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Paul on the Island of Malta

28 When we were safely on shore, we learned that the island was called Malta. The people who lived there were unusually kind to us. It had started to rain and was cold, so they started a bonfire and invited us to join them[a] around it. Paul gathered a bundle of sticks and put it on the fire. A poisonous snake was forced out by the heat and attached itself to Paul’s[b] hand. When the people who lived there saw the snake hanging from his hand, they told one another, “This man must be a murderer! He may have escaped from the sea, but Justice[c] won’t let him live.” But he shook the snake into the fire and wasn’t harmed. They were expecting him to swell up or suddenly drop dead, but after waiting a long time and seeing nothing unusual happen to him, they changed their minds and said he was a god.

The governor of the island, whose name was Publius, owned estates in that part of the island. He welcomed us and entertained us with great hospitality for three days. The father of Publius happened to be sick in bed with fever and dysentery. Paul went to him, prayed, and healed him by placing his hands on him. After that had happened, the rest of the sick people on the island went to him and were healed. 10 The islanders[d] honored us in many ways, and when we were about to sail again,[e] they supplied us with everything we needed.

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Footnotes

  1. Acts 28:2 The Gk. lacks to join them
  2. Acts 28:3 Lit. his
  3. Acts 28:4 I.e. a Roman god whom they supposed punished wrongdoers
  4. Acts 28:10 Lit. They
  5. Acts 28:10 The Gk. lacks again