Acts 27
1 When it was decided that we would sail for Italy, Paul and some other prisoners were handed over to a centurion named Julius, who belonged to the Imperial Regiment.
When [the Governor and those who advised him] decided that it was time for us [(exc)] to get on a ship and go to Italy, they put Paul and some other prisoners into the hands/care of an army captain whose name was Julius. [He was the one who would guard us on the journey]. Julius was [an officer] in charge of [a group of] 100 [soldiers that people called] ‘the Emperor Augustus Group’.
2 We boarded an Adramyttian ship about to sail for ports along the coast of Asia, and we put out to sea. Aristarchus, a Macedonian from Thessalonica, was with us.
So we got on a ship that had come from Adramyttium [city in Asia province. The ship] was going to [return there, stopping at] cities along the coast of Asia [province]. Aristarchus, [a fellow believer who was] from Thessalonica [city] in Macedonia [province], went with us.
3 The next day we landed at Sidon, and Julius treated Paul with consideration, allowing him to visit his friends and receive their care.
The day after [the ship sailed], we arrived at Sidon [city]. Julius kindly told Paul that he could go and see his friends [who lived there], so that they could give him whatever he might need. [So Paul visited the believers there].
4 After putting out from there, we sailed to the lee of Cyprus because the winds were against us.
Then the ship left [Sidon], but the winds were blowing against us [(exc)], so [the ship] went along [the north] side of Cyprus [Island], the side that is sheltered [from the wind].
5 And when we had sailed across the open sea off the coast of Cilicia and Pamphylia, we came to Myra in Lycia.
After that, we crossed over the sea close to the coast of Cilicia and Pamphylia [provinces. The ship] arrived at Myra [city, which is] in Lycia [province]. [We got off the ship there].
6 There the centurion found an Alexandrian ship sailing for Italy and put us on board.
In Myra, [people told] Julius that a ship [was there that had come] from Alexandria [city] and would [soon] sail to Italy. So he arranged for us to get [on that ship], [and we left].
7 After sailing slowly for many days, we arrived off Cnidus. When the wind impeded us, we sailed to the lee of Crete, opposite Salmone.
We sailed slowly for several days and finally arrived close to the coast [of Asia province], near Cnidus [town. After that], the wind [was very strong and] did not allow the ship to move straight ahead [westward. So instead], we sailed [southward] along the side of Crete [Island that is] sheltered [from the wind], and we passed [near Cape] Salmone.
8 After we had moved along the coast with difficulty, we came to a place called Fair Havens, near the town of Lasea.
[The wind was still strong, and it prevented the ship from moving ahead fast]. So we moved slowly along the coast [of Crete], and we arrived at a harbor that was called Fair Havens, near Lasea [town].
9 By now much time had passed, and the voyage had already become dangerous because it was after the Fast. So Paul advised them,
Much time had passed, so it would have been dangerous if we [(exc)] had traveled [farther] by ship [because after that time of the year] [MTY] [the sea often became very stormy]. So Paul said to the men [on the ship],
10 “Men, I can see that our voyage will be filled with disaster and great loss, not only to ship and cargo, but to our own lives as well.”
“Men, I perceive that [if we(inc) travel by ship] now, it will be disastrous for us. A storm may destroy the ship and the cargo, and possibly we will drown.”
11 But contrary to Paul’s advice, the centurion was persuaded by the pilot and by the owner of the ship.
But the officer [did not listen to] what Paul said. Instead, he decided to do what the pilot [of the ship] and the owner of the ship advised.
12 Since the harbor was unsuitable to winter in, the majority decided to sail on, if somehow they could reach Phoenix to winter there. Phoenix was a harbor in Crete facing both southwest and northwest.
The harbor where the ship had stopped was not a good place to remain during the winter [when the weather frequently becomes stormy. So most of the people on the ship decided that we(exc) should leave there, because they hoped that we] could stay at Phoenix [port] during the winter, if we could possibly arrive there. That harbor was open to the sea in two directions, [but the strong winds did not blow there].
13 When a gentle south wind began to blow, they thought they had their opportunity. So they weighed anchor and sailed along, hugging the coast of Crete.
Then a gentle wind began to blow [from the south], and the [crew members] thought that they could travel as they had decided [to do. So] they lifted [the anchor up out of the sea], and the ship sailed [westward] along the [southern] shore of Crete [Island].
14 But it was not long before a cyclone called the Northeaster swept down across the island.
But after a while, a wind that was very strong blew across the island [from the north side and hit the ship. That wind was called] {[People] called that wind} “the Northeast Wind.”
15 Unable to head into the wind, the ship was caught up. So we gave way and let ourselves be driven along.
It blew strongly against the [front of] the ship. The result was that we could not keep going in the direction [in which we had been going]. So the sailors let the wind move the ship in the direction [that the wind] was blowing.
16 Passing to the lee of a small island called Cauda, we barely managed to secure the lifeboat.
The ship then passed a small island named Cauda. We passed along the side [of the island that] sheltered [the ship from the wind]. Then [while the ship was moving along], the sailors lifted the lifeboat up [out of the water] and tied it [on the deck. But the strong wind made it] difficult even to do that.
17 After hoisting it up, the crew used ropes to undergird the ship. And fearing that they would run aground on the sandbars of Syrtis, they lowered the sea anchor and were driven along.
After the sailors [hoisted/lifted] the lifeboat onto the ship, they tied ropes around the ship’s hull to strengthen the ship. The sailors were afraid that, [because the wind was pushing the ship], it might run onto the sandbanks off the coast of Libya to the south [and get stuck there. So] they lowered the largest sail [so that the ship would move slower. Even so], the wind continued to move the ship along. [The wind and the waves] continued to toss the ship about roughly, so on the next day the sailors began to throw overboard the things that the ship was carrying.
18 We were tossed so violently that the next day the men began to jettison the cargo.
19 On the third day, they threw the ship’s tackle overboard with their own hands.
On the third [day after the stormy wind had begun to blow], the sailors/we [MTY] threw overboard [most of] the sails, ropes, and poles, [in order to make the ship lighter].
20 When neither sun nor stars appeared for many days and the great storm continued to batter us, we abandoned all hope of being saved.
The wind continued to blow very strongly, [and the sky was full of dark clouds] day and night. We could not see the sun or the stars for many days, [so we could not determine where we were. And the wind] continued to blow violently. So we [(exc)] finally thought that we would drown in the sea.
21 After the men had gone a long time without food, Paul stood up among them and said, “Men, you should have followed my advice not to sail from Crete. Then you would have averted this disaster and loss.
None of us on the ship had eaten for many days. [Then one day], Paul stood up in front of us and said, “[Friends], you should have listened to me [when I said] that we [(inc)] should not sail from Crete. Then we would have been safe, and the ship and its cargo would be in good condition [LIT].
22 But now I urge you to keep up your courage, because you will not experience any loss of life, but only of the ship.
But now, I urge you, do not be afraid, because none of us will die. [The storm] will destroy the ship but not us.
23 For just last night an angel of God, whose I am and whom I serve, stood beside me
I [know this], because last night God, the one to whom I belong and whom I serve, [sent] an angel [who came and] stood by me.
24 and said, ‘Do not be afraid, Paul; you must stand before Caesar. And look, God has granted you the lives of all who sail with you.’
The angel said to me, ‘Paul, do not be afraid! You [(sg)] must [go to Rome] and stand before the Emperor there [so that he can judge you]. I want you to know that God has made it clear to me that all those who are traveling by ship with you [will also survive].’
25 So take courage, men, for I believe God that it will happen just as He told me.
So cheer up, [my] friends, because I believe that God will make this happen, exactly as [the angel] told me.
26 However, we must run aground on some island.”
However, [the ship] will crash on some island, [and] we [(inc)] will go ashore [there].”
27 On the fourteenth night we were still being driven across the Adriatic Sea. About midnight the sailors sensed they were approaching land.
On the fourteenth night [after the storm had begun, the ship] was still being blown {the wind was still blowing [the ship]} across the Adriatic sea. About midnight, the sailors sensed that the ship was getting close to land.
28 They took soundings and found that the water was twenty fathoms deep. Going a little farther, they took another set of soundings that read fifteen fathoms.
So they lowered [a weight on a rope] to measure how deep [the water was]. When they pulled the rope up again, they measured it and saw that the water was (120 ft./37 meters) deep. They went a little farther and lowered the rope again. [That time], they saw that the water was [only] about (90 ft./28 meters) deep.
29 Fearing that we would run aground on the rocks, they dropped four anchors from the stern and prayed for daybreak.
They were afraid that the [ship] might go onto some rocks, so they threw out four anchors from the [ship’s] stern/back and continued to wish/pray that it would soon be dawn [so that they could see where the ship was going].
30 Meanwhile, the sailors attempted to escape from the ship. Pretending to lower anchors from the bow, they let the lifeboat down into the sea.
Some of the sailors were planning to escape from the ship, so they lowered the lifeboat into the sea. In order [that no one would know what they planned to do], they pretended [that] they wanted to lower some anchors from the [ship’s] front/bow.
31 But Paul said to the centurion and the soldiers, “Unless these men remain with the ship, you cannot be saved.”
But Paul said to the army officer and soldiers, “If the sailors do not stay in the ship, you have no hope of being saved.”
32 So the soldiers cut the ropes to the lifeboat and set it adrift.
So the soldiers cut the ropes and let the lifeboat fall into the water.
33 Right up to daybreak, Paul kept urging them all to eat: “Today is your fourteenth day in constant suspense, without taking any food.
Just before dawn, Paul urged everyone [on the ship] to eat some food. He said, “For the past 14 days you have been waiting and watching and not eating anything.
34 So for your own preservation, I urge you to eat something, because not a single hair of your head will be lost.”
So, [now] I urge you to eat some food. We [(inc)] need to do that in order to stay alive. I [tell you to do that because I know that] none of you will drown [IDM].”
35 After he had said this, Paul took bread and gave thanks to God in front of them all. Then he broke it and began to eat.
After Paul had said that, while everyone was watching, he took some bread and thanked God [for it. Then he broke the bread and began to eat some of it].
36 They were all encouraged and took some food themselves.
The [rest of us] became encouraged, so we [(exc)] all ate some food.
37 In all, there were 276 of us on board.
Altogether there were 276 of us [SYN] on the ship.
38 After the men had eaten their fill, they lightened the ship by throwing the grain into the sea.
When everyone had eaten as much as they wanted, they threw the grain [that the ship was carrying] into the sea, and this made the ship lighter.
39 When daylight came, they did not recognize the land, but they sighted a bay with a sandy beach, where they decided to run the ship aground if they could.
At dawn, [we(exc) could see] land, [but the sailors] did not recognize [the place]. However, they could see that there was a bay and [a wide area of] sand at the water’s edge. They planned that, if it was possible, they would steer the ship onto [the beach].
40 Cutting away the anchors, they left them in the sea as they loosened the ropes that held the rudders. Then they hoisted the foresail to the wind and made for the beach.
[So some of the sailors] cut the anchor [ropes and] let the anchors fall into the sea. At the same time, [other sailors] untied the [ropes that] fastened the rudders, [so that they could steer the ship again]. Then [the sailors] raised the sail at the front/bow of the ship so that the wind [would blow the ship forward], and the ship headed towards the shore.
41 But the vessel struck a sandbar and ran aground. The bow stuck fast and would not move, and the stern was being broken up by the pounding of the waves.
But the ship hit a sandbank. The front of the ship stuck there and could not move, and big waves beat against the back of the ship and it began to break apart.
42 The soldiers planned to kill the prisoners so none of them could swim to freedom.
The soldiers said [to one another, “Let’s] kill [all] the prisoners [on the ship], so that they will not [be able to] swim [away and] escape.” [They planned to do that because they were sure] that officials [would order them to be executed if they let the prisoners escape].
43 But the centurion, wanting to spare Paul’s life, thwarted their plan. He commanded those who could swim to jump overboard first and get to land.
But [Julius], the army captain, wanted to save Paul, so he stopped the soldiers from doing what they planned to do. Instead, he [commanded] first that everyone who could swim should jump into the water and swim to land.
44 The rest were to follow on planks and various parts of the ship. In this way everyone was brought safely to land.
[Then he told] the others [to hold] onto planks or pieces from the ship [and go towards shore. We(exc) did what he said, and] in that way all of us arrived safely on land.
