Acts

Departure for Rome

When it was decided that we should sail for Italy, they handed over Paul and the other prisoners to an officer of the Augustan battalion named Julius.

We boarded a ship from Adramyttium bound for the coasts of Asia, and we left, accompanied by Aristarchus, a Macedonian from Thessalonica.

We arrived at Sidon the next day. Julius was very kind to Paul, allowing him to visit his friends and be cared for by them.

From there, we sailed along the sheltered coast of Cyprus because the winds were against us.

We sailed across the seas off Cilicia and Pamphylia and arrived at Myra in Lycia.

There, the captain found a ship from Alexandria heading for Italy and made us board it.

We sailed slowly for several days and reached Cnidus with incredible difficulty. Since the wind prevented us from entering that port, we sailed toward the shelter of Crete, with the Cape of Salmone in sight.

We struggled to turn and arrived at a place called Good Ports near the city of Lasea.

Time passed, and the crossing became dangerous: we had already observed the Fast. Then Paul said to them:

“Friends, I believe that it would not be very wise to proceed with our crossing, for we could lose not only the cargo and the ship, but also our lives.”

But the Roman officer trusted more in the ship’s captain and the owner of the ship than in Paul’s words.

And since the port was not suitable for wintering, most agreed to set out from there in hopes of reaching the harbor of Crete called Phoenix, overlooking Africa and Chora, where they could spend the winter.

Storm

Then the south wind began to blow, and they thought they had achieved their goal. They weighed anchor and sailed past the island of Crete.

But a little later, a strong wind called ‘the northeaster’ stormed down from across the island.

The ship was thrown around and couldn’t face the wind, leaving us adrift.

As we crossed behind the small island of Cauda, we managed—though with difficulty—to secure the lifeboat.

After hauling it aboard, they used cables to reinforce the hull, and because we feared running aground on the sands of Syrtis, they lowered the sea anchor. Still, we remained being dragged along.

The storm battered us so fiercely that the next day, they started throwing the cargo overboard.

On the third day, the sailors, using their own hands, threw out the ship’s gear.

For several days, neither the sun nor the stars appeared, and the storm had not let up, so we lost all hope of rescue.

Since we hadn’t eaten for days, Paul stood up among them and said:

“Friends, if you had followed my advice when I told you not to set sail from Crete, we wouldn’t be in such danger now, and we could have avoided this loss.

But now I encourage you to stay strong, for no one will die among you; only the ship will be destroyed.

Last night, an angel of my God—whom I serve

and he said to me and said: ‘Paul, do not be afraid. You must appear before Caesar’s tribunal, and God has granted you the lives of all those sailing with you.’

Have courage, therefore, my friends, for I trust in God that it will be just as he told me.

But we have to run aground on some island.”

Near midnight, on the fourteenth night, as we drifted in the Adriatic Sea, the sailors suspected land was nearby.

They measured the water depth, which was thirty-seven meters, then measured again after a while and it was twenty-seven meters.

They feared we might hit some rocks, so they cast out four anchors from the stern and waited anxiously for morning.

Then, the sailors tried to escape from the ship, claiming they needed to extend the anchor cables from the bow; they lowered the lifeboat into the sea.

But Paul said to the captain and the soldiers:

“If they leave the ship, you cannot be saved.”

So the soldiers cut the mooring cables of the boat and let it fall.

As they waited for dawn, Paul urged everyone:

“For fourteen days, you have not eaten anything due to anxious waiting.

I ask you to eat now if you want to live; be assured that not even a hair of your head will be lost.”

Having said this, he took bread, gave thanks to God in everyone’s presence, broke it, and began to eat.

All were encouraged, and they also ate.

There were two hundred seventy-six persons in all.

When they had eaten enough, they threw the wheat into the sea to lighten the boat.

When morning came, they did not recognize the land but saw a bay with a beach; so they decided to run the ship aground if possible.

They cast off the anchors and left them in the sea; at the same time, they loosened the ropes of the rudders, hoisted the foresail to the wind, and headed for the beach.

But they struck a sandbank, and the ship ran aground. The bow stuck and was immovable, while the violent waves broke apart the stern.

The soldiers then planned to kill the prisoners because they were afraid that some might escape by swimming.

However, the captain, who wanted to save Paul, did not allow them to do this. He instructed those who knew how to swim to be the first to jump into the water and swim toward the shore,

and the others to cling to planks or pieces of the ship. In the end, all of us reached land safely.