Acts 27:1 ¶ And when it was determined that we should sail into Italy, they delivered Paul and certain other prisoners unto one named Julius, a centurion of Augustus’ band. 2 And entering into a ship of Adramyttium, we launched, meaning to sail by the coasts of Asia; one Aristarchus, a Macedonian of Thessalonica, being with us. 3 And the next day we touched at Sidon. And Julius courteously entreated Paul, and gave him liberty to go unto his friends to refresh himself. 4 And when we had launched from thence, we sailed under Cyprus, because the winds were contrary. 5 And when we had sailed over the sea of Cilicia and Pamphylia, we came to Myra, a city of Lycia. 6 And there the centurion found a ship of Alexandria sailing into Italy; and he put us therein. 7 And when we had sailed slowly many days, and scarce were come over against Cnidus, the wind not suffering us, we sailed under Crete, over against Salmone; 8 And, hardly passing it, came unto a place which is called The fair havens; nigh whereunto was the city of Lasea. 9 Now when much time was spent, and when sailing was now dangerous, because the fast was now already past, Paul admonished them, 10 And said unto them, Sirs, I perceive that this voyage will be with hurt and much damage, not only of the lading and ship, but also of our lives. 11 Nevertheless the centurion believed the master and the owner of the ship, more than those things which were spoken by Paul.
We saw mention of the Italian
Band in Acts 10. I read that the Augustus Band referred to a bodyguard
formed by the Emperor Nero to accompany him to games and other events. If this
is so they were returning to Rome and Paul would accompany them under guard,
which seems only fitting, as he has appealed directly to the emperor.
Adramyttium was a
port city on the west coast of what would be Turkey today. There was a famous
school of oratory there. They entered a ship registered in that city and sailed
to Sidon in modern-day Lebanon.
Paul’s status as a
Roman citizen is evident here as he is permitted to visit friends upon his
honor.
They intended to sail
by Cyprus but weather difficulties brought them back to the mainland and Myra.
They then changed ships to one registered in Alexandria. These geographical
locations are interesting, but they also show the perilousness of Paul’s
journey. Paul tries to warn those people in charge to no avail.
It is interesting to me
that the two main schools of Bible interpretation are Antioch and Alexandria,
the literal and the figurative. Paul is being taken to Rome, which will be home
to the Roman Catholic Church which embraces the Alexandrian manuscripts of the
Bible, and to shipwreck. So, leaving Antioch is not a favorable thing to do.
Plus, I am compelled to acknowledge that most modern Bible versions with their
dynamic equivalence method of translating and their reliance on a handful of
Alexandrian manuscripts are a far cry from the literal formal equivalence of
the King James Bible and its reliance on the Byzantine and Antiochan
manuscripts. Which ship are you on?
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