The departure for Rome

When it had been decided that we [ Luke reappears on the scene. The precision on the narrative suggests a carefully kept diary.] should sail for Italy, Paul and some other prisoners were handed over to a centurion called Julius, of the Augustan cohort. We boarded a vessel from Adramyttium bound for ports on the Asiatic coast, and put to sea; we had Aristarchus with us, a Macedonian of Thessalonika. Next day we put in at Sidon, and Julius was considerate enough to allow Paul to go to his friends to be looked after.

From there we put to sea again, but as the winds were against us we sailed under the lee of Cyprus, then across the open sea off Cilicia and Pamphylia, taking a fortnight [ Lit. 'for fifteen days'. Western Text.] to reach Myra in Lycia. There the centurion found an Alexandrian ship leaving for Italy and put us aboard.

For some days we made a little headway, and we had difficulty in making Cnidus. The wind would not allow us to touch there, so we sailed under the lee of Crete off Cape Salmone and struggled along the coast until we came to a place called Fair Havens, near the town of Lasea. - Acts 27:1-8 -

Storm and shipwreck

A great deal of time had been lost, and navigation was already hazardous since it was now well after the time of the Fast [ Another name for the feast of Atonement, the only fast day prescribed by the Law, Lev. 16:29-31. It was celebrated about the time of the autumn equinox.] so Paul gave them this warning, 'Friends, I can see this voyage will be dangerous and that we run the risk of losing not only the cargo and the ship but also our lives as well'. But the centurion took more notice of the captain and the ship's owner than of what Paul was saying; and since the habour was unsuitable for wintering, the majority were for putting out from there in the hope of wintering at Phoenix - a habour in Crete, facing south-west and north-west.

A southerly breeze sprang up and thinking their objective as good as reached, they weighed anchor and began to sail past Crete, close inshore. But it was not long before a hurricane, the 'north-easter' as they call it, burst on them from across the island. The ship was caught and could not turned head-on to the wind, so we had to give way to it and let ourselves be driven. We ran under the lee of a small island called Cauda and managed with some difficulty to bring the ship's boat under control. They hoisted it aboard and with some difficulty to bring the ship's boat under control. They hoisted it aboard and with the help of tackle bound cables round the ship; then, afraid of running aground on the Syrtis banks, they floated out the sea-anchor and so let themselves drift.

As we were making very heavy weather of it, the next day they began to jettison the cargo and the third day they threw the ship's gear overboard with their own hands. For a number of days both the sun and the stars were invisible and the storm raged unabated until at last we gave up all hope of surviving.

Then, when they had been without food for a long time, [ Paul's second speech (vv. 33f) would follow naturally on this observation. This first speech (vv. 21-26) seems to have been rather clumsilly introduced into this context and to be partly a repetition of the second.] Paul stood out among the men. 'Friends,' he said 'if you had listened to me and not put out from Crete, you would have spared yourselves all this damage and loses. But now I ask you not to give way to despair. There will be no loss of life at all, only the ship.

Last night there was standing beside me an angel of the God to whom I belong and whom I serve, and he said, "Do not be afraid, Paul. You are destined to appear before Caesar, [ Not before Nero in person but before his tribunal.] and for this reason God grants you the safety of all who are sailing with you." So take courage, friends; I trust in God that things will turn out just as I was told; but we are to be stranded on some island.' - Acts 27:1-26 -

On the fourteen night we were being driven one way and another in the Adriatic [ The name was used for all that part of the Mediterranean between Greece, Italy and Africa.] when about midnight the crew sensed that land of some sort was near. They took soundings and found twenty fathoms; after a short interval they sounded again and found fifteen fathoms. Then, afraid that we might run aground somewhere on a reef, they dropped four anchors from the stern and prayed for daylight. When some of the crew tried to escape from the ship and lowered the ship's boat into the sea as though to lay out anchors from the bows, Paul said to the centurion and his men, 'Unless those men stay on board you cannot hope to be saved'. So the soldiers cut the boat's ropes and let it drop away.

Just before daybreak Paul urged them all to have something to eat. 'For fourteen days' he said 'you have been in suspense, going hungry and eating nothing. Let me persuade you to have something to eat; your safety is not in doubt. Not a hair of your heads will be lost.' With these words he took some bread, gave thanks to God in front of them all, broke it and began to eat. [ Western Text add. 'giving it to us also'. All Jews pronounced a blessing when about to eat; nevertheless, the terms Luke uses seem to suggest the Eucharist, cf. 2:42+.] Then they all plucked up courage and took something to eat themselves. We were in all two hundred and seventy-six souls on board that ship When they had eaten what they wanted they lightened the ship by throwing the corn overboard into the sea. - Acts 27:27-38 -

When day came they did not recognise the land, but they could make out a kind of bay with a beach; they planned to run the ship aground on this if they could. They slipped the anchors and left them to the sea, and at the same time loosened the lashings of the rudders; then, hoisting the foresail to the wind, they headed for the beach. But the cross-currents carried them into a shoal and the vessel ran aground. The bows were wedged in and stuck fast, while the stern began to break up with the pounding of the waves.

The soldiers planned to kill the prisoners for fear that any should swim off and escape. But the centurion was determined to bring Paul safely through and would not let them do what they intended. He gave orders that those who could swim should jump overboard first and so get ashore, and the rest follow either on planks or on pieces of wreckage. In this way all came safe and sound to land. - Acts 27:39-44 -

Waiting in Malta

Once we had come safely through, we discovered that the island was called Malta. The inhabitants treated us with unusual kindness. They made us all welcome, and they lit a huge fire because it had started to rain and the weather was cold. Paul had collected a bundle of sticks and was putting them on the fire when a viper brought out by the heat attached itself to his hand. When the natives saw the creature hanging from his hand they said to one another, 'That man must be a murderer; he may have escaped the sea, but divine vengeance [ Lit. 'justice', dike, the divine justice personified.] would not let him live'.

However, he shook the creature off into the fire and came to no harm, although they were expecting him at any moment to swell up or drop dead on the spot. After they had waited a long time without seeing anything out of the ordinary happen to him, they changed their minds and began to say he was a god.

In that neighbourhood there were estates belonging to the prefect of the island, whose name was Publius. He received us and entertained us hospitably for three days. It so happen that Publius' father was in bed, suffering from feverish attacks and dysentery. Paul went to see him, and after a prayer he laid his hands on the man and healed him. When this happened, the other sick people on the island came as well and were cured; they honoured us with many marks of respect, and when we sailed they put on board the provisions we needed. - Acts 28:1-10 -

From Malta to Rome

At the end of three months we set sail in a ship that had wintered in the island; she came from Alexandria and her figurehead was the Twins. We put in at Syracuse and spent three days there; from there we followed the coast up to Rhegium. After one day there a south wind sprang up and on the second day we made Puteoli, [ Pozzuoli on the Gulf of Naples. There was already a Christian colony in this busy port.] where we found some brothers and were much rewarded by staying a week with them. And so we came to Rome.

When the brothers there heard of our arrival they came to meet us, as far as the Forum of Appius and the Three Taverns. When Paul saw them he thanked God and took courage. On our arrival in Rome Paul was allowed to stay in lodgings of his own with the soldiers who guarded him. [ Western Text (adopted by the Antiochene recension) '... Rome, the centurion handed the prisoners over to the commander. But Paul was allowed to live outside the (Praetorian) camp.' This additional information agrees with what in fact must have happened. By the concession of custodia militaris the prisoner had his own lodgings, but his right arm was chained to the left of the soldier in charge.] - Acts 28:11-16 -

Paul makes contact with the Roman Jews 

WELCOME TO SACRED SCRIPTURE/WORD OF GOD/HOLY BIBLE READER'S COMMUNITY. Wishing you, 'Happy Reading', and may God, the Father, the Son of the living God, Jesus Christ, fills your heart, mind, thoughts, and grants you: The Holy Spirit, that is, Wisdom, Knowledge, Understanding, Counsel, Piety, Fortitude, and the fear of the Lord, and also His fruits of the Holy Spirit, that is, Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Trustfulness, Gentleness and Self-Control. Amen! God blessing be upon you!

"EACH ONE OF US, HOWEVER, HAS BEEN GIVEN HIS OWN SHARE OF GRACE, GIVEN AS THE LORD JESUS CHRIST ALLOTTED IT. IT WAS SAID THAT HE WOULD:

             WHEN HE ASCENDED TO THE HEIGHT, HE CAPTURED PRISONERS,
             HE GAVE GIFTS TO MEN.

WHEN IT SAYS, 'HE ASCENDED,' WHAT CAN IT MEAN IF NOT THAT HE DESCENDED RIGHT DOWN TO THE LOWER REGIONS OF THE EARTH? THE ONE WHO ROSE HIGHER THAN ALL THE HEAVENS TO FILL ALL THINGS IS NONE OTHER THAN THE ONE WHO DESCENDED.

AND TO SOME, HIS GIFT WAS THAT THEY SHOULD BE APOSTLES; TO SOME, PROPHETS; TO SOME, EVANGELISTS; TO SOME, PASTORS AND TEACHERS; SO THAT THE SAINTS TOGETHER MAKE A UNITY IN THE WORK OF SERVICE, BUILDING UP THE BODY OF THE LORD JESUS CHRIST.

IN THIS WAY WE ARE ALL TO COME TO UNITY IN OUR FAITH AND IN OUR KNOWLEDGE OF THE SON OF GOD, UNTIL WE BECOME THE PERFECT MAN, FULLY MATURE WITH THE FULLNESS OF CHRIST HIMSELF.

THEN WE SHALL NOT BE CHILDREN ANY LONGER, OR TOSSED ONE WAY AND ANOTHER AND CARRIED ALONG BY EVERY WIND OF DOCTRINE, AT THE MERCY OF ALL THE TRICKS MEN PLAY AND THEY CLEVERNESS IN PRACTISING DECEIT.

IF WE LIVE BY THE TRUTH AND IN LOVE, WE SHALL GROW IN ALL WAYS INTO CHRIST JESUS, WHO IS THE HEAD BY WHOM THE WHOLE BODY IS FITTED AND JOINED TOGETHER, EVERY JOINT ADDING ITS OWN STRENGTH, FOR EACH SEPARATE PART TO WORK ACCORDING TO IT FUNCTION. SO THE BODY GROWS UNTIL IT HAS BUILT ITSELF UP, IN LOVE." - EPHESIANS 4:7-16 -

When Sacred Scripture says: those who believe in him will have no cause for shame, it makes no distinction between Jew and Greek: all belong to the same Lord, Jesus Christ, who is rich enough, however many ask his help, for everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.

But they will not ask for his help unless they believe in him, and they will not believe in him unless they heard of him, and they will not hear of him unless they get a preacher, and they will never have a preacher unless one is sent, but as Sacred Scripture say: The footsteps of those who bring good news is a welcome sound.

Not everyone, of course, listens to the Good News. As prophet Isaiah says: Lord, how many believed what we proclaimed? So faith comes from what is preached, and what is preached comes from the word of Christ Jesus. [ 'Word of God' ] - Romans 10:11-17 -

                                                  Page 63

Faith . Hope . Love - Welcome donation. Thank You. God bless. 

By bank transfer/cheque deposit:

Name: Alex Chan Kok Wah
Bank: Public Bank Berhad account no: 4076577113
Country: Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Sunday, May 24, 2009

I have through years of reading, pondering, reflecting and contemplating, the 3 things that last; FAITH . HOPE . LOVE and I would like to made available my sharing from the many thinkers, authors, scholars and theologians whose ideas and thoughts I have borrowed. God be with them always. Amen!

I still have many things to say to you but they would be too much for you now. But when the spirit of truth comes, He will lead you to the complete truth, since he will not be speaking as from himself, but will say only what he has learnt; and he will tell you of the things to come.

He will glorify Me, since all he tells you will be taken from what is Mine. Everything the Father has is Mine; that is why I said: all he tells you will be taken from what is Mine. - John 16:12-15 -