New Testament in a Year

²⁷ Now when the fourteenth night had come, as we were drifting across the Adriatic Sea, about midnight the sailors began to sense that they were nearing some land. ²⁸ So they took soundings and found the water was twenty fathoms deep.^[a] A bit farther along, they took another sounding and found it was fifteen fathoms deep. ²⁹ Fearing that we might run aground on the rocks, they threw out four anchors from the stern. They were longing for day to come.

³⁰ Now the sailors were trying to escape from the ship and had lowered the dinghy into the sea, pretending they were going to put out anchors from the bow. ³¹ Paul said to the centurion and the soldiers, “Unless these men remain on the ship, you cannot be saved!”

³² Then the soldiers cut away the ropes of the dinghy and let it drift away. ³³ As day was about to dawn, Paul urged them all to take some food, saying, “Today is the fourteenth day that you have kept waiting and going without food, having taken nothing. ³⁴ Therefore, I urge you to take some food—for this is for your survival, since not one of you will lose a hair from his head.”

³⁵ And when he had said these things, he took bread, gave thanks to God before them all, broke it, and began to eat. ³⁶ Then all were encouraged and took some food themselves. ³⁷ (In all we were 276 persons on the ship.)

³⁸ When they had eaten enough, they began to lighten the ship, throwing the wheat into the sea. ³⁹ Then when daylight came, they did not recognize the land; but they noticed a bay with a beach, where they planned to run the ship aground if they could. ⁴⁰ So they cut off the anchors and left them in the sea, while loosening the ropes of the rudders at the same time. Then, hoisting the forward sail to the wind, they made for the beach. ⁴¹ But they struck a sandbar between the seas and ran the ship aground. The bow stuck fast and remained immovable, and the stern began to break up by the pounding of the waves.

⁴² The plan of the soldiers was to kill the prisoners, so that none of them would escape by swimming away. ⁴³ But the centurion, wanting to save Paul, kept them from carrying out their plan. He ordered those able to swim to throw themselves overboard first and get to land— ⁴⁴ and the rest to get there on boards and pieces of the ship. And in this way all were brought safely to land.