1When it was decided that we should sail for Italy, they handed over Paul and some other prisoners to a centurion of the Augustan Cohort, named Julius.
2And embarking on a ship of Adramyttium that was about to sail to the places along the coast of Asia, we put to sea, with Aristarchus, a Macedonian of Thessalonica, accompanying us.
3The next day we put in at Sidon, and Julius, treating Paul kindly, allowed him to go to his friends to receive care.
4Putting to sea from there, we sailed under the lee of Cyprus because the winds were against us.
5And having sailed across the open sea off Cilicia and Pamphylia, we came down to Myra in Lycia.
6There the centurion found an Alexandrian ship sailing for Italy, and he put us on board.
7Sailing slowly for many days and arriving off Cnidus with difficulty, since the wind did not allow us to go on, we sailed under the lee of Crete off Salmone.
8Sailing along its coast with difficulty, we came to a certain place called Fair Havens, near which was the city of Lasea.
9Since much time had passed and the voyage was already dangerous because the Fast had already gone by, Paul began to advise them,
10saying, ‘Men, I see that the voyage will be with disaster and great loss, not only of the cargo and the ship, but also of our lives.’
11But the centurion was more persuaded by the pilot and the ship’s owner than by what was said by Paul.
12And since the harbor was unsuitable for wintering, the majority decided to put to sea from there to see if somehow they could reach Phoenix and winter there—a harbor of Crete facing southwest and northwest.
13When a gentle south wind began to blow, thinking they had obtained their purpose, they weighed anchor and sailed along Crete, closer to shore.
14But not long after, a hurricane-like wind called the ‘Northeaster’ struck down from the island.
15When the ship was caught and could not face into the wind, we gave way to it and were driven along.
16Running under the lee of a small island called Cauda, we were able with much difficulty to get control of the ship’s boat.
17After hoisting it aboard, they used supports to undergird the ship. And fearing they might run aground on the Syrtis, they lowered the sea anchor and were driven along like that.
18Since we were being violently storm-tossed, the next day they began to throw the cargo overboard.
19And on the third day, they threw the ship’s tackle overboard with their own hands.
20When neither sun nor stars appeared for many days, and no small storm was pressing down on us, all hope of our being saved was finally being taken away.
21After they had gone a long time without food, Paul then stood up in their midst and said, ‘Men, you should have listened to me and not set sail from Crete, and so avoided this disaster and loss.’
22But now I urge you to take heart, for there will be no loss of life among you, but only of the ship.
23For this very night, an angel of the God to whom I belong and whom I worship stood beside me,
24saying, ‘Do not be afraid, Paul; you must stand before Caesar. And behold, God has graciously given you all those who are sailing with you.’
25So take heart, men, for I have faith in God that it will be exactly as I have been told.
26But we must run aground on some island.
27When the fourteenth night had come, as we were being driven across the Adriatic Sea, about midnight the sailors suspected that they were approaching some land.
28So they took a sounding and found twenty fathoms. After a short interval, they took a sounding again and found fifteen fathoms.
29And fearing that we might run aground on rocky places, they cast four anchors from the stern and were praying for day to come.
30But when the sailors were trying to escape from the ship and had lowered the ship’s boat into the sea under the pretense of intending to lay out anchors from the bow,
31Paul said to the centurion and the soldiers, ‘Unless these men remain in the ship, you cannot be saved.’
32Then the soldiers cut the ropes of the skiff and let it fall away.
33And just as day was about to dawn, Paul was urging everyone to take some food, saying, ‘Today is the fourteenth day you have been waiting and have remained without food, having eaten nothing.’
34Therefore I urge you to take some food, for this is for your survival. For not a hair from the head of any of you will perish.
35When he had said these things, he took bread and gave thanks to God in the presence of all; and after breaking it, he began to eat.
36Then they all were encouraged and took some food themselves.
37We were, in all, 276 souls on the ship.
38When they had eaten their fill of food, they began to lighten the ship by throwing the wheat into the sea.
39When day came, they did not recognize the land, but they noticed a certain bay with a beach, and they planned to run the ship ashore there if they could.
40So they cut away the anchors and left them in the sea, at the same time loosening the ropes of the rudders. Then they hoisted the foresail to the wind and made for the beach.
41But they struck a place where two seas met and ran the ship aground. The bow stuck fast and remained immovable, but the stern began to be broken apart by the violence of the waves.
42The soldiers’ plan was to kill the prisoners, so that no one would swim away and escape.
43But the centurion, wanting to save Paul, prevented them from carrying out their plan. He commanded those who could swim to jump overboard first and get to land,
44and the rest to follow, some on planks and others on pieces of the ship. And in this way it happened that all were brought safely to land.
Open in the interactive reader →