New Testament in a Year
Paul Sails for Rome
27 It was decided that we would sail for Italy. An ·officer [centurion] named Julius, who served in the ·emperor’s army [Imperial/Augustan regiment; C a military unit directly under Caesar], ·guarded [took charge of] Paul and some other prisoners. 2 We got on a ship that was from the city of Adramyttium [C a seaport on the northwest coast of Asia Minor] and was about to sail to different ports in Asia [C a Roman province, in present-day Turkey]. Aristarchus [19:29; 20:4; Col. 4:10; Philem. 24], a man from the city of Thessalonica [17:1] in Macedonia [16:9], went with us. 3 The next day we ·came to [landed at] Sidon [12:20]. Julius was very ·good [kind; considerate] to Paul and gave him freedom to go visit his friends, who took care of his needs. 4 We left Sidon and sailed ·close to [to the north of; L under the lee/shelter of] the island of Cyprus [11:19], because the wind was blowing against us. 5 We ·went [L sailed] across the sea by Cilicia [6:9; 9:11] and Pamphylia [13:13] and landed at the city of Myra [C a significant city on the Andracus River] in Lycia [C a province in southeastern Asia Minor]. 6 There the ·officer [centurion] found a ship from Alexandria [C a major city in Egypt] 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 [C a port on the southwest side of Asia Minor] because the wind was blowing against us, and we could not go any farther. So we sailed ·by the south side [L under the shelter/lee] of the island of Crete [C a large island off the southern coast of Asia Minor] near Salmone [C a promontory on the eastern coast of Crete, present-day Cape Sidero]. 8 Sailing past it was hard. Then we came to a place called Fair Havens [C a bay on the southern coast of Crete], near the ·city [town] of Lasea [C a nearby Cretan city].
9 We had lost much time, and it was now dangerous to sail, because it was already after ·the Day of Cleansing [L the Fast; C the Day of Atonement; Yom Kippur in Hebrew; Lev. 16; either late September or early October]. So Paul ·warned [advised] them, 10 “Men, I can see there will be ·a lot of trouble [L disaster and heavy loss] on this trip. The ship, the cargo, and even our lives may be lost.” 11 But the centurion was more persuaded by the ·captain [pilot] and the owner of the ship than by what Paul said. 12 Since that harbor was not a ·good [suitable; safe] place for the ship to stay for the winter, ·most of the men [the majority] decided that the ship ·should leave [put to sea]. They hoped we could go to Phoenix and stay there for the winter. Phoenix, a ·city [or port; or harbor] on the island of Crete, had a harbor which faced southwest and northwest.
The Storm
13 When a ·good [moderate; gentle] wind began to blow from the south, the men on the ship thought they ·could reach their goal [or had achieved their objective; or had the opportunity they were waiting for]. So they pulled up the anchor, and we sailed very close to the island of Crete. 14 But ·then [L not long after this] a ·very strong [violent; hurricane-like] wind named the “northeaster” came from ·the island [L it]. 15 The ship was caught in it and could not sail against it. So we stopped trying and ·let the wind carry us [L were driven along]. 16 When we went ·below [under the lee/shelter of] a small island named Cauda [C 23 miles off the south coast of Crete], we were barely able to bring in the lifeboat. 17 After the men took the lifeboat in, they tied ·ropes [or cables] ·around [or under] the ship to hold it together. The men were afraid that the ship would ·hit [run aground on] the sandbanks of Syrtis [C off the coast of North Africa], so they lowered the ·sail [or sea anchor; L gear] 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 [L On the third day] with their own hands they threw out the ship’s ·equipment [rigging; tackle; gear]. 20 When we could not see the sun or the stars for many days, and ·the storm was very bad [L no small storm raged], we lost all hope of being saved.
21 After ·the men [many] had ·gone without food [or lost their appetite] for a long time, Paul stood up before them and said, “Men, you should have ·listened to me [obeyed me; taken my advice]. You should not have sailed from Crete. Then you would not have all this trouble and loss. 22 But now I ·tell [urge; advise] you to ·cheer up [keep up your courage] because none of you will ·die [be lost]. Only the ship will be lost. 23 ·Last [L This] night an angel ·came to [L stood by] me from the God I belong to and worship. 24 The angel said, ‘Paul, do not be afraid. You must stand before Caesar. And God has ·promised you that he will save the lives of [graciously granted safety to] everyone sailing with you.’ 25 So men, have courage. [L For] I trust in God that everything will happen as ·his angel told me [L I have been told]. 26 But we will ·crash [run aground] on ·an [L some/a certain] island.”
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