Acts 27

1 When it was decided [determined, judged] that we would sail [set sail, begin our journey] for Italy [the region of Italy, a Roman province], Paul [the apostle, originally named Saul] and some other [certain, several] prisoners [those being held in custody, captives] were handed over [delivered, surrendered] to a centurion [a Roman military officer, commander of 100 men] named Julius [a Roman name, possibly indicating his heritage], who belonged to [was part of, affiliated with] the Imperial Regiment [the Augustan band, a group of elite soldiers]. word study 2 We boarded [embarked, went on] an Adramyttian [from Adramyttium, a seaport in Mysia] ship about to sail [intending to travel, meaning to sail] for ports [places, locations] along the coast [region, shoreline] of Asia [the Roman province of Asia Minor], and we put out [launched, set sail] to sea [the ocean, the deep]. Aristarchus [a companion, a fellow believer], a Macedonian [from Macedonia, a region in the north] from Thessalonica [a city in Macedonia], was with [accompanied, together with] us. word study 3 The next day [following, after a night’s rest] we landed [touched, arrived] at Sidon [an ancient city in Palestine], and Julius [a Roman centurion] treated Paul [with kindness and respect] with consideration [benevolently, humanely], allowing [giving permission, permitting] him to visit [go to, meet with] his friends [those who cared for him] and receive [to take, to obtain] their care [hospitality, kind attention]. word study 4 After putting out [sailing away, departing] from there, we sailed [navigated, traveled by sea] to the lee [sheltered side, under the protection] of Cyprus [an island in the eastern Mediterranean] because the winds [air currents, breezes] were against us [contrary, hostile, opposed to our journey]. word study 5 And when we had sailed [directly, across the open water] across the [main body of the] open sea off the coast of [the region of] Cilicia [a province in Asia Minor] and [also, in addition to] Pamphylia [a province with a mix of different tribes], we came [descended, traveled down to] to Myra [an ancient city] in [the province of] Lycia [a region in Asia Minor]. word study 6 There [in that place, at that location] the centurion [a Roman military officer, in charge of 100 men] found [discovered, came across] an Alexandrian [from the city of Alexandria, in Egypt] ship [vessel, boat] sailing [travelling by sea, navigating] for [toward, into] Italy [a region in Europe] and put [transferred, placed] us [we, the apostle Paul and his companions] on board [onto the ship, aboard]. word study 7 After sailing slowly [slowly and with difficulty, for many days] for many days, we arrived [hardly, with great struggle] off Cnidus [a city in Asia Minor]. When the wind [a strong and opposing gale] impeded [did not permit, hindered] us, we sailed [under the lee, in the shelter] to the lee [the side sheltered from the wind] of Crete [a large island in the Mediterranean], opposite [across from, nearby] Salmone [a promontory on the island]. word study 8 After we had moved [with great difficulty, hardly passing] along the coast [of Crete, sailing down the side] with difficulty [and much ado], we came [arrived, sailed into] to a place [certain location, harbor] called [named, invited to] Fair Havens [beautiful and good, a safe harbor], near [close to, nigh unto] the town [city] of Lasea [a city in Crete, Lasaea]. word study 9 By now [after a long period, much time having passed] much time had passed [spent, elapsed], and the voyage [journey by sea, sailing] had already become [was now] dangerous [perilous, hazardous] because it was after [following, past] the Fast [time of fasting, abstinence] [a period of religious observance]. So Paul [the apostle, originally named Saul] advised [urged, counseled] them, word study 10 “Men [adult males, husbands], I can see [perceive, discern] that our voyage [journey by sea, travel] will be filled with [accompanied by, resulting in] disaster [hurt, mistreatment] and great [much, abundant] loss [damage, destruction], not only [merely, alone] to ship [boat, vessel] and cargo [burden, load], but to our own [personal, individual] lives [souls, breath of life] as well [also, in addition].” word study 11 But contrary to Paul’s [the apostle, originally named Saul] advice, the centurion [a Roman military officer, in charge of 100 men] was persuaded [to convince by argument or evidence] by the pilot [the captain, or helmsman] and by the owner [the captain, or master] of the ship [more than those things which were spoken by Paul, giving more heed]. word study 12 Since the harbor [not commodious, unsuitable] was unsuitable to winter [to stay in a place over the cold or rainy season] in, the majority [the more part, many] decided to sail on, if somehow [by any means] they could reach Phoenix [Phoenice, a city in Crete] to winter [to spend the winter season] there. Phoenix was a harbor [a safe place] in Crete [an island in the Mediterranean] facing both southwest [the southwest wind] and northwest [the northwest wind]. word study 13 When a gentle [soft and quiet, blowing softly] south [the southern region] wind began to blow, they thought [supposed, had an opinion] they had their opportunity [purpose, plan]. So they weighed anchor and sailed along [close in shore], hugging the coast [nearer, very close to the land] of Crete [an island in the Mediterranean]. word study 14 But it was not long [a short time, briefly] before a cyclone [tempestuous wind, storm] called the Northeaster [a north wind, Euroclydon] swept down [beat down, came down with force] across the island [the land, with great force]. word study 15 Unable [powerless, lacking strength] to head [to face, to make progress] into the wind [the gale, the stormy blast], the ship [boat, vessel] was caught up [seized, snatched away]. So we gave way [let her drive, surrendered control] and let ourselves be driven along [carried away, borne on]. word study 16 Passing [sailing under, running to the lee of] to the lee of a small island [a tiny landmass] called Cauda [a place near Crete], we barely [hardly, with great difficulty] managed to secure [be in control of, become masters of] the lifeboat [a small boat for landing]. word study 17 After hoisting it up [lifting aboard, taking on deck], the crew used ropes [cables, helps] to undergird [support, stabilize] the ship [vessel, vessel at sea]. And fearing [being alarmed, in awe] that they would run aground [be cast, fall] on the sandbars [quicksands, treacherous shores] of Syrtis [a large bay on the north coast of Africa], they lowered [let down, struck] the sea anchor [sail, vessel’s gear] and were driven along [borne, carried]. word study 18 We were tossed [violently, with extreme force] so [exceedingly, to a high degree] violently [with intense storming] that the next [following, succeeding] day the men began [to do, to make] to jettison [throw overboard, lighten the ship] the cargo [freight, ship’s load]. word study 19 On the third [following, after two days] day, they threw [cast out, let go] the ship’s tackle [gear, equipment, sailing apparatus] overboard [into the sea] with their own hands [personally, with their own strength]. word study 20 When neither [nor at any time] sun [the celestial body] nor stars [heavenly bodies, guiding lights] appeared for many [numerous, a long period of] days and the great [intense, severe] storm [tempest, turbulent weather] continued to batter [beat, violently strike] us, we abandoned [gave up, lost] all [every, complete] hope [expectation, trust] of being saved [rescued, delivered from harm]. word study 21 After the men had gone a long time [in a state of fasting] without food, Paul [the apostle, a servant of Christ] stood up among them and said, “Men [sirs, gentlemen], you should have followed my advice [listened to me, obeyed my counsel] not to sail from Crete [to have remained in Crete, avoiding the storm]. Then you would have averted [gained, avoided] this disaster [harm, mistreatment] and loss [damage, injury]. word study 22 But now [at this present moment] I urge [exhort, advise] you to keep up your courage [be of good cheer, have confidence], because you will not experience [suffer, undergo] any loss [deprivation, rejection] of life [the soul], but only [however, except] of the ship [boat, vessel]. word study 23 For [as a reason, to explain] just last night [this night, in the darkness] an angel [messenger, heavenly being] of God [the one true deity, Creator], whose [belonging to, owned by] I am [exist, have my being] and whom [the one I worship, serve] I serve [minister, give homage], stood beside [stood by, came near] me word study 24 and said, ‘Do not [be alarmed or in awe] be afraid, Paul [the Roman apostle]; you must [it is necessary] stand before [appear in the presence of] Caesar [the Roman emperor, the ruling power]. And look [see, perceive], God [the one true deity] has granted [given freely, shown kindness] you the lives [the very existence] of all who sail [travel by sea] with you [in your company].’ word study 25 So take courage [be of good cheer], men [adult males], for I believe [trust, have faith] God [the one true deity] that it will happen [come to pass, occur] just as [in the same way, exactly] He told [spoke to, communicated with] me. word study 26 However, we must [it is necessary] run [be cast, come] aground [to fall out, shipwrecked] on some [a certain, one] island [a landmass surrounded by water].” word study 27 On the fourteenth night [time of darkness] we were still being driven [spread or surpass] across the Adriatic [a body of water between Greece and Italy] Sea [a significant location]. About midnight [in the middle of the night] the sailors [seamen or boatmen] sensed [to suppose or think] they were approaching [to bring near] land [a region or country]. word study 28 They took soundings [measured the depth, let down the lead] and found that the water was twenty [approximately 120 feet, 37 meters] fathoms [a unit of measurement, the length of a person’s outstretched arms] deep. Going a little [short, brief] farther, they took another set of soundings [checked the depth again] that read fifteen [90 feet, 28 meters] fathoms. word study 29 Fearing [being alarmed or in awe] that we would run aground [be wrecked or stranded] on the rocks [rough or rocky ground], they dropped [threw or let down] four [the number four] anchors [devices for stability and hope] from the stern [the back part of the ship] and prayed [wished or asked] for daybreak [the coming of daylight, a new day]. word study 30 Meanwhile, the sailors [seeking to flee, attempting to escape] attempted to escape [to flee, to run away] from the ship. Pretending [under a false pretense, with a deceitful intention] to lower [to cast, to throw down] anchors [stabilizing devices, hope anchors] from the bow [the front, the forward section], they let [lowered, dropped down] the lifeboat [a small boat, a vessel for rescue] down into the sea [the large body of water, the ocean]. word study 31 But Paul [the apostle, originally named Saul] said to the centurion [a Roman military officer in charge of 100 men] and the soldiers [common warriors], “Unless [if not, except] these men [the crew, sailors] remain [stay, abide] with the ship [boat, vessel], you [all of you, personally] cannot [are not able, have no power] be saved [rescued, delivered from harm].” word study 32 So the [common] soldiers [of the Roman army] cut the ropes [cords, cables] to the lifeboat [small boat, skiff] and set it [allowed it to fall, let it drift] adrift [to fall off, loose]. word study 33 Right up to daybreak [till the day was coming on], Paul kept urging [pleading with, comforting] them all to eat [partake of nourishment, take food]: “Today [this day, now] is your fourteenth [the fourteenth day in a series] day in constant [continual, persistent] suspense [waiting, watching], without taking [receiving, accepting] any food [nourishment, sustenance]. word study 34 So for your own preservation [salvation, safety], I urge [plead with, comfort] you to eat [take nourishment, have food] something, because not a single [none, no] hair [a small part of the body] of your head [the upper part of the body, a leader] will be lost [fall, perish, collapse].” word study 35 After he had said this [spoken these words, shared this message], Paul took bread [loaf, food] and gave thanks [expressed gratitude, praised] to God [the one true deity, Creator] in front of them all [in their presence, before everyone]. Then he broke [shared, distributed] it and began [commenced, started] to eat [consume, partake]. word study 36 They were all [of good cheer] encouraged and took [received, accepted] some food [nourishment, sustenance] themselves [personally, individually]. word study 37 In all [every single one, the total number], there were 276 [two hundred seventy-six, a specific count] of us [souls, the breath of life] on board [in the ship, a vessel]. word study 38 After the men had eaten [enough, to satisfaction] their fill, they lightened [made lighter, unloaded] the ship [boat, vessel] by throwing the grain [wheat, food, nourishment] into the sea [large body of water, the Mediterranean]. word study 39 When daylight [at dawn, with the break of day] came, they did not recognize [know, were unfamiliar with] the land [earth, territory], but they sighted [perceived, caught sight of] a bay [creek, inlet] with a sandy beach [shore, shoreline], where they decided [took counsel, planned] to run the ship [boat, vessel] aground [ashore, onto the beach] if they could [if possible, were able]. word study 40 Cutting away the anchors [letting them go, abandoning them], they left them in the sea [the Mediterranean, a large body of water] as they loosened [untied, set free] the ropes [cords, fastenings] that held the rudders [steering devices, navigational tools]. Then they hoisted [lifted up, raised] the foresail [the sail at the front, the artemon] to the wind [the breeze, the blowing air] and made for the beach [the shore, the coastline, the land]. word study 41 But the vessel [ship, boat] struck a sandbar [place where two seas meet, a shallow bar] and ran aground [was driven ashore, stuck fast]. The bow [front part, prow] stuck fast [was immobilized, remained unmoveable] and would not move [was unable to be shifted], and the stern [back part, rear] was being broken up [was shattered, loosened] by the pounding [force, violence] of the waves [turbulent water, surging sea]. word study 42 The soldiers [of the Roman guard] planned [counseled among themselves, devised a strategy] to kill [destroy, take the lives of] the prisoners [captive men, detainees] so none [not one, no single individual] of them could [would be able to, might] swim [escape by swimming, make their way out] to freedom [liberty, escape from captivity]. word study 43 But the centurion [willing to save, desiring to rescue], wanting to spare Paul’s [the apostle, originally named Saul] life, thwarted [prevented, stopped] their plan [purpose, counsel]. He commanded [ordered, gave instruction to] those who could swim [be able to plunge into water, dive] to jump [throw themselves, cast off] overboard first [before others, as the initial group] and get to land [reach the shore, arrive on the earth]. word study 44 The rest [remaining ones, those who were left] were to follow [escape, make their way] on planks [boards, pieces of wood] and various [different kinds of] parts [pieces, wreckage] of the ship [boat, vessel]. In this way [thus, like this] everyone [all, every person] was brought [rescued, saved] safely [without harm, unharmed] to land [the shore, dry ground]. word study