New Testament in a Year

Paul’s voyage to Rome

27 When it was determined that we were to sail to Italy, Paul and some other prisoners were placed in the custody of a centurion named Julius of the Imperial Company.^{[a] 2} We boarded a ship from Adramyttium that was about to sail for ports along the coast of the province of Asia. So we put out to sea. Aristarchus, a Macedonian from Thessalonica, came with us. ³ The next day we landed in Sidon. Julius treated Paul kindly and permitted him to go to some friends so they could take care of him. ⁴ From there we sailed off. We passed Cyprus, using the island to shelter us from the headwinds. ⁵ We sailed across the open sea off the coast of Cilicia and Pamphylia, and landed in Myra in Lycia. ⁶ There the centurion found an Alexandrian ship headed for Italy and put us on board. ⁷ After many days of slow and difficult sailing, we arrived off the coast of Cnidus. The wind wouldn’t allow us to go farther, so we sailed under the shelter of Crete off Salmone. ⁸ We sailed along the coast only with difficulty until we came to a place called Good Harbors,^[b] near the city of Lasea.

⁹ Much time had been lost, and the voyage was now dangerous since the Day of Reconciliation had already passed. Paul warned them, ¹⁰ “Men, I see that our voyage will suffer damage and great loss, not only for the cargo and ship but also for our lives.” ¹¹ But the centurion was persuaded more by the ship’s pilot and captain than by Paul’s advice. ¹² Since the harbor was unsuitable for spending the winter, the majority supported a plan to put out to sea from there. They thought they might reach Phoenix in Crete and spend the winter in its harbor, which faced southwest and northwest.

¹³ When a gentle south wind began to blow, they thought they could carry out their plan. They pulled up anchor and sailed closely along the coast of Crete. ¹⁴ Before long, a hurricane-strength wind known as a northeaster swept down from Crete. ¹⁵ The ship was caught in the storm and couldn’t be turned into the wind. So we gave in to it, and it carried us along. ¹⁶ After sailing under the shelter of an island called Cauda, we were able to control the lifeboat only with difficulty. ¹⁷ They brought the lifeboat aboard, then began to wrap the ship with cables to hold it together. Fearing they might run aground on the sandbars of the Gulf of Syrtis, they lowered the anchor and let the ship be carried along. ¹⁸ We were so battered by the violent storm that the next day the men began throwing cargo overboard. ¹⁹ On the third day, they picked up the ship’s gear and hurled it into the sea. ²⁰ When neither the sun nor the moon appeared for many days and the raging storm continued to pound us, all hope of our being saved from this peril faded.

²¹ For a long time no one had eaten. Paul stood up among them and said, “Men, you should have complied with my instructions not to sail from Crete. Then we would have avoided this damage and loss. ²² Now I urge you to be encouraged. Not one of your lives will be lost, though we will lose the ship. ²³ Last night an angel from the God to whom I belong and whom I worship stood beside me. ²⁴ The angel said, ‘Don’t be afraid, Paul! You must stand before Caesar! Indeed, God has also graciously given you everyone sailing with you.’ ²⁵ Be encouraged, men! I have faith in God that it will be exactly as he told me. ²⁶ However, we must run aground on some island.”