Book of Common Prayer

⁹ It was now so late in the year that it was a bad time to go by boat. So Paul spoke to them about it.

¹⁰ He said, `Sirs, I see that if we go on by boat, we will have much trouble. Something bad will happen to the things on the boat and to the boat itself, and also to us.'

¹¹ The officer did not listen to what Paul said. But he listened to the captain and the owner of the boat.

¹² This place was not a good place for the boat to stay through the winter months of the year. So most of the men wanted to go on. They thought they might be able to reach Phoenicia and stay there for the winter. Phoenicia is a good place on the island of Crete. Boats can stay there. The winds do not blow against them.

¹³ When the south wind began to blow a little, they thought they had what they wanted. So they started off. They went along very close to the land of Crete.

¹⁴ But soon a very strong north-east wind blew from Crete.

¹⁵ The wind blew against the boat and it could not go into the wind. So they let the boat go where the wind took it.

¹⁶ We came close to a small island called Clauda. There we had a hard time to pull up the small boat.

¹⁷ However, at last they got it up. Then they put ropes around the boat to make it strong. They were also afraid they would get stuck in a bad place in the sand. So they took down the big sail cloth that was up to catch the wind. Then they let the boat go where the wind took it.

¹⁸ The next day the storm was very bad. They threw out the things that were in the boat.

¹⁹ And the third day they threw off the things they used on the boat, with their own hands.

²⁰ For many days we could not see the sun or the stars. The bad storm kept on. We did not think that we would be saved.

²¹ The men of the boat had not eaten anything for a long time. Then Paul stood up and said, `Sirs, you should have listened to me and not left Crete. But you did leave. So you have had much trouble and have lost all these things.

²² Now I tell you to be glad. Not one of you will die. Only the boat will break and be lost.

²³ I belong to God and worship him. Last night his angel stood before me.

²⁴ He said, "Paul, do not be afraid. You must stand before Caesar. And see, God has given you the lives of all these men who are travelling with you."

²⁵ So be glad, sirs. I believe God. It will be just the way he told me.

²⁶ However, we will have to go on an island.'

14 The Passover Feast and the feast with bread that has no yeast in it was two days later. The chief priests and the scribes planned how to catch Jesus by some trick. They wanted to kill him.

² But they said, `Let us not do it on the day of the feast. We do not want the people to start fighting about it.'

³ When Jesus was in the town of Bethany, he was in Simon's house. Simon had leprosy. While Jesus sat at the table, a woman came to him. She had a bottle of oil. It smelled very nice and cost much money. She broke the bottle and poured the oil on Jesus' head.

⁴ Some people there were angry. They said, `Why was this oil wasted like that?

⁵ The oil might have been sold for a lot of money. Then the money could have been given to poor people.' They said to the woman, `You should not have done this!'

⁶ But Jesus said, `Leave the woman alone. Why do you trouble her? She has done a good thing to me.

⁷ You will always have poor people with you. Any time you want to, you can do good to them. But I will not always be with you.

⁸ She has done what she could. She has put oil on my body to make me ready to be buried.

⁹ I tell you the truth. Any place in the whole world where people tell the good news, people will also tell what she has done. People will remember her because of it.'

¹⁰ Judas Iscariot, one of the twelve disciples, went to the chief priests. He told them how he could help them catch Jesus.

¹¹ They were glad when they heard that. They promised to give him money. So he watched for a good way to help them catch Jesus.