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NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Act_27:9-12
9When considerable time had passed and the voyage was now dangerous, since even the fast was already over, Paul began to admonish them, 10and said to them, "Men, I perceive that the voyage will certainly be with damage and great loss, not only of the cargo and the ship, but also of our lives." 11But the centurion was more persuaded by the pilot and the captain of the ship than by what was being said by Paul. 12Because the harbor was not suitable for wintering, the majority reached a decision to put out to sea from there, if somehow they could reach Phoenix, a harbor of Crete, facing southwest and northwest, and spend the winter there.
Act_27:9 There were certain times of the year (winter months) when the rapid movement of storm fronts and wind directions made sailing dangerous in the Mediterranean.
▣ "the fast" This refers to the Day of Atonement (cf. Leviticus 16). It is the only fast day mentioned in the writings of Moses. This would make the voyage sometime between September and October. October was the marginal period for sea travel.
▣ "Paul began" This is an Imperfect tense which can refer to (1) continuous action in past time or (2) the beginning of an action. In context option #2 is best.
Act_27:10 Paul issues a strong and specific warning. However, in reality, this did not occur. Was Paul giving his personal opinion ("I perceive"), or did God change His mind and decide to spare the people on board (cf. Act_27:24)?
Act_27:11
NASB "the pilot and the captain"
NKJV "the helmsman and the owner"
NRSV "the pilot and the owner"
TEV, NJB "the captain and the owner"
This phrase denotes two separate people.
1. the pilot (kubernçtçs), which refers to the helmsman, the one who steers the ship (cf. Rev_18:17)
2. the captain (nauklçros, compound of "ship" [naus] and "to inherit" or "a lot" [klçros]), although the word could mean "ship owners" (cf. F. F. Bruce, The Book of Acts, p. 507, quotes Ramsay, St. Paul the Traveler, p. 324, who quotes Inscriptiones Graecae, 14.918). Its use in the Koine Papyri is "captain." The exact difference between these two terms is uncertain (cf. Louw and Nida, Greek-English Lexicon, vol. 1, p. 548 vs. Harold Moulton, The Analytical Greek Lexicon Revised, p. 275), but probably on a ship of this size (Alexandrian grain ship) there were several levels of leaders, as well as regular sailors.
Act_27:12 "if" This is a fourth class conditional sentence. Those who made the decision to sail knew it would be dangerous but thought they could make it.
▣ "Phoenix" This is a harbor on the southern shore of Crete, westward of Fair Havens. There is some doubt from ancient sources about its exact location (Strabo, Geography, 10.4.3 vs. Ptolemy, An Egyptian Geography 3.17.3). They were still sailing close to the shore along the southern coast of Crete.
▣ "facing southwest and northwest" Apparently at Phoenix there were two towns separated by a piece of land jutting into the sea. One harbor would be favorably related to winds from one direction and the other favorably related to winds from the other direction. The time of year determined which harbor was best.