Audio Download

Acts 27:23-44 Except These Abide in the Ship, Ye Cannot be Saved

[Study Aired October 22, 2023

Joh 8:31  Jesus was saying, therefore, unto the Jews who had believed on him—If, ye, abide in my word, of a truth, my disciples, ye are; (REV)

Joh 15:4  Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me.

Act 27:23  For there stood by me this night the angel of God, whose I am, and whom I serve,
Act 27:24  Saying, Fear not, Paul; thou must be brought before Caesar: and, lo, God hath given thee all them that sail with thee.
Act 27:25  Wherefore, sirs, be of good cheer: for I believe God, that it shall be even as it was told me.
Act 27:26  Howbeit we must be cast upon a certain island.
Act 27:27  But when the fourteenth night was come, as we were driven up and down in Adria, about midnight the shipmen deemed that they drew near to some country;
Act 27:28  And sounded, and found it twenty fathoms: and when they had gone a little further, they sounded again, and found it fifteen fathoms.
Act 27:29  Then fearing lest we should have fallen upon rocks, they cast four anchors out of the stern, and wished for the day.
Act 27:30  And as the shipmen were about to flee out of the ship, when they had let down the boat into the sea, under colour as though they would have cast anchors out of the foreship,
Act 27:31  Paul said to the centurion and to the soldiers, Except these abide in the ship, ye cannot be saved.
Act 27:32  Then the soldiers cut off the ropes of the boat, and let her fall off.
Act 27:33  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.
Act 27:34  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.
Act 27:35  And when he had thus spoken, he took bread, and gave thanks to God in presence of them all: and when he had broken it, he began to eat.
Act 27:36  Then were they all of good cheer, and they also took some meat.
Act 27:37  And we were in all in the ship two hundred threescore and sixteen souls.
Act 27:38  And when they had eaten enough, they lightened the ship, and cast out the wheat into the sea.
Act 27:39  And when it was day, they knew not the land: but they discovered a certain creek with a shore, into the which they were minded, if it were possible, to thrust in the ship.
Act 27:40  And when they had taken up the anchors, they committed themselves unto the sea, and loosed the rudder bands, and hoised up the mainsail to the wind, and made toward shore.
Act 27:41  And falling into a place where two seas met, they ran the ship aground; and the forepart stuck fast, and remained unmoveable, but the hinder part was broken with the violence of the waves.
Act 27:42  And the soldiers’ counsel was to kill the prisoners, lest any of them should swim out, and escape.
Act 27:43  But the centurion, willing to save Paul, kept them from their purpose; and commanded that they which could swim should cast themselves first into the sea, and get to land:
Act 27:44  And the rest, some on boards, and some on broken pieces of the ship. And so it came to pass, that they escaped all safe to land.

We will go back over these verses and let the Word Himself open the eyes of our understanding to glean the lessons the Lord has for us in putting this disastrous event in His word for our admonition.

Let’s read the last verses of our last study to get the context of how the Lord has used His spirit, His wind, to drag this ship through the sea in such a manner as to deprive all on board of any hope of being saved. As we read these verses, remember that the holy spirit, through Paul, had advised the master and owner of the ship, and Julius the centurion, that they should stay in the harbor of fair havens or face a disaster at sea. Signifying how the Truth is received by the world today, the master of the ship and the centurion ignored Paul’s warning and took to the sea, being lured by the Lord Himself to do so:

Act 27:13  And when the south wind blew softly, supposing that they had obtained their purpose, loosing thence, they sailed close by Crete.
Act 27:14  But not long after there arose against it a tempestuous wind, called Euroclydon.
Act 27:15  And when the ship was caught, and could not bear up into the wind, we let her drive.
Act 27:16  And running under a certain island which is called Clauda, we had much work to come by the boat:
Act 27:17  Which when they had taken up, they used helps, undergirding the ship; and, fearing lest they should fall into the quicksands, strake sail, and so were driven.
Act 27:18  And we being exceedingly tossed with a tempest, the next day they lightened the ship;
Act 27:19  And the third day we cast out with our own hands the tackling of the ship.
Act 27:20  And when neither sun nor stars in many days appeared, and no small tempest lay on us, all hope that we should be saved was then taken away.
Act 27:21  But after long abstinence Paul stood forth in the midst of them, and said, Sirs, ye should have hearkened unto me, and not have loosed from Crete, and to have gained this harm and loss.
Act 27:22  And now I exhort you to be of good cheer: for there shall be no loss of any man’s life among you, but of the ship.

We ended our last study with Paul offering words of hope to the 276 people on board the ship. The hope given was that they would all be spared from death through the destruction of the ship. That probably sounded like a contradiction to some on board, but by this time the Lord had softened the heart of Julius the centurion to the point that he now had complete confidence in the words of Paul as being the words of the Lord Himself. We begin this study with Paul explaining the source of the hope he is extending to all:

Act 27:23  For there stood by me this night the angel of God, whose I am, and whom I serve,
Act 27:24  Saying, Fear not, Paul; thou must be brought before Caesar: and, lo, God hath given thee all them that sail with thee.
Act 27:25  Wherefore, sirs, be of good cheer: for I believe God, that it shall be even as it was told me.
Act 27:26  Howbeit we must be cast upon a certain island.
Act 27:27  But when the fourteenth night was come, as we were driven up and down in Adria, about midnight the shipmen deemed that they drew near to some country;
Act 27:28  And sounded, and found it twenty fathoms: and when they had gone a little further, they sounded again, and found it fifteen fathoms.

A ‘fathom’ is six feet. When they first “sounded” the water was 120 feet deep. The second sounding was 90 feet deep. They knew they were approaching land and decided to anchor for the night so they could see if there were any visible rocks near by.

Act 27:29  Then fearing lest we should have fallen upon rocks, they cast four anchors out of the stern, and wished for the day.
Act 27:30  And as the shipmen were about to flee out of the ship, when they had let down the boat into the sea, under colour as though they would have cast anchors out of the foreship,
Act 27:31  Paul said to the centurion and to the soldiers, Except these abide in the ship, ye cannot be saved.

Notice that Paul did not speak to the sailors or “the master of the ship” who had persuaded Julius to leave the Fair Havens harbor. He spoke only “to [Julius] the centurion and to the soldiers” who were under Julius. When Paul told them their own lives depended upon everyone, including the sailors, remaining in the ship, Julius and the soldiers now had so much confidence in Paul’s words being the words of God Himself that they took matters into their own hands:

Act 27:32  Then the soldiers cut off the ropes of the boat, and let her fall off.

So very much of what the Lord requires of us is counterintuitive. Why would anyone build a huge ship to escape a universal flood when it has never been known to rain? Why would anyone go down the west side of the Red Sea when your destination is on the east side? Why should anyone be expected to love his enemies and pray for those who despitefully use and persecute him? Why should anyone expect to die now for the sake of living later? It all makes just about as much physical sense as cutting off a life boat and letting it fall into the sea when it could have been used to ferry people to land. Such are the demands of our faith in the Lord and His provision for this very reason:

1Co 1:25  Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men.
1Co 1:26  For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called:
1Co 1:27  But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty;
1Co 1:28  And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are:
1Co 1:29  That no flesh should glory in his presence.

Act 27:33  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.
Act 27:34  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.

What is true physically in this story is true spiritually in our lives, as Christ said the same thing concerning ‘the hair’ of our new man:

Luk 21:16  And ye shall be betrayed both by parents, and brethren, and kinsfolks, and friends; and some of you shall they cause to be put to death.
Luk 21:17  And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake.
Luk 21:18  But there shall not an hair of your head perish.
Luk 21:19  In your patience possess ye your souls.

Those are contradictory statements to the natural mind. How can anyone say, “You shall be put to death” and in the same breath tell us, “But there shall not a hair of your head perish??” The next verse reflects how hard it is for us to appreciate the truth of those words:

Luk 21:19  In your patience possess ye your souls.

Fourteen days in waves that go up to heaven and then down to the depths without seeing the stars at night or the sun in the day is enough to soften the heart of the most hardened and rebellious soul. Everyone now was more willing to listen to the Lord’s spokesman and take hope in his encouraging words. There was nothing else left to believe in. They were all now “at their wits’ end”, and only now can they hear the Lord’s words through His prophet, Paul:

Psa 107:24  These see the works of the LORD, and his wonders in the deep.
Psa 107:25  For he commandeth, and raiseth the stormy wind, which lifteth up the waves thereof.
Psa 107:26  They mount up to the heaven, they go down again to the depths: their soul is melted because of trouble.
Psa 107:27  They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, and are at their wits’ end.
Psa 107:28  Then they cry unto the LORD in their trouble, and he bringeth them out of their distresses.
Psa 107:29  He maketh the storm a calm, so that the waves thereof are still.
Psa 107:30  Then are they glad because they be quiet; so he bringeth them unto their desired haven.

Notice the order of events… ‘Then they cry to the Lord in their trouble’, He makes the storm calm, and ‘then they are glad…’ That is how the Lord has ordained that we learn about Him. There is no way to the tree of life except we go through that fiery sword in the hands of the cherubims who signify those who have and know that fire themselves, the Lord’s elect:

Rev 5:8  And when he had taken the book, the four beasts [the cherubims (Eze 1 and Eze 10)] and four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having every one of them harps, and golden vials full of odours, which are the prayers of saints.
Rev 5:9  And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation;
Rev 5:10  And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.

Act 27:35  And when he had thus spoken, he took bread, and gave thanks to God in presence of them all: and when he had broken it, he began to eat.

For those who may think there is never a time to pray in public, both Christ and Paul “gave thanks to God in the presence of them all.”

Mat 14:19  And he commanded the multitude to sit down on the grass, and took the five loaves, and the two fishes, and looking up to heaven, he blessed, and brake, and gave the loaves to his disciples, and the disciples to the multitude.

The Lord gave His Word to Paul, and Paul gave it to the people on the ship. That is how the Lord communicates His Word to mankind. It is “through the church” (Eph 3:10). It is the same today. The Lord speaks to us through His elect who show us what is in His Word. His elect never “think above what is written” (1Co 4:6). However, it takes fourteen days of being thrown about on the sea by the storms of life, and being brought to our wits’ end to get us to the point of being willing to listen to the Lord’s spokesperson. If we are His in this present time, we do get to that point:

Act 27:36  Then were they all of good cheer, and they also took some meat.

The scriptures teach that we are saved by hope (Rom 8:24). Rest assured Paul gave thanks for much more than the food they were all about to eat. He would never have passed the opportunity to thank the Lord for the promise He had given him that all in the ship would be saved.

Act 27:37  And we were in all in the ship two hundred threescore and sixteen souls.

This number included everyone on the ship; the ship’s crew, its master and owner and all the prisoners and any passengers who just happened to be going to Italy. It was “all in the ship.” They had all ‘lost any hope of being saved’ until Paul was reminded by Christ that he must go to Rome and appear before and witness to Caesar:

Act 27:23  For there stood by me this night the angel of God, whose I am, and whom I serve,
Act 27:24  Saying, Fear not, Paul; thou must be brought before Caesar: and, lo, God hath given thee all them that sail with thee.
Act 27:25  Wherefore, sirs, be of good cheer: for I believe God, that it shall be even as it was told me.
Act 27:26  Howbeit we must be cast upon a certain island.

This promise of being physically delivered from drowning at sea in the midst of a terrible storm that lasted more than two weeks by “being cast upon a certain island” typifies and signifies our own spiritual deliverance through the hope of the promise we are given of the Lord’s spirit as “the earnest of our inheritance, until the redemption of the purchased possession.” These words were penned by Paul after he had arrived in Rome and while he was waiting to witness to Caesar:

Eph 1:11  In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:
Eph 1:12  That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ.
Eph 1:13  In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,
Eph 1:14  Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.

Being ‘cast on this island’ was just the downpayment of arriving safely in Rome to stand before Caesar. Paul’s faith was being tried, and just as Christ Himself was comforted by an angel when His sweat became as great drops of blood when He knew He was about to be apprehended and crucified, Paul, too, was comforted by an angel after all hope of being saved was lost

Luk 22:41  And he was withdrawn from them about a stone’s cast, and kneeled down, and prayed,
Luk 22:42  Saying, Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done.
Luk 22:43  And there appeared an angel unto him from heaven, strengthening him.
Luk 22:44  And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly: and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground.

Christ is “the Lord’s goat” of Leviticus 16, who physically died for the sins of the world. Paul and you and I are the ‘scapegoat’ which lives and which also bears the sins of the world.

Lev 16:9  And Aaron shall bring the goat upon which the LORD’S lot fell, and offer him for a sin offering.
Lev 16:10  But the goat, on which the lot fell to be the scapegoat, shall be presented alive before the LORD, to make an atonement with him [with “the Lord’s goat”], and to let him go for a scapegoat into the wilderness.

Lev 16:21  And Aaron shall lay both his hands upon the head of the live goat, and confess over him all the iniquities of the children of Israel, and all their transgressions in all their sins, putting them upon the head of the goat, and shall send him away by the hand of a fit man into the wilderness:
Lev 16:22  And the [scapegoat, the “living sacrifice of Romans 12:1] goat shall bear upon him all their iniquities unto a land not inhabited: and he shall let go the goat in the wilderness.

What Paul and all who were on that ship enduring this fiery life threatening trial typify is our own ‘daily dying, being crucified with Christ and presenting our bodies as a living sacrifice to God, daily, as we await the “redemption of the purchased possession”, the True deliverance through a resurrection from among the dead.

Eph 1:11  In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:
Eph 1:12  That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ.
Eph 1:13  In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,
Eph 1:14  Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession [the resurrection], unto the praise of his glory.

Act 27:38  And when they had eaten enough, they lightened the ship, and cast out the wheat into the sea.

In verse six of this chapter, we are told that this ship was “a ship of Alexandria” in Egypt. Egypt was known as “the breadbasket of the Roman Empire” because of all the wheat which was grown in Egypt. Wheat was the main cargo and the payload of this ship. Casting the wheat out into the sea signifies our willingness to give up all for Christ and to do whatever it takes to save our life in this present time of fiery trials. From a practical perspective, casting all the wheat into the sea will serve to lighten the ship enough to get close enough to land to secure the rescue of all the two hundred seventy-six people on board. The spiritual significance is being brought to the point of willingly giving up everything in this life to secure salvation in this present time:

Mat 10:39  He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it.

Act 27:39  And when it was day, they knew not the land: but they discovered a certain creek with a shore, into the which they were minded, if it were possible, to thrust in the ship.
Act 27:40  And when they had taken up the anchors, they committed themselves unto the sea, and loosed the rudder bands, and hoised up the mainsail to the wind, and made toward shore.
Act 27:41  And falling into a place where two seas met, they ran the ship aground; and the forepart stuck fast, and remained unmoveable, but the hinder part was broken with the violence of the waves.

This “forepart stuck fast… but the hinder part was broken with the violence of the waves” is a picture of how the cross was dropped into a hole that had been dug to keep it upright, while our Lord was the hinder part of this ship which was broken for us:

1Co 11:24  And when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me.

Not a bone of his body was broken, but His flesh was so mutilated that He died on the cross ahead of the two thieves who were crucified with Him. His “body [was indeed] broken for [us].” Let us not forget that we are His body, which is the church, and that we, too, are broken for “His body’s sake which is the church.”

Col 1:24  Who now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body’s sake, which is the church:

Act 27:42  And the soldiers’ counsel was to kill the prisoners, lest any of them should swim out, and escape.
Act 27:43  But the centurion, willing to save Paul, kept them from their purpose; and commanded that they which could swim should cast themselves first into the sea, and get to land:

These verses speak volumes about the respect and love Julius the centurion had come to have for Paul. It is an example of how we should be willing to die for our brothers in Christ. Had any of the prisoners been lost, Julius and his soldiers would have paid the price. Nevertheless, for Paul’s sake Julius spared the lives of all the prisoners. It wasn’t Julius who was calling the shots though. It was the Lord who was protecting His elect even as He was destroying the very ship that was also their lifeboat throughout this entire storm. Christ is our captain, and He is our salvation. Like this boat that was broken to save the lives of the two hundred seventy six people who were aboard, Christ’s body was also “broken for [us].”

1Co 11:24  And when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me.

Act 27:44  And the rest, some on boards, and some on broken pieces of the ship. And so it came to pass, that they escaped all safe to land.

Again, this temporal deliverance… ‘safe to land’ signifies our calling to be a living sacrifice. We are commissioned and sent to present our bodies as a living sacrifice (Rom 12:1), to crucify our old man with Christ (Rom 6:6), to die daily with Christ (1Co 15:31) and to be crucified with Him (Gal 2:20). That is how we fill up what is behind of Christ’s afflictions and serve as an atonement with Christ for the sins of the people in our capacity as the scapegoat of the day of atonement, and the second bird of the lepers offering in Leviticus 16 and 14 respectively. ‘Coming safe to land’ after “all hope of being saved was taken away” signifies “the earnest of the spirit [which sustains us in our own fiery trials] until the redemption of the purchased possession.”

Eph 1:12  That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ.
Eph 1:13  In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,
Eph 1:14 Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.

Paul’s appearing before Caesar typifies our appearing before the judgment seat of Christ, and being cast on some island before appearing before Caesar signifies our being sealed with the holy spirit of promise until the redemption of the purchased possession; our appearing before Christ.

2Co 5:10  For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.

The rewards of serving Christ are beyond our ability to appreciate in this present time, but if we speak only of the reward and do not admonish each other of the means of attaining those rewards we will have the blood of others on our hands.

Eze 33:6  But if the watchman see the sword come, and blow not the trumpet, and the people be not warned; if the sword come, and take any person from among them, he is taken away in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at the watchman’s hand.

Rom 8:18  For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.
Rom 8:19  For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God.

Our calling is to a life of “much tribulation” (Act 14:22), “suffering with [Christ]” (Rom 8:17, 2Ti 2:12) and “fiery trials” (1Pe 4:12). Reminding the Lord’s flock of those words is the blowing of the trumpet to warn His people. It was Christ Himself who warned us against the doctrine which teaches that He came to bring us peace. We do indeed have peace in the spirit, but in this world we are “hated of all men” and considered as cursed of the Lord.

Joh 16:33  These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.

Mat 10:34  Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword.
Mat 10:35  For I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law.
Mat 10:36  And a man’s foes shall be they of his own household.
Mat 10:37  He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.
Mat 10:38  And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me.
Mat 10:39  He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it.

If our names are written in the Lamb’s book of life, and if we are the apple of His eye, then these verses of Romans 8 are the lesson for us to be learned from the story of this storm or this life which took away all hope of being saved:

Rom 8:33  Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God’s elect? It is God that justifieth.
Rom 8:34  Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us.
Rom 8:35  Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?
Rom 8:36  As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.
Rom 8:37  Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.
Rom 8:38  For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come,
Rom 8:39  Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

In our next study we will see how the Lord provided communications within His body long before Zoom ever existed, when we see the welcome the church at Rome gave the apostle Paul upon his arrival in Rome.