Paul and the Storm on the Sea
Paul was a friend of Jesus. He told people about God. But one day he was captured. The soldiers wanted to take him far away – to a large city called Rome. To do this, they had to take a ship across the big, blue sea. The ship was large, many men were on it, including soldiers and sailors.
The trip started well. The sun was shining, the water was calm. But after some time the sea became wild. The wind grew stronger, big waves beat against the ship. Paul said to the men, “We should stay here, the weather is getting worse!” But the sailors did not listen to him. They drove on.
Suddenly, a huge storm came. The wind howled, the water splashed into the ship. It was dark, and the men were afraid. They threw heavy things into the sea so that the ship would not sink. For days the sky was full of clouds – no sun, no moon, no stars. Everyone was tired and hungry. They thought, “We’re going to die!”
But in the night Paul stood before the men. He said, “Do not be afraid! An angel from God was with me. He said, ‘Paul, you will be saved! And all who are with you on the ship!’ Have faith!”
After a fortnight, a sailor shouted loudly: “Land! I see land!” They quickly steered the ship towards the island. Then there was a crash – the ship hit stones and broke. The men jumped into the water. Some swam, others held on to pieces of wood. And just as Paul had said: No one drowned! God had saved her.
The men climbed onto the beach. It was cold on the island, but friendly people made a fire for them. Paul and all the others were saved! God had been watching over them.
What we learn from this story
God is with us, even when we are afraid. He protects us. We can trust him. 😊💙
Bible passage
The story of Paul’s salvation in shipwreck is found in Acts 27:1-44. Here is the full text from the Schlachter 2000 translation:
Acts 27:1-44:
*”But when it was decided that we should sail for Italy, they handed over Paul and some other prisoners to a centurion, named Julius, of the imperial troop. And we boarded an Adramyttian ship, which was to call at the ports of [Westküste] Asia, and departed; Aristarchus, a Macedonian from Thessalonica, was also with us. And the next day we landed in Sidon. And Julius, who treated Paul kindly, allowed him to go to his friends and be cared for. And from there we sailed and sailed under Cyprus, because the winds were against us. And after we had sailed the sea at Cilicia and Pamphilia, we came to Myra in Lycia. And when the centurion found an Alexandrian ship there that was sailing for Italy, he brought us to it. And as for many days we made only slow progress and only with difficulty reached the opposite of Cnidos, because the wind did not allow us to go any further, we sailed under Crete, opposite Salmone, and passed it with difficulty and came to a place called “Good Harbour”, near the city of Lasäa.
When some time had passed and the voyage was already dangerous, because the fast[1] was already over, Paul admonished them and said to them, “Husbands, I see that the continuation of the journey will only be with disaster and great damage, not only to the cargo and the ship, but also to our lives. But the centurion believed the helmsman and the ship’s master more than what Paul said. However, since the harbour was unsuitable for wintering, most of them advised to sail from there in order to get to Phoenix, a harbour of Crete that is open to the southwest and northwest, if possible, and to spend the winter there.
But when a gentle south wind blew, they thought that their plan had already succeeded; they weighed anchor and sailed as close as possible to Crete. But not long after, a hurricane swept from the island, called “Eurakylon”. And as the ship was swept away and could not be directed against the wind, we gave up and drifted. And when we sailed under a small island called Kauda, we were able to get hold of the lifeboat with difficulty. After winding it up, they used protective measures and tied the ship around the bottom. And because they feared to be driven into the Syrte, they threw in the sails and let themselves drift. But as we were hard pressed by the storm, they threw cargo into the sea the following day. And on the third day they threw out the ship’s equipment with their own hands.
But since neither sun nor stars shone for many days and a violent storm raged, all hope of salvation finally faded. And after they had been without food for a long time, Paul stood in the midst of them and said, “Husbands, they should have listened to me and not left Crete, and then we would have been spared this misfortune and the damage.” And now I exhort you to be of good cheer; for none of you will perish, only the ship! For that night an angel of the God to whom I belong and whom I also serve, came to me and said, “Do not be afraid, Paul.” You must come before the emperor; and behold, God has given you all those who travel with you. Therefore, be of good cheer, men; for I trust God that it will come to pass as I have been told. But we have to get stranded on an island!
But when the fourteenth night came, and we were drifted about in the Adriatic,[2] the sailors thought about midnight that they were approaching a nearby land. And when they threw the plumb line, they found 20 fathoms[3]; and when they went a little farther and soldered for the second time, they found 15 fathoms. Then they feared that we might get on cliffs somewhere, and threw four anchors from the stern and wished that it would be day. But when the sailors tried to flee from the ship and let the lifeboat down into the sea, under the pretext of dropping anchor from the foreship, Paul said to the centurion and the soldiers, “If they do not stay in the ship, you cannot be saved.” Then the soldiers cut off the ropes of the lifeboat and dropped it [ins Meer] .
And while it was beginning to lighten, Paul exhorted all to take food, saying, “Today is the fourteenth day that you have waited without food and have not eaten anything.” Therefore I exhort you to eat food; for this is for your salvation. For not one of you will lose a hair of his head! And when he had said this, he took bread, thanked God before them all, broke it, and began to eat. Then they all became in good spirits and also ate food. But we were in the ship a total of 276 souls. And when they were satisfied, they threw the grain into the sea, lightening the ship.
But when day came, they did not recognize the land; but they noticed a bay with a shallow shore, on which they wished to let the ship run aground, if possible. And when they cut the anchors and left them in the sea, they at the same time loosened the holders of the oars, and hoisted the foresail to the wind, and headed for the shore. But as they came to a sandbank, they left the ship stranded on it; and the forecastle bored in and sat motionless, but the stern was broken by the violence of the waves.
The soldiers, however, made the plan to kill the prisoners, so that none of them would swim out and escape. But the centurion, who wanted to save Paul, prevented them from doing so, and ordered that those who could swim should first throw themselves down and go ashore, then the rest, partly on planks, partly on the wreckage of ships. And so it happened that everyone was rescued ashore.” *
This passage impressively reports on God’s protection over Paul and his fellow travelers in shipwreck and shows how God gives salvation even in difficult times.
