New Living Translation

New American Standard Bible 1995

1When the time came, we set sail for Italy. Paul and several other prisoners were placed in the custody of a Roman officer named Julius, a captain of the Imperial Regiment.

1When it was decided that we would sail for Italy, they proceeded to deliver Paul and some other prisoners to a centurion of the Augustan cohort named Julius.

2Aristarchus, a Macedonian from Thessalonica, was also with us. We left on a ship whose home port was Adramyttium on the northwest coast of the province of Asia; it was scheduled to make several stops at ports along the coast of the province.

2And embarking in an Adramyttian ship, which was about to sail to the regions along the coast of Asia, we put out to sea accompanied by Aristarchus, a Macedonian of Thessalonica.

3The next day when we docked at Sidon, Julius was very kind to Paul and let him go ashore to visit with friends so they could provide for his needs.

3The next day we put in at Sidon; and Julius treated Paul with consideration and allowed him to go to his friends and receive care.

4Putting out to sea from there, we encountered strong headwinds that made it difficult to keep the ship on course, so we sailed north of Cyprus between the island and the mainland.

4From there we put out to sea and sailed under the shelter of Cyprus because the winds were contrary.

5Keeping to the open sea, we passed along the coast of Cilicia and Pamphylia, landing at Myra, in the province of Lycia.

5When we had sailed through the sea along the coast of Cilicia and Pamphylia, we landed at Myra in Lycia.

6There the commanding officer found an Egyptian ship from Alexandria that was bound for Italy, and he put us on board.

6There the centurion found an Alexandrian ship sailing for Italy, and he put us aboard it.

7We had several days of slow sailing, and after great difficulty we finally neared Cnidus. But the wind was against us, so we sailed across to Crete and along the sheltered coast of the island, past the cape of Salmone.

7When we had sailed slowly for a good many days, and with difficulty had arrived off Cnidus, since the wind did not permit us to go farther, we sailed under the shelter of Crete, off Salmone;

8We struggled along the coast with great difficulty and finally arrived at Fair Havens, near the town of Lasea.

8and with difficulty sailing past it we came to a place called Fair Havens, near which was the city of Lasea.

9We had lost a lot of time. The weather was becoming dangerous for sea travel because it was so late in the fall, and Paul spoke to the ship’s officers about it.

9When considerable time had passed and the voyage was now dangerous, since even the fast was already over, Paul began to admonish them,

10“Men,” he said, “I believe there is trouble ahead if we go on—shipwreck, loss of cargo, and danger to our lives as well.”

10and said to them, "Men, I perceive that the voyage will certainly be with damage and great loss, not only of the cargo and the ship, but also of our lives."

11But the officer in charge of the prisoners listened more to the ship’s captain and the owner than to Paul.

11But the centurion was more persuaded by the pilot and the captain of the ship than by what was being said by Paul.

12And since Fair Havens was an exposed harbor—a poor place to spend the winter—most of the crew wanted to go on to Phoenix, farther up the coast of Crete, and spend the winter there. Phoenix was a good harbor with only a southwest and northwest exposure. The Storm at Sea

12Because the harbor was not suitable for wintering, the majority reached a decision to put out to sea from there, if somehow they could reach Phoenix, a harbor of Crete, facing southwest and northwest, and spend the winter there.

13When a light wind began blowing from the south, the sailors thought they could make it. So they pulled up anchor and sailed close to the shore of Crete.

13When a moderate south wind came up, supposing that they had attained their purpose, they weighed anchor and began sailing along Crete, close inshore.

14But the weather changed abruptly, and a wind of typhoon strength (called a “northeaster”) burst across the island and blew us out to sea.

14But before very long there rushed down from the land a violent wind, called Euraquilo;

15The sailors couldn’t turn the ship into the wind, so they gave up and let it run before the gale.

15and when the ship was caught in it and could not face the wind, we gave way to it and let ourselves be driven along.

16We sailed along the sheltered side of a small island named Cauda, where with great difficulty we hoisted aboard the lifeboat being towed behind us.

16Running under the shelter of a small island called Clauda, we were scarcely able to get the ship's boat under control.

17Then the sailors bound ropes around the hull of the ship to strengthen it. They were afraid of being driven across to the sandbars of Syrtis off the African coast, so they lowered the sea anchor to slow the ship and were driven before the wind.

17After they had hoisted it up, they used supporting cables in undergirding the ship; and fearing that they might run aground on the shallows of Syrtis, they let down the sea anchor and in this way let themselves be driven along.

18The next day, as gale-force winds continued to batter the ship, the crew began throwing the cargo overboard.

18The next day as we were being violently storm-tossed, they began to jettison the cargo;

19The following day they even took some of the ship’s gear and threw it overboard.

19and on the third day they threw the ship's tackle overboard with their own hands.

20The terrible storm raged for many days, blotting out the sun and the stars, until at last all hope was gone.

20Since neither sun nor stars appeared for many days, and no small storm was assailing us, from then on all hope of our being saved was gradually abandoned.

21No one had eaten for a long time. Finally, Paul called the crew together and said, “Men, you should have listened to me in the first place and not left Crete. You would have avoided all this damage and loss.

21When they had gone a long time without food, then Paul stood up in their midst and said, "Men, you ought to have followed my advice and not to have set sail from Crete and incurred this damage and loss.

22But take courage! None of you will lose your lives, even though the ship will go down.

22"Yet now I urge you to keep up your courage, for there will be no loss of life among you, but only of the ship.

23For last night an angel of the God to whom I belong and whom I serve stood beside me,

23"For this very night an angel of the God to whom I belong and whom I serve stood before me,

24and he said, ‘Don’t be afraid, Paul, for you will surely stand trial before Caesar! What’s more, God in his goodness has granted safety to everyone sailing with you.’

24saying, 'Do not be afraid, Paul; you must stand before Caesar; and behold, God has granted you all those who are sailing with you.'

25So take courage! For I believe God. It will be just as he said.

25"Therefore, keep up your courage, men, for I believe God that it will turn out exactly as I have been told.

26But we will be shipwrecked on an island.” The Shipwreck

26"But we must run aground on a certain island."

27About midnight on the fourteenth night of the storm, as we were being driven across the Sea of Adria, the sailors sensed land was near.

27But when the fourteenth night came, as we were being driven about in the Adriatic Sea, about midnight the sailors began to surmise that they were approaching some land.

28They dropped a weighted line and found that the water was 120 feet deep. But a little later they measured again and found it was only 90 feet deep.

28They took soundings and found it to be twenty fathoms; and a little farther on they took another sounding and found it to be fifteen fathoms.

29At this rate they were afraid we would soon be driven against the rocks along the shore, so they threw out four anchors from the back of the ship and prayed for daylight.

29Fearing that we might run aground somewhere on the rocks, they cast four anchors from the stern and wished for daybreak.

30Then the sailors tried to abandon the ship; they lowered the lifeboat as though they were going to put out anchors from the front of the ship.

30But as the sailors were trying to escape from the ship and had let down the ship's boat into the sea, on the pretense of intending to lay out anchors from the bow,

31But Paul said to the commanding officer and the soldiers, “You will all die unless the sailors stay aboard.”

31Paul said to the centurion and to the soldiers, "Unless these men remain in the ship, you yourselves cannot be saved."

32So the soldiers cut the ropes to the lifeboat and let it drift away.

32Then the soldiers cut away the ropes of the ship's boat and let it fall away.

33Just as day was dawning, Paul urged everyone to eat. “You have been so worried that you haven’t touched food for two weeks,” he said.

33Until the day was about to dawn, Paul was encouraging them all to take some food, saying, "Today is the fourteenth day that you have been constantly watching and going without eating, having taken nothing.

34“Please eat something now for your own good. For not a hair of your heads will perish.”

34"Therefore I encourage you to take some food, for this is for your preservation, for not a hair from the head of any of you will perish."

35Then he took some bread, gave thanks to God before them all, and broke off a piece and ate it.

35Having said this, he took bread and gave thanks to God in the presence of all, and he broke it and began to eat.

36Then everyone was encouraged and began to eat—

36All of them were encouraged and they themselves also took food.

37all 276 of us who were on board.

37All of us in the ship were two hundred and seventy-six persons.

38After eating, the crew lightened the ship further by throwing the cargo of wheat overboard.

38When they had eaten enough, they began to lighten the ship by throwing out the wheat into the sea.

39When morning dawned, they didn’t recognize the coastline, but they saw a bay with a beach and wondered if they could get to shore by running the ship aground.

39When day came, they could not recognize the land; but they did observe a bay with a beach, and they resolved to drive the ship onto it if they could.

40So they cut off the anchors and left them in the sea. Then they lowered the rudders, raised the foresail, and headed toward shore.

40And casting off the anchors, they left them in the sea while at the same time they were loosening the ropes of the rudders; and hoisting the foresail to the wind, they were heading for the beach.

41But they hit a shoal and ran the ship aground too soon. The bow of the ship stuck fast, while the stern was repeatedly smashed by the force of the waves and began to break apart.

41But striking a reef where two seas met, they ran the vessel aground; and the prow stuck fast and remained immovable, but the stern began to be broken up by the force of the waves.

42The soldiers wanted to kill the prisoners to make sure they didn’t swim ashore and escape.

42The soldiers' plan was to kill the prisoners, so that none of them would swim away and escape;

43But the commanding officer wanted to spare Paul, so he didn’t let them carry out their plan. Then he ordered all who could swim to jump overboard first and make for land.

43but the centurion, wanting to bring Paul safely through, kept them from their intention, and commanded that those who could swim should jump overboard first and get to land,

44The others held on to planks or debris from the broken ship. So everyone escaped safely to shore.

44and the rest should follow, some on planks, and others on various things from the ship. And so it happened that they all were brought safely to land.

Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

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