it aboard, then fastened cables tightly around the ship itself to reinforce it. Fearing they might run aground on the Syrtis sandbars, they lowered the topsails and thus continued drifting. ¹⁸ But because we were fighting such heavy weather, the next day they began to jettison non-essentials; ¹⁹ and the third day, they threw the ship’s sailing equipment overboard with their own hands.

Caught in the wind, the sailors had virtually no control over the ship. They tied ropes around the hull to bind it tight and keep it from ripping apart. To gain buoyancy, they jettisoned cargo and gear but not the grain.

²⁰ For many days, neither the sun nor the stars appeared, while the storm continued to rage until gradually, all hope of survival vanished.

Sha’ul Promises Safe Passage

²¹ It was then, when they had gone a long time without eating, that Sha’ul stood up in front of them and said, “You should have listened to me and not set out from Crete; if you had, you would have escaped this disastrous loss. ²² But now, my advice to you is to take heart because not one of you will lose his life—only the ship will be lost.

You should have listened to me. We cannot know whether Sha’ul was indulging himself in a well-earned but all-too-human “I told you so” or reminding his hearers of their mistake so that they would be more willing now to hear his message of hope.

²³ For this very night, there stood next to me an angel of the God to whom I belong and whom I serve. ²⁴ He said, ‘Don’t be afraid, Sha’ul! You have to stand before the Emperor. Look! God has granted you all those who are sailing with you.’ ²⁵ So, men, take heart! For I trust God and believe that what I have been told will come true. ²⁶ Nevertheless, we have to run aground on some island.”

Even in a storm at sea, as cargo is being thrown overboard, Sha’ul loses no occasion to communicate the Gospel or at least to arouse the curiosity of his shipmates. Verse 26 is a predictive prophecy fulfilled in Acts 27:41.

Sailors Attempt to Escape

²⁷ It was the fourteenth night, and we were still being driven about in the Adriatic Sea when, around midnight, the sailors sensed that we were nearing land.

The Adriatic Sea mentioned here is not the same one that is currently known as the Adriatic Sea between Italy and the former Yugoslavia. It apparently refers instead to the modern-day Ionian Sea between Crete, Malta, Italy, and Greece that extends into the Mediterranean Sea.

²⁸ So they dropped a plumbline and found the water one hundred and twenty feet deep. A little farther on, they took another sounding and found it ninety feet. ²⁹ Fearing we might run on the rocks, they let out four anchors from the stern and prayed for daylight to come.

The sailors took a sounding by letting down lengths of weighted rope. They determined that they were approaching land at a fast pace, even though they could not see it. In an effort to slow down the ship, they took the unusual action of lowering four anchors, all from the stern, rather than dropping anchors from the bow, which would have swung the ship around.

³⁰ At this point, the crew made an attempt to abandon ship—they lowered the lifeboat into the sea, pretending that they were about to let out some anchors from the bow. ³¹ Sha’ul said to the officer and the soldiers, “Unless these men remain aboard the ship, you yourselves cannot be saved.” ³² Then, the soldiers cut the ropes holding the lifeboat and let it go. ^[1]

The prospect of imminent landfall after being adrift on the stormy sea for two weeks (v. 27 above) enticed a group of sailors to attempt, selfishly, an escape on the lifeboat. Sha’ul’s wisdom in preventing this is seen in the next episode when all hands are needed.

Don’t jump ship. We know the storms get to be tough, and instincts tell you to bail out, give up, and turn back. But Sha’ul’s word of admonition to his shipmates is a very important one for you and me as well.

In our next post, we will continue to learn about Sha’ul’s Voyage to Rome, beginning in Acts 27:33.

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^[1] Acts 27:13–32.