Paul’s Advice is Initially Rejected
May 22, 2022
Commentary
As Paul embarked upon his last journey, at least three things must have encouraged him (vv. 1-3). Luke, who dropped out of sight after leaving Paul in the hands of James and the elders of the Jerusalem church, (21:18) is with him. Julius, a hardened Roman centurion who was assigned to guard Paul, developed a respect for him and gave a certain amount of freedom (v. 3) and later spared his life (v. 43). The third blessing was Aristarchus, the man who was dragged into the theater at the beginning of the riot in Ephesus (19:29; 20:4), chose to act as a slave to Paul on this journey, rather than be separated from him. Loyalty can go no deeper than this.
The voyage began by coasting up to Sidon, where Paul was allowed to visit His Christian friends in the Church, presumably with a soldier to accompany him (v. 3). It is interesting to trace this journey on a map and try to visualize the trip. The centurion took his prisoners off the ship at Myra and changed them to another ship which had come across the Mediterranean Sea from Alexandria, in North Africa, and was going to Rome (vv. 4-8).
“The Fast” in verse 9 alludes to Yom Kippur, which that year fell in October, so they were in the dangerous period for travel, which ran from about mid-September to mid-November, at which time all navigation ceased until winter was over. This led Paul to predict that danger was ahead of them, and he recommended that they remain at Fair Havens and not attempt to go on (v. 8). But Fair Havens was not a very good harbor, nor was it near any sizeable town where the winter days might be enjoyed by the crew. So, the centurion and the pilot of the ship disregarded Paul’s advice, maybe thinking “what do preachers know about navigation?” (vv. 10-12). That is the way it so often is. The scales come down on the side of the so-called expert, on the side of science and scholarship, on the side of the man whose opinion is weighted by his position, by his learning.
Application
It has been said that the trouble with good advice is that it interferes with your plans. Lord, help me to be a person who searches your Word and seeks advice from those who are in touch with You. I don’t want to be a person who thinks I have all the answers.
Acts 27:1– 12 (NET)
1 When it was decided we would sail to Italy, they handed over Paul and some other prisoners to a centurion of the Augustan Cohort named Julius. 2 We went on board a ship from Adramyttium that was about to sail to various ports along the coast of the province of Asia and put out to sea, accompanied by Aristarchus, a Macedonian from Thessalonica. 3 The next day we put in at Sidon, and Julius, treating Paul kindly, allowed him to go to his friends so they could provide him with what he needed. 4 From there we put out to sea and sailed under the lee of Cyprus because the winds were against us. 5 After we had sailed across the open sea off Cilicia and Pamphylia, we put in at Myra in Lycia. 6 There the centurion found a ship from Alexandria sailing for Italy, and he put us aboard it. 7 We sailed slowly for many days and arrived with difficulty off Cnidus. Because the wind prevented us from going any farther, we sailed under the lee of Crete off Salmone. 8 With difficulty we sailed along the coast of Crete and came to a place called Fair Havens that was near the town of Lasea.
9 Since considerable time had passed and the voyage was now dangerous because the fast was already over, Paul advised them, 10 “Men, I can see the voyage is going to end in disaster and great loss not only of the cargo and the ship, but also of our lives.” 11 But the centurion was more convinced by the captain and the ship’s owner than by what Paul said. 12 Because the harbor was not suitable to spend the winter in, the majority decided to put out to sea from there. They hoped that somehow they could reach Phoenix, a harbor of Crete facing southwest and northwest, and spend the winter there.
Illustration: Advice“Accept It or Reject It
To the graduating class, I bequeath the good advice that I gave to the students of former years. It really is as good as new, for very few have ever used it. (Raymond L. Nooman).