Following the court proceedings with Festus and King Agrippa, the plan was put into place to officially transport Paul to Italy to appear before Caesar. Paul, paired up with other prisoners under the authority of the centurion Julius, was accompanied again by Luke on this trip. They embarked on a ship of Adramyttium, now accompanied by Aristarchus, a Macedonian man. By the next day, they reached Sidon, where Julius showed humane treatment to Paul, allowing him to disembark to visit with and be refreshed by friends in that area. They then left Sidon sailing under the lee of Cyprus due to unfavorable winds. Sailing across the open sea, they then reached Myra in Licia of the mainland.
In Myra, Julius moved his prisoners to a different ship from Alexandria transporting grain to Italy. This large vessel sailed slowly and eventually reached Cnidus despite difficulty and then eventually reached Fair Havens in the southern part of Crete. Because of their slow travels and being acutely aware of the ferocious winter sea weather rapidly approaching, Paul advised them saying, “Sirs, I perceive that the voyage will be with injury and much loss, not only of the cargo and the ship, but also of our lives.” While Paul’s position certainly had merit, the centurion was more inclined to follow the wishes of the pilot and the ship owner who wanted to press on to Italy.
Paul’s advice was ultimately disregarded: “And because the harbor was not suitable to spend the winter in, the majority decided to put out to sea from there, on the chance that somehow they could reach Phoenix, a harbor of Crete, facing both southwest and northwest, and spend the winter there.” Acts 27:12
What will come of this ship encountering the perils of the Mediterranean Sea? Will Paul ever make it to Rome? Did Julius make a fatal decision by not listening to Paul? You can listen to this teaching on Acts 27:1-12 by clicking on the following link: Paul’s Incredible Journey To Rome (Part 1)
