Acts 27
New Matthew Bible
Paul begins the voyage toward Rome. The centurion Julius treats him graciously. They suffer shipwreck.
27 When it was concluded that we should sail into Italy, they delivered Paul and certain other prisoners to one named Julius, a centurion of Caesar’s soldiers. 2 And we entered into a ship of Adramyttium and put out from land, appointed to sail by the coasts of Asia. One Aristarchus, a Macedonian from Thessalonica, was with us. 3 And the next day we came to Sidon. And Julius treated Paul graciously, and gave him liberty to go to his friends and to refresh himself. 4 And from there we put out to sea, and sailed hard by Cyprus, because the winds were contrary. 5 Then we sailed over the sea that is off Cilicia and Pamphylia, and came to Myra, a city in Lycia.
6 And there the centurion found a ship of Alexander ready to sail to Italy, and put us in it. 7 And when we had sailed slowly many days, and with difficulty arrived off Cnidus (because the wind was against us), we sailed hard by the coast of Crete off Salmone. 8 With much work we sailed beyond Salmone, and came to a Cretan port called Fair Havens, near which was a city called Lasea. 9 When much time had passed, and sailing was now risky, and also because we had fasted too long, Paul gave them warning 10 and said to them, Sirs, I can see that this voyage will be with injury and much loss, not of the cargo and ship only, but also of our lives.
11 But the centurion believed the steersman and the shipmaster over those things that were spoken by Paul. 12 And because the port was not good to winter in, many were minded to depart, if by any means they might reach Phoenix, a harbour of Crete that serves to the southwest and northwest wind, and winter there.
13 When the south wind blew, they, expecting to achieve their purpose, raised anchor and sailed past all Crete. 14 But soon after, there arose a contrary squall of wind out of the northeast. 15 And when the ship was caught and could not resist the wind, we let her go, and drove with the weather.
16 And we came to an isle named Clauda, and with much effort obtained a skiff, 17 which they hoisted up. And we had help undergirding the ship, fearing to fall into the Syrtis Sands. And we floated an anchor, and so were carried.
18 The next day, when we were tossed with an exceeding tempest, they lightened the ship. 19 And the third day, we cast the ship’s tackle overboard with our own hands. 20 When at the last neither sun nor star appeared for many days, and no small tempest lay upon us, all hope that we would be saved was then taken away.
21 Then, after long forbearance, Paul stood forth in the midst of them and said, Sirs, you should have listened to me, and not set out from Crete, and brought to us this harm and loss. 22 But now I exhort you to be of good cheer. For there shall be no loss of any man’s life among you, but of the ship only. 23 For there stood by me this night an angel of the God whose I am, and whom I serve, 24 saying, Fear not, Paul, for you must be brought before Caesar. And lo, God has given to you all those who sail with you.
25 Therefore, Sirs, be of good cheer. For I believe God, that it will be just as it was told me. 26 However, we must be cast onto a certain island.
27 But when the fourteenth night came, as we were carried about in the Adriatic Sea, at about midnight the sailors suspected some land was near. 28 And they took soundings, and found it twenty fathoms. And when they had gone a little further, they took soundings again, and found fifteen fathoms. 29 Then, fearing to hit some rock, they cast four anchors out of the stern, and wished for the day.
30 Then, as the sailors were about to escape out of the ship, and had let the skiff down into the sea under the pretence of casting anchors out of the foreship, 31 Paul said to the centurion and the soldiers, Unless these men remain in the ship, you cannot be safe.
32 Then the soldiers cut the rope off of the skiff, and let it fall away.
33 And in the meantime, between that and day, Paul besought them all to take food, saying, This is the fourteenth day that you have been waiting and continued without eating, taking nothing at all. 34 So I urge you to take food for your health. For not a hair shall fall from the head of any of you.
35 And when he had thus spoken, he took bread and gave thanks to God in the presence of them all, and broke it and began to eat. 36 Then they were all of good cheer, and they also took food. 37 We were altogether in the ship 276 souls. 38 And when they had eaten enough, they lightened the ship and cast out the wheat into the sea.
39 When it was day, they did not recognize the land, but they spotted a certain inlet with a bank, into which they were minded (if it were possible) to thrust in the ship. 40 And when they had taken up the anchors, they committed themselves to the sea, loosed the rudder bonds, hoisted up the mainsail to the wind, and drew to land. 41 They chanced on a shallow sandbank and thrust in the ship. And the forepart stuck fast, and did not move, but the stern broke with the violence of the waves.
42 The soldiers’ counsel was to kill the prisoners, lest any of them, when he had swum out, should flee away. 43 But the centurion, wanting to save Paul, kept them from their purpose, and commanded that those who could swim should cast themselves first into the sea and escape to land. 44 And the others he commanded to go, some on boards and some on broken pieces of the ship. And so it came to pass that they all came safe to land.
Acts 27
International Children’s Bible
Paul Sails for Rome
27 It was decided that we would sail for Italy. An officer named Julius, who served in the Emperor’s[a] army, guarded Paul and some other prisoners. 2 We got on a ship and left. The ship was from the city of Adramyttium and was about to sail to different ports in Asia. Aristarchus, a man from the city of Thessalonica in Macedonia, went with us. 3 The next day we came to Sidon. Julius was very good to Paul. He gave Paul freedom to go visit his friends, who took care of his needs. 4 We left Sidon and sailed close to the island of Cyprus because the wind was blowing against us. 5 We went across the sea by Cilicia and Pamphylia. Then we came to the city of Myra, in Lycia. 6 There the officer found a ship from Alexandria that was going to Italy. So he put us on it.
7 We sailed slowly for many days. We had a hard time reaching Cnidus because the wind was blowing against us. We could not go any farther that way. So we sailed by the south side of the island of Crete near Salmone. 8 We sailed along the coast, but the sailing was hard. Then we came to a place called Safe Harbors, near the city of Lasea.
9 But we had lost much time. It was now dangerous to sail, because it was already after the Day of Cleansing.[b] So Paul warned them, 10 “Men, I can see there will be a lot of trouble on this trip. The ship and the things in the ship will be lost. Even our lives may be lost!” 11 But the captain and the owner of the ship did not agree with Paul. So the officer did not believe Paul. Instead, the officer believed what the captain and owner of the ship said. 12 And that harbor was not a good place for the ship to stay for the winter. So most of the men decided that the ship should leave. The men hoped 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.)
The Storm
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 the anchor. We sailed very close to the island of Crete. 14 But then a very strong wind named the “Northeaster” came from the island. 15 This wind took the ship and carried it away. The ship could not sail against it. So we stopped trying and let the wind blow us. 16 We went below a small island named Cauda. Then we were able to bring in the lifeboat, but it was very hard to do. 17 After the men took the lifeboat in, they tied ropes around the ship to hold it together. The men were afraid that the ship would hit the sandbanks of Syrtis.[c] So they lowered the sail and let the wind carry the ship. 18 The next day the storm was blowing us so hard that the men threw out some of the cargo. 19 A day later they threw out the ship’s equipment. 20 For many days we could not see the sun or the stars. The storm was very bad. We lost all hope of staying alive—we thought we would die.
21 The men had gone without food for a long time. 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 all this trouble and loss. 22 But now I tell you to cheer up. None of you will die! But the ship will be lost. 23 Last night an angel from God came to me. This is the God I worship. I am his. 24 God’s angel said, ‘Paul, do not be afraid! You must stand before Caesar. And God has given you this promise: He will save the lives of all those men sailing with you.’ 25 So men, be cheerful! I trust in God. Everything will happen as his angel told me. 26 But we will crash on an island.”
27 On the fourteenth night we were floating around in the Adriatic Sea.[d] The sailors thought 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 farther 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, and they lowered the lifeboat. These sailors wanted the other men to think that they were throwing more anchors from the front of the ship. 31 But Paul told the officer and the other soldiers, “If these men do not stay in the ship, 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 began persuading all the people to eat something. He said, “For the past 14 days you have been waiting and watching. You have not eaten. 34 Now I beg you to eat something. You need it to stay alive. None of you will lose even one hair off your heads.” 35 After he said this, Paul took some bread and thanked God for it before all of them. He broke off a piece and began eating. 36 All the men felt better. They all started eating too. 37 (There were 276 people on the ship.) 38 We ate all we wanted. Then we began making the ship lighter by throwing the grain into the sea.
The Ship Is Destroyed
39 When daylight came, the sailors saw land. They did not know what land it was, but they saw a bay with a beach. They wanted to sail the ship to the beach, if they could. 40 So they cut the ropes to the anchors and left the anchors in the sea. At the same time, they untied the ropes that were holding the rudders. Then they raised the front sail into the wind and sailed toward the beach. 41 But the ship hit a sandbank. The front of the ship stuck there and could not move. Then the big waves began to break the back of the ship to pieces.
42 The soldiers decided to kill the prisoners so that none of them could swim away and escape. 43 But Julius, the officer, wanted to let Paul live. He did not allow the soldiers to kill the prisoners. Instead he ordered everyone who could swim to jump into the water and swim to land. 44 The rest used wooden boards or pieces of the ship. And this is how all the people made it safely to land.
Footnotes
- 27:1 Emperor The ruler of the Roman Empire, which was almost all the world.
- 27:9 Day of Cleansing An important Jewish holy day in the fall of the year. This was the time of year that bad storms happened on the sea.
- 27:17 Syrtis Shallow area in the sea near the Libyan coast.
- 27:27 Adriatic Sea The sea between Greece and Italy, including the central Mediterranean.
Acts 27
King James Version
27 And when it was determined that we should sail into Italy, they delivered Paul and certain other prisoners unto one named Julius, a centurion of Augustus' band.
2 And entering into a ship of Adramyttium, we launched, meaning to sail by the coasts of Asia; one Aristarchus, a Macedonian of Thessalonica, being with us.
3 And the next day we touched at Sidon. And Julius courteously entreated Paul, and gave him liberty to go unto his friends to refresh himself.
4 And when we had launched from thence, we sailed under Cyprus, because the winds were contrary.
5 And when we had sailed over the sea of Cilicia and Pamphylia, we came to Myra, a city of Lycia.
6 And there the centurion found a ship of Alexandria sailing into Italy; and he put us therein.
7 And when we had sailed slowly many days, and scarce were come over against Cnidus, the wind not suffering us, we sailed under Crete, over against Salmone;
8 And, hardly passing it, came unto a place which is called The fair havens; nigh whereunto was the city of Lasea.
9 Now when much time was spent, and when sailing was now dangerous, because the fast was now already past, Paul admonished them,
10 And said unto them, Sirs, I perceive that this voyage will be with hurt and much damage, not only of the lading and ship, but also of our lives.
11 Nevertheless the centurion believed the master and the owner of the ship, more than those things which were spoken by Paul.
12 And because the haven was not commodious to winter in, the more part advised to depart thence also, if by any means they might attain to Phenice, and there to winter; which is an haven of Crete, and lieth toward the south west and north west.
13 And when the south wind blew softly, supposing that they had obtained their purpose, loosing thence, they sailed close by Crete.
14 But not long after there arose against it a tempestuous wind, called Euroclydon.
15 And when the ship was caught, and could not bear up into the wind, we let her drive.
16 And running under a certain island which is called Clauda, we had much work to come by the boat:
17 Which when they had taken up, they used helps, undergirding the ship; and, fearing lest they should fall into the quicksands, strake sail, and so were driven.
18 And we being exceedingly tossed with a tempest, the next day they lightened the ship;
19 And the third day we cast out with our own hands the tackling of the ship.
20 And when neither sun nor stars in many days appeared, and no small tempest lay on us, all hope that we should be saved was then taken away.
21 But after long abstinence Paul stood forth in the midst of them, and said, Sirs, ye should have hearkened unto me, and not have loosed from Crete, and to have gained this harm and loss.
22 And now I exhort you to be of good cheer: for there shall be no loss of any man's life among you, but of the ship.
23 For there stood by me this night the angel of God, whose I am, and whom I serve,
24 Saying, Fear not, Paul; thou must be brought before Caesar: and, lo, God hath given thee all them that sail with thee.
25 Wherefore, sirs, be of good cheer: for I believe God, that it shall be even as it was told me.
26 Howbeit we must be cast upon a certain island.
27 But when the fourteenth night was come, as we were driven up and down in Adria, about midnight the shipmen deemed that they drew near to some country;
28 And sounded, and found it twenty fathoms: and when they had gone a little further, they sounded again, and found it fifteen fathoms.
29 Then fearing lest we should have fallen upon rocks, they cast four anchors out of the stern, and wished for the day.
30 And as the shipmen were about to flee out of the ship, when they had let down the boat into the sea, under colour as though they would have cast anchors out of the foreship,
31 Paul said to the centurion and to the soldiers, Except these abide in the ship, ye cannot be saved.
32 Then the soldiers cut off the ropes of the boat, and let her fall off.
33 And while the day was coming on, Paul besought them all to take meat, saying, This day is the fourteenth day that ye have tarried and continued fasting, having taken nothing.
34 Wherefore I pray you to take some meat: for this is for your health: for there shall not an hair fall from the head of any of you.
35 And when he had thus spoken, he took bread, and gave thanks to God in presence of them all: and when he had broken it, he began to eat.
36 Then were they all of good cheer, and they also took some meat.
37 And we were in all in the ship two hundred threescore and sixteen souls.
38 And when they had eaten enough, they lightened the ship, and cast out the wheat into the sea.
39 And when it was day, they knew not the land: but they discovered a certain creek with a shore, into the which they were minded, if it were possible, to thrust in the ship.
40 And when they had taken up the anchors, they committed themselves unto the sea, and loosed the rudder bands, and hoised up the mainsail to the wind, and made toward shore.
41 And falling into a place where two seas met, they ran the ship aground; and the forepart stuck fast, and remained unmoveable, but the hinder part was broken with the violence of the waves.
42 And the soldiers' counsel was to kill the prisoners, lest any of them should swim out, and escape.
43 But the centurion, willing to save Paul, kept them from their purpose; and commanded that they which could swim should cast themselves first into the sea, and get to land:
44 And the rest, some on boards, and some on broken pieces of the ship. And so it came to pass, that they escaped all safe to land.
Copyright © 2016 by Ruth Magnusson (Davis). Includes emendations to February 2022. All rights reserved.
The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.
