All Saved

“And while the day was coming on, Paul besought them all to take meat, saying, This day is the fourteenth day that ye have tarried, and continued fasting, having taken nothing. Wherefore, I pray you to take some meat, for this is for your health: for there shall not an hair fall from the head of any of you,” etc. — Acts xxvii. 33-44; xxvni. 1-10.

WE have seen how Paul comprehended the design of the sailors and defeated it. His experience in former shipwrecks had not been thrown away upon him; and although these earlier dangers are not recorded, as not being, like this one, a great crisis for the kingdom, the lessons which they taught come in with effect precisely where they are needed. A word from Paul to the centurion, and a word from the centurion to his men, and in a moment two or three short broadswords flashed from their scabbards, the ropes by

All Saved. which the boat was suspended were snapped asunder, and the boat fell with a splash into the sea. It would drift away unseen among the rocks, and be dashed to pieces. The sailors, having now no means of going ashore, were obliged to abide by the ship; and by their skill in the morning all were saved.

As day began to break, when they could see each other, but could not discern the land, at Paul’s suggestion food was distributed, and the men were cheered by the hope of deliverance. At that meal, with a miscellaneous multitude numbering two hundred and seventy-six, consisting of Christians, Jews, and heathens of various name and nation, the voice of the apostle was lifted up above the noise of wind, and waves, giving cheerful thanks to God for his goodness. The ascendency of the Christian missionary at that anxious hour was an honour to the gospel which he preached, and would probably contribute to commend his message to many who witnessed it. The example of one courageous man was infectious: “Then were they all of good cheer, and they also took some meat.”

At this crisis the seamen further lightened the ship by throwing cargo overboard; not only to prevent her from sinking, but to diminish her draught, and so enable her to run higher on the beach. When the day dawned, the sailors keenly scanned the unknown shore, and discovering a small opening in the girdle of rocks, with a shelving and probably a sandy beach, they determined if possible to run the ship aground there.

Three operations, successively narrated but simultaneously performed, combined and conspired to the success of the plan. 1. They cut off the anchors, for there was not time to heave them up. 2. They loosed the rudder-bands. The steering apparatus of an ancient ship was not like our modern helm.

It consisted of two large, long, loose oars, both at the stern, one on either side of the keel. The ship’s bulwarks were perforated on the two quarters for these two great projecting paddles. Now, whenever these oars were out of use, they were raised out of the water, and lashed with ropes to the ship’s sides. It was necessary, the moment that the anchor cables were cut, to let down the rudders in order to direct the course of the ship. 3. They hoisted a foresail to give the ship more way, and so enable them to steer into the creek. In all this the presence of experienced seamen was necessary. The soldiers could not have handled the ship in this fashion; and, if the sailors had escaped during the night, the ship would have been wrecked on the breakers.

The scheme was successfully accomplished. The place where two seas met was probably the narrow channel between the mainland and a small island that lies in the bay close in-shore. Mr. Smith found the shore to consist of mud, fading away into clay. Striking there, the ship’s bow was immediately wedged into the solid, while the hinder part, still floating, was broken off by the violence of the waves.

In accordance with the cruel and reckless habits of wrar, the soldiers proposed a wholesale slaughter of the prisoners, lest any of them should escape; and even the centurion Julius, although he succeeded in diverting them from their purpose, did not base his request on grounds of humanity and justice. The measure was exceptional in order to preserve the life of Paul. We are left to understand that if the apostle had not been there, an object of interest and gratitude to the whole company, no serious opposition would have been made to the cruel precaution of the soldiers. Such is heathenism, and such is war.

After the skilful manner in which the ship was beached, the escape of all on board was easy and natural. As soon

All Saved. as they reached the land, they learned from the natives that the name of the island was Melita — beyond all reasonable doubt the Malta which has occupied a prominent place in mediaeval and modern history, and remains at this day politically one of the most important possessions of the British crown.

The natives, styled barbarians, as speaking a language not understood by either Greeks or Romans, exerted themselves to alleviate the sufferings of the passengers and crew. The people would be familiar with merchant ships passing and repassing between Italy and Egypt. As the rain was falling in torrents after the hurricane had spent itself, a fire was kindled on the spot. As the shipwrecked men gathered round the fire, cold and wet in the grey dawn of that wintry morning, each, as he saw opportunity, cast in some sticks to feed the flame. Paul himself, ever thoughtful and active in things small or great, gathered also a handful of fuel and threw it on the fire. Forthwith a viper glided out and fastened on his naked hand. Evidently the reptile had been coiled up among the branches as they lay on the ground; and naturally it made its way out as soon as it felt the heat. The barbarians entertained some notions of natural religion, which were in the main sound, although in practice wrongly applied. They had an idea that sin will find the sinner out, although there may be apparent impunity for a time. They thought the bite of the viper was fatal, and that the death of a man who was saved from shipwreck was a notable example of sure though tardy justice in the administration of the world. They imagined that in this case the punishment proved the guilt.

Paul shook off the viper, and experienced no harm. In this and many other similar cases there is not specific infor- 1 mation whether the immunity was due to natural or supernatural causes. But on either supposition alike, Paul’s life was preserved by the care of our Father in heaven. The natives now changed their minds and gravitated to the opposite extreme. Him whom they had considered a murderer overtaken by vengeance, they will now revere as a deity. Such is the genius of heathenism. “When it comes to any strait, such as a swollen Jordan, it cries, Where is Elijah my God? but true faith, in extremities, calls confidingly on the “Lord God of Elijah.”

I suppose Paul shrunk with loathing and horror from the reptile, when he saw and felt it creeping on his naked hand. I think he did not cast it coolly and gently away: he would shake the loathsome creature passionately from his flesh, lest it should plant its poison in his blood. Oh for such a loathing of sin in our members, and such rapid energy in casting it away! If there were such grace in our hearts as would shrink spiritually from the old serpent as quickly and strongly as the natural instincts shrink from the material sting, we should tread the path of life in safety, compassed with the Divine favour as with a shield.