Acts of the Apostles Chapter 27 Summary

On The Road To Rome

  • Paul sets sails for Rome. Bon voyage!
  • He is put on a ship with other prisoners headed for Italy, but the journey isn't quick or easy. When the ship docks in Crete for a bit, Paul warns them not to go onto the island. For some odd reason, the soldiers and sailors don't listen to the criminal in their midst.

Sit Down, You're Rocking The Boat

  • Once they set sail the winds pick up and things are not looking good. It's a northeaster and it rocks the ship around for days. Food and supplies run short. Everyone thinks they're gonna die.
  • Um, I told you so, Paul says. He explains that he saw a vision all about this. The good news is they're all gonna make it in one piece to Rome. The bad news is the ship is not.
  • After fourteen days of storm and terror, the sailors think they might be near land, so some of them lower boats to escape the ship.
  • Paul lets everyone know that if people leave the ship it's not going to go well. He reminds everyone about his vision. The whole everyone survives bit is kind of contingent on nobody jumping ship. The men come back and all is well.
  • As the sun is coming up, Paul offers everyone food. Apparently no one has eaten for fourteen days because they've been busy freaking out at sea. He breaks bread and gives thanks to God and then passes it out to everyone.
  • The whole ship (all 276 people on board) start to feel better.

Land, Ho!

  • Finally, the ship comes near land, hits a huge reef, and start to break apart. It's like Titanic, but without the iceberg… and way fewer lifeboats.
  • The soldiers on the ship want to kill all the prisoners so they can't escape and run off once they reach land. But the soldier who's in charge of Paul stops them. He's taken a bit of a liking to Paul during this whole crazy journey.
  • The head solider tells everyone to jump overboard and swim for land. Everyone makes it safely off the ship and Paul's vision totally comes true.