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Commentary Index | Return to PrayerRequest.com | DownloadBob Utley You Can Understand the Bible - Acts 27:13 - 27:20
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This Chapter Verse Commentaries:
NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Act_27:13-20
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 before very long there rushed down from the land a violent wind, called Euraquilo; 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. 16Running under the shelter of a small island called Clauda, we were scarcely able to get the ship's boat under control. 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 we were being violently storm-tossed, they began to jettison the cargo; 19and on the third day they threw the ship's tackle overboard with their own hands. 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.
Act_27:14
NASB, NRSV "a violent wind"
NKJV "a tempestuous wind"
TEV "a very strong wind"
NJB "a hurricane"
This Greek word is tuphôn (typhoon) + ikos (like). This was a sudden, very violent wind. It was probably intensified by the 7,000 foot mountains on Crete.
NASB "Euraquico"
NKJV "Euroclydon"
NRSV, TEV "the northeaster"
NJB "the north-easter"
This was a special name the sailors had given for this type of wind during this season. It is made up of (1) a Greek term, "east wind" (euros) and (2) a Latin term "north wind" (aquilo). It was a strong, sudden northeast wind.
Because this became a technical nautical term (eukakulôn), it was misunderstood by later scribes who altered it in several ways to try to make the context make sense.
Act_27:15 "could not face the wind" Ancient ships had eyes painted on each side of the bow. Later human or animal figures were placed on the bow (cf. Act_28:11). Even today we personify ships as females. This phrase is literally "against" (anti) plus "eye" (ophthalmos). They could not head the ship into the wind.
Act_27:16 "Clauda" This small island is about fifty miles off the southern coast of Crete. They were now helpless in the face of a strong northeastern wind. They took advantage of the brief shelter from the wind to do what they could to prepare the ship for rough seas.
There are several Greek manuscript variants as to the name of this island.
1. Kauda, MSS P74, à cf8 i2, B
2. Klauda, MSS à *, A
3. Klaudçn, MSS H, L, P, and many later minuscule manuscripts
4. Gaudçn, the Greek text used by Jerome
5. Klaudion, some minuscule manuscripts
UBS3 and UBS4 give #1 a "B" rating (almost certain). The first two options may be the Greek form and the Latin form of the name.
▣ "to get the ship's boat under control" This refers to a smaller boat in tow (cf. Act_27:30; Act_27:32). This trailing boat formed a drag which made it difficult to steer the larger ship.
Act_27:17 "used supporting cables in undergirding the ship" This refers to wrapping special ropes around the hull to help hold it together in storms (cf. Aristotle, Rhetoric 2.5.18).
▣ "the shallows of Syrtis" These are moving sand bars off the coast of northern Africa. They were called Syrtis Major and Syrtis Minor (cf. Pliny, Nat. Hist. 5.4,27). They were the graveyard of many a sailing ship. To avoid the Syrtis Major the sailors steered the ship sideways, so as to drift slowly southward.
▣ "sea anchor" The key to properly interpreting this context is the term "lowered." What did they lower: (1) a sea anchor or (2) part of the sail? The purpose was to slow the ship down, but at the same time allow some control.
A sea anchor is not an anchor that gripped the bottom, but a parachute-like sheet which used the weight of the water it contained to slow down the ship from drifting southward (cf. old Latin text and NASB, NRSV, and NJB).
There are several English translations which translate this as "lower the sail" (cf. NKJV, TEV, NJB, and Peshitta in English). The Greek term literally means "a thing" (cf. Louw & Nida, Greek-English Lexicon, vol. 2, p. 223) and must be interpreted in light of a specific context. There are several specific papyrii texts which use it for a sail (cf. Moulton & Milligan, The Vocabulary of the Greek Testament, p. 577). If so, they lower part of the sails but not all of them. They had to retain some control and attempt to travel sideways as slowly as possible.
Act_27:18-19 This shows how violent and dangerous this storm seemed to these seasoned sailors (cf. Acts 20).
Act_27:18 "jettison the cargo" This act shows that these sailors were truly afraid for their lives.
Act_27:19 "the ship's tackle" Exactly to what this refers is unknown, possibly the main sail and its rigging. The term is ambiguous. This very same term refers to the sea-anchor, or part of the sails, in Act_27:17.
Act_27:20 "neither sun nor stars appeared for many days" This phrase apparently reveals that they had no clue as to where they were. They were afraid of the coast of north Africa, but they could not tell how close they were (cf. Act_27:29). Without stars or the sun they could not navigate or discern their position.
▣ "from then on all hope of our being saved was gradually abandoned" This sets the stage for Paul's encouragement based on his previous vision (cf. Act_27:21-26). Their resources were gone!